My name is Javier Ogaz.
All I know is that I know nothing.
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We stopped by Baker Beach to watch the sunset and drink a few beers.
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“No city invites the heart to come to life as San Francisco does. Arrival in San Francisco is an experience in living.” —William Saroyan
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This defeat is only the latest chapter of what I’ve always known would be a long, hard haul. Our democracy’s history is littered with names we neither remember nor celebrate — people who stood in the way of progress while protecting the powerful. On Wednesday, a number of senators voted to join that list.
Gabrielle Giffords, “A Senate in the Gun Lobby’s Hand.” -
So, last night my roommate got me into the spring print issue launch of 303 magazine. My non-existant fashion sense felt severely threatened by all the beautiful people in their beautiful clothes.
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It’s a little late, but green mimosas on St. Patrick’s Day!
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Google’s 2013 tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, JR.
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It is now our generation’s task to carry on what those pioneers began. For our journey is not complete until our wives, our mothers, and daughters can earn a living equal to their efforts. Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law – for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. Our journey is not complete until no citizen is forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to vote. Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity; until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country. Our journey is not complete until all our children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia to the quiet lanes of Newtown, know that they are cared for, and cherished, and always safe from harm.
Barack Obama. Inaugural Address. January 21, 2013. -
But dad! You’ve been on tumblr for hours.
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Yes, I’m one of those people.
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Back in November I lost a bet to my roommate. We’re both political junkies but I’ll be the first to admit that politics consumed my life last year. I was obsessed with the election and checked Nate Silver’s blog at least five million times a day.
The bet: Felipe wagered that Barack Obama would once again win Colorado while I believed that the state would turn red. Whoever lost would have to write a post admitting they were wrong. The loser would also have to link to the other’s blog at least three times to make things interesting.
I’m obviously the loser as Obama did take Colorado. While our bet was in good fun, and more of an inside joke than anything else, I, being the incorrigible trickster that I am, argued that he didn’t stipulate a timeline for posting so it’s now 2013 and I’m talking about old news.
I guess the take away from all of this is that I should think more carefully about being an active consumer of a lame media narrative that does little to inform and much to divide. The election felt like a world-changing event that would forever alter the course of history. Now I know better and I pledge to take a break from the rat race that is politics and focus on the things that really matter.
To reiterate: Felipe won.
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This is Luna.
Someone abandoned her in a dumpster when she was only a few days old. Luckily, someone else found her and rushed her to the local animal shelter. She was so small that they weren’t sure she would survive the night.
Growing up my family always had dogs so cats were foreign creatures with sharp claws and an appeal I didn’t quite understand or appreciate. But that all changed when I first held Luna. She looked up at me and my heart melted. She was all I could think about for the rest of the day.
I brought her home the weekend before Thanksgiving. She weighs 3.5 pounds now, but don’t let that fool you. She already thinks she’s a tiger.
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I’m registered to vote by mail. Where I live ballots were sent out last week. It’s truly a wonder that such a bland yellow envelope can make me this excited.
After dinner, I sit down at my desk and, with a sense of duty, begin to look over my ballot. There’s a certain election that demands the most focus, but every referendum and office are worth some dramatic stokes of ink. Each seems more defiant than the last. Afterwards, I feel somewhat conflicted, but it’s not because my convictions waver. I wonder what catharsis I’m giving up by not going down to the voting booth on election day and pulling the lever. I’m certainly not getting that little sticker.
No matter where you live, if you’re of the right age, I hope you’re registered to vote and I hope you take the time to vote this year. I know we’ve been told it’s the end of the world. Don’t worry: it’s not.
But it is important that we all participate because really, in the end, all we’re doing is working together.
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