Economic Downturns

Friday was a rough day for me, most likely due to an overly busy week and not enough sleep for several nights for both me and my daughter. So I might have been reading things into what I saw up at the corner of 145th and 5th as we waited for the light to change. But regardless of my emotional state, it was a terrible sight.

I can't figure out if there was some sort of "clean up" initiative in action, or if some residents in the area were taking charge of their block, but there were 8 or 10 people in rain gear cutting and hauling away brush from the area. The city must have been somewhat involved as there was an SDOT garbage truck and driver loading up what the neighbor-types were hauling. Some kind of heavy equipment had probably been used as the area had been very overgrown and somewhat wooded, and now it looked like it had been cleared.

None of this would have struck me as particularly interesting or noteworthy except for the fact that one of the people on the scene was not dressed for the project, was not brandishing tools and bustling around. Instead, he was sobbing. Mopping brow with a dirty paper napkin, shuffling from foot to foot, waving his arms around, and generally looking very confused and upset. This man was clearly mentally ill and looked like he lived outside. He had 3 stuffed plastic garbage bags on the ground next to him, probably filled with his things, and he watched the other people moving around.

I think I may have seen him at this spot before, panhandling from cars exiting the freeway. I know I've seen his stuff -- 2-liter plastic bottles and some random bags of food. He used to have old popcorn spread around on the ground and the birds would gather to eat it.

So my guess is that back in the overgrown bramble and bushes, this man had fashioned himself some sort of shelter and was calling this corner home. What I don't understand is, if this was a city or neighborhood effort to prevent a homeless man from living there, why wasn't something put in place to provide him with some help? If an effort requiring this much coordination and planning was going on, had anyone considered finding a shelter or a soup kitchen to transport the evicted man to? Even arresting him and giving him a night in jail, a shower and a meal seems more humane than allowing him to stand and watch as what little stability and security he had was being torn apart.

I think what bothers me most about what I saw was that even in the unlikely event that they only discovered this man's presence there after the fact, they simply appeared to be working and ignoring his existence. Granted, I only saw a snapshot of the process. They may have had the best intentions and were unable to get him to leave or accept their help. But by the time I was there to witness it, it was one of the ugliest things I have seen in a long time. It didn't help that the "volunteers" or whomever they were were wearing heavy weather gear (overalls) and carrying pitchforks.

One of my Heroes

I had the privilege of seeing Jimmy Carter speak in Seattle 6 or 7 years ago and I was so very impressed with what he had to say about past and contemporary topics. His answers were intelligent, compassionate, and realistic. I remember feeling like I wanted to sit down with this man and ask him what I should think about many more topics, because he just made sense to me. I don't usually want someone else to tell me what to think; quite the opposite, I can be resistant to having my opinions influenced. But when you hear the words of someone with Carter's experience, with his combination of heart and brains, you want to hear more.

I was glad today, to hear some more. The man continues to be sharp, funny, kind and informed. I am listening. I hope others will, too.

Inauguration Photos - Not to be Missed

Click on the picture or on this link to see some incredible photographs of the big day around the globe.
The Inauguration of President Barack Obama - The Big Picture - Boston.com

Practicing my Practice

Today at yoga I used a new mantra in an attempt to clear my mind's clutter and get the most out of my time on the mat. I really felt a need to remind myself to be in the moment, to use my time to find release for my muscles and even more for my busy mind. Last night I woke several times in the night and realized I was planning and dreaming about work, t0-do lists, and ideas for some upcoming events in my future. Not a good night's sleep, and not something that I wanted to allow into my yoga practice.

When I reflect on being in the moment, being truly present, I realize that I have a lot of room to grow in this area. Part of it is simply the reality of balancing parenthood, work, domestic life, and pursuits outside of these fundamentals. It isn't realistic to only live in the moment, because life takes planning. And there are benefits to time spent reflecting on the past as well.

