Happy Anniversary To Us!

Today is our 23rd wedding anniversary (this is a co-written post :-)).  We chose to get married this time of year because it's our favorite season (Winter is coming).  The fact that it's also the most hectic, especially once children are in the picture, never entered our minds when we were walking down the aisle.  Over the years,  we've found that it's not easy to carve out time for ourselves to celebrate, between Thanksgiving festivities and getting ready for Christmas. We have learned though, that it is important to make that effort and make that time.

We've had so many wonderful and warm congratulations from friends and family remembering our wedding day, it is truly heartwarming and humbling.  We feel that it's a tribute to the fact and evidence that it really does take a community to support a marriage and a family. It's also striking the number of comments that we get saying how "easy" we make it look. We've got friends and family who talk about how they hope for a relationship like ours.  As flattering as this is, we really need to set the record straight - it's priceless and wonderful but it is absolutely, unequivocally, not easy.  

Anyone who tells you different - that their relationship is easy - is either lying, or in for a very rude awakening. Life and marriage are full of ups and downs.  If you're in it only for the good times, then don't expect your marriage to last.  That may sound harsh, but it's the plain truth.  Things won't always be good.  The goal is always for the good to outweigh the bad; that's what makes it worth hanging in there and doing whatever you need to do to support each other.  Learn how to communicate, address any issues as soon as possible and in the healthiest way possible. We've both had to learn how to talk about the things we didn't want to talk about. Our knee-jerk reaction to almost any problem is to ignore it and hope it will go away.  Trust us, it doesn't. (And it really doesn't help if your partner has the same inclination).

Getting over the hump in bad times and getting through them with your relationship intact takes a lot of work; a lot of forgiveness; a lot of understanding; a lot of compromise; a lot of prayer; and a lot of love. We're writing this together for a couple of reasons - it seemed right - an anniversary is a team effort. We're also writing this together because we've come through some really, incredibly hard times and are now coming out the other side. We want to say to anyone out there having trouble in their relationship or even in finding love, not to think that if it isn't easy, it isn't good or it isn't true love.  You don't know what goes on behind closed doors.  You only see the face that people choose to show the world. Relationships that seem great could be really troubled in private; or ones that seem troubled, could actually be really healthy because the individuals have learned how to express themselves and accept each other.  You just don't know.

We are  firm believers that anything can be worked through if both partners want to. Our marriage is living proof of it. It's not always been easy but, it's always been worth it. We've been through a lot, but we are very happy and very much still in love. That's the reason that it is so important to make time to celebrate it.  It's an accomplishment that we are both proud of and that deserves recognizing, no matter how hectic the time of year.

<3 Mark and Greta

No More Lies

As the clock winds down on the 14th day of the government shutdown and we edge ever closer to defaulting on our country's debt, I find it ironic that my right leaning friends and I are actually, for once, agreeing on something.  We are all thoroughly pissed off at the stalemate and frustrated with the lack of progress being made toward some sort of resolution to this crisis. We are "liking" many of the same postings or comments on Facebook. The irony, however, is that the reasons behind the posting or the "like" are diametrically opposed.

Each side blames the other entirely for the mess. Republicans would like us to believe that everything they are doing is the result of unfair actions of the opposing side; that they are somehow being forced into this outrageous behavior.

In my opinion, the trouble comes when uninformed people choose to believe the lies being told by a few, very vocal individuals. They want to believe in the leaders of their party and blindly trust what they are being told.  The media, for the first time in longer than I can remember, at least seem to be waking up to the danger of letting these leaders just tell whatever lies they want.  But, is it too little, too late? Is this what happens when we let people tell lies and spin stories for the sole purpose of making other people look bad and never stand up and call them out on it?


My sense of justice and fairness is strong.  My son seems to have inherited this trait, and I don't know if that pleases me or worries me. There are times when I want to tell him that he needs to be less sensitive and let some things go. I tell him that you can't control what other people say and do. You can only control your own actions. But I understand, only too well, his frustration when he witnesses injustice and hurt caused to innocent people due to one person's lies.  Some people just can't handle accepting that things don't always go their way. And when they don't, these people, even grown adults, will do anything to try to force the outcome they want.  

