Last year I participated in the Riverside Step Out to Fight Diabetes Walk, and I’ve been asked to participate again this year. Kyla, who is Donald’s niece, is the team captain, and basically the person we’re all walking for. Kyla has Type 1 diabetes, which, for those of you who don’t know, is the ugliest of the major types. She has to count her carbs every day, and give herself insulin injections all the time. She’s been doing it all herself since she was diagnosed in 2006. I can’t handle having someone else stick a needle into my arm once a year, but this amazing girl does it multiple times a day. Did I mention she’s only 12?

The Step Out walk will take place October 17, and we’ll be accepting donations until then. I know money is tight for everyone right now.  Trust me, I know. But still, I’m going to donate my money and time, and ask you for donations anyway, because I think this is a great cause. And I couldn’t face Kyla knowing that I didn’t try my very hardest to do whatever I could to make her life better. So I’m asking you to donate to find a cure for diabetes. If you don’t do it for Kyla, do it for your kids, or your friend’s kids, or any adult that you know who has it, had it, or might get it. You could be saving their life, or at the very least, improving the quality of it!

The link for donations is here. A dollar will help, if that’s all you can spare. Every single penny counts. And! As an added bonus, you will receive a personalized thank you card via snail mail (yay!) to show you my appreciation! (Provided of course that I already have your address, or that you send me an e-mail with it. Addresses will only be used by me, and not passed on to Step Out, the American Diabetes Association, or anyone that does not have the name Denora on their birth certificate. I promise.)

Thank you for your thoughts, encouragement, and donations. I appreciate it, as does Kyla and everyone suffering from this disease. Let’s find a cure!

Donald, Kyla & Denora – 2008 Step Out

I won't try to astound you with any profound comments on the inauguration. I don't consider myself educated enough to speak with any authority on pretty much anything related to politics.I'll just say that I was amazed and moved, and hopeful for our country's future. Also, stunned by the size of the bow on Aretha Franklin's hat.

Now I am not now, nor have I ever been a fan of President Bush. I don't respect the man, but I do respect the office. So I was extremely disappointed to hear people in the crowd in DC booing when his face came on their screens. You don't have to like or respect him, but until 12:01pm yesterday, he was still the President of the United States, and the office deserves respect. Can't we be better people than that? Rather than booing, I wish they'd clapped for him, for he will no longer be running our country and that's a clap worthy event, in my opinion.

You know what would be an awesome invention? A nifty little speech recognition program for my car. Because I tell you, some of my best blog worthy material comes to me while I'm sitting in the car going to or from work. And wouldn't it be fabulous if those thoughts actually got typed up and posted here for your viewing pleasure? My readership would go from 7 to like 11! I wouldn't know how to handle all the extra traffic!

Seriously though, I really do come up with great things to talk about while I'm driving. I'm very much considering getting some sort of recording device to document my driving genius, and then I can come home and put down the crazy thoughts that run through my head while left to my own devices. I have a TypePad application on my phone, but since California just outlawed texting while driving (which makes FAR more sense to me than requiring a hands free device to talk on the phone. But I'll cover that in a minute.) I doubt the cop who busts me would see the distinction between texting someone and typing up a blog post while driving.

Sidenote: Anyone from California know if it's also illegal now to use GPS units while driving? Because I know I can drive and text better than 90% of people who try and look for directions while driving.

So, last July California made the switch to hands-free only cell phone usage while driving. And for some unknown reason, I have not written about this in the past, so I'll share my thoughts now.

It's dumb.

Yes, it's important to be safe while driving. Thirty bazillion drivers get into accidents every year, and some of them get hurt or killed, and even worse, some innocent passenger or driver of another vehicle gets hurt or killed due to Driver A's stupidity. However, is the person talking on the phone via headset much safer than the person talking via phone in their hand? My argument is not that cell phone usage doesn't cause accidents. My argument is that STUPID PEOPLE cause accidents, regardless of where the phone is (if it's even involved at all). The woman trying to put on mascara while doing 80 mph down the freeway is far more dangerous, in my opinion, than I am talking on the phone. I am at least looking at the road that I'm driving on, rather than looking into a mirror while shoving a stick into my eye. How about the guy reading the newspaper while he's doing 75 mph? Shouldn't that be illegal?