But I think it is a worthwhile goal to increase my overall awareness of how much time I spend multi-tasking, and to make conscious choices about when I am choosing that and when I am really depriving myself of the opportunity for a wonderful experience in the moment. I certainly want to be sure that I am not taking advantage of my daughter's ability to entertain herself to the point of not taking time to simply be with her, enjoy her, and give her part of my heart and soul every day.

Because she is very much in the present, as children are naturally. It is our natural state to live in the moment, and we have to learn to think about past and future. Children learn time concepts and how to answer "when" much later than they learn about action, and person, and even reasons. I spend a lot of time with my students and my child helping them gain knowledge from past experience and also make choices based on future outcomes. It is worthwhile and necessary, but I hope I can also step back and learn from what they have to offer: right now.

Where were you?

It was quite a day on Tuesday. The degree of excitement and participation here in Seattle was high. My plans were to witness the swearing-in surrounded by my students, kids for whom this day will not be history but rather the way things are. Kids for whom the door has been opened. American kids who speak 54 different languages and whose skin color has more than 54 different shades.
My plans were foiled by circumstances of my job which I cannot write about, but which are highly frustrating. Let me just say that the very fact that the people responsible for me missing the chance to celebrate with my students and colleagues did not witness the inauguration, which blows my mind. History was made, and they were in a room, fuming about something else.

I refused to miss it, and took a 20 minute break to see it happen live. It was an oasis in a rough morning. I was entirely transported into a world where the big picture is in view and people come together to make a change for the better.

The rest of the day was also challenging. It was a relief when I finally was on my way home with Adelaide in the car, and we were able to talk about our new President. Adelaide was very excited to watch Obama get sworn in, and wanted to do it right away when we got home. We waited until bedtime, and then turned to YouTube to witness it again.

This time, I watched Obama, but mostly I watched Adelaide. I'm sure she didn't understand everything in his speech, and we didn't watch it in its entirety, but her gaze was fixed and her attention was total. I was glad, because I hope that this election will be something she is able to remember later. She certainly will remember Obama, as he will be her President for a good portion of her childhood.

Merry-Go-Round

Today we had the good fortune to have sun all day and a warm afternoon outdoors to enjoy. Adelaide rode her bike with the masses at Greenlake while I walked alongside trying to prevent collisions. At the playground, also jammed packed, I noticed that despite the fact that there were children on every inch of the equipment and parents forming an almost unbroken ring on the perimeter, the mood was light and people were navigating through without much fuss. A little reprieve from the cold, wet, and dark really does a lot for the spirit here in the Northwest.

The most noticeable success story in the sharing and working together today happened at the merry-go-round. There were kids of all ages on there, mostly 4 and older, but a few smaller ones too, and they must have been at capacity if not pushing the limit a bit. The speed at which it was whirling around made it challenging for me to watch (I don't have to ride to get dizzy) but I couldn't take my eyes off of these kids. They negotiated an amazing number of factors with very little discussion, all while whirling around and sometimes leaning their heads back with pure joy. When things slowed, a few kids would hop off and run until it was fast again. When a smaller kid said "stop!" they had it slowed to a crawl almost instantly. When a new kid appeared on the scene wanting to climb on, they slowed it down enough for that child to run an hop on. No arguments, no negotiations, no tears or yelling or collisions. I don't know how they did it, but I do know I wanted to scoop those kids up and give them a hug for being so amazing.

I couldn't help but wonder what the freeway might look like if these kids were driving instead of their parents. I suppose there might be some speeding going on, but I bet you anything there wouldn't be any tailgating. Merging, changing lanes and the on- and off-ramps would be a breeze, and thank-you waves would be the norm.

Biggest Loser Week 2 Recap

For those of you who missed it, here's a look at this week's Biggest Loser episode:

Sweet and Lovely (and Patriotic!)

On a rare trip to a different grocery store today (given that we can usually shop without the car by stepping out our front door) we made a great discovery. I am pleased to present, the 44th President of the United States of America:Included in this fun treat was the rest of the first family, Michelle, the kids, and the mystery dog. He has a question mark on him which may be hard to discern in this photo.

