October 11, 2010

October 7, 2010: Who called Whitman a whore?

No one knows, and if anyone does they're not going to tell. If you'd like to read the article, this is the link for it: Someone called Meg Whitman a whore, but she's being the "bigger man".

If you'd like a synopsis, Jerry Brown's team met up to discuss some campaign plans and some jackass forgot to hang up the telephone all the way after leaving a message for the LA Police Union. They brought up Ms. Whitman, called her a whore a few times, and the recording finished catching the "slur". It was then leaked to the press, Brown canceled his "get out the vote" showing, and Whitman is refusing to comment even though her aides want everyone to know that it's degrading for women everywhere!

Now, as a woman I'm not feeling too degraded. As a republican I'm not even outraged. But as a voter, I am pissed that we have to put up with this nonsense. With all the knowledge that every breath you take is being scrutinized by the public, you are stupid enough to call an opposing candidate a whore? And of all things, why whore? Do you posess knowledge that Ms. Whitman is sleeping around for money? Of course not. If you're going to resort to that kind of behavior to pass the blame and inflate your ego, I don't want you making decisions. I don't want you to blame the working class when you mess up, I don't want you to play any of those ego trip games. I believe that the issues at hand are important, more important than anything else you have to say. I want to know your plan of action.

I may not be 100% on anyone yet, but there are three things that I know right now. 1. We must QUIT deficit spending and outrageous spending. 2. We must create jobs for everyone, not just upper or lower class. We must create jobs across the board. 3. We must increase taxes, and we must be okay with that as Americans. I know people will fight me on at least the last point. But I don't believe my children should be forced to pay off a debt that was incurred without Mark and I even thinking about having children. That is unfair. This was OUR fault, this was OUR vote, or OUR lack thereof. We need to rise to the challenge and fix things ourselves, not pass the blame and pass the decline.

Love, Polly

October 6, 2010

October 6, 2010: If it's so damn cold outside, why the hell are you wearing that!

Today was a typical California winter, as in, it rained. And as expected we had the horrible drivers, but that's for another day.

What really got me today was watching a woman walking her kids in a stroller while they were dressed in clothes meant for summer! I understand that it's "Mommy's right" to dress the kinds until they're five or six in whatever the hell she wants. But since when is a tutu appropriate attire for cold, muggy, rain? You may be working out pushing that two seated stroller around town, but their little butts aren't!

This is a perfect example of Mommy pretending her kids are dolls, dressing them up in whatever cute little outfit she wants to see them in. While I'm not against dressing up your kids in cute outfits, I feel like you've just crossed the line from responsible parent to sixteen year old idiot. If it's cold outside, you would dress yourself appropriately, wouldn't you? You would wear pants, a sweater or jacket, and maybe a scarf or gloves if you're into that. Why? Because it's cold outside! So why do you think it's a good idea to put a tulle tutu skirt on your kid? Why isn't your infant wearing a hat? Those little bodies are more sensitive to temperature than you are.

Use your heads when you dress your kids, please. For their shivery little sakes.

Love, Polly.

October 5, 2010

October 5,2010: I'd just rather wear fur...

There are three things I love about animals. The first is that no matter what, they aren't going to judge us for eating or using them. I'm not so into steaks, but you break out some chicken and I will come running. I also love bacon and eggs for breakfast, honey in my tea, and ice cream for dessert. I hate being told that I'm a killer or murderer when death is something that animals accept, especially death at the hands of some other animal that is way bigger / smarter / faster than themselves. I also love leather, rabbit fur, and any other super soft animal product that I can wear and enjoy feeling on my skin. If I could run over a rabbit everyday and wear it's pelt on my feet, I would. In fact, I would have a whole rabbit outfit because that stuff is so soft it's unbelievable. Humans are typically smarter and bigger if not always faster than animals. That's why we can kill them and use these things. Granted, we don't kill bees for honey (well, I just kill them because I hate them) or chickens for their eggs (although I would if it needed to be done). I also believe that horse meat should take over instead of cow meat, because horses are "uninhibited raping machines" (The Oatmeal) and I hate their horsey guts, too. Eating them would make things right in the world. I don't mind cows so much.

The second thing I love about animals is that many of them are REALLY REALLY cute. I don't care if they're not meant to be caged and gawked at. I love going to zoos and petting all the animals in captivity that I can. If you have a petting zoo, I will probably touch all your animals. If you have a farm, I will still probably touch all your smelly, dying, uncared for animals. If you have a class pet or are dissecting animals in class, I want to look / touch / check out your animal.

