July | 2013 | Common Sense

There is a Seventh-Day Adventist church near my house on our neighborhood street corner that has a giant message board for announcements and other religious proclamations. It rarely changes and the messages are typically not worth any mention. It will announce things their Vacation Bible School dates, or advertise its food pantry giveaway (free food for the needy AFTER they attend a service and get preached at), things like that. Occasionally, it will have something hilarious on it, like the time it said that the “most honorable position is on your knees before the lord.”

I think I almost choked on my bagel on the way to work when I saw it! (I know, I shouldn’t eat while I am driving… ESPECIALLY while simultaneously reading hilarious sexual innuendos on religious property)

Either way, the other day, the Adventists decided to switch up their message to something that infuriated me probably more than it should have. It now says:

“Become an organ donor, give your heart to Jesus”

How about you become an organ donor and give your heart (or any other part of you for that matter) to SOMEONE IN NEED instead?! To be fair, I don’t believe this sign is advocating against becoming an actual organ donor, however, I would argue that the message of becoming an actual organ donor is WAAAAAAYYYYYYYY more important than the message of giving your heart to a fictional, fairytale idiot of a “savior”.

Let’s look at some statistics:

Nearly 120,000 men, women and children currently need lifesaving organ transplants.
Every 10 minutes another name is added to the national organ transplant waiting list.
An average of 18 people die each day from the lack of available organs for transplant.
In 2012, there were 14,013 Organ Donors resulting in 28,052 organ transplants.
90% of Americans say they support donation, but only 30% know the essential steps to take to be a donor

“Only 30% know the essential steps to take to be a donor” This statistic is remarkable to me because, literally, it is as easy as checking a box on your application for a photo ID or Driver’s License! So, wouldn’t the correct Christian thing to do in this situation be not to use a “clever” play on words in hopes of catching some poor, lost soul’s attention, but rather to take the opportunity to help your fellow human race and educate them about the shit that really matters? I mean, correct me if I’m wrong, but wouldn’t someone who is more alive be more effective in participating in your religion and tithing than a person that is… well… dead?

There is probably nothing on this Earth that pisses me off more than how the religious people in this world have such credibility, authority and such a HUGE platform to speak on with billions of blind followers and they abuse the opportunity to talk about things that really matter in this world. Instead, they brainwash, push ridiculous agendas and cover up crimes and misconduct, all in the name of god.

It’s absolutely disgusting.

Sometimes even a good life can get in the way of allowing you to do the things you want to do — like write. More specifically, like me having the time to write about the things I care about. I feel like I have a great life — I have a good job, an amazing husband, the cutest little (I use that term loosely) English Bulldog you have ever seen and I am about to move to arguably one of the most amazing cities in the world, San Diego.

Ahhhh… San Diego. Land of palm trees and beautiful beaches; A city where people would rather ride their bikes or walk as opposed to drive; A city that offers an easy-going lifestyle if you want it and, if you don’t, makes it hard to resist; A paradise where it doesn’t snow, it hardly rains and the weather never ventures far from a perfect 75 degrees farenheit. Ah, yes. I can see myself living there forever.

However, getting there is another story! This move has turned out to be a lot of work!

A LOT!

Ok, any move is typically a lot of work and can be incredibly stressful but on top of this move, my husband is getting out of the Army. So that means the pressure is on both of us to work really hard to find new jobs and make sure that the gap in our income won’t be overwhelmed by our ever-present expenditures. We have been lucky enough to both be given the opportunity to pursue our dream careers but, my husband’s dream job just threw a wrench into our whole plan. They just informed him that he would need to work out of Los Angeles for a while (anyone know how long a “while” is??) before the possibility of transferring down to San Diego is an option. So… that means we will be living in 2 different cities for who knows how long. Oh boy. Sounds like fun. (shoot me)

“Why don’t you just live in LA with your husband while he has to work there and then move to San Diego when he can transfer?” you might be asking me. Because I don’t want to live in LA, that’s why! The plan has always been to end up in San Diego and I am not going to let his employer dictate where/when/how I live EVER again! (yikes, I know)

Call me selfish, but anyone who has ever been married to a person in the military knows that nothing you want ever matters. And I do mean EVER. I want to plant roots, buy a house, HAVE A CAREER and you just can’t do that being married to a serviceman/woman. It’s literally impossible to have any of those things when you are constantly being asked to uproot your life and move to the next military town with no complaints and a smile on your face. So again, call me selfish, but I am sick of following my husband around like a lost sheep. I am ready to start my career and pursue my goals and aspirations. I feel like I have sacrificed a lot already, and I’m not willing to allow myself to possibly resent my husband later on for it. The good thing is, my husband is completely on board with it all. He gets it and he isn’t offended. He wants to support me as much as I want to support him but we both understand that neither of us are budging on the issue and therefore we may have to spend some time living in different cities.

While all of this is floating around in my head, my boss breaks her wrist in 2 places and BAM! I’m putting in overtime at work which has made me too exhausted to apply for jobs which stresses me out even more and AHHHHHHHH!!!!

So, needless to say, I have had a lot on my plate as of late. The problem is, I tend to deal with stress by writing and lately, by studying world religions (it’s comforting to know that when you feel crazy, there is always someone out there that is crazier than you!) and lately I just haven’t had the time to do either one. I do think my nightly glass of wine of wine is helping though…