Sunday Sunshine

 

Another beautiful day in Saint Michal, Minnesota. The sky is blue, beautiful puffy white clouds, and a high of 84 degrees. Joe installed fencing around the apple trees to keep deer and other wildlife out. Today’s two  photos are of him watering in the backyard, I took them from the sunroom (aka my office). In one photo you can see the mulch on the back property line as well as around the apple trees. The second photo is a closer view of the fence. The fencing is six feet high though it looks higher because of the sloping yard. Next year, Joe plans to terrace the apple tree area. Tomorrow, he plans to begin working on the terrace where the last two of the eight raised garden beds are located.

Meanwhile, I finished the on-line training for poll judges this morning. To those not familiar with election poll workers – the use of the term “judge” does not mean the poll worker is making decisions about who can and cannot vote. Voting is based on registration and checking to make sure the voter has not already voted by absentee ballot. In Minnesota a voter can register the same day in which case a registration judge makes sure that the paperwork the voter submits to establish residency meets legal requirements. Registering voters do not have to bring proof of citizenship though they are asked if they are U.S. Citizens and over the age of eighteen and sign an oath that they are eligible to vote.

As someone aware of the concerns some people have that non-citizens are allowed into the country so they can vote for Democrats, I decided to research the issue further. It appears to be a non-issue in Minnesota and a new law that allows people to be automatically registered to vote when getting a drivers’ license requires proof of citizenship. From the article:  “But won’t the new automatic voter registration law (AVR) lead to immigrants being registered to vote? No. Under AVR, Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS) must have documented proof of U.S. citizenship before it forwards driver’s license and ID card applicant information to the secretary of state for voter registration.” {https://news.stthomas.edu/in-the-news-virgil-wiebe-on-why-noncitizen-voting-is-a-nonissue-in-minnesota/). An abstract of the original research paper can be found here: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4839678

I still have a judges guide to read through. Fortunately, it is only eighty pages. I may have to do additional training modules once  it is determined which role I am assigned.

The rest of our day is dedicated to chilling out.

Brunch in the Neighborhood & Afternoon with Grandchildren

 

This morning, I attended a neighborhood women’s brunch with six other women. I enjoyed listening to them talk about a variety of topics. Our hostess served an excellent spread with a choice of baked eggs with cheese or with sausage and cheese, watermelon slices, fresh berries, a vegetable tray, and assortment of pastries and muffins. She also offered us a wide array of beverages. I drank a mimosa.

One of our discoveries this morning was that two of the guests in attendance had each worked as probation officers for adults after they graduated college. One woman is my generation, and the other woman is somewhere between 35 and 40 years old (I am just guessing, as I cannot tell how old anyone is on this block. They all look younger to me).

Another guest shared her experiences working in property management for the twin cities area. We talked for a bit about education experiences/opportunities for children with special needs in private vs. the public school system.

I had to cut my visit short as Joe and I were scheduled to be in Rockford before noon. We were on grandchildren duty while Jeremy and Megan went to a Gophers football game. I was happy to spend time with Caleb and Charlotte. A part of me though wanted to stay at the brunch and hear more about working as a probation officer.

Charlotte and I played Uno, then Joe joined us for a hand, then Caleb came along and played a hand with us. I won three of the four hands. Charlotte won a game as well. Then we played SORRY! for an hour until 2:00pm rolled around. Joe was winning – all of his players were in the safe zone. On Saturdays during the school year, the grandchildren get to have more than one hour of screentime to play video games. The magic hour they could start playing today was 2:00pm. They both declared they were forfeiting so they could take full advantage of their video game time.

While they played video games, I took a nap and read. We made spaghetti for dinner. After dinner Charlotte and Caleb got their showers so they would be ready for family movie night when Megan and Jeremy got home.

The Gophers won!

When we left Megan and Jeremy’s at 7:00 pm, the kids were rolling around on the family room floor with the dogs. They appeared to have more energy than earlier in the day. I came home and made a screwdriver. I usually have one drink every other week. Here I am having two in one day. The orange juice means it qualifies as a fruit serving, right?

