Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin seeds are my favorite thing about Halloween. When the night of the dead comes around, I don't think of ghosts and goblins - I think of finding the pumpkin with the most seeds! Know how to do that? The more ridges in the pumpkin, the more seeds!

My mom was a pumpkin seed freak and she passed that right on down to me. I hear it every year that someone has tried and failed at roasting seeds. It may seem cumbersome or even overwhelming, but it's easy peasy... Because we've harvested seeds for so long, the techniques have been simplified and perfected.

First things first, what's the best way to harvest the seeds? Here's what I do:

• have a bucket for the pumpkin guts (line with a bag)
• have a large bowl of water
• use a wide metal spoon for scraping the innards
• when gutting the pumpkin, just get 'er done and put the guts in the bucket
• while others are carving, pop the seeds off the guts into the bowl of water to remove the sticky innards; they can float around in the water without any time concerns

Prepping the seeds:

• line a large baking sheet with tea towels
• move seeds from water bowl to dry on the baking sheet; cover with another towel to remove moisture
• allow to dry for at least :30 - longer is okay; stir them around with the towels to remove moisture

Baking the seeds:

• heat oven to 300°
• melt a tablespoon or two of butter
• put seeds in a large bowl, drizzle with butter and some olive oil (until they're covered but not dripping) and add salt
• spread seeds on a baking sheet or two (one layer)
• bake for a minimum of :45, stirring occasionally after :30
• seeds will turn light brown and possibly pop. DO NOT cool until they are crispy; popping is good, burning is bad. If they're not crispy at :45, then cook for additional :05 increments stirring every time the timer goes off
• When crispy, cool the seeds on paper towels to remove excess oil (I bake on two sheets and when cooling, cover one with paper towels and then put them all on that sheet)
• ENJOY!

I am the 99%

Income Tax is like a VAT

Michele Bachmann accused Herman Cain of instituting a Value Added Tax with the 9% corporate income tax in the 9-9-9 plan.

In the same breath, she said she'd play with the current income tax code, keep the regulations and leave the payroll tax in place.

Herman Cain wants to simplify the income tax code before completely eradicating it and replacing it with the FairTax. From the beginning with 9-9-9, it means NO income taxes or payroll taxes, NO investment taxes or capital gains taxes, NO estate taxes and fewer embedded taxes under 9-9-9 then NO embedded taxes.

So, what's a VAT tax? A European-style Value Added Tax is a federal tax on every stage of production. It's end effect is similar to our income and payroll taxes because the tax is built into the cost of the end purchase (trickle down).

See, every business needs to make a profit. When their expenses go up (inventory, rent, energy, insurance, minimum wage, taxes...), they must somehow recoup the lost profit in order to stay in business. Most businesses already operate on a shoe-string budget, especially in this economic environment, so "trimming the fat" is not an option.

The question is: does Michele Bachmann think the current income tax is better than 9-9-9 or the FairTax?

Sales Tax is not a VAT

Oh, and by the way, a sales tax is not a Value Added Tax like in Europe. A VAT is levied at every stage of production (just a few or hundreds for some products like a house). The VAT rolls downhill and gets larger with each business that touches the product, a lot like the American income and payroll taxes.

A sales tax is levied one time at the end purchase. A sales tax is a certain percent of a dollar spent at the final sale, not a culmination of taxes at every stage of production.

9-9-9 Below the Surface

Herman Cain unveiled his 9-9-9 plan a couple months ago. It seems to be catching on among fellow "tax simplicity" advocates, but it's easily demagogued by everyone else. The plan calls for eliminating the current tax code and replacing it with a 9% corporate tax, 9% personal income tax and 9% sales tax.

A first attack: it'll unfairly tax the poor and middle class since 47% of Americans pay no income tax. Well, that's right! 47% of Americans have no apparent skin in the game right now. What we're missing, though, is that these same Americans pay the most regressive tax on wages in American history - the payroll tax! 7.64% of every tax-filing worker's earnings are deducted and the employer pays the other 7.64% on the top. This is over 15% in regressive taxes only levied on the productive people in this country. The 9-9-9 plan eliminates the payroll tax.

