For Folks in California

My BF sent me this pertinent article on the new California same-sex marriage laws. It's a personal issue for me, because two weeks ago, my aunts got married for the second time. They went up to SF in 04, then the laws changed and they got "un-married," So this summer they got married again, but if this measure that will be on the Nov. ballet passes, I'm guessing that history will repeat itself.

Just imagine getting married, and then being told that your marriage is no longer valid. Well, honestly I can't imagine it, but I hear that it's an awful experience to go through. So I'm getting political again, and planting the seed.

For those of you in California, please vote on the side of love.

Smooth Sailing

I had a wonderful weekend "off" with lots of time for myself and a lovely evening out with my bf.

Work is going well. I finally picked up one of the baby carriers I've been meaning to get for my Postpartum Doula business, because this baby loves to be carried, but the carrier the parents use puts all the strain on my shoulders. So I got myself a "sienna" Moby wrap. The baby looks like a Tibetten monk in it. :) Parents got a huge kick out of this.

Have been feeling pinched for money lately, but just got an e-mail from a prospective client for Sept. Am very excited about the prospect of actually being able to continue to fit in Postpartum Doula work around nannying. Fingers crossed!

Stalled Cavalcade

On my way to work today there were a dozen cars stopped by the side of the road at varying intervals, but all within about a mile of each other. Really. It wasn't more than a mile from the first car I saw to the last, and there were so many that I started counting: 12. Most had blinkers on and/or people standing around with cell phones. What the . . . ? And this was on a major 8-lane highway at the end of rush hour. Oh, and I didn't see any signs of colision or dammage. Weird.

Work Week

I'm working more than usual this week (no objections as my usual is so low and money is good), and I've also been very productive with errands and other personal business (like getting on-line). The air quality got better over the weekend for my Aunt's wedding and my mom's visit, but now visibility is reduced again and it's getting hot. It's a Spare the Air day, but with out free transit, what more can I do than Drive 55 (which I do already)?

One exciting thing yesterday was getting to hear two of my favorite songs back-to-back on the radio. :)

Inspired to Clean

I always enjoy having people over to my house, especially because it usually inspires me to do some cleaning, or at least tidy up a bit. Like yesterday and today: my mom arrived this morning, and I put some time and energy into making the place nice for her--I was pretty surprised at how quickly it went, too. I guess I was just motivated by the "deadline."

In the birth picture, my favorite birth artist mentioned that this is National Unassisted Home Birth Week and posted a link to this supportive article on home birth. So there is something from the other side of the issue, and it is in the media. :) I'm happy.

The Curse of the Horrific Birth Story

As I was waiting for the library to open just now, I got to listen to several women compeating with each other for who had the most horrible birth story. It started because someone had a tiny, obviously new baby. Someone else was detailing the horrific birth of her 8lb 9oz baby, and how he had to be born by C-section due to a "fat" head and cord compression. I have to wonder how much of this was iatrogenic--cord prolaps is often due to AROM, the pelvic outlet is smallest in the lithotomy position prefered by docs, epidurals prevent the movement mothers and babies need to do togther in the dance of birth. And then the complaints about the length of labor started--7 hours, 9 hours--I'm sorry, but that doesn't sound long to me . . .

If these are the stories we tell each other, is it any surprise that most women in the US fear birth? Why aren't there more of the positive, empowering stories circultating? I know it's partly because not many women have those experiences, but I also think that there is a kind of one-upmanship in telling horrific birth stories, and the women who have good experiences get discounted. Eventually, even the women who want to share their positive stories can get shut down by the ones who blow them off, and so we only share our positive stories with folks who are supportive. But then what we know, that birth can be beautiful, empowering, even pleasurable, doen't get heard by the people who need to hear our voices. Like when the radio station talked about home birth, but only played a call from someone who had a home birth that included an emergency. And when I heard those women talking today, I didn't break in with other, positive stories of births I've attended--partly because I am bound by professional confidentiality, but partly because I knew that they wouldn't welcome the truth. I was afraid of being dismissed or attacked for telling the truth. I'm not Carla Hartley, but I admire her so much for her efforts to promote birth trust by telling the truth.

Fantastic Escape

I seem to be avoiding life at the moment, escaping into fantasy novels. The current one, which I mentioned yesterday, is Ender's Shadow. I let it keep me up late last night, which prevented me from going to the Farmer's Market this morning, but kept me a bit more easy going with the kids I had to babysit. I think it was worth the trade off--I can probably find another Framer's Market later in the week to get what I need . . .