Little Things Make a Difference

 

The little things we do to show respect for others and our surroundings make a difference.

Last evening, Joe drove with me to the Minnesota DFL (Democrats) field office in Wayzata about 35 minutes from Saint Michael. There. I made phone calls to encourage people to vote in the upcoming election. I was impressed with and encouraged by the forty or so people who showed up in the 6:00pm to 8:00pm timeslot. The woman sitting next to me showed me the ropes as the campaign workers had so many people to train. The majority of volunteers were women but there were three men as well. All ages were represented!

Yesterday, I also received the email link to train as a  poll judge on election day. While this is a paid position, I want to do it to learn more about the process in Minnesota. Poll workers are scarce in some states as the workers have been threatened during elections. I am not sure I would do this in those states. I am counting on ‘Minnesota nice.’

I watched the class introduction and was impressed. One thing to know for those who have not been exposed to poll work, is that poll workers are not permitted to divulge their party affiliation, encourage anyone to vote for a specific party, or person, and are expected to act professional and courteous to everyone. If someone requires help, they are given two poll workers (one Republican and one Democrat) to make sure that there is no opportunity for one party to influence the voters. I especially like this as it helps for accountability of workers.

I am looking forward to learning more before I serve. I consider it an honor to be able to perform any task that helps people to vote on election day safely and securely.

Joe and I did our errands early this morning so that Joe could spend the day working in the yard. He wanted to finish getting wood chip mulch laid around all of the trees he had recently planted. The mulch helps keep moisture in and weeds down. Oh, and it looks pretty!

Meanwhile I was slicing potatoes and onions and assembling a pork chop and scalloped potato crockpot dinner and engaging with Shelly and Shasta about Megan and Jeremy’s baby shower in November. We have a Facebook Messenger Baby Shower Group where we can chat and plan. Shelly and Shasta were looking up ideas for snacks for Megan and Jeremy’s baby shower. I looked at the links to their ideas and salivated. Then I had to stop and take a nap.

We picked up our meat order today and now have a full freezer. Nobody in this house should go hungry. Alto (our grandcat) often acts as if she is starving, it is an act though. Today I caught her on the dining room table laying in the sun. I looked at her and asked what she thought she was doing. She got down quickly. When she jumped onto the floor she did her long cat stretch, looked at me, and wandered away with her tail high. She has an attitude.

Gentle Reminder to Myself

 

This saying resonated with me over the past few days as I work at reminding myself to be kind to everyone no matter how strident they become in their opinions on a variety of topics.

It helps to remember my mom and dad’s belief that there were three things you never talked about in public. Religion, politics, and sex. My dad died before Facebook came along and I think he would be shocked at what people post on those topics.

Growing up I listened to the adults in our extended family talk politics. One of my favorite childhood activities was listening to the adults talk from the room we were playing in. It was the second to curling up with a book during a visit to relatives. Relatives had more and different books.

And they had different opinions and shared them amongst themselves, freely. I found it fascinating and probably noticed a tip or two along the way. I definitely learned that the person who raised their voice to get a point across the discussion was ended with one of the calmer family members saying, “Well it looks like we will have to agree to disagree.”  I was never privy to the outcome of all of those discussions. Did anyone change their mind about a candidate or a situation?

The lesson to shut down a conversation when someone becomes louder worked well during my business career. Learning to listen and respond to their words instead of their behavior was also a handy tool.

I thought when I retired, I might be able to put the tools away. Silly me. It seems even retired people have opportunities to practice empathy. The question I am asking myself is this,

“When someone lies and others repeat the lies as gospel is there value in pointing out facts that demonstrate a lie occurred?”

And if an opinion is based on acceptance of information that is not supported with facts, is there a responsibility to point that out? Or is it better just to change the subject?

Maybe I am retired but my work habits have not retired quite yet. I will continue to work on letting go.

