Yesterday I got to work on time... I know, it's very shocking. I'm ususally about 10-15 minutes late, but yesterday I decided to make a concerted effort to be there on time. I'm going to try to continue to do this every day. I'm not sure what exactly I will do with my extra 10-15 minutes, but I'm committing to doing something each day during that time for someone else. It could be working a little harder on my lesson plan to engage my students, running an errand for another teacher, sending an email to a friend who needs some support, or cleaning my room a little for the custodian.
Yesterday and today Obama has been working on the second economic stimulus package. He met with congressional leaders of both parties to determine what needs to be done to get it passed. He's also starting a daily economic briefing just like the daily national security meeting that it already in place.
Today I have decided I will spend part of every week catching up with friends over the phone who I don't get to see. Now this is somewhat selfish, because it definitely serves me as well. However, I want to catch up with people who really are having a bit of a difficult time. Earlier today I talked to my friend Michael O. He has had a fairly rough time over the past few months. He graduated from Carolina last spring, but he's now taking a few prerequisite classes so he can go to graduate school for genetic counseling. During this time, he's taking care of his grandmother who has Alzheimers. He's really helping his family out because they do not have to pay someone else to do it or try to put her in a nursing home. He cares deeply for her, but it is almost shattering him to be there with her as she deteriorates. I need to do a better job of being there for him throughout this process. So today, we talked about the LOST premeire and made plans for when we could see each other again to renew each other.
Although much of what we can do to bring change to America requires sacrifice and responsibility, some of it just requires being more present in our own lives. So, I will jump start each work day by actively doing something for someone else, and I will keep track of my friends who need some support each week.
Eventually I want to write about how these small changes are affecting me and changing me as well, but for now this space is just for my promises to help renew America.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Thursday, January 22, 2009
admire the consistency
Day 2... and I'm still doing this thing. I tend to have really fun ideas, get really excited about them, and then forget to follow through on the details. So, I'm glad that I'm still trying to consciously think about specific things I can do right now to help realize Obama's (and our) vision for America.
Today, Barack signed an executive order to close Guantanamo Bay within the next year. This will be tricky, but again, this ambitious and constitutionally focused agenda is very refreshing.
All day I was not sure what I was going to do to help change America. I was stressing out over it because many things seemed like a cop-out or just not something sustainable in the long run. James and I went to dinner at Five Guys (I'm not even going to pretend that it's remotely good for you... we'll tackle that eventually). I was getting the napkins and ketchup, and I immediately thought of something. I decided to get back to doing something that I started to do a long time ago. We unintentionally create a lot of waste during the day, and some of it can be avoided if we just think about what we are doing. A couple years ago I saw an Oprah show about decreasing your carbon footprint. A lady discussed how many napkins we use a day (about 6) and how much we could change the environment if everyone just stopped using one of those napkins a day. It seems simple, but I mindlessly grab a handful of napkins any time I go out to eat. I also constantly use paper towels or clorox wipes instead of cleaner and a scrubbing cloth. So today, and hopefully from now on, I want to think about and limit the amount of napkins I use.
So at Five Guys, after I grabbed a handful of napkins, I just used two (the food is very tasty, but very greasy). I put some back in the napkin holder and took a few home to use later. Again, this is nothing groundbreaking, but just think of what could happen if everyone began to seriously consider how many napkins they are using. So today, like yesterday, I pledge to be more conscious of my consumption.
Today, Barack signed an executive order to close Guantanamo Bay within the next year. This will be tricky, but again, this ambitious and constitutionally focused agenda is very refreshing.
All day I was not sure what I was going to do to help change America. I was stressing out over it because many things seemed like a cop-out or just not something sustainable in the long run. James and I went to dinner at Five Guys (I'm not even going to pretend that it's remotely good for you... we'll tackle that eventually). I was getting the napkins and ketchup, and I immediately thought of something. I decided to get back to doing something that I started to do a long time ago. We unintentionally create a lot of waste during the day, and some of it can be avoided if we just think about what we are doing. A couple years ago I saw an Oprah show about decreasing your carbon footprint. A lady discussed how many napkins we use a day (about 6) and how much we could change the environment if everyone just stopped using one of those napkins a day. It seems simple, but I mindlessly grab a handful of napkins any time I go out to eat. I also constantly use paper towels or clorox wipes instead of cleaner and a scrubbing cloth. So today, and hopefully from now on, I want to think about and limit the amount of napkins I use.
