Travel Pete's Journal: Basements, Kids & Mental Health

Mom's ill

So I'm going to Phoenix. Might be gone for a few.

Cheers,

BilFish

Look.

Who's coming to town?

The newest in weight-loss programs.

Volunteer for Freedom

I've been surprised by the sudden wide support for Kerry.

Whether it be yard signs, bumper stickers or people willing to say they are actually voting for Kerry (vs. simply against Bush)... things are looking up.

But first, a little Halloween humor for ya...

Hopefully Bush is a turkey.

My biggest issue regards the lack of civility and the divisive nature of Bush's politics. This man has single-handedly turned neighbors against each other throughout AmeriKa, and I really can't stand it. I think people in America want to get along, but Bush is framing the debate and discourse as "all or nothing."

We're at war, he says, you are for us or for the terrorists. You are for my drug policy or the terrorists win. You are for my energy policy or the terrorists have already won. You are... getting the idea.

So, I spent a sunny Saturday out volunteering to get rid of Bush and install someone in the White House who generally has the same views I do on most issues: John Kerry. From strengthening how we take care of people here at home to our relationship with countries around the world, Kerry's got the right ideas.

And it was a great way to spend 4 hours! If you'd like to try it, I strongly encourage you to do so. It's fun, non-confrontational (no shouting matches with Bush acolytes) and easy to do.

JohnKerry.com - and if you don't have the time or gumption, give generously of the wallet.

I gave up a whopping 4 hours of my Saturday, which will feel good whether the cancer of Bush stays in office or not. Several people even invited me in for a cold glass of what I like to call "thanks to environmentalists, it's clean" water. Bush, of course, has lowered standards HE campaigned on for arsenic in water as well as various air pollutants. Nice. Talk about flip-flop.

So, maybe I didn't save the world, but I got some literature out and it was absolutely fantastic to see how many people are shocked by the divisiveness happening in our country. Makes me feel like there's people out there who can't stand all this... Maybe I'm not that out of touch with America after all. Maybe Bush is out of touch. Yeah, actually, that's it. And I'm not going to let him ruin my country.

One thing I heard over and over again: the "all or nothing" and "0% tolerance" policies of the Bush administrations force everybody with a difference of opinion to become enemies. 0% tolerance means you can't disagree and still be friends... it's a weird all-or-nothing world coming our way if we don't change this mantra. Your neighbor disagrees? He must be wrong (and evil). What's with that? Sounds like the Middle East.

So, volunteer, and give 4 hours for a more friendly winter!
JohnKerry.com

It's so easy it's embarrassing. And you'll enjoy it. Don't worry, it's not confrontational, you are not arguing with a bunch of Republican supporters. It ain't like that. It's friendly. I politician promise you ;-).

Even if you can't volunteer, remember a few words to spread:

1. Vote. Really, there's so many people who don't, it's surprising. But this election matters, it's not just two talking heads this time. Lots of what we were doing when I volunteered was NOT trying to change Bush supporters' minds, but getting Democrats and Undecided people to think about voting if they haven't done so recently.

2. Vote early. Avoid the November 2nd rush, avoid any weather problems. You can often vote at county offices and what not. In Colorado, early voting starts October 18th, for example.

3. Vote often. Okay, just kidding on this one :-))

4. Vote by mail... in areas where you have electronic balloting but no paper trail!!! I think you'd like to have a record of your vote, no? Vote by mail or vote at Early balloting locations, usually which offer paper-based votes.

5. This is my personal contribution: Ask someone voting Libertarian or Independent to give up the vote for a cause. This is a greater good issue, and while I respect that they can and should vote that way (I voted for Nader in 2000), I'm still going to beg them to vote for Kerry November 2nd.

The other great thing about volunteering... it helps solidify and gel your confidence. For those who have come to have firm convictions on this? Get some balls people. If you believe in something, then it's worth fighting for. That's a reason I've always like the Republican mindset. They are out there fighting. In fact, I think I'm still a true liberal Republican at heart, but my party's been co-opted by some jerk who uses phrases like "compassionate conservatism" to mean "screw you."