A Day Out in Brainerd Minnesota

 

Joe and I drove up to Brainerd today. Highway 169 took us along the western shore of Mille Lacs Lake which is the second largest inland lake in Minnesota at 207 square miles. According to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DBR) it is best known for its “phenomenal walleye catch rates.” My first glimpse of the lake took me back in time to the first time I saw Lake Erie when I was ten years old.

The lake is so big you cannot see the other side! As a ten-year-old, I remember standing on the shore of Lake Erie and being amazed that you could not see the opposite bank. Having grown up fishing on rivers in Ohio, I had no idea there was a body of water as huge as Lake Erie. Now, I know that Lake Erie is the smallest of the Great Lakes.

All of this ‘lake speculation’ gave me pause and I contemplated on how much of our world view is formed from our own experiences in life. That led me to feel grateful for the richness of experience I have been exposed to over the past sixty-eight years.

We drove up to Brainerd to meet Shelly, Jeremy’s biological mom, and her husband Artie. The purpose of our visit was to get invitations written out and addressed for Megan and Jeremy’s baby shower in November. Shelly and Artie live across the road from The Green Lantern Bar & Grill which kindly let us spread out our card stuff in a connected side room. When we finished with the invitations, we ordered lunch.

I especially appreciate the slogan on their menu and Facebook page. “Where strangers become friends.” Our server was Amanda. Amanda happens to be Shelly’s niece, and we also learned she is a talented baker and cake decorator. Shelly asked her if she would bake the cake for the baby shower in November. She seemed to be amenable to the idea.

Joe and I shared a Steakhouse burger with sweet potato fries. The burger had mushrooms, onions, Swiss cheese, and horseradish sauce. It was a mighty fine burger! The sweet potato fries had sugar and cinnamon on them, and I was surprised how tasty they were. I am not a fan, usually, but Joe loves them. These were exceptionally good, and I would order them again.

Shelly had brought along brownies she baked for our dessert. They were…. Sinful. Decadent. I ate one, and Joe ate three. Shelly sent a plate of those brownies home with us. I will let you know they actually made the trip home intact. Can’t promise there will be any left by bedtime tonight…

When Joe and I first got to Shelly and Arties’s place, Shelly asked if I knew the gender of Jermey and Megan’s baby. I told her I did. She said she wanted to know. I told her I was sworn to secrecy and to call Megan. She called Megan and after there was no answer, she called Jeremy. Jeremy told her she had to call Megan. Which just goes to show that Jeremy and I CAN keep a secret. Shelly got through to Megan on a second attempt. I could only hear Shelly’s side of the conversation, but it sounded like Megan was grilling her on whether she really wanted to know. Megan relented and Shelly now knows. It is still on the hush-hush though as there are people who prefer to be surprised when Baby Bean is born.

Our drive back to Saint Michael was just as beautiful as the drive up. Joe said the area we drove through today reminded him of Nova Scotia. I loved that the leaves have begun to change to orange, red, and yellow.

We got home and I took an hour nap.

My joyful moment today occurred when it struck me that Jeremy and Megan’s Baby Bean will share Shelly and my genetic makeup. I never thought of it quite that way before. Her baby boy and my baby girl created a new baby. I am in awe.

A Day of Good News At Our House

 

I used my normal writing time today to get dinner ready and the house in order to be prepared to watch the Presidential Candidate Debate. Megan and Jeremy dropped by, as the debate started, to bring the latest ultrasound (20 weeks) photo. This meant we got a late start to watching the debate which was fine. I'd rather visit with them than get entangled in politics. Megan had baked and decorated a gender reveal cookie for us. It is a secret though as Shelly (Jeremy's mom) and Hilda (Jeremy’s bonus mom) prefer to find out gender when Baby Bean is born.

I am beyond excited that Taylor Swift has endorsed Harris-Walz. Her long Instagram post included the following: “As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country. I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them."

Tomorrow morning, we are headed up to Brainerd, Minnesota, to see Shelly and Artie. Shelly and I will work on getting the invitations ready to mail for Megan and Jeremy's baby shower in November. It will be nice to go for the  one-and-a-half-hour drive and to visit with them. We plan on lunch together and Shelly planned a dessert for us after lunch! I am looking forward to the visit.