The third thing I love about animals is that regardless of how "inhumane" some of humanity sees all of this as, animals are going to love us regardless. Not necessarily wild animals. I don't suggest trying to hug a hippo, those are some mean bastards. I also don't suggest kicking your dog, either. But this whole wearing animals and eating animals / animal products don't piss off the animals as much as you think it does. Either they already hate humans, or they don't. And if they already hate us, prepare to be turned into something useful.

Love, Polly.

PS. PETA, I'm not afraid of you.

October 4, 2010

October 4, 2010: Get rich quick schemes

They only work for people who have money and time to burn and the skills to make things happen. I don't believe in luck, and I don't believe that you can get by with just a great idea. It takes a lot more work than anyone thinks, and for things to be successful they must start with great ideas, great planning, and lots of money. You can make do without money, but it will make your journey to Bill Gates-dom even harder than it had to be.

Many get rich quick schemes are so difficult to avoid because they're often scams built to sucker you in with a promise of some crazy monthly income! Well, some people are good at things like this, and unintentionally being a con artist is something we really don't tend to think of ourselves. We're not all graceful actresses that can put on a show with everything we do, and often times while we have some strengths we may not be able to beat the all-around acceptably performing competitor.

Another way that these schemes reel us in is by stating that we can work from the convenience of our own home and make our own hours. That's execu-speak for "We only pay you commission" and what they aren't telling you is that in order to make the crazy amount of income that they promise you, you need to work 24 hours a day, every day, without fail.

It's one thing entirely if you see things like Avon or whatever as something fun to do here and there to maybe add fifteen dollars to your wallet. It is a whole 'nother thing to expect your entire paycheck to come from these things.

Be smart, and get a real job. Don't get your hopes up with stupid pyramid schemes and scams that never pan out. That's how you get job security, not by trying these things at home with no resources except hope.

October 3, 2010

October 3, 2010: MAN, my stock car is so cool, I do time attacks, and I think that I'm a real racer!

Fanboiz, stop. Please stop, because you're making my brain hurt. I love car guys, the kind of guys that actually appreciate the mechanics of a car and performance. I despise fanboiz with every ounce of disgust I can muster.

True car guys know three things. The first thing that they know is that stock or not, the mechanics of a car are amazing and therefore something to be admired. They don't admire cars for their parts, but rather they admire the way that the parts function together for the most efficiency. They love their cars and acknowledge that it's the system itself that is amazing. Each part is like an organ and the whole car is an organism of it's own. You don't have to be a gearhead to understand that either, but once you get your fingers wet, you understand. A car itself is something any brain dead fourteen year old pizza face could figure out, given enough time. It's several simple things that work together to become something amazing.

The second thing they all know is that features should emulate function. The car you use to pick up the kids from school shouldn't be something that you like to use to show off with your buddies. Luxury cars shouldn't be going off-roading, and big damn trucks don't belong in "compact" parking spaces. And stop calling your cars "track ready" like that means anything other than it will pass tech. So your positive battery terminal is covered and your floor mats are out, great. In five seconds I can get the Escort "track ready". (But I won't.)

The last thing they all know, is that if you have to argue whether or not you're a fanboi, than you are. Real car guys are, if nothing else, completely at ease with their endeavors and expect their performance as drivers / mechanics / etc and the performance of their vehicles to speak for themselves. They are humble and confident in their abilities because throughout all of their world some strange worldly truth as shown itself to them. I don't what truth it is, but you can see that it's there.

Love, Polly.

October 2, 2010

October 2, 2010: Mold grows in the fat flaps of morbidly obese people.

It's true, that's why they smell funny. And you can't tell me you haven't noticed the stereotypical "fat people" smell. And please, please, please don't expect me to buy the "I have big bones" or the "I have a glandular disorder" bullshit. You're just fat and don't take care of yourself and that's all there is to it.

I have several things against truly fat people and unfortunately America is full of them. First of all, they usually smell bad and I hate bad smells. I'm a woman and I have a nose that tends to be the human equivalent to a bloodhound. Then, the fact that they care no more about taking care of themselves or their things. I like things in their place, and I especially hate being mistakenly yelled at for things that are not in their place when NOTHING has a place. Also, I despise people that are too lazy to be efficient nor productive. The least you can do while you're being fat is be efficient and productive since you're probably not doing anything important and you don't want to use up too much of your energy doing anything. You're going to need it just to walk to the bathroom later.