A second attack: it lets corporations off the hook and spreads the wealth from the poor people up to the richest. Just why do we have a complicated tax code with one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world? So that corporations can find loopholes! So that politicians can play their power role and jockey the code for their donors! The 9-9-9 plan removes all loopholes and transitions power of the tax code from the politicians to the people.

A third attack: a 9% sales tax is regressive! Did you know that between 12-30% of everything we purchase is embedded taxes? Because all businesses must make a profit, the cost of payroll and income taxes as well as complying with the tax code are passed down to the next purchaser of that product. By the time it's gotten to the end consumer, tens or hundreds of businesses have touched that product and added the cost of taxes into the price. 9-9-9 removes a substantial amount of compliance cost away from the business, abolishes the payroll tax and simplifies the corporate tax code by removing all loopholes.

People who are well-read on the FairTax Act (HR25/S13) understand this. When we remove the income tax, payroll tax, estate tax, investment tax and capital gains tax, the cost of goods goes down; consumers keep more of their money to spend how they choose with greater buying power; and business invest in growth rather than protection from the tax code.

What is it about the current tax code that makes the 9-9-9 plan look bad? It's a step in the right direction - with FairTax the final destination.

Kale - a healthy indulgence

Mmmm! A couple weeks ago, I picked up a tub of dehydrated kale chips seasoned with garlic, vinegar, salt and pepper. They were so delicious that I ate the $8 tub in just a few hours (only because I was trying to stretch them out). The next day I found huge bunches of fresh kale at Whole Foods and decided to try my hand at it. I mean, for $2 in kale, it was worth the try...

And was it ever worth it! Kale chips are so easy to make in an oven (forget about the dehydrator, it's not needed) that I've baked and eaten two whole bunches in the last 3 days. They don't stay crispy like dehydrated ones, so just make enough to be eaten in a day.

• preheat oven 325°
• cut kale leaves off stem
• rip leaves into large bite-sized pieces
• arrange on parchment lined pan, close together but not overlapping
• mince or press garlic and spread over kale
• spray with oil to lightly coat
• salt & pepper
• cook :08 - :10 (my oven does it in :08)
• leaves should brown on the edges, add :01 if there not crispy yet. Be aware because they'll burn fast!

Rosemary Kate!

My friend Kate brought a sack full of herb to the Mom's Club pool party!

Literally, it was an oversized shopping bag filled to the brim with rosemary and basil. Some was for a strawberry recipe I remembered from a high-class cook out years ago. And the rest was for each of us to take home.

Since I'm growing basil, I took only two gigantic sprigs of rosemary. I didn't grow up in a house smelling of rosemary, so it's not a "go-to" flavor in my mind-recipe-box.

I brought home those delicious smelling herbs and stuck them in a bud vase. For two days, the aroma filled our kitchen... and finally, the challenge began! What could I cook using rosemary and the leftover veggies from last week's farmer's market? Thank goodness for the internet! Behold:

Keep rosemary sprigs in a bud vase for longer freshness.

They'll suck up the water, so keep an eye on it!

Dinner 1: honey rosemary sweet potatoes, rosemary & garlic scented roasted okra and garlic rolls

• honey rosemary sweet potatoes perfect according to recipe in link - be sure to use parchment paper so the honey & potatoes don't destroy your pan; tin foil might tear
• roasted okra: toss whole okra, garlic slices & rosemary sprigs in olive oil; spread on pan and sprinkle with salt; roast at 450° for 15 minutes
• had dinner rolls in freezer. Melt butter & garlic in the bottom of a glass dish inside warm oven, dip the tops of the rolls in the butter then put them in the dish & toast in the oven

Dinner 2: oven "fried" okra with homemade rosemary breadcrumbs and cold peanut noodles with tempeh & green beans.

