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I was watching something happen that I never really expected: I heard a truth that I could completely relate to, uttered from the mouth of a pyro-technician on the TV. Granted, it was PBS, but even so-
He is a munitions expert and he was rigging something up for an air-show themed around WWII fighters. So he’d set up movie-set type strafing runs, and bombing runs, and then the pilots would fly the fighters over the pyro’s and they'd all go off and it would look cool. Then there was this one effect that he said pretty much was just for fun. “It doesn’t resemble any period ordinance, whatsoever.” He said. And he was right. They use this something_core wire that burns at a rate of 22,000’/second to set off the wall of fire. Yeah. H-eah! That’s like mach 18. Fire. B I G F I R E.
He says, “we’ve found that there’s just something innately pleasurable to all people” when it comes to exploding stuff.
I am irritated with the recent media blitz and marketing campaigns speaking about raising women’s and girls’ self-esteem and all this talk of re-defining society’s perception regarding physical beauty. At first I thought, “Well it’s about time! Finally, there is social movement that will help empower women and the young girls who are watching them.” But this excitement quickly turned to disenchantment and disgust. Whether it is the rash of popular television programs that promote extreme weight loss or ad campaigns sponsored by cosmetic companies, in my opinion they have all fallen short of the mark.
As another holiday approaches I would be lying if I said that I am not fighting very hard to ignore the intense feelings of grief and sadness that lay just beneath the surface of my smile as I extend well-wishes to everyone I meet whether that be in real time or online. But I know that I am not alone in this world; the one where a good, loving and fit parent’s children are kept from them. I know that there are other parents who share my pain.
First allow me start by saying I feel that guilt is a useless emotion. It zaps energy and sucks the life out of an already over-burdened soul. This in turn causes self-doubt, more stress, less calm and a decreased ability to think situations through making it very difficult to strategize and come up with better solutions for the problem that caused the guilt to begin with. Wash, rinse, repeat …until the good parent doesn’t know which end is up = parental paralysis. This self-perpetuating down-ward spiral cycle will cause chaos in what should be an otherwise happy family; frazzled maybe but definitely happy.
There are only 2 kinds of parents. Parents who allow their kids to have pets and parents whose children will ask if they can have pets. Depending on your lifestyle and interest, you may have or not have interest in having your children keep pets. No doubt that pets are not for everyone. Depending upon the demands of life and the ages of your children, cats and dogs may not fit into your lifestyle. I however have found that pets can not only enrich family life, but are a great way to teach children responsibility and reduce their fears of wildlife.
