On Friday, I usually get to "sleep in." S works extended days Monday through Thursday and has Friday off. So on Friday she gets the kids to school in the morning, and then I'm responsible for night duty. Night duty is typically worse than morning duty because it's harder to get the kids into bed than out of bed (especially Lil' S1), but it's so nice to have at least one day a week when I can turn off my alarm and wake up around 9:00 a.m. to an empty house. I'm good at sleeping in the morning too. Usually I don't even hear the kids running around downstairs, or I hear them but only it some sort of delightful dream-state. They usually don't wake me up (save the times, of course, when Lil' S1 jumps on me and slaps my face expressly to wake me up). S can't do this. Even when it's her turn to "sleep in," she's usually up shortly after the kids get up, because she just can't sleep when they're awake -- every little whimper or bang makes her snap up like something is wrong. The flip side of this though is that if she's tired at night, she can go to bed at 8:15 p.m. and be fast asleep by 8:18 p.m., whereas even when I'm dog tired, I'll be laying in bed awake at 12:15 a.m. trying to figure out who the third outfielder with Griffey and Ichiro would be if I was making an all-time Mariners lineup (either Mike Cameron or Nelson Cruz, BTW).
So this morning I woke up about nine, nobody was home, and it was pouring outside. But since I work from home on Friday and the kids were already gone, I thought I wouldn't have to deal with the rain. It was one of those small "beating life" moments, where all the other suckers had to wake up early and deal with this torrential downpour, but I could roll out of bed, throw on some sweats, make a pot of coffee, turn on my work computer, and start my day without even leaving the house. That's what I set out to do. But when I got down the steps into the living room, I noticed that Lil' S1's lunchbox was on the floor, not in his backpack at school, where it should be. I immediately hung my head in sorrow, because I knew where this was going: I was going to end up bringing it to him.
I could, of course, pretend like I didn't see it and just go on with my day. School lunch is actually provided for the kids, so Lil' S1 probably wouldn't starve. We pack snacks for him, because he frequently doesn't eat much (any) lunch and then gets hungry/cranky during aftercare. Also, we give him semi-healthy things we know he likes; I've seen the school food before, and it looks like, well, like school food. And then there's the main reason, which is that S is totally obsessed with our kids' calorie intake -- she always thinks they aren't eating enough -- and sending Lil' S1 to school with snacks helps put her mind at ease.
So I sent S a text asking if she meant to leave his lunchbox at home, already knowing what the answer was. Predictably she sent me back a harried text asking if I could take it to him. I could have said no, under the (very reasonable) justification that he could eat the school food and would be fine without snacks for one day, but I knew that this would cause S to immediate stop whatever errand she was running, drive home, and drop it off herself. Then I would have to watch her do all this (and possibly deal with a resentful wife) knowing that it was all because I didn't want to put on real pants and go outside in the rain for a few minutes. That wasn't going fly. I brought him the lunchbox.
It wasn't a big deal. It literally took me less than ten minutes (his school is only a few blocks away), and we own umbrellas. But there was a certain inelegance about it that really bothered me. I didn't beat life today. I got my feet wet just like all the other sorry saps out there.
Anyway... In other news, real news, healthcare is the watchword of the day. The House Republicans finally passed their bill to repeal and replace Obamacare. By all accounts it's a very shitty bill, but any bill the Reps put out was bound to be shitty because they have a fundamental view of healthcare that is irreconcilable with what most voters -- even most Republican voters -- actually want. What most voters want is decent health insurance, and if they can't afford it, they want somebody to subsidize it for them. They aren't that interested in the who-or-how logistics. What Republican lawmakers want is a mostly free insurance market, in which the federal government doesn't get involved. In other words, there are two fundamental options: (a) Have the federal government provide a mechanism by which healthy and affluent people subsidize the health insurance costs of the sick and poor; (b) don't do this. Most voters seem to want (a); Republican politicians want (b). And so here we are, with a bill nobody really likes, even people who voted for it, and which experts never had a chance to properly analyze and the public never had a chance to weigh in on. This is how you have to do it when you've been lying about healthcare for the last seven years. (As usual, I find Vox.com has the best coverage, if you want more info on the subject. I also like their podcast The Weeds. Despite not even knowing what Sarah Kliff looks like, I have a small nerd crush on her. And she lives in DC! But, alas, she recently got married... and I'm also married.)
Of course this bad bill isn't law yet. It has to pass the Senate, which is no sure thing. There were a handful of House Reps who voted "no" on the bill, and Reps can only afford two such defections in the Senate. But I certainly wouldn't bet the farm on it failing in the Senate. On the contrary, I think we should expect some form of this bill to become law. I also wouldn't bet the farm on this being the sure-fire political winner for Democrats that their House members seem to think it is. (They were taunting Reps during the vote by singing Steam's "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Good Bye," which despite my skepticism, I actually think is kinda funny.) Yes, this bill is terribly unpopular, and it will hurt many of their voters, but there have been so many times that Reps have done unpopular things that hurt many of their voters, and I've thought to myself, "There's no way they're going to let this slide." They always let it slide.
With that said, I do think it's smart strategy for Democrats to rally around this. Even if they can't change the vast majority of people's minds, they don't necessarily need to. In many congressional races, they just need to slice off a sliver of the electorate to tip the scales in their favor. And most importantly, they need to engage new voters. This is how I think this can be a boon for Dems. As I heard Nancy Pelosi say, most Americans don't even know who their representatives in Congress are, let alone turn up at the polls consistently. This vote can help change that. (I've already seen lists going around social media with Reps who are vulnerable in 2018.) It's on liberals now to be sure everybody knows names like Darrell Issa and Erik Paulsen and Carlos Curbelo. These are three of the 14 House members from districts won by Clinton who voted for the bill. Liberals need to try to get people excited to vote against the avaricious assholes who took away people's health insurance to give tax cuts to the super rich. It might not work -- Democrats have an uncanny knack for snatching defeat from the jaws of victory -- but, at this point, it seems like the best strategy. So, if you live in a district represented by one these people, vote against them; if you don't, consider donating time or money. We've got to try to turn the tables, and put our country back on the track most people want it on.