I don't understand why truly fat people take so much offense at being truly fat and are so upset when you make note of it. Of course we're noting that you're fat and that we're looking down on you! When you refuse to make some semblance of effort into your general well being, you SHOULD be looked down on and judged. Don't pull this, "I'm self-assured and I don't need your approval" bullshit on us either. Whether or not you like it, the world revolves around other people's approval.

Why don't you try this one on for size, instead of having low morale, energy, and faith in yourself because you're fat, DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. Being fat is a life style, and unfortunately a pretty shitty choice. I'm not talking about being pregnant and gaining some weight because you're at risk and can't get out of bed without worrying about it. I'm talking about being so fat that you're actually lumpy looking. Go for a walk after dinner, eat less fried food. Do something! If you won't do it for your health, won't do it to live longer, than do it so we stop laughing at you behind your back. If you want self esteem, GET SOME.

Love, Polly

October 1, 2010

October 1, 2010: If you join the military, you're going to die.

This split mentality of the United States is irritating me, all we do is talk and nothing changes at higher levels because change isn't building at the lower ones. Do you know what I think? I think our economy hurting, our troops being sent abroad and getting hurt, and our country falling behind are all things we can solve at home instead of complaining. You know how I feel about this, either do something or shut up.

Our economy is failing right now due to several things. The one that pisses me off the most is banking deregulation, which is what I think started it all. If you encourage millions of people to "guess on the high side" of what their income is and tell them they can afford things they can't afford as an "expert on finance", they will believe you. We believe the expert talking heads, that's all there is to it, because there must be a reason why we call them experts. Sometimes this logic fails us miserably, and leads to what we experiencing now. This inability to pay your own bills because we bought something we couldn't afford anyway leads to people hoarding every last dime, which then forces buisnesses to close or lay off employees since they're no longer generating the revenue they were when people weren't hoarding every last dime. How do we fix this at home? We start spending, so people can get jobs again. We don't spend on shit that is COMPLETELY beyond our means anymore, and we give credit card companies the finger for the most part.

Alright, I understand that some of you are anti-war and no one wants to say they're really pro-war. Either you're really proud of your yellow "Support the troops" magnet on the back of your car or you're arguing that this "war" we're in is President Bush's way of finishing what his Daddy (Pres. Bush Sr.) started. First of all, everyone should support the troops regardless of how they feel about this "war". Don't take things out on them, when they're following orders with the best intent. Regardless of how you feel about the executive powers in this country, don't take it out on the military. And as for them getting hurt, don't act so suprised or outraged. We are joining the MILITARY, not the knitting club. We understand from the get-go that we are bound to get hurt. It's one of the cons of the situation, and we acknowledge that there is some danger regardless of where we go or what we do as military members. Oh, PS. I'm pro-war. (I'll explain why next week.)

And last, the reason our country is falling behind is because we're proving that we're the self-entitled jackasses that are doing all this stupid shit instead of using the power of democracy and knowledge that we have all around us.

Love, Polly.

September 30, 2010

September 30, 2010: May you live in interesting times

Right now, we have our pokers in so many things that it would be impossible to not live in truly interesting times. Sorry ancient Chinese proverb writer, your curse is no longer effective because living in interesting times has become the norm. Maybe we should start cursing each other with, "May you live in boring times" until that becomes normal. But because we're all idiots, this generation is going to take culture and society as we know it to hell in a hand basket. Instead of engorging our minds with things that will stimulate it we spend our time watching things like, "The Real Housewives of..." or "Keeping up with the Kardashians". I don't understand how we can be appalled that other countries are exceeding us intellectually when that is the kind of shit we watch and mimic our lives after. What are you thinking, America?

Old folks are actually great to look at as an example of where we are going wrong. Why doesn't anyone do cross word puzzles, read real news (not things that can be found on Fark.com), play chess, or hold debates? Are those things so outdated? Maybe do a sudoku once a week or something, those were trendy not too long ago. We no longer force ourselves to exceed, and are becoming stupider by the day as a general public while the world is becoming more and more interesting around us.