On The Ed Show the other night I heard a politician express in simple terms why the President is not in a position of power in this situation, despite the fact that the HealthCare Reform Act was legally passed and upheld by the Supreme Court.  The reason was simply, "you can't negotiate with Crazy."  They went on to discuss the warped understanding that the American public has of the Health Care Bill, by playing clips of the Jimmy Fallon show's man on the street interviewing people on whether they were for or against "ObamaCare".  (In case you missed it, no one interviewed knew that "ObamaCare" was the same thing as the Health Care Reform Act, and while they were all in favor of the Health Care Reform Act, and each of the aspects of the Bill that were detailed for them, they all were against "ObamaCare").

It is clear that flat out lies are being told, confusing the public.  Talk of impeachable offenses, and the President being born in Kenya are still accepted by a portion of the public, despite being faced with unrefutable facts otherwise. It infuriates and sickens me and I don't know what can be done about it.

You know the old adage, that if a lie is repeated often enough, people will start to believe it?  Well, it seems that it's true.  Scientific America published an article to that effect, indicating that, not only is it true, but that trying to contradict the lies with truth often may inadvertantly strengthen the lie.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=how-to-stop-misinformation-from-becoming-popular-belief

I don't know about you, but I have a really hard time just accepting that there may not be a way to stop lies from becoming "truths" in the public mind.  I admit I'm pretty idealistic and always look for and expect the best in people.  But, I don't think it's naive to stand up and fight for something that matters, for truth and honor, justice and respect.  The truth is honorable and should win. Period.  Our President is the leader of free world and deserves our respect. Period.

Maybe calling bull-headed politicians who are wreaking havoc in our lives Crazy (with a capital "C") is not helpful.  Maybe calling liars and manipulators in general "Crazy" is not helpful.  But, does that mean letting them get away with it is? I don't think so.

Maybe I've been reading too many comics and watching too may superhero movies (Nah).  It is always a good thing to stand up for what you believe in, regardless of your fears, regardless of how difficult it may be, regardless of the odds against you.  I believe that with all my heart, and I always will.

 Yes, we are fearful of what may happen if the shutdown continues to go on, or if our country is allowed to default on our debt.  But we can't let fear cause us to succumb to this blackmail.    No one should be allowed to hurt others with lies for their own gain or blackmail someone to get their way. This is what I teach my son. This is what I  try to show him by example. This is what I am hoping our President shows us all by standing up to the Republicans holding our country's well-being hostage.

At the end of the day, we all have to do our own research and find out the facts before placing blind trust in statements being put out by people who have a definite agenda.  Usually the most vocal people are the ones with something to hide. They are the ones who have a vested self interest in ensuring that their stories are heard and drown out any opposing views, for fear that that may be all it takes to take down their house of cards.
The truth is quieter and more sure of itself. Seek it out and don't let the liars win just because they make the most noise.

The Geeky Ties That Bind

SO I went to Dragon Con in Atlanta this past weekend :)  I could go on and on about what a great time we had, but what I really want to express can pretty much be summed up in this one story:  I was at a panel with Lee Majors and Lindsey Wagoner - that's right the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman - pretty geeky, I know.  Well, at one point this lady went to the mic to ask a question. As soon as she started to talk you could hear a quiver in her voice. She told them both how happy she was to see them (they don't do many Con appearances) and how she watched them both growing up. She then told Lee Majors how from the days of the Big Valley and The Virginian to the "Six Mill" (as Majors calls it), to the Fall Guy - he was her mom's "top guy." Her voice got even shakier. Then she said that her mom had passed away just last month and how she wished she could have brought her to Dragon Con, but how happy she was to be able to be there herself and tell them how much they meant to her and her mom. There wasn't a dry eye in the house. Everyone clapped when she was done and both the stars said some lovely things. That show, though - with the track suits and Oscar Goldman and Steve Austin - that was part of the connective tissue between that lady and her mom. 

The reason there wasn't a dry eye in the house was because everyone was sitting there (picture the courtroom in Big Daddy) thinking about the geeky things they had done and seen with their mom, dad, brother, sister or best friend. They were thinking about the shows, the comic books, the cartoons, the action figures, the movies, the games (the pop culture energy that binds us all together) that were the impetus for many very special shared moments in their lives. That's the reason I love Cons.

