Unemployment

According to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, the unemployment rate in Wisconsin for December was 5.8%, which is below the national rate of 7.1% for the same month. Since October, I've been listening (when I have time) to podcasts from NPR's Planet Money. They have attempted to explain how this percentage is calculated; I have tried to understand. The number reflects the percentage of the workforce that is unemployed and collecting unemployment "benefits." It does not include people who are underemployed, whose benefits have run out but who remain out of work, or who WOULD work but have given up finding a job. So, that number doesn't really give the whole picture. It does provide an easy way to keep tabs on how good or bad the economy is.

Obviously, there are a lot of people without jobs right now, and that number continues to grow. Soon we'll find out what the unemployment rate for January was, and as far as I can tell, economists expect it to continue to increase through 2009, possibly into 2010. Unemployment is affecting many, many people. My brother and his husband have been affected. Einar's sister and her family have been affected. Einar and I have been affected, Einar moreso than I. Deeply. Profoundly. Please pray for us.

Pizza

Today, former Congressman Scott Klug has been in our office, working with our editor Steve on a project. I've met him before, and he's a really nice guy. He walked over to a nearby pizza place to get some lunch for Steve, and offered to get me some, too. I had just eaten the chili I had brought for lunch, so I declined the offer. When he got back, he asked if I wanted half a piece of pizza. I said no, thinking he was just being polite, and trying to keep on my healthy eating track. He told me that he only wanted half a piece, so there would be this leftover half-piece in case I changed my mind. Never one to turn down free food, especially free pizza, I ate the other half of his piece of pizza. Crazy! (As a former member of Congress, he had tickets to the Inauguration but decided not to attend due to the large crowds.)

Inauguration Day 2009

I watched the Inauguration of Barack Obama today while I was at work. Don't worry; it was boss-authorized. I watched for just over an hour. Long enough to see former Presidents Carter, Bush (the elder), and Clinton arrive as well as out-going President Bush. Some of the women from the office across the hall came in and watched with me, and Einar watched from home. It was a great ceremony! And Obama's inaugural speech was as inspiring and well-written as I'd hoped. Now his real work begins.

I was just reading an article from the Washington Post about health care reform. People who are against this reform, and especially against socialized health care, seem to always say that it will cost too much. I don't understand how taking care of the citizens of the country, emphasizing preventive medicine, and making sure that anyone can receive the care they need will cost more than the current costs of health insurance premiums and lost productivity. As a person who pays for private health insurance, I could use some reform. If it doesn't come soon, I'm not sure I'll be able to continue to afford coverage.

Back-to-Back

I'm not big into name-dropping, but sometimes working in video production means that you get to meet some local celebrities. I always like the opportunity to meet these people, especially when they are down-to-earth. This week at work, I got to meet a couple of well-known Wisconsinites. I went on a shoot on Wednesday where I met UW men's basketball coach Bo Ryan. It was really quick - he was probably only there for about 15 minutes, but I got to shake his hand and run the TelePrompTer for him. He was a very nice guy. Then on Thursday, we had a shoot with the Wisconsin Attorney General, J.B. Van Hollen. We've done shoots with him before, and he has become more and more relaxed with each shoot. On this particular shoot, he came into his office, and I asked him what he was drinking. He said, "Do you want some? I can get you some." I told him that I didn't want any, but that it smelled really good and was wondering what it was. He jokingly asked me what made me think it was his drink I was smelling. I told him that the only new scents in the room were him and his drink-- And he jumped in and said, "And you just knew it couldn't be me, right?" Then he laughed. So there I was, holding a boom microphone, insulting the AG. Oh, well. Just another day at the office. . .

Happy New Year!

Today ends the first week of 2009. And I've been meaning to write a new post since New Year's Day. . .

Einar and I rang in the new year at work. Seriously. Mariner's Inn does not allow its employees to request New Year's Eve off, so we were both working. I figured we'd be home by midnight, but no. By the time all of the serving was done, the closing work finished, and the last server checked out, it was almost midnight. And by the time the tip money was divided among all of the servers, it was 11:58. I quickly made my way to the bar, where Einar was bartending, to bid him "Happy New Year" when the clock struck midnight. We wished and kissed, and I headed home - about 10 after midnight. Unfortunately for Einar, there were 2 women in the bar who did leave until 12:30. So, it was almost 1am when he got home. Not our prefered way to ring in the new year, but at least we were in the same location. . .

We spent New Year's Day having a Lost marathon. We are trying to re-watch all 4 seasons' episodes before the season 5 premiere on January 21. I'm not sure we'll succeed, but it'll be close.

Best wishes for a wonderful, healthy, and prosperous 2009!

Let it snow!

