Initially I wasn't going to blog about this. There was, and still is, more than enough coverage of the day and anything I say will surely be repetitive.  Still, the election of Barack Obama had a large emotional effect on me, largely because of the race issue.  I realize that had Hillary Clinton been elected I would have felt something over her being the first female president in our country, but the emotional connection wouldn't have been there for me.

Maybe it's because I'm old enough to remember much of the atrocities people committed against those who were black. I well remember when they were forced to sit at the back of the bus. I remember that at the bus station we used at the time, there was a separate cafe clearly marked "Blacks." I remember the same for the two water fountains in the building, as well as the restrooms. I remember the red caps who were always black and I remember asking my mother what it was all about. She explained to me that some people felt blacks were an inferior race and white people did not want to associate with them, drink after them, or use the same restroom. It was okay for white people to have a black maid, but even then very little conversation took place between the two.  Mother also admonished me that "no one in the world, regardless of color, was better than me and that I was no better than anyone else." That indeed, we were all created equal.  I knew she thought segregation was wrong and from what I could see of the black people I came into contact with, there truly was no difference in our races. I was about 5 years old at the time, I knew people (some in my own family) who used the awful "N" word.  At that time I felt sorry for the blacks. Even at that age if I came within speaking range with a black person I always said, "hello." I didn't realize how much trouble that black person could have gotten into for simply saying hello back. At the time I was going to the Scottish Rite Hospital for treatment of a club foot. It was a black man who always but a cast on my foot, a black man who sawed it off. I still remember him. His name was Mark and he was one of the kindest, most compassionate people I'd ever known.

Over the years I remember scenes from tv of police officers turning high blasts of water on groups of blacks, coming after them with guns, doing all they could to drive them back to the slums they lived in. I remember hearing of the KKK, I read books about black people and it reminded me of Hitler and his need to eradicate the Jews. In those instances I was ashamed that I lived in a country where the KKK was not only allowed to thrive, but often contained members of the very law enforcement officers who were sworn to protect all people.

So while I watched the inauguration on tv, I remembered Rosa Parks, the four little girls blown up in a church, and Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. I remembered his assassination as well as I remember John & Robert Kennedy's. I remember the night King died and someone very close to me said, "They should have killed the son of a b*tch a long time ago. Until then I thought everyone I knew felt as I did. I grew up that night. I cried not only for Rev. King and his family, but also for our entire nation and for all of those innocent blacks who had been slaughtered only because of the color of their skin.

I'm glad Barack Obama was elected to the highest office in our land, not because he is black and I thought it was about time, but because I liked what he had to say. I've always felt John McCain was one of our heroes and I still do. Yet I more closely identified with what Obama was saying about the changes he would make. I don't agree with him on everything as is to be expected of any candidate. I hope he's able to bring real change to this country, change that carries over through the coming years, because our country as it is now, is so far from what our founding fathers wanted it to be. And it's far from what most of the American people feel it should be.

As I absorbed all I could on Obama's special day and remembered how his race had to struggle to get to this point, just as they had to struggle every time they tried to reach any part of freedom, and I cried not just for them but for our whole nation.

Position Applied For:  Parent, Mama, Mom, Mother, MaDad, Daddy, Dad, Da-Da, Pa

JOB DESCRIPTION :Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic environment.
Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours which will include evenings,weekends & frequent 24 hour shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities! Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES: The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5. Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf. Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers. Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects.

Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks. Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next. Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices. Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst. Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product.

Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.

Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you.

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE: None required, unfortunately.

ON-THE JOB TRAINING: Offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION: Get this! You pay them, offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due
when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent. When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS: While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth, unconditional love, and free hugs
and kisses for life if you play your cards right.
 
FOOTNOTE:  THERE IS NO RETIREMENT -- EVER!!! 

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION: Becoming a grandparent.

(Sent to me by my great niece, Shelly)

I have to admit my holidays were better than any I've had in years. I got to spend more time with my son & grandson that every before, as well as my family. Danny's ex-wife always set the schedule of where they'd be & when, so of course her family got them more than I did.  My future daughter-in-law pretty much asked me what & when I wanted to be with them, then she & Danny together planned the schedule.

I started out on Christmas Eve, arriving at Danny & Keri's so I could ride with them to my family's home. Three new babies on that side of the family in the past year, none of them quite walking yet. My sister, her husband, her ex-husband, their two boys along with their children & grandchildren (her daughter & husband didn't make it) & we were quite a crowd.

Me With Son & Grandson        Danny & His Cousins            Most Of My Sister's Bunch

We had lunch with them, then headed back to Danny & Keri's house where it was very quiet & Casey gets to open one present on Christmas Eve. They hung their stockings & ABRACADABRA Santa came, dropping off Danny's favorite present of all time.....a new tool box, complete with installed radio, lite & refrigerator!

Later in the day, they left to have Christmas with Keri's family & then to Danny's Dad's. I sat home & read all day. The 26th was Danny's birthday so I stayed over for that. Keri cooked him a big breakfast & I was able to give him his 40th birthday present on his actual birthday for the first time since he was about 15. By then I'd had enough family for awhile, so I toddled on home. Danny's ex-sister-in-law gave me the money to buy an HDTV, plus Danny & Keri gave me a subscription for Dish Network!!!

New Year's Eve found me back at Danny's to teen-sit, but once I got there Casey decided to spend the night at a friend's house, so I had the whole place to myself. Blessed Peace!  New Year's Day was Casey's 14th birthday & we rounded up Keri's family, Casey's Mom & MiMi, Casey's Dad & half-brother, their Mom, Danny's dad & his wife, plus Danny's half-sister with her husband & baby Hunter Jason & tore off to The Main Event. Really good place to take kid for birthday parties because they have EVERYTHING.....bowling, arcade games, laser tag, cafeteria, all under one roof.

Wishing Him Happy Birthday                 Hunter Jason, Danny, His Sister                  Bring On The Pizza!!

Casey & His Mom Getting Ready To Ride The Indoor Rollercoaster.

All in all, it was the perfect birthday party, he raked in lots of cash for his savings account, & I enjoyed myself thoroughly.  It's nice that we can all be in the same place with all the ex's, halves, & steps & still get along! That didn't happen until this year. But Praise the Lord it did happen finally!

Now that the holidays are over & I have a new tv, dvr & dvd, I've been like a hog in slop recording movies & watching all those channels I've missed for the last year.  Yippee!!!!!  Hope all of you had a good holiday & are ready for 2009.