Thoughts on Life, Love and Loss

February 22, 2009

The Wiccan Rede and The Rule Of Three

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 7:31 pm

“The Rule of Three (also threefold law or law of return) is a common tenet in Wicca. It states that both the good and the evil that one creates in the world will be returned threefold (in joy or suffering). John J. Coughlin states that, “there is a literal reward or punishment tied to one’s actions, particularly when it comes to working magic,” and that “there are many Wiccans, experienced and new alike, who view the Law of Return as an over-elaboration on the Wiccan Rede”. The Rule of Three has been compared by Karl Lembke to other ethics of reciprocity, such as the concept of karma in Dharmic religions and the Christian edict, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Matthew 7:12), also called the Golden Rule” (taken from an article in Wikipedia)

Now, having said all this, and understanding The Rule of Three, it’s sometimes difficult on a personal level to live by this rule; particularly when it comes to magic. How satisfying it would be to put just a tiny evil spell on a cheating husband, the slut sleeping with the husband or an abusive boss. Nothing major. Maybe just a little erectile disfunction, early male pattern baldness, severe flatulence experienced only during sex. But, alas (or perhaps fortunately), we have to heed Rule of Three.

So how about it? Conjured any spells to get even? Even did a little wish magic to make someone pay? How about a small love spell…since that’s manipulation of sorts? If so, did it come back on you? I’d love to know your thoughts and experiences.

January 28, 2009

Riding The Crazy Train At Wal-Mart

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: , , , , , — admin @ 2:23 am

Just in case the one or two people who read my blog have been yearning for yet another post centered on the adventures of working at Wal-Mart I’m writing about some recent developments. Since changing shifts (going from 1st shift to 3rd shift) I have been nothing short of amazed at the behavior exhibited by these oddballs.

I’m just going to admit this here. Yes, I am a stocker. I never thought I’d be reduced to stocking shelves at Wal-Mart, but this is what I now do to earn a paycheck. In fact, when I was born, I’m pretty sure my parents looked down on my little angelic face and prayed that one day I’d grow up to stock tampons on the shelves of Wal-Mart. Mom, I did it! Aren’t you proud?

Anyway, working overnights exposes me to individuals of, shall we say, unusual personalities. Let’s face it. Working 3rd shift isn’t for everyone. I kind of get the feeling that when most of these people were interviewed management recognized that they had a heartbeat and a pulse rate, but not much else so they said “stick ‘em overnight where they don’t have to deal with the public”. Basically, most, not all, of these people have no social skills and don’t know how to interact in social situations.

Having said all this, I’ve had the misfortune to come across several people who, not only don’t have social skills, but are just downright miserable, nasty individuals. Their limited vocabulary is peppered with vulgar swear words that have absolutely no place at in any work environment. But since it’s 3rd shift, and, although we are a 24 hour supercenter, it’s tolerated by management. One woman, in particular, has become a permanent thorn in my side. She’s made it her life’s work to make my tampon-stocking nights hell.
This woman, who I shall call Hag (she looks like an old hag) has taken to telling me to pull freight out onto the floor. As I said before, I am a STOCKER. I am not an UNLOADER. Unless management tells me they are short on unloaders and they need ME to pull freight I will go to my department and stock my freight. I do not take orders from anyone other than management. Apparently this annoys Hag to no end. After speaking to management, Hag was told it wasn’t her place to tell me what to do and to cease and desist her order barking (woof-woof says Hag). Well being the lunatic that she is, Hag couldn’t control herself and once again barked at me to pull freight. I, being a normal human being, went looking for my night manager to inform him of Hag’s harassment of me, but to no avail. Mr. Night Manager was nowhere to be found.

However, during my search, I came upon Hag carrying on to other associates that it “must be nice to walk the floor and not work”. Ok, so I admit it. I’d had enough and raised my voice, telling her it wasn’t her business what I did and that I take direction from management and not her. At no time did I swear at her. Hag was infuriated! She screamed that it was time I started pulling my own “fucking weight around here” and instructed me to “kiss her ass”. Ewww…Hag wanted me to kiss her hairy ass??? Rather than lower myself to her level I returned to my search of my missing manager.

After finally locating my manager and informing him of Hag’s antics he assured me he’d speak with her. Later he called me into his office and, in the presence of a customer service manager, told me he’d spoken with Hag and told her her behavior was unacceptable. He added that Hag had “apologized for her language”. Hmmm, yep, okay, so she apologized to the manager for swearing at me. Makes sense. Where was my apology? Then he went on to say that I was wrong to have raised my voice at Hag. To which I replied that I was searching for HIM when Hag approached me and I merely responded to her tirade. “Well”, he said, “You should have politely said, ‘excuse me, I’m looking for my manager’ and walked away”. So, somehow this altercation had become my fault as well.

