Prochein Amy

I know, another political post!  That is not like me.  But I find this article very interesting and it makes me happy. 

 Hat tip to Dean.

Growing up as a young man of mixed race, Barack Obama benefited from the spirit of tolerance that defined Hawaii’s racial climate.

His childhood in the country’s idealized melting pot was far from painless, though.

As part of the islands’ small group of black Americans in the 1970s, he encountered racism and struggled to form a black identity.

Obama’s experience in Hawaii is echoed by other blacks, including some of his schoolmates, and challenges the state’s vaunted image of racial harmony.

“A big joke amongst the brothers was you could be anything else but a brother and have free rein of the world in Hawaii,” said Rik Smith, a black former schoolmate of Obama’s at Punahou, an elite private school in Honolulu. “When it comes to people of color, black people, there’s a huge amount of racism.”  Full story here.

In 2005, I blogged about my experiences living in Hawaii.  Discrimination was not just for blacks.  It also included white people, like me.  Below is my full post.

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As I think about the first half of my freshman year in high school, I know this will not be a positive post.  I am telling you about this, not for sympathy, but for you (and me) to understand a part of who I am.  It was a very negative experience, but it shaped my outlook, how I treat people, and my views of prejudice.  And don’t worry, positive posts will be coming.

I was some what disappointed to leave my current school.  I was going to be in the 9th grade and 9th graders were “big dogs on campus.”  It got even worse when I found out the school I would be going to was 9th – 12th.  So I was back on the bottom.  There was not any housing available on Post, so we had to live on “the economy”. 

There were not any kids my age in the neighborhood and I ended up reading the whole summer before school started.  We would go to the library and I would check out as many as I could (I think it was 14).  I would finish them before the week was up.  

The combination of moving stress, the sun, and the beaches, I ended up getting a HUGE fever blister on my lip.  HUGE!!!  And it did not help what I was the only white girl in my classes.  No other military kids.  Just kids who grew up together and thought the haole chick with the funky lip was weird.  I don’t know if I can explain how horrible it was.  No one talked to me.  Every morning as I walked to the bus stop, my stomach would start to ache and my insides felt like they were bunching up.  I tried very hard to make friends and remember one girl, but she was not really interested in being friends.  I may have been to desperate. 

There were some good parts.  I was able to take hula for my PE class.  I enjoyed it very much and wish I could have continued at my next school.  We ended up moving onto Post halfway through the year. I was glad, but still unsure of the new school.

As I write about this, I remember the feelings and it makes me cry.  I remember hating. every. minute.  Trying to figure out where I would eat lunch.  I stopped going into the cafeteria since I got dirty looks where ever I sat.  I remember counting down the minutes until lunch was over.  Looking at the other kids talking and laughing. 

But I learned from that experience.  If I am around, everyone is included.  I work very hard to make new people welcome.  I enjoy learning about people and will talk to anyone.  I understand what it is like to be invisible.  To never be acknowledged. 

And I will NEVER let anyone around me EVER feel that way.�

Personal injury attorney expected to recover from car accident 

12:30 PM CDT on Monday, May 19, 2008 

By TANYA EISERER / The Dallas Morning News
Personal injury attorney Brian Loncar, who was injured when his car collided with a fire engine truck, is expected to fully recover from his injuries, his office said. Mr. Loncar, 47, suffered internal contusions and fractured his ribs and pelvis, according to a weekend news release from his office.

The prominent attorney was injured Friday when his Bentley collided with a Dallas Fire-Rescue truck in Oak Lawn at the intersection of Lemmon Avenue and Lomo Alto Drive.

Police say a fire truck with lights and sirens blaring passed through a red light at the intersection and slammed into the driver’s side of Mr. Loncar’s 2008 Bentley.

The force of the accident pushed his car through the intersection, spinning off the road and into a third vehicle carrying a woman and three children.

Firefighters and those in the third vehicle suffered minor injuries, but no one was transported to the hospital, police said.

Mr. Loncar’s face is a familiar one around Texas, where he can often be seen saying in television ads, “When you’re hurt in a car wreck, you need someone on your side.” His commercials and his Web site advise people to call in the “Strong Arm” when a person has been injured “due to the negligence or misconduct of another person.”

Staff writer Kimberly Durnan contributed to this report.

Hat tip to Starla from Econtonics.com.

Here are my full comments to this post. 

I wonder why we focus on the oil companies and not on the resources we could have? We could drill off the coast and China is. More here.

Or Alaska? more here.

And it seems people are not digging in enough for info. Just because they are at record profits, does not mean they are rolling in the dough! If I got a raise today, I would be making record profits, but since prices and gas are going up, I won’t see it in my bottom line.

Biased view here. Viewpoint with cold hard facts here.

With two runners on base and a strike against her, Sara Tucholsky of Western Oregon University uncorked her best swing and did something she had never done, in high school or college. Her first home run cleared the center-field fence.

But it appeared to be the shortest of dreams come true when she missed first base, started back to tag it and collapsed with a knee injury.

She crawled back to first but could do no more. The first-base coach said she would be called out if her teammates tried to help her. Or, the umpire said, a pinch runner could be called in, and the homer would count as a single.

Then, members of the Central Washington University softball team stunned spectators by carrying Tucholsky around the bases Saturday so the three-run homer would count — an act that contributed to their own elimination from the playoffs.

Read the rest here.

I can understand why the opposing team helped.  If she had not injured her knee, she would have had a homerun anyway.  And wouldn’t you want someone to do the same for you?

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This school year I have been very active with our Parent Teacher Organization.  I found out the current president was stepping down and after much soul searching and support from my husband, and both our sets of parents, I put my name in the hat.  I was a shoe in with those very active, but relatively unknown by the rest of the parents. 

When I saw another name of a parent who is also on the school staff, I knew I would not get it.  I have no problem with this person and I am sure she will do a great job.  What I do have a problem with is the fact that she has not attended any of the monthly meetings in the last two years.  Nor has she participated in any of the events. 

I know that school politics can get bad.  I should stay away.  But I have a strong pull to volunteer and help my girl’s school.  I am like a moth to the flame.  But I am not giving up and they can’t get rid of me that easily.  I will continue to volunteer and make a difference.  I have 7 lives left!

The active-play phenomenon started by Wii Sports now spreads to your whole body thanks to the pressure-sensitive Wii Balance Board (name not final), which comes packed with Wii Fit. The board is used for an extensive array of fun and dynamic activities, including aerobics, yoga, muscle stretches and games. Many of these activities focus towards providing a “core” workout, a popular exercise method that emphasizes slower, controlled motions. Family members will have fun staying active and talking about and comparing their results and progress on a new channel on the Wii Menu.

 

More here and here.

I soooo want one!!!!

Yesterday Oldest and I were going over her spelling words. One of her words is hair.

Oldest: Hair as in hair on your head?

Me: Pause. Yes.

Oldest: h. a. i. r.

Me: What is the other kind of hair?

Oldest: Here, as in h. e. r. e.

Yep, she is from Texas.

Full story here.