We don't give a shit about the world around us and the mysteries that we're uncovering. And do you know why? Because the brilliant scientist who did some gene therapy with a plant and changed it's entire lifestyle has no clue what Prada or Gucci cost and will probably never purchase them. But you know who does love Prada / Gucci / Designer's Name Here? Whatever big breasted, empty headed reality show TV star is the new "It girl".

Use your brains or they'll go to waste. We are living in interesting times, that are unfortunately completely unbeknownst to us right now. And if we continue not giving a shit about these things, some day when the sun implodes we are going to wish we kept making this fantastic strides. But it will be too late, and life as we know and accept it is going to be over. And when the interesting times as they are now end, the interesting times as they will be then are going to interesting in a way that we wish they weren't.

Love, Polly.

September 29, 2010

September 29, 2010: Salt Lake Mormon, Utah.

God, I love Utah. Who doesn't love the concept of multiple wives (mostly unattractive ones), shitty booze, and criminal miscarriages? Just think of all the times that your wife or girlfriend couldn't make you a sandwich and have sex with you at the same time! And even more, think of all the stupid women who didn't get enough sleep or who couldn't afford proper medical care that we're going to put in jail! They're going to learn their lesson, aren't they?

There are some men out there that will avoid the concept of marriage until they die. They see no need to tie themselves down with that kind of commitment. There are also men that believe marriage is an outdated ritual that is only justified by the legal or financial benefits. And there are yet again others that believe that when the time is right, you just know that's what you want. Regardless of your religious views on marriage, I'd like to know who has the financial and emotional resources to participate in any kind of polygamy? I imagine this sort of behavior to be much like having a hoard of children. How much money do you have to make to keep multiple spouses happy or at least healthy and how can any person stretch themselves that thin? You'd have to either make lots of money yourself or split the finances between each member. And I would think you would have to have at least one submissive spouse. Or at least no more than one spouse that is like me.

Also, shitty booze. No one really likes shitty booze, what's the point? I'm not even just talking about the alcohol content. I'm talking about the fact that this stuff tastes like shit.

The real ringer with Utah right now is the criminal miscarriages though. Who the hell does that? You are going to jail for murder because you are stressed out that the house you rent is going into foreclosure and you found out today that you must leave by tomorrow, which killed your unborn child. Great job Utah, gotta love it. Since when is the natural response of the body when the parent is physically unfit to be a parent illegal? I understand if you're doing crack and you have a miscarriage, but come on Utah! This guilty until proven innocent crap is just making you seem even stupider. The rest of the United States thinks you were dropped on your head as an infant. We can't seem to explain or justify any more of your bat shit craziness. You're giving Florida a run for it's money now, and that is something we never thought would happen.

Can you just get some common sense separate your religion from your basic government for a minute? I understand that the judicial branch recognizes God, but when you start adding religion into your government you run the risk of discriminating against other religions. And we don't play that shit here.

Love, Polly.

September 28, 2010

September 28, 2010: Dear Katrina Victims, Quit being such pussies and grow a pair.

Excuse me for my inability to feel sympathetic to you and your families. I feel like knowledgeably living in a place that is below sea level and being emotionally distraught when it floods is just beyond my capacity for stupid in this lifetime. And to the celebrities that are appalled at how slow aid came to the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina, either get your hands dirty or shut the hell up with your high and mighty "for the cause" publicity crap. Katrina was a disaster, don't get me wrong. But it was a disaster in a place that had it coming, knew it had it coming, and just couldn't muster up enough energy to give a shit. I don't know about the rest of you, but I feel completely justified in telling them all to suck it up, grow a pair, and get the hell over it.

Another obvious reason to tell Katrina Victims to quit being pussies is that they don't have it that bad. Compared to the rest of the United States and other first world countries they do, but that's not what the Katrina affected areas are right now. They are not first world areas, and compared to some of the third world areas of the world, they are doing GREAT. Suck it up Katrina victims, rural Africa still uses children as slaves. When you revert that far, then we'll talk. Until then, use your "First World" education and SUCK IT UP AND FIX YOUR SHIT. As a "First World" area you should have had emergency supplies. Did you? No. You should have made the appropriate emergency plans. Did you? No. Did you have the opportunity and ability to do those things? HELL YES. Why did you need aid? Because you fucked up. You took things for granted and fucked yourselves over. I'm not going to pity you, that's just not in me considering that you were ill prepared and chose to be that way when you could have chosen otherwise.