First, simply and in no uncertain terms, what Hag has been doing to me is harassment. As another associate and not a member of management, Hag has absolutely no right to tell me what to do, yell at me AND certainly not swear at me. So, why is this behavior being tolerated? Even after this particular occurrence Hag still continues to make faces at me when she passes me (yes, a grown woman “making faces” - pretty bizarre huh?), make snide comments in the break room about being “turned in for harassment” and mumble remarks under her breath when we pass each other over the course of the work night. Clearly this woman isn’t right in the head. Clearly this woman has purchased a non-stop ticket on the crazy train. Try as I may to ignore Hag, she continues her behavior. So, what are my choices? Go to management again? I already know how that’ll go. File a complaint with the district office? File a complaint with the EEOC? Beat the shit out of Hag? I’m not sure what the answer is. But I do know that my workplace has become a hostile environment.

January 12, 2009

My $178.00 Tampon

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: , , , , , — admin @ 4:57 am

So, we were officially living like dirtbags around the Christmas holidays. Instead of chestnuts roasting on an open fire, our chestnuts were carefully perched over an unflushable toilet. Why, you might ask? Well, due to some online searching and a hasty education in plumbing 101 I deduced that we had somehow succeeded in clogging our sewer drain line. At first I’d hoped that it was somewhere in the line beyond my property (which would make it the city’s responsibility to repair), but, after the city came and installed a clean-out drain pipe, I was informed the problem was somewhere on my property. Several phone calls and advice from amateur plumbers pointed to a few possibilities. The most scary being a broken pipe somewhere under the ground or perhaps a tree root making its way into a joint between two fittings. Gasp! Sounded incredibly expensive. And on my Wal-Mart salary there was no way I’d be able to afford the thousands of dollars to dig up and replace my drain line. Living at the local shelter for Christmas was not something I wanted to do. So, at the suggestion of a relative, I called Roto Rooter.

First off, I should explain that I live in a little “city” with little people with little, closed minds. The licensing for plumbers and electricians is such that it makes it difficult for anyone other than the handful of established “professionals” to perform these services legally. So, I was forced to turn to one of these companies and chose Roto Rooter first. According to my relative, for a mere $100, they’d come out, use their special drain cleaning equipment and we’d be pooping in the pooper in no time. Ha! They sent someone out on Christmas Eve alright, but he informed me that the fee was an automatic $375 to clean the line. If he couldn’t get to the clean out line with his machinery (which of course he decided immediately he couldn’t - no surprise there) it would be an additional $150 to remove the toilet and go through there. $150 to remove two bolts and the toilet??? He handed me a paper to sign stating that I agreed that he do the work to the tune of $515. And this being with no guarantee that it was indeed a clogged sewer that was even the problem. I told him I didn’t have that kind of money and he told me I’d have to pay the “service call fee”. He then informed me the fee for that was a whopping $175! And at that point he had done absolutely nothing. I called the Roto Rooter office, spoke to a cranky woman who, after I told her what I thought about their “service fee”, indignantly told me to “just tell the worker to go!”. So, I didn’t pay the fee, but I still had a disgusting mess of a bathroom on my hands for Christmas.

After a few more phone calls, promises of call-backs and “I’ll-stop-by’s” I finally stumbled upon a wonderful man who showed up on a Sunday with his magical drain cleaning machinery. In less than an hour he had drained the disgusting toilet of its putrid contents with his nifty Shop Vac, removed the toilet, inserted his machinery and discovered the culprit that caused us so much distress at the holidays. He called me into the bathroom and dangled a dead-mouse-looking-thing at the end of his machine thingy. I hadn’t a clue what it was, but he informed me it was a tampon. What? I thought you could throw those things down the toilet as long as you didn’t toss the applicator along with it. Nah, he said, that’s what most people think. He charged me a total of $178 and didn’t even add any extra fee because it was a Sunday. I wanted to hug him. So, thank you Mr. Drain Sewer Cleaner!!!  You saved us from moving into the Super 8 for the New Year!

October 27, 2008

“I Thought This Was America, People?!” by Brian Prosser

Filed under: Uncategorized, abortion, gay marriage, government, politics, religion — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 1:28 pm

 

 

***This post was reprinted with permission from Cause Without A Rebel’s Blog

I had a teacher in high school that said he could never be president; he’d have to be king. Sometimes I feel like that’s what some politicians are trying to become.

With all of the focus on the economy, there’s been little to no focus on the issues of abortion and gay marriage.  These used to be such important issues, because we can’t allow them, the Bible says no to do so.

Ahh, the sweet smell of theocracy. (Some of which we are fighting in the Middle East…but that’s a different story). Recently, people with whom I have talked told me that gay marriage and abortion should not be allowed because they are “matters of faith.”

