Standing, and Voting

I know, I know, I need to upload some more video of The Shmoo. But, just wanted to share that today, she pulled herself completely upright at her toy chest to reach for the books on the cubbie shelf above.

The girl is standing! She'll hold my fingers (only one per each hand, can't make it too easy for her, no!), stand there, laugh, and bob her butt and jump up and down.

Of course, she also bit the dust this evening when she tried to "un-stand" at the chest. It wasn't too bad of a wipe-out, but she did do a light face-plant on the side of it. Poor sweetums.

Had a long, luxuriant phone conversation with my cousin, Chauntall, today. We compared notes on our daughters; hers, Myla, is two months older than Audrey. We also talked about the vagaries of Time Management as moms of babies (it's a myth anymore) and our seemingly diminished mental capacities these days. Finally, I got the heads up on her husband, Paul, and how they're both doing since his departure. Paul was deployed to Iraq in December. He's been assigned guard duty at a bad-ass prison in northern Iraq.

Chauntall spoke of her frustration with folks in her day-to-day life who don't seem to pay attention or inform themselves of our status in Iraq, Afghanistan, and now the saber-rattling about Iran, and Syria. She feels so acutely tuned in, of course, because her husband is risking life and limb to fulfill the duty he committed to. But, she doesn't agree with why and how the war has been executed. And, she doesn't feel that she has anybody local to her in Reno to have meaningful conversations about politics, foreign policy, etc. She doesn't need everybody to share her views; she just can't seem to find people who care enough to engage in discourse, much less action. She said it gets her so mad to have a conversation with someone who shares that he hasn't/doesn't vote(d), because "it won't count," "it doesn't matter," "the system is rigged," or the like.

Why do some people feel America has a moral obligation to "export democracy" when they don't do their part as citizens of one by voting? Yet, they'll call into American Idol four times to vote for their favorites.

Gotta go. I need to fill out my MN Voter Registration card and mail it tomorrow.