Adventures in Being Myself

...and it's windy...but, contrary to what The Weather Channel would have you believe, we're not all going to die. As a matter of fact, most of us (including hundreds of weary firefighters who have spent the last two months bravely fighting massive, widespread wildfires...) are doing a happy dance in anticipation of Tropical Storm Barry. Sure, sure, it's the first day of hurricane season and, okay, yes, it IS a tiny bit unnerving that an actual Tropical Storm, with a name and everything!, has formed so early in the season. But, in the days before insta-news, Jim Cantore, and the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, Tropical Storms were considered just slightly more serious than the summer squalls that typically roll in at 3:30 every afternoon. To be sure, weather can change quickly during hurricane season and it is important to pay attention and be prepared - with adequate non-perishable food, water, batteries, flashlights and gasoline for the generator. If you've lived in F...

Say what you will about my Gator Mania... Florida is the first school to hold National Championships in both college basketball and college football simultaneously. Moreover, the 2007 basketball championship is historic in its own right: this team is the first to win back-to-back championships with the same starting lineup. They dissed the NBA's riches for a shot to repeat as National Champs. They got what they wanted - and HOW! It's a great time to be a Gator in Tallahassee. I can't WAIT for Gator Day at the Capitol!

Ticket for the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship - $112.50 Chipping in Gas Money for the Road Trip to the Game - $47.00 Celebratory Accoutrements, including good-luck kamikaze shots - $80 Cheering from the upper deck as your alma mater, the defending National Champion Gator Boys, slash down the court, shoot the lights out and demolish "THE" Ohio State University, leaving their drunk, camouflage mini-skirt wearing, "Hang on Sloopy"-singing fans in despair for the second time in four months - PRICELESS All Hail the Mighty Gators, the best in basketball. Again.

Vignettes from 1003 Capitol this morning: ...health insurance salesman from Miami towering over a fellow aide in a (closely) neighboring cubicle and loudly explaining the "tricks and techniques" for conceiving a baby girl. Apparently, the trick is 1 TBSP. of vinegar dissolved in 1 Cup of water. I cannot bring myself to repeat in print the techniques. My eardrums are scorched. I can't afford to lose my eyesight, too. ...arrogant, pompous, puffed-out local official moving a chair into the conference room for a meeting. The chair in question? Removed from the workspace of an aide who, at that moment, was ON A PHONE CALL WITH THEIR BACK TURNED. Who DOES that? WTF?!?!?!

Despite arriving home at 8:25pm, after spending a full day traffic-copping, tour-directing, hand-holding, babysitting, playing fetch, performing damage control and all other manner of things that constitute the job description of a Chief Legislative Aide in the Florida Legislature, today has been a pretty good day. It's the little things that count, and there were three such things worth noting today. Thing One: Mr. Earnest was my legislative shuttle van driver this morning. I remember him from my first stint in the legislature; but I was not sure he would remember me. It has been more than ten years since I first met Mr. Earnest, and he sees thousands of faces every session. I've always liked Mr. Earnest. He is a nice man with a shy smile but a quick "good morning" for all the weary souls who travel to the Capitol on the early morning shuttles. He knows everything about plants and flowers and I swear he has the direct-connect to Mother Nature. He can call a cold snap...

WTF? is my new favorite acronym. Not only does it remind me of the scene in Sideways where Jack yells at Miles for "going to the darkside," but it's also a very handy way to express frustration without cussing the cause of that frustration. My fondness for this acronym has deepened over the last two days. It has become the title of my version of Things You Need to Be Told. I like to think the Etiquette Grrrls would be pleased with this new iteration of their seminal work on the subject. After all, the world is still the opposite of kind and gentle; and more than ever, people seem to be ill-mannered, inconsiderate, impolite - and completely oblivious to their bad manners. The Florida Capitol is an excellent case-study in the proper use of WTF?, as there are many, many, many people who need to be told many, many, MANY things. Things like, "hey, snot-nose lobbyist, my desk is where I work , so please remove your fat ass from the top of my workspace." Or, "no...

Recent posts on this blog have lamented my extended sojourns in Tallahassee for work at the Capitol. One very good thing about working in Tallahassee is 88.9FM , the local NPR station. I love, love, LOVE 88.9FM. Unlike 90.1FM in Fort Myers, 88.9FM broadcasts NPR programming 24/7. They don't stop talking at 9:00am and 7:00pm in favor of playing classical music. Oh, no. Their broadcast lineup includes all of my old favorites (Fresh Air, Talk of the Nation, Car Talk and Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me) and entices with "new" shows I didn't even know existed (Studio 360, The Splendid Table). With all due respect to Terry Gross, my new favorite is the weekly broadcast from The Commonwealth Club of California. In the last three weeks, I've managed to coincide my departure from the Capitol with the broadcast of this wonderful intellectual conversation. Yesterday, I found myself particularly rapt listening to Barbara Erenreich discuss her newest book, Dancing in the Streets...