Falling for Colorado

It's important for your blog entries to have intriguing titles. Oh, well.

It's definitely Fall in Colorado. 80 degrees and sunny yesterday, 61 today, cooler tomorrow...

If this skeleton and casino sign don't say "Fall & Halloween" together, I sure don't know what does!

We were able to teach Max & Liam about the great Pumpkin Tree where all pumpkins come from...

Fall in Golden, with North Table Mountain peaking through the leaves

Announcing FisherBrothers.info

The world's newest website for the Fisher Kids has arrived!

I'm sure this is probably two weeks premature (much like Liam arrived 2 weeks early), but, well...

Announcing the arrival of the newest website for the Fisher Brothers!

Yeppers. It's true. The kids got their feet inked and printed, got birth certificates, got social security cards.

Q: What else do they need?
A: A website.

Exactamundo!

So check 'em out on the web at Fisherbrothers.info

You can also email them... just type in their first name @ fisherbrothers . info and there you go!

(I didn't actually link their email addresses to reduce spam, so you'll have to figure it out. It's a puzzle, remove the spaces, add the right name.... Whee!)

Liberation Day!

Okay, it's not November 2nd, but still... ;-)

Max is getting ready for his first day back at daycare today, after a 3-week absence where he stayed home with his new little brother Liam. See Fisherbrothers.info for their new website!

Maxwell kicks his Adidas soccer ball while the Colorado Rapids Major League Soccer team trains in the glorious Fall of Colorado.

Having heard the daycare lady would be gone this long, I bemoaned my freedom a bit, but it's turned out to be quite all right, although the first week we clearly struggled a bit to get in the pattern.

Now, I think we've got it down. Max has been to art museum with Mom. He's broadened his historical horizons with Dad at the Denver Nature & Science Museum (x2) and we even got a membership. The best part is that we've hit maybe 20% of the DMNS museum, so there's lots to see! My fave is the Space Colony and Martian lander area, lots of cool hands-on stuff.

Anyway, we haven't been "productive" in the bill-paying, house-cleaning, car-fixing, errands sense, but I definitely think we've accomplished a lot. Max has been kept busy, Mom's caught up on sleep (a bit) with the new baby attached, and Dad's had some fun taking pictures with his early Christmas gift, the new digital camera.

Having said all this, of course, I'm excited for the opportunity now to get a few of those errands done... :-)

Goodbye Farmer's Market... for now

A few pix to share the last Golden Farmer's Market of the year, just a couple days ago. So sad, yet such a sign of the changing seasons! I love the crisp air, warm afternoons and cool nights as the leaves change and Fall is all around.

Coming up is the Pumpkin Patch which leads to gourds a'plenty in the kitchen. Halloween and Thanksgiving can't be far behind!

I love the farmer's market, where I go almost every Saturday morning from May-October (2nd). Fresh breads and breakfast rolls and sweets, pies, and other baked goodies. Organic pears, apples, peaches, canteloupe and strawberries. Fresh off the stalk corn, cauliflower, lettuce, peppers, rhubarb and all the other great veggies. Freezer jams, fresh cut flowers, kettle corn, hot coffee and steaming smothered breakfast burritos... Mmmm.... I'll miss it until next year!

One of the fresh vegetable and fruit vendors.

Mmmm... last time to fire up the grill? Nope, but the last fresh peaches 'n' cream corn to put on it.

Ahh! My weekly source for great artisinal breads (hand-rolled, yeasted, great variety, the whole 9 yards)

Liberals getting busy!

Two calls tonight. First from a volunteer in Massachusetts to roust me out of my chair Saturday morning and get campaigning for Kerry.

Mind you, I used to think of it as "campaigning against Bush" but I've now heard enough to be fully convinced that Kerry's got it right.

Second, from the Center for Biological Diversity. They are an environmental organization I have supported economically and with my time since my days as a student senator of the University of Arizona defending them against the Young Republicans (and I was a registered Repub at the time), 1994-ish. No kidding.