• These Weelicious okra fries are the best oven fried okra I've tried so far! I made the breadcrumbs using multi-grain bread: toast whole, fresh slices of bread in the oven for :15 (turn once); when cooled, break apart and grind in blender (I had to do 3 batches using 5 pieces of bread); add rosemary sprigs to chop in blender and mix all crumbs back together. Okra recipe only needed one coating of egg/bread crumbs using fresh breadcrumbs
• Left out several of the ingredients on cold peanut noodles and it still turned out great! (omitted bean sprouts, chives, cilantro and added green beans). Made with whole wheat spaghetti noodles. FANTASTIC!

Grilled strawberries:

• de-stem the strawberries and marinate in olive oil and balsamic vinegar;
• rinse 12" sprigs of rosemary so thoroughly wet;
• string about 4 strawberries onto each sprig (pull them up the sprig);
• grill on low for about :06, turning regularly, or until hot all the way through.
• If you made enough for everyone to have a sprig, great! Otherwise, pull strawberries off into a bowl;
• Drizzle with more balsamic if desired.

Peaches!

I've been pretty disappointed with peaches over the years. They've been hard, mealy and just un-flavorful... but that all changed this summer! We moved to the Peach State which means I no longer buy peaches from the grocery store. And I learned a very important lesson...

Peach Rule #1: Never, EVER put a ripe peach in the fridge!

Did you know that refrigeration makes a ripe peach mealy? You can put unripened peaches in a bag into the crisper you're ready to finish ripening on the counter. Whether you buy at the grocery or a fruit stand, peaches often need to sit on the counter for a day or two before they're ready to enjoy. Some of the ones I got at the Peaches & Pigs festival this weekend were ready to eat and still others are just getting there three days after purchase.

It's rare that a peach makes it past it's ripeness in our house, but it did happen a few weeks ago. So what to do with peaches that are past their prime? Here are some ideas:

• Blanche: boil whole peaches for 6 minutes then immediately transfer to a bowl of ice water. Once they've cooled (at least 5 minutes), you can easily pull the skin off the peach. Blanching gives the peach a deep and delicious flavor. You can cut it up and freeze in a single layer to use for later (shakes!), or you can chop it up and mix with yogurt!
• Grill: Cut peaches in half and put in dish with balsamic vinegar, honey and a touch of vanilla. Grill pit side up for 3 minutes, then turn for another :03 or until heated through. Dish 'em up, drizzle with remaining vinegar/honey mix and serve with vanilla yogurt or ice cream.
• Saute´: Cut peaches into thin slices and saute with cinnamon until soft. Great topping for pancakes, yogurt, oatmeal, on cheerios, or a stand alone snack.
• Puree: Either raw or after using above techniques, puree the peaches and freeze in an ice tray. You can use as a sweetener for other recipes or as baby food!

Final Destination... the abortion issue

So, after dropping my son off at school today, I was traveling down 41 and there was a dump truck stalled in the intersection. Everybody was slowing down and what happens? I have a flashback of my friend Amy.

Amy was a really, really close friend of mind in high school. We had a lot of fun and many deep conversations; so many good memories. One of the things that always stands out in the forefront of my memories with Amy is that she was supposed to be aborted. Her mom got knocked up and chose to have an abortion. However it happened, she ended up having Amy, but she knew this her whole life - she knew that she was literally the product of the abortion debate. And for whatever reason, Amy was still pro-choice. She told me, "you know, I would never have known the difference".

And, as you would suspect, her life was tough. The reason a stalled out dump truck reminds me of Amy is because, as she was traveling down 41 in Alachua County FL, she drove right into the side of a tractor trailer doing a three point turn. Amy was on her way to class at the local community college, t-boned the trailer which was doing an illegal turn, and was decapitated.

Snap - the end of it.

Ever see that movie "Final Destination"? It makes me wonder... was she ever meant to grow old? She had already cheated death once when her mom chose not to abort. And then at 20, maybe 21, everything was taken away from her.

Almost every time I think of Amy, I think of the abortion issue. Being pro-life vs. being pro-choice and what does it really mean?

If you're pro-life, does it NECESSARILY mean that other women shouldn't have the choice to have an abortion?

I am politically pro-choice. Every woman ought to have the choice to carry the baby to full term and deliver it. Government has no business in our reproductive rights. I believe that a fetus is not a baby until it can survive outside the womb without intervention. And any family that going to lobby for taking away abortion rights should to adopt or foster a child every year that they lobby.

