Some things never change. . .

I was cleaning out a little used drawer in my den today when I found a plastic bag stuffed with memorabilia from a different time and different place.  1989 to be exact. Oddly enough, my sentiments haven't changed, even though I' m 24 years older.

Just this morning I read in the Miami Herald that North Dakota signed the nation's strictest abortion limits into law.  Roe v. Wade was decided in the Supreme Court in 1973, but they never give up on efforts to take away a women's right to choose, do they.

In the foreground of the photo below you can see a small square pin outlined in red that reads "March for Women's Equality And Women's Lives" - April 9, 1989 - Washington, D.C.

I remember it like it was yesterday.  The bus ride to the airport. The plane trip to Dulles Airport. Assembling, literally hundreds of thousands of women from all around the nation, in front of the Washington Monument, wearing pins that read "In My Heart I'm Marching For Choice", "Never Again! (with a wire hanger in the background), "Keep Abortion Legal", and in my group, "South Florida For Choice"..

We marched to the White House where we chanted "Free Barbara Bush! Free Barbara Bush!"  It was well known that she was not in agreement with her husband, President George Walker Bush's stand on women's rights.  We swept up Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol.  It was an amazing moment in history and I was very proud to be there.

How sad that we are fighting that same battle in our country again today.  Abortion has become a political tool for the far right.  It never fails to amaze me that these "true believers" are willing to kill a living person to "save" a fetus. 

Some things never do change.  How very sad.

My March Morning Madness. . .

Little boys of seven and eight years old are super active. Whether they have perfect eyesight or are legally blind.  I know, because I just spent the morning working with four of the latter,at the Miami Lighthouse For The Blind, and I am in awe, not to mention exhausted, at how smart and active they are.

It's Spring Break time here in Miami, and the kids are out of their regular school sessions so the Lighthouse is even busier than usual.  My friend, Virginia Jacko, the CEO of the Lighthouse, asked me to help out Osias, the regular teacher.  Osias, by the way, is also blind, so in our classroom I was the only sighted person, with the four boys, one little girl, and two other volunteers.  I came in handy to locate lost backpacks, find paper for the brailers, and take Luana, the little girl, to the ladies room.

I am most in awe of Silvio, a self possessed eight year old with complete mastery of the computer with its remarkable JAWS program designed to "speak" to blind users.  Silvio informed me that he had a workbook in his backpack that he wanted me to look at because he was committed to completing 5 work projects during his Spring Break.

Project #1 had to do with the 50 United States and their contractional or non-contractional abbreviations.  Who knew that Florida's FL is non-contractional and Kentucky's KY is contractional???  Sylvio understood better than I did.  Working at his brailer, he first inserted a sheet of special paper, then waited impatiently for me to start calling out the states in alphabetical order.  I'm a touch typist but this kid, working on his brailer, was really fast!  To check what he had just typed he would run his finger over the raised braile dots on the paper and, when satisfied it was correct, nod to me to continue.

We finished off the 50 states in record time and then it was time for lumch. Although the kids all have canes that fold up and fit into a holder on their belts, they don't always use them, so Osias asked me to escort Silvio, Rey and Victor to the cafeteria on the first floor.  Getting three kids, each going in a different direction, into the elevator, was an interesting experience.  As was lunch.

I caught on quickly that "the chicken and rice is at 12:30 on your plate, and the brownies are at 2 oclock. . .but please don't eat them first".  The last plea to absolutely no avail. 

The kids knew the best part was coming. . .lunch over, it was music time.  An upright piano stood in a far corner of the lunchroom and they couldn't get there fast enough.  Silvio had already informed me that he had been taking piano lessons for two years, but I wasn't prepared to hear him sit down at the keyboard and pull off an arpeggio that caused everyone in the room to stop what they were doing and turn their attention to this remarkable little boy.

In fairness, Osias insisted that everyone got their turn at the keyboard, from little Luana who knocked out "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star", to never-still Rey who quieted long enough to play a creditable "Eensy Weensy Spider".  Even shy D'Vante, the youngest of the boys,  played Chop Sticks  Only Victor, legally blind but with enough remaining sight to play his beloved video games on his little GameBoy, refused to make music. He was happy,  however,  to explain in detail to me the game he was playing and to let me know he had just beaten his own record.  I was suitably impressed.

I arrived at the Lighthouse at 9:30 in the morning and said goodbye at 12:30, after promising the kids  that I would return and giving each a hug and a kiss goodbye.  Osias thanked me for helping.  I thanked him for an incredible morning. 
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Photo captions:
#1 - Osias works with Luana at the piano
#2 - Silvio shows his musical skills. Rey left and Victor in background
#3 - Our classroom.  Victor on his Gameboy in foreground.

I just discovered I'm a cruciverbalist.  And all this time I thought I was simply Jewish.

I realize now why the "significant other" and I get along so well.  He's also a cruciverbalist although I doubt that either he or his family were aware of this significant character trait since he rarely displays it to anyone but moi..

OK, so you just googled the word on your iPhone and found out that cruciverbalist comes from the Latin word crux for cross, and verbum for word.  Our secret is out. . .crossword puzzles are our thing.  We're addicted to our daily dose in the Miami Herald, happiest when one or the other can graciously offer to help out if the other is stuck on a word.  Gracious with a touch of superciliousness, that is.

One of the favorite gifts I ever received was Simon & Shuster's Super Crosswords Book.  My grandson Adam gave it to me several years back and it contains 225 perforated pages of puzzles.  Every time I go on a plane trip I rip out 3 or 4 pages from the book to stuff into my carry-on for something to do while flying.  It makes the time go faster than just reading. 

Actually, according the article on the internet that alerted me to the word, cruciverbalists just plain love word games of any kind.  I guess that accounts for the six different Words With Friends games I continually play on my iPhone with a variety of friends/relatives/colleagues.  Am I competitive?  You bet I am.

According to Will Shortz, the NY Times Crossword Editor and the God of all puzzlers, the fascination of crossword puzzles exists in the fact that "with a human-made puzzle, you have the satisfaction of being completely in control: you start the challenge from the beginning, and you move all the way to the end.  That's satisfaction you don't get much in real life.   You feel in control and that's a great feeling."

Obviously, that explanation does not obtain to the Sunday NY Times puzzle.  Sorry, Will.  I hardly ever feel like I'm in control when I work on that.  Anyone who does, deserves to be called anything they want.
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Photo caption:  Definition of "Chutzpah":  doing puzzle in red pen!