Well, I thwarted Ann Coulter and Tucker Carlson by getting involved in something as stupid as politics and voting. Assholes.

Ok, before I forget (and this is really because I'm too lazy to write the link down) a really interesting article on doulas.

Now, on with the actual post. Lil' Puddin' Tater had to go to the hospital last night. She was coughing and snotting all over the place all day Sunday, and by that evening she was in pretty bad shape. She couldn't breathe, and none of the emergency medicine we have for that sort of thing seemed to be working. And then, to make things really scary, she went all lethargic on us, not talking moving or anything. Oh, and did I mention that she had a fever? She did. 101.5 degrees. And she does not get fevers. Ever. So we get to the hospital, and they take her to the pediatric emergency wing (bright colors and extra-nice nurses) where the first thign they do is give her an IV. I know she needed it, and with all the medicine she had that night, it was a better that way. But it was absolute torture watching them put it in her little hand, then watching her try really hard not to cry, then just letting go and crying so hard that she threw up. After the IV was in and she had calmed down, they wrapped it up with gauze so that she couldn't see it, and the most sweet/pathetic picture I now have is of LPT attempting to suck her thumb with a mass of tubes and gauze around her hand. But she was a trooper. She had to have a chest X-Ray, and I was unable to go with her (pregnancy and radiation don't mix - who knew?). But she was fine with D, and got a real kick out of being able to see her heart and ribs. She had to have three breathing treatments while in the ER, plus drink a dose of Motrin and she took them all without a fight. Turns out, she has bronchiolitis, and has to be on antibiotics for 10 days.

When we got home, we got her into her comfy pajamas (skiing bunnies) and gave her some cough medicine and then we went to bed. An hour later, she threw up again. But we were prepared! We took some spiffy blue barf bags from the ER, and not a drop got on our bed. And LPT just finished her business and went back to sleep, contentedly sucking her thumb.

What a night.

Well, I have good news and bad news.

The Bad News:
Apparently, contrary to all logic, contraception is "not related" to pregnancy. Thank you, Kansas.(Kansas City Star)

Robert Goulet died. Am I a terrible person because this is the first thing that comes to mind when I hear his name?

The Good News:
The Good Samaritain is alive and well! After driving by a crime scene where a woman was being raped, the people in the car tackled (and subsequently beat the crap out of) the rapist as he was running away. And now, not only is the asshole is being charged with rape and assault, but with strangulation, too. So these folks pretty much saved the victim's life. (ABC News)

I'm not sure if you've heard of the Westboro Baptist Church (and your browser may not open the link) or not. Basically, it's a church in Topeka, Kansas, that believes everything bad in the world is due to homosexuality. Your son killed in Iraq? Because god hates gay people. Six children burned to death in a house fire? Because of those evil homosexuals! So this church, in an effort to spread the word, uses funerals as their platform. They routinely picket the funerals of soldiers with lovely signs, in order to follow their religious belief that they need to save people from certain damnation by letting them know just how offensive the U.S. is to god. Well, they protested at the wrong funeral. In March 2006, the funeral was held for one Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder, a marine killed in Iraq. Matthew's father, Albert Snyder, was so appalled at the protest that he sued the church for invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress. And guess what! He won. To the tune of around 11 million dollars. The church will most likely appeal the verdict, and the leader of the church claims that this will only further his cause by drawing more publicity. And there is the sticky issue of the First Amendment; Congress has outlawed funeral protests at federal cemetaries, but Snyder's funeral was in a public one. And the protesters were 1,000 feet away, and could not be seen or heard by the funeral party. But Albert Snyder stands firm that the group ruined the memory of the funeral, and claims that he is still haunted by the images he saw that day.

I know I listed this under "good news," but maybe it's just okay news. I think everyone can agree that Westboro Baptist Church is horrendously misguided, offensive, and wretchedly inappropriate, but they do have a right to say what they say. And the problem here is that even though nobody likes them, by taking away their right to free speech, it creates a standard. I'm sure there are plenty of people offended by my opinion that abortion should be legal, free, and a private matter for the woman alone, but no one can tell me not to shout it from the rooftops. I think a viable solution to the dilemma is the one posed by a local disc jockey when the horrible fire in Bardstown, KY killed 6 children and 4 adults: when he found out that Westboro had the funeral on their list of events to protest, he contacted one of the leaders and offered an hour on his radio show for them to "spread the message" if they would completely stay away from the funeral. The show, part 1 & part 2. And I have to say, the church kept their word. Maybe we could give them a satellite radio channel or something.

