Bittersweet

Last night we took a big step.
With Obama, it was a big, sweet step forward. A step towards more progressive politics, a reduction (though not elimination) of the race barrier, and a new face for American politics (literally and figuratively).
Increasing Democratic control of the government (House and Senate) was also a big step. It will be easier to enact good legislation.

The bitter part is that discrimination won, too. Prop 8 in California, which codified discrimination into the state constitution and took away established rights to marry for same-sex couples, passed. Other ballot measures that redefined marriage as the union of one man and one woman also passed in other states (Arizona) and civil unions were made unconstitutional in Florida.

Once again hatred and bigotry has denied American citizens their birthright. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness doesn't mean the same thing to all Americans.

Evolution of a republican mayor

Futurama: Bender's Game

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy, oh boy.....



Also, is there a future for Futurama?

Cautiously optimistic

That's what I am right now. I expect that Barack Obama will become the next President of the United States, but I thought Kerry would win so what do I know. The polls look good. Now let's just sit and wait.
Our ballots have been turned in. For those of you that don't know, Oregon is the only state where we vote by mail. We don't have election day polling places, touch screen voting machines, or hour-long waiting lines. I actually voted in front of my computer, taking each ballot measure for a ride around the intertubes, checking and double checking what various progressive sites/blogs had to say about the repercussions of each one. That scares the hell out of the Republican Party, I know. Informed electorate. Yikes.
Here are my feelings about the state of the race so eloquently written by someone else.
Thanks Bill in Portland Maine!

Closing Appeals

Dear America,
Mine.
Mine mine mine.
Me Me Me Me Me Me Me!
Mine mine mine mine mine. Mine. Mine. Mine. Mine!
In conclusion: Fear fear fear fear. Very scary fear!
Sincerely,
The Republican Party

P.S. If you liked Joseph McCarthy, you'll love us!


Dear America,
We.
Us. We. Together. Americans. United States.
Hope compassion equality inclusiveness competence.
Brains common sense community respect hard work accountability.
Action change responsibility. More viewpoints, smarter solutions.
In conclusion: Yes we can.
Sincerely,
The Democratic Party.

P.S. Vote.

Word.

Political rant

Those of you who have known me for sometime know that I am a proud liberal. Those of you who have known me since my adolescent days remember something different.

In college, I regularly introduced myself as "the most liberal republican you'll ever meet." My social leanings were liberal but my fiscal leanings were decidedly conservative. Or so I thought.

You see, I was duped by the message machine. I honestly believed that Ronnie Reagan really was "the Great Communicator" and was tough, strong, and principled. That's what the message said and so that is what I believed.

When George HW Bush ran against Michael Dukakis, I believed the machine again when they said Dukakis was too liberal to be trusted, and then Mike got into that tank and all was lost. I even have a picture of my dorm room and right there on the wall is a bumper sticker for George. Terrifying.

It wasn't until I actually started to think about politics that I realized that I was a sucker. A jive turkey. It is a great disappointment to think back and know that the first time I voted in a presidential election I voted for pappy Bush; but even worse knowing that if I had been of voting age, I would have voted for Ronald Reagan in 1984. Shocking.

These days I am a down the ballot Democrat. I wish the party were more liberal, but we must take baby steps. More democrats first, better democrats second. We can't afford more conservative judges on the supreme court. Not even one more.

I find it hard to believe there are still undecided voters out there. I'd love to write about them, but I'll let a professional do it instead. Word.
Ladies and gentlemen, David Sedaris.

Breaking News

First Openly Gay Racehorse To Compete Sunday

Our house

For those of you who have not been over yet, our challenge with this house is parking during parties.
About 4 cars can fit in the driveway. So, some of you may have to park in the darker blue area just north of the house next to Johnson Creek. It's only a short walk up the hill and around the corner. There is also an unpaved dead-end side street with no sidewalks (I know, it sounds so appealing) on the opposite side of the street from our house (in the lighter blue). I'd call that one "last resort" kind of parking.


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You had me at "awesome-teen"

I should start watching SNL again

The era of super heroes has arrived

Holy crap!

What does evisceration look like?

Sarah Silverman

Not much to say here but I love Sarah Silverman.

