snow

Posted on February 24, 2012 by

So, yes, finally Mother Nature has decided it’s time. It is, after all, February – usually the longest month of the year for all its cold and snow and darkness. If the media hype is true we finally get a good old-fashioned snowstorm. So far, it’s not looking all that promising, but we’ll see how the day pans out.

I get a kick out of checking the new airport AWOS for real-time weather conditions (yeah, cheap thrills), so right now, looks like we’ve got light snow, 8 knot wind out of 040, 32 degrees, ceiling at 600 feet. Check out the nifty runway pic and stats yourself at anyawos.com/kd95 for weather conditions updated every minute.

I will make the drive in, doesn‘t look all that bad anyway. Besides, there are people I have to hug today. Some of them I know better than others. Some of them I don’t actually know their name. Still, each one is important to me because they are part of the synergy of my work. What I spent my days doing for the last several years in some way has depended on them. Our lives are connected by these threads of work. Whatever it is they do matters to what I do, matters to me. Each one matters to me.

And I am grateful for them. Each person is unique and brings a unique contribution. Like Sharon, who so amazingly writes me the most awesome notes, and even better, always, always smiles. I am grateful for Janet, solid as a rock, unruffled, patient, blow your mind professional. I am grateful for Jeannie, creative, whimsical, talented. I am grateful for Jess, working the controls behind the curtain at Oz for way too many hours each week, shepherding, inspiring, wise beyond her years.

People like Donna, Mary, Gina, Michelle, Stacey, Jessica (both of them), Karla – big, caring souls with talent and devotion to boot, I am so grateful they are part of the wheels turning in my life somehow. No I can’t remember everyone’s names, nor do I even know them all, but each one I am grateful for.

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meap, meap

Posted on February 22, 2012 by

Lost in the shuffle as Lapeer Community Schools attempts to face up to its overabundance of facilities and funding challenges, have been the recently released fall 2011 MEAP (Michigan Educational Assessment Program) scores, grades 3 through 9.

Here are the Lapeer Community Schools percentages of students tested who met or exceeded proficiency in the subjects. This data does reflect the new cut scores.

Grade 3   Math 30       Reading 68.9
Grade 4   Math 32.8    Reading 68       Writing 50.6
Grade 5   Math 37.1    Reading 77.4     Science 11.3
Grade 6   Math 26       Reading 72.3     Social studies 23.7
Grade 7   Math 26.7    Reading 58.3     Writing 48.5
Grade 8   Math 24.1    Reading 61.6     Science 17.2
Grade 9   Social Studies 26.3

Now for a comparison across the various districts in the county and the state, a snapshot at grade 8:

LCS                    Math 24.1     Reading 61.6   Science 17.2
North Branch   Math 11.5     Reading 65.3   Science 16.4
Imlay city         Math 21.7     Reading 56.6   Science 12.7
Dryden              Math 7.3       Reading 56.4   Science 12.3
Chatfield            Math 45.2    Reading 64.5   Science 21.9
Almont               Math 24       Reading 63.6   Science 16.2
Statewide           Math 29.4   Reading 60.5   Science 16.5

Lots more to talk about than facilities. For the detailed data, check out the Department of Education at  michigan,gov.mde, where you can also see the information for each school.

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walk for warmth

Posted on February 21, 2012 by

The 22nd annual Walk for Warmth happens this Saturday. The event is aimed at raising funds to help people keep the heat on in their homes, in the event of a utility emergency.

Every year when Walk for Warmth happens, I am reminded of my friend Carl. He was the person who put a face on this for me. Every winter was a utility emergency. Real people struggle to keep warm through the winter in Lapeer County.

So, if you’re inclined, Walk for Warmth this Saturday – register at 9, walk at 9:30, begins at the Historic Courthouse in downtown Lapeer. You don’t even have to walk, make a pledge with someone who is walking the event. Funds raised stay in the county. For more info or a pledge sheet, call the local Human Development Commission at 810-664-7133.

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not so much

Posted on February 20, 2012 by

Ok, I’ll bite. I noticed that now whenever someone talks about one of the GOP presidential candidates, it’s really just the entertainment factor. There is really no credibility attached to any of the candidates. Often, someone laughs or smirks. And the super-red guys, they just stop talking, it’s just too embarrassing to try to defend.

And this is Republican turf. Or so people think.

The Lapeer County stats from the 2008 presidential election clearly demonstrated that close to half the crowd voted Democratic. Yup, Obama got 47 percent of the vote to McCain’s 50 percent. In other words, 21,457 people walked in and marked the ballot for Obama in Lapeer County, while 22, 831 voted for McCain. That’s no slam dunk on this “Republican” turf.

And this campaign, the party is doing a truly famous job of dissing a good half of the electorate – women. For those who are independents, there is no doubt in my mind that women are lately leaning hard away from the GOP at this point. Yeah, there’s plenty of females that are totally PO’d. I’m guessing there’s plenty of Republican women ready to ditch, too.

Hey, GOP, you earned it. And you apparently don’t know when to back off either.

