A Super High-Stakes Game of Chutes and Ladders

Whew, it's been a month within a week! I think pretty much everybody, at least every American with a working central nervous system, is worried about Wall Street. "My Gods, it looks like a game of Chutes and Ladders, with long chutes and a short ladder," I said at the sight of a chart today. (This was, of course, before tonight's close.)
"Super high-stakes Chutes and Ladders," said my work husband. And the game's still on....

So far, L'Ailee and I are relatively unaffected, and so are our friends. However, we realize just how reliant we are on Wall Street's good performance and good sense now. Maybe that sounds dumb, because, of course, every American is. But we're the Street's support staff. I'm a secretary, L'Ailee teaches martial arts and other forms of exercise at an upscale gym, L'Ailee's best friend is a cabbie, etc. Commentators have said that every job in high finance creates two other jobs. We understand that very well. L'Ailee's best friend, who is divorced, has had such a hard time getting to see his daughter every other weekend. His ex-wife has a financial job, for now. She's been very depressed and has actually *asked* him to babysit a couple evenings this week. We wanted him to be able to see his daughter more, but this isn't how we wanted that to happen. I think perhaps a lot of people are saying, "This isn't how we wanted that to happen."

We have tickets to the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover this weekend. Several of us thought of getting refunds. But we're going. We're just not going to go crazy with beer and souvenirs, is all. We're going to pay close attention, because we probably won't get to do this again for a while. I will hold up my clever sign while Speed TV films their pre-race show, bright orange like Tony Stewart's car (for now), with "Hi, Mom!" on one side and "A fence climb is better than a backflip!" on the other. It refers to Tony Stewart's and the hated Carl Edwards' victory celebrations. The race is on Mabon, the Autumn Equinox. It is also Pagan Pride Day. I will wear my pentacle like I always do and probably have to explain to most people who see it that I am not a Jew or a Satanist. That will be an expression of Pagan pride all by itself.

I have to do something more environmentally friendly this weekend, though, something a little more appropriately Witch-like. So L'Ailee and I will be going to the Fashion Institute of Technology's Gothic: Dark Glamour exhibition on Saturday morning. L'Ailee can't wait to see this; I have been teasing her, telling her she has to be careful that they won't try to keep her as part of an exhibit. Later, I will help with a beach cleanup. September 20 is Coastal Cleanup Day, and that seems right so close to a Pagan sabbat, too.

Things happen. Horrible things happen. But there are still races and beaches and museums and fashion and friends. That's something.

Links:

A California mixed-sex couple decides to act like they're too immature to get married by having a tantrum. Meanwhile, there's a possibility of same-sex marriage in Washington, DC next year! L'Ailee and I do like DC.

LGBT visibility is such a beautiful thing, ain't it? The right-wingers will have a field day with the knowledge that the texting train engineer in Los Angeles was gay. But then again, so is Maurice Sendak, author of "Where the Wild Things Are".

Advanced Style is a blog that shows off the real style of real people of an advanced age. I love these pictures and stories. They remind me of my own great-grandmother and great-aunts. Speaking as a woman in her thirties, I find this so much more encouraging than ads featuring an over-Botoxed actress selling moisturizers or anti-osteoporosis pills. The pictures are mostly taken in NYC, which also shows off the beauty of this city!

How McCain and Palin benefit from white privilege.

What would Sarah Palin have named you?

Finally, something that made me laugh like a four-year-old learning about Depends: NASCAR Cancels Remainder of Season Following David Foster Wallace's Death