melancholy and the infinite sadness

A Sensible System

2011-05-03T22:41:00.000-07:00

"Standards based learning, modeled on the belief that every student learns in their own way"

What a novel concept. You mean every child is different and has different needs and abilities? No way, it can't be!
Sounds to me like someone's finally getting things right. Adapting our horribly over-standardized education system to actually treat children as individuals, seems like common sense, right?

I can only imagine the progress teachers could make if they weren't always under the thumb of meeting testing results and pressure to keep funding...

There is much hope for the future of our education system when watching videos like these...

Molecular Science

2011-04-15T03:02:00.000-07:00

Today was a frustrating day.

Sometimes I wonder if perhaps we were born with a certain amount of molecules (or cells or something to that effect) and each and every day one of them dies. Sometimes they die because it was their time, because we no longer needed them, or perhaps it was time for another to take its place. Somedays its more than one, maybe a handful, maybe more- sacrificed for the sake of experience or memory, or stolen by another being who's count is depleting at a speed higher than our own. Sometimes they go quietly, just a natural passage, the circle of life, other times they're torn from us, ripped away. Somedays we are completely unaware, just the passing of time, and others... well other days we feel each and everyone with the weight of the world. And at the end of it all is the last of our days, when the last of the molecules fade and we move from this life to whatever follows. Today was one of those days where too many molecules fell. It wasn't a vicious murder, a horrible traumatic separation. It was just one of those days that ended in a loss.

And I'm restless and tired and somewhat bitter about how todays molecules were spent.

School today

2011-04-14T02:03:00.001-07:00

CSULB students rally against funding cuts - Daily 49er - News

Sent from my HTC smartphone

To delete or not to delete...

2011-04-14T01:44:00.000-07:00

So lately I've felt like this blog has just been staring at me like a reminder of all the things in life I've started and never finished. My intentions were sooo good when I began writing here. I was multi-posting, and mobile posting and photo-posting.... And then....? Well, life occurred. I guess I got caught up, busy. I tried to reset my resolve and promise myself that I'd begin writing, document my school experience, get reinvigorated. And that lasted all of one post. Yet I keep coming back. I'll sit and stare at an empty screen, and THINK about writing, but not just write. Thus, lately, I've been contemplating pushing delete. Just be done with it. Get rid of it so that the lack of effort will no longer be taunting me, reminding me. But you know what? F*#k that. Nothing else in life is easy, so why take an easy road with this? I'm keeping this blog. And, hopefully, I'll be writing much more and in more frequent intervals. And if not? So what. This is my blog. Melancholy and the Infinite Sadness, and you can just call me JR.

It's a balancing act.

2011-02-09T00:08:00.000-08:00

Well, it's official. I'm a big girl.

I'm two days in to my third week at CalState Long Beach. Also known as "Big Girl School".

It's bittersweet. Well, mostly sweet, but I definitely notice the age difference between myself and the vast majority of my peers. I can't really tell whether or not they notice as well, shit, I don't think I look THAT old... While I truly am proud of myself for finally making it to this point, there's definitely a part of me that wishes I'd done it sooner.

Two weeks down and I'm already feeling the crunch of pressure. Classes aren't difficult (yet) but they are time consuming. I'm still working 5-6 days a week (30+ hours/wk) and it feels like it never stops. School, work, school, work, school... It's a lot, that is, a lot more than I've been doing the last year or so. I haven't quite found my rhythm. I want to work less and study more but I'm nervous for finances. I was lucky enough to receive financial aid this semester, both grants and loans, but I just did my FAFSA for next year and I anticipate being a lot further down on that gift list next time around. So I'm trying to take advantage of that fact that my classes aren't yet difficult and work as much as possible and hopefully bank away some dinero. But I also want to make sure that I'm making school my number one priority. It took a long time to get here and I want to do it right. Get involved in campus life/politics/clubs, get connected with peers (young as they may be) and faculty, and, most importantly, straight A's. I'm paying for this education and I intend to get every last penny's worth, dammit.
I look forward to finding BALANCE, hopefully sooner than later.

As is the motto at my new school, GRADUATION BEGINS TODAY.

Tori Amos - Rattlesnakes (Lloyd Cole)

2011-01-15T01:27:00.000-08:00

2010-12-17T02:18:00.000-08:00

Jónsi - Boy Lilikoi

2010-11-16T15:37:00.000-08:00

2010-11-16T15:30:00.000-08:00

Raising Awareness For Autism!