I grew up watching The Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman and I wanted to share that with my son and all that it meant to me.  Lindsey Wagoner was one of the first women on T.V. that I identified with that was strong and independent and made her own decisions.  The show did an exceptional job of using Lindsey’s femininity and intelligence as a part of her strength and not just constantly relying on her bionics to solve every situation.  She was a superwoman without being a comic book character.  She was someone who could be real.  She embodied a woman’s strength at a time that coincided with the women’s movement.  I was only in grade school when the show was on, but my sister, who came to a couple of days of the Con with us, was a young woman.  And yet, for both of us, Lindsey Wagoner embodied the women we wanted to be, and it was a nostalgic and exciting moment for us to share.

My son introduced me to Dr. Who this past fall.  I was hooked after one episode. We then, introduced my husband to the show, and soon the whole family became pretty devoted Whovians. We spent last fall as a family working our way through all the current Doctors (9, 10 and 11) and are now selectively watching “Classic Doctors” as we await the start of the new season.  It was no surprise that my son wanted to see as much Doctor Who as the Con had to offer, and my husband and I enthusiastically agreed.  At Dragon Con we got to meet the 5^th Doctor (Peter Davison; who, for non-Whovians out there, also happens to be the 10^th Doctor’s Father in Law ;)).  He was friendly and personable and told personal stories and jokes and was everything we hoped he would be.

We also attended Wizard World in Philadelphia this year. As a smaller Con it offers easier access to celebrities and more intimate venues for panels, etc.  We went to panels on Whovian history and cosplay and we managed to attend several other panels, at both Cons, from Star Trek TNG to William Shatner to Stan Lee to The Walking Dead.  I wasn’t sure how much my son would “get” or be interested in some of the panels, but it turned out that he surprised me.  Not only did he stay engaged and asked some really smart questions afterwards, he enjoyed them so much, he wanted to see more. His enthusiasm remained un-dampened by crowds or lines (something rarely encountered in this 13 year old). Both Michael Rooker from The Walking Dead and William Shatner kept him laughing until I thought he would bust a gut!  His favorite parts, of course, are when the actors tell stories about being on set and playing pranks on each other or rib each other.  In the past couple of years he has become engrossed in his middle school theater group, so I think he not only relates to the stories, but is surprised and happy to hear that his experiences are not that different from adults in theater, particularly celebrities.

My point here is that, whatever your particular “fandom”, it really is so much more than just a T.V. show, book, movie, comic, celebrity, game, etc.  Pop culture and the Conventions that celebrate it mean so much more than just getting to see your favorite celebrity up close or an opportunity to dress up as your favorite comic book hero. It is an atmosphere of acceptance and understanding, and a place where fans can come together and let their “geek flags” fly with pride.  But most of all, for everyone there, and especially for this little family, it is a place where we can connect. It is the energy, the conversations that are sparked, and the memories made, that are one of the important ties that bind us.  

In Defense of Privacy - The Difference Between Private and Public

When Bradley Manning leaked documents to Wikileaks, DOD employees still couldn't look at them on their work computers. Why? Because in DOD's eyes, those documents, while having been made public were actually still considered to be classified. Sometimes the private gets made public - that doesn't make it any less private.

The same goes for Huma Abedin and her husband. Their problems were made public - that in no way changes the fact that they are very private, the most private, matters. The problem is that when they were made public, a lot of people thought that gave them the right, not just to comment on them, but to stand in judgment of how they (particularly Huma) were dealing with their problems. It didn't. What people should have done, is to say that it seems like an awful situation and I sure wouldn't want to be in that situation myself BUT (and here is the critical part) I don't know all the details, it’s not my life, I don’t live in their shoes. A woman (or a man, for that matter) dealing with a tragedy in her (or his) marriage deserves respect and privacy to deal with it.  

Can we, as a public, be any more demeaning and callous?


I don't presume to know why Huma made the decision(s) she made, but I'm going to respect her private life and not act like judge and jury and wear some sanctimonious cloak of 'I know better' and 'I would behave differently.'  The short answer and the true answer is that you're not her AND unless you're her best friend, I'm guessing she hasn't called you up to talk through all this. 