Until next time...
[On one hand, you've got Mike Cameron whose combination of speed, power, and slick defense makes him one of the more underrated players in Mariners history.]
[On the other hand, you've got Nelson Cruz who's probably the fourth best hitting Mariner ever, behind just Griffey, Edgar, and A-Rod... such a tough choice.]
So this morning I woke up about nine, nobody was home, and it was pouring outside. But since I work from home on Friday and the kids were already gone, I thought I wouldn't have to deal with the rain. It was one of those small "beating life" moments, where all the other suckers had to wake up early and deal with this torrential downpour, but I could roll out of bed, throw on some sweats, make a pot of coffee, turn on my work computer, and start my day without even leaving the house. That's what I set out to do. But when I got down the steps into the living room, I noticed that Lil' S1's lunchbox was on the floor, not in his backpack at school, where it should be. I immediately hung my head in sorrow, because I knew where this was going: I was going to end up bringing it to him.
I could, of course, pretend like I didn't see it and just go on with my day. School lunch is actually provided for the kids, so Lil' S1 probably wouldn't starve. We pack snacks for him, because he frequently doesn't eat much (any) lunch and then gets hungry/cranky during aftercare. Also, we give him semi-healthy things we know he likes; I've seen the school food before, and it looks like, well, like school food. And then there's the main reason, which is that S is totally obsessed with our kids' calorie intake -- she always thinks they aren't eating enough -- and sending Lil' S1 to school with snacks helps put her mind at ease.
So I sent S a text asking if she meant to leave his lunchbox at home, already knowing what the answer was. Predictably she sent me back a harried text asking if I could take it to him. I could have said no, under the (very reasonable) justification that he could eat the school food and would be fine without snacks for one day, but I knew that this would cause S to immediate stop whatever errand she was running, drive home, and drop it off herself. Then I would have to watch her do all this (and possibly deal with a resentful wife) knowing that it was all because I didn't want to put on real pants and go outside in the rain for a few minutes. That wasn't going fly. I brought him the lunchbox.
It wasn't a big deal. It literally took me less than ten minutes (his school is only a few blocks away), and we own umbrellas. But there was a certain inelegance about it that really bothered me. I didn't beat life today. I got my feet wet just like all the other sorry saps out there.
Anyway... In other news, real news, healthcare is the watchword of the day. The House Republicans finally passed their bill to repeal and replace Obamacare. By all accounts it's a very shitty bill, but any bill the Reps put out was bound to be shitty because they have a fundamental view of healthcare that is irreconcilable with what most voters -- even most Republican voters -- actually want. What most voters want is decent health insurance, and if they can't afford it, they want somebody to subsidize it for them. They aren't that interested in the who-or-how logistics. What Republican lawmakers want is a mostly free insurance market, in which the federal government doesn't get involved. In other words, there are two fundamental options: (a) Have the federal government provide a mechanism by which healthy and affluent people subsidize the health insurance costs of the sick and poor; (b) don't do this. Most voters seem to want (a); Republican politicians want (b). And so here we are, with a bill nobody really likes, even people who voted for it, and which experts never had a chance to properly analyze and the public never had a chance to weigh in on. This is how you have to do it when you've been lying about healthcare for the last seven years. (As usual, I find Vox.com has the best coverage, if you want more info on the subject. I also like their podcast The Weeds. Despite not even knowing what Sarah Kliff looks like, I have a small nerd crush on her. And she lives in DC! But, alas, she recently got married... and I'm also married.)
Of course this bad bill isn't law yet. It has to pass the Senate, which is no sure thing. There were a handful of House Reps who voted "no" on the bill, and Reps can only afford two such defections in the Senate. But I certainly wouldn't bet the farm on it failing in the Senate. On the contrary, I think we should expect some form of this bill to become law. I also wouldn't bet the farm on this being the sure-fire political winner for Democrats that their House members seem to think it is. (They were taunting Reps during the vote by singing Steam's "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Good Bye," which despite my skepticism, I actually think is kinda funny.) Yes, this bill is terribly unpopular, and it will hurt many of their voters, but there have been so many times that Reps have done unpopular things that hurt many of their voters, and I've thought to myself, "There's no way they're going to let this slide." They always let it slide.
[Apparently this song has other lyrics than "na na na na, na na na na, hey, hey, kiss him goodbye".]
With that said, I do think it's smart strategy for Democrats to rally around this. Even if they can't change the vast majority of people's minds, they don't necessarily need to. In many congressional races, they just need to slice off a sliver of the electorate to tip the scales in their favor. And most importantly, they need to engage new voters. This is how I think this can be a boon for Dems. As I heard Nancy Pelosi say, most Americans don't even know who their representatives in Congress are, let alone turn up at the polls consistently. This vote can help change that. (I've already seen lists going around social media with Reps who are vulnerable in 2018.) It's on liberals now to be sure everybody knows names like Darrell Issa and Erik Paulsen and Carlos Curbelo. These are three of the 14 House members from districts won by Clinton who voted for the bill. Liberals need to try to get people excited to vote against the avaricious assholes who took away people's health insurance to give tax cuts to the super rich. It might not work -- Democrats have an uncanny knack for snatching defeat from the jaws of victory -- but, at this point, it seems like the best strategy. So, if you live in a district represented by one these people, vote against them; if you don't, consider donating time or money. We've got to try to turn the tables, and put our country back on the track most people want it on.
Until next time...
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