Rain, rain

Apparently my grandfather frequently commented on the tendency of Washington County, Maine, to be foggy, rainy and generally unpleasant, if you want to go to the beach. And it is all those things, as our recent week spent on Kenebec Bay proved. But you really don't want to go to the beach in Washington County. The water temp is generally in the low to mid 60s, so who really cares about the beach?

Roque Bluffs State Park is still one of the loveliest beaches, whether or not you go in the water. OLGS did for about 30 seconds.

One afternoon, when it looked as the the fog might burn off, we went for a quick walk. When we arrived, it was impossible to see more than 50 feet off shore. Within five minutes, the fog lifted, and all the little islands appeared. Then the fog returned.

As we were picking our way down the beach, a girl with a clipboard and a lanyard appeared out of the murk. She was taking a survey about why we visited Roque Bluffs, where we came from and how long we were staying. When I suggested that she had the best summer job in the world, she waved her hand toward the fog and admitted that it was not alway glorious. But she appreciated our Minnesota nice ways--apparently not all visitors to the beach welcome her questions.

Joe High School Changes His Name

Another--and my last--South High graduation. South High has been part of this family's life since 1997. No more. A new era begins. He is no longer Joe high School.

It was a well choreographed event, and a good thing that was, as another school--Edison High--was waiting to get in exactly two hours after for their own festivities. And the precision was despite the inevitable disasters. The class treasurer fainted. The honor song drum didn't show up on time. The principal neglected to introduce the superintendent. None of this took away from the charm of the event. The Pop Singers, an excellent acappella group, sang. The band/orchestra, in which Joe College played four years ago, was probably great, but we couldn't hear them because there were no mikes.

And Joe HS, who had wanted to skip commencement, seemed to be glad he attended. I sure was. But, predictably, he neglected to pick up his cap and grown on time, so did not have the fancy hood for honors grads. Oh well--it's the diploma that counts.

Who's the killer?

News reports say that many anti-abortion groups are backing away from the murder of Dr. Tiller, the abortion provider in Wichita who was gunned down in church. If you're in the anti camp, it makes a lot of sense to back away. The shots fired in the culture wars are becoming less frequent -- people become weary of battle, even those who are the most fervent fighters. And the actions of a crazy like Scott Roeder only reduce the credibility of the anti-abortion movement even further.

Still--there are those who are saying that Dr. Tiller brought it on himself by providing late-term abortions. They are getting attention because of the journalism-school mentality that asserts that there are always two sides to an issue. And there may be, but why give credibility to the kooks by suggesting that their hysteria is on a par with a reasoned complex opposition to abortion? This is like saying that Africans enslaved themselves or that people with aids deserved their fate. You get the analogy.

And has anyone noticed the irony that this devil incarnate was gunned down in church? Guess I'm behind in my study of church history. Last I checked, Lutherans were not devil worshippers. That in itself should give the yahoos pause--Christianity is not incompatable with being an abortion provider. As I recall, Jesus was particularly interested in inviting those whom society had rejected into his circle--money lenders, prostitutes, etc. Wonder what he'd say about abortion providers.

Enough irony. Where's the outrage? Muslims shooting, immigrants demanding rights--folks get mad and everyone thinks they are justified in doing something silly and violent. Respectable church going doctors getting gunned down in church? The anger is surprisingly muted, to say the least. It's as if people are not sure where they should stand on this and don't want to draw attention to themselves and their side of the argument by having the wrong opinion--so they have none.

And it's a cliche--but why are most of the anti-abortion leaders, spokespersons and shooters men? It can't have anything to do with the cracks in the facade of patriarchy, could it? Nah...

Our nation's capital

Another trip, this time to Washington DC for a family event. The event was lovely, but we had time to do a little touristy stuff as well, so we demanded a ride to museum row, aka the Mall. We were dropped off in front of the Smithsonian castle, which is adjacent to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and the Freer Gallery of Art. The Sackler is an underground museum, with a stunning selection of Asian art on permament exhibition. A temporary display featured gifts to the Russian empire from Iran and Turkey. If you have a yen to see lots of emeralds, rubies, and tapestries woven from silver and gold thread, take a trip to the Sackler before September, when the exhibit ends. The Freer is a more traditional building and houses a much larger and diverse collection from all parts of Asia.

These museums are free--and there's not even a donation jar or a exhortation to pay something--even $.10, as one of the Joes did when he went to the Metropolitan Museum in New York. Operating these institutions (the collections were almost all donated, but operations are underwritten in part by the government) is one of the best uses of your tax dollars I can think of.

