This post is fairly ranty and not just because spellcheck keeps telling me that “ranty” isn’t a real word. It is a real word and I’m proving it right now, spellcheck. Question me again and I’ll explain why “stabby” is also a real word.
If you don’t live in America you can skip this post. If you do, then you’re probably with me when I say that if I could have one minute to have a sensible heart-to-heart with our government I would take a deep breath and smile supportively and then say, “GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER, YOU ASSHOLES. YOU’RE RUINING IT FOR EVERYONE.”
This is not a partisan post and I live in a politically mixed marriage so I have the ability to see both sides. I’m also a normal human so, additionally, I have the ability to see both sides of two children fighting over the playground slide, but that doesn’t mean that I’m going to just sit there while the kids pull out gasoline and proceed to see who can burn the slide down fastest. In other words, I’m pissed. I’m seeing friends furloughed. I’m seeing people I love out of jobs. I’m seeing people unable to get the basic care needed for their children to survive and thrive. This shit happens every day, but it’s not every day that it’s the fault of the government shutting down. I don’t expect that anyone in the government will read this. They don’t care about little old me and that’s pretty obvious. I’d like to think that if enough of us banded together they would care, but it’s probably not true. The whole nation is looking at them with disappointment and they’re still blaming each other.
That’s not what this post is about though. You can find people complaining about the government all over the web if that’s what you’re looking for. What I’d like to do instead is to feel a little less helpless about what’s going on. So instead of pressuring the government to just DO THEIR JOB I’m going to instead write about a few things that we can do to pick up the slack they’ve left behind.
Right now WIC is running out for many, blood drives are being cancelled from lack of workers, people are out of work and worried. So how can we help?
Call your local food bank, or church to donate. Food is good, but money is better as they can use it for perishables. Or donate to Feeding America. Every dollar pays for 8 meals and you can do it online. It’s crazy easy.
Donate blood if you can. Click here to find the nearest place taking donations.
Send grocery cards to people you know who are struggling…particularly those who rely on WIC, or who are government employees who are working without pay, or are furloughed. If you don’t know of anyone, call your local Women’s Shelter. There are a lot of people (especially single moms) who rely on the Women’s Shelter for help and they can pass on the cards or diapers and such to people who need them.
Be nice. This one is hard because right now everyone is a little freaked out about the fact that our Government is basically the equivalent of your dad not coming home because he’s passed out at the bar. Tensions are high. It’s easy to blame each other or lash out at whoever we think is the biggest asshole in the asshole parade, but that’s not solving anything. Take a deep breath, remember that we have each other’s back, and do what you can to help…even if all you can do is pass on a helpful word, or a link to great resources, or a thank you to the men and women who are working without pay or who are sitting at home waiting for this shutdown to end so they can get back to the work that’s piling up.
We’re all in this together. And in the absence of the government…we are the Government.
That’s a scary thought.
PS. Any other ways you can think of to help? Leave it in the comments. Please try to avoid partisan blamey comments and don’t fall for it if someone leaves one. The whole point of this is to not get caught up in the same BS the government is fighting about. We’re better than that. Or at least, I hope we are.