Heartstrings Tax Break

There's a hidden cost savings that would result from universal health care - i haven't seen this addressed anywhere yet - but I spent a bunch of money last year trying to defray the medical costs of people I have never met.

I sent $375 through gofundme to 8 different friends of friends, or friends of friend's friends who, in desperate bids to avoid being completely wiped out by an accident or illness, reached out to the Internet. I read the stories of a woman who lost everything she owned and half her skin in a fire, and had to donate. The 37 year old father with pancreatic cancer. The 5 year old boy with a brain tumor. I wasn't required to pay for their healthcare, but once I read their stories and saw their pictures, once they moved me to tears, felt compelled to donate. Kind of a heartstrings tax. Golden rule tax. 

I could have donated more to each of them and it still wouldn't have been enough. I could have donated to more of the gofundmes that came across my screen and it still wouldn't have been enough.

Would I gladly pay about that same $375/year in taxes every year to ensure NOBODY in this country goes through that ordeal of begging the internet for help when they get sick ever again - to ensure EVERYBODY gets health care? Yes! I believe strongly this is something we should fight for and not give up until it happens. 

Bernie Sanders is fighting hard for this, whether you support him or not, think about supporting universal single payer health care, and pressuring your representatives to do the same.

littering and

i haven't seen a display of littering like this since the 80's. 

830 am. 

waiting for the light to change. 

girl in maxima goes through the mcdonald's drive-thru. 

rolls down window. 

tosses out some coffee onto pavement. (okay fine). 

20 seconds later tosses out plastic cream container. (not fine) 

10 seconds later tosses out another plastic cream container. (seriously) 

10 seconds later tosses out a stirrer. (no joke)

*****

had i been a male, i would have gone up to her window and confronted her. 

as it stands, i encourage anybody who knows this girl who drives a black nissan maxima, maryland plates 9FL D49, to throw your trash on her doorstep.

speaking of nekkid basketball

i've said before the local commercials around here are weird, but this is the latest weirdest.

it's a personal injury law firm. two older male lawyers dressed in business suits are on a high school basketball court. 

with a girl in a half shirt and tiny mini skirt. 

inexplicable. 

who is she? why is she there? is she a lawyer too? secretary? just a woman for hire? how is this related? or relevant? in any way?

sex sells. but does it sell lawyers? makes them seem lecherous and sleazy and distracted to me.

save the sluts for the beer ads, i want my lawyers in libraries.

vet expansion

the dogs' vet is undergoing a massive expansion. doubling in size. it was already nicer than my own doctor in there. 

on one hand i think it's great the dogs can get top notch care right around the corner. 

on the other hand, i think those fuckers must be overcharging.

every kiss

begins with "e" - every begins with e. dammit kay!

2 tvs

i realized last night that some television brings me feelings of peace; some television brings me feelings of agitation.

baseball and golf bring peace.

nature shows about cheetahs and polar bears bring me peace.

my inner landscape is flowing and free and soothed while watching.

99% of commercials, the news, bill maher, pro football, hyper-dramatic reality shows based on nothing but the drama between idiots bring me great agitation. i find myself talking back to the tv. out loud. twisted inside. in actual clenched physical pain watching these nitwits and the sensory overload of their mindless, shallow violence. 

maybe i'm too critical or empathetic, but the pain i feel is real and toxic.

don't even get me started on entourage. is this the best we can do? as a culture, this is what we choose to glorify? money, drugs, and pornography?  it's maddening!

bring on the peaceful easy tv.

why it's okay to rent part 75

 

somebody's gotta come fix this and i don't have to pay for it.

(if i don't break my neck first)

(just kidding, it's not as bad as it looks)

(and most of that ivy is gone, in an afternoon fit of garden shearing frenzy)

lazy logos

the washington nationals logo looks too much like the walgreens logo.

the amtrak logo looks too much like the bank of america logo.

if you ask me.

do your part!

this was on the ground next to an apartment complex dumpster.

i am the first to agree with "one man's trash is another man's treasure."

i respect the enthusiasm and the sentiment. it's fairly judgy/preachy and greener than thou, however, and i doubt anybody will take heed.

the 'habitat for humanities' bit makes me smile.

fresh death

the houston astros uniforms used to be incredible. orange and gold 'comet trails' - the height of awesomeness.

now they are awful. they look like eastern bloc prison uniforms. could not be blander.

wtf?

cure for tantrums?

check out kid D's brilliant new idea to stop her daughter's fits:

i love technology

happy birthday eli vs the bears

today eli turns 7. he's a good boy.

he had a big weekend. this photo is a reenactment of what happened.

he was off-leash on a quiet mountain road around 11AM. all of a sudden, he bounded down the side of the hill off the road, ears up. there were two tiny bear cubs and a giant mama bear.

right there.

the bear cubs scooted up the tree, the mama bear held her ground.

eli got within a foot or two of the mama.

the 4 people on the road started screaming "ELI! ELI! ELI COME! COME! COME HERE ELI!"

eli turned around and came back. we kept walking. we were 15 feet from the bears. it was freakin crazy.

