Exhausted

I'm really tired of everything.

If I put an effort to do something nice, people overlook the good in it and quickly point out the "mistakes". One can have many qualities but it's the one little defect that stands out.

You know what? I'm done. I'd rather do the bare minimum - or nothing at all - and get the same treatment.

"He has my blood running through his veins"

This past Wednesday I had the privilege to attend a Congressional Hearing on International Child Abduction and it was one of the most heartbreaking things I've ever witnessed. Left-Behind Parents pleading Congress to pass a bill in order to impose sanctions on countries that fail to uphold an international treaty they signed, called The Hague Convention on Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. In the case of non-signatory countries, such as Japan, it's a bit more complicated.

There were four LBPs at the hearing: Tom Sylvester, whose daughter Carina was abducted to Austria in 1995 when she was only 13 months old; Navy Commander Paul Toland, whose daughter Erika was abducted to Japan (the only living parent after his ex-wife committed suicide); Patrick Braden, whose daughter Melissa was abducted to Japan; and David Goldman, whose son Sean was abducted to Brazil. I suggest you read all the testimonies. The stories are very hard to read, but those are things that must be told.

After volunteering for many months at the Bring Sean Home Foundation, I had the opportunity to meet the Goldman family. One thing is see them on TV, another is to see their pain up close. I had tears rolling down during David's testimony. Only someone who's a parent can try to understand what those parents go through, but can only have a tiny idea of how much pain they're in.

I'm afraid this case is being pushed to the back burner. Not much has been reported lately. The Brazilian media was at the hearing and recorded interviews, but other than a small note on a couple of newspapers, no other media outlets touched the case.

At this point, we're waiting on the decision of the TRF-2. The iron-clad verdict from June 1st was issued a stay while the courts examine the appeal. The decision could come any day now. Someone said it was to come in September. Well, it has come and gone, as well as October and November. Each day lost is a victory to the abductors, who get to brainwash this child, for it will take much longer to "de-program" Sean once he's back into his father's arms (read the transcript the Wolf Blitzer interview here).

It's interesting the different ways Brazilians react to this case. Some will side with the abducting family, either because they came were abandoned by spouses or father, or because they're unhappy in their marriages and would love to flee with their kids, or because they have a very old-fashioned notion that a man cannot care for a child alone, or because they believe the biased reports that say the child was abandoned. Others will be on the fence, saying the mother is no longer around to give her version of the facts (despite 4 years of court records of her testimony on file that never discredited David for being a loving, dedicated father). And there are the ones that agree that say it was a crime to take the child away but he is now used to the environment and should be left alone, despite the fact that has been proven over and over that the 9-year-old has been brainwashed and the environment where he lives is not healthy. Thankfully the majority of Brazilians I know are outraged by this travesty, the corruption behind-the-scenes, the lies, and the slowness in the judiciary.

The needs of a 9-year-old boy and his natural father are being ignored by a family that is holding him hostage in Brazil.

It's time to make some noise. Write to friends and family about it. Blog about it. Post about it on message boards and forums. If you have a twitter account, please use the tag #bringseanhome when writing about it. Together we can Bring Sean and all the other abducted children Home.

Run, Liesl, Run

My life has been so frantic. I have been working my butt off, planning T's 6th birthday party, having my mother as a guest and preparing to go away during the holidays.

I am so glad I've read a lot this year. I have no books in my queue, which is so unlikely...

So, how about "V", huh? I'm a little disappointed, not nearly as good as the original... It may get better, we'll see.

Luxo Jr, what have you done?

Pixar Intro Parody - not for kids

If the embedding doesn't work properly, you can view the video here

Slice of Heaven

I'm in love with Flake Chcolate Bars made by Cadbury.

One of my managers just returned from the UK with a Cadbury Sampler. SO GOOD! It reminded me of the days I spent with my sister in London 11 years ago. But I had never tried Flake. YUM!!!!!

When she loved me

Took T to see Toy Story 1 & 2 re-release in 3D. I just love those movies, as well as anything Pixar will do.

So, naturally, I bawled my eyes out when Sarah McLachlan sings "When she loved me" just like I did when the movie came out 10 years ago. I was thinking of my old toys, all my dolls my *evil parents* (LOL) made me part with.

Go ahead... watch this and bawl along with me:

PTA Meeting

Yesterday I had my first PTA meeting. I was excited to go and contribute as much as I could (since I work full-time there's not much availability). Plus my neighbors are heading the PTA this year. In the end, I was very ticked off.

It happens that the meeting took too long for the fact that every paragraph said needed to be translated into Spanish. 37% of the kids in my son's school are Hispanic and the parents don't speak English. Now, seriously, why do we have to accommodate them? They came into the US, they have to learn English. They're not going to make any effort to do it since the school makes it easier for them.

I have learned English, so can you!

Should I demand PTA meetings in Portuguese, Chinese and Russian as well?

I found this video on youtube. It's supposed to be the answering machine of an Aussie school, but it's been attributed to different sources. It doesn't matter. It's brilliant and the example should be followed.

Things I don't understand

A few weeks ago, my friend had invited me to go see TS1 & 2 with the kids this past weekend. It was my husband's 20-year HS reunion weekend (I have to write a post about that). So I told her I couldn't come and asked if we could go next weekend. So we set the date.

She just posted something on a social networking website forum (that we're both part of) that she was proud of her daughter, who did not complain about the 3-D glasses during the 2 movies. Uh, weren't we supposed to go together? And, uh, if she were going to see it this weekend, wouldn't it be nice to drop me a line and say "hey, we decided to go by ourselves" instead of announcing it publicly?

If I knew she was so eager to go and didn't want to wait, I would have taken my son on Friday night (her daughter is younger and goes to sleep earlier). The reason I didn't do it was because I had scheduled it with her in the first place.

I know it's stupid and I shouldn't make a fuss about it, but it's Monday, and I'm not in a good mood.

"It's amazing, Molly. The love inside, you take it with you. See ya."

RIP Patrick Swayze 1952-2009. You left too soon, you will be greatly missed.

Has anyone seen Mary Poppins?

I haven't been well... I need Mary Poppins to teach me how to snap my fingers and fix everything.

I alternate really good times with feeling bad, rock bottom. I'm often overwhelmed and irritated. Is this what depression feels like? I just want to stay in bed...

Hating my job doesn't make anything easier. I wish I could have a break...

Since I'm venting, I might as well talk about some "friends" I have that don't know what boundaries mean. They just *have* to keep tabs on you. Seriously, if you post something on a social networking site, they always want to know more. As in "going on a road trip" "oh, where are you going? so jealous!" bla bla bla. Well, if I wanted you to know where I was going, I would have posted it, right?

Since they don't get a life, I can't even stop with the freaking updates, since they will start asking what's going on, what's wrong, and even prompting calls from my family. Ugh!