Michael and Jaspenelle

Breastfeeding Stuff

Is this photo obscene to you?

The Washington State Legislature will be voting on HB 1596 and as it has had no opposition thus far I am confident that it will pass. This is a very welcome law in my eyes, though I think it is sad that we need the law to protect a breastfeeding mother from discrimination. This bill is defined as “Protecting a woman’s right to breastfeed in a place of public resort, accommodation, assemblage, or amusement.”

I have read a lot of comments about it recently from perspectives of support to ridicule. A common argument I see is “If a woman can breastfeed in public, I should be able to piss in public.” Are they serious? One is feeding and the other is eliminating. Do these people drink their pee in private?

Some people also apparently think that as soon as this passes, breastfeeding women will just start walking around topless, baby hanging off the nipple like a Christmas ornament. Now that is totally ridiculous. That is certainly not what I intend on doing, nor any of the many mothers I know who breastfeed. I do not know a single breastfeeding mother who “whips them out for all to see” (using terms I have heard or read here) or “strips to the waist” to feed her child. I find the most vocal critics are those who have never breastfed and men who feel that breasts are for them, not babies. Naturally there is always going to be that handful of breastfeeding mothers who are fit the stereotype, but every group has them. They do not define me. (Nor do the mothers who say that they would never breastfeed in public, that is their right. They are not me.)

When I was at the mall last weekend and Damian was hungry, Michael and I found a quiet bench (so that he would not get distracted, which equals bitting!) and I nursed him. I would have done it in the food court had it been comfortable. If he would have been screaming for food, I would have done it where ever I was. What do you prefer, a screaming baby or a quiet one? Beyond that question, ultimately, my son’s wellbeing is more important to be then the sensitives of some stranger. I sure as hell am not going to formula feed him when I am out. Formula is vastly inferior to breastfeeding and feeding at the breast is better still then expressed milk in a bottle. I am going to give my child the very best start that I am capable of giving.

That said, I AM discreet and I feel 99% of breastfeeding mothers are. I breastfed him at the pediatricians a few months ago (I do not use a cover) and the nurse did not even noticed. It was really funny actually, she asked me if I breastfed him and I looked down at him and she said “Oh! I guess you do! I thought you were just holding him!”

Some people might say, why do you need a law if most people barely notices or cares? It is the small very vocal minority of people who do notice that we (breastfeeding mothers) feel we need protecting from. Some of the things they say verge on assault. I cannot count the women (even women who use covers!) I know who have been discouraged from breastfeeding or felt shammed by those people who take issue with breastfeeding in public. What are we suppose to do, stay cloistered until the baby is weened? Might as well take away our right to vote while you are at it! (And yes, I do see it as a women’s rights issue.) I have been verbally assaulted for breastfeeding at a local park (I was virtually alone in the park and being just as discreet as I was at the doctor’s office!)

So yes, I am looking forward to this law passing. Will I start flaunting my breastfeeding in public more? Letting the girls hang out for all to see? Of course not. And I don’t know any breastfeeding mother with those intentions. Will anything about me change? Other then finding comfort in knowing that I have the law fully on my side if I am harassed, no.

Earth Hour

Don’t forget about Earth Hour tonight, it starts at 8pm!

Michael brought up a point the other day which I want to expand on, how much better would it really be if we burned candles instead of turning on an energy saving bulb?

Well, to start you have a better chance of your electricity coming from renewable energy source then your candles as most people burn paraffin candles, which is a direct byproduct of crude oil. So we are in fact supporting foreign oil but burning them, ironic during Earth Hour. So the choice is obvious burn soy, palm or beeswax right?

Well… Everything that burns puts off soot, which is a pollutant. That means everything from the fire in your fireplace to your candles - even your soy candles, often touted at “soot free”/”smoke free” releases it. I realize saying this may adversely affect my business as I am a candle maker, but it is simply the truth. It annoys me when people say their soy candles, made exactly the same way as I make mine, are soot free. It is a lie, though it is true that a properly made soy candle will release less soot then paraffin. At least when we burn soy, beeswax or palm wax candles though, we are using a renewable resources…

So the question stands are we really helping up turning off the tv, the computer and the lights and lighting a few candles?