Before anyone does an archive search and calls me a hypocrite (on this particular issue), I will admit that I have indeed read books on my way home from work. However, I was literally crawling down the freeway at a maximum of 10 mph, and was holding the book on the steering wheel to limit the amount of looking away from the road I'd have to do. Any speeds faster than 10 mph, and my book was closed and on the seat next to me while I drove. Admittedly, it's not safe and if they outlawed it, I'd completely understand. I do not, however, understand the hands free only law.

Proponents of the hands free law say that talking on the phone while driving is a distraction. Ok, let's go with that (however, they don't think that talking to the passengers in your car is also a distraction. Odd, since they're both completely comprised of TALKING TO PEOPLE). Explain to me then how talking on the phone via headset is less distracting than talking on the phone in your hand. Both consist of the aforementioned talking, and one has the added bonus of a hand off the wheel. Ok, so by that logic (or illogic) people should not be allowed to talk to passengers and change the radio station at the same time, as it requires a hand off the wheel. People should not be allowed to eat in their cars while driving as it requires both the mouth moving and the hand off wheel. (Though I do eat while driving, I am not opposed to a law making it illegal. Just because I am capable of doing it without presenting a danger to society does not mean the general population is.) Not texting while driving is a law that makes sense to me. Not holding up a phone while driving does not.

So what is the rule in your state? And do you agree with it?

So, my state is on fire. Again. The closest fire to me is actually in my city, but I'm about 10 miles from the very edge of it (give or take some). The air around me is very smoky and cloudy, and you can see the fires quite well from my area. (My actual apartment is behind a hill, so I can't see. But the view from the hill is amazing.) I'm not in an evacuation area, since the fire seems to be going the other direction, which is nice for me, but horrible for the huge housing community that it's plowing through. They've shut down the 91 freeway which, if you don't know the area, is the only major through way to get from Orange County to Riverside County. So tomorrow, instead of taking a straight 30 mile shot to my parent's to pick up my dad for the hockey game, I have to take a huge out of the way roundabout route that's about 49 miles and takes twice the amount of time, assuming there's no traffic. And, yeah, this is southern California. We have traffic at 2am on Tuesday mornings, let alone midday on Sunday. However, I'd rather have hours and hours of traffic than lose my home, so I shall shut my mouth about it, and start collecting things to donate to the people who have lost everything.

Well. We have a new President Elect. I am thrilled for America, and hope that we can come together and be supportive of him, regardless of how we voted. I am not thrilled, however, with the people in California and Arizona. Proposition 102 in Arizona and Proposition 8 in California were both banning same-sex marriage. Arizona’s law passed, and California’s race is still too close to call (as of this writing) but is leaning toward passing as well. I’m saddened and disgusted at this result. I won’t go into a rant on why, since I’ve basically done that already. My excitement for Obama’s election is largely outweighed by my disappointment in the possibility (at this point) of Proposition 8 passing.

I AM happy, however, that the television commercials will go back to products I don’t use, rather than lies and slander about candidates and issues (including issues I support. I’m not just talking about the other guys). The last few weeks have been awful, in regard to the heavy ads running on every television station. I’ll be happy to get back to mindless but amusing beer and Arby’s commercials. I’m just that classy.

On a final note, as happy as I am that America has elected their first African-American president, I will be so much more pleased when we can just say that we elected an articulate and intelligent person for president. I cannot wait for the day when race doesn’t matter. When gender doesn’t matter. It’s amazing and awesome to me that even a few years ago, the possibility of having an African-American president was outrageous, but here we are 76 days from swearing him into office. Now that we’ve passed this milestone, I hope we can start just referring to him as a man. Intelligence matters. Ethics matter. Personality matters. To me, color shouldn’t matter.

I generally try to stay out of discussions involving politics, because I don't consider myself knowledgeable enough to have a conversation about a specific candidate, measure, or proposition. I know what I am voting for, and why I'm voting for that person or issue, and there's very little that anyone can say that would make me even consider changing my mind. (To be honest, I think that if we could all take an unbiased look at the candidates ideas, statements, and contributions, and stopped paying attention to age and/or race, we'd all be voting for the same guy. I'm just sayin'…)

This particular election there has been one issue that I have been very passionate about, and feel educated enough to speak to other people about. For those of you who don't live in California, you may or may not have heard of Proposition 8. The text reads:

Shall the California Constitution be changed to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry providing that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California?