A baby is not a baby until it's outside of the womb, living, breathing, swallowing, pumping blood on it's own. It's part of nature that mother feeds the baby. I've heard the argument "well, if you feel that way, and if you intervene by feeding the baby, you're proving yourself wrong..." Note: feeding our young is a part of nature. Breathing for them is not. When the lungs are collapsed or the heart is malformed or the brain is swollen, should the baby live? Should we listen to nature and avoid excessive intervention? Or should we follow our human instincts and do everything possible to keep a non-viable baby alive? These are tough, heart-wrenching questions.

Personally, I'm pro-life. For my person, my body and my family, if I unexpectedly got pregnant, I would carry, deliver and love that baby with all my heart. Would I have made the same decision 10 years ago? I have no clue! Thankfully I wasn't faced with it, yet I want other people to be able to make that personal choice. It's not MY decision for them or their body or the fetus.

Even though Amy had a great time for so much of her life, she also had it tough due to the circumstances she was born into. Her mom got knocked up very young and thankfully, she had grandparents who stepped in to take that parental role.

Not every child who is born is born wanted. It's a shame, but it's how it is.

Love you, Amy. Always on my mind...

Amy & Kristina - way back in the day.

multiplying the chard

An impromptu family dinner, so what do you do? Well, pasta makes everything bigger!

I bought some beautiful red ruby swiss chard at Publix the other day. I'd never bought it before, but it was absolutely fresh, crisp and beautiful, so I had to give it a try. With the bro and his kids on the way over, it was time to multiply dinner...

Started with spinach nuggets from the produce section at Publix. Delish, healthy and easy apps! Then we had corn on the cob, Italian swiss chard (garlic & red pepper with olive oil) and whole grain spaghetti. For dessert? Baked peaches from the farmers market! Complete with vanilla ice cream my brother brought over. See, delish meal on a moment's notice and a shoestring budget. YUM!

What's for dinner? Get creative!

Inventory:

• long beans
• red potatoes
• sweet potatoes
• garlic
• onion
• broccoli
• eggs

So, what was for dinner? Since hubby was working late, we could cook lite:

• sauteed long beans with the thai dressing we bought at the farmers market
• scattered red potatoes with broccoli, onion, garlic & egg (beat egg, grate potatoes, puree broccoli, onion & garlic. Mix, squeeze patties to get out moisture, pan fry in olive oil until personal satisfaction. I like mine crispy.)
• Sriracha on my plate

I'm certain that I've eaten long beans in a chinese buffet at some point. They didn't taste much different than a string bean, but a bit more tough and less full with moisture. My 3 year old loved the beans with the thai sauce, but it was too sweet for me. Perfect with the sriracha. Struck out with him on the scattered potatoes, but I liked it! He's not a potato fan anyway.

Family dinner!

Every other Wednesday, we enjoy family dinner with my little bro and his two girls. They've tried some new things at our house and some variations of the staples. I decided to nix the long beans tonight and instead oven fried the okra and made two pizzas using pre-made dough from Publix and veggies from the farmers market. Yum!

Here's the recipe I used for oven fried okra. It's super-simple and is always a kiddie & grown-up crowd pleaser with toothpicks for spearing & ranch dressing on the side! One tip - if the okra is small, cook only :30, not :40.

We discovered the pre-made pizza dough in a fridge at the Publix Bakery. I think they're about $3 and they taste so good! Just let it rise for an hour in a greased bowl with a towel over it, then stretch and top. We cook ours on a large baking dish at 450° for 12 minutes. Don't worry about the shape! When we started, we came out with some funky shaped pies.

On this pizza: olive oil, a mixture of blanched broccoli, chopped tomatoes, garlic & ranch dressing and a package of 2% Italian shredded cheese.

The second pizza was more traditional with pizza sauce, basil, garlic, sliced deli ham (for the guys) and mixed cheese.

Food, Family & Politics: they definitely go together!

