Curiosity Abounds; or It's Your Turn to Speak Out

Slump, depression, recession, whatever you call it, times are tough, no where more so than here in Michigan.

We all cut back, tighten the old belt, don't open our wallets quite as often or as wide as before. Sometimes that means cutting back at the grocery store, right now I'm guessing the pile under you Christmas tree will look a little slimmer than years past, as will mine.

But what I'm curious to know is - how has the downward trend in the economy affected the options that you make for yourself in health care?

Do you try to cut back on the number of doctor appointments? Are you trying to make your prescription medicines and nutritional supplements last longer? Have you stopped taking certain meds/supplements?

Has it changed the way you plan for your family, in regards to having children, or how you budget for meals/vacations/gifts/clothes/etc for your family and children?

Similarly, how has the economy affected your health care plan? Has your employer changed plans or stop providing health care?

All information shared will be kept strictly confidential, and you can either leave your responses as a comment, or you can email them directly to me - liberallucy[at]gmail[dot]com

For full-disclosure, my curiosity stems from a discussion I've been having with several fellow female political bloggers on how a poor economy affects healthcare options.

Thanks in advance for your participation!

Will there be any 'Merry' in Michigan's Christmas?

It's a tough time to live in Michigan, even tougher if you're part of the middle-class, an autoworker, or related to one.

If you've been following along over at MichLib, you heard me share how this holiday is going to be a bit different for my family, as I'm sure it will millions others. Tightening the belt doesn't even begin to describe how many Michiganders are going to juggle a failing economy and the holiday.

With last week's bailout-killing vote by the U.S. Senate Republicans, I was more than mad, I was furious, and frustrated, and sad. I'm not sure what to expect, other than to pray that our entire state doesn't go belly up. I don't think I'm any different than most Michiganders right now. I do feel fortunate that I'm not trying to raise a young family in these tough times, because I simply do not know how I'd ever do it.

Looking past the initial impact of the vote, I took a stab in the dark trying to predict the fallout for Republicans in the coming months and years, particularly here in this state. Survey says: It can't be good.

Either way, I'm trying to find that cheer that usually just automatically comes with the season, but no surprise, this year is proving harder to find it than others.

Here's hoping tomorrow brings more hope, more joy, and more optimism, God knows we can use it.

Catching up on the Craziness

Hello again. I've had a chance to take a break from the craziness of politics to rest, and hope you've had the same.

While I've been away, I've collected a smattering of fun/interesting/worthwhile links that I encourage you to check out and support with your voice, or even just a click or two.

Of course, I have to give credit to some of my favorite bloggers, Lex at 60 Second Blog and Christine at My Library Ideas for these great links and also encourage you to stop by and give them a read as well.

• Help starving Cats (FreeKibbleKat.com)
• Help starving dogs (FreeKibble.com)
• Help starving people (UN World Food Program)
• Save/Support your local museum (American Association of Museums)
• Catch up on recipes and ideas from the family farm (Letters from a Hill Farm)

Also for this holiday season, things are going to be remarkably different at Casa del Lucy given our state's economy and the fact that I currently have 5 adult relatives unemployed, including my two parents. I imagine that my family is sadly like many others across the Great Lakes State.

Stay tuned as I share thoughts and opinions on what the holidays in Michigan mean to us, and probably most of the rest of the state.

Till then, happy Tuesday!

Done In

At least while the Battle to Save Michigan rages on.

Until it ends, I'll be over at MichLib by way of the Capitol Building keeping the commentary rolling and the perspective fresh.

Speaking of perspective, I just realized that since session started at 10:30 a.m. last Friday, I've done 18 posts about it all. While I'm not complaining, that's a heck of a lot writing/posting/background gathering to do in 3 short days. I don't think I've ever done 18 posts in a week!

Needless to say, my dwelling/bed has become little more than a staging area to get rested for the next long day of session, and my social life has been nil. Ah, the life of a political blogger! :-)

Since you're on the Tubes of the Internet anyways, stop by MichLib and say hi, it'd be nice to see a few familiar faces.

Local Treats that make you say Yum!

As a local follow-up to yesterday's debut of the new MichLib feature - Make it Michigan, I thought I'd post some of the local farmers' markets, and encourage you to stop by.

From the fabulous MI Department of Agriculture -

Allen Street Farmers' Market Lansing, MI -- Ingham County Phone: 517-485-7630 Type: Seasonal Hours of Operation: Open May 25-Oct 26, 3:30-6:30pm; live music; accept EBT Bridge & Project FRESH

Lansing City Market Lansing, MI -- Ingham County Phone: 517-483-7460 Type: All year Hours of Operation: Open All Year Tu Th Fri Sat 8am-6pm

Meridian Township Farmers' Market Okemos, MI -- Ingham County Phone: 517-853-4608 Type: Seasonal Hours of Operation: Open July-Oct Wed 8am-5pm; May-Oct Sat 8am-2pm

Williamston Farmers' Market Williamston, MI -- Ingham County Phone: 517-655-2774 Type: Hours of Operation: Open Jun-Oct; Thurs 2pm-dusk

If you're outside of Ingham County but still want to find tasty Michigan treats for half the price and all the while promote Michigan's economy, stop by this page from MDA.

Working Together

With all the bad news about our economy, I'm amazed that more people aren't doing more to work together to get it back on track.

I've always been a big fan of leading by example, whether it's our leaders, our friends and family or ourselves. That being said...

Angela is a fellow Lansingite (is that what we're called?) who's made some very pretty baubles and selling them on her Etsy page. I'm always looking for pretty things, and the hardest decision I'm faced with is which one I start with, but at least I've narrowed it down to three.

There's this bracelet, followed by this one, and finally this necklace, of course listed in no particular order. :-)

So when you're in the market to buy something pretty for yourself or someone else, shop local, shop liberal/progressive, shop Lansing.

(While you're at, be sure to check out Angela's blog and think about becoming a regular reader there as well!)

Mixed bag of messages from the LSJ

Reading the Lansing State Journal this morning has left me with some mixed thoughts.

According to the cover story, it looks as if the Downtown area is starting to see a real up kick in business and commercial traffic, which translates to a boost for our local economy. The timing of this with the new Michigan Business Tax that got passed just a few short weeks after the Mackinac conference makes for a happy Thursday.

Of course, when you flip a couple pages back and see the editorial on the smoking ban, you may find yourself a bit puzzled. There's a post that I just did over on MichLib, but the long and short of is that the proposed smoking ban in bars and restaurants is as much about saving money as it is protecting our health. It definitely is not rocket science. What it is is frustrating as hell. I would be interested to hear what everyone else has to say about it.

While you're chiming in below, be sure to stay cool and hydrated today, it's going to be a hot one.

Lansing Town Hall with the Governor Tonight

Governor Granholm will join area residents tonight at Pattengill Middle School for an old fashioned Town Hall meeting to discuss the state's economic future and more importantly, how we get Michigan back on track.

The meeting will be televised live on WILX TV-10, and similarly there will be a live-stream for those who want to watch online.

This from the LSJ:

At a televised town hall-style event, the Democratic governor said her administration has grappled to put together an economic package in the wake of the manufacturing sector losing hundreds of thousands of jobs.

"We need to decide what kind of Michigan we need to create together because we know our economy has been challenged," Granholm said.

Regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum, this is going to be a frank discussion that we all need to participate in, whether its on TV, in the newspaper, on the blogs or in the grocery store. It's going to take all of us working together to pull this off.