VIRAGO

My Best Friend's Mom

2007-01-03T07:27:00.000-08:00

Jessie is a lady that I have admired for over 25 years. She is now at the final days in her life having lived her life pretty much on her own terms.

I am extremely fortunate to have two of her painting hanging in my house. She painted trees, all sorts of trees, and the two I have I count among my most valuable possessions, you know the kind that if there was afire, they are the first things to save, right after family and pets. Jessie introduced me to the Arts community in San Diego early on and I will be forever grateful for that. Jessie was very involved with the San Diego Arts Institute where she showcased her paintings. We had fun when in the early days of the now famous "Christmas on the Prado" I helped together with my friend support the Art Institute food stand in the Balboa Park.

Because of her involvement in a local Unitarian Church, I learned about the Unitarian community where I found a non-religious way to find one's own spiritual center.

Jessie survived several bouts with cancer, and although she was frail, she met these challenges without complaints and always in a matter of fact way. And with a sense of humor!

One thing that always amazed me was that Jessie lost her son, my friend's brother, when he was just entering college, and that somehow she managed to keep going. He died in a car crash caused by a drunk driver. I can't begin to imagine how you keep going, as she did, after that.

So, Jessie, thank you for your inspiration to pursue what you love to do, to survive tragedy and to overcome obstacles with dignity and constant sense of humor.

New Year 2007

2007-01-01T20:22:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year 2007!!

Sheila, a very special canine virago

2006-11-15T09:33:00.000-08:00

This is Sheila, a 7 year old border collie mix of some sort. She and I are both middle-aged and in excellent mental and physical shape! Like me, she's very assertive, always takes charge of things at the dog park and doesn't back down from any other dogs, male or female!

She teaches me to enjoy life's little pleasures, like a back-scratching roll in the grass, or just running and jumping because it feels good to feel yourself moving and being free!

Thank you Sheila for being my buddy!

Nancy Pelosi - The New Speaker

2006-11-08T17:33:00.000-08:00

Well, that makes Ms Pelosi a real sort of a virago! This is great! Third in line to the presidency, a liberal San Francisco Democrat, right behind Bush and Chaney... What could be better.

I am so relieved to see the change in the US administration and a real rise in women in congress.

Francine Busby

2006-10-28T08:17:00.000-07:00

Elections 2006 for US Congress are just around the corner! As media has been pounding into us for the last several weeks, this is an important election.

I am not very thrilled with either party right now, and am personally very conservative on many issues, such as government spending, government imposing their "value system" on individuals, and government and religion (being an atheist, I am against any religious influence on the government). However, I do think that the issue of preserving our environment is something our government should be more proactive about!

For me personally, the candidate that is running in my district fits the profile of my blog. Francine Busby is Democratic candidate that really needs to win in our district! Francine supports protecting our environment, an issue that is extremely understated in all the campaigns.

Personally, I feel that unless we focus on the environment and extend more effort into fixing our environment, all the rest of the issues won't really matter in the long term!

Zosia, the ultimate step-mom

2006-10-23T20:27:00.000-07:00

Zosia is a Polish version of Sophie... She has been my dad's wife for over 25 years, I think. She has been the pillar in his life!

She is now going through chemo for her second time for ovarian cancer. Obviously, the tragedy is that she is not that old (early 60's), that she's one of those women of substance that really matter. What I always found amazing about her, is that she's always totally classy, always appropriate, never complains about her situation, never acts as a victim. I hope to some day have that kind of calm presence, with that kind of style and grace.

Add to that biting humor and great intellect. Zosia's background is in mathematics, masters degree, and later programming large steel mill computer systems. She can also knit and is a great cook.

And she makes it all look so easy and effortless.

I hope that she recovers and that I still have some time left to spend with her in the next few years! I'm just not ready for her to leave us yet... I feel that I still have more to learn from her and share with her.

And my son was also just asking when he will get to visit with her again, because he misses her potatoe pancakes!

Zosia, please get well and stay well!

