karina jean

OK, after several days, a political response to the NOLA situation. It’s strongly worded, but for all I know only my mom is reading this blog so maybe there won’t be any response.

I was OK with the Bush Administration hating women. Sure, that’s fine. It’s not GOOD, by any means, but I understand how it can happen and at least they’re pretty upfront about how unimportant we are and how our needs should be subsumed not only for by children, but also the country as a whole. see also: women in Iraq, women in Afghanistan, women in africa. I don’t even want to get to the whole “yes, that’s YOUR morality I’m keeping safe between my legs, thank you very much” issue.

But the massive failure of the ‘relief’ ‘effort’ in NOLA has really made me face up to the fact that the Bush Administration hates poor people, and also, black people. How else can you excuse the chronology? The Louisiana Gov. requested federal help on August 28, BEFORE the levees broke. I can’t believe he pulled a “my pet goat” again allowed himself an extra night on vacation, and only today is touring the area. I can’t believe that Condi, you know, our secretary of state, spent yesterday in Manhattan buying thousands of dollars in shoes. Girl’s from MISSISSIPPI! I can’t believe it took until YESTERDAY, you know THURSDAY, for congress to reassemble in an emergency session. While the scale of the storm is massively larger than anything ever seen before, I really truly honestly believe that the federal government has been exceptionally slow to react to a very serious and important problem.

I know that NOLA will be ok eventually. But the fact that 1/3 of NOLAs residents are below the poverty level? the fact that tens of thousands of people were UNABLE to leave the city? the fact that they don’t have fresh food or water, that the local law enforcement system, which is, you know, under the same stresses as the rest of the city, and in some precints is entirely underwater was forced to cope by itself for so long before getting any serious backup? The fact that 35% of the LA National Guard is serving in Iraq currently, and nearly everyone that is helping in NOLA has been to Iraq and has returned? Seriously, the tragic situation in NOLA exemplifies nearly everything that I see as wrong with the Bush Administration. It’s insane, horrifying, and I hope it opens a dialogue. It is unacceptable that in America ANY PERSON should have to go through this kind of hell. Unacceptable.

Cilantros strikes again: the fabulous Michelle and beau Koray came for a visit last weekend, and we went out carousing on saturday night.

we had an excellent time:

michelle and koray

delia and colum (who’s name I am probably totally destroying)

cuz john and kelly

matt and I

and even a special guest appearance by paul!

afterwards we shared a cab downtown

and matt and I path-ed it back to JC.

It’s been a crazy hectic week here in jobby job land, wherein I’ve worked 2-14 hour days, a 12 hour day, and another 10ish hour day. Today I’m shooting for 8 1/2 because I ABSOLUTELY am going to be on vacation at 5PM tonight.

we are going to the beach! with the wild ponies! and lots of good friends! and sun! and potential-hurricane Irene! and my friends! and my family!

I can’t WAIT. I’ve been working so incredibly hard for the last few weeks, and it’ll be good to just kick back and relax and SLEEP. oh, sweet sleep. I have really truely missed you.

work is not going well. I feel like my carefully constructed house of cards is tumbling about my ears. I am primo busy, plus I’m heading out to assateague for vacation next week. so I’m at least doubly busy. at least.

anyway, I have a couple of entries in the works, including CSA wk 8, my very fun weekend, and some shots of canoeing the weekend before.

but for now, a couple of pics:

when I was filling the van up on sat. PM a giant green bug flew torwards the windsheld and landed! I had no idea that praying mantis’s could fly. I took some marginally bad photos.

and also, I have a rash and here it is. I THINK it must be poison ivy but heck if I know where it came from! The only thing I can think of is that there was some on my work boots and when I tied them last thursday it got me. BUT, I think I had it before then? like, from the weekend before? maybe I got it when we went to lebanon PA for mohammad’s bday.

shout out to gabulon, I got my hairs cut wednesday on my way home from work (I stopped in to supercuts, I just couldn’t take the sheer mass of hair on my head anymore!) and the next day (and today too) NO BUNNY has said anything about my hairs being cut.

it’s especially weird, b/c even though I personally am terrible at noticing this kind of change in a person I just came from a lovely grad school where I was asked if my hair was cut if I had just put it back in a head band!

I went from this:

to this:

(which is understandably crazy looking b/c it was humid/raining/hot, and she didn’t blow dry it but DID put some “styling foam” in. I love the way it looks in the first photo though! I’m wearing a hairband [because the front is NUTS!] so it’s a little shorter looking than it is, but the back looks FUN. The first one, on the other hand… I’m STILL having problems with my non-bangs.)