I started cooking more and more after getting married 8 years ago. Our dinners went from baked chicken & broccoli in 2003 to Aaloo Palak in 2011.

I gave up meat (have a weakness for fall off the bone ribs & bacon, though) at the same time my oldest son Jake was old enough to try it. I always had an aversion to raw meat, gristle and any type of "pink" in my steak, so I had been experimenting with vegetarian dishes for years. That summer, my neighbor lent me the book Skinny Bitch. All that I had tried to ignore my entire life about our food was screaming at me from those pages. So, I gave up meat, except for those special times like eating King's BBQ in Lake County this past week end. Going meat-free in our house was a major turning point in the kitchen.

Almost on a daily basis, I look up recipes online to try something new with whatever's in the house. Last night it was an Indian dish of spinach, potatoes, tomatoes & spices called Aaloo Palak.

The food issue in America was brought to the forefront when we visited the Kennesaw Farmer's Market on Tuesday. I've been to road side stands and to other farmer's markets, but I was blown away by this one. While it was intimate, it was plentiful! I bought hydroponic organic

lettuce for $2 a head, a big bunch of freshly picked spinach for $2, tomatoes & hot peppers for $2, long beans for $2 (going to make tonight! What the heck is a long bean?!), homemade Thai dressing for $5, a basket of freshly picked okra for $2, Georgia peaches for $4 and a basket of freshly tilled sweet potatoes for another $2. A week's worth of FRESH produce for $21 + amazing dressing for a vegetarian family!

Whoah, those are some looong beans!

I'm still on cloud 9! I can barely get over the fact that I've been buying grocery store lettuce and spinach, possibly in a bag, for half my life. And fruits & veggies picked early so they look better in the store. For what? The convenience? What's so convenient about going to the grocery store and paying twice as much for week old, bland, vitamin depleted produce?

You may be thinking "is this chick really just learning about farmer's markets"? Well, no! I've known about farmer's markets for ever, but discovering a good one is the key. While living in Ponce Inlet, the closest weekly Farmer's Market on City Island featured resellers. These folks bought old produce from the grocery stores and then resold it at the farmer's market! yuck! And still others resold things like sunscreen or pallets of water. Yes, some Saturdays, we could score amazing produce, and the local honey was fabulous, but the entire event was spotty.

Long story short, I'll be posting my kitchen creations and food revelations on Kristina's Conscience going forward.

Food, Family & Politics: they definitely go together!

What's killing more Americans -- heroin, cocaine, or prescription painkillers?

Do you know anyone who poo poos the use of marijuana because it's "illegal" and instead takes pain pills all day long? Do you, as I, wonder why the government has such bans while allowing the synthetics to kill our citizens? (I'll give you a hint... it starts with M and ends in Y)

A few years ago, I was astounded at a policy at a Catholic hospital mom stayed in while battling cancer. They literally locked up her prescription for Marinol, synthetic marijuana (not even the real thing!) that helped with her pain, nausea and sleeplessness. Instead, they prescribed her a hardcore narcotic, a pill for nausea and one for sleeping which causes hallucinations.

Painkillers are real killers

by William C. Douglass, MD

Pop quiz time: What's killing more Americans -- heroin, cocaine, or prescription painkillers?

Since you're a reader of the Daily Dose, I'm sure the answer is obvious. It's the painkillers, of course. A look at the numbers from 2007 showed that these perfectly legal meds killed more people in 2007 than heroin and cocaine COMBINED... and that's not even counting suicides!

Researchers from UNC-Chapel Hill School of Medicine and the Duke University Medical Center say these meds made up the bulk of the 27,500 unintentional drug overdose deaths that year.

Of course, they make up a pretty good bulk of the intentional deaths as well. Opioids alone were responsible for 36 percent of all suicide attempts in '07, according to the commentary in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

In 20 states, the number of unintentional prescription drug overdose deaths actually exceeded motor vehicle deaths or suicides.

The researchers call this an "epidemic," but I call this business as usual -- because when it comes to pain, we're total wimps. We pop pills for every little ache and pain, and the numbers reach shocking new highs every year.