I strongly urge you to give them your time and/or dollars. They do a very lot of good with a very small amount of cash. They are extremely aggressive without being dishonest or illegal.

So, why all the calls and interest and, frankly, desperation lately? Because environmental causes have taken a big hit under Bush and with a poor economy. And because Bush has also laid waste to a number of social and international policies that I thought were generally coming to be set in stone.

Yet, because people are pissin' in their pants, we want someone like Bush who is unclouded about how he goes after bad guys. No "rehabilitation" here, just tough love and executions.

So, yeah, 4 years of Bush should scare the crap out of anyone who cares about:
. Our ability to deal with ever-stronger neighbors such as China.
. Our chance of not pissing off EVERYONE else in the world.
. Our ability to have clean air/water/food/forests for my children.
. Education? hehehe....
. Wanting to deal with a $30 Billion a year drug-war habit. We can't afford it.
. Oil policy? $50/barrel and much of it going to Middle East Princes and terrorists. What a great policy...
. Divisiveness - Bush has torn our country apart farther than anyone in decades.

Two quotes come to mind. The first was from a longtime military advocate (supposedly a shoe-in to support gun-happy Bush) which I published in yesterday's blog.

Second comes from a long-time Republican campaign activist and all-around conservative I was having dinner with a few months ago:

"Shit, if I knew we were going to run $500 Billion deficits with a Republican president and congress... at least if I vote for a Democrat our kids will get an education with all that wasteful spending!"

From Democracy for America's front page a cogent understanding that free-wheeling spending on oil will come back to haunt us:

President Bush needs to understand that America is financing our own attackers by sending money to the Middle East that could be spent in the U.S. on renewable energy. Some of that money ends up in terrorist hands and some ends up financing fundamentalist schools throughout the Islamic world which teach children to hate Americans, Christians, moderate Muslims and Jews. Because we have no renewable energy policy, we are helping to teach the next generation of terrorists and suicide bombers to hate us.

That sucks.

Just a reminder: ya gotta buy more than books and do more than gripe if there's any hope of ditching the Bush habit. 29 days or so left until the election, this is your last chance to give until it hurts!

I've been donating like crazy to everyone I think can win (tight senate races, presidential race) and every group I think that can change minds. Get on the bandwagon or regret the onset of a 4-year hangover!

I used to be "anti-bush" but now after spending some time listening to complete arguments, I'm actually pro-Kerry. I'll be out Saturday morning canvassing for a few extra votes. Hey, if I don't I know I'll be kicking myself come November if things go poorly. Actually, Bush will be kicking me, and all of us, the next 4 years. Hello smog, goodbye sunny skies. Hello drug company profits, goodbye being able to eat and get medicine at the same time... I figure if nothing else the exercise Saturday will give me a head start on staying healthy enough to avoid extra health care I won't be able to afford!

So, where do I give?

John Kerry's Campaign
http://www.johnkerry.com/index.html

Move On - 3rd party organization producing really persuasive, effective, targeted ads
http://www.moveon.org/

Tight, winnable senate races - Like Ken Salazar in Colorado
http://salazarforcolorado.com/

And, aggressive environmental organizations that continue to try and contain the damage being done to our future
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/
and
http://nature.org/

Find $25 or $250 or $2500 and get it rolling for a cause - our future.

Bush's golden parachute

We can all hope this is his swan song.

From Mr. Tom Toles, urban cartoonist.

I normally don't spend a lot of time simply repeating the words of others, but it's a feel good way to get into Monday!

A less feel good way to do it is the quote from a friend of mine who served in the Middle East through this war.

"1,000 Patriotic Americans won't be voting against Bush this November."

Think about that statement from one of our armed service members.

Brightening up a cloudy day

Sometimes you just have to brighten a cloudy day, and nothing says "sunny" like Sunflowers! Just ask Van Gogh!

Yeah, it's a crappy day here in Colorado. 45F this morning, and that'll be the high temp... pissin' down. Well, as much as Colorado weather can piss on you. Luckily, with my sunflowers around I'll make it through to Sunday afternoon, when my soccer game is projected to be played in 73F and sunny weather.