So at Five Guys, after I grabbed a handful of napkins, I just used two (the food is very tasty, but very greasy). I put some back in the napkin holder and took a few home to use later. Again, this is nothing groundbreaking, but just think of what could happen if everyone began to seriously consider how many napkins they are using. So today, like yesterday, I pledge to be more conscious of my consumption.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
day one
Since I don't really need this for school anymore, and I can't remember my password for emily-faith.blogspot.com (because the last time I posted there was Nov 6, 2006), I'm going to publish a bit here for a while.
Today is the first day of Obama's administration, and if you read my last post on emily-faith.blogspot.com, I've been waiting for this for over two years. Going to the inauguration is the absolute best thing I have ever done. Oprah keeps saying that Washington is vibrating, and she's not kidding. The entire city seemed so much more vibrant and alive than it did when I was there for a month this summer. People were shouting Obama's name from the top of tour buses, staring at the capitol with tears in their eyes, and singing "Lean on Me" on the metro. People all around are not just talking about what Obama will do for them, but how he has changed and inspired them. With CHANGE being the major theme, it's refreshing that people seem to understand that his call is for us to take control and be part of the change that he will work to bring.
CNN is doing a special on Obama's first 100 days... probably trying desperately to hang onto the viewers they had over the last few days. Today, Obama froze salaries of staffers making over $100,000 dollars a year and issued ethics rules restricting lobbyists and creating more transparency in government.
I almost hate the focus of the first 100 days because of its limited time frame and its blatent reference to FDR (and it is ridiculous... obviously CNN will report on the president's actions after that). However, the focus on the first 100 days provides a good challenge to the American people as well. Obama and Biden have promised to work tirelessly every day for our country... but what are we all doing? Right now, I'm watching Oprah on DVR and getting excited about Carolina v. Clemson and the LOST premeire tonight. There's nothing wrong with that, but I have exactly decided how I'm going to be part of all of this change. All of us, all 300 million, need to be actively considering how to incorporate change into our lives. We need to be more conscious of our decisions and how they impact our world.
So, for the next 100 days, I will pick something to do that will help bring change. It does not have to be something huge, but it does have to be something. Today I unplugged my cell phone charger after it charged last night. Although it will be a slight annoyance to plug it back in every night, doing this will decrease my consumption of energy.
Today is the first day of Obama's administration, and if you read my last post on emily-faith.blogspot.com, I've been waiting for this for over two years. Going to the inauguration is the absolute best thing I have ever done. Oprah keeps saying that Washington is vibrating, and she's not kidding. The entire city seemed so much more vibrant and alive than it did when I was there for a month this summer. People were shouting Obama's name from the top of tour buses, staring at the capitol with tears in their eyes, and singing "Lean on Me" on the metro. People all around are not just talking about what Obama will do for them, but how he has changed and inspired them. With CHANGE being the major theme, it's refreshing that people seem to understand that his call is for us to take control and be part of the change that he will work to bring.
CNN is doing a special on Obama's first 100 days... probably trying desperately to hang onto the viewers they had over the last few days. Today, Obama froze salaries of staffers making over $100,000 dollars a year and issued ethics rules restricting lobbyists and creating more transparency in government.
I almost hate the focus of the first 100 days because of its limited time frame and its blatent reference to FDR (and it is ridiculous... obviously CNN will report on the president's actions after that). However, the focus on the first 100 days provides a good challenge to the American people as well. Obama and Biden have promised to work tirelessly every day for our country... but what are we all doing? Right now, I'm watching Oprah on DVR and getting excited about Carolina v. Clemson and the LOST premeire tonight. There's nothing wrong with that, but I have exactly decided how I'm going to be part of all of this change. All of us, all 300 million, need to be actively considering how to incorporate change into our lives. We need to be more conscious of our decisions and how they impact our world.
So, for the next 100 days, I will pick something to do that will help bring change. It does not have to be something huge, but it does have to be something. Today I unplugged my cell phone charger after it charged last night. Although it will be a slight annoyance to plug it back in every night, doing this will decrease my consumption of energy.
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