Lean Forward

If you've been in any suspense about the family in my last post, I'll tell you this much; the mother, my good friend, has made the decision to be courageous instead of remain in denial and fear. The father has agreed to leave. Exhale.

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Momentum is a funny thing. It takes the greatest amount of force to begin movement, from there, it's just leaning forward to keep it moving.

I can't help but laugh after having read an elementary explanation of the principles of momentum. I thought it might inspire me to apply it to such basic things as, ohhh, say--cleaning off my desk to working on long overdue research/writing projects to my gardening & laundry.

Here's what the Physics Classroom had to say:

"Momentum can be defined as "mass in motion." All objects have mass; so if an object is moving, then it has momentum - it has its mass in motion. The amount of momentum which an object has is dependent upon two variables: how much stuff is moving and how fast the stuff is moving."

Now, for those of you (and I'm in the club right there with you) who have a little trouble walking up to the momentum launch pad, you might find it helpful, as I did, to just plug in the word "ass" for "mass".

Here:

Anya sez, "Momentum can be defined as "ass in motion". All of us have an ass; so if someone is moving, then they have momentum--they have their ass in motion. The amount of momentum which a person has is dependent upon two variables: how much of their ass is moving and how fast their ass is moving."

I chose "ass" for the obvious catchiness.

And the good news for some of us is:

"From the definition of momentum, it becomes obvious that an object has a large momentum if either its mass or its velocity is large."

I'll let you plug in the buzz word for yourself on this one.

Over and out--Anya must get "momentum".

Next blog entry: Tuesday.

Spare The Rod

There's a draft sitting in the queue from the 10th that I haven't finished. I would have liked to have published it before this entry because it's really more Chicken Soup For The Soul-ish than this post will turn out to be.

Moral quandry here.

So yesterday I take a long-distance call from a beautiful woman I've known for several years, mother of three daughters--college, high school and middle school aged. I know her children and her husband well enough.

Apparently, the husband has an "anger issue". Sometimes as frequently as monthly, this chap takes to beating up his kids. Used to smack the mother around until she put her foot down, now it's just whenever he's set off by one of the girls.

The latest incident (and really only the first of it's kind I've known of), she says, was about two weeks ago. The youngest was acting like a mule and pop goes the weasle, he's lost it. A beating to the back (not buttocks, but back), a shove to the floor and yet another shove down a flight of stairs and the 12 year old is shuttled into her parents' bedroom by the mother. The father leaves for work.

The mother's recommendation to the daughter?

"The next time he does that, don't wait for me or anyone else, just call 911 yourself."

I say, "Are you KIDDING me? You're asking this girl to figure out a way to protect herself? Why? Because you don't want to be the bad guy?"

"Yes." she quietly replies.

A prominent figure in the religious community-makes substantial monetary contributions to said community, this guy.

A PhD.

Her plan? "Well, I'll talk to him and ask him to leave peacefully, but I know what his question is going to be."

"Yeah? What?" drumming my fingers on the counter top.

"Will there be any conjugal visits?"

Uh.

See what I'd like to do, knowing the guy myself, is make the treck over to the house, wait for the guy and snatch him by the front of his shirt, making sure to include a wad of chest hair, pin him against the wall and ask Mr. Big Britches if he'd like to go a round or two.

C'mon.

We both know I can't and I'm not likely to really do that. Tell you what. There just is no justification for beating children and less so for fathers to do so to their daughters. Where does a man go in his mind to be able to raise his hand, empty or gripping a weapon, to a girl? This could turn into an essay if I don't wind it up now.

For all of you who believe in beating your children, get help, find out the difference between garnering respect and demanding it.

For the rest of you, let's form a posse.

You Feel That Sting Big Boy?

Sometimes I find myself disappointed when I visit someone's blog and they've not posted for several days--or more. Does that happen to you too? Then I think, "Well, I guess I haven't really blogged for awhile either so what's to complain about?" I do enjoy a good blog.

What I find even more disappointing is when I find that people I know use my blog to inspire their own, people who I have considered plenty clever all on their own. It's not so offensive that I'll confront them, after all, it's just a blog--but seriously. Kinda makes me wonder where else they pull their material from.

Now, when it comes to the business world, I've called 'em down on the carpet over it. Diplomatically on the outside (recommended) and Tarantino in the kitchen with Jules on the inside: "Write your own copy! I know it's good because I wrote it! Do you see a sign on my website that says 'cut, paste, and use at will'? No, you don't. You know why? Because givin' away words ain't my business."

Moral of the story Ladies and Gentlemen, Intellectual Property is exactly that.