Didn't listen to the news today, so it might be a good time to recap some of the significant economically related events going on in the microcosmic realm of our little RV behind the scenes of the dramatic play taking place on the stage of the White House and the Halls of Congress.
Advise from Aunt Lorraine- The sweetest person behind the scenes is my 91 year old Aunt. (Let's call her Aunt Lorraine. I want to keep this blog as anonymous as possible so I have the freedom to say the unbridled truth.) So Aunt Lorraine has been through the Depression - twice, she told me. She lives about 1500 miles away from us, so I talk to her only once a week or so. This is the first she heard of the lay-off, or at least that's how she couched our conversation. (My cousin Lynn knew and probably told her, but of course, told her not to tell me she told her. Our family is just that way).
My Aunt Lorraine has an indominable spirit. She had told me weeks ago before Mike was laid off that the economy would get worse, but I knew she didn't think of Mike losing his job. She laughed when I told her we were on the beach and maybe Mike would find a diamond ring that had been long lost and unrecoverable. She then told me the story of a woman she heard of who found $25,000 in a pair of boots she bought from Goodwill. Aunt Lorrainee knows we go to Goodwill often, for fun and to even to buy things we need, so laughing she reminded me to be sure to keep looking at the boots in Goodwill.
Aunt Lorraine's most important advise was to stay healthy. I was thinking that myself. We don't need more doctor bills. We only have $400 to pay off from my triple by-pass last year and we're going to do everything we can to be sure we stay healthy. So today we bought pomegranate juice to prevent breast cancer, broccoli and brussel sprouts to prevent whatever cancer they prevent, and a bottle of fish oil so we can stay mentally alert and hopefully sane.
What's Goin' On - I hadn't know until watching DL Hughly's show last night on CNN that Barack Obama's favorite song is "What's Goin' On". Behind the scenes across America, this song is probably echoing in hundreds of minds. But it's a fun song - a song that says I admit I don't know what's goin' on, but in my admitting, I have power to control what's goin' on.
Final thought - Paula Poundstone
The final recapping type thought I've had on this fifth day of President Obama's first 100 days, is the recalling of an audio essay by Paula Poundstone on npr.org right after the election. It was a well-crafted, brilliantly humorous piece that asked President Obama to tell us to give us a job - tell us what to do - have a slogan like they did during World War II.
I think we've all been wondering about how we can help each other out, and I have some ideas. Like the store owner who bought my sister-in-laws bean bags to sell, we should support our friends who have small businesses in that way. So what if you don't need home-made lavender soap. If you have the money, buy some from your cousin Chris. Maybe ask your carpenter neighbor Jack to build you a coat rack or something. Yes, we need to hike our cans of green beans over to the food shelves, but buying things from our neighbors is important too. And for goodness sake, if you're blessed with wealth, go buy something! Or here's an idea that one of the clerks in the little store I mentioned told me she's doing. She's actually paying the mortgage for two people. She works in the store just to get out and she didn't tell me who the people are or how she's able to do this remarkable deed, but there's a truly noble act.
And of course this part of my blog wouldn't be complete without talking about two of my neighbors who learned that I decided to assemble a product I had in storage. They came over and for an entire morning, helped me get 75 pieces together. And so it goes.
Barack Obama is not as progressive a President as I would have wanted. I wish his views were less militaristic. I listen to Noam Chomsky and I understand that Mr. Obama's centrist views are sometimes very close to the Republicans. But President Obama is more than that. He is a symbol of the idealism of America that all but disappeared in the years after the assassination of John F. Kennedy and while the war in Viet Nam continued. Barack Obama is a reflection of our nobler selves at this time, the people we aspire to be. And that is precisely what is showing up in the actions of our acquaintances, our neighbors, our families, and hopefully ourselves.
