An Open Letter to Congressman Duncan Hunter (CA-50)

I recently found a post that contained the names of the people who interrupted yesterday's proceedings within the SCIF being used to question people involved in the current matter of Ukraine.  One of the names I found there was a representative of California, and because of that, I felt like I had a responsibility to reach out and let them know how I felt about their behavior.  While I have similar concerns with the other representatives who were there to interrupt the investigation, because Duncan Hunter lives here in California, I felt a more personal connection and wanted to write him a letter expressing my feelings about what he'd done.

No.  He isn't my current representative, and for that reason, I wasn't able to send him this letter (though I did try through his website: https://hunter.house.gov/contact#form_3F4F3585-C4B4-4800-9512-142CD7E3CF86 ).  Apparently he only accepts contact from within his own distract, (I certainly can't fault him for that.)  So, I had to resort to publishing my thoughts here.  This was not something I wanted nor intended to do; I had hoped to simply leave these thoughts in an e-mail to him and his team and leave the matter a private discourse between us both--assuming he was willing to offer a reply to my obvious criticism; (he might not have thought it warranted a reply, after all, though I did check the box asking for one.)

Still, he represents California; he stands as a pillar of who we, as Californians, are.  Certainly the concerns of his district are paramount, but in this particular instance, while he may have been representing the beliefs and concerns of a majority of his constituents, he was also acting in concert with the Republican Party--a national organization that has a greater reach outside of just his district here in California.  And for that reason, as a citizen of this country, and as a resident of California, I believe it's important to speak to my fellow Californian, because, in a way, I feel his actions spoke for me.

Dipping a Foot into the Deep End

You know how they say that you should do something that scares you every day?  Well, I may not do that -every- day, but lately I've been looking at myself and trying to find the things that actually make me happy.  It's not that I don't know how to be happy, of course, but what is it in life that actually makes me happy?

Being with John, of course--that's easy and a given, but everything else is sort of a mixed bag.  Even reading, which I love, isn't always easy.  For example, I've started reading The Library Book, but trying to get back to it has been...daunting.

Wheel in the Sky Keeps on Turnin'

The song has nothing to do with what I want to talk about, but I needed a title for this post, and that song came to mind.  It’s been a while, again, but I’m here because some things have been banging around in my head.  And it’s time to put it in writing so maybe I’ll stop waking up in the morning wishing that I’d sit down and say it already.

For years we’ve been saying that we can’t do anything about these mass shootings.  We’ve got a constitutional amendment that prohibits us from making things better.  We can’t mess with perfection.  But if perfection is sitting by while innocent people get killed because we don’t do anything about it, then I think I’m done with “perfection.”

There will be those of you who say that gun laws and registration aren’t going to change anything.  Moreover, they’re going to make things worse.  And so far, you certainly aren’t wrong, because the gun laws we do have don’t seem to be working.  What this tells me is that maybe we need to look at this from a new perspective.

Maybe it’s time we look for new solutions to a problem which hasn’t been addressed because certain people on both sides of the aisle have been neglecting their responsibilities; it’s time we address the problems with gun ownership and gun violence in this country.  To say or do otherwise is an injustice to every life lost due to careless governance.

I don’t have all the answers, but at least I’m trying to find solutions.  And I’m no scientist or expert, but I know that reading about school shootings and mass shootings and church shootings and terrorist attacks isn’t going to change anything.  It is only when I stand up and say, “This isn’t right.  We need to change something,” that change can occur.

Our Second Amendment was written with the idea that each state would have a militia—a place where people would gather to learn about and teach about weapons and warfare and field medicine and how to ensure that people who are willing to stand up and fight for something are doing it to make a better place for everyone—not just some of us.  The militia was meant to serve as the first point of contact in emergencies—to be there when people in their state needed help.  And they were the first line of defense when anyone, including the federal government, sought to curtail the laws and rights of its citizens.

But rather than choosing to work with the mindset of a militia, we’ve got people touting the right of anyone and everyone to have weapons and use them, because it’s our “God-given right.”  Not even God in the Bible allowed everyone in the tribes to fight for Him.  He tasked his commanders with choosing those who would be given weapons.  And maybe it’s time that we took a page from religion and realize that not everyone is willing or able to handle the responsibility of having a weapon.

Maybe it’s time that we change how we look at gun ownership in America.

I’d like to leave that up to the States, of course, because that’s where the militia idea first started.  It seems fitting, then, that states should have the right to decide how to run and govern their militia.  But then you run into a lot of other problems on a federal level—especially when it comes to federal crimes and gun-smuggling across state lines (look at Chicago.)  But this is what I’m trying to say: it’s time we talked about this.

Because what we’ve been doing hasn’t been working.  And I know there are greater minds out there than my own who can look for a better solution than the antagonistic and morbid rhetoric we continue to hear every time another innocent life is lost due to gun violence.

And maybe we won’t get it right the first time; maybe we’ll have to try again.  But if we continue to do nothing, then I posit that we are no better than the people pulling the trigger and ending those innocent lives.

