Fish for Friday

Based on the coverage of the "sequester," I no longer see any reason for the existence of the "real" news media. For the longest time many print and electronic media—like all those extra phone books—have existed only to sell ads, rather than provide a service, and now that seems the fate of "legitimate" media as well.

The sequestration cuts that began on March 1st were a part of a deal that Congress and President Obama negotiated in the summer of 2011 during the debt ceiling crisis.
    Sequestration will hurt our clients at the Alameda County Community Food Bank and their ability to take care of themselves and their families, which means more people will have to rely on the Food Bank to make ends meet. Here are only a few examples of what the cuts will look like in California:

• 100,300 Californian infants, children and pregnant women will lose their WIC coupons used to buy healthy food to nourish their bodies. Nationwide, 600,000 children and pregnant mothers will lose their WIC coupons. California will bear one-sixth of the total cuts to the WIC program.
• 15,907 Californian low-income families who currently receive housing assistance will lose their rental housing vouchers (Section 8). Nationwide, 125,000 families will lose their housing vouchers. California will bear one-eighth of the cuts to our housing voucher program.
• 8,200 Californian children will not be able to participate in Head Start this year. Nationwide, 70,000 children will not get to start their early education. California will bear one-ninth of the cuts to early childhood education.
• 2,000 California children will lose access to childcare. This is on top of the thousands of kids cut from childcare due to recent state budget cuts. Working parents may lose the jobs that support their families because they will no longer be able to afford childcare.

It doesn't take much math to realize that these cuts will hurt thousands of real families. These cuts and many more will hurt the most vulnerable people in our community—children, seniors, and people with disabilities. You can read about the other cuts and their impact on California from the Coalition on Human Needs' analysis or from the White House.

Wasn't I absent-minded last night! As I was carrying a capsule of Phydeaux's antihistamine to where he was still sacked out on the sofa in front of the TV, I completely forgot what I was going in there for. When I reached the kitchen, I poured some water and took the capsule myself! I was so groggy this morning I could barely get out of bed.

My son, who lives in Fremont, California, says he knows California couples who have gotten tax-divorces (nothing changes except they are no longer “legally” married) to avoid the income tax marriage penalty—it is now huge if both spouses are making decent money.
    And I know two couples here in Portland [Oregon] who are “married,” just not legally. One couple's reason is that their huge school-teacher pensions would be reduced if they were to marry.

This is the song I sang to Cliff today (two days before I will turn 70): "Enjoy yourself, it's later than you think, enjoy yourself while you're still in the pink. The years go by much faster than you think! Enjoy yourself, enjoy yourself, it's later than you think."

I believe my kinship to science fiction stems from an abusive childhood. I could mentally escape into worlds far away from the abuse. It was not enough to read other fiction or historical books, as in my child's mind I was still on the earth where the abusers lived. But in space, on other worlds, I was free.
    I dreamed of flying, exploring—basically getting away. I am a dreamer, a person who believes everyone is good, honest, forthright. In reality, I know this is not true, but I will always give people the chance to be honest and open. Yes, I have been hurt, and disappointed, but I have also been delighted, and happy. I have to believe in human kindnesses, a loving heart, or there is no reason to continue to occupy space on this planet.

I jammed my big toe badly, so the joints are bruised and the foot muscles spasm at night. This keeps me awake, especially when I'm lying down. So then I sit up and read, sometimes until 5 a.m., then I get 4-5 hours of restless sleep. My mind is barely functioning at all. I have an appointment with my podiatrist on Wednesday, when I will ask for something more effective than Vicodin.

I spent Friday night in the ER. My new pulmonary doctor happened to be on call, so I stayed in the hospital for observation. He ordered breathing treatments, antibiotics, etc. My coughing and cold finally effected my OPD [obstructive pulmonary disease] and I was getting short of oxygen; they never put me on oxygen, though.
    I slept very, very little the first night, but had brought a good book so enjoyed it. The doctor didn't come back to see me till 11 Saturday night, so I didn't get to go home that day. He said I was looking good, but just walking to the bathroom and back took my breath away for a few minutes.
    The nurses were all nice and friendly and mostly attentive, but one was very hard to get a hold of.

I should be able to finish the project, assuming I can get over being depressed and get back up to speed. Being as objective as I can, the weather has really sucked lately. At least it was all the way up to 38 yesterday, even if it was still raining. And it has only rained every other day. As for those who say that their weather inside isn't much affected by the weather outside, all is foggy for me lately, both outside and in.

I had back surgery in '83 & '86. I have been going to the VA [Veterans Administration] for healthcare for more than a year. I've had pain shots in the lower back twice now and had hoped for better results. They spoke of a deeper shot that I'll likely get next time. I'm not in pain most of the time. My hips hurt to walk very far, and bending and stooping, ouch! Just gliding through life.

Do you have any idea what's in milk? According to the article "Artificial Sweeteners in Milk?," by Lisa Collier Cool, on Yahoo on Feb. 28:

In a highly controversial move, the dairy industry wants to market artificially sweetened milk—without any special label to alert consumers.
    In a petition filed with the FDA, the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) seek to change the definition of “milk” so that chemical sweeteners like aspartame and sucralose can be used as optional ingredients not listed on the product label.
    The FDA is seeking public comments on the petition. Click here to let the FDA—and dairy industry—know what you think.
    If the petition—originally filed in 2009 and now under consideration by the FDA—is successful, these hidden additives could also be included in 17 other dairy products—including whipping cream, low-fat and non-fat yogurt, eggnog, sweetened condensed milk, sour cream, and half-and-half—without requiring any special labeling.

Limerick of the Week:

The horse meat scandal's now all but chronic:
When donkey meat showed up in Housatonic,
    People weren't sure what to think,
    They thought there was a link,
But nobody could pin a tail on it.

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Copyright © 2013 by Morris Dean

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