So come Tuesday, we'll toast with some bubbly and a sweet democratic treat. You can get yours shipped to you from Little Rae's Bakery. Enjoy!

W.M.D. (Weapons of Miniturized Disarmament)

I'd like to give a shout out to Alec, who inspired this post. I have long been a fan of Playmobil as a good gift item for the 4 - 8 year old set (birthday party season can be challenging, so a small stockpile of Playmobil is good to have on hand). We have used their Advent calendars two years in a row now as a fun way to count down the days to Christmas and have a nice thing to play with along the way (they have a little piece of the whole set in a box with the number for each day of December leading to the 25th). My daughter likes the toys but I think I like them more. They are so detailed as far as all the pieces they include, and they are just the kind of thing I would have been totally into as a kid. The ambulance has IV fluids, oxygen mast and a stretcher with legs and wheels that pop out when you take the patient out to the ER loading bay. The horseback rider has a little helmet and a bucket to feed her horse. The fairies have snap-on wings and bouquets and little pineapple and strawberry hats. It's really quite amazing.

The drawback of giving it as a gift, I have found, is that some details might be a little more than some of us want. I decided to disarm the motorcycle cop before wrapping him up, and having given the gift several times now, I have accumulated quite an arsenal of tiny instruments of force. These include billy clubs, rifles with scope, handguns, handcuffs, and knives.

So I found it particularly funny to read Alec's link, a review of the Playmobil security checkpoint which was actually lacking in realistic details. The reviewer and subsquent commentors had some good suggestions for other security related products (though I believe some of them are actually already available). I guess I could have left the weapons with the gifts I gave. Then we might have more use for the syringe, surgical scissors and bandages that came with our ambulance. Or I could make the Advent Calendar a little bit more exciting next year.

Family Circus

Remember the comic "Family Circus?" Or maybe I shouldn't say "remember," because it might still be being published. But when I think of it, I think of being a kid and finding it to be sappy and dumb. At some point I realized that there was a formula in place, a rotating group of themes which had slightly different content but basically the same message. There was the one where you see a trail of where the kid had been in the yard and house, and the things uprooted along the way. There's the one where something is broken and the kids blame "Ida Know," a ghost-like figure hovering in the background. There's the one where Daddy (Bill Keane) is on vacation so little Billy writes the comic, and the lettering is backward here and there and the drawings are like a kid did them. And then my favorite, the super sappy one with a reference to God or some other overused platitude.

I was trying to think of how I could do a blog post like the "daddy's on vacation" themed comic. As I write, Adelaide is waiting for me to give her some attention. So I explained to her that I wanted to see if she would be my guest author today. She asked me this:
Can I just do some words and like that time in the car when we were going to school you helped me spell them?

I told her yes, and she is ready to write. Over to you, guest blogger:When I was riding past a tree on my way to my friend's house, I saw something weird. It was "Hi, I'm Jeffery Bones. Have you ever seen a detective as good as me? I find all kinds of Nature. What do you do? I bet you don't find yellow cats every Sunday! I find them every Sunday, and I also find green blue jays, yellow forests, and even orange trees. You know what I like to find best? I like to find little girls on bikes with their moms."

It was hard to believe it, but that's what I saw! I love you grandma and grandpa, and I hope you enjoy my message. This was when I was out biking to Rachel's house. She's my friend. She has a little boy Noah that I like to play with. He has an igloo and a tunnel in his house. But I sure do like that Jeffrey Bones. And on the way back, instead of Jeffrey Bones, I saw this pirate that was wearing fourteen chains of emerald sapphires. He said to me, "Would you like to be a hugging pirate when you grow up? 'Cause that's what happens with lost kids. Maybe you could get lost and turn into one of me. We just sit around and watch television all the day."