Have I ever blogged about MSCL before? What? What do you mean, what is MSCL? Jesus, man! It's only the MOST IMPORTANT television series ever. Seriously.

My So-Called Life ran for only 9 months in 1994-5. It was on opposite Mad About You, which was its ultimate downfall, but while it lasted, it was amazing. It perfectly captured the teenage angst/indifference/cluelessness that came with the territory of being an early teenager. Angela Chase was my idol.* And Jordan Catalano? Well, I'll just let the New York Times tell it. A Teenager in Love (so-called)

In case you have no idea what I'm talking about, here are some visuals to get you going:

*And this character has caused me to adore Claire Danes, but not always her behavior. She's with Billy Cudrup, who is the baby daddy of Mary-Louise Parker's kiddo. The thing is, Cudrup left Parker mid-pregnancy to get with Claire Danes. I'm sorry, but that is just not cool. Claire, the girl I knew would not get with a guy who was still with his expecting girlfriend. I'm just sayin'.

**And a special note to Z: I have the series on DVD. I've been meaning to burn them forever so I can give you your own copy (because you MUST watch) but I think I'll just bring the discs to the next gathering and let you borrow them for as long as necessary.

Hoo boy! D and I have been discussing my previous post (the guy punches his girlfriend inthe face 3 times, the judge refuses to convict because she may have "wanted" it) and frankly, he has made me a bit peeved. Why? Because he sided with the flippin' judge! I won't even do dignity to his arguments by reprinting them here, but rest assured, they were not cool.

Anyway. For the record: I hate that my office is right across the hall from the men's bathroom. I'm sorry, but there are some funky aromas coming from that room.

Activities! Check out Learning to Love You More - it's from author/artist Miranda July and artist Harrell Fletcher. They have issued 65 (or so) assignments to the public for completion and submission, and they'll post the results on the website. Numbers 52, 51, 42, 32 and 26 are on my list.

And here's my complaint (rant?) for the week: since when does Halloween mean you have to tart yourself up? I guess for awhile, because I can recall (all those many years ago...) showing up at school dressed as a (gasp) French Maid (hey, I at least had a floor-length cape I wrapped around myself!). But looking at some costume websites (this one in particular) it would appear that the entire goal of the holiday is to make yourself over into a complete slut. For examples, see the Corrections Officer, the Referee, the Taxi Driver, and the really spiffy one, Texas Hold 'Em. But what's really worrisome is that this sexy-costume thing isn't limited to women. No, here are some wonderful options for teens (Army Brat, Classic Vixen, and Not Guilty Prisoner) and little girls! (Major Flirt, Mega Star, and Pink Bunny) Now, I'm not a total prude (though D would probably tell you differently). There's one costume I find hilarious, and would definitely wear it to a party. Feel free to disagree with me.

And out of curiosity, what's your opinion on using nooses as Halloween decorations? Is it completely inappropiate, especially considering the recent events in Jena, LA? Or are they just wholesome Halloween fun?

Wow. There are occasions when you can just sit back in utter shock after reading the paper. In Maryland, a policewoman pulling into an Exxon station saw a man hit his girlfriend three times in the face. The cop had the guy arrested (and rightfully so.) But when the girlfriend neglected to show up for the trial (reasons unknown - maybe she was, I dunno, scared?) the judge, in all his infinite wisdom, decided to acquit the boyfriend because the girlfriend may have wanted to be hit. He cited some crap about sadomasochism, and said that in order to convict the boyfriend of second-degree assault, he had to be certain that "the defendant's actions were not consented to by the victim. How do you determine that without the victim?"

An excellent response to this query was given by Byron L. Warnken, a professor at the University of Baltimore School of Law: "What do we do in a murder case?"

Indeed. Because some people like that kind of stuff, and they may have consented to being killed. (The Nation)

I know I've been posting lost of video clips lately, and I apologize. But allow me just one more day, please? I saw the best movie EVER last night and I'm all giddy and wanting to watch all that I can of it today. It's called Across the Universe. It's a story told entirely through Beatles songs - I know, it sounds a little weird. But it's awesome. And it certainly doesn't hurt that the lead guy is mighty easy on the eyes and can sing. It was a little awkward after the film though (which I saw with D) when he mentioned that he probably didn't get about half of the jokes and allusions in the movie because he doesn't like the Beatles. Who is this man that I married? I'm kidding, of course. Ok, watch. The first clip is my favorite scene, the bowling alley and "I've Just Seen A Face." (and Jude is looking F-I-N-E.)



Eddie Izzard!



The other male lead, Max.