So, about that internship at CA NOW...

The interview was yesterday.

I start the position on Friday.

*insert snoopy dance here*

I've been emailing back and forth, you see, with a very nice woman.

And now I have an interview.

For an internship.

At the offices of CA NOW.

*wiggleglee*

Today was a very interesting day.

It started out like any other, really. Get up, have breakfast, consider studying, consider running, turn up nose at both, curl up with a book and Randi Rhodes, etc.

Then I packed my bag and trotted off downtown for a rally at the capital in honor of the 32nd anniversary of Roe v Wade.

Something happened while I was there. I don't know what it was. It wasn't really any different than any other rally I'd been to; a bit chilly perhaps, but nothing spectacular.

Something inside me changed.

It was a Grinch-esque moment, if you will, even though I am a pro-choice woman and was surrounded by pro-choice people, waving signs and chanting and cheering at drivers who honked as they passed.

Still, it was like my heart grew two sizes. Something *changed*.

It was like a lightning bolt.

Everything that I'm working toward (law degree) came even more sharply into focus. Everything I've ever said about my political beliefs rang in my ears. Everything made even more sense.

I drove home, read more of bell hooks' wonderful Feminism Is For Everybody as I sat in traffic, cooked some dinner and popped in the evening's rental (hooray for gift cards!), Iron Jawed Angels. I wasn't expecting much, because I trust Hollywood executives about as far as I could throw a bulldozer.

It was actually pretty damn good.

Now I desire more. More movies, more books. My mind has opened this little door and all the desire I had to educate myself to feminist thought and theory and history has multiplied itself tenfold, rolling at the edges like a stormy sea.

In short: Gimme.

I'm a fan of the American football. The cutoff date for college players to enter the NFL draft just passed (past?), and the whole sports radio world (my roommate and I switch between this and Air America all day) is up in arms because USC's quarterback Matt Leinart - a damn good player, Heisman Trophy winner and lead the Trojans to a #1 ranking two years in a row - decided to not enter the draft and instead stay at school and play college ball for a final year.

By the reaction of radio folk, you would think this young man had just gleefully shot a puppy.

They can't comprehend why Leinart would pass up a multi-million dollar opportunity to stay at school, of all places. The derision in their voices is almost tangible.

He can rock on with his bad self is what I say. And I'm not a USC fan by any stretch of the imagination (goooo, Ducks!)

He values his education. Leinart will get out of USC with a degree and the backing for a real-world career if (god forbid) he gets injured playing ball next season. He's showing all the meatheads out there that college isn't just a pass to a life full of ugly, expensive cars in the name of fame.

How screwed would he be if he signed a one-year contract with any given NFL team and, in his first game of his professional football career, is sacked out of his shoes and snaps his femur? Hard to do, but it's happened. He will have then given up his education for a contract that is, as of that moment, null and void. By staying in school, Leinart faces less of a chance of this happening (I don't think there's a NFL team with an offensive line like USC's, but I could be wrong), has the support of a team and coaching staff he's familiar with and - hey! - he gets an education, to boot!

Somewhere along the line all this is forgotten in the name of the almighty dollar.

Rock on, Leinart, for having a clue.

Really. What the hell.

I keep hearing and reading news stories about how the children of America are facing an obesity epidemic.

Fucking DUH.

How are kids rewarded these days? With sweet-ass candy and a new PS2 game. While I'm not bagging on either one - god knows I've had my Butterfinger and Final Fantasy binges - I seriously believe this is a big factor.

I'm not by any stretch of the imagination old. I just turned 26 in December. But I clearly remember when I was a kid having this thing called playtime. You know, when we went outside and PLAYED? Wiffleball, hide and seek, tackle football in the street (I was the only girl in the neighborhood who refuesed to be a cheerleader on the sidelines and still have the scars on my knees to prove it), digging up bugs in the back yard, riding my bike as fast as I could and scaring my mom to death. It was fun, I had a blast, and I was active as all hell.

I live in the suburbs. I hardly ever see kids outside. When I do, they're riding back and forth on those little motorised scooters. A few houses have basketball hoops, but I only see one or two kids playing on occasion.

My neighbors across the street have two Very Large children. I *never* see them outside.

Why is it such a problem to have children playing any more? Why are houses selling for $300, 400, 500K when they have yards the size of my first apartment?

(Before you ask, it was a studio. With a shared kitchen. Not exactly roomy.)

Yes, children in this country are fatter than ever. So instead of complaining, try doing something about it. Get a slow cooker and make dinner at home instead of stopping for fast food. Take a walk with your kids to talk about school or life... or simply not talk but BE WITH each other! Don't let your kids sit in front of the tv pressing buttons to play a skateboarding game; buy them a skateboard, take them to a local skatepark and cheer them on.

Be proactive instead of reactive.