The Silent "I"

The Turkey Tango

Alex's second grade class had their Thanksgiving performance this morning.  His school tries to develop performing arts skills in students, so periodically the kids put on a show.  This one was a combination of poems, songs and individual recitations of what the kids are thankful for. 

Each of the three classes had one child welcome the audience at the beginning, and Alex was chosen for this part.  He had to say, "You are all special to us.  We hope you enjoy our time together."  He practiced several times the night before, and I drilled him on it while he was eating his cereal.  He was a little nervous in the morning, but did his line just fine.

The highlight of the show was when each child went to the microphone and said what they were thankful for.  The first class said pretty much the same thing.  "I'm thankful for my family, my house, and my toys" or some variation of that.

After they performed a poem in unison, the second class had their turn.  This group decided to bump it up a notch. They said, "I"m thankful for my family" and gave some specific examples.  Nearly everyone liked their mom's cooking, and spending time with their dads.  One kid said, "I'm thankful that my mom makes kielbasa every night, just like I like it, not too burned." 

Another boy said, "I'm thankful that my dad tells the same annoying joke over and over.  It always makes me laugh and I know he loves me."

They did a poem, then the entire group did a hearty rendition of "Over the River and Through the Woods."

Last up was Alex's class.  Alex's class must have conspired to make this into some kind of comedy competition.  One boy said, "On Thanksgiving, I'm thankful I'm not a turkey."

A girl said, "I'm thankful for my family, because when they go on trips, they remember to take me with them."

I wondered what Alex would say when it was his turn.  Would he say he was thankful for traveling?  For having a home?  For having a zillion toys?  I knew it wouldn't be my all-too-infrequent cooking.

Alex said, "I'm thankful that there's no homework on Thanksgiving," and then, "Oh, I'm thankful that my parents are taking me to Legoland!"  We are going to Legoland but not until the end of the year, so I think he was just reminding us.

The big finale was a song and dance called "The Turkey Tango" that the kids have been performing since kindergarten each year at Thanksgiving.  The words are something like, "Every turkey can tango/Every turkey can dance/Every turkey can tango/If he has the chance!" accompanied by a lot of clapping and jumping around, but not a lot of tango.

As for me, I'm thankful for family, friends, community, and second grade performances.

Happy Thanksgiving!  What are you thankful for?

NaBlo Video

Why, Oh Why, Oh Iowa

I spent the better part of 2004 being ticked off at the state of Iowa.  It was Iowa's fault, I thought, that the Democrats chose Kerry, a relative unknown factor in the primary race up until Iowa.  I wasn't paying close attention back then, but liked John Edwards and Howard Dean, both for different reasons.  I was ticked off that by the time the California primary rolled around in March, it was a foregone conclusion that Kerry had the nomination locked up.  So, I was mad at Iowa, since somewhere in those crazy caucuses, somebody decided to go with the safe choice, rather than the best choice.

I'll admit, I wasn't terribly involved in 2004.  I didn't know anything more than I wanted Bush out of office. The Democrats could have nominated an orangutan who knew sign language and I would have voted for him.  So, we got Kerry, the guy with the incomprehensible, super-rich, ketchup-heiress wife.  The guy who spent his entire life in the Senate being...Senatorial.  The guy who was about as inspiring as cold unsweetened oatmeal.  It may be good for you, but that doesn't make it any easier to swallow.  The one thing he had that made him stand out against George Bush was his record of service in Vietnam.  Even that got "swift-boated" into oblivion by the end of it all.

My husband and I resigned ourselves to Kerry and even went to a fund-raiser at some estate in Woodside, where we hobnobbed with Democratic politicos, including a few former mayors, a future state senator. We sipped Chardonnay and munched on organic appetizers in the garden, which looked like someone was trying to replicate the gardens of some palazzo in Italy, or maybe the Alhambra, with rows of hedges and long, skinny fountains.  While we watched a video about Roe v. Wade, I sat, chin in hand, and thought, "We're doomed."

We ended up being in Japan on election day, where we woke up to news on BBC International that Kerry had an early lead.  The British broadcaster could hardly contain his glee.  I was surprised, but felt pretty jubilant about that news. 

We took Alex out to the Ocean Dome, an indoor wave pool, which was like this gigantic indoor beach with plastic turf instead of sand, complete with a surfing show.  It's one of those things you have to experience to understand.  We had a great day at the faux-beach, with the fake sun shining down on us, listening to 300 Korean Amway distributors doing karaoke on the stage behind the beach.  It was a surreal scene, but at least we didn't need sunblock for the fluorescent lighting. 

It was not nearly as surreal as hearing the news when we got back to our hotel.  We flipped on CNN International, and found that our excellent day was about to take a turn for the worst.  Kerry was now behind and every state reporting in seemed to bring more bad news.  Frank was grim.  "Want to move to Australia?" he asked.  "I'm not sure I want to go home if Bush is elected for four more years."