I still believe we are, most people (I hope!) stay in the room with their candles, whereas they might leave every light in the house on otherwise and people tend not to light so many candles as to make the room as bright as with electricity.

Also, everyone taking the time to celebrate Earth Hour is celebrating togetherness. In my opinion, we will never grow the movement for energy independence or spread the message of climate change without group effort, so it sends a powerful message when so many people come together under a single cause, like during Earth Hour. Even if it only affects a handful of people to look at their energy usage and invest in ways to reduce it, better the few than the none.

So yes, I think Earth Hour still has its purpose and I will still be celebrating it.

I hope you will too.

(And I do encourage you to burn soy candles as they are a renewable resource.)

Help for a Friend

As a lot of you know, one of my friends as well as the woman who made the gorgeous corset for Michael and my handfasting is Graywolf. Recently her little ferret, Duncan has gotten really sick right and has racked up quite the vet bill. I know not all of you are as avid animal lovers as me, but it breaks my heart when one of my cats gets sick, I can’t imagine having that happen and not being able to figure out what is wrong!

Click here to read how you can help Duncan.

You can donate money to Graywolf directly or buy one of the adorable paw print pendants she has made to help raise money to pay for his surgery and care. Any little bit helps!

Largest US Beef Recall Ever

This story is so incredibly horrific to me, I am nearly beyond speechless. Is our food inspection system so broken that incidents like this can go so long without notice or punishment?

If you watch the video, was taken by an undercover Humane Society person, you can see abattoir employees pushing cows too diseased to walk with forklifts and pulling them with chains, as well as hitting them in the head with cattle prods and brooms. How can people treat animals like that? Oh My God! I want to push those employees around with a forklift and see if they like it, there is no excuse for torturing an animal, no matter if it is a pet or food! And people wonder why I rarely eat meat. I really hope this makes some people look into where their meat is coming from.

So now that this video has surfaced of course, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is ordering the recall of 143 million pounds of beef from “Westland/Hallmark Meat Co.” The meat was mainly disturbed to schools and fast food places. It affects all beef products dating all the way back to February 1, 2006 (so check your freezers just in case.)

I am so disgusted by the actions of people at times.

Homelessness (and sparrows)

I was walking to the downtown Goodwill today when I found myself standing near a crosswalk waiting for light to change. There was a couple homeless guys there and we chatted for a few moments. This lady pulled up next to me and out of the blue handed me three bags, instructing that they were for each of us. I was a bit dumbfounded but I took them and she drove off.

Inside each of the bags was some food and a toothbrush and toothpaste (wonder if she was a dentist? ;-)) I gave two of the bags to the homeless guys whom I was talking to and mine to another guy.

I have to admit I was a little miffed for a few minutes, “I do not look homeless!” I thought, looking down and my new boots and work jacket. Of course I do carry a large backpack around and was talking to homeless people. Michael sugguested this evening that the lady gave us all one just in case I was homeless, she didn’t want me to feel left out. That makes sense.

I think it was so thoughtful of that lady to be out delivering simple food items to people in need (even if I was a case of mistaken identity.) I like seeing people giving food and clothes to the homeless more then I like seeing them give money. Money can sadly be misused by some. This is certainly the giving time of year, which is wonderful, but I think it is so important to give back to the community all year around. Homelessness and poverty are not simply winter issues. (That said I think that lady was in the regular habit of handing out food.) This month, some of my local group are having a Winter Solstice gathering and we are asking all who attend to bring a donation for Second Harvest. We are hoping to make this a regular habit at all out sabbat gatherings. I think this is a good time of year to start the new tradition though.