I like Bob Costas

I'm not a follower of the Olympics. Never really have been. It's too hyped up.
In these past Games, an Australian diver won the gold in dramatic fashion. The Chinese men were supposed to sweep the Mens 10m Platform event. Matthew Mitcham won the event with his final dive, earning the highest recorded score ever by a man for an Olympic dive.
The coverage of this feat was minimal, and there was no mention of his out status.
Just after this non-coverage, a website (afterelton.com) that focuses on "news, reviews & commentary on gay and bisexual men in entertainment and the media" filed a complain with NBC. NBC responded twice, once commenting that they had no issue with their coverage and then shortly after apologizing for their lack of coverage (kind of a McCain style turn-around).
Anyway, this same website interviewed Bob Costas on this issue. It's a fairly good read.
via deadspin.com - NBC’s Bob Costas Discusses Gays in Sports

MNF - What defense?

There is nothing more disappointing, pathetic or embarrassing that I can tell you about myself than this: my mood during football season really depends on whether the Dallas Cowboys win or lose games. That, ladies and gentlemen, is tragedy.
Last night's MNF game with Dallas hosting the Eagles was a crazy game. I am glad the Cowboys won, but I'd prefer that they won games 21-3 and not 41-37. My heart could go the way of my gallbladder if that keeps up this season.

I do like making fun of Dallas fans, though.

I'm bored

So I've been stuck at home recuperating from my surgery and am bored stiff. I've watched tv, read the intertubes, talked on the phone, and now I'm done. Poor Steve was bored Saturday morning. I've got a higher tolerance for boredom I guess (what with all that ship-board living I did some years back).
I'm improving daily and am now able to sit down in our slouchy sofa and chairs without having to ask for help getting back up. The one thing I haven't been able to do yet is sleep on my side.
Yeah, you all care sooo much I'm sure. :)

The one thing I did earlier (Friday afternoon) was try and watch the most recent Futurama DVD with the commentary on. I had to stop because I was laughing so hard it hurt. Drove me right to the Oxycodone. Damned Futurama.

I'm home - Part II

More details:

Steve went to work for a bit and the surgeon called him after the surgery to update him on my status and when I'd be coming out of the anesthesia. That was nice of the doctor.

I awoke after the surgery in the recovery room. I don't remember much here either. It was a big room and I was against one wall, so I could see the whole thing. There was a woman across the row facing me and she had a breathing tube in her mouth. There was a nurse talking to me a lot, but I don't remember what she was saying. After some time (10 minutes? 1 hour?) they got me ready to send me to my room. A very, very, very hot nurse/orderly guy came over and rolled my bed to my room. I may have said inappropriate things to him but I can't recall.

The rest is rather uneventful. Steve came back after a bit (maybe 3 or 4?) and stayed with me most of the evening. What a trooper! I was mostly in and out of sleep so he sat there quietly reading his book, chatting with me in my drugged state and watching whatever TV channel I had picked (probably HGTV - he loves that channel - just ask him). They kept taking my vitals and giving me good dope every two hours.

Noland, Matt, and any other boys - begin fantasy here.

Just after Steve left for the evening, the shift changed and two new nurses came by to introduce themselves. They were both hot. Blond, young, thin. They were just as nice as nice could be. They usually came in together. I wonder what else they did together.

Okay, end fantasy. I'm not good at writing lesbian porn for straight guys, I know.

I drifted in and out of sleep most of the night because of all the visits for pain, vitals, blood, etc. At about 11, the nurse came in and asked if I wanted to try walking around. This led to the dizziness and nausea from the earlier post.

Morning finally rolled around and Steve was back to take me home. The surgeon came back to check on me and approved my release. After some paper work, I was released. I changed back into my clothes. Just as I was pulling on my shirt, Steve noticed that I had something attached to my left side, just above the hip. It was one of those suction cups used to monitor things that was left over from the surgery! No big deal, but I had the nurse come back to check and make sure I could take it off. I was wheeled out to Steve's car and we made it home.

And here I am, one day later, feeling much better. I'm still sore, and I've noticed that all of our chairs (couch, love seat, recliner, etc) are a bit too low for comfort right now. Getting in and out of them is not as easy as it used to be but it is easier today than yesterday. Hopefully that pattern will continue.

That's it. Exciting, I know.

I'm home

My surgery went quickly and my overnight stay was uneventful, except for one short episode where I tried to get up and walk (with the nurse's help) and became too dizzy and nauseated to continue.

The nursing staff was nice and competent (except for the whole needle in the arm thing - I was poked a total of 5 times for the IV and blood draw with 2 successful). One nurse was a bit scatter-brained but was nice enough.
For those interested in the details, read on.
For the rest of you, know that I am feeling much better today than yesterday and am walking around freely at home with just minor discomfort. I appreciate all the well wishes.