I also don’t have any idea why Hilary stayed with Bill after his escapades were made public. Again, that was a seriously private matter made public, and their handling of it was and is a private matter.  So I seriously think that anybody who wants to judge Huma or Hilary  - two incredibly smart, and by all accounts tough and successful women, are actually doing harm to the image of two women who could and should serve as role models NOT JUST for women but for men as well. The dirty truth that no one seems to want to admit is that it is much tougher, more courageous, takes much more self-esteem and hard work to try to repair a damaged relationship than to walk away from one. The fact that these women have had to try to do this in the face of public scrutiny should be respected, not ridiculed.  

No one is to say whose marriages will survive and whose won’t, what transgressions can be overcome and what can’t, and who can or will change and who won’t. Until you’ve walked a mile in someone else’s shoes you cannot say what they should do or what you would do in their position, because you don’t really know what “their position” is.  You only know what it looks like from the outside.   

Life is complicated; marriage even more so. Let's put down the arrogance and presumption that we know enough about the personal lives of anyone, including public figures, to judge them on how they conduct their private affairs. 

My husband is a historian who studied Early America.  It always upsets him when people refer to “The Founders” as if they were some kind of supermen and not really human.  They were human, they had flaws, they made some seriously questionable decisions.  But, on the other side of that scale, is the great work they did – not because they were superhuman, but precisely because they were human and they faced the same struggles we still do today.  That’s what makes people role models – not their perfection, but their imperfection; not their success, but the way they face their challenges.

Male or female, we all make difficult decisions in life.  I have a son, and I hope that I am a good role model for him.  I hope that when confronted with challenges in his life, he will be able to face them with courage, grace, intelligence and strength, and not let other people's judgment influence his decisions.  I want him to know that it is important to be respectful of other people and private matters, even when they are made public.

Happy Birthday To My Big Thinker

My husband is what I call a “big thinker.”  He is always full of out-of-the-box ideas.  The risks and adventures that we have taken in our lives are because of him.  Looking back at many years spent together, the vast majority of my husband’s ideas have led to some amazing things that we would never have experienced otherwise; people we would never have met, places we would never have gone and things we would never have seen.

I am much more detail-oriented and I often can’t see the forest for all the trees in my way.  It takes my high flying husband to see that vision and point the way.   We are opposites in many ways, and that’s a good thing.  He makes me more outgoing and social, pushes me to make changes and try new things.

After all these years, he is still the one person that I most enjoy being with.  He is the yin to my yang, the Westley to my Princess Buttercup, my blue lobster.

I am amazed by his talent, his intellect, his quick wit and sense of humor. We have been through a great deal lately; the good, the bad and the very very ugly, you might say. So, I appreciate, more than ever, the effort he goes to every day to let me know how much he loves me. 

So, on this day, my husband’s birthday, I just wanted to take a moment to let him know how much I love him and his big thinking. Happy Birthday @moehlert! I can’t wait to see what our next adventure is going to bring!   

The Quiet Cafe

I had an amazing dream the other night.  I went to a Quiet Café. It was so real and so blissful, that when I woke up, it took a few minutes for me realize that it was just a dream.  I’m afraid as I try to write this that it will probably just sound silly, and I really wish that I could do it justice in writing.  But, in my dream state, in my imagination, it was perfect and blissful.  I am the type of person who rarely remembers my dreams beyond those first hazy moments of waking up.  But, the Quiet Café is a dream that I know I will not forget, and in not forgetting it exists for me.

The Quiet Café is like a spa.  You check in at the front desk by signing your name to the guest book and being assigned a little room of your own, somewhat like a cabana.  Plush robes are provided.  There are massage and regular spa services, a pool, a library, and a little restaurant.  You change into your slippers and robe and can either take a nap in your cabana, watch a favorite movie (with headphones) or venture to the pool or spa areas or the library.  There are waiters who bring around tea or cocktails and a little restaurant with beautiful tapas-like foods and snacks.  The only rule – you got it – is No Talking, none; not even whispering.  There are little note pads for communicating when necessary.  It is pure bliss.