2010-10-27T01:57:00.000-07:00

My nephew has Aspergers.
(It's not deadly, in fact, it's not even really painful. But it is frustrating, and means he's gonna have to work harder at some things in life. By most standards, he's one of the lucky ones...)
Asperger Syndrome is on the Autism Spectrum. It presents a daily challenge for people with the condition and their families. A cure is a great goal, but for now we'd gladly settle for greater awareness.

The understanding, encouragement and acceptance of others means the world to an Aspie kid

Please join me in my efforts to support Walk Now for Autism Speaks!

Can you imagine hearing the words "your child has autism"? In a split second, life - as you know it - has changed. For a different family every 15 minutes, tomorrow will never be the same.

By participating in this event, we are helping to change the future for all who struggle with autism. By walking, we are getting one step closer to finding what causes autism, how to prevent and treat it, and ultimately a cure so no family ever hears those words again. Until then, we walk to find answers and raise awareness about the devastating toll that autism has had on families like ours.

I need you to help make tomorrow be about dance lessons, school lunches and first words rather than therapy, doctor appointments and despair. Together, we will find the missing pieces.

Click Here to Donate

2010-09-20T23:07:00.000-07:00

2010-09-07T00:48:00.001-07:00

it was one of those moments that pulls at your heartstrings as if it's the last edge of the last cliff at the end of the world. where the sidewalk ends, she once said... and, strangely, it made me feel like the child who used to read that book. fate. destiny, life surmised in one word. my stomach actually spun beneath the thought, if i'd been standing my knees would have buckled.

Birthday Kitty

2010-07-30T11:27:00.001-07:00

Sooo...

For as long as I've lived in my current spot I've driven by the same scruffy alley cat day after day. I've affectionately deemed her "Birthday Kitty"

She's always been super sweet, every time I've stopped to give her a scratch she runs right up and is such a lover.
I hadn't seen birthday kitty around in quite a while, until last night.

Last night, I was driving pulling into my alley after work around midnight and there was birthday kitty, or at least what used to be scruffy old birthday kitty. She could barely hold herself up, her hair has fallen out from the waist down, and she's so severely malnourished it's heart-wrenching! I parked and ran over and swooped her up, it was like picking up a skeleton. This cat hadn't had a proper meal in weeks at least

I cannot believe that someone could let this happen to a poor defenseless animal. It's truly outrageous.

I took her in, made her a bed and fed her last night, and gave her as much love as I possibly could have. First thing this morning we rushed to the vet, where she is now and they are trying to stabilize her and and decide if she'll be able to pull through. (fingers crossed)

The downfall is the $600 price tag attached to trying to save this poor things life.

Again, how the hell can somebody do this??

On the flip side

I was contacted by a woman who works with a local rescue organization who asked me for the info on where I've taken beloved birthday kitty, she's forwarded the info to a contact list of over 500 people! I just spoke with the vet for an update on my girl, and they said they've already received $35 dollars in anonymous donation towards Birthday Kitty's care!

So while I condemn the horrible person who left poor birthday kitty to die, I praise the kindness of those who received a random email today, pleading for help in saving her life and picked up their phones and donated to an animal they've never even seen!

If you to felt so inclined, Birthday Kitty is being treated at the Friendly Animal Hospital in Huntington Beach, Ca. She's under my name, Jamie French.. The number is (714) 845-5722

Thanks Friends

*****UPDATE*****
(7/30/2010 - 11PM)

I've picked Birthday Kitty up from the vet for the night, she's been on IV fluids all day, and has gotten started on antibiotics. Her blood work result were very poor, but the Dr said there's hope for her, so I'm staying positive! She's excited to have a little bit of wet food, and a nice warm bed, and some serious petting!

The vet bills for today came to less than they'd quoted at about $450
I paid $300 out of pocket, but the remainder was paid via donations!
The woman with the rescue organization also contacted me and said that some of her people gave money to her directly and that she thought it to be around another $100!
Which knocks my out of pocket cost to only $200!

And the best news?!! Another person has contacted me and may be willing to take Birthday Kitty tomorrow to her own vet and incur all medical costs from here on out!
Fingers crossed that this option works out, cuz Bday kitty has a long (and pricey) road to recovery!