Currently, same-sex couples are allowed to marry in California. There was a proposition a few years ago that banned same-sex marriage, and it passed. However, it was overturned by the California Supreme Court as being unconstitutional. The current proposition would rewrite the state constitution, and eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry or be recognized if married in other states.

The proposition actually states that it would eliminate the rights of a group of people. I don't understand how any person can vote in favor of it, regardless of their view on same-sex couples. I understand that some people have a religious and moral beliefs that are against same-sex marriage. I have no problem with that. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But not agreeing with someone's lifestyle should not and DOES NOT give anyone the right to deny them rights afforded to all of us in the constitution. What if you replaced "same-sex couples" with "interracial couples"? What's the difference? It's denying someone the right to marry the person they love because you disagree with their choice. It's discriminating against them, because they don't feel the same way you do. How is that acceptable?

I have been dying to get a call from the phone banks urging me to vote yes, simply because I want to know why they feel this way. The one person I knew that was voting yes actually changed her mind when it was pointed out to her that it's the same as telling a black man he can't marry a white woman, or vice versa. I don't know anyone personally that is voting yes on this, so I can't have the conversation I want to have. I want to understand why they think discrimination is ok.

The commercials say that we have to "protect our children" and "restore traditional marriage." Marriage IS taught in schools, yes. So what? Your child will learn that marriage between two people is valid regardless of race, gender, or age. If you disagree with that, you're more than welcome to talk to your child at home, and explain to them that your family does not believe that same-sex marriage is ok. The schools should not be and are not responsible for 100% of a child's worldly education. Lots of atheist or agnostic children say the Pledge of Allegiance every single day, including the words "Under God." Don't you think the parents of those children have to explain that some people believe in a god, and others don't and that it's ok to be different? What makes your belief more important than theirs? Tradition? If we went by traditional standards, all women would be barefoot and pregnant at home, without a job, a vote, or independence of any kind. We'd have no computers, since we'd "traditionally" use paper. We'd be without cars because "traditionally" we rode horses. Tradition changes. Society changes. We progress, move forward, and open our minds to ideas that might be a little different than what we're used to.

If you live in California, please vote No on Prop 8. If you have a similar discriminatory proposition in your state, I urge you to vote against it. Equality means everyone, not everyone you agree with.

Last year I did the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5K walk and raised money for an excellent cause. I had planned on doing it this year as well, but had to change my plans. There are many wonderful causes that I’d love to raise money for, but I just don’t have the time or resources to do them all. That’s why I’ve decided to focus on one or two functions a year to throw my full support behind.

On October 18th, I’ll be walking in the Step Out to Fight Diabetes hosted by the American Diabetes Association. As with breast cancer, diabetes has affected several members of my family and my friends. My aunt, my mom, and several friends have been diagnosed with diabetes over the years. This year, however, I was asked to participate in the walk by Donald’s family, as his niece is living with juvenile diabetes. She was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in March of 2006, and has adjusted well to her daily regimen of closely monitoring her diet, testing her blood sugar frequently and giving herself multiple insulin injections, but I know that there are many days when it is very difficult for her. It’s a big burden for anyone, but especially an 11 year old. Kyla is a great kid, and I want nothing more for her than to find a cure for this disease.

So here’s where I beg for donations. If you can, please donate to our team. Every dollar counts, so anything you can afford would be phenomenal, even if it’s as little as just a dollar. And if you can’t afford to donate at this time, feel free to pass on the link to someone who might be able to. I’ve included my donation page if you’d like to donate under my name, as well as Kyla’s page if you want to donate under hers. The money goes to the same team regardless of which link you click. (Her link includes a picture of her, and you’ll note she’s far cuter than I!)