The reason why I am revisiting the Quiet Café this Sunday after a long holiday weekend is that I find myself dreading going back to work tomorrow.  I know that end-of-weekend (especially long holiday weekend) blues are pretty universal.  However, I’m finding the prospect of the full work week ahead of me particularly daunting right now.  My company is in the middle of the busiest selling season that anyone I work with can remember.  In addition, within the division I work, this is the busiest season of the year, with probably 90% of my deadlines occurring between June and July every year.

Also, like most office workers these days, I work in a cubicle environment.  To be fair, I have as private a cubicle as I could probably ask for.  The walls are high and I am in the corner against a window wall with a nice view of the mountains in the distance; not bad at all.  However, it is still a cubicle.  It is still an environment where co-workers can shout at each other over the walls and carry on conversations several cubicles away, that you would swear you are a part of, simply by virtue of being in hearing distance.  When I spend long hours every day pouring over contract details in an effort to provide concise and coherent advice on any liability or financial ramifications in provisions written by lawyers and  government agencies (in 8 point Times New Roman type, no less) I have to admit, the extraneous noise sometimes makes me want to pull my hair out.

I worry that I am getting burned out.  I have learned through past seasons’ experience, that both for the sake of my professional life and my personal life, I need to take particular care of myself during this season.  I spent my first few years with this company trying my hardest just to keep up.  There was a significant learning curve. My personal and family life suffered dearly.  I learned my lesson.  I no longer take work home with me.  If I need to put in extra hours, I make the effort to get into the office early or stay a little later at night; whatever it takes to keep it at the office.  When I get home, I relax, period.  I make the most out of my weekends with family trips and outings and dates with the hubby.  We focus on each other completely when at home together.  Life at home is good.  Maybe that is a little of why it is so hard these days to go back to work on Mondays.

Whatever the reason, I am sure I am not alone in my post-holiday weekend blues.  Couldn't we all use a little Quiet Café?

The Man Should Kill the Bugs

I woke up this Father’s Day to a big ugly water bug in my shower.   I hate bugs. I didn’t notice him until he was already drowned, but it creeped me out so much that I hopped out of the shower, soaking wet, and shouted at my husband “Bug in the shower! Bug in the shower!” He very sweetly, and without complaint, got out of the bed, came into the bathroom and scooped the dead, drowned bug out of the shower with a tissue.  His only comment was something to the effect of “yeah, that was an ugly one.”

This is exactly what I expected him to do.  Because that’s that what the man does. He kills the bugs.

I normally consider myself a staunch feminist.  So, I know I’m probably putting my foot in my mouth here and sounding like a total hypocrite.  But, it’s my truth.  So, here it goes.  The man should do the following:

1. Kill the bugs
2. Take care of the car
3.  Grill out

That’s it.  For me, these are the basics, and they are pretty much non-negotiable.  This is not to say that I am in any way unable to kill the bugs, take care of car maintenance, or grill a mean piece of meat.  It just means that this is my gold standard for how a household should run.  And why is that you may ask?  As a little girl, these are things I noticed that my father took care of, on a regular basis, no questions asked.  These things were his domain.  That is not to say that I never saw my father cook a meal or fold a load of laundry.  It’s just that those things were not, mainly speaking, his responsibility.  That’s also not to say, that these are the ONLY things that I expect of the man in the family and in no way does it mean that my father didn’t do a million other both amazing and ordinary things for his family every day. 

However, I have memories of his running to our defense, shoe in hand, at the call of “bug!”  I remember coming home from college and him having to check the oil and tires on my car or run it up to the service station and have it serviced and cleaned for me.  My father was such a huge fan of the outdoor grill that he would grill in any weather, and any season, literally. I have vivid images of him running outside to turn the meat, in freezing temperatures, through falling snow and pouring rain.  (Yes, that’s a little crazy, I know.  But, I love it.)

This Father’s Day, I want to blow kisses and thanks up to heaven to my Daddy for the example he set for me and for making me feel safe and loved. 

And to my husband, the father of my child, love and kisses on this Father’s Day.  Thank you for being my biggest supporter and a wonderful father to our boy.  But more than that, the person who knows me best in the world, the person who shares my secrets, my heartbreaks and my joys, my lover, my friend, my car guy, my grillmaster and of course my Killer of the Bugs.