Here's a pic from this evening, she still looks pretty pathetic, but seemed to have a bit more energy tonight!

Thanks again friends!

one breath

2010-07-14T01:04:00.000-07:00

there was only a moment of hesitation. just enough to inhale, hold, exhale. Thirty seconds, maybe... there were no thoughts, no time for thoughts. just images crashing into images, blood pumping through veins amidst wild heartbeats. incoherent, unintelligible. there wasn't time. and then, movement, reaction. it was nothing but a lack of something. it doesn't matter. it doesn't matter. it doesn't... it's consuming me. it was just a natural response.. right? my body catching up with my mind... right? it's all that's left. 30 seconds. on loop, repeating, repeating, reliving. over and over, analyze, recalculate. my whole life has become that moment, there's nothing left. what happened after will never matter, and before? there was never a before. in that one moment of hesitation everything ended and everything began. it never stops.

Fear

2010-07-10T00:50:00.000-07:00

2010-07-10T00:47:00.000-07:00

A SILENT FILM | You Will Leave a Mark | 2009

2010-06-12T19:48:00.000-07:00

crosses

2010-06-04T00:17:00.001-07:00

i put it down before i'd even realized i was holding it. you know the old saying "it was over before it even began". it was something like that, if that something could leave an eight inch gash across the heart. a slowly bleeding fissure that burns with pain every time you inhale. nobody else knew. not a single person clued in to the smell of fear, the destitution behind closed doors. and, yet, every single one of them nodded their heads, as if they'd always suspected. of course they had. but it wasn't their cross to bear. can you imagine how much easier it would have been if everyone had helped? the weight of it distributed amongst them all? no, no... it wasn't anybody else's burden.

2010-05-31T00:39:00.001-07:00

happy birthday dewey.

Anybody?

2010-05-27T00:12:00.000-07:00

Anybody down to go receive darshan with me?

June 14th- June 18th

From Amma?

2010-05-08T23:08:00.001-07:00

2010-04-18T02:02:00.001-07:00

long night
but tomorrow's another day
i'm going to dream about waking up smiling

RESTART

2010-04-15T21:17:00.000-07:00

Started making a plan today, gonna get back on track! Write more, save more, live more, feel more...
Reconnect...
Narrow the focus. Give 100% to everything I do. Positivity. Focus....

2010-04-04T07:59:00.000-07:00

sometimes the lack of sleep gives me a boost in clarity

but mostly it just leaves me numb

2010-03-22T00:09:00.000-07:00

Rest Peacefully

2010-03-19T22:52:00.000-07:00

5 years ago today my brother-in-law Dewey lost his battle with Leukemia. Using the National Bone Marrow Registry we were able to find a potentially life-saving bone marrow donor. Unfortunately, Dewey passed before he was able to go forward with the transplant. But what great hope he was filled with knowing that someone out there was willing to give a part of themselves to help save his life. You too could provide this same hope to someone else by joining the National Marrow Donor Registry...

Every 4 minutes one person is diagnosed with a blood cancer. Every ten minutes, someone dies from a blood cancer.

BE THE MATCH

From melancholy and the infinite sadness

2010-03-18T20:26:00.001-07:00

2010-03-11T00:07:00.001-08:00

i still have tears for you

2010-03-08T14:48:00.001-08:00

so many nights...

2010-03-08T11:14:00.000-08:00

Shout out to old georgie-boy

2010-03-06T20:09:00.000-08:00

2010-03-02T22:55:00.000-08:00

there are words
there will always be words
that are never enough

fallen
from bleeding lips
onto deafened ears
pleas and promises
and whispers
through tears
only to end up
where i always feared

there were words
so many wasted words
they were never enough

2010-03-02T18:11:00.001-08:00

2010-03-01T21:22:00.001-08:00

everything has its consequence.

remembering......

2010-03-01T21:15:00.000-08:00

please?

2010-02-18T09:24:00.001-08:00

READ THIS

ask myself...