All that is really left now, is did you learn your lesson? Probably not. Did I learn anything from this? I should probably prepare for the natural disaster that will eventually hit Los Angeles. Will I? No. Will I give you free reign to talk shit when I don't and do exactly what you did? Yes. Will I be happy about that? No. But that's life.

Love, Polly.

September 27, 2010

September 27, 2010: Man, that guy's penis must be THIIIIIIIIS BIG!

I'll start with admitting that I'm part of that population of very tiny people that wants to drive an obscenely large truck to compensate for the lack of space I take up in the world. I only consider such a scenario with fuel efficiency, environmental footprint, and damages / deaths resulting from my bad driving aside. That note made, I'm going to be a hypocrite and make fun of everyone else with that mentality that has already done so because they have taken the next step (or steps as that may be) and actually bought the ridiculous truck for overcompensation.

You know we were already laughing at you, right short stuff? As much as I want to say that I don't laugh at men that are shorter than me, I can't. I'm exactly sixty inches tall, which translates into five feet. Not only do I laugh, I find you slightly creepy in the way that most of us find people with "pony-play" fetishes. I don't want to be your friend usually, because small men don't give me the impression that they are valuable for any reason except humor. That sucks, but it is what it is. When shorty goes off and buys an F450 to tow his child sized pit-bike and tries to justify that he needs that big of a truck when I could fit the bike into the back of a Ford Escort, I laugh in his face. And I laugh hard. I see you compensating for your height and trying to prove to me that you worth the trouble for reproductive means, but I don't want your midget babies.

I recognize that anthropologically men are biologically coded to try and prove their worthiness as
sperm donors (for lack of a better base term). I know that we are animals, and that our only true objective as far as the laws of nature go, is to reproduce. And I know that deep inside you feel threatened that your penis may not be big enough or that you may not biologically be what we are looking for. But you know what, buying a truck doesn't make your pee-pee bigger. It makes you look like an ass, and when you look like an ass, women don't want to talk your pee-pee or anything else.

For those of you that have large trucks but bought them for true functionality (towing cars, horses, large things of that nature) than ignore this post. I am totally willing to accept true functionality, but if you bought the biggest truck you could find for no other reason than to show off and maybe get some, (even if you won't consciously admit it), it's not working. Women across the world are still laughing at you, not with you.
Love, Polly.

September 26, 2010

September 26, 2010: Stay classy, America.

As a culture, America has always been known to be risque and almost trashy at times. The current trend of buying jeans for about $100 pre-ripped and worn for a "vintage" look speaks volumes about who we think we are. We are too good to get our jeans that way by honest work, too snooty to get down on our knees, dig in, and get dirty. Instead, we buy them made that way by someone who wasn't too snooty so we can look like we aren't! How about that, America? Where did our class go? Where did our pride in the blue collar hard working American goods that were built right go? Where did dressing in functional and yet simple clean cut clothing go? I have a few pairs of ripped jeans, and I wear them when we're working on the car or if I'm doing laundry. I don't wear them when I go to spend some time with some friends. Dress to impress or at least make the people around you think you care about what they think about you. Being sloppy in your wardrobe just mimics the other sloppy habits you have. It shows a disregard for yourself, and if you can't have some respect for yourself than you can't have some respect for other people. Wearing your ratty clothes just says, "You are unimportant to me, I do not have time for you".

And another thing, less is not more ladies! I understand sex appeal, I really do. I like wearing frilly underwear and knee high stockings as much as the next girl. But those are things that we shouldn't be displaying to everyone in the world. When we have some modesty in regards to our body, it allows us to make connections to people that are far deeper than any bond we could create otherwise. When we converse and make connections about the world around us, we are more fulfilled than when we act like we're going to have sex with everyone we meet. And even worse, ladies, PLEASE stop dressing this way and then wondering why no one takes you serious. If your ta-tas are hanging out for the whole world to see, a gaggle of hormone charged males are going to use you because that's all they see. Don't complain, dress appropriately. You could be the next Marie Curie, but if you dress like a hooker no one will take you seriously intellectually. Dress for what you want. If you want attention or if you want to be taken as a tramp, then fine. Ignore me. If you want people to take you seriously and truly be interested in mental complexities, dress appropriately. DRESS FOR SUCCESS, however it is you define sucess.

Love, Polly.