 

Monday in Minnesota: Apple Trees and Meat

 

Our Honeycrisp Apple Tree 

Our Haralson Apple Tree (it was delivered with apples on it)

Supplies for Joe's next project: materials for a 

small retaining wall for the planter box terrace in the backyard.

Eventually our backyard will be a series of terraces with a garden of shrubs, herbs, and flowers. The planter box terrace will probably be the only terrace built this year. It will give Joe something to look forward to for next year. 

Joe enjoys being outside every day. His long-term plan is to have a few hours a week of work to maintain everything, once it is completed. Right now, it is labor intensive. I remind myself that it took him twenty years to get our Woodland property the way he wanted and even then, he would have made changes had we stayed in California. 

Our property here he has more time and money available to get the job done. We had considered having a landscaper do it but the price would have been so much more AND not necessarily allowed him the freedom to change plans in mid-stream. As it was, we outsourced the major parts of tree trimming, tree removal, and the irrigation system. 

My big project for the day was researching, devising, and placing an order of meat from the local shop we visited the other day. The prices are higher than Costco, lower than supermarkets, and reasonable when quality is added into the criteria. I now know what ‘Duroc pork’ and ‘upper 2/3 choice or prime beef’ mean. Dehmer’s Meat Market and Deli will package the order exactly as we want at no extra cost to us. As I cook the meat, I will let you know how it compares to Costco and grocery store meats we have eaten.

Our order will include beef stew meat, ground pork, chicken breasts, cut-up Amish chicken, beef chuck roast, pork Boston butt roast, country style bone-in ribs, and ground beef.  So happy to have an extra freezer in the garage!

Pro-Choice Family?

 

“It takes a village to raise a child.” Is believed to have originated in Africa. African societies with similar proverbs, according to Wikipedia, include:

 “A child does not grow up only in a single home.”  (Bunyoro-Kitara)

“A child belongs not to one parent or home.”  (Bahaya)

“ A child’s upbringing belongs to the community.” (Wajita)

“Whomsoever is not taught by the mother will be taught with the world.” (Swahili)

I thought of this today when I saw an advertisement for a Pro-Family organization. I have always been about family and community. Through research I learned that the Pro-Family label is used by people proclaiming a narrow definition of family. Their belief is that a family is a  “natural family” which is defined as a heterosexual married couple and their biological children.

What nonsense.

If someone asked you what you thought Pro-Family meant, how would you describe the concept?

In my world Pro-Family would mean that we as people work together to protect the core family and all children. Core family could include anyone with primary care responsibilities for biological-, adopted- or foster- children, a married couple (sexual orientation should not even be included in the definition of a family. It is a private topic and nobody else’s business. Though people sure act like it is their business to know) with or without children in the home. Aunts, uncles, cousins, close friends can all be family.

I am Pro-Choice Family.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_takes_a_village

 

Checking In

Just a quick check-in from me tonight. Yesterday afternoon, Joe and I got our COVID-19 vaccine at Walgreens. We each woke up with a tender right arm at the injection site. The other side effect is fatigue. We spent the day watching movies! I also took a nap this afternoon. 

Hoping tomorrow the fatigue is gone and I feel motivated to do something around the house. I am grateful this house is easy to keep clean. 

Have a great rest of your weekend!

Keeping Busy

We got an early start to our day with an 8:00am appointment at the closest Subaru dealership which meant we had to be out of the door by 7:15am. After we dropped our car to have a tow package installed, we stopped and had breakfast before going to Costco. Costco opens at 10:00am so we sat in the parking lot and read until they opened.

We got back home, put  our groceries away, and headed to Menards in Buffalo. Subaru service called when we were about five minutes from our house to say our car was ready. We changed course to get our car back. Our loaner was a 2024 Subaru Outback. It is a smaller car than our 2022. While Joe was in the Parts department, I found myself asking the car if they had been good to her. I was so happy to have our car back.