Guilty!

i am crying laughing watching this.

1 yummy inedible sample

i order more nuts than i care to admit from nutsonline.com

their peanuts are cheap & shipping isn't too much when you buy a bunch of them

they usually send a little sample of something extra which i usually appreciate. chocolate covered sunflower seeds, goji berries, walnuts...something like that.

yesterday this was the "1 Yummy Sample" in the box. look at the list - i don't think there is one edible ingredient. they look like gummy cough drops.

mochi rice cakes? not fit for human consumption. if i were in the movie 9 to 5, i would give these to my boss to poison him to death.

wine country

it's noon on a saturday.

you're in an SUV limo with 15 people you just met, going from winery to winery in temecula, california.

you start making out with one of the people in the back seat.

this is the reaction.

nachodoggy

i decided i was being mean to people i don't know on here today, and deleted the posts about zuckerman's hands and donald trump television and here is a picture of nacho's gullet.

television

oh to be like nacho and have a brain the size of a walnut, fresh snuggies to drool on, and an everwagging tail...

i spent the majority of my adult life without a tv. which meant that i spent a lot of time online. i missed having a tv during college basketball season and that's it.

in the past couple years, the situation has changed, definitely for the better, and now there is a big screen tv in the family room and i spend a couple hours every night in front of it.

i thought it was supposed to be relaxing and turn people into unthinking zoned-out zombies. instead i often find myself anxious and yelling at the screen and hating humanity.

i love the show pawn stars. i love the real emotion and hope and validation non-actors get in selling their treasures.

i love watching sports on tv. i hate the announcers. we turn on woody durham on the radio and sync it to the tv during carolina basketball. i learn so much more about the teams that way - radio announcers kick ass. tv announcers blow hard.

last night for example the following shows stressed me out:

cash cab - while i love the true emotion of non-actors (again) i am anxious while watching it imagining if i'd been in the cab and didn't know the answers

millionaire matchmaker - the plastic surgery and shallowness was overwhelming. completely. and the loneliness. egos. delusions. uggghhh.

even the golf channel, which you would think would lull a person to peaceful rest, had a show about how donald trump strong-armed his way into polluting the northeast coast of scotland with his 'biggest' and 'best' and 'most lavish' golf course that he's building in the dunes there. he is an ass. if he wanted to appreciate the dunes and let people enjoy walking through them, he could've created a park instead of a multi-million dollar exclusive golf course in the beautiful fragile ecosystem. now if you want to walk in those dunes you'll have to pay exorbitant greens fees. and half your month's salary to stay at the fake garish castle he's renovating. america, fuck yeah!

so i guess i should just stick with pawn stars, house hunters, and unc basketball with the volume off.

airplane etiquette

1. if you have the window or aisle seat, do not take the middle armrest.
2. if you sneeze, cover your mouth with your arm or a tissue
3. if you shoot snot out of your mouth or nose when you sneeze, don't wipe your hands on the tray table/wall
4. do not eat 6 oz. of curry before boarding

just say who

i think we should remove the word "whom" from the english language.

3/4 of humans have no idea how to use it.

of the 1/4 that know how to use it, 1/2 don't use it because it sounds so freakin pretentious

1/2 use it and feel superior

it's a lose-lose-lose-lose proposition

drop the "m" - drop the confusion - drop the grammar snobbery - just say 'who'

eli nacho swimming hole

charlotte street computers retrieved my sd card! no problemo. also gave me tips on laptop power cord management - always unplug the power cord from the laptop when you pick it up - it's a fragile joint, and an expensive fix, and the weight of the battery loosens it and can break it.

here's a picture of nacho swimming in circles, and eli swimming for a stick.

the great smoky mountain national park does not allow dogs. they list the reasons here:http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/pets.htm


i would agree with them, if they didn't allow horses, which they do. there are giant piles of horse shit all over the trails, so the anti-disease excuses go out the window.