September 25, 2010

September 25, 2010: Political idiots

If I see any variation of, "I won't vote for Meg Whitman because she's a slandering whore" I might just have to shoot someone. I love the involvement and I love hearing multiple views being discussed. I absolutely despise people who make complaints about things with absolutely no support to thier view or some generic term of offense as their reasoning. I would love to hear why you think that Candidate A is better than Candidate B. I would love to hear how you interpret the measures and propositions being put on the ballot. And I definately love knowing that there is involvement in our government at any and every level. But I find that kind of slanderous behavior to be rude and completely uncalled for. We know very little if anything at all about our politicians true character, and although we believe that actions speak louder than words our actions are just as poor, if not just as broadcasted. We are more in outrage over our politicians than the video of the girl that threw newborn puppies into a fast moving river with the exact same amount of information. We have the actions but not the ability to understand the true impact of any decision. Most of us just listen to the radio or television commercials instead of actually reading the ballots. We take propaganda laced interpretations from biased parties and use that as our primary source of information. These measures and propositions are NOT that difficult to read if you break them down sentence by sentence. I promise, if you take your time you will understand them. Likewise, if we sit down and really do some research on the things that our politicians and candidates have done we will see what their stance is on many things. We will be able to make truly informed judgements and THAT is what is going to help us now. We need to stop jumping on these band wagons and do some real independent research and learn how to sift through the important and unimportant. Learn the facts, process them, and make our own decisions. Support our viewpoints with solid information and debate them amongst ourselves. Open ourselves up to different viewpoints and different ideas, so that things get better. It isn't the media at fault, we are at fault. We refuse to be involved in our government until infamy or scandal show up, and then all we have to talk about is the negative. We are no longer the proud nation we were, the proud, informed nation that believed in it's government. The proud nation with a government that was recognized at being in the forefront of the entire world. We need to get back on our feet, I know things are difficult now and that we want someone to blame. Blame ourselves, for being ignorant and ENJOYING our ignorance. If we want change, we must bring it ourselves.

Love, Polly.

September 24, 2010

September 24, 2010: What you know at four is not what you know at forty.

The things we know as children are not the same things that we know as adults. We are immediately instilled with a sense of wonder about the world around us because there is so much that we cannot yet explain ourselves. We have a drive to learn and make sense of all the things around us, a sense of awe at the life and energy that makes up the world. We do not yet take it for granted, because we cannot for the life of us make any of these things plausible yet. The boundaries that we draw in our lives are constantly changing and pushed further out. They know the limits of their small bodies and unformed minds and are in awe of the perceived lack of limits that those older than them don't have.

The things we know as adults are not the same things we knew as children. The boundaries we see are no longer just boundaries of inabilities, they are boundaries of financial capabilities, political beliefs, moral and ethical values. The boundaries that were then so phenomenally unlimited are more complicated than those untrained eyes could see. And it pains us, that we are bound by these things. We look at children and wish that we could be as free as they can. We see them as having the constitutional rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And we see ourselves as being inhibited and kept from those rights.

I believe that we need to embrace the human experience of life, that we need to encourage growth amongst ourselves and never believe that there are any limitations into the things that we can do. That life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are things that we have innately and we lose them if we believe we lose them. The power of our minds is amazing and what we think has the power to change our beliefs and how we live our lives.

Love, Polly.

September 23, 2010

September 23, 2010: Practice makes permanent

Habits, by definition are things that have become rituals in our daily life right underneath our noses. But habits can be both good and bad, and once we settle into something we find ourselves unable to stop. That is, if we even notice that we do these things at all. Habits can be anything, and don't just tsop at biting fingernails or twirling hair. A habit that we're seeing far too often now is the habit of being lazy. Of coming home and watching television or eating a bunch of things that are almost certifiable heart attack ingredients. My primary concern is not the health related issues of this kind of laziness, because we know that Americans are fat and lazy already. We know that Americans are more likely than any other country to have heart failure or diabetes. My concern is that with this economy, how can we justify that spending and not forsee the medical costs that we will face in the future?

Most of us like to eat or multitask when we're watching television. Some of us just like it for the noise while we're working on other things. But when we're at home, we indulge in all the comforts we can without a second thought. We blast our air conditioners, eat anything we can find in the pantry, maybe we're on the internet while we're watching television. This is consumer America being wasteful and fining ourselves hidden fees! Instead of taking a walk after dinner, or taking the kids to the park to play, we are losing ourselves in the habit of constant consumerism. Our inner economist is yelling, "THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH!" and I'm here to tell you that is a LIE. There is no financial cost to be outside, there is no financial cost to walk around the block, and there is no financial cost to enjoy your backyard. The opportunity cost? A few extra bucks in your wallet instead of in someone else's.