It's Been a While

I've wanted to return to writing here, but life, more often than not, gets in the way.

My dad had heart surgery just before Christmas this past year, and I spent the better part of a month or so with my parents back in Texas doing what I could to help them.  I miss them both so much, and I wish we lived closer.  Of course, I am glad that I have my autonomy, too, but every now and then it would be nice to go and see a movie with them, or sit down to dinner--just catch up and forget that more often than not, we share a lot of opposing views these days that we rarely talk about.

I think, maybe, I'm finally learning to curtail my spending.  Maybe.  I've never been good at ...feeling good about myself--always looking for things that would make me feel like I was part of the group of people that could afford things they wanted.  But I live below the poverty line, subsisting on government money paid for by taxpayer dollars and the kindness of others.  I wonder, sometimes, what people think that money should be used for and if they'd be affronted by the way I am living.

I ended up on a trip to Ireland and Scotland at the end of July and August this year.  It reminded me of the song that lives inside of me--and that I'm overdue for a doctor visit.  I'm pretty overweight, and while I was over there, we did a lot of walking (and a lot of eating.)  I think I might have hurt my knee before we left, though--trying to clean up and get ready for the trip; so, now I'm going to have to head to the doctor to have it looked at.  I also had to deal with some other things while I was away on vacation--women things--and that's going to be another thing I need to talk with the doctor about, too.

I woke up with a haiku in my head, though, and I knew that I needed to get it down before the ephemeral idea slipped away; so, ...that's how I ended up back here.  After looking at my twitter account (@Argentrose1 -- in case you want to check it out,) I saw this link to my site, and I thought, "Huh.  I wonder if that still works."  Turns out, it does.

And then I realized that it's been a while since I wrote something here.  I'm still not sure what I wanted to say, but just writing is maybe enough for now.  Nothing important.  Nothing life changing--just some words to let you (myself?) know that I still exist.

I realized today that I won't have a lot of money for Christmas gifts this year; so, ...that leaves me having to decide to make something instead, and I'm pretty sure I know what I want to do.  I'm excited about it, but also worried that I might not be able to pull it off.  Still, ...I'd like to think that maybe the effort will be worth it.  I suppose we'll just have to wait and see.  And, of course, I can't tell you, because...well, that would ruin it--you know, in case someone OTHER than myself is reading this.

When it's all said and done, though, ...I'll be sure to show you all.

There's so much more I want to say, but rather than leave you with a hodgepodge of thoughts and feelings thrown onto a page, I think, for now, this is good enough.  And maybe I'll be back here soon.

I'd like to think I will be....

Thursday Thoughts

The next few weeks will probably be slow ones.  My eyesight has worsened considerably over the past week or so.  Luckily, I’ll be getting that fixed in the next two weeks, but that means that for a short time, I’ll basically be doing my best to not break anything and having to rest my eyes a lot due to eye strain.

I will do my best to keep writing these, but if I’m a little slow, or there are some errors, …well, now you know why.

Dad Tuesdays

So, before we get started today, I figured I better mention that this coming weekend is my birthday.  And I’m going to be out of town.  So next week’s installment might be a little later than expected.  But don’t fret!  I’ll be back (said in proper Arnold fashion.)

Dads are pretty amazing.  Often they serve as the disciplinarian of the house—which my step-dad often did.  But Dads also have a different kind of wisdom than Moms do.  I found my Dads often had advice on how to survive in the world and thrive in it whereas my Mom(s) were always there to help me try to make sense of the world—and buy me cool clothes.

I think, though, that I’ve always kind of had a special place in my heart for my Dad—my step-dad that is.  He helped Mom raise me, and I know that couldn’t have been easy.  I was far from perfect as a kid, but Dad always pushed me to do better.  He helped me to explore areas of life that I’m not sure I would have without him—like sports for instance.  And when my Mom went back to school for nursing, he became the support network for our lives—helping with school stuff for both of us.

Mom Mondays

This past weekend, I attended the funeral of Tom Gilmore—John’s grandad.  Seeing the family pull together and express their love and sadness together was inspiring and tugged a whole lot at my heartstrings.

It made me think about what I’d do when my own Mom and Dad were gone—a pretty terrible thought, I’ll admit.  As far away as they both are, I know that no matter what’s going on in my life, they’ll be there for me.  And the idea that one day that won’t be the case is…well, quite frankly, pretty terrifying.

So, …last night, after our friends were gone and I had a little time to think on it, I realized that it might be nice to actually spend some time each week reflecting on things that I want to share with my Mom and Dad (the ones who raised me, and the ones who accepted me into their lives when John and I started dating nearly 11 years ago.)

There are a lot of things I don’t really know about you as people that I kind of wish I did, and …I think there are some things I want to share with you all, too—even as insignificant as they are.

Which is why I decided to start a tradition—Mom Mondays and Dad Tuesdays.  Each day, I’ll just write something—a thought, an idea, something I’m grateful for, and maybe a question that you guys can answer.  And for those of you who are reading this who aren’t my Mom and Dad, well…feel free to answer, too.