I watched the coverage into the wee hours of the night, which was early morning in the US.  All I could think of was, "This is all Iowa's fault.  If they hadn't chosen that milquetoast Kerry, this would not be happening."

The other night, John Edwards had a lot to say about Iowa.  He said that Iowa voters are the best informed, most politically engaged people in the nation.  They are used to being courted by politicians, and they do their homework in return.  They keep up on the issues, and ask pointed, direct questions at town halls and small events in diners, meeting halls, and wherever a crowd can gather.  It sounds like the way politics used to be done, going from town to town on whistle-stop tours.  Now, we have media filters on everything, so while the rest of us may think Hillary's got this in the bag, Iowa might surprise us again.

So, Iowa people, I'm hoping you will do the right thing in this election.  I hope that you'll continue to press the candidates on the big issues, ask for details, and not settle for double-talk and half-answers.  I'm counting on you, Iowa.  Don't let me down this time, or I just might have to move to Australia.

John Edwards in Los Gatos

I had the opportunity to see John Edwards again last night at a private home in Los Gatos, California.  Frank, Stefania and I carpooled down to the event, which was held in a lovely Victorian-style home.  We arrived early, and staked out a spot in the room where we thought he might speak, then mingled with some of the other guests.  We saw a few familiar faces from some of the prior events we have attended, and saw former San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales among the 70 or so people in attendance.

As before, he arrived and immediately started mingling with the crowd, shaking hands, posing for pictures, answering questions.  He came over to our group immediately, shook hands, and let us take a few pictures, before getting sidetracked over to talk with other people. 

Eventually, he made his way over and announced that he was sorry to be so late, and wanted to get right into the discussion.  He started talking about Iowa, and how he, Hillary, and Obama are in a dead heat.  He thinks this is fine because they have been on television in Iowa for months, and he has just started.  The fact that he is dead even with them, without TV ads, he thinks is a good sign.  He attributes to the fact that Iowa has 99 counties, and he's been in all 99 counties twice.  He quipped that he and Elizabeth were at a stop sign in Ottumwa, Iowa, and she said, "You know, I think if someone asked me, I could give directions here."

He mentioned that the Hillary plant story is getting a lot of coverage in Iowa, and really rankles Iowa Democrats.  He said that the Des Moines Register ran a cartoon showing Hillary campaign workers pointing teleprompters toward the audience, to make it easier for them to feed questions to the audience.

Edwards gave a brief primer on how the caucuses work, which I found to be particularly instructive.  People have meetings all across the state, and at the beginning, are sorted by who they support.  If a candidate fails to get 15% of the people present, those people must choose another candidate, and that's when the politicking and persuasion begins.  It's critical, therefore, for the polls to look at who the second choices are.  He rates highly with Biden and other lower-tier candidates' caucus-goers.  It sounds like part political rally, part three ring circus, if you ask me.  I'd love to see it, but I think it would probably give me a migraine.

John Edwards in California

We attended a fundraiser for John Edwards this evening in Los Gatos.  I'll write up what happened tomorrow, but I thought I'd post a quick picture of the very friendly, personable Senator as he arrived at the event.

Al Gore in San Francisco

I had the opportunity to hear former Vice President Al Gore speak last night at City Hall in San Francisco.  It was an inspiring, and surprisingly moving event, and one I won't likely forget soon.

The event was a fundraiser for the Full Circle Fund, an innovative non-profit that links entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs, and leaders in the non-profit sector to creative new ideas for solving social problems.  They have been working on 3 focus areas up until now--technology, housing, and education.  For the unveiling of their new focus area--environment--they invited Al Gore to be the Keynote Speaker at this event.  The event turned out to be an awards ceremony for leaders in both philanthropy and non-profits.  The theme was "You've Got the Power" with a 70's style logo, and an award that looked like a naked lightbulb sitting on a box.

The first award went to Richard Goldman, a frail, elderly gentleman who was assisted to the stage by a burly young man, who I assume is either his bodyguard or his manny.  He was honored for the work that his foundation, The Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund, has done since 1955.  They've awarded over $500 million in grants to various organizations focused on the environment. 

Goldman introduced his twin gransons, both college students, and said that he was proud of the fact that they were as committed to philanthropy as he is.  He also noted that they love Al Gore, but more importantly, they love him.  He went on to say that some people want Gore to run for president, which drew applause from the crowd.  He added, "But I don't, because the work he's doing to save humanity is much more important than being President."  I couldn't agree more.

Al Gore was introduced next to thunderous applause, and he seemed to really appreciate the crowd's welcome. He looked a bit grayer and more tired than I'd imagined, but his voice was very distinctive.  He started by thanking various people, mentioning the Alliance for Climate Change, his new green think tank located right here in Palo Alto.  He introduced two people who now do the slide show seen in "An Incovenient Truth."  One of them, a young man named Taylor, he said had done the slide show 22 times, and is only 15 years old.