Anyhow I am glad their are nice people left in the world, it gives me hope for the future.

~~~

Completely unrelated: Why don’t birdwatchers like those little brown sparrows? I don’t understand, they are amazingly cute and inquisitive.

Happy Anniversary Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was the costliest hurricane in all of history, costing at least $81.5 billion dollars in damage.
Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest hurricanes in US history, killing at least 2,000 people.
Hurricane Katrina devastated large parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama two years ago today.
Hurricane Katrina showed us the best and most shameful parts of the American spirit.

I admit I have turned a blind eye at times. It is so overwhelming. Maybe that is why two years later not enough have been done, I feel like I bear some part of the blame.

We can still help though.

I do not know how people can continue to support the government after their failures. they should be pumping so much money into this, they should be getting people out of those toxin tin cans, I mean, FEMA trailers. there should not be children or adults suffering. I want to say so much, I am still so angry, but I just want to encourage everyone to set time aside and look up the facts and do what needs to be done.

I am the Temple of Doom bi-atch.

I would make this a private post too but heck, I am just going to say, if you don’t want to know massively to much information, do not read this. Menstrual sexual talk ahead. Ladies I just need to know I am not the only one who feels this way.

You have been warned.

——

Seriously I warned you.

——

Do you ever get massively horrible cramps that makes you want to do the whole Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom thing but rather the rip out a heart - rip out your uterus?

Not that you could because you are so drained that you can barely think far enough past CHOCOLATE to use any part of your brain more cerebral then that? - Unless of course you are counting the sex drive part of the mind - because in spite of being a horribly Niagara blood Falls goopy mess and having cramps from HELL you are hornier then a succubus who hasn’t gotten any in a year and yet too exhausted to act on it?

Not that you could get far enough to have sex of course because you are so mindlessly BITCHY that you would probably choke you partner to death if he kissed you the wrong way? Naturally you would be laughing psychotically at the same time while your body temp is hot cold hot cold hot cold…

And OMG is that dirt on the floor?! *Cries!* I just cleannnned!

Do you remember a couple months ago when I was talking about the sacredness of menstruation and getting in touch with my inner goddess and all that? I still believe that believe it or not, I have a very spiritual time meditating this morning and the raven came to visit in it. But still - wow my inner Goddess is a warrior who wants blood sacrifice at the moment. A politician would do.

I am now doing to heave my bloated oozy body off the couch and go to the store to replenish the CHOCOLATE and Midol stash so that there are no Death by PMS headlines tomorrow.

My Gas Boycott

The bike rack at my work.

Background: I refuse to get a car or drivers license while I live in the city. Michael has one so if we need to get out of town (out to Elk, WA most commonly) we use his and he drives. Still he was picking me up quite often and I wanted to get off the bus, since that too uses gas (and stinks in more ways then one.) I started riding my bike on April 16th.

~~~

Now: I have been riding my bike to work for a month now, except for 3 days when I took the bus and twice when Michael picked me up (we have a bike rack for the car.)

At first it took me 38 minutes to get to work (going from my apartment at 29th and Perry, down Southeast, across Sprague and to my work at Howard and Riverside - downtown.) As my stamina has improved I have cut that time to 24 minutes, about double the time the bus takes going down Grand I believe.

I know I was originally planning on going down Grand or Bernard but that proved somewhat suicidal, it would be shorter but they are very busy streets. SouthEast is through residential neighborhoods though and has a nice bike lane that not too many #$%@ cars park in (I can call the city to get them towed though.)

As anticipated, I bought a charge value card for the bus, I ride it back up when I get off work, at 8pm. I am still not completely comfortable riding at night and my stamina is not yet there to get all the way back up SouthEast (big long hill.) I tried the other day and got 3/4 of the way there before waiting for the bus. (My poor muscles…) Still I have cut my bus cost in half.

I am using my husband’s bike at the moment since mine was cheep and not made or riding every day. I would like to get one like his (which cost about $300) but shorter. (Michael is a foot taller then me and has a Giant bike.) I stop at the store almost every night (it is about 4 blocks from our apartment) and pick up fresh produce for dinner and then ride home. Once every week or two we drive down and pick up heavier things (flour, canned food etc.)

I feel I am doing pretty well, after the first week I have not had a problem getting motivated to ride. Michael is starting to think about riding as well, so he will be mostly free of his car during the week. His route to work has a lot of construction detours though so we will see, they are tearing up the roads. If he starts riding, I will need a new bike sooner then I anticipated, but that isn’t so bad since we will be saving gas money.

Since I have begun this ride to work, I have inspired 3 other people to start riding at least 3 times a week. On Thursdays (when I work early in the day) I meet up with a couple people en route and we ride downtown together, safety in numbers. It feels really good to know you can inspire people to change. Which is why I wish to share this update, I feel Mother Earth is thankful of my efforts.

