Internalize: Judge Not

I've been called overprotective. I've been called over-sensitive. Perhaps I've even been called over-rated. 

They can call me anything really, it won't change who I am. It might hurt my feelings initially, but I'll get over it. I guess it would really depend on the context. It's funny how the pairing of one word with another can alter their meanings so dramatically that the words now hold a negative connotation. 

I don't consider myself overprotective, just protective. 

Before you pass judgment on others, look inside first. Maybe I'm not over-sensitive, maybe you're just under-sensitive.

Judge not, lest ye be judged. I fail every day, but I'm trying. 

^"How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?" ~Matthew 7:4

United Islands of Deece

You know that the 90's were awesome and who in the world was not hypnotized by Lauryn Hill's voice - so sing it with me, "if I ruled the world, imagine that, I'd free all my sons...."

Without going into details, I give you the United Islands of Deece. If I had it my way...

• There would be a clear direction for the CNMI, a master plan, if you will. One that maximizes the use of our resources while minimizing negative impacts on our people and environment. Not only would there be a plan, but there would also be plan implementation.
• Sustainable eco-tourism and farming would be highly valued and aggressively promoted.
• More resources would be given to health, safety, and education (from pre-school through college and workforce training). 
• I would overhaul the government, including:
• restructuring and restaffing departments, which may mean dissolving certain offices and redistributing necessary tasks to other departments - e.g., the mayor's office
• utilizing half- and part-time employees
• reducing the size of the legislature and converting it to part time. 
• hiring only competant and caring individuals where things like last name, race, gender, skin color, and age don't matter. 
• overhauling and beefing up the public auditor's office and MVA, that is, if MVA wouldn't already have been dissolved and its tasks redistributed.
• abolishing many councils, starting with the Municipal Council.
• expanding the responsibilities of the Zoning Office, and maybe even changing its name to something like the CNMI Development Office.
• streamlining licensing and permitting activities - like obtaining business licenses and filmming permits
• relocating offices to streamline and centralize services and to save money.
• making sure employees understand and display that being a public servant is a privalege. 
• There would be a major crack down on ice and illegal pesticides.
• The red lights would be no more.
• I would require strict enforcement of good laws, while amending or repealing ineffective and bad ones.
• More people would "buy local".
• Criminals would serve their proper jail terms while undergoing real and effective rehabilitation and training programs.
• We would not be widening back road right now, but using that money to fix existing roads and signs and roadside drainage systems.
• Every person would value our environment and work to protect it - our land and what is on it, our waters and their ecosystems, our air and what we emit into it.
• There would be at least one field of windmills.
• Tap water would be potable water.
• Each of our islands would be equally valued.
• The pledge of allegiance would be said in schools and everyone would understand that American is not a color.

Yes. Yes, I think so.

Ew, just ew.

So, to avoid having bits of food in my teeth when I went for my dental follow up today, I only had a cup of corn soup for lunch. And a stick of gum to follow, you know, since I don't bring my toothbrush to work. And wouldn’t you know, my dentist pulled out a kernel of corn that was lodged in the hole where my left wisdom tooth used to be. Gross. Yes, I’m a little embarrassed, but it’s not like my dentist hasn’t already filled a ridiculous number of my cavities, performed a root canal, and extracted two of my wisdom teeth, during which process I gagged several times, so I guess a piece of corn isn’t so bad.

Did I tell you that last week he extracted a bone fragment from my gums? Yeah. Fun times.

Grapes and Sunshine

I left my sick son with my sick husband and I took my daughter to get our hair done this morning. I had the best time, especially in the car on the way there. Since we have no radio in the car, I started singing. If there's one thing Katelyn can't resist, besides chocolate, ice cream, or a bubble bath, it's a good song. So I sang. And she sang. And in the song, I sang the word 'above'.

Katelyn: A buffalo?

Me: No, above. Like above and below.

Katelyn: Oh, I thought you said buffalo! haha

Me: Abovebelow, it kind of sounds like "a buffalo". haha!

Katelyn: Ha ha! Abovebelow, like a buffalo. I know a song with a buffalo. Woy yoy yo, woy yo yoy yo....

So we sang Buffalo Soldier until we arrived at the salon.

And now, as my son sleeps, Katelyn and I are watching The Last Airbender cartoons and snacking on oranges and grapes, and havarti and salami. I am blessed.

I guess men like this?

Just one straight shot. Put some in your hair and let it work it's way down to your feet. While women need, at the very least, three separate cleaning/conditioning agents in the shower, men just need one:
 
(This may be the most unflattering picture of me ever.) 
  
Better yet, showers should come equipped with a 'man setting' like those do-it-yourself carwashes where you just choose the setting and it automatically changes from suds to rinse. With the man shower setting he wouldn't have to do a thing, just turn on the water and stand there; after rinsing it would change to conditioning hair and body wash then back to rinse. Done and done.

That's the last of them.

I had my last two remaining wisdom teeth taken out today. It wasn't as bad as I thought it might end up being, but there was a lot of bleeding afterward. A lot. My jaw hurts and I'm hungry.

How much do you think the Tooth Fairy will give me for them? I brought the teeth home to show my kids and talk about teeth, but I think I'm more fascinated by the teeth than my kids are. Maybe they'll be more excited tomorrow when I'll actually be able to talk to them instead of just grunting at them and pointing.

I have the best dentist in the world. Seriously, I do.

The thing about popcorn is...

We loves us some popcorn. We love it so much that I just bought a 32-bag box of microwavable popcorn from Costco, excuse me, the Joeten Superstore. I estimate that it will last us about two months.

One reason why I love popcorn is because it's a healthier bribe than, say, any of the chocolate or ice cream I usually bribe my kids with.

And one reason why I hate popcorn is because of nights like tonight when one of my kids chokes on those stupid kernels. Stupid kernels.