Some Things That Make Life Worth Living

Going back to work tomorrow. Spent the day spoiling Dogzilla. It was cold and snowy, so while I indulged him by taking him outside several times, he was quite happy to head back inside where the treats and cozy chairs were. We took a little nap on the couch this afternoon, with him curled up behind my knees, head on my leg. Anyhow, I thought I'd share a few of my favorite things, the stuff that makes life well worth living, in no particular order.

1. Dad. He's funny and we have a relationship that I am sure we'd have never had if my mom hadn't died when she did and as suddenly as she did. I miss Mom, even after almost 10 years, but I am glad I've had the opportunity to get to know my dad.
2. My brother. We don't talk often, but I do enjoy spending time with him. We both like to cook, and he's very good at it for a guy who works in an auto body shop. He's given me an appreciation for NASCAR, too.
3. My nephews and nieces. The oldest nephew and my nieces came with my brother's second marriage, and I am proud to call them family and flattered that they are happy to see me and call me family. Not many blended families have that kind of success.
4. Dogzilla. He's smart and comic in the way that only a very smart, food motivated beagle can be. I am his second favorite person in the whole world. Life is very good, even at 4:30 a.m. when I hear those dog tags jingle and he comes into my room all smiles (and hopeful that it is breakfast time!).
5. Baseball. Specifically, the Cleveland Indians. I love it. Can't wait till spring training starts. The only sport I actually listen to on the radio, and preferable to TV. Only actually being at the park is better. The only thing I don't like about baseball is the Yankees, and even them I love to loathe. Everyone's got to have a rival.
6. Pizza. In all forms, with the possible exception of Hawaiian pizza. Even though I was only 1 year old when my parents left Chicago, the city of my birth, putting pineapple and Canadian bacon on pizza is just plain wrong. And, yes, I have too tried it. And if it was the only kind of pizza, I would probably still eat it. So there.
7. Bourbon. Started drinking it the day I realized that some day I would be old and that no one takes you seriously if you are drinking drinks that come with umbrellas in them.
8. Cooking. I actually enjoy cooking, and I am good at it. I like trying different recipes and different cuisines. My motto, borrowed from a former co-worker, who said it was something her mother told her: If You Can Read, You Can Cook.
9. Irises. My absolute favorite flower.
10. Vaughan Williams' "Lark Ascending" and anything by Tom Petty (except for things that came out of what I refer to as his unfortunate Travelling Wilburys phase.).
11. Laughter. I like to laugh, I like to make other people laugh, and I am pretty good at both.
12. My job. I love retail. Truly.
13. Sleeping late on a Saturday or a Sunday when it is raining and I have a full pantry and fridge, nowhere to go or be and a good book.
14. Good books. A whole 'nuther list, lemme tell ya. I rarely make a trip to the library without finding something worth reading. Often a whole bunch of things. I did, apparently, burn myself out in childhood on mysteries with Nancy Drew and Sherlock Holmes, though. I can read just about any other topic, though. Some particularly favorite subjects, though, are sharks, penguins, pre-historic man, especially Neanderthals, Tudor history, and infectious disease. Favorite authors: Thomas Hardy and Richard Adams (Watership Down, yeah, Shardik, Traveller and my all time favorite ghost story, The Girl in a Swing) come to mind.
15. TV. Yeah, I like it. Favorite shows: House, the original Iron Chef (NOT Iron Chef America for sooo many reasons, first of which is if you start out trying to be cheesy, you are missing the whole point and, secondly, for the love of God, hamburger is not a good "secret ingredient"), Queer Eye, Secrets of the Dead, No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain, Most Haunted (what isn't funny about watching a bunch of grown adults with a cameraman and bad lighting scare themselves sillier than a bunch of teenage girls at a seance???), and all bad British sitcoms. When I am at Dad's, I get to watch BBC America. I watch Changing Rooms (I love Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen), Ground Force (I want to BE Charlie Dimmock, just to have that much fun yanking Tommy Walsh's chain), Cash in the Attic (with Alistair, puh-leeze!), What Not to Wear (Trinny and Suzannah can come over here and make me over any day), House Doctor, Life Laundry and even the ever cheesy David Dickinson on Bargain Hunt. And I have a secret fascination with Bad British Sitcoms. Are You Being Served, Keeping Up Appearances, My Hero, Father Ted, you name one.

Well, there's the short list. I am going to go rest my feet in preparation for going back to work tomorrow. I'm actually looking forward to going back. See #12 above.......

The Mad, the Bad and the Innocent

"The Mad, the Bad and the Innocent: The criminal mind on trial," by Barbara Kirwin. This was a very interesting book, from the point of view of a forensic psychologist who has, with some high profile exceptions, testified mostly for the prosecution. It was an interesting look at the insanity defense, and I think it a good starting point for anyone interested in taking a serious look at one facet of how society deals with mental illness.

We ignore the issue of mental illness so often. We bring all of our fears, prejudices and ignorance to bear when mentally ill individuals commit crimes. The mentally ill are relatively easy to punish since few truly mentally ill people are capable of effectively participating in their own defense. We don't have coherent standards for determining who is suffering from a mental illness that genuinely impairs their decision making process and/or their ability to determine right from wrong and who is merely manipulating the system to escape responsibility for their criminal actions. We lump psychotics and psychopaths together and presume that they are all, quite literally, trying to get away with murder. We are suspicious that everyone claiming insanity as a defense is malingering and all too often the public perception is that a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity means that a defendant is released back into the community and not punished at all. So we tighten up the criteria for using an insanity defense and then use the prison system to warehouse increasing numbers of mentally ill individuals, when most prisons lack the resources to serve the mentally ill. One of the first areas we cut when budgets get tight is funding for mental health. Consequently, existing mental health facilities often can't provide appropriate security and treatment for the criminally insane.

I think it a measure of a society how it treats those least able to speak up for and defend themselves. The mentally ill are a very vulnerable group, and are often stigmatized and misunderstood, even by otherwise rational and intelligent people, including legal and medical professionals.

Anyhow, this book is really very thought provoking, even if you don't agree with the author's perspective (she's pretty skeptical of the so-called "designer defenses", such as the infamous "Twinkie defense" and defenses used by the Menendez brothers; she feels, and I agree, that such defense strategies play into public ignorance about mental illness and ultimately harm those individuals who genuinely suffer from mental illnesses).

Poker Party

Yesterday afternoon I drove home from Dad's because some coworkers were having a poker party. Now, I didn't think I knew anything about poker. In fact, I still can't claim that I do, but the cards flowed my way and I must have wagered my chips wisely. Wound up winning for the evening. Amidst jokes about cashier supervisors who collect "money". We only played for the chips on the table, so it wasn't like there was money involved. Everyone had a good time and we had plenty of nibbles. That's the most dangerous part for me! I hope we do it again sometime. It was fun to see people outside of the store for a change.

Been having a nice time with Dogzilla, even with his arthritis kicking up a bit. Poor boy still likes to get out there and run around his yard. He just wears himself out tripoding it around, I think. Dad is going to take him to the vet to see if there is more than just an aspirin routine. We have told the dear boy, however, that hip replacement is not in his future like it was for Dad. Of course, if we didn't keep giving him treats, he might lose some weight! He still likes me to pick him up, the little furry king!

Well, I am doing up some laundry this morning and then I will head back up to Dad's until Weds. evening. Right now, though, I need to finish my COFFEE!!! Up late last night....