My body is grateful too! I have lost 3 inches on my waist!

Gas Boycott is a lot of hot air.

In response to all the emails and myspace notes I have received stating that I should not buy gas today…

Michael drives a small car, he won’t be filling up today, not because of the boycott, but because he filled up this weekend and won’t need to for several days.

I will not be buying gas either, I am boycotting gas and have been doing so for awhile. I ride my bike to work every day. I don’t have a car or drivers license, I live and work in the city, I don’t need one. That is a true boycott, not this skipping the filling station for a day nonsense.

Starting with the claim that this has worked before, in April 1997, it hasn’t. Government stats can easily disprove that and I trust them over a chain letter or MySpace page. I would love someone to show me one shred of credible proof that it happened. IF it really happened wouldn’t there be some before and after photos around? Some big news stories?

The problem with this whole idea is that none of these letters are asking people to drive less, some of the emails even suggest topping off the tank on May 14th and waiting to May 16th to fill up again. Therefor people will drive just as much - we are not cutting consumption - we are not cutting anything. A boycott involves giving up something, by shifting the date of purchase to tomorrow, you are not giving up anything, therefor it is not helping. All it accomplishes is giving people false hope and making them believe by doing nothing, they can invite change.

We need to incite change, not wait for it.

Now if any of these emails had said, don’t buy gas and don’t drive you car. Yes it might have made a difference but they did not. Gas prices are only going to be effected by a long term national effort to reduce our fuel consumption. We need to in fuel efficient cars as well as find alternate means of transportation. Car pool, bus, subway, bike etc. There is someone in our apartment complex who drives to church every week, (no handicap sticker), her church is less then 300 feet from our building, it is literally next door. People like this are the people we have to change.

If we truly want meaningful long term change we should invest in long term solutions not things like this gimmicky “gas out”.

~~~

In other news:

OMG The Golden Compass has been turned into and movie and is coming out in December. *Le squee!*

As One

I am not feeling to stellar today, I am a little queasy and my head hurts. These moods are not usually conducive to blogging but I have been thinking a lot about one of Michael and my conversations yesterday and one of Colorado Celt’s posts inspired me.

This is a t-shirt design for the volunteer group Colorado Celt is helping organize. I am unsure who created the design. You can see the t-shirt back and get more information on his blog.

It may seem like an over-exaggeration, I truly mean it when I say that the Pagan community deeply angers me at times. I am referring to the ones who do not practice what they preach, especially those who see the Earth as our sacred Mother.

When I come to find out many who claim to love and care about Mother Earth do not even the simplest things, like recycle; it is not far off to say I become completely disgusted. Particularly when these “Pagans” attack others with a holier-then-thou attitude when they themselves are equally to blame as themselves. I find many Pagans who are all talk with no action, it is always something they will do tomorrow or next, after this or that - something that never gets done.

I am not saying I am perfect by any means. I freely admit to have a dash of hypocrite in me on occasion. I have a dream (I’ve heard that line somewhere before… *smiles*) to one day build a temple dedicated to free spirits oriented around giving back to the Earth. I want it to be a retreat for people to come and find themselves and their purpose. I know I will accomplish this dream but between right now and then I have been a bit loss lately. Something yesterday caused me see which path I must follow to my goals. I must do more then just changing Michael and my lifestyle to a more environmentally conscious one.

Yesterday on a walk Michael and I found a hypodermic needle on a park path, inches from my sandaled feet. That was a wake up call for me, I am not doing enough to give back to the community. Looking around I finally saw how much garbage is in our sacred natural places, as a Pagan, I see it as an affront to Mother Earth, and yet I have been doing nothing to fix the problem. I want to change that. Luckily I did not need to step on the needle to see where my path must go from here.

I should be reaching out and help organize Pagan events that give back to the Mother Earth. Cleaning up Spokane’s beautiful parks (trash and graffiti) for a start. I am going to see if there is a volunteer group like the one Colorado Celt is helping, here in Spokane. If not then I intend on starting one, even if I am the only one showing up and doing something, I will not feel as though I am betraying my path. I do hope others will join me though. There is a Pagan meetup this Wednesday on the Liberty Cafe, I will bring this up there.