Love, Polly.

September 22, 2010

September 22,2010: If you can't see the bottom of the rear bumper of the car in front of you, just gun it and rear end them.

So many people are under two misconceptions.

1. Driving unpredictably and unsafe but not killing yourself makes you a great driver.
2. Speeding is more likely to cause an accident than tailgating.

These are both insanely wrong and some of the most dangerous things that plague us on the road today. I'm going to start with driving unpredictably and unsafe but not killing yourself based on sheer luck even though you were pretty much about to shit your pants. This is not okay people, it doesn't make you an AWESOME DRIVER and you're really not driving that well or fast. Flooring it and then slamming on your brakes destroys your momentum. You're not going that fast to begin with and you're not using the optimum line that grants you control while still accelerating and taking your speed with you. So stop it, Speed Racer. Those fifteen tickets and two license suspensions you've had are not just because the police are "Asshole douche bags". No, in fact, you're just THAT bad of a driver. Slow down, and if you want to know how to really drive well there are several racing sanctions and event producers that host events to teach you the line and help you learn high performance driving. Most of the learning courses are actually not as expensive as you would think either and offer great instruction.

Second, speeding is less likely to cause an accident than tailgating. If you're going 100 mph and are only five feet behind a big rig truck that slams on it's brakes because somebody cut him off than say good bye to your car and most likely parts of your face. It is totally okay to speed a little bit, but know your limits. If you know that you have slower reflexes (like I do), give yourself enough space to assess the situation if anything changes and make the necessary adjustments. Don't make the mistake of over-estimating your reflexes either. Take it easy, and keep about a car's length ahead of you as a general rule. This saves you, your insurance payments, and any potential damages to people and cars.

SAVE LIVES, DON'T TAILGATE. Great drivers are speed hungry, they are predictable and drive as safe as possible at speed.

Love, Polly.

September 21, 2010

September 21, 2010: That's your first kid, isn't it?

Recently, new mothers everywhere have been in a fantastic (I don't mean awesome, learn context please) fuss over the Similac formula recalls. They found small domestic beetles inside some of the formula and recalled all the formula just to be safe. I don't know about any of you, but I distinctly remember a five year old filipino boy in my kindergarten class that admitted to eating a whole praying mantis and living to tell the tale. Honestly, kids eat dirt and bugs and all kinds of gross things no one wants to think about. They wipe their snot on their hands and wipe those cute little screw-on hands on things other kids touch. It's just a fact of life that your children will get messy and dirty and in general be gross.

The message of today is, new moms take a breath. Similac has already released a statement saying that the little creepy crawling beetle parts won't harm your baby. I'm inclined to believe them, three children and the annual battle with the flu and strep throat later. Eating a little bug leg won't hurt your baby, I promise. There are scarier things out there than a little bug leg in some formula if you happen to miss it and don't scoop it out. Try this one on for size. Anything put on your skin absorbs into your blood stream within 27 seconds, so if you ate something with peanut oil in it with your hand and touch your baby...well, baby has it's first peanut exposure and you may be stuck with an allergy later down the road.

All Moms that have been around the child raising block a few times will tell you two things. The first it that you will always be the most panicked and overprotective of your first child. They will also tell you to stop, because this is how your baby is going to develop an immune system since you're not giving them your antibodies through breastfeeding.

Now, I don't mean to say you should ignore your child when it's about to roll off the couch and just let it fall so it will learn. I mean, calm down and really assess the situation. One bug leg in the only can of formula that wasn't returned during the recall dates doesn't mean to raise the alarm or start a lawsuit against Similac. It means you just need to dig the little sucker out, toss the can if it makes you feel better, and move on. Maybe call your mother or a best girlfriend for moral support. But if you want your baby to be healthy, it needs a chance to get sick once in awhile. Don't stray from the normal precautions, but if there is a kid at school with chicken pox and your child didn't get the vaccine, have a play date. Don't wait until the child is sixteen to get chicken pox. Get it while they're still little enough that it won't be too severe. Let em eat a little dirt, it's good for them. (Ok, maybe not. But let them get away with it once anyway.)

