Like everyone else in the 21st century, I’ve been really busy lately. Getting used to a new job, Husband traveling a lot, two kids in two different schools, the endless shuttling back and forth to the soccer fields, a To Do list that seems to breed in the night… I’m sure you’ve got your own version of the rush-rush-rush story.
One of the things that’s fallen off the edge of my over-full plate lately—along with such niceties as dusting or occasionally swabbing down the bathrooms—is writing for this blog, but then a student gave me an idea. The student was talking to a friend and said “I really wanted to do the reading for class, I downloaded it and everything, so you know I wanted to, but I just couldn’t get to it…”
So I’m borrowing a page from that student’s playbook and herewith offer you the posts that I wanted to write but…didn’t.
I wanted to write about the fact that there’s an election day coming up and one of my cousins sent me a great video reminding me of the importance of voting…or rather, reminding me that hiding in the house because I’m too appalled by the Tea Bag Brains really isn’t a viable option.
Then there was the post I wanted to write about poor Annie Coulter, being outflanked by the Sarah-and-Christine show, so much so that Ann has to pose, all bony-armed and spidery hair, for the Times (that lefty rag) so that they would cover her talk to HomoCon—a group of conservative gay men. Isn’t HomoCon one of those oxymoronic phrases (emphasis on the moron) like “military intelligence,” or “airplane cuisine,” or “jumbo shrimp.”
And of course I was dying to write about the gorgeously timed display of homophobia offered by Carl Paladino, who chose National Coming Out day to out himself as a raging homophobe (although opening that particular closet door didn’t surprise anyone). What do you suppose the HomoCons (or Paladino’s gay nephew) thought as they listened to Paladino call them “dysfunctional” and “disgusting?”
Maybe the HomoCons agreed with Coulter, who rushed to the barricades on Paladino’s behalf, calling him a “great warrior” whose remarks were only throwing “red meat” at his audience. Given that Paladino was speaking to a group of ultra-conservative Jewish rabbis, I hope that red meat was at very least kosher.
And then after two days of stonewalling (pun intentional), Palladino “apologized” for his remarks. His apology, however, reminds me of how six-year-old Caleb apologizes sometimes: which is to say loudly and sometimes slamming the door, so it’s clear he means “I AM SORRY YOU’RE ANGRY AND THAT I GOT CAUGHT.” Paladino apologized for not choosing “better words” … which isn’t really the same as saying “I’m sorry that I totally abrogated your civil rights and denied an essential aspect of your humanity.”
In non-political blog posts that I didn’t write but really wanted to is the fact that Husband just had his last birthday in the decade before the next REALLY BIG birthday. And despite his irrefutable middle age, I adore him and can imagine no other partner, although it would be nice if he’d stop leaving his (dirty) socks on the coffee table.
Then I thought about writing about the why it’s so hard to plan a Family Outing (it’s going to be FUN, dammit!). On Columbus Day, I got “but what about lego uuuuuniversssse?” (Lego Universe, the new computer game, is the obsession du jour, and worthy of a blog post in its own right); and I got “you promised we’d go to Forbidden Plaaaaaannet” and I got “I’ve got a head ache…I might be coming down with something…” A Family Outing seems to conflict with one of the laws of physics: a body at rest stays at rest. But once we got everyone in the car, whisked up the Palisades Parkway and found ourselves at Storm King Art Center, which combines BIG art and beautiful landscapes, we had a wonderful day. It was the same pattern as the day I suggested we go to the Maker Faire, that celebration of DIY techno-weirdness–everyone was all “do we have to” and then once we were there, no one wanted to leave. On both of these trips, I’ve made all three boys, the younger and the less-young, say (more than once) “This was a great idea! We’re so glad you suggested it.” Because, you know, outings are great, but being able to say “I told you so” is priceless.
I really wanted write about getting used to this damn Mac and its ridiculous bouncing icons. It’s like the toolbar of my computer now plays host to a group of squirming first-graders, “choose me! Choose me!” “Everyone” swore I would “love” the Mac after I “got used to it.” So far? Eh. It’s a computer, not a lifestyle.
See? There’s so much to talk about, and we haven’t even gotten to Choosing a Middle School, or Chilean Miners, or Traveling Husbands, or why I need a personal curator…there’s just so much I want to write about, but my To Do list has spawned, yet again, and all the little undone tasks are running rampant around the apartment getting into trouble.