Just last year, the generic form of Vicodin, was the most prescribed drug in America, with 131 million doses given out -- up from 112 million just four years earlier.

The U.S. has 4.6 percent of the planet's population... but uses up 99 percent of the global hydrocodone supply and 80 percent of all opioids, according to ABC News.

With those numbers still growing rapidly, that means our national drug problem -- the "legal" one -- is going to get a whole lot worse before it gets better.

Explaining the pain,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

P.S. Research has shown that painkillers can stop antidepressants from working... which is comical, since most antidepressants don't work in the first place. Do yourself a favor -- don't choose one over the other. Skip 'em both.

"Say 'Ahhh'. Does Daddy Have a Gun?"

(title borrowed from Bob Barr http://blogs.ajc.com/bob-barr-blog/2011/05/02/“say-‘ahhh-’-does-daddy-have-a-gun/)

We recently moved to the burbs of Atlanta, Georgia. With two young children, one of my first tasks was to find a convenient and reputable pediatrician. In a metropolis like this, it wasn't at all hard to find a great place. Unlike the small-town where I came from in Florida, doctors in the big city must compete for business, which means their offices are nicer and *hopefully* their studies are current.

I logged into the website for our new Ped to fill out the appropriate new patient paperwork. One of the first questions on the family history reports was "Is there a firearm in the home". I was taken aback! What business is it of the pediatrician if we own a gun? And now that my medical records are all going online, who will have access to this information?

The next day I was eating lunch at Moe's with my boys and a police officer walked passed the table. I stopped him to ask if this firearm question was something that the Georgia Legislature required. He told me no, that maybe the pediatrician just wanted to teach "gun safety"! Then he went on to explain that the town we live in, Kennesaw, does have a law on the books that says every resident in Kennesaw MUST own a firearm! The law came about when Chicago banned guns a few years ago.

I say: way to stand up for our rights, Kennesaw! And a couple weeks later, this opinion came out in the Atlanta Journal Constitution: http://blogs.ajc.com/bob-barr-blog/2011/05/02/“say-‘ahhh-’-does-daddy-have-a-gun/

Should pediatricians be asking parents if there are guns in the house?

I left the question blank.

I don't want to ruin it for you...

I ran across this blog post today on Babble.com. Take 3 minutes to read it and consider writing your first impression before reading my response.

Former Governor Mike Huckabee Hawking Animated History Videos for Kids

POSTED BY MEREDITH CARROLL ON MAY 12TH, 2011 AT 6:30 PM

Who would you trust more to teach your kids about history? A text book or a former and possibly future politician?

I don’t know about you, but I’m quite comfortable with the idea that my kids will learn about history in school when they’re old enough to attend. If I wasn’t, I guess I would take on the burden of educating them myself. But I have a good deal of faith in the curriculum of the local school system and I feel like I would have heard by now if there were a large gap in learning or a glaring bias in the lesson plans.

I’m kind of scratching my head at former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, who has launched a new “education company” that sells animated history videos for kids because “our children’s classes and learning materials are often filled with misrepresentations, including historical inaccuracies, personal biases and political correctness,” his website claims.

To me that seems like an awful lot of paranoia and hostility, particularly coming from someone who is potentially running for president next year and, if he does, will undoubtedly talk about healing our nation’s divide. But I’m not a historian or a politican, so what do I know.

Huckabee’s company is offering video episodes (God forbid our kids read more!) that dramatize various chapters in history. The first episode is titled “The Reagan Revolution.” The bad guy in the video, by the way? A knife-wielding African-American man wearing a disco shirt. Kids will learn how Reagan “believes we can do anything! We just need to get the government out of the way.”

Huckabee says on the website that schools haven’t found a way to make history fun for kids. I don’t know about the kids, but it sure sounds like these videos will be fun (or funny) for the adults.

Are you satisfied with the history curriculum in your kid’s school? Do you think Huckabee’s raison d’être is valid, and that there’s a benefit to the videos he’s peddling?

Image: LearnOurHistory.com

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Had enough time to digest that?