Don't fight a losing battle, compromise with yourself.

Love, Polly.

September 20, 2010

September 20,2010: I deserve it!

No, you probably don't. This idea of self-entitlement is beyond an annoyance. Long gone are the leagues and leagues of immigrant blue collar workers with a work ethic and patriotism that was unparallelled during the high of it's glory. We will most likely never see that again, unfortunately. This pains me because I feel that things are going in the wrong direction. I understand that resources are as a general rule are finite in quantity. That is why our economy is turning into a service based economy, in addition to the fact that as a country we are technologically adequate to be figuratively "all over the world". However, by losing that blue collar work ethic we are teaching our children to feel entitled to everything, and even the young adult generation of today has echoes of this belief. Just because you have a job that you do fairly well does not mean that you deserve your paycheck. If someone can do your job just as well, if not better than you can, for less, you deserve to be fired unless you for some reason can justify that pay gap. If it's an untrained job that anyone can do at entry level, you do not deserve your job. It is a privlege to have a job, not a right. Just like driving, but everyone seems to take it for granted and complain about officers doing thier jobs. Stop forgetting that your rights and privledges are different things. You are entitled to five freedoms according to the first amendment. Those are speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. Not driving, working, owning houses or cars, or money. Those are things you must work for, not things that you are entitled by law or otherwise. And if you cannot be responsible or tolerable those things will be revoked from you. Man up, America.

Love, Polly.

September 19, 2010

September 19, 2010: Democrats are money spending bastards but Republicans are only for rich people.

Stop blaming whole political parties! I am so frustrated by everyone saying that one political party or another is evil, when the truth is that no party is evil and we function as a two party system. Democrats and Republicans have long fought against each other's core beliefs and principles but only recently has the fight transfered to the people themselves instead of the issues at hand. I am not evil to the core nor a spawn of Satan himself or even worse the Devil Incarnate. I am a stout conservative republican that believes that the government should be of minor involvement in our lives and that the money we make should be our money. I am also a capitalist that believes that we should embrace the entrepreneurial spirit that made our country and strike out on our own or work our way up the ranks to earn the money that is all around us. However, as a swing voter, I also don't believe that any person should be without health care or be unable to receive proper health care because they cannot afford it. I feel that health care is one of the limited places government should be involved. I believe that schools and education should be of a higher priority than salaries for government employees. I believe that we should encourage public transportation in any way possible and use the funds we generate through that to repave our roads as well as funds collected from sales tax on gas. I believe that we should start utilizing high speed lanes sectioned off from regular lanes, and impose a toll to use them. Use that to continue funding the roads. I believe in public works projects, and I believe that those are what will strengthen our economy. And if I could find a candidate that believes in all these things, he would have my vote, democrat or republican.

Love, Polly.

September 18, 2010

September 18, 2010: Children are NOT pets!

I've become more frustrated as I see more and more parents relying on the public school system to act like child care. This is not what teachers are for! They are not to be the sole disciplinary power in your child's life, they are not to be the only sense of structure they have ever seen. When your child's teacher says, "John had a bad day today, he threw a chair" do NOT take John for ice cream and Chuck E. Cheese. Take your child home, and spank him. John won't be throwing a chair tomorrow, I'll bet you. If you don't believe in spankings (which is fine, I'm rather archaic compared to the current parenting trends) then do time-out or whatever it is you do. You should be involved in your child's life. Don't let someone else raise them because you're too busy. You brought that ankle biting wonder into the world, you will damn well take responsibility for it.

Feeding your child, taking them to the doctor, and just in general providing for them should be your first responsibility. I understand that some of you are single parents trying really hard to make ends meet. But when you don't have money for food and you spend the money you should have had on clubbing, you're going to piss me off. Booze or cigarettes or whatever crap you do recreationally are NOT greater than your child's needs. If your child needs crayons for school than that better come before that new toothbrush you need.

I know this sounds harsh, but the younger that parents get the more they think they're good parents just because they're struggling. They believe that they DESERVE to have nights out because they had to be "Mom" or "Dad" all week. But the truth is, being a parent is a full time job with no sick days. That's all there is to it, you don't deserve anything. You get whatever you can scrape together. But don't take out your inability to be responsible on your children. When other parents or coaches or teachers know your child better than you, that is a problem. A serious problem that means you need to be back in the loop.