Quit flappin' yer gums over nothin'!

I like to consider myself a pretty non-judgmental person. Heck, I live in one of only about three countries that has now legalized same-sex marriage. Who am I to care what goes on behind other people’s closed doors? They’re CLOSED doors for a reason. MYOB, I say. I entrust others with their own beliefs and they should leave me alone with mine. I do like to keep up with the happenings in the world. I regularly check headlines on the various Internet homepages and search engines, I read the paper, I listen to radio news… whatever. There’s a hell of a lot going on in the world right now. The things that upset me, I eventually tune them out. I call it “information overload” and, when I get to the point of anger against or about other people, I know it’s time to take a step back and readjust my thinking. One has to stay objective to take in and digest all the important things that happen every day. I was looking around online today and, lo and behold, I catch a headline about a “flip flop scandal” at the White House. WELL! Echoes of Kerry’s failed Presidential bid spring quickly to mind and I have to see what the media’s drummed up now. Whose opinions are swaying with the breeze today? Imagine my surprise… and “complete and utter stunned-ness” when I realized they were talking about REAL FLIP FLOPS. THONGS. BEACH SANDALS. Call ‘em what you want … they are FOOTWEAR. My mind was off and running. What kind of scandal could possibly involve a President and footwear??? Does Dubya have a foot fetish? Harbor fantasies of a dominatrix in five-inch stilettos? Did someone find an online order to Frederick’s of Hollywood confirming a gift to Mrs. Dubya? Clinton had his cigars… maybe George has his… “Candies”?? I could hardly wait to view the video! Talk about disappointment! It seems that Northwestern’s women’s lacrosse team visited the White House in connection with Championship Day. Some of the ladies, while dressed in skirts and dresses for the occasion, chose to wear flip flops. #$%#$#$%#!!!! Call the Secret Service! Alert the National Guard! Someone broke with decorum! Get serious, people. Yes, I know. There are “rules” to be followed. Etiquette dictates closed-toed shoes when one greets a Head of State. But this was CHAMPIONSHIP DAY. These are sports-minded people in attendance. They are athletic. They spend their lives in casual, comfortable, activity-appropriate attire. You are celebrating their achievements in those activities! You are NOT celebrating their ability to walk on the White House lawn without breaking a heel! “Back in the day” some folks considered flip flops quite scandalous in their own right. For those enamored with such things, “toe cleavage” is apparently a pretty big deal. Well it seems to me that more than one head honcho in that big ol’ white building down there in D.C. has been far too comfy with cleavage of the “standard” kind. Parents and families of some of the “flip flop floozies” are mortified. Yeah, well… guess what? Those quick-thinking, hard-working, “championship” women have a plan. The flip flops are going to be auctioned off and the proceeds are going to help a 10-year-old girl with a brain tumor. That’s what I call thinking on your feet… or WITH your feet. In his Championship Day address, the President said, “you have a responsibility as a champ, not only to win contests for your respective schools and set personal goals and achieve them, but I think you have a responsibility as a champ to set a good example.” Maybe these ladies aren’t adhering to the standards of “dressing for success” but I hold them up as a much more important example of using every possible opportunity to CREATE success. One 10-year-old little girl and those who love her are going to remember those flip flops long after the White House is in the news for ITS next big flop!