We interrupt this regularly scheduled grieving program for an urgent rant. An entry where I stand up on my soap box and yell out to the people that you are crazy and your brains are too tiny! OK. Not really. I mean, I am going to step up on that box, but I doubt very much I'll do any yelling. The truth is, over the years, I've become politically lazy. I still vote, or I did until we moved. I just don't get involved any more. Campaigning will do that to a person. It takes a bit of shine off the whole penny process. I read up on the issues placed on the ballot and decipher the lingo of the bills and then vote or not vote what I feel is best. Yup. I said "not vote". If there's an option on the ballot that I don't agree with either way, even if my option is the "lesser of two evils", I don't vote for it. I don't mark that spot with my little voter's marker. It may be because so many of us have to make so many choices regarding the simple things, like what kind of milk to buy, we get tired or forget that we can also make choices when it comes to the big things. Life is all about choice. Every single bit of it. And right now, I am making a huge effort to choose to not get all crazy and reactionary. I say this because someone will post some misconstrued piece of garbage "news" on their social media outlet with a Hell yeah and fist bump to God and sit back believing the crazy. For instance: Please raise your hand if you believe the President of the United States (any of them) have all power over government and country. OK....how many of you are standing there with your hands in the air? Please, hopefully, none of you. But you see, someone made the choice to post the drivel and then someone makes a choice to "share" the drivel and so on and so on. It starts this wave of anger and fear that just spreads and continues to feed on itself and it is ugly. I just think instead of "sharing" or posting the drivel to begin with a person should stop and check the facts. Make a choice to educate yourself on the subject.

Each choice we make has some sort of consequence, I know. I get that. I can live with the consequences because I made the choice. I have a harder time of living with the consequence of other peoples choices, particularly if the consequence of their choice was take my rights to choose away. This may be another fault of mine, but you know that saying "Do unto others as you'd have done to you"?. Well, that's also the way I look at voting. I would never want to take away your choices or force you to take on my beliefs. So why would you want to do that to me? Aren't we America! The Land of the Free!? Or have we become the Land of The Free except....? I find the later unacceptable.

So here are some choices I am making today. First of all I choose to not even acknowledged people who are derogatory. Period. If we can't communicate with each other respectfully, then we don't communicate at all. This also applies to things posted online. Respect yourself and respect those around you. Some people are so quick to throw out a "What would Jesus do?". Do you really think Jesus would be so hateful? If so, I must have a completely different version of the bible. Secondly, I choose to not support those who wish to take away our rights to choose. I'm not just talking Presidential Candidates. Political parties, religious groups, mean people. I won't support it. Thirdly, I choose to believe that none of us are an island. There's a reason why we're all stuck on this planet together. We need each other. So for fuck sake, be nice.