There's a vacancy

Joe High School will become, like his older brother, a Gopher. The University of Minnesota, accepting him before Christmas, is his destination next fall. His other picks were either too much of a stretch (ie, he didn't get in), or a fleeting fancy (ie, he couldn't remember why he applied). The U of M, being right down the street and a place where he has already taken classes and worked, makes sense. However, I do wish he had had more real choices. Staying at home, even if you live in a dorm, can make you feel as if there's not much urgency to the matter. We'll see how it goes.

College Crap Shoot

College admissions time is here. Joe High School has been admitted to two, turned down by one and waitlisted by one. One of the two admissions he doesn't want and has already turned them down. He applied to six places, so he's waiting for the last two. It's an odd process, and I'm glad that this is the last time I'll have to watch it unfold.

One of the remaining institutions, to deter over-eager students, announces in very large letters on its admissions website: "We will be sending out letters on April 1." In other words, don't call us, we'll call you.

The italian model

Joe College Grad just got a new job -- if all goes well, he will be teaching first grade next year in a Minneapolis charter school. It means a significant pay cut for him -- 50% at least. And he leaves la-la land for the sub-arctic climate of the Northstar state. Joe is really excited, despite the forthcoming change in his financial and environmental circumstances. It's nice to be wanted. They recruited him -- even better.

Ah, to be young and able to indulge your best self. Kind of inspiring. But unlike young Italian men, he will not be able to live in the parental house -- although I will probably cook for him from time to time. Mangia!

Update

When life seems dull and boring, make a list. Postings to domtran have been MIA in the past few weeks because there has not been much to say. Wrong, wrong....

--New kitten in the family (see Mitzi's Journal)

--Joe College Grad coming to Mpls today for an interview with a Mpls charter school on Monday. They paid for his ticket, so they must be interested

--OLGS slipped on the ice and tore three tendons. Surgery, bed rest, heavy drugs and a leg immobilizer. He's on the mend, but can't drive, can't cut his toenails, and can't even start PT for another two weeks. He's teaching his classes online, with some students trying to take advantage of the situation

--Joe College got picked up for driving his new car with bad tail lights. He now only drives it during the day (rather than have the lights fixed. I agree with him)

--Geese and ducks appearing on the Mississippi flyway


--Potholes appearing everywhere. Mud season is approaching

--Hungarian-speaking Transylvanians come to town, allowing OLGS to practice his language skills. One young man looks amazingly like Joe College grad -- throwbacks everywhere.
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The end of the food experiment

Joe High School, who has been a vegetarian for nine years, became a vegan after the New Year. He ate power bars and drank soy milk. This lasted almost a month, until today. I believe the seed of change, so to speak, was planted by an innocent question I asked, which was whether he could eat honey on a vegan diet. I was having difficulty finding whole grain bread that didn't have honey. Even though it is an animal product, honey was apparently OK for Joe. Last week I mentioned that there are farms that raise animals humanely, and that we could probably find their products here in the land of 10,000 steakhouses.

Last night he indicated that he might be willing to consider such food -- milk, cheese and butter produced by pasture raised, grass-fed cows. Today, off we went to the food co-op. There we found cheese produced on an Iowa farm where they milk the cows by hand and pluck the thistles out of the pasture so that the beasts do not suffer if they mistake the leaves for something yummy.

This food is not cheap. In fact, it's extremely expensive. And Joe felt guilty for blackmailing us, as he put it. So he paid for 25% of the grocery bill. We now have some wonderful food for all to eat, and Joe is back in the land of the living.

I like it because it's local. I don't like it because it represents a way of eating that most people in the world cannot afford. Joe celebrated when we returned home with a slice of chocolate cake (butter, eggs, etc.) from the co-op bakery. And he's looking at chevre in a whole new way--it's hard to mistreat goats. They won't stand for it.

The president we need, not the president we deserve

Rather than the junk novels that I usually read, I've taken up President Obama's youthful autobiography, Dreams from my Father. It is a remarkable book, full of nuance and analysis. But what gives me hope is that there is none of the black vs. white, us vs. them, evil vs. good garbage that infested us for the past eight years. It's well-written, and he wrote it all by himself, something that our previous guy would have been incapable of doing.

Preaching to the choir? Probably, but some things bear repeating. Read the book.

A new day

It happened. Former Occupant has fled back to Texas and President Obama is now in charge. Doesn't that have a lovely ring? Especially since he's using his bully pulpit to change some stuff that cried out for change. And, not surprisingly, he's being smart. He knows that he doesn't have a long honeymoon period, so he's using it now.