Now for some details Part I of the experience.

Steve and I arrived at the hospital Thursday morning at about 7:50 am. You can do most of your check-in early (on the web or by phone). I was instructed not to bring any personal things, including money, wallet, id, insurance cards, etc. I guess it is unlikely someone would impersonate me just to get a free surgery, but that seemed a bit weird.
Within a few minutes, a nice older lady volunteer called my name and escorted us to the prep room which was a basic hospital room for one. It was freezing in there. I got naked and slipped on the hospital gown you are all familiar with: hideous pattern and open in the back. Several nurses came in and took my vital signs and inserted my IV (this of the 3 pokes). The nurse who was unsuccessful (she tried twice) was very apologetic and said poking was her best skill.

Stop giggling like a school girl, Noland.

One funny thing was when she first walked in she asked a few questions and then commented how well I spoke english. Yup.

Anyway, my surgery was scheduled for 9:45 but that slipped to about 10:30. My surgeon came in and talked a bit, giving us the low down on the whole thing. Just before carting me away, the anesthesiologist came by and asked a few questions, and gave me the details on the next 10 minutes or so. He was funny and reminded me a bit of Dr. Romano from the early years of E.R. (I also saw the same actor in Seattle in a performance of "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare: Abridged" which was hilarious.) They gave me some good stuff that started the descent into darkness. Then they rolled me away. Steve was with me the whole time and no one batted an eyelash. Cool.

Anyway, I was eventually wheeled into the operating room. It was pretty big, with lots of overhead lights on giant arms that could swing around. I don't remember much about this, but I do remember that the company's name was placed in giant letters on each of the arms. Kind of a waste of advertising if you ask me since I can't remember the name. Anyway, there were lots of people in there and everyone was talking to me. I remember some music playing but I have no idea on the particulars. This very handsome nurse (interesting which details I remember) came over and started talking to me. Then the anesthesiologist put the mask over my face and asked me to breathe deep. I remember looking over to my right and seeing a big desk and my surgeon looking through some papers. I hope he wasn't "brushing up" on what to do.

It's set

My gallbladder removal surgery (medically called a Laparoscopic cholecystectomy) will be on Thursday, September 11th, at 9:45 at the Providence Portland Hospital .
I'll be staying over night on recommendation of my doctor. I expect to be "laid up" for a few days following the surgery. Yippee.

So much for living forever

My organs are failing. Okay, that's overly dramatic. One organ is failing and it wants to go out in a blaze of glory. It's known as the cholecyst, or gallbladder.
Steve drove me to the Providence Milwaukee emergency room this morning about 12:30am because I was having an attack of monumental proportions. (okay, more melodrama.)
It appears I have Gallbladder Disease and gallstones. Fantastic. The most likely scenario is surgery, although it can be managed to some degree with diet. Right.
I've got an appointment with my doctor Friday and a specialist next Wednesday to see what (and when) it goes down.

Poor Steve sat in the waiting room of a Milwaukee emergency room for a few hours until he came back to my "room" to visit. At least it wasn't as freakish as I expected. I've been watching too much TV.

Surgery. Cool.

Ignorance

Okay, I just have to post about this.

Via snopes.com, we have an internet email regarding a change in paid holiday for workers in a Tyson plant in Tennessee - here.
It seems that a good portion of the workers are resettled Somali refugees and Muslims. In the most recent negotiated labor contracts, they requested to have the 3-day Muslim holiday of Eid-alFitr in place of the traditional Labor Day holiday as a paid holiday. The company agreed. 1000 of the 1200 employees are covered under this agreement.
Now, on principle, I have no issue with these employees and union asking for and receiving this change. As a strong supporter of the rights of workers to organize and join unions, I am a little disappointed that Labor Day would be removed, but I'll get over that.
What I find ignorant is the reactionary response from the loonies. The email going around mentions that this is just one example of removing holidays and symbols that made America the "Greatest Country on Earth." As if the French or English grow up chanting "we're #2, we're #2." The email also has this warning attached (in all caps): FOR THE SAKE OF YOUR FAMILY, BE VERY CAREFUL WHO YOU VOTE FOR IN NOVEMBER. A not so veiled swipe at Obama, to be sure.
So, a vote for Obama is a vote against Labor Day, Christmas, Columbus Day. And I suppose a vote for McCain is for Labor? Right.