I want that job!

A few of my mom friends were over today and the topic turned to the politics and the other taboo topics, religion and sex. As we discussed the election and how things have begun to get personal rather than sticking with the issues, a brief flash of election stratagy theory came to my brain. I am not sure why it took me this long to realize, but there is some poor intern or very low level staffer on each campaign whose only job it is is to review the names of those associated with each candidate, particularly donors, and do a Google search to see what good, bad, and ugly comes up. How else would all this video of the Rev. Wright come to light, and only 24 hours later an photo of the same honorable Reverand photographed with President Clinton during a prayer breakfast.

Maybe I am a little envious that there is someone working for a campaign whose only job it is to do web searches all day, and if they do find something juicy that might land them a real White House job if said candidate is elected.

Like I said, I want that job!

Struggling to go Green

This Saturday between 8pm -9pm CST, the City of Chicago will participate in Earth Hour. During that period of time, many of the buildings in our city will either turn off or dim their lights to help bring awareness to climate change. After hearing about this today, or course on NPR, it made me contemplate my own methods of being green, and how, at times, it can be difficult to be a SAHM while also being more conscience about the environment.

There are many things that I already do to do my part to slow down the effects of global warming and hopefully do something good for the environment;, including the 3 r's, reuse, renew and recycle, purchasing locally grown organic foods as well as place compact florescent bulbs in as many of our light fixtures as possible. Those things I find easy and should be no brainers when it comes to doing something for the environment. What I struggle with are some of the other things that I could do to bring down my carbon footprint. For example:

1. Usage of electricity. We live in a day and age that almost everything runs on electricity and as a SAHM, I have realized that there is always some sort of electrical appliance, light, etc on in the house. My parents believed that if you were not in a particular room, the lights should be off in that room. This was because of the cost of electricity, but I see the point when it comes to emissions too. But if you are home, how do you make sure you are not using at least one piece of electrical equipment? Remember, it's still bitterly cold outside so leaving the house is sometimes not an option.

2. Traveling by car or by plane. Let's face it. I would much rather fly to my in-laws in Texas rather than be in the car with husband and child for over 20 hours driving down to visit. Also, I have family that live in Greece. I don't have much of a choice when it comes to visiting them, my only option is to fly. What I guess I have the most difficulty with is driving. If it isn't to the store, it's to a play date, or to grandma's house. I do my share of walking or taking public transportation to the post office, for coffee, meeting a friend, but I know I do more driving than need be.

3. Waste. As I mentioned, I do my share of recycling, but I've never known anyone who generates as much garbage as my family. Maybe I just feel that I take the garbage out way more than anyone else in my condo building. The majority of my trips to the garbage are worth of recyclables, or dirty diapers, but there is just so much more that, again I think I can do. What's the rule about having a garbage compost in a common area of a condo building? (ooh I can only imagine the nasty-grams I would get from my neighbor)

I guess my point is that if maybe we all work together and do our parts in some way shape or form, that we could possibly cancel out our impact on the environment, and while an hour of dimming our lights is a good idea and a start, just stop and think about exactly what you do each day and the impact it has on the environment.

You've got to be kidding me!?!

It's the second day of spring and I am wearing, a coat, hat, boots, and as of 20 minutes ago, gloves. Why you ask am I wearing such apparel? Because it is snowing, yes Snowing! But this is what has me specifically bothered this afternoon.

Loving realpolitik husband bought me a pair of fingerless gloves from Banana Republic for Christmas. I have a tendency not to wear gloves in the winter because I am always too warm with them on, or I am never able to handle things very well when I do have gloves on. So fingerless gloves are the best thing for me, they keep my hands protected from the elements while also allowing me the flexibility to handle groceries, keys, etc without any problem. I have worn said gloves since Christmas, not everyday, but the majority of the days for the past three months, until 20 minutes ago. To much to my chagrin, my gloves have started to disintegrate. (See Exhibit A)

I've been asking myself all morning, what is worse, having my beloved Banana Republic gloves be unusable, or the fact that it is March and I am still wearing gloves!!!!

Should I stay or should I go?

I spend a lot of time in my car, either driving back and forth from a grandmother's house who has been more than accommodating and willing to watch realpolitik baby for a day or two, or just with basic errands. Since I purchased my car almost 18 months ago, I have logged a lot of miles as well as hours listening to one of my new vices, satellite radio.

When I am not listening to the pop, rock, or all Micheal Jackson all the time stations, I listen to NPR. It wasn't until recently that I have logged more NPR listening hours than before. Some of it is because I no longer have the time to read the paper (excluding Sunday's crossword puzzle), and also because I am looking to get "the rest of the story" which either I cannot find or don't have the time to seek out. That being said, I have found myself in a new dilemma. What to do when you've made it to your destination, but the interesting story you are listening to has yet to end; do you stay in the car, or do you just turn the car off and go about your day?

Any suggestions?

The long of the short lists

I got a call from a friend of mine this afternoon and wanted to have a conversation about possible VP's. I was flattered someone thought of calling me and asking me for an opinion on what each ticket will look like, but then also horrified that I didn't have a more thoughtful answer of the possibilities. I am going to blame John McCain's Jedi mind tricks, which insured me that these are not the VP candidates I am looking for.

So while I am still in a bit of a VP daze at the moment, I decided to do some research and see what others have to say. I haven't heard or read anything yet that I totally agree with or believe that they have found the holy grail of vice presidential candidates; but here are some interesting thoughts:

Will Durst's suggestions are well thought out, especially his idea of countering the minority card, by listing several Republican party minority candidates. Personally, I wouldn't list George Clooney as "taking the woman thing out of play" maybe the hunk thing out of play- which wouldn't hurt McCain's chances.

