People of Color - or as I knew them in the 70s: Blacks

Last night we made some new friends that are black and I am so glad! I am hispanic and my hubster is a gringo. I always have black friends because I love the culture. It's nice to not be judged - as so many gringo folks I've known - and just "chill."

Anyway, Keisha told me that she worries about her son. One, because he is black. Two, because he is male. She said that even today, black males have a wall they run up against folks in power and that they have to be twice as well-behaved, twice as smart, and twice as careful of who they come across because of this stigma. This really burned my butt because we don't need any of this crap in our American society today. But, I see what she is saying.

Take President Obama. He has endured relentless bashing from the right-wing, the press, and voters with closed minds. (Or maybe they don't REALLY pay attention?) It's unbelieveable to me how ignorant some folks can be! Does Congress shutting down and huffing and puffing over the various opinions they have over what the majority of American voters have chosen escape their attention? It's like some people - and I must say, it hasn't been a black person - stick their fingers in their ears and la-la-la-la-la their way along just focusing on the negative, negative, negative of President Obama. Who says it's negative? What would happen if people backed his efforts and gave him some praise once in a while? What a fickle, ridiculous society Americans are any more.

From day one I have witnessed Congressional members fight our President. Throw obstacles in his path while he is trying to make changes. How do people not get this? For four long years, I have witnessed a select few (rich white guys) try to change the majority of Americans' viewpoint - and as it follows, their votes - to sway to their side which is Republican. But, I am betting that the majority of American people are smarter than these few think. I think people will see the 4 year long character bashing politicals have done to try to make him appear inept. 4 years of shutting down his proposals, nitpicking his plans apart to THEIR idea of how America should be run. But, our Republican Obama-haters in congress are the ones who made me wait on getting my tax returns for months and months because of their boo-hoo, whaaa-whaaa behavior last year. Enough already!

I see that the rich, white men feel threatened by this rich, intelligent black man. It's fear that has financed all the bad press on our black president. And, I'm understanding much better what my girlfriend, Keisha, is talking about for her son. I really thought that electing a black president would banish the stigmas that a select few have perpetuated for generations against the black males of our society. But, it hasn't.

And all I can ask of my girlfriend is for continued patience of the idiots in our society, and to keep in mind that those of us who are gentle-hearted and supportive of other races than whites - we may not be a loud-mouthed as them, but we ARE here. And we WILL continue to vote. I believe there must be a long ago president who faced equally, the same backlash and stubborn ignorant refusal from a society to treat all people equal - whose ghost is constantly at President Obama's side lending him more support. President Obama, I believe you are daily blessed with the spirit of understanding and wisdom from President Abraham Lincoln.

Dealing With A New York Irishman

Ladies out there who are married - or living with an Irishman from New York. Firstly let me say, "I feel you." If any of you can relate to this, let me in on your survival tactics please 'cause it's one of those far-between days that I am at the end of my rope!

So, my hubster has run up our credit card bills so high that now we are "facing the music" to the 4 different bills due now every month. I NEVER let my credit card get to it's max - ever. If there was an emergency - that is what credit cards are for in my mind. But, it seems not to matter what I say. He just does whatever he thinks is "necessary" despite what I say. He does this thing of juggling the bills to within a day or a week within stuff getting shut off. I don't know how our finances have got to where HE is the only one handling the money --- actually, I believe it has been a couple various situations over the past 3 years --- but, he actually seems to ENJOY doing this juggling at the deadline kind of stuff. But, then - like most times it happens - the bills are stacked too far and his juggling little game gets thrown off into the black suction hold of debt and creditors with their devil faces holding their hands out wanting their money yesterday. I HATE THE WHOLE U.S.A. CREDIT GAME!! We should go back to Medieval Times and use TRADE as the only form of "credit." Every one of you out there who has a credit account of some sort knows how it gets when you charge something and then get your bill. It's your charged amount PLUS whatever percentage they feel like adding to the amount of your purchase.

Like with me right now: I am in the middle of paying back 3 different school loans. I have had surgery and did not work this past year, so I asked for a deferment on the loan. Of course they granted it because while my payments are suspended for a year, they are charging me PAYMENT PLUS INTEREST PLUS CAPITOL ON THAT UNPAID INTEREST. This is some bullsh*t if you know what I mean. How is anyone supposed to be debt-free when the government allows crap like this to go on???

Back to the Irishman: (see how my head won't stop it?) So, I get up this morning and tell my NY Irishman," We have a storage bill of $109.00 EVERY month. That's alot of money that we could use while paying down [your] credit debt. I will park my Mini in the driveway until I can go through the stuff and organize it, store it or junk it or garage sale it, and then put my Mini back. Right away - he's gonna change what I just said, "Well, we don't have the space for the storage stuff so we should just grab a truckload of part of the stuff and then get a space that only costs like, $60.00 per month. That would save us forty dollars. Then he goes into this little rant of how big the storage space is and how we can still save money and the house is too small and you (me) can't go through that much stuff in recovering from surgery right now...yada...yada...yada.

I'm pissed. We need to pay the bills down - is what my head is screaming inside my ears and won't shut up! And he is justifying NOT saving one hundred dollars per month!! I'm sorry folks...I just don't get it. Is it a PRIDE thing? Is it a THREATENING of his manhood thing? Is it a GUILT thing? An OFFENSIVE thing: how dare my woman tell ME how to work money!

The one thing that I have in my favor is that I am Latina and folks shouldn't abuse my logic when the logic is totally logical, okay? I don't even let the man finish - I am like, "NO! I want you to just say, "okay." Why you gotta always CHANGE my idea? What, if it isn't YOUR idea it sucks? Well, um...no. We are going to get a truckload from the storage. I am going to park my Mini outside in the sun until stuff is organized in the garage. We are going to save a hundred and nine dollars a month and YOU are gonna stop CHARGING things!!

Ladies with NY Irishman - and I know of at least one - my sister-in-law who is married to my hubster's brother --- we need to keep each others' backs --- so, we don't lose our minds.

Overwhelmed

So there is a lot of stuff that won't leave my head alone.
I don't know how to motivate myself and am trying to put together a Visual Aid for myself. I tend to over-do. So, I'm listing what is in the Spark Book on goals - but, my head pops up with too many ideas and I can't sort them out. If I put them all on it I will stun myself with too much info at once.
KEEP IT SIMPLE

This is Weird

Trying to figure how to blog, like, 10 years after people have been blogging..? Oh well. Am trying to link this to my Spark People page for weight reflections on my last journey of this size. Hah! Get it?