2010-02-17T20:42:00.000-08:00

2010-02-11T02:08:00.001-08:00

"REMEMBER. NOW BE HERE"

2010-02-02T01:58:00.000-08:00

"NOBODY IS GOING ANYWHERE
NOBODY IS COMING FROM ANYWHERE
WE'RE ALL HERE
WE'RE ALL HERE
IN ETERNAL TIME & SPACE
WE'RE ALWAYS GOING TO BE HERE
WE'RE JUST DOING THE LILA RASA
THE DIVINE DANCE WE'RE DANCING
& DANCING & DANCING
DANCE AFTER
DANCE
IN ONE BODY
IN ANOTHER BODY
& WE'RE ALL HERE
WE'RE ALL STAYING RIGHT HERE"

2010-01-23T02:04:00.000-08:00

it's a sub-culture i'll never really understand... i'll dabble, toes in, test the waters... here and there and here. but it's not for me, and as far as i can see it doesn't really suit anyone. lingo, ideologies, bonding? i just see excuses and escapes and running... circling. listen in, fly on the wall. every now and again, i get it, i see it, i've done it... but beyond that? i dont want to judge, i just dont want to be.

i knew this going in.

2010-01-22T22:32:00.001-08:00

if all the rain drops were lemondrops and gumdrops...

2010-01-21T02:09:00.000-08:00

i love the rain
but not always the down time
me and my thoughts
and the wonder leaking in...

makes me tap my feet...

2010-01-11T00:15:00.001-08:00

words, followed by words..

2010-01-10T23:47:00.000-08:00

i haven't written here in a bit.
i haven't written anything in a bit.
a new year...
a lot has passed. a lot has changed. ups and downs and ups, and here i stand, upright, on my feet. every day i learn something new. mostly, i'm learning about me. this year is committed to preparation. i'm getting ready for something big, something huge. planning and preparation... do it, do it, do it. work my ass off and make it happen. it's gonna be sooo worth it.

2010-01-06T14:00:00.001-08:00

breathe on little sister

2009-11-26T00:19:00.000-08:00

2009-11-26T00:10:00.001-08:00

today

2009-11-22T17:26:00.000-08:00

it's one of those moments when things come full circle. when you can look ahead and look behind and see the same path stretching both ways. something clicks, a wheel turns, a held breath is released. and there you stand, not sure if its relief, if its regret, if its deja vu.... just knowing, finally fully knowing where you were going and where you began. this. this is a moment of growth. dig your heels in and feel. feel feel feel. if you pass through to quickly you'll never fully see. stop. breathe. feel it inside out. now remember.

2009-11-22T06:43:00.001-08:00

2009-11-20T19:54:00.001-08:00

2009-11-19T23:52:00.001-08:00

2009-11-19T20:32:00.001-08:00

yes, you.

2009-11-19T20:12:00.000-08:00

everything changes. constantly, always. a perfect yesterday does not ensure a good tomorrow, just as a painful today doesn't have to carry into the next. consistency is comforting, but intensity is in the outliers, a little extreme can go a long way. we deserve to be happy, we deserve to have a burning in the pit of our stomach, we deserve to have our heart skip a beat or race uncontrollably. it doesn't always last, but it's not always fleeting. there exists a moment when all of those tears, all of those why's whispered into silence, into pillows, screamed into emptiness, when they all amount into something more. it'll be okay. you're going to be okay. you deserve to be happy, now just allow it...

2009-11-16T11:24:00.000-08:00

YOU'LL WANT TO BOOKMARK THIS.

pieces are just pieces

2009-11-16T10:48:00.000-08:00

everyday. everything adds up to the same. work is work and school is school and we wake up and inhale and rub our eyes. and we run our errands and pay our bills and browse aimlessly through TV reruns. we stop for meals and stop for business and stop for signs. and then.. something stops us. stops us in our tracks. stops the words in our throats. stops us from making that next same step, that next unappreciated breath. and we stop and think, and blink. and we feel it. the pain the joy the desire the fear, whatever it is that stopped us, we feel it. reality. we feel it. present moment. feel it. and we remember. why. why we woke up, why we started.

hold on. to those moments. the ones that hurt. the ones that bleed. the ones that make you smile and laugh despite yourself. hold on tight. knuckles white, til you bleed. those are the moments when you become you. the rest is just pieces.

old haunts...

2009-11-13T11:11:00.001-08:00

2009-11-13T11:00:00.001-08:00

2009-11-13T10:54:00.001-08:00

2009-11-13T09:11:00.001-08:00

2009-11-11T14:07:00.001-08:00

2009-11-10T01:00:00.001-08:00

2009-11-10T00:57:00.000-08:00

This Weekend

2009-10-23T01:57:00.000-07:00

I will be attending the International Alchemy Conference...