It's snowing again today. At least the temperatures have gotten above zero. When I left my house this morning, I was pleasantly surprised by the not-frigid temp. Don't get me wrong - it's still cold. My feet have yet to warm up. I will spend part of Christmas Eve shoveling, and I'll probably have a bit more to do on Christmas Day, too, depending on when the snow stops. On the upside, Thursday and Friday are predicted to get above freezing. Wow! (That picture of me is my sad imitation of the "American Gothic" painting. Had one of my neighbors been out shoveling, Einar would've joined in the photo and it would've been a bit more effective. Oh, well - it seems like there will be time this winter for another photo op.)



Our kitty, Kimchi, still thinks it might be okay to go outside and see what's happening. At least she has a fur coat.

December 21, 1983

Twenty-five years ago, during a Christmas caroling outing with members of Hope Lutheran in Milton where my dad was pastor, I ran into the street in front of a blue Chevy pick-up. But let me back up. I remember it was a Wednesday. We had had school that day, but not the next day, so it was the first night of Christmas vacation. My friend Angie was spending the night. I had a piano lesson, and then we went to the church to gather with other members to go carol to shut-ins who were members of Hope. This caroling event was an annual affair. Everyone would gather at the church and make Christmas ornaments to give to the shut-ins, and then we would all head out to carol. After we had sung at a few places, it had started to snow. I believe it was the first snow of the season, but I can't be sure. As we left one house, my brother and his friend were throwing snowballs at each other, at me and Angie, at my sister. I decided to get them back, so I made a snowball. My plan was to throw the snowball and immediately turn to run away so they couldn't get me back. I threw it, and I ran. Right into the street without looking. I remember hearing my dad yell, "AAAAAMMMMMMYYYYY!" I looked to my right, and he was stopped, looking in terror at something beyond me. I turn my head to the left and saw headlights. That's all I remember, until I woke up with Gary Getchel (a high school senior) slapping my face and saying my name. (He had run back to where we just caroled, and actually ripped the screen door off its hinges to get inside and call 911.) I was on my back, lying in the middle of the street, with my left leg bent and my right leg straight. I was going into shock and just wanted to go to sleep. He had been told to keep me conscious, so there was a lot of slapping. When the EMTs arrived, they asked me questions - my name, age, etc. I had broken my left femur (thigh bone). They would need to straighten my left leg so they could put me on the stretcher and get me into the ambulance. The female EMT told me it was going to hurt a lot, so if I wanted to scream, I should just scream. She placed her right hand above my left knee and her left hand above my left ankle. She slowly straightened my left. I didn't scream. I felt my leg moving, but it didn't hurt. (I have since learned that because the femur is the largest bone in the body, the brain shuts down pain receptors when it breaks to spare you that level of pain.) They got me in the ambulance, and we headed to Mercy Hospital in Janesville. I remember the ambulance ride being very bumpy, which is rather unpleasant when you have a broken leg. They took my blood pressure several times, and kept asking me questions to keep me conscious. I had to be in traction to align the femur and allow it to heal correctly and be the same length as my uninjured right leg. Luckily, I had a clean break, and my only other injury was a cracked left clavicle. I was in the hospital for 23 days and went home with a cast that started just above my belly button. It went around my hips and then cut over to go down my left leg all the way to my toes. I could move and bend my right leg, but I could not sit up. I don't know how much school I ended up missing, but I had a home-bound tutor who would bring my homework and teach me my lessons. And now, except for a scar high on my left thigh, you would never know I had broken my femur.

My family has slightly different memories of this event, as does Angie. I hope they will share their recollections in the comments. . .

How the Grinch. . .

Einar and I watched the old cartoon version of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" on Monday night. I was tired from a long day on a video shoot and still trying to warm up (high of only about 5 that day). Watching the Grinch (and eating spicy-hot shrimp creole) helped me warm up. I sang along with some of the songs, and Einar even joined in! I always treasure the times when he'll sing, and they are few and far between. My favorite part of the whole 26 minute cartoon comes toward the end, when all the Who's are singing and the narrator says, "Christmas time will always be just as long as we have we. Christmastime is in our grasp, so long as we have hands to clasp." Beautiful. Christmas is coming. Can you feel it?

A new bed!

Einar and I used our remaining wedding gift money (and then some!) to buy a new, queen size, Tempur-pedic mattress. It arrived last Friday, and so far, so good. They told us it would take about 30 days to adjust, so it's hard to give a final grade, so to speak. I really like it so far, and I feel like I am sleeping better and better each night with fewer aches when I wake up. We'll see how I'm feeling (and how Einar's feeling) in a month!

Berbee Derby results

On Thanksgiving morning, I ran in the Berbee Derby 5K. My parents, parents-in-law, niece, nephew, and husband all came to cheer me on. It was sunny and chilly, and there were a lot of other runners and walkers. My goal was to finish in 30 minutes. The course was packed with people, so it was difficult to run at your own pace. Even so, I finished in 31:06. A great start to a wonderful Thanksgiving day!