Now the fun begins. . .
The last year and a half has not been all that fun for me personally. You see, I started my BESE campaign about that long ago. I was told I would enjoy the experience, make new friends, and have an opportunity to guide the conversation. Maybe that’s true in other states, but not Louisiana. I actually lost a number of friends who felt I had sold out to corporate interests. My health declined, and I had to disappoint my children and family during the ordeal.
I was happy being an erstwhile blogger. I actually became a candidate at the request of some allies (who later turned on me, sadly enough.) I suppose there are worse things that could have happened, and I did make some great new friends along the way, but “friends” who become enemies without warning and continue to participate in my campaign and spy on me? Not cool.
I rose to moderate prominence because of my blog, the one you are reading now. In the campaigning process I had to give up more of my controversial and saucy subject material in favor of more bland and positive fare. This of course sapped much of my interest in continuing my blog. I found it difficult to strike a balance between going after wrongdoing, and not alienating potential voters.
I also found I had very little time to maintain my blog as campaign activities overtook all of my free time, forcing me out of Karate with my kids, boy scouts with my son, and family vacations (I stayed home and campaigned while the family went away without me.) I did all of this for the opportunity to serve on an unpaid board, BESE, which would not only take all of my free-time but also my vacation time as well. Unlike candidates and re-elected BESE members like Holly Boffy or Kira Orange Jones (who work for organizations where serving on BESE is considered part of their jobs) I work as a normal nine-to-five stiff, outside of education circles. I don’t pay my house mortgage with my contract job (like Holly Boffy has said she does with her CCSSO position) with an organization that directly profits from my service.
Had I been elected to BESE, for the next 4 years a minimum of 12 of my 18 Now the fun begins. . . | Crazy Crawfish: