I have to say that I really enjoyed July 4th because I got to do a lot of housework, have an indoor picnic with Phyllis, run to see "Despicable Me 2," and nap. A lot.
I highly recommend "Despicable Me 2!!" I don't care if you, 'don't like animated films.' Go see it anyway. You NEED to.
And last night was two in a row when a group of friends and I went to see "The Heat." This is another must see. Even if you don't like bad language, it's FUNNY. I laughed so hard that tears were rolling down my face. I may have to go back to hear the dialog that I missed while I was screaming in laughter. Of course, it's set in Boston and you should hear Jane Curtain's Boston accent. It's spot on.
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So it's hot again, duh. Bless Miguel! He came after work and dumped out the water from the free standing air conditioners. I had to Google the directions, because apparently the old ones had a tray that you just pull out. These don't have that and Miguel was at first mystified. He said he's going to rig up a hose and a bucket so I can empty it myself. I can't sit on the floor and tip the machine the way he did.
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What's been happening? Well, The Temperature Wars are on at the Library. Yup, some think the air conditioning is too cold (daily readings have been 74 F. on average in that department), and some think it's too hot. (When the cold people upstairs shut down the a.c., my office was over 80 F. and the day that I got in late -- luckily -- it was over 100 F. in my office.) Two of the "cold people" have come to work on 90 F. days and put on bulky sweater coats and (I am not exaggerating) a thick woolen scarf knotted at their neck.
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As you may remember, Chris Demarest is our first Artist in Residence at the Jones Library. He brought in a portfolio yesterday of the messages and drawings that visitors to the Women's Memorial (at the gates of Arlington National Cemetery) had plastered on a wall there. One day, he had given his notebook to a young girl to keep her occupied while Chris talked with her parents. Before he left for the day, he taped up her line drawing on the wall. When he got back, many visitors from all over the world had left their own thank you notes (thank you to the women in military service). He only took a few so that they would be preserved, but it was a very moving experience to see how many people from so many countries had 'left their mark.'
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Union negotiations are going along. There was no meeting last week because both participants from the Town/Management side were on vacation. I sure hope we can wrap this up since our new fiscal year began on July 1 and we hope to get a COLA. The professionals have already received a 2% COLA. And they didn't have to have 6 negotiating meetings.
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Speaking of the Union, I spent the weekend of June 28th at WILD, aka, Women In Leadership Development. It was held at UMass. and there were at least 250 women from all different unions across Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and Vermont. Some women spent over 4 hours in traffic trying to get to Amherst from Boston.
It was pretty exhilarating because after the Leadership course (part 1 last year, part 2 this year), our workshops focused on sexual harassment and bullying in the workplace. We learned what it is, how to deal with it as union stewards, and (hopefully) how to prevent it.
The main theme of the weekend was "justice through diversity." So when we came together as a group, we all had headphones so that the message was heard in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. At one point, I sat alone at a table and was soon surrounded by beautiful women from Brazil who were happily chatting in Portuguese. They were very nice to me (in English, of course).
We saw a TedX video with a man named Vargas who works for The New York magazine and who has "come out" as an illegal alien. As he pointed out, actions are illegal, people are not. Through his talk and ensuing discussion, I learned a lot. I did not know until then that "illegal aliens" have no way to get into the citizenship track because in order to do that. you must 'have papers.' So people who have been contributing to the economy and raising families here for years can never become citizens -- unless we change something. I think we need to do that, and fast.
I heard from a union social worker from Boston who pointed out that these raids and deportations we see (there have been roundups in New Bedford) wreak havoc with families. She said a child will go to school in the morning, come home in the afternoon to find both parents have been deported. The child is thrown into the foster care system (which is abysmal in Massachusetts), and often ends up taking psychotropic drugs for depression and because they are acting out. I'd act out too.
We heard stories of people suffering terrible hardships to get here -- to the promised land -- only to be thrown into jail in Arizona where they put food on a plate and threw it on the floor for the prisoners. They had to drink water that stank because otherwise they would die of thirst.
I heard stories from right here in Massachusetts -- did you know people without papers cannot register a car or get a driver's license?
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I'm happy to report that Yaoyao is back in Hawaii from her deployment in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, on the very beginning of her vacation, she broke her arm! I really believe there is a reason for everything, but I'll be darned if I can figure this one out. Maybe she will devise a new occupational therapy from her own experience and become world renowned!
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I think it may be nap time before lunch today. Ciao!
I like your comment "I'd act out too." More people need to think like this.
ReplyDeleteLove you