It’s true that the GOP is far better organized in this county than its competition. It’s also true that the party is absolutely entrenched in local offices. And that’s one reason this looks like a Republican place. They dominate the government scene, and election after election the Democratic party doesn’t offer candidates or put a serious push on for the few its does. And well, to be fair, the money’s all on the other side. Surprise, surprise.

And yes, we have a very vocal, very visible fundamentalist force in the county that expresses itself in the political sphere. Just because they put themselves out there doesn’t at all mean they are representative of the general population. Au contraire, I think people in the county in general are a lot more toned down than that, less hard lined, less judgmental.

Suffice it to say that though the GOP has a firm grip on political offices in this county at the moment, and has for maybe, I don’t know, forever, it doesn’t mean things can’t, won’t ever change. And one sure way of making that happen is by letting your party do an absolutely thorough, put-a-bow-on-it job of ticking off half of your voters. Keep it up, guys, and see where it gets you. Yeah, we’re female, and guess what, we vote.


(And while I’m in this territory, Catholic bishops, you’re on notice as well. Um, about that Catholics Come Home campaign – not so much. At least not with the chicks, I’m guessing.)

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in motion

Posted on February 20, 2012 by

Had an awesome run this morning. Thank you very much to my running friends, Nancy in particular, who coaxed me out of the warm comfort of my home Sunday morning to go running up on the Southern Links Trail.

I’ve been a fan of that trail from the get-go, but I’ll have to admit running it in the middle of winter was all new for me. It was very runnable, too. Although it wasn’t cleared, there were clear portions, and the rest was just crunchy snow. None of us even wore cleats.

Yes, it was cold! But it didn’t take long to warm up, feel good, and bask in the goodness of life under that blue sky and sunshine, surrounded by kindred spirits.

To top it off, after our run we headed into Columbiaville’s Lakeside Grill, which is totally trailside. There we warmed up (well, sort of, because you don’t really warm up in your running clothes post run), with coffee and breakfast. I had the mini omelette which came with hash browns and homemade whole wheat bread – it was a real plateful of food, and a good one at that. Including the coffee, it wasn’t a whole lot more over 5 bucks. Is that crazy good or what?

And now what? Somehow, I have become entangled in next month’s mini indoor triathlon. Well, that’s simply excellent inspiration to get my running back in gear – I confess I had slacked off the last month or so. And it’s not winning or losing, it’s the running, the swimming, the cycling that matters.

It’s just being in motion – that’s the thing. Being in motion.

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exploring other options

Posted on February 17, 2012 by

Couldn’t help but be amused when I read that Colorado’s Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson is billing Mitt Romney $25,000 for campaign security, after the fact. It stemmed from a single campaign event at which no less than 60 Sheriff’s personnel were required. Apparently Romney’s campaign has not received any such bills from other local security forces.

Not exactly the same thing, but I couldn’t help but think of the ongoing dust-up over police protection at the Eastern Michigan Fair, with Imlay City officials itching to bill for services at the annual event. At the outset, they actually sought to retroactively bill, despite the fact there was no contract to that effect.

The fair board, cognizant of what the fair means to the city, made an offer in the matter, but some city officials would rather quibble over the amount. The fair board left the city’s counter-offer on the table. So there sits the commission, and looking rather silly at that, while the fair board explores their options.

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Freedom for whom?

Posted on February 16, 2012 by

I see that House Rep. Kevin Daley was among the sponsors of House Resolution 185, and voted for it. It passed 67-39 yesterday.

HR 185 is a resolution “to memorialize Congress to enact the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act 2011 and to urge the President of the United States to reverse the Department of Health and Human Services resolution that violates religious liberties and forces almost every private health plan in the country to include coverage for services that are contrary to the religious beliefs and practice of certain faiths.”

While we have actual pressing issues in our state, I am troubled that Rep. Daley and other members of the state legislature spent time on this disingenuous matter and cast yea votes on the resolution. The Respect for Rights of Conscience Act would allow insurers and employers to deny their employees health benefits and services required by federal law based on their personal moral or religious objections.

This tripe is not about religious freedoms.

This is about restricting access to health care. This is about preventing individuals from making their own health care decisions about their own bodies. No employer should stand between any woman or any man making their own health care decisions, and according to their own moral and religious beliefs. The religious and moral beliefs of an employer should not trump an individual’s beliefs. This is about equal access to health care.

The state House GOP support for this resolution also underscores a pro-business-at-all-costs perspective, seeking to give corporations the power to deny health care to their employees.

This is just not that difficult to get your head around. If, for example, the employer asserts a religious belief that does not support medical intervention, this legislation would allow the employer to deny health care to employees. See how not okay that is?

It is my impression that Rep. Daley is a reasonable and thoughtful guy, so giving him the benefit of the doubt on this, I would suggest that this is yet another example of rushing legislation through in a burst of party enthusiasm without enough scrutiny or feedback from constituents.  ;)

It is my guess that there’s plenty of female constituents who have a grasp of the implications of this resolution’s intent and object to it. In fact, Representative Issa’s almost entirely male panel convened to discuss the administration’s ruling on contraception, a women’s health issue, was an absolute disgrace, but sadly made it absolutely clear what the ultimate agenda is. If anyone was still wondering.

Yes, Rep. Daley, I am disappointed.

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