If the world were filled with yoga teachers

Imagine a world where you went to work and were greeted with a hug and a cup of hot tea. You did some work for which you had prepared, it went well, and you were thanked numerous times and hugged again by everyone present when you left.

I am privileged to be temporarily in this wonderful world. Not only am I getting to do a trade (yoga for speech therapy), but the amount of gratitude and appreciation shown for the work I put in is unprecedented.

What would that world be like if it were happening to everyone? What if the barista who makes your latte in the morning heard you tell her you hug yourself at night knowing how good that coffee will taste tomorrow? (Greenlake PCC, you guys are awesome!) What if the bus driver knew how grateful you were she got up at 4:00 so you could be at class on time? What if your child's teacher knew you thought they were a saint for caring for your child all day long and helping her grow to be the best she can? (Thank you, Tif, and Joe, and Carol, and whole host of others!)

I think I might just try to find out. Because on this end, it feels really good.

Rules for Parents of Preschoolers

Rules for Parents of Preschoolers:

Help Me!

Don't help me! I can do it myself!

Tell me about that.

Don't tell me, I already know that.

I saw it first.

I go first.

Make me THIS to eat.

I don't want THIS to eat.

It's my turn.

Let me carry that.

Take this, I don't want to carry it.

It's still my turn.

Let me talk to you.

No, I don't want to talk to grandma on the phone.

I am always right.

It's my turn again.

I'm bored.

I'm NOT tired.

I'm hungry.

I'm hungry for cookies, not green beans.

I thought of that first.

Find me.

Don't find me!

Watch me.

Don't look at me!

No.

On Bravery

Let's talk about how much you weigh. Let's tell anyone who wants to listen exactly how much you weigh every week, and let's let them watch you work out and try to lose some weight. Let's even make you wear a really skimpy workout outfit and get on the scale with everyone watching.

Sound like fun? Not exactly. I am pretty sure most of us don't even tell our spouse what we weigh (well, I guess most of us women. In my experience husbands are a bit less concerned with those numbers and who knows them.). But this is exactly what the contestants on “The Biggest Loser” are doing every week in an impressive display of bravery.

This is one of the things I find most amazing about this program. I wrote about the show months ago (2 seasons ago in television world) and admitted that I love watching it. That took some guts on my part, since I suppose I like to present a slightly more highbrow side of myself than “reality tv viewer.” But real bravery? Admitting you have a problem you haven't fixed on your own, and getting the help you need in a format that allows others to watch your struggle and draw inspiration from it. Making a self-improvement resolution and putting it out there for public consumption means that these people have an accountability that may actually give them the ability to achieve what they couldn't before now.

I haven't yet made any resolutions for this new year. I am keeping the ones I've made in years past, and I have made some small post-holiday changes back to some healthier habits that I try to have in general. But now that I think about it, the resolutions that I did the best job of sticking to are the ones I told people that I was doing. So, to pay my respects to the brave souls on the scale on my tv screen, I will outline a few things that I am doing to improve my own health.

Counting Calories: Regardless of whether I am in the process of trying to lose weight or not, I have learned that I make healthier choices if I am writing down what I eat. Looking at 10 tortilla chips vs. a slice of bread with tofu makes it fairly simple to see what is going to make me feel better and get me through the afternoon. When I have to write it down, I am less inclined to eat crap. It doesn't matter that no one else is seeing what I write.

No processed food: This one has gone from being very difficult (when I started, new year's 2006) to one that almost I don't even have to think about anymore. I have a few exceptions to the rule and my definition of processed food is based on number and kinds of ingredients more than packaging (I'm not grinding my own floor and baking bread, but I am choosing bread baked locally with no chemicals and very few ingredients), but in general this has been revolutionary in improving the food I eat and serve to my child.

Prioritizing my time so exercise is consistent: I have been an avid exercise person for a long time now, but with many demands on my limited free time I have found that unless I absolutely put exercise at the top of the list, it is hard to get enough. I love the things I do for exercise and my mental health is totally dependent on them, but even given that strong motivation I have to seize every opportunity and make it mandatory or the chance is lost.