Gore started out his speech by saying, "I'm Al Gore." Then mumbled,  "I used to be the next President of the United States."  The crowd roared at this line, but he sheepishly said, "I think I need a new line."

He went on to tell a story of going to a salad bar type restaurant with his business partner on his way to LAX one day, when an elderly woman started circling his table and staring at him.  He finally greeted her, and she said to him, "You know, if you dyed your hair black, you'd look exactly like Al Gore."

Wordless Wednesday -- China

The Great Wall of China, 2004

Virtual Vacation: Kauai by Helicopter

I've been dreaming of a vacation lately.  Last February, we visit Kauai, and I came across some pictures that I took from a helicopter trip over the island. 

The highlight of our trip (for most of us anyway) was this helicopter tour.  We originally booked a trip on Tuesday, but it was raining too hard on most parts of the island to take off and actually see anything.  We used Jack Harter Helicopter Tours, which was nice enough to cancel.  Evidently, some tour operators go up rain or shine, even when visibility is poor.

We've been to Kauai five times, and this is one of the things we hadn't done before.  The views were breathtaking.  It rained a little here and there, but the rain just added to the magic.  I don't think I've ever seen so many rainbows in my life, and this was the first time I've ever seen a full 360 degree rainbow.  I couldn't photograph the whole thing, because it was so big.

We flew over waterfalls that were used in the movie "Jurassic Park".  These magnificent falls are on privately-owned land, so you can't hike or drive to them.  You can only see them by air.

We flew over the Napali Coast, the dramatic northern coastline with its rugged, green cliffs.  We had seen this by boat before, but this gave an entirely new perspective.  We even saw whales jumping in the ocean.

Then, Alex got sick and threw up in a bag.

Like I said, this was not everyone's highlight of the trip.

But, it was mine.

Music Meme: 7 Songs

Erica of Little Mummy tagged me for a music meme a looong time ago, but I'm terrible at memes.  It's pretty simple--just list 7 songs you are into right now and tag seven people to find out what they're listening to...

Here's my list:

"Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" - Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
(If my life had a soundtrack, this would be it).

"Forever Young" - Bob Dylan (This song sums up what I wish for my son).

"Angel from Montgomery" - Bonnie Raitt

"Wicked Game" - Chris Isaak

"America the Beautiful" - sung by my son, every time we're in the car.  EVERY time.  He's a patriot, that boy.

"Crescent City" - Lucinda Williams (she was my neighbor for a short time in Austin)

"I Love It When You Call Me Names" - Joan Armatrading

There you have it.  Apparently, I'm stuck in some sort of folk music time warp in the '80s.  Maybe I should pretend to like Amy Winehouse or Radiohead and maintain some semblance of being hip, but that's just not me. 

I tag:  CityMama, HongLien, GingaJoy, Bitsy Parker, Sairy, Laurie, and Mary.

Taking Back the L Word

Somewhere in the 1990's or so, "liberal" became a bad word, shunned by Republicans and Democrats alike.  It became the buzzword of sneering Faux newscasters who turned "liberal" into shorthand for free-wheeling, free-spending, tree-huggers.  That's the stereotype that has been repeated and embraced.  That's not what I signed up for.  That's not the party or the ideology that I support. 

The values that I hold dear were best enunciated by John F. Kennedy in his speech accepting the Democratic party nomination in 1960:

What do our opponents mean when they apply to us the label "Liberal?" If by "Liberal" they mean, as they want people to believe, someone who is soft in his policies abroad, who is against local government, and who is unconcerned with the taxpayer's dollar, then the record of this party and its members demonstrate that we are not that kind of "Liberal." But if by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal..."

This is my political credo:

I believe in human dignity as the source of national purpose, in human liberty as the source of national action, in the human heart as the source of national compassion, and in the human mind as the source of our invention and our ideas. It is, I believe, the faith in our fellow citizens as individuals and as people that lies at the heart of the liberal faith. For liberalism is not so much a party creed or set of fixed platform promises as it is an attitude of mind and heart, a faith in man's ability through the experiences of his reason and judgment to increase for himself and his fellow men the amount of justice and freedom and brotherhood which all human life deserves.

I believe also in the United States of America, in the promise that it contains and has contained throughout our history of producing a society so abundant and creative and so free and responsible that it cannot only fulfill the aspirations of its citizens, but serve equally well as a beacon for all mankind. I do not believe in a superstate. I see no magic in tax dollars which are sent to Washington and then returned. I abhor the waste and incompetence of large-scale federal bureaucracies in this administration as well as in others. I do not favor state compulsion when voluntary individual effort can do the job and do it well. But I believe in a government which acts, which exercises its full powers and full responsibilities. Government is an art and a precious obligation; and when it has a job to do, I believe it should do it. And this requires not only great ends but that we propose concrete means of achieving them.

Whaddya say we take back the "L" word?  And while we're at it, let's take back the country as well.

Cross-posted at MOMocrats.