What is that you ask? No clue, I'll let you know in a few days! =)

2009-10-19T21:37:00.000-07:00

today, moreso than ever

2009-10-15T01:16:00.000-07:00

i love this time of year, when the universe can't decide whether she's cold or hot. when the fog takes over and the dew covers everything. days, already never long enough, get shorter, and lists of things to be done get longer.

time is a funny, funny thing. sometimes an enemy, sometimes a friend... healing... hollowing... build and destroy.

and tomorrow always comes, no matter how hard you fight it, how earnestly you long for it, it always comes... eventually.
and yesterday always disappears, always becomes a memory, always falls into the past...

breathe.
in. out.
breathe.
in. out.
just breathe...

...

2009-10-15T01:15:00.000-07:00

i remember you.

2009-09-22T16:04:00.001-07:00

man oh man

2009-08-31T01:57:00.000-07:00

It's going to be a long week. School, work, concerts (nine inch nails and bat for lashes) kidsitting my nephews, more work, homework, bills... Being an adult really blows sometimes. I just want to swing on the rings, play handball, and eat paste.

Here's who I'm seeing tomorrow.. good music + great company = sweet dreams.

Nothing to do? Come Play with me!

2009-08-22T11:51:00.000-07:00

Every friday and saturday night til the end of september I'll be here at the Irvine Great Park for their Summer Flights & Sounds concert series. It's actually really fun. They've spared no expense on sound production so the shows are super high quality. Lots of interesting music from around the world. You should come out, it's free (my favorite four letter word) only 8$ for parking. Bring a picnic, smuggle in some booze, and sit back and enjoy the music under the stars... Questions? Shoot me an email, or a phone call....

Here's a list of performances.

speak freely?

2009-08-21T00:18:00.000-07:00

dear reader, dear friend,

let's be frank with each other.. i think we've gotten close enough to do so, don't you? i'm depressing you. i know it, you know it, we know it. i'm pushing you away slowly, right? you hate to see me spiral, but you feel guilty tuning out, yes? it's okay. i'm aware. but i had to get it out. just had to.. yes, i used you a little, here and there, a little.. used you to communicate things i should've said out loud. but it didn't hurt you, i know it didn't, don't play the victim. we're being frank, remember? i wanted you to know that i'm ready, ok? ready to try, at least, i can't predict the outcome, but i'm ready to give it a shot. for your sake. for my own. i've still got secrets you might never know, and thats just fine, you can understand i'm sure. so, are you ready? good. take my hand, let's change pace, shift gears, move forward. go ahead, grab it, hold tight, and don't let go. but, do remember, we'll always appreciate each other much more in the darkest hours of the night. because thats just how its meant to be. afterall, it's not called melancholy and the infinite sadness for nothing. here's to the things we'll never do.

---jr

the breaking point.

2009-08-12T01:27:00.000-07:00

that was it.

Perseids Song

2009-08-11T23:46:00.000-07:00

tonight i left work, and started driving towards your house.
i was going to surprise you,
pick you up
and drive you to the middle of nowhere
so, together, we could sip hot chocolate
and watch the stars fall from the sky.
like the fire that was between us
shooting across the universe.
without thinking, i started driving,
grinning from ear to ear.
you'd be so excited;
it would be so perfect

and then it hit me,
like icey waters
against a sun-scorched desert,
reality slapped me across the face.
like a blow to the gut,
it stole away my breath,
and stole a beat from my heart.
my soul lurched beneath the weight...

and all i could do
was turn around and drive home.

still have hope...

2009-08-11T02:17:00.000-07:00

brought to us by

2009-08-09T20:14:00.000-07:00

how does it so quickly go from

i feel like letting you know
how much i love you today
i feel like letting it show
showing you rightly now
and never going away

to

too many times, I have wanted
To turn around and walk away
Knowing deep inside
You can't provide what I need from you anyway ?

i believed you.

2009-08-09T07:18:00.000-07:00

i think this is a mistake...

Irony

2009-08-08T21:08:00.001-07:00

Sitting alone listening to love songs under the full moon...

2009-08-08T02:54:00.001-07:00

2009-08-07T04:15:00.001-07:00

comes from inside

2009-08-07T03:15:00.001-07:00

2009-08-07T00:52:00.000-07:00

s e c r e t s . . .