We drove to Buffalo and hit up the nursery to prepay for an order of mulch and apple trees they are delivering next week, stopped into a trailer seller, and then finally to Menards to order landscaping brick to be delivered on Monday.

BY the time we got back home I was ready for a short nap. In a few minutes we are off to get our annual COVID-19 vaccine.

Yesterday we had our annual in-home nurse visit. Our nurse is pregnant with her third child. Her family is excited because they have a four-year-old daughter and a 2-year-old daughter. The new baby is a boy. We had a nice visit. Joe and I got a clean bill of health and congratulations for the proactive habits we engage in to try to maintain our prescription-free life.

At the end of the session, they make recommendations for what we can check into further to maintain good health. The only item recommended for me was to talk to my doctor about a lung scan since I smoked for twenty years. (aged 15 to aged 35). MY lungs sounded clear during the exam – a scan would be a precautionary measure. Joe’s recommendation was to check his blood pressure daily for a week to make sure it is below 140/80. Joe has ‘white-coat and dentist’ syndrome where his blood pressure is higher than normal.

Well, we are off to get our vaccine!

 

My Sad Lament About Another School Shooting

One of the events that makes me feel sad, angry, frustrated, outraged, and fearful at the same time is school shootings. 

We know there are answers to resolving the issue; however, gun manufacturers have more say over gun laws than American citizens. I am not talking about banning shotguns, rifles, hunting gear. Those are not the guns I want taken out of the hands of people.

Instead of assault gun legislation, people talk about arming teachers, installing metal detectors in schools, and clear backpacks. We know these are not working as school shootings in which people have died continue to increase.

The most recent shooting happened in Apalachee High School in Georgia yesterday. A fourteen-year-old boy took the lives of two students and two teachers and injured nine others. The boy surrendered when confronted by the school’s two resource officers. The weapon, according to law enforcement, was an AR-platform-style rifle.

In the days to come we will hear heartbreaking stories of the people killed and injured. We will hear more about how the boy got the weapon and perhaps what motivated this child to kill other people. We will hear the same people calling for more gun controls and still others denying that guns kill people. People kill people. We will hear this tired old refrain from people I love.

I find it ironic that we can limit access to certain over-the-counter medications without outcries because they can be used in the manufacture of illegal substances.

I find it ironic that we want to ban video games because they may be an influencer to children’s indifference toward violence.

I find it ironic that we would expect teachers to carry guns (making more money for the gun manufacturers). In 2022 there were 3.2 million full-time teachers in America. I am wondering what a gun-toting teacher looks like? What gun will they carry? How will they keep the gun out of the hands of a student?

I am not opposed to any of these bans. I simply cannot understand why we have made the right to own an assault weapon off-limits for a ban.

Years of policy writing for businesses has made me a “what if” thinker. So, when someone makes a statement about how to solve a situation, my brain automatically goes to questioning all of the possible scenarios. As a result, I have learned that most recommendations for policy need to be looked at from different perspectives to analyze effectiveness.

Bottom line, I have no answers, only a ton of questions about what we can do in the United States to protect our children while they are at school.

Meanwhile it feels like the ‘no gun control’ advocates are more interested in protecting their perceived constitutional right to have automatic rifles than they are to protecting children. They argue that someone out there wants to take all of their guns away. This is simply not true.

What needs to happen for people to look for common-sense approaches?

One thing that needs to STOP is to make this a political issue. This is not a political issue. It is a human survival issue.

Thoughts and prayers are not working.

Landscaping Continues

When we moved to Minnesota, who knew I was going to get excited about fruit tree pollination? The fruit trees that grow best here are certain varieties of apples, pears, cherries, plums, and grapes. Our goal by next summer is to have two apple trees (they will get planted next week), grapes, and either two pear or two plum trees. Joe will be happy to have his mini-orchard.

Haralson apple is one of our two apple trees we will plant. 

