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10:11 - Sunday, Mar. 02, 2003 I think part of the problem is when I work on a long entry or a diaryland project like my 66 things. For some reason I stall daily entries until these things are complete. I'll have to work on that! I guess the big news is that I have a new job! I thought this might happen someday, but not as fast as it did. The multidisciplinary art school/theatre/dance and music space I work at is making me the top dog in the fundraising and development office. It's my first Development Director job, so I am very pleased to have finally made it to that title. I have been a National Events Director and a Membership Director, but my skill set does fit best as a Development Director. And they really need my help. My work specialty is in individual giving, direct mail, and events/marketing. They have historically been more grant-focused. So I need to learn about grant writing for my job, but I get to really so the types of fundraising I really enjoy. We are starting from a point of not really knowing how many donors we have and from shitty data. so now I am in clean up mode. I will still be doing my Administrator job 20 hours per week for now. It's kind of cool to be one of the lowest paid employees and one of the highest at the same time. The admin side really allows me to see the innerworkings of the office. To know that things in the office take TIME and large projects cannot possibly be completed on quick whims. For the development side, I will be working from home and have loose hours. That is somewhat scary, but I think I am ready for such a thing. It means also that I can work early in the morning and late at night . . . The two times I really do my best thinking/planning/analysis and writing. Friday Night Ms. Stitch, Dharmaqueen and two other friends went to see Jim Jeffords at the bookstore in my neighborhood. [Jeffords is the Vermont Senator who switched from being a Republican to being an Independent and switched the balance of power in the Seante) Damn it was amazing. He's totally a Democrat, against the war, and really weary of Bush. The resounding message from the audience was that Democratic leaders absolutely must get a backbone and find their voices NOW. That we are eager to be represented and not to have folks act so damn scared of the President Select. He picked up on this and said he was going to talk to Tom Daschle about it. It's about fucking time someone did something/said something. I think a lot of people have been standing up and speaking and marching and faxing and writing letters and calling. Pick up the clue phone! He talked about switching from being a Republican to being an Independent and told us why. The most specific reason was that he was to be in charge of Education and the Bush Administration folks came to him and said that the 450 billion that was earmarked for education was gone, and that there would be enough money from the surplus to fund education. Jeffords was pissed and told them so. The Republicans said the states could fund education (Have you seen state budgets recently . . .they are clamoring to get CREDIT to do deficit spending to meet drastically reduced budgets!). SO basically he decided to move on. I was amazed though that he was surprised by Bush's desire to take funding away from education and the Republicans support of this. I asked "With all due respect to the complexities of your office and position, how could you be surprised by Bush wanting to gut education. His record in Texas was horrible on education, immigration, gay rights, women's rights, across the board. Read Molly Ivins. How did he and how does he fly under the radar when his record is so clearly atrocious on these issues?" His answer was that the Republicans are so good at obfuscation it was very difficult to combat their messages, etc. His wife Liz then came to the microphone and said basiaclly that 9/11 had a huge impact on folks being able to find their voice and to show they are patriotic etc. was difficult in light of the way the Republicans are working it etc. I was definitely ready to go after that point, which I think was probably frustrating to others. I mean shit, those people are there to HAVE and to BE a voice. To cut through the bullshit and call things for what they are. Did they learn nothing from Paul Wellstone? Do they not see Barbara Lee dangling out there as a lone vote? DO they not hear the voices of their woefully unmobilized base? I guess not. I guess Republican obfuscation machines are too challenging and have shorted out the Democratic bullshit detectors. What a waste. All in all though, I think I like Jim Jeffords. I think he saw some seriously nasty Republican shit and decided he just couldn't attach his name to it. And he got out. I do admire that. Now stay out and stay loud Jim. We need it!
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