The problem with that is, not everyone goes by the same faith, if they have one at all. Everyone one agrees that murder is wrong. It’s basically an unwritten law at this point. Unwritten laws are based what is agreed upon by a culture. Our culture cannot agree on what side of the fence to be on for gay marriage and abortion. (Not to mention that if we believe that a baby is alive with conception, we will have to rethink the whole birthday thing).

Look at it this way, when a jury cannot agree on something, the decision is then to acquit the accused. If we cannot come to a consensus, just allow it. Gays are not recruiting you to join and force you to gay marry. If you don’t believe in abortion, then don’t get one, but don’t stop other people from doing so.

You may think I’m just another loud-mouthed liberal, trying to promote anarchy, or whatever you think liberals do, but I’m really not. Personally, I don’t exactly understand homosexuality, or see the need in killing a fetus in most cases, but it is not my place to stop someone from doing so.

It’s not yours either.

So, if you’re trying to be king (or queen) go find a monarchy and run your theocracy. In America we (are supposed to) have separation of church and state.


October 26, 2008

“Unrequited Love”…a poem

Filed under: poetry — Tags: , , , , , , — admin @ 3:04 pm

“Unrequited Love”

 

That’s it! We’re through!

You’ve let me down for the last time!

You promised so much, but delivered so little.

I poured my heart out to you.

I trusted you to cherish my words and keep them safe.

But you tossed them out as though they never existed.

Over and over again I gave you another chance.

Time and again, I was willing to start over.

You taunted and teased me. You led me to believe you’d stay.

Those with an opinion said, “Give it a chance, it’ll work out”

But some said, “Forget it, go back to what’s familiar and comfortable”

I took a chance on you and you failed me.

But this time I saw it coming.

I noticed the same telltale signs. The erratic behavior.

The slow responses to my requests. So I readied myself for the crash.

This time I outsmarted you. I was prepared.

I stole everything and hid it where you’d never find it.

So where am I now?

Shall I go back to the old, familiar and reliable?

It’s true my choices are few and limited.

I thought I once loved you Vista, but you’ve forced me to go back to XP.

 

~Eliza Valenzuela-Carr    ©2008

October 13, 2008

Life Is What You Make It?

Filed under: Uncategorized, poverty, working mothers — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 6:47 pm

Whoever said, “Life is what you make it”, obviously wasn’t a single, working mother. It’s hard to “make” anything other than hamburger helper and spam with the little money you have. Over one-third (36.5%) of single-mother families are poor. And if we’re talking about African-American and Hispanic single-mother families the percentage is even higher (43.6% and 42.5%, respectively).

When it comes to daycare, single moms get hit hard. Forty percent of poor, single, working mothers who pay for child care pay at least half of their income for it. Add the cost of housing and there’s very little, if anything, left. Kind of difficult not to justify turning to welfare isn’t it? When they filed their tax returns this year, almost a quarter of single-mother families got nothing at all from the tax cuts passed since 2001. The tax cuts enacted in recent years will give millionaires an average tax cut of $130,000 this year. That’s almost five times the family income of the typical single mom.

Dead beat dads are to blame as well. With some added help from Uncle Sam that is. In the last year, cuts to child support enforcement have amounted to 17% of funding. Restoring this funding would avert a loss of about $1 billion a year in owed child support, most of which is owed to single mothers.

One might think that a raise in pay would be the answer to a single mom’s prayers? Not true, since even a small jump in pay can often make a single-mother family suddenly ineligible for Medicaid or other low-cost insurance, leaving them without health coverage. Then the prayers are saved for fighting off illness and accidents.

So, “Life is what you make it?” It’s difficult to subscribe to this line of thinking when every time you try to lift yourself (and your family) up the system knocks you back down.

Pack Mentality At Work

Filed under: Uncategorized, pack mentality, relationships, workplace — Tags: , , , — admin @ 9:59 am

I work nights at a major retail company. A series of events has led me to my current position. Suffice it to say that working nights would not have been my first choice of available shifts, but it’s what I’m doing now and I’m okay with that. I consider myself fairly well-educated and socially aware. But, let’s face it, many people who work overnights are often lacking in social skills. After all, if their personalities were better suited to working with the public they’d most likely be working days.

Having made this point and having had the opportunity to work in a customer service related field I can venture to make the distinction between “day people” and “night people”. Hence, the difference between the break room filled with day people and the break room occupied by night workers. The two are worlds apart.

During the day the conversation centers on polite talk of one’s family, friends, sports and the occasional cranky customer. During the night the conversation becomes vulgar, sexually explicit and, at times, down-right hostile. Is one to assume that the lack of proper social skills is the culprit here? Is ignorance an excuse for hostile and vulgar behavior?