2009-08-07T00:48:00.001-07:00

2009-08-06T13:41:00.001-07:00

2009-08-06T12:34:00.000-07:00

HERE.

2009-08-05T23:55:00.001-07:00

decisions, decisions...

2009-08-04T02:28:00.001-07:00

My friend nik recently suggested training with her for a mini triathlon. The triathlon part sounds fun, but that whole training thing... blech. But the more I've thought about it, the more interested I am. I even went so far as to follow up with her to find out the details. However, turns out its sold out (really? that many people want to run walk swim to the point of exhaustion? hard to believe...) I'm not gonna lie and say I was super bummed, it was more like relieved.... Well, another friend recently said he'd signed up for the Long Beach triathlon (what's with all this triathlon fever???) and now I'm kinda thinking about it, again. Soooooo.... what do i do? Ugh. I know it would be great for me, physically, and quite possible emotionally too, but shit, thats quite a challenge. AAAArrgghhhh! I'm oh-so torn on this one.. yes, no, yes, no, yes??? Do I have it in me? Is six weeks enough to train? What if I drop dead mid course, to they have insurance for that? hhhmmmmm..... maybe I'll just flip a coin.

Anyone got a double-sided quarter I can borrow?

sometimes

2009-08-03T22:13:00.001-07:00

words just aren't enough
and there aren't enough hours in the day

It's beginning to look a lot like...

2009-07-31T00:22:00.000-07:00

I'm losing my mind.

Well, not really, but I AM losing the ability to sift and sort through sometimes. I can't seem to make my words and thoughts connect. Everything comes out backwards or wrong or jumbled. I can't say the things I feel, I can't properly express things like they need expressing. Life is a connect the dots, sometimes it seems like its taking shape, like its making sense, then it curves off course, or goes for a loop, nothings definite til its almost too late.

THIS.

Here's to a safe trip..

2009-07-26T01:21:00.000-07:00

Love, prayers and kind thoughts to my friend Julio as he embarks on his orders for deployment. Two months in Texas, then on to Iraq. Praying for a safe return, and an easy time overseas. Love you Julio, can't wait to see you again. We'll all take good care of things while your gone, and we'll make sure David knows his daddy loves him.

eachother is all we have left

2009-07-24T13:54:00.001-07:00

2009-07-24T03:27:00.000-07:00

goin to bed with a migraine

and a smile

i can handle that.

1.

2009-07-20T12:45:00.000-07:00

water lily dance
in silent rivers
beneath rays of sheltered moonlight
voices of willows
hang from stars
-like teardrops
calling
so faintly
crying out

20 seconds of a sleepless night

2009-07-20T03:33:00.000-07:00

turn it off
let it go
feel the beating
pump and flow
keep them shut
count to ten
more of nothing
again and again
word unspoken
paralyzed lips
losing moments
between record skips
numbness ensues
where pain once lay
strangled by silence
consumed by gray
lose control
begin to weep
fight the envy
only dead men sleep

2009-07-20T03:29:00.000-07:00

Hey little girl is your daddy home
Did he go away and leave you all alone
I got a bad desire
I'm on fire
Tell me now baby is he good to you
Can he do to you the things that I do
I can take you higher
I'm on fire
Sometimes it's like someone took a knife baby
Edgy and dull and cut a six-inch valley
Through the middle of my skull
At night I wake up with the sheets soaking wet
And a freight train running through the
Middle of my head
Only you can cool my desire
I'm on fire

thnx meh.

2009-07-20T03:01:00.001-07:00

2009-07-15T04:44:00.000-07:00

can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep
can't sleep.....

2009-07-14T18:58:00.001-07:00

Please Help!

2009-07-14T15:13:00.000-07:00

The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (bill number S.909) is coming to a vote this week.

We need you to contact each of your Senators today.

1. Call the Senate Switchboard: 202.224.3121 and tell the operator you would like to speak to the Senator from your state.

2. Tell the person who answers the phone that you are a constituent and are calling to urge the Senator to vote for the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (bill number S.909).

3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to reach your other Senator.

Congress needs to hear from us that passing hate crimes legislation is absolutely crucial.

2009-07-12T18:03:00.000-07:00

FIGHT FOR ME.

...

2009-07-12T01:44:00.001-07:00

2009-07-11T12:22:00.001-07:00

everyday
it gets worse
not better