There ain't no bugs on me...

Hm, it's such a catchy tune on the commercial, and the dogs are so cute, I decided to use it for a title.

I'm feeling a little lazy tonight. I've been pretty good the last week or so. I've been eating at home more, exercising for at least 40 minutes on my exercise bike (except for Saturday, when I painted a lot of the day), and I FINALLY watched The Godfather (I had it from Netflix since July).

However, yesterday and today I've been in a funk. I've been cranky, tired, not feeling super well, and just plain busy! I only got on the bike for about half an hour tonight because my stomach hurts.

I'm starting to think I just need a vacation...

Wow - Michigan has a long way to go...

Before I write this, I'd like to point out that I am not necessarily the most eloquent of writers. With that said, onward.


The Guttmacher Institute has put out some interesting statistics on contraceptives.

http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/state_data/states/michigan.html




Now, some things in this struck me. A few of them are below:

1) In Michigan, 1,204,060 women are in need of contraceptive services and supplies. Of these, 582,140 women need publicly supported contraceptive services because they have incomes below 250% of the federal poverty level (406,230) or are sexually active teenagers (175,910).

These figures are just amazing to me - over 1.2 million women need contraceptive services and supplies, just in Michigan alone!!!


2) Every public dollar spent on family planning services saves the federal and state governments three dollars in Medicaid costs for prenatal and newborn care.


I would like to think this is a great argument in favor of family planning services, yet there are still people in Michigan that believe abstinence is the only way...


3) Michigan ranks 48TH in laws and policies - whether their laws and policies are likely to facilitate access to contraceptive services and information.

While I'm not surprised by this, it just makes me sad. If we want fewer unintended pregnancies, then why would we make it harder for women to have access to contraceptives and family planning?


And the another bit of information that is in this fact sheet:

About half of unintended pregnancies occur among couples who were using a contraceptive method in the month the woman became pregnant; either the method did not work properly or the couple did not use it consistently or correctly. Because the likelihood of pregnancy in the absence of contraception is high, the other half of unintended pregnancies occur among the one in 10 sexually active, fertile women who were not using any birth control method even though they were not trying to become pregnant.

So, does anyone want to tell me why we shouldn't teach people the proper way to use contraceptives or that they are important? Otherwise, we can continue to deal with the medical, social, economic, and personal tolls of unintended pregnancies in Michigan.

Movies, dogs, and sunburns, oh my!

Well, I realized I hadn't written on here in a little bit, but then I remembered how busy I've been this past week or so.

I worked a full week this week, after taking two days off each of the past two weeks. My last two vacation days, I watched movies - Sweeney Todd and Lust, Caution. I liked both. I finally got around to watching Broadcast News this week - I'm not quite sure it's the "classic" that people say it is, but it was pretty decent. I ended up watching Transformers this weekend too, and it was alright.

The dog has been with me, and she had her yearly checkup on Friday. Whew, she's expensive! But, she should be all good now, and she even got a nail clipping! Of course she's good for the vet techs...

Yesterday, Eric and I went to the Lugnuts game, and of course, sitting out on the patio of the Nuthouse, I got sunburned on my arms. It doesn't hurt, except when I move them - they are bright red however!

Currently Watching: Sneakers

A Crazy Like for...

Rent. Of course, even though I kept saying today I wouldn't watch Idol Gives Back, I did for a bit. However, the idols did a not-so-great version of "Seasons of Love", which made me get out my copy of the movie Rent.



I went to New York City for an Alternative Spring Break one year. I actually volunteered at Sakhi, which is an organization that helps survivors of domestic violence in the South Asian community. However, that trip also introduced me to Rent and Friends in Deed - http://www.friendsindeed.org/. I always think about Friends in Deed whenever a song from the musical comes up on my iPod.



I'm not sure that I appreciated the scope of that trip at the time. I was still dealing with me being myself. I learned a lot from that trip, and hopefully changed the way that I was. Being older, I think it's very important to be a team player, which I wasn't so much at the time.



Now, I've been on a search tonight to find an organization to volunteer for - something I can really get into. I'm not sure which way I want to go yet, but I've been searching for something like Friends in Deed here in Lansing...if anyone has any ideas...

Bowling for Kids' Sake

Well, it's that time of year again, and I decided to bowl in Big Brothers Big Sisters Bowl for Kids' Sake. If you feel so inclined, please donate any amount to the cause!

You can donate at my page - https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=263560&supId=211283414

I've been searching...

I've had a hard time thinking of anything to write about lately. Until yesterday - I watched Animal Cops on Animal Planet, and I also watched Oprah yesterday. I had the day off. Oprah had a special with Lisa Ling on it about puppy mills.

I don't know if I was super emotional, or if it was because I had Dakota with me, but they did a piece on animal shelters that had to euthanize dogs because there were too many, medical problems, or they just weren't socialized. That particular day, the shelter they were at put down 18 dogs. It made me start crying when I saw them putting one of the dogs down.

I just don't understand how some people operate. They think it's ok for these dogs to live in cages all their lives, pump out a litter every cycle, not have any contact with humans, or just plain run away and end up having to be killed because no one wants them.

I urge you all to do something - adopt a pet, spay or neuter your pet, or just plain contact your legislators to let them know how cruel puppy mills are. We can all make a difference.

Sigh...I just...don't get it, I guess.


Currently Reading: Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin