Guilt

Today we had a blood donor clinic at work and I was turned down - evidentally my hemocrit level was too low to donate. I have never been refused to donate and it sucks that this time - I couldn't. It fills me with guilt in a sense. Had my iron been a bit better - had I actually bothered to eat more spinach and what not, I could have been fine to donate and some poor soul in need of blood could have had some of mine.

Be A Better Patriot

You are more of a patriot if you question authority rather than simply accept it.

You are more of a patriot if you fight for every little right (given no rights are little) rather than surrender them without second thought for a sense of security.

There is more to patriotism than a magnetic ribbon on the bumper of your car and a flag flying in front of your house. There is question, concern, involvement and voice. Use yours.

You are more of a patriot if you work in your community and with your community for the rights and equality of everyone - not isolate yourself in an "us vs. them" situation.

Are you really so one dimensional? Do not fall into the circle and squared pits of "liberal" and "conservative" Why should you satisfy yourself with such polarized, simple titles? You are so much more than the black and white that weak, unimaginative people would want to classify you as.

Make your own informed decisions. Do more for yourself, your community, your country than being told what to think.

Seek news from a wide variety of sources. While you might share a lot in common with your favorite columnist, afford yourself the opportunity to know what others think. It's called perspective. You might not agree with what others have to say, but you deserve to know what they think. Draw your own conclusions.

Don't be hasty to slap weak titles such as "conservative" or "liberal" on others. You can easily avoid this by being informed.

Open dialogue with others. Your neighbors. The guy in line with you at the grocery. Learn about their lives, share with them about yours. Build relationships, lengthy or fleeting.

Finally, no one is going to take your guns away or force you to go to church. Not if you can help it. However, step back and think about it. Are single-minded issues the only things you care about? There is more to life and how we live it together than gun control, abortion, religious lobby, drug use and war. Let's not forget about job security, personal rights and freedoms and the environment around us. There are also butterflies and a good hotdog, time spent with your family and time spent snoozing out in the sun. There is the satisfaction of participating in a neighborhood cleanup and singing for fun. There are blowing out candles on a birthday cake and dancing with a loved one.