babies having babies

I opened the Pioneer Press today and a sad statistic caught my eye. In 2008, 40% of all babies born were born out of wedlock. Of course single mothers or fathers can be good parents. Of course gay parents can do an outstanding job raising a child. But, statistic after statistic shows that children who were raised by both a mother and a father do less drugs, perform better in school, have higher graduation rates, are less likely to be arrested, et cetera. Interestingly enough, abortion is at its lowest rate in decades, but teen birth rates has been very gradually increasing. I don't know if the rise in babies born out of wedlock is due to a decrease in adequate sex education. I don't know if more single women are deciding to raise babies by themselves. Either way, I hope it is a trend that reverses.

1. This morning was random. At about 8:30 in the morning, my sister asked if I wanted to go to the Minnesota Zoo to check out a new exhibit. "Why not," I said. It was one of the best zoo experiences of my life. One, it was a work week so it was quiet. Two, the weather was not great. It was chilly and cloudy. Three, we got there when it opened at 9:00 am. I am not sure if it was because of mating season, or if it was just so quiet, but all of the animals were out and about. I saw more of the Grizzly bears, Tigers, Tapirs (my favorite), Slow Loris', and all of my other favorites than I have seen in a long time.

2. The older I get, the more I am convinced the NCAA March Madness. As of right now, both my Mom and my Sister's brackets are doing better than my Dad's and mine. And my Dad and I watch a LOT of college basketball and my Mom and sister watch almost none. Naturally, my Mom would know to pick Western Kentucky over the Illini.

3. Did anyone watch President Obama on Jay Leno last night? I thought he was fantastic. He is getting in trouble by the Politically Correct PC for his Special Olympics comment. I don't remember the exact quote but he was talking about how bad he was at bowling but how he would dominate the Special Olympics bowling tournament. Yes, it was a dumb thing to say and this morning he did apologize to any he offended. One thing that did surprise me was the political pundits that are "outraged" that Obama went on a comedy show during a time of crisis. I heard such quotes as, "He should spend more time on the economy and less on college basketball and comedy shows." Give it a rest! I actually like a President who is... human! Real people like sports. Real people enjoy comedy shows. And no, I am not being a hypocrite. If President Bush went on Letterman or Leno, I would have had no problem with it. In fact, toward the end of his presidency, going on a show like that might have been good for him. He needed all the good publicity he could muster.

4. I applied for a job with the IRS. That's a scary thought! Although I would love it. I always recommend to all my friends, if at all possible, to get jobs with the government. No one gets better benefits than government employees (military, teachers, police, et cetera.)

5. Currently listening to "Single Ladies" by Beyonce. Album: I am... Sasha Fierce!