The other is Honeycrisp

We have decided that part of the backyard will be similar to our front yard in Woodland. The backyard is on a slope, so Joe is removing grass, leveling one area at a time, and creating a terrace effect with brick. We will use natural shredded hardwood mulch on the ground. In addition to the fruit trees, we will plant flowers, bushes, and herbs. I have been researching and making lists of what I would like to see in the area. For plants and flowers, we are looking at Flame Grass, Tater Tot Arborvitae, Midnight Marvel Hardy Hibiscus, and a wildflower seed mix that is perennial and deer resistant. Herbs will include garlic chives, catnip, mint, thyme, sage, rosemary, oregano, cilantro, dill and parsley.

I suggested we get a water fountain for the backyard garden area. Joe’s response was, “Why?” It was not a ‘sarcastic’ why. It was true bewilderment. I responded, “Because it would look pretty.” No more was said. Next year when we are finished with the area you may see a fountain in the photos I plan to post.

All of this will take time to come to fruition. When we have it finished, Joe believes it will be minimal maintenance while also satisfying the farmer in him. 

The rose bushes from my Uncle Dick and Aunt Sue in Ohio are thriving in the Minnesota soil. The rose ground cover they gave us is doing well in planters at the front of the house.

This morning the tree trimmers were back to clear tree limbs from the electric and other lines that run down the backyards of our neighbors. I watched them for an hour. They trim for clearance, certainly not for aesthetics. I feel sad watching them hack up a tree leaving odd pieces at weird angles. Clearing live branches next to a dead branch – leaving the dead branch next to it because their job is to clear what is closest to the wires. Our neighbor directly behind us now has three very disturbing looking trees on his side of the property line. We had already cleared out dead branches, sick trees, and underbrush on our side of the property line before the transformer/tree fire late last month. Joe took care to trim the trees on our property with healthy future growth in mind.

Certainly, I am grateful that the lines are being cleared. We want to minimize the risk of another fire.

 

Tuesday Thoughts

Joe looked for radish seeds today and it seems that stores send back unsold packets of seeds at the end of the growing season. My uncle Dick suggested we grow radishes in September as he does successfully in Ohio. I ended up ordering the seeds from Amazon with delivery tomorrow. Joe planted fava beans last week (the nitrogen the beans produce is great for the soil), and they have begun to sprout. Our indoor lemon tree has a lemon growing on it!

Joe and I did errands this morning. The first stop was Walgreens as today was Senior Day and we could save 20% on anything in the store that was at the regular price. Next, we hit a local meat store to check out their offerings. We purchased a beef pot pie to try. If we like their pot pie, I will add a couple to our freezer for those days that we are busy and want to pop something in the oven.

We came home and did chores. Joe got a call that a part he ordered for his chain saw was in at Runnings in Monticello. He also wanted to buy a leaf blower. I am just grateful that our neighborhood is quiet most of the time, so leaf blowers do not drive me crazy here. To be fair, I think the people on our block are at church on Sunday morning, so they aren’t running their blowers as one of our California neighbors liked to do. I really enjoy Sunday morning quiet – it is different than other mornings, even in retirement.

Well, if we are going to go to Monticello to Runnings, we might as well stop at Home Depot in Monticello. So, we did. Then on the way back to our house we drove right by ACE Hardware. Of course we didn’t drive by – we stopped. I am usually the chauffeur on our errand days. I could say no. Not that I ever would. Now that Joe is not in a machine shop each day, he is happiest when he can roam around in a hardware store.

The irony is he is usually a “let me go in fast and get what I need kind of guy.” This is true of Costco and Cub. In fact, Joe is the quickest Costco shopper I have ever known. Hardware stores? Not so much. He is going for a specific item or two; however, he usually browses a bit as well. I just read in the car while he ‘shops.’

Joe is spending the afternoon prepping the ground area where the last two raised garden beds will reside. I made enchilada sauce for the chicken enchiladas I plan to cook tomorrow. The sauce is the best enchilada sauce I have ever eaten and that includes at Mexican Restaurants. I am looking forward to tasting the enchiladas tomorrow night.

This morning, before we went off on our errands, it was fun to see so many “first day of school” photos on Facebook. Minnesota and Ohio family and friends had posts. Two weeks ago, California friends were sharing their first day of school pictures. There is something exciting about the first day of school each fall that pleases my soul. This year I got to experience the excitement twice. 

