Pigs don't fly

So a friend told me she was worried because the President had just declared an emergency around the swine flu. Her worry was that if they want to, they can forego regulations otherwise required to speed treatment and reactions to the flu as it spreads. After all, 1000 people have died. (Of course, 35000 died last year with all of that in place.)

To console her, I said "Hmmm, well, in a national emergency virtually anything is on the table for the sake of averting the emergency. For example, some liberty might have to be suspended in the interest of protecting us from the flu. Like involuntary segregation of the sick and well. At home? Not necessarily, in publicly monitored places. Actually, that didn't console her.

I think that is something to watch. How much freedom is on the table? The party line is that this flu is a threat through the winter. Seems odd, doesn't it? The flu would be a threat from last spring through the winter? Will we forget about the suspension of the rules during that time? Not if we make a point of watching.

What a man!

So the hysteria continues. I hear the 5 year declaring loudly that the 12 year old boy now has hair growing in his armpits. I laugh inside, not saying anything but remembering those days. Then, later on in the day, my 9 year old son announces loudly "Look, I have hair in m armpits just like my brother!". He walks over to show his mother - whaddya know, he does - he scotch-taped pieces of red yarn under his arms. Checking further, he had copied his 12 year old brother. I asked if he had hair on his back yet, he lifted his shirt and lo-and-behold there was a lone red piece of yarn growing out of a piece of tape on his back.

The fun never ends.

Ranting. How many times do I have to say NO?

There is a sneaky phenomenon happening in our American public place that I worry about.

Seems pretty frequent that when something is voted on in our democracy, the result is not the final answer.

An example is a local one. Two years ago our county voted quite strongly against allowing our Charles Town racetrack-slot parlor to add table-game-gambling to the ways to lose your money for entertainment. In the legislation that authorized the games, it was written that there had to be a local referendum to make it legal, and if it were defeated, the issue could not be resurrected for 2 years. Guess what!? It is 2 years. And, guess what?! They are back to try again. Here's the rub. We said NO.

What has changed that we should be asked again? Here's some of what has changed...the out of state company that owns the track is arguing about all we lost by not letting them take home the hundreds of millions of dollars they think will come in exchange for the few millions they will "contribute" to the tax base...the same tax base that will have to fund the increased burden of roads, traffic, security, infrastructure, etc. The other thing that has changed is they figured out there is opposition and they must fight it to win. I have a 5 year old that uses the same tactic - try to wear us down to get what you want.

mom.....mom....mom...mom....MOM....MOM....MOMMMMMM

We have the same thing going on in Washington. We revert to failed security policies (policies from Set 10, 2001 and back) because the policies that worked since Sept 11 2001 make us seem mean to bad people. We resurrect gun legislation that has already been turned away by the courts, as though if we "sell" it differently it will be legal this time. We want to relook at the definition of marriage as encoded by law, as though something has changed over the course of thousands of years of history, the foundation of our nation, and the core of the American people...even thinking maybe it's time to repeal a law passed strongly to protect marriage as it is known in those thousands of years...what changed?

We condemn our former President for being and idealist, and we lionize our departed Senator Kennedy for being (shhhh!) an .....idealist. Huh?

Seems to me we'd have a more peaceful time if we went with the decisions made at the time and quit trying to reinvent for the sake of reinvention Save the transformation for the color of your livingroom, and leave the majority ruling please.

Someone moved my cheese

This new situation has some twists and turns that are interesting to say the least. The new situation is the heavy kid population that has taken over our estate.

Example is this afternoon.

Kate takes the girls and I take the boys. Fair, it seems. The girls go off shopping and the boys go swimming in the backyard. Divide and conquer.

I've been a dad for a very long time, but this deal is new every morning. When I get the boys, that means I have 5 boys from age 5 to 12, all of them rivals...as it should be.

Kate takes the girls - fair again - that is an 11 year old, a 15 year old, and a 16 year old. Whole different dynamic.

"As it should be" with boys is different than "as it should be" with girls. The idea that "boys will be boys" was put forth by someone long ago who simply gave in to the reality.

I had a domain for years I was in total control of...the yard, the fringes of the outside...my domain with no interference from short people with no sense. Now - it's like trying to hold a handful of water - they dig up, take apart, break, climb, or otherwise move everything they encounter. Every living creature is subject to capture, large or small, crawling or flying. There are no borders between garden, lawn, and woods. All trees are climbing devices. All rocks are in the wrong place and must be moved, usually to where I mow. Sand does not belong in the sandbox. Whew.

And I wouldn't trade it for all the nice grass in China.

The 3AM Phone Call

It happened.

Actually, it was a midnight phonecall that demanded action at 3 AM.

It'll never make the news because its not big enough.

Neither Pres Obama or Sec State Clinton answered.

Kate did.

"There was a tragedy, someone has died. Despite the tragedy, they donated their organs for transplant, and a kidney is available that matches your daughter. We need her here between 5 and 6AM".

The call came from 2 hours away.

So they left at 3AM and are waiting for a noon time surgery.

What a miracle.

Thank God it was Kate who answered the call and not either the Pres or SecState.

Hey Mom, guess what!?

So no sooner had I finished the last post and I'm sitting in the livingroom with my wife. My 6 year old liddle darling comes out of the powder room and announces "Hey Mom - I just peed out of my butt!!

We looked at each other, holding onto the thread of seriousness that hung us precariously away from utter hysterical peals of laughter. My wife says "oh, you still have (insert the "d" word)?"

"Yes, but I'm not doing that anymore Mom."

I wonder if I stirred something up.

Hey Poppa, does this hurt?

The "boys will be boys" thing is interesting. Now that I am thrust into the role of father to 5 boys between ages 6 and 12 I have this ever raucous bunch of minor testosterone wielding beings who are something akin to a small herd of puppies. While at age 55, the more you "rough house" the tired-er you get, for this set the more they rough house the more energy they have...kind of like one of those little friction motored cars where you rub it on the floor to wind it up and -zoom...

A piece or reality hit the other day when my 19 year old left for boot camp. We took him to the airport, and the boys, whose interest in his future was limited to how many time he was actually going to get to shoot the gun, bemoaned on the ride home "who are we going to fight with now?"

Turns out its me.

I'm up to it. With some limits. In the spirit of "never let them see you sweat", I roll around and fling, push, twist, knock, and otherwise take it, always appearing to be invincible. At a time of my choosing, I find a reason to depart the area, find the aspirin, and hope the next round waits till I have recovered my fatherly invincibility.

My son returns in February.