I'm not going to weigh myself in my sports bra and post the results here every week, but maybe I'll tell a few friends here and there what I'm trying to do so that when I am tempted not to follow my own plans, I'll have a little extra accountability to help me through those tough times.

Fast Food Nation?

The local fast food chain had a delivery truck parked in back today:
I can't help but think this is a poor choice. I guess I just assume that they wouldn't want to be associated with the name MacDonald, even though it is not the MacDonald of Ronald fame. Not that you're taking a huge step up in nutrition from one to the next, but the local chain at least has a basis in food rather than being entirely chemicals and low-grade farm waste. And the meat company, what are they thinking? Any other names in the family they might want to go with? Just a thought.

Yet Another Reason Not to Ski

In my opinion it is bad enough that you could have an accident while doing the actual skiing (and knowing me, I would), but there have been a rash of ski lift incidents of late in the news. Being stuck, or injured, or inconvenienced by the lift would be hard to deal with, but being stuck, and maybe injured, and PANTSED by the chair lift is just so unfair.

And then of course, your fellow skiers have cell phones. Do they use them to call for help? Perhaps. Do they use them to capture your horror and make sure it is available to the world via the internet? Definitely.

Two Weeks' Notice, Round Two

Dear President Bush,

This letter will serve as my two weeks' notice as a citizen of a country led by you as president and commander in chief. I am pleased to announce that I will be resigning from hearing your voice on my radio. (To be honest, your voice on my radio has greatly increased my listening to previously recorded music rather than news broadcasts in the last few years.) I will be resigning from false rhetoric about "terrah" and its threat to "Uhmerca." I bid farewell to the pockets of defense contractors in which you dwell. (At some point, anyway, when we are done cleaning up after this administration's greed and short-sightedness.)

I resign from "No Child Left Untested." I no longer wish to be employed as a speech and language pathologist by someone who would greatly benefit from my services. I quit tax breaks for the wealthy and the largest loss of jobs for the citizens of the United States in 34 years.

Goodbye to a leader not of the people, or by the people (or the popular vote), or for the people (Katrina?).

Sincerely yours,
for only fourteen more, short days,

Christine A. Dunbar

Cuban Black Beans

One of my Sunday habits is to cook a dish or two to enjoy in the upcoming week. Some weeks I spend several hours shopping, chopping and simmering (me and the food!). This week I found myself with a few too many odds and ends to finish for a really indulgent cooking session, but I did want to lay in some stores for healthy lunches at work. Some of my favorite dishes are ones which can transform as the week goes on, so I can prevent leftover burn-out.

Today's lunch is cuban black beans with corn tortillas. I'll bake or roast a couple of sweet potatoes later today to have with them in burritos or with some rice or seven-grain pilaf (Kashi makes a mix which is really good and easy to throw on the stove on a busy weeknight). Later in the week I'll toss whatever's left into a soup with some greens or make a chili with quinoa.

While the sweet potatoes are in I'll take advantage of the oven being on and bake up a stack of tofu cutlets for the week. These will go into a number of meals and also be on hand for a quick snack as an alternative to bread items.

It can be challenging to eat healthy, not-processed food during the busy work week, so the more I can have done ahead, the more likely we won't be sliding down the slippery slope of convenience foods.

Off the List

New Year's Resolutions for which it is already too late:

1) Get enough rest by going to bed early.

2) Remain cheerful despite early wake-up time.

3) Repeat myself gently and without sarcasm when asked the same questions repeatedly by husband or child.

4) Assist child in successful clean-up of toys after activity has ended.

5) Remain focused on a single task to completion before attempting next task.

6) Put away laundry immediately rather than allowing it to sit in laundry basket.

7) Serve child meals which do not involve ketchup, delivery, or a freezer.

8) Post to blog every day.

9) Reduce overall "screen time."

10) Make lists of positive self-talk rather than failures.