Clear Backpacks: New Trend in Schools

 

Today I read a synopsis of daily news that included back to school information for 2024. One of the trends in the summary left me feeling disturbed.

The trend is for students to carry clear backpacks. School administrators believe that clear backpacks can combat violence in schools. School districts in at least three states (Virginia, Texas, and Georgia) have new see-through backpack policies (Campus Safety magazine).

Four reasons given for the clear backpack policies are to prevent students from bringing drugs to school, quick visual bag checks, identifying emergency supplies, and promoting student accountability.

I am all about keeping students safe. My brain is saying, “Oh, let’s not have safe and sane gun laws to keep guns out of the hands of our youth. Instead let us strip students of privacy in an effort to keep them safe.” How does a clear backpack keep outside shooters from coming onto campus? Will school personnel call in law enforcement for non-student visitors with regular backpacks or briefcases?

I wonder how these schools are adapting to girls carrying menstrual supplies in their backpack for everyone else to see as they walk from class to class. If they cover the box or container to hide the contents, will they be subject to a search of their backpack? Recalling my own middle-school and high-school years, I would have been mortified if other students, teachers, or administrators had known I was in my cycle. Perhaps the schools with these policies will provide their students with free supplies so they do not need to carry their own? I sure hope so. Puberty is difficult enough without the added knowledge that everyone around you knows about your bodily functions.

Identifying emergency supplies is also questionable as a reason for clear backpacks. How does this not violate medical privacy rules? It is one thing for a teacher to be aware that a student may have a medical condition requiring supplies, another for fellow students to be equally aware of medical information. Last year when I went through training for substituting in Minnesota schools, medical information and any accommodations for students were considered confidential information. HIPPA is a federal law that protects the privacy and security of health information. Won’t clear backpacks violate HIPPA?

Another concern would be that other students can easily see what is in another student’s backpack and gain access to items that belong to others.

I understand that sporting events and concerts now require clear bags. Here is the thing though – those are optional venues. School is not optional for children. Sure, there is home schooling, private schools, and moving away from districts with clear backpack policies as options. However, those options will not be accessible for socio-economic reasons for all families.

I hope all teachers and administrators have to use clear backpacks as well during the school day. If it is okay to violate children’s rights to privacy, why should adults have rights to privacy in the same setting?

Am I Becoming Anti-Social?

 

Does anyone else ever think they are on sensory overload?

This past month, on a daily basis, I find myself wanting to avoid all social media and my email. The emails from both political parties requesting donations average twenty to twenty-five requests daily. At this point I have donated where I planned, and I am done. All new solicitation emails are automatically deleted. I tried to unsubscribe from one and they wanted a donation to unsubscribe. It wears me out!

I do not use X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram only updates if something I wrote on Facebook links to it. With no effort on my part, it is haphazard what Facebook sends to Instagram. I do not care. I felt a bit frustrated when Facebook took down a post with a link to my blog last  week. Fortunately, it was only on one link, so far.

If I didn’t love seeing photos of family and friends and reading about everyone’s successes, I would skip checking Facebook. I do appreciate the Messenger alerts from family and friends with funny reels and sweet memes.

The rest of it can feel to me like noise. Noise that exhausts my happy spirit.

Maybe it is all of the ads on Facebook that contribute to sensory overload. Right now, my Facebook page ads are all about pregnancy. My daughter’s not mine! (Thank you, Jesus! Sixty-eight and motherhood would not work for me. I am happy when I can dress and feed myself let alone take care of a sweet baby). Maternity clothes, breastfeeding supplies, and diapers are sandwiched in among Threads which I HATE. Yes, HATE Threads. I rarely hate anything. I hate the new Threads popping up on my Facebook feed. The Threads belong to people I have never met. After getting sucked into reading one or two, I would not ever read them again.

Maybe venting on my blog will help me move past my general frustration with social media. Let’s hope so. I prefer living in a relaxed and happy state of mind.