Gay marriage: the non issue, issue

I guess I never really cared one way or the other about the whole gay marriage issue.  For people to say they need the governments approval before they feel they are able to love who they love really bothers me.  I am married. I never felt that I needed to have government approval to do so.  I considered myself married when I said my vows to my husband.  We signed the government paperwork later.  It never occurred to me that I wasn't legally married until I signed that paperwork.  I pledged my love and commitment to him and he did the same for me. We were married.

Look at the show Sister Wives.  Legally only one wife is married to the husband but all of those women have made a commitment to him and have kept their vows to him.

Look Glenn and Maggie. The world ended. Zombies have taken over but it doesn't stop them from deciding to get married. There is no legal document to be signed in their world but they still are proposing the idea of marriage.

Now I understand that people want to be able to share the benefits that have earned with their loved ones. Healthcare is off the table because Obama promised free health care for all.  Where I work, in California, same sex domestic couples are able to share all their benefits with their partners. Whereas opposite sex domestic partners are not able to do so unless they are over 62.  Does this sound equal?  No it's not but you doesn't see a huge uprising over it.

In the end I think that if two people, whoever they may be, need to have their relationship validated by the federal government then maybe they need to look inside their relationship and see what they are really looking for.  Please don't get me wrong. I am in complete support of the institute of marriage.  I just wish people would focus on the relationship itself and not the title.

BOOK REVIEWS - Jan 2013

I guess it's not so much of a review but more of a way to track what books I've read.

THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNETS NEST
Finally I finished this book. It's not that I didn't enjoy it.  I just kept finding other things that I would rather read.  I liked the book.  I'm pretty sure there would be more novels if the author hadn't died.  He tied up all the loose ends of the trilogy  but left the ending open enough to write about the characters again.  It's kind of sad that I won't know what becomes of Kalle Blomkvist and Lisbeth.  I give it 3 1/2, maybe 4 stars out of 5.  It was my least favorite of the trilogy.



THE HUNGER GAMES
I loved this book.  Even though it's a teen novel I really enjoyed it.  It only took me a few days to read it mostly because it's an easy read but also because I wanted to read more.  I will definitely be reading the rest of the trilogy.

New Year, New Ideas

Every year, like many people, I make a New Years Resolution.  Most years I actually keep mine.  This year I have several.

1 - Avoid Wal-Mart at all costs.  I really hate that place and I get in a bad mood when I go there so I have decided to limit my trips there.  Sam's club doesn't count. 

2 - Attempt to learn Italian.  I know I probably won't ever be fluent but I would really like to be able to speak to my sister in laws family.  I would also like to be able to understand it if my niece says something to me in Italian.

3 - Read 12 books.  I don't read as much as I used to so I really need to get back into that habit.  Here is my list.

 - While Europe Slept by Bruce Brawer
 - The Host by Stephanie Meyer
 -  Atlas Shrugged - by Ann Rand
 - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling
 - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
 - Room by Emma Donoghue
 - The New Road to Serfdom by Daniel Hannan
 - The Forgotten Man  by Amity Shlaes
 - Demonic by Ann Coulter
 - Screwed by Dick Morris
 - Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James
 - The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

This list isn't set in stone but I have been wanting to read these books for a while now so I figured this is the year to do it.  If I like the first 50 Shades of Grey book I'll probably read the other two.