Howdy Doody Time

I watched Bush's self-congratulatory address on tv, out of inertia. Despite the much reported way that he's united the country, I still resent him. The real thank you that he should have given Colin Powell and Gen. Franks is for giving him fodder for his upcoming reelection campaign. I was so disgusted by his comparisons of this latest conflict with the Second World War. I'd like to think that my grandfather and his comrades in arms were fighting for more than low prices at the gas pump. His oblique reference to the destruction of that war, the Blitz, the Dresden bombings, et al, and how this one was better, ignores the major losses to Iraqi cultural instutions inicurred during this conflict. How long will it take Iraqi universities, libraries, and museums to recover from the rampant looting that American forces did nothing to prevent? The whole thing reminded me of the pep rallies that I went to great lengths to avoid in high school.
Now that major combat has ended in Iraq, maybe people will take notice of Bush's war on women. The first signs of a dangerous regime is leadership that believes the way to "reform" society is to control women's bodies. Morality cannot be legislated, but don't tell that to the republicans. Read Planned Parenthood's report here: War on Women
I gave away my cigarette case. It was the stylish accessory of an outdated lifestyle. I bought it in Burlington, VT, while on tour with the evil ballet. It suggested an old-fashioned elegance, made a ceremony of smoking a cigarette. I gave it to Lewis.
I miss smoking. It's stupid, I know. I wonder when I'll stop missing it. I enjoyed it, loved the taste and smell of a hand-rolled Gauloise. But it was time to quit killing myself. Smoking isn't chic or attractive. I may have felt like a French intellectual taking drags off my little Gauloises, but I looked like a girl with an addiction. I hope it takes this time. I've quit before. Quitting is the easiest thing in the world. It's staying quit that's difficult. I quit for two years once. I quit for a couple months last year. This time, I want to quit for good.