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To MEREDITH CARROLL:

You don't know about me, eh? Well, let me tell you a little... I am absolutely NOT "comfortable with the idea that my kids learn about history in school..." Have you read the history books in your local school system? Are you really waiting to "hear" about it?

History books are biased and have changed throughout the years to reflect the views of powerful people. Yes, some changes are good, like including information on "Japanese internment camps" (comment from KikiRiki on the blog); much of history has been rewritten and rewritten to benefit those controlling the government school system.

And what about the history of slavery and racism that has been rewritten? Frantz Kabreau, founder of the National Association of Conservative People of all Colors (NAACPC), has been studying the history of race relations in America and wrote a book about it: Stolen History. Did you know that the first official slave owner in America was black? Won't learn about that in school!

Most importantly, though, is that our American children are some of the dumbest in the industrialized world (in general - not mine or yours, of course!). It's because parents shirk their responsibility as teachers and researchers so that the government can spare them the "burden". Shouldn't American history, at least what you know of it, be part of family discussions? Or would you rather chat about Harry Potter or the Royal Wedding?

Whether or not Huckabee's videos are silly or biased, and no matter your political viewpoints, believing that your local school system is the only education your kid needs on American history shows a lack of parental responsibility that is plaguing our future.

Representing Purple America

I've been graveling on a new name for my "personality" that really explains who I am and what I believe. The "Conservative Hippie Chick" is what I thought made sense, but know what? The Conservative part offends the liberals and the Hippie Chick part puts off the Conservatives! I just can't win with a name like that.

And so I've been thinking - what makes up Kristina? What represents my thoughts, my beliefs and my actions? First and foremost, I believe in individual responsibility. That's where the liberals and I have a major clashing.

While most Democrats and liberals want the freedoms of America, they're also quick to volunteer the government to guarantee the American dream. Rather than guaranteeing the rights that everyone is created equal and treated equally under the rule of law (we're all given the same freedoms, it's what we do with them that makes us special) they'd like to find a way to even out the score through taxation and entitlements. While they're living in a free country, they're looking for ways to socialize it, to equalize it, to communize it. And to me, that's about as backwards as one can think as an American. No one can create my dreams nor can they fulfill them. Only I can do the work to make my American dream happen.

Then we have the Republicans who believe in freedom, just as long as it abides by their religion. Yes, this country was founded on Christian ideals. There's no disputing it. There's also no disputing that all the laws of our Federal Government have been laid out in the Constitution, not the Bible!

According to the Christian Conservatives, it's my body to choose what I want, just so long as I choose the Christian ideals. How in the world does that make for Freedom of Religion? And if we don't want Shariah law in the US, then lets stop thumping our Bibles on anyone who lives differently.

There's no rule in the Constitution that says marriage is between a man and a woman. That rule comes from the Bible. If one wants to get married under LAW, then go for it! If one wants to get married in the church, then there are rules.

Individualism means that I have the right to live my life how I want just so long as it doesn't infringe on someone else's rights. I've lost faith in the two party system and yet come to accept that one must play the game in order to change it.

And so all this streaming conscience-ness has brought me back to "who the heck am I?". Well, I'm an independent thinking, thought provoking, outspoken American who is just tired of the Red and Blue. I represent Purple America - how about you?

Stories of a grown up...

"Your garage smells like my grandma's," he said this Sunday morning.

I thought to myself: what does his grandma's garage smell like? I replied, "That's interesting."

He and his mom were visiting for the first time. Maybe this kid could smell the unique odor of our family... toys & balls, rim repair equipment, yard supplies, sea shells... Maybe his grandma lives by the beach, too!

A while later, I walk out through the garage. "It smells like dead animal!" I exclaimed.

"Ya, that's what I said. It smells like my grandma's garage!"

I looked around and found an empty Palace Saloon plastic mug next to a bowl with dried star fish in it. Jake had poured water into the bowl and every dormant organism blossomed its most stank stankness into the garage.

Should someone tell his grandma that her garage smells like dead animal?

Dax is here!

Dax was born at home in Ponce Inlet

@ 7:27pm on Sunday, January 2, 2011

8lbs 2ozs and 20.75"

I'll be back to real life as soon as possible!