January 8, 2014

2014 NEW LAWS

"New Illinois Laws In 2014: 10 Of The Land Of Lincoln's Most Important Laws Taking Effect Jan. 1

"ANNIE, GET YOUR GUN
Earlier this year, Illinois became the final U.S. state to pass a concealed carry law and, starting this week, it will formally go into effect. Beginning Sunday, Illinois residents can apply online for a concealed carry permit on the Illinois State Police's website. State Police are required by law to approve a license, should no problems arise, within 90 days and the first licenses are expected to be issued by mid-January, ABC Chicago reports. (HB 183)

"MEDICINAL PURPOSES ONLY
Medical marijuana technically arrives in Illinois on Jan. 1, though the agencies overseeing the state's four-year pilot program will still have 120 days from Wednesday to lay out the application process for those who qualify to get their hands on the drug. (HB 1)

"PUT DOWN THAT PHONE
Beginning on Jan. 1, drivers in Illinois will be required to use a Bluetooth headset or speakerphone if they wish to talk on the phone while driving -- any driver caught holding a phone up to their ear could be fined at least $75. Exceptions may apply in the case of emergencies. About a dozen other states have already implemented similar laws, according to the Chicago Tribune. (HB 1247)

"PEDAL TO THE METAL (JUST NOT IN CHICAGO)
Taking a long road trip across Illinois? You can get to your destination slightly faster now. As of Jan. 1, the speed limit on rural Illinois highways has been increased from 65 to 70 mph. For now, the law leaves the majority of the Chicago area as a slow zone, something state Sen. Jim Oberweis is pushing to change. (SB 2356)

"LET'S TALK ABOUT SEX
Another new Illinois law going into effect means public school districts teaching sex education will now be required to teach about birth control and sexually transmitted diseases, rather than just abstinence. The law does allow districts to opt out entirely of sex education. (HB 2675)

"TEEN TAN BAN
Illinois residents younger than 18 will no longer be allowed to use indoor tanning facilities as of Jan. 1. Any businesses violating the new law could be fined $250. (HB 188)

"UNDERAGE VOTERS
Beginning Jan. 1, any Illinois voter eligible to vote in a November general election will also be eligible to vote in the preceding primary, even if they are only 17 years old at the time of the primary, NBC Chicago reports. Interested 17-year-old voters in Chicago must register by Feb. 18 in order to vote in the March 18 primary. (HB 226)

"PUPPY LEMONS
New pet owners in Illinois will be newly protected by a "lemon law" that allows owners to be refunded the cost of the pet or reimbursed for veterinary costs if a new pet has been purchased without disclosure of any serious illnesses. (SB 1639)

"'FLASH' MOBBERS BEWARE
Illinois lawmakers have also increased the maximum penalty for anyone caught using social media to organize a violent "flash mob" from three years to six years in prison, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. (SB 1005)

"HOLD ONTO YOUR BUTTS
Bad news, cigarette tossers: cigarette butts have now been specifically designated as litter and, under a newly strengthened penalty, anyone caught tossing one is risking a $1,500 fine. (HB 3243)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/01/new-illinois-laws-in-2014_n_4524862.html

i'm wondering what if we use social media to organize a non-violent flash mob? like: "hey, look, everybody, quick, come over here and look at this!"

re: cell phones while driving. i always use the speaker phone. but i'm glad they have that "emergency" out clause so i can put the phone to my ear when i say to my daughter: "you want WHAT for dinner???"

medical pot: does this mean we're going to have roadside stands like california where we can stop in and buy pot and they will give us a list to check off ailments that apply and would qualify us for it? or do we need a doctor's script? and where are people going to buy this stuff? it could give the term "berger joint" a whole new meaning.

the conceal carry law--i heard businesses can have the option of putting an official (state approved) sign in their store window that shows a gun with a slash line through it. so now i'm gonna have to look for those signs and not shop at a store that doesn't have the sign. what a pain in the ass.

i smoke and have a habit of flipping cigarette buts onto my lawn next to the driveway before getting into the car or when getting out of the car. i wonder if this law applies to my yard. i pick them up every three months or so but am i going to have to stand in my backyard now just to flip a cigarette? (and hope a neighbor doesn't "catch" me on a mostly concealed camera?) there's something about flipping a cigarette butt into the distance that really drives a point home--or makes you look like a hard ass. i think i'd really miss that. i've always enjoyed making a point while looking like a hard ass--it makes the point i'm trying to make seem even more important and even a bit dangerous...

sex ed: good. now these kids won't have any excuse for...whatever they had excuses for before.

puppy lemons: poor puppies.

underage tanning: good. in my neck of the suburban woods it was just a lot of status crap on the part of the kid and the mom anyway. now we can tell our seventeen yr. old daughters to stay the hell out of the tanning beds and go have protected sex. and depending on where their boyfriends live, they can drive there at 70 miles an hour and register to vote on the way!

life keeps getting better all the time.

January 6, 2014

my heart goes out to you

it's hard to lose one we love and the adjustment to their absence takes time
i lost my little furkid (dog) back in june and still have a hard time over the fact that she is not here with me.

stewie sounds very unique with an adorable personality that was greatly appreciated. you were lucky to have each other. and i'm very sorry for such a loss. i suspect the days ahead won't be easy.

i post a lot in the bereavement group
i began posting there about my mom who passed several years ago but i have also posted about my furry little girl who made my world better and left my world so empty after her departure.

leave this thread here in the lounge--no one will object and i've seen other bereavement threads here. but if you would like to make a double post of this, or just come visit, you'll find the bereavement group here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1234

again, my condolences. take care.

January 5, 2014

i did that when we had a major snowstorm a few years ago

it was the first winter she came to live with me (she was a rescue dog, ten years old) and i made a huge path around the yard. the snow was over three feet high and she was a little dog. but she LOVED the path and i'd put her leash on her (she was used to a leash i guess) and she would RUN so fast and i'm trying to keep up with her! it was so funny, so wonderful--it was heaven...

January 2, 2014

still not sure if this is "shitty" or just fun bubble gum music

i remember riding bikes (in the street) with a friend and we were singing this song as loud as we could on a nice summer day (no hands on the handlebars!)

it was enough of a memorable moment that i took it with me for all these years, since 1969.

(little did i realize, in that minute or two of happiness and exhilaration, that i was in the process of creating an unforgettable memory--that's kinda cool actually)

January 2, 2014

if i could be where you are

i ran into this song by accident
(there are no accidents)
never heard it before but
thought it was very appropriate for this part of my life that i share here. it's by enya

this was the first new year's eve i've spent alone. the past two or three i at least had my baby furkid. but this time there was no one all evening--my daughter got home around 1 or 1:30. but i had lots of time to myself (not necessarily a good thing on such a holiday--it was also the anniversary of my father's passing a long time ago)

so i popped a cork on the martini & rossi asti bottle and drank it across the course of the evening, made a pizza, watched a couple movies, and tried so hard not to think too much. fell into one crying jag for awhile and then it passed.

this was also the first time i didn't have the new year's eve shows on or watch a countdown when i was at home. my "clue" that the year had changed was the flash of light through a window before the explosion of holiday fireworks from the neighborhood.

and here i am, a holiday survivor -- as are we all.
and while i'm glad the year is over i dread the new year.
"it was better before" has become my new motto
my glass is no longer half full or half empty. it is empty. and when i refill it (which i will literally do when i'm done with this post) it will continue to be figuratively empty.

and how did the changing of the year go for everyone else?