Phelps + Bong = Adulthood

I’m still pondering Michael Phelps and the bong. Seems to me there’s a Major Moment going on here.

Think about it: Yeah, so Phelps got stoned. But hey, we’ve got a president who not only smoked; he, gasp, inhaled. (No pun intended.) And, bigger gasp, he admits it.

That’s important. Not that Obama or Phelps smoked pot. Coulda been they chugged some beers or slugged down some vodka.

The point is: young humans learn by doing (aka trial-and-error), and they often make mistakes. That’s what we do, whether we’re future presidents or athlete superstars. We screw up. We fuck up. We smoke pot and drive like idiots and snub the wierder kids and all kinds of other stuff.

That’s what we do en route to adulthood. It’s crazy to ask Michael Phelps to suddenly become A Perfect Adult without allowing him to make the stupid mistakes that eventually produce a sane, sensible, rational adult.

This falls into the same category as making kids wear helmets while they’re cycling along a bike path that’s no where near a street, or wearing fifteen body pads while they rollerskate, or padding every single surface in your house so infants won’t “get hurt” while they learn to walk.

Because that’s what we humans do: we “get hurt.” We experience life. We grow, we change, we learn. And eventually we become adults.

We become, in other words, older but wiser by fucking up en route to wisdom. So Phelps + bong = [wise] adulthood.

Pot, Bongs, Phelps, and Smokes

The whole Michael-Phelps-With-A-Bong thing got right by me (I was busy with and then missing King Willem), but when I caught up with it, yeah....... well. Big eye-roll.

The only thing "regrettable" is that he got caught on camera. This is perhaps the best -- and smartest -- collection of commentary on the episode.

And while we're on the subject of dumbass laws (which, yes, we were ....), this also got by me: a nice essay by Jacob Grier in Doublethink.

I don't smoke anymore but god damnit it pisses me off when governments tell business owners they can't allow smokers anymore. (Which my city council did here in Ames some years back. I never had any problem with places where lots of people smoked.

Or, rather, I solved the problem: I just didn't GO to them. Problem solved....)

As I said to the city council when it contemplated this ordinance, which it did on grounds of "public health": What's next? Someone's gonna complain that they're allergic to grass and so you're gonna pave over all the public parks so that he/she won't suffer the "health" consequences of living in a town with grass?

Baby In the House = Blog-Lite

King Willem, aka our first-and-probably-only grandson, is visiting this week.(*1) So -- posts over the next few days may be a bit light. I'll probably be spending much of the week either cooking or wiping drool from the faces of the baby (Willem's four months old) and my husband (he's hilariously gaga over Willem and gaga grandpa = drool).

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*1: Technical disclosure: He's not a biological relation. His mother is my step-daughter. But after almost 25 years, the "step" part tends to fall by the wayside.

A New Age Now Begins

1. My face almost hurts from smiling.

2. The speech can be summarized in three words: "Bush? Cheney? Begone! (Alternative interpretation: "We can't let these past few years destroy our better nature. Let's join hands and move forward.")

3. Did anyone notice how much the wheelchair-bound Cheney resembles Mr. Potter?

4. My main emotion at the moment? Relief.

5. Is Roberts a better justice than he is a swearer-in?

6. Yes, we can.

Not Overdosing on Obama-rama

I've been on and off weepy since the Great Train Ride to Washington on Saturday, and I figure I'll spend most of tomorrow with a wet face, too.

Which is why I'm trying not to watch TOO much Obama-stuff. It's so . . . tear-inducing. But -- less than 24 hours to go now. Finally. Finally.

Here's one thought: I feel ill when I think of what might have been. Things have gone downhill so fast since election day -- I suspect I'd be nearly suicidal right now if it were McCain-Palin who were ironing their ball gowns and tuxedos. God. Does NOT bear thinking about.

Gotta stop. Gotta go watch some more huge-crowds-in-DC-braving-cold-to-celebrate.

Well, one more thought: A new opinion poll indicates Americans trust BHO AND, more important, don't expect miracles overnight. Most Americans apparently assume it will take him years, not months, to fix this mess. I think that's an indication of what happens when politicians treat us like we have half a brain and more than a clue. When they treat us with respect: We voters will return the favor.

Anyway, this time tomorrow, Bush will be history. That alone, my friends, is worth celebrating. Having the Obamas in the White House just makes it that much sweeter.

Ear-Witness Report from the Twitter Tasting

Alan from the Good Beer Blog is another of those interesting contrarian guys (at least I assume he's a guy; I've never met him), and he's got a completely-worth-reading take on yesterday's Twitter beer tasting. I didn't partake, of course, for reasons noted here and here -- but now, well, geez, Alan's almost made a convert of me.