On a more serious note, from a cohort blogher, this list is a little more concise and thoughtful. I like the safe bet of the young Republican governor from the Midwest, Tim Pawlenty. This would be the safe candidate that really wouldn't add too much drama for the Republicans, they have enough of that right now with Spitzer.

Lastly, a news article out of Reuters, focuses on McCain's age and like the above blog does pick some of the young Repub governors as possible running mates. Again, very thought provoking and does give some background on who is in and who is "ouft".

After reviewing these list and pontificating, Here is what I think. Taking into consideration this could all change dependent on what happens with the Dems in terms of Florida and Michigan and who the final nominee will be. But using today's knowledge, without looking into my crystal ball, here is my very short list.

1. Florida Gov. Charlie Crist. A young Republican Governor that will do a very good job bringing out the vote in Florida, which may become a huge battleground state again. If the Democrats totally piss off the Democratic and Independent voters in that state, it will be an easier victory for the Republicans in Florida, since a lot of them probably won't show up in the general election. People are sick of election drama in Florida.

2. MN Gov. Tim Pawlenty. Like Governor Crist, with a lot to offer McCain in terms of delivering an important state to the red category.

3. Kay Bailey Hutchison: She has a reputation for not being particularly conservative on life and immigration issues, but she is more accomplished than Hillary (if she is the nominee) and could help McCain reach out to the women's vote.

The dark horse? Joe Lieberman. You can't have a discussion about VP's without adding Joe to the list. His age is bothersome, and while McCain is having problems winning many conservatives over, this wouldn't be a wise choice. But if you are looking for experience, and someone who would do a good job of wiping away any sort of Democratic momentum, Joe is the guy.

So there you go. To my friend and her aunt who called this morning to discuss, I am sorry for my delay in my response, I hope this helps. To those of you out there, who are wondering about my pontificating and if possibly I've drank the red Kool-Aid, there is nothing to worry about. When one of realpolitik baby's first 25 words is "O-bama" I don't think there is much to worry about. Not to mention, I would much rather think about the strategy Democrats can use against the Republican ticket, than listen to any more discussion about the Florida and Michigan primaries.

My mom is better than your mom

Another reason why I try to keep specifics about baby out of this blog...... I still have hang ups about my playground taunts.

15 Minutes

Being a SAHM I've come to realize that unless there is a plan of some sort for the day, it can go by very s-l-o-w-l-y.

That is why on those days where there isn't anything to look forward to, like a trip to the grocery store (sad isn't it), playgroups, classes, etc, my day usually breaks down into 15 to 30 minute increments. This is because there is the planning process of "15 minutes before baby needs to eat, nap or sleep" and then an implementation process of "OK, 30 minutes for baby to eat, play, or read". It's not that I have baby on such a regimented schedule that I only give baby 15-30 minutes for a particular activity, but rather that is usually as long as baby's attention span.

To tell you the truth, this is helpful, very helpful. While I am sure many out there might think that my OCD has kicked into high gear, you try not having a plan with a 21 month old who is constantly wanting to play with the snow shovel in the house, if you don't keep hims busy. Then tack on a few days of baby being sick and not being able to leave the house. THEN, there is a whole new level of time management!

A Democratic Shell Game

All the news stations are a buzz with Hillary's newest comments about possibly having Obama as her running mate. Ahhhh, the "dream" ticket. Or is it?


No one has said this, but is there anyone out there who sees this as a ploy to get those who might be on the fence but are leaning towards Obama, to switch their vote to Hillary? If people believe that all Obama needs is just a little more experience,then being the VP would the the best opportunity to do so.. You know, experience in answering that controversial 3am phone call. Again, I think another ploy to win some votes that may change the delegate count, but yet in the end get that "dream" ticket. As a friend of mine said to me this morning, empty promises.

Allergy Rant

Realpolitik baby has an egg allergy. I know I am not the only mother dealing with allergies, and I knock on wood that it isn't anything worse like gluten or anything like that, but please allow me a few moments to vent about the difficulties of an egg allergy. Specifically breakfast.

Realpolitik husband and I enjoy breakfast and on occasion enjoy going to a restaurant to partake in breakfast. For the past 22 months, this has included bringing baby with us. So, this is where I being to get frustrated. Here are my top 5 frustrations with food allergies and restaurants.

1. Unless you only want to feed your child french fries, grilled cheese and macaroni and cheese each and every time, there are very little eggless options on the children's menu.

2. Not only do you have to be careful what you choose for your child, but you also need to be conscience of what you order, because 9 times out of 10, your child will want what you are having.

3. Decoding a menu to figure out what ingredients are used usually takes up the first 10 minutes of your dining experience. This usually includes several questions to the server who doesn't have a clue.

4. A simple yogurt, that is all I would like, a simple yogurt. And I don't want to pay more than $4.00 for it!

5. The constant fear that there will be a hint of egg, peanut, etc in something my child has eaten which might entail digging through the diaper bag looking for the benadryl, or better yet a mad rush out of the restaurant leaving a table full of food untouched to insure child lives through an allergy attack without whipping out the EpiPen.

Going out to eat is supposed to an enjoyable experience, while I don't begrudge my child, or my husband and I for our genes that may have contributed to the allergy, I wouldn't say going to eat is as relaxing as it was or should be.