Rose Canyon

2006-10-22T13:18:00.000-07:00

This is what we are trying to save in our neighborhood - Rose Canyon. Debbie Knight, also a strong and determined friend and neighbor, has been instrumental in helping to preserve this small area of wilderness in the middle of the city of San Diego - You can see more at Friends of Rose Canyon website. You can also make donations to this Not-for-Profit organization from that website or by buying some of our merchendise here: http://www.cafepress.com/rosecanyon

Women and the Environment

2006-10-22T08:13:00.000-07:00

Since we comprise about half of the global population we really need to be driving the effort to save our environment. There are many ways to become involved. We can start with our own home. I often wonder if we really need to drive those gas guzzling SUVs that I so often see mothers with small children drive. When I was in Europe last year, I rarely saw women drive anything bigger than a small station wagon. Many rely on public transportation to go shopping or take the kids to school. Let's get those large vehicles off the roads.

Personally, I'm ready to move to a scooter to get around town!

Why can't we do the same?

We can also let our local politicians know that we want to preserve any local natural parks and preserve our local environmental resources.

There are some special groups where you can get more information:

UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme - who's who of women and the environment

Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" - you will be able to purchase the DVD in November. And it has a section on what you can do yourself at home .

Read Huffington Post's article on academia's failures. And of course, Ms Huffington is one of us, real viragos!!

Yesterday or today?

2006-10-21T10:50:00.000-07:00

It's a Saturday morning. And it looks like it's going to be a beautiful, sunny day.

I have been trying to decide whether to focus on currently important and inspirational woman or on the ones who came before and set the stage for us to now follow.

So, how about Sally Ride? In 1983, Dr. Sally Ride became the first American woman in space on the shuttle Challenger (STS-7). Today she's a Physics prof at UCSD, here in San Diego and among other things started a very cool kid's club - Sally Ride Science Club.

Dr. Ride should inspire us to really REACH FOR THE STARS. After all, being part of the shuttle crew is huge! A real pioneer in space exploration.

A new virago

2006-10-17T19:27:00.000-07:00

My son broke his wrist, again! We ended up at new orthopedists today who turned out to be a fascinating woman.

First of all, she got her medical degree from USC, not too bad. Then it turns out she is raising 3 boys. Ok, a full time doctor and a mother of 3 boys... That's pretty impressive in itself.

We chatted for a bit, and I learned that she is originally from Egypt. Her family came to the US to escape persecution, because they are from the rare Christian Coptic Sect (http://www.copts.com/english/).

Women like this doctor are truly inspirational. Wearing a black pantsuit with the pink Breast Cancer Awareness pin on the lapel, in high heels, she was reading X-rays and explaining the injury to my 15-year in a way he could understand, and then actually making the cast herself. Additionally, she's an exotically beautiful woman with the Middle-Eastern features, and a mane of long, dark hair, with a warm smile and sparkly eyes.

Being around women like her makes me realize that I need to also get my "sh....t" together more! I wanted to make a point about her also, because it's important to notice those type of people around us, and learn from them. And perhaps next time I see her, I will tell her "Thanks, I needed to see your competance and self-confidence to remind me that I too can be like that".

Who are Viragos

2006-10-15T14:39:00.000-07:00

I feel that the very first virago to have made an impact on my life is my name-sake, Mary Magdalene. When I was young, I resented my mom for naming me after such a scandalous saint! I mean, what was she thinking? Naming me after the most infamous prostitute? It was only more recently, and thanks to Mr. Brown’s “Da Vinci Code” that Mary Magdalene’s representation has been questioned. Turns out that men of her day painted her in a totally wrong light. She was a very independent woman, and Christ’s right hand “man”, a real disciple. Perhaps even a wife? http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/02/0225_040225_davincicode.html

Finding this out has been somewhat liberating, I now cherish my name and its significance.

Who are some of the other viragos that have inspired me over the last 40-some years? Well those are friends and family members, as well as historical figures and women involved in current events. The list for now (because it may change over time) includes the following – and keep in mind, these are women that I personally find inspirational:

My two grandmothers
My step-mom, Zosia
My step-daughter Virginia
My sister-in-law, Angela

My college room-mates and long-time friends Julie and Susan
Jesse, Susan’s mom

Cleopatra
Eleanor of Aquitaine
Saint Queen Jadwiga (Polish queen and saint)
Queen Elizabeth I
Dr. Marie Curie
Ayn Rand
Kathryn Hepburn
Jane Fonda
Gloria Steinem
Ariana Huffington
Sally Ride
Madonna
Sharon Stone
Hillary Clinton
Carly Fiorina, HP
Carol Bartz, Autodesk
Martha Dennis
Patti Smith