Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Making sense of the health care mess

Puggle and I live near DC. This means a lot of things, primarily that the guest bedroom sees a lot of traffic from friends wanting to see the city ... and that I'm somehow considered a policy expert of sorts. Okay, maybe that's a stretch, but how many other young people come home for the holidays and are asked nonstop about everything from healthcare policy to the death tax to the current administration's new education policies?

I'm lucky to stay in the know with firearms legislation -- keep in mind I work in the NRA's programs side, people, programs side. Health care has never really interested me. Add to the equation a bunch of jargon and numbers and I'm really lost. Heritage's blog published this piece the other day, and I will share it with my friends when they ask my perspective on the current socialized medicine debacle:


Saturday, December 26, 2009

home for the holidays

Merry Christmas, everyone! Are you ready for 2010?

The weather in northern VA and Washington DC was so frightful at this time last week, Puggle + I weren't sure where we'd be for Christmas. Thankfully the airports reopened in time for our early morning flight out on Monday, Dec. 21 and we are attempting a brave 8 days in southern Illinois.

I probably should have realized this Christmas would be different -- the second w/o Grandma, the third w/ Slug the brother-in-law, the second w/ the addition of Puggle (adorable as he is, still a 'damn dog' in mom's opinion), the first as a homeowner, first since the Break Up, first since Dad's hot-button 'retirement,' first where sister is working and unable to attend Christmas Day festivities, etc. But how does one prepare for different when the setting is a familiar, childhood scene?