My donation page:  http://main.diabetes.org/goto/thedenora

Kyla’s donation page: http://main.diabetes.org/goto/KylaClark

Huge thanks to anyone who donates, thinks about donating, or just sends happy thoughts our way. All of us and the millions of other families and friends affected by diabetes would love to see a cure. Let Kyla’s generation be the last generation to suffer the daily struggle of a life with diabetes.

This coming weekend, I’m participating in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, to raise money for breast cancer awareness, treatment and research. Breast cancer has sadly touched many women in my life, including my grandmother, cousin, mother-in-law, and very close friend. Donating to the cause is the best way I know to go about helping them. And not only am I donating to the cause, I’m asking you to help as well. Below is a link to the donation page. My goal is to raise $200 for this race. Obviously, if I can raise more than that, it would be fantastic. Any and all donations are welcome. If you can’t afford to donate (and I’ve been there too), your positive thoughts and support are all I need. And if you’re feeling ambitious, feel free to pass the donation link on to others. The more people who can help, the faster we can find a cure!

**Edited to add: My goal of $200 was smashed rather quickly (like within an hour of the original post), so I’ve upped it to $400. Thanks to everyone who’s donated so far, and everyone who plans to donate!!

Find The Cure!

or cut and paste the following into your browser, if the above link doesn’t work:

http://inlandempire.kintera.org/faf/r.asp?t=4&i=240442&u=240442-150280011&e=1301482807

I think of so many wonderful things to blog about while I’m sitting in my car driving around. And then when I get home and I’m in front of the computer, I draw a huge blank. I have no beautiful children to blog about like my idols Amy or Heather. I have no craft projects like eleventy-billion other bloggers. I don’t care about politics, don’t know enough about computers to write anything of interest. I really don’t have a whole lot of interesting things to say. I can talk about my intense love of the Wii, and how it’s turning me into more of a geek than I’m currently comfortable with. But do you care? Probably not.

So, today I’m going to talk about something that I really couldn’t care less about, but will hopefully get me some hits to my page, and then people will read the archives and love me and want to stay around to read more. (Hey, I can dream, can’t I?)

Britney Spears. Let’s talk about that trainwreck. Actually no. Let’s not. Let’s talk about the fact that our society has sunk to such a level that Britney losing custody of her kids was a headline story on CNN! CNN people! This is not TMZ. This is not E! Entertainment. This is supposed to be a serious news network. Serious being the key word. Why oh why is it important that she lost custody of her kids? Did no one else see this coming? Was this supposed to be some sort of revelation? Something to shock us? I don’t understand how we’ve come this far. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt adopt a kid every 15 minutes. It’s never been headline news. It’s been a big story (why? I don’t know) but it’s never interrupted the flow of life. Britney gets hers taken away, and they break into songs on the radio to report it. Are you kidding me? Is there really nothing better for people to talk about?

I’m disgusted.

I was driving to my Philosophy class at Santiago Canyon College and listening to the Kevin & Bean show on KROQ. I was only half paying attention when I heard Ralph saying something about a plane crashing into the World Trade Center. I knew Kevin and Bean were on vacation, so I thought it was just a bit that Ralph was carrying on. After a few minutes, I started wondering if I’d been mistaken. I switched to a different station and heard the same story. I can’t explain how I felt. I was just numb. It didn’t seem real. When I got to school, the rumors were flying madly. The towers had fallen, the Empire State building had fallen, more planes were coming to Los Angeles, the White House had been hit, so on and so forth. What scared me more was that I couldn’t get in touch with Jason. He was supposed to be on his way to school, and therefore answering his cell phone. And people kept talking about how LA was the next place to get hit, so I was obviously thinking the worst. My professor talked with us about what was happening, and then let us go so we could watch the news. I went straight to work, since we had cable there. We all sat staring at the television in shock for the next few hours. Jason finally called me and told me his school was being locked down, and that he’d be home soon. My boss let us go home as well. I remember going home and holding on to him while we watched the news. It was so hard to believe what was happening. We’d just celebrated our first anniversary (of dating) the night before, and now we were watching people trying to save their own lives by jumping out the windows of a building that was about to come crashing down upon them.  Part of me was horrified by what was going on back east, and yet part of me was incredibly thankful that it wasn’t happening to me. I know that’s selfish and horrible, but it’s quite how I felt, and I can’t change that.