Something I’ve noticed, even more than the vulgar conversation, is the way groups are formed and interact within the night crew. There is an ever-present need to gang up on one or two other people. When I first made the switch from days to nights there was one poor woman who had the misfortune to be the break room misfit (how funny this seems, because they all seem like misfits to me). This poor woman couldn’t do anything right. According to her critics she dressed funny, read the bible too much and isolated herself from the group (who could blame her?). Eventually, she moved to days and says she’s much happier now. But for a while she was the brunt of every joke and the focus of just about every conversation.

Then there’s the ring leader. There always seems to be a self-appointed pack leader. He/she invariably turns the conversation around to the poor sap that happens to be on the poopy list on any given week. It’s the leader’s job to keep the controversy alive and festering. It’s my opinion the pack leader is insecure with no self-esteem and is happy to keep the focus on someone other than himself.

I try very hard to stay neutral in this conflict-filled environment. However, I must confess that I have, on occasion, been drawn into the pack. I suppose as long as the workplace continues to bring people of varying ages, educations, socio-economic groups and genders together the pack mentality will survive.


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October 10, 2008

A Political Limerick

Filed under: Sarah Palin, Uncategorized, political candidate, politics — Tags: , , , — admin @ 4:34 pm

There once was a guy named McCain
Who came in from the cold and the rain
He needed a chick
He grabbed one too quick
She’s a kiss and a wink, but no brain

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October 8, 2008

Sarah Palin On The Cover Of Newsweek…by Brian Prosser

Filed under: Newsweek, Republican, Sarah Palin, Uncategorized, politics — Tags: , , , — admin @ 4:49 pm

**This post was reprinted with permission from “Cause Without A Rebel” Blog

I’m not here to argue about facial features. But it seems like everyone else is.

The latest cover of Newsweek Magazine has a close-up of Sarah Palin, the populist messiah, on the cover. I know what you’re thinking; wow liberal Newsweek has PALIN on the cover? Nice sentiment, except they put the picture on the cover without re-touching it.

Heaven forbid that we know what she actually looks like. She may have been a beauty queen at some point, but she’s a “politician” now. Yes, it’s in quotes because I use that term very loosely. She’s in a different realm now. We don’t need to worry about what she looks like. We need to worry about what she thinks…which is what exactly? So far it’s whatever McCain tells her to think. That definitely shows how strong her leadership skills are.

All she’s good for is a wonderful accent as she tries to unite the Joe six-packs and hockey moms of America. As it turns out, not everyone is an alcoholic who likes fighting on skates. But everyone is affected by the economy, focus on that; not her face and the flaws that everyone has. Doesn’t having flaws make her more folksy anyway?

Let’s try focusing on the real issues and stop arguing about facial features. Listen to her words and get disgusted, don’t worry about her face.


October 7, 2008

It’s Just Plain Cold Not To Care…by Brian Prosser

Filed under: Capitalism, Economy, Uncategorized, politics — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 8:45 pm

**This post was reprinted with permission from “Cause Without A Rebel” blog

Capitalism. Does it mean we don’t care about one another? We go around driving on streets, knowing which ones have the people on the side asking for cash at red lights…and avoiding such streets. If we happen to be caught at a red light with such a person, we put up our windows, even in 100 degree heat when you don’t have air conditioning, because why should I care? Because he could have made better choices in his life. Why should I help him? He’s probably just going to spend it on something bad anyway. Comedian Greg Giraldo asks, what is he supposed to save up and by a wall unit?

It’s just plain cold to not care. Shoot, the way the economy is going, that could be you asking for cash on the street corner. That could be you giving up your pride and begging for money to feed you, to feed your kids.

It’s just plain cold not to care.

We must take the same sentiments when thinking about health coverage. Not everyone can afford it. We need to be able to make health coverage available to all who want it, and all who need it. Everyone needs it. All legal citizens should be able to be healthy. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. If you are not healthy, your life may end early. Can you really be happy when you’re unhealthy? So that’s two out of three NATURAL RIGHTS from which you can be deprived. Deprivation? I believe that may take away liberty as well. So…0 for 3. You don’t make millions in sports with that kind of average. You don’t run a country with that kind of average. Barack Obama is correct when he says that health care is a right, because without it, you are unable to ascertain the three natural rights listed in the Declaration of Independence.

What made me even consider writing such a thing down (I thought it was common sense) was when I read that an overweight Mexican man died in his home, begging for someone to help. It’s just plain cold not to care. I know it’s a different country, but the same thing would happen here. With proper health care, this would be avoided.

Health care is a right. And if you disagree with my logic through the Declaration of Independence, just think of what Bush has done with the constitution.
Health care is a right, and it’s just plain cold not to care.

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