While all the preparations for his inauguration were underway, OLGS, Joe College and Joe High School and I journeyed to Los Angeles. It was -22 when we left Minneapolis and 80 when we arrived in LA. That was the good bit. Then it took us two hours to reach our hotel in Pasadena. The traffic and the smog were unbelievelable. I do not know how people live like this. But clearly they do, perhaps mesmerized by the beautiful weather.

In addition to visiting Joe College Grad at his house in East LA (the only non-Spanish speaking person within 10 miles, I suspect), we did a number of touristy things. Visits to the Getty Museum and the Huntington Library reinforced my belief that the desire to construct a monument with your name on it is one of the benefits of unrestricted capitalism. These are amazing collections and amazing places.

And then we returned on the red-eye, in time for the swearing-in of President Obamna. As such ceremonies go, it wasn't that grand an occasion. That's good, as what's important is the work of rebuilding.

The Joes at the Getty Museum, January 2009

Happy New Year

It can only get better. I'm looking at working until I'm 80 because my 401Ks have bit the dust (who thought that was a good idea, anyway?) Tuition at the University of Minnesota is pushing $11,000 a year -- something that a single mom making $40,000 a year can not afford. Everytime I cross the Mississippi, I hold my breath, waiting for the bridge to collapse because we just couldn't afford the one million dollars required to shore it up.

The public sector has taken some awful hits in the past eight years. The notion of public good seems to have disappeared. The notion that the government is responsible for domestic tranquility, whatever that means, seems to have disappeared. The concept that we are all in this together seems to have disappeared.

Maybe Barak can reconstitute our commitment to each other. Maybe he can direct funds toward bridge projects. Maybe he can ensure that all children have a true opportunityto learn. But he can't do it by himself, and the wolves are out there ready to pounce on January 21. Let's hope that we support his efforts with the same fervor that we had before the election. Otherwise 2009 will be even more depressing than 2008.

New Car

Joe College bought a car. Or rather, he acquired a car -- it's a long story. He and OLGS drove a car to Chicago for a friend who had purchased it on EBay. The friend, an excellent mechanic who had kept his 1992 Toyota Corolla running, insisted that Joe College would be doing a favor by taking the old car off his hands. His wife and kids, he said, cringed when they had to ride in it. And one can see why.

It is now parked in front of the house, but, as OLGS pointed out, on the other side of the street so that it isn't associated with us. It has lots of rust and a wonderful jerry-rigged taillight that is an invitation to any aggressive police officer. The Volvos and new Hondas also parked in our neighborhood are looking down their hoods, or noses.

Joe College is in hog heaven over his first car, at least the first that he actually owns himself. Tomorrow he goes to the DMV to make it his officially. And it gets 32 MPG highway and burns only a little oil (less in the winter, according to our friend). And the price was right -- free, with a beautiful rug from Afghanistan thrown in to pacify yours truly.

I'm happy for Joe. I remember my first car -- a 1960's slantback Volvo that I bought with help from my dad. It was blue (just like Joe's new car), and when I see one on the street (which still occasionally happens), I feel a twinge. There's nothing like first love.

Christmas letter 2008

The year is turning and each goes by faster than the last. That's the benefit and the hazard of growing older -- you don't get bored, but you can feel time slipping away. Joe High School is applying to college -- it seems like only yesterday he was in his stroller, shaking his rattle at candidate Bill Clinton's wife Hillary.

As for the other Joes, Joe College is plugging away at the University of Minnesota and living at home. He has taken up home brewing, and our basement is now Newcastle West. Joe College Grad is still living in LA, working in business and figuring out what comes next.

Like so many Americans, I have once again changed jobs. In July I abandoned the lawyers for a similar web writing position at a private career college. Who knew that such places existed? It's been an eye-opener, and a rather uplifting one.

OLGS continues to teach, commute to Wisconsin and get in some European travel. This past summer he went to eastern Europe and along the way took a crash course in Hungarian, an ancestral language. He's going back this summer.

My parents are elderly, but still living independently and fighting the good fight. My dad now has not only seen the Red Sox win the World Series in his lifetime, but also had the profound pleasure of voting out the Current Occupant. It was an amazing election, one that gave me hope for us as a country. Of course, it was also a testament to the power of money in US politics. One can't have everything....

Christmas letters should be short and sweet, so domtran wishes you a 2009 filled with challenging experiences, interesting people and good books.

Snow again

Here we go again -- just when you think global warming has eliminated Minnesota winters, the snow and sub zero cold arrives (not always together). And any thoughts about staying here after we retire evaporate.

But it is a great conversation starter -- almost as good as former Gov. Jesse Ventura, or the current senatorial recount or our 6th Dictrict congresswoman, Michele Bachmann.