MLO Knitting

I think this video pretty much proves, once and for all, that our politicians are insane:

In 1885 Chicago built a diversion to carry waste water to the Mississippi out from Lake Michigan. This led to a number of locks and such that supersede the Great Lakes Compact and the Boundary Waters Treaty that govern water usage in the Great Lakes basin due to a SCOTUS decision from around the 1890s (I already returned the library book – The Great Lakes Water Wars).

Since this time, there have been major diversions that have gone into the Great Lakes – notably the one developed during WWII in Ontario that feeds into Thunder Bay. The rule of thumb has been that if it remains inside the basin there isn’t much to worry about, but if it is outside the basin (excepting Chicago due to an antiquated SCOTUS decision), it is not approved.

For those unfamiliar with how the Great Lakes basin governance works, it takes the agreement of all the governors of the states or the executives of the provinces to allow a diversion if it is under a certain volume. If it exceeds that volume, the Boundary Waters Treaty comes into play – as does the updated Compact – and all the executives in both the Great Lakes States and Provinces must approve with subsequent approval in Ottawa and D.C. (Yeah, how long do you think that would take?)

Anyway, the Chicago Diversion has continued to add more and more suburbs outside the basin by staying within their overall volume allowance from an over 100 year old SCOTUS decision that SCOTUS just decided it would not re-hear. For whatever reason, Michigan’s case to cut off the links that allow for the carp to enter the lakes (and genetic materials have already been found on top of the fences) despite the likelihood of them destroying both fishing and tourism interests in an already weakened economic area.

Now, the main diversion and overall waterways surrounding Chicago are antiquated. Would it not make sense to use Federal monies to not only prevent the carp from invading international waters (Canada is still the USA’s largest trading partner); but, also, to engender a major infrastructure project in one of the areas of the country suffering from massive unemployment by updating an over 100 year old water system?

Or, are Chicago and federal politicians so corrupt and short-sighted that they cannot see this will turn into a major international incident if not headed off at the pass?

Sometimes even reading a book or seeing a movie can cause wounds to reopen. Wounds we thought we had nursed ourselves through the worst of, only to find they are still much more raw than we expected. Sometimes, we don’t even know it until after we have done it. So captured by a story, we don’t recognize the pain that it teases open until we are in the midst of the aftermath.

Great literature is supposed to bring raw emotions to the fore. Sometimes even that which we see as “fluff” can unintentionally cause us pain by reminding us of an old or recent wounding. It may be the first time our heart was broken by another, the loss of a loved one, or a reminder of a dream that can never be.

Recently, I did this to myself. I read, in succession, two books that centered on things I will never have in my life. I was caught up in the story – a sign of a good read – but I didn’t recognize the pain that was ready to come pouring out. Or, maybe, it was a catalyst for the pain that I had been holding in so as to not deal with it? I do come from a long line of WASPs. We aren’t exactly known for being open about emotion.

Now, the books in question are by no stretch of the imagination works of great literature. And, to be fair, I only started one to put it down once I realized it was leaving me raw. I do, however, want to know what happens to the characters, so, when I feel stronger, I will read it again.

That’s the accidental pain that can occur. There are other books that you know might hurt if you read, but may catch you unawares in how close they hit home. I started reading Gilda Radner’s book, It’s Always Something: Twentieth Anniversary Edition, only to find that I had to put it down.

It’s Always Something: Twentieth Anniversary Edition hits too close to home. My husband read a bit of it and said to me that I would relate a lot to her experience. I did not expect for her to be from Detroit; have a beloved dog who she adored as much as we adore SMR; that she had failed fertility treatments; and then, found herself facing ovarian cancer. This paralleled too closely – and still does – for me to read very far without tears streaming from my eyes.

I haven’t picked up It’s Always Something: Twentieth Anniversary Edition for some time now. I know where the book is – despite the massive numbers in my to be read pile – but reading brings everything too close to the surface. Emotions, especially the negative ones, are to be controlled and kept in check.

There are other books I have found I have had to put down. There is a piece of historical fiction – highly recommended – that has a composite character partially based on my many greats grandmother Jenny Wiley that I cannot read for the horror she experienced and witnessed. I love history, but cannot bring myself to read much of what would once have whet my appetite because it reminds me too much of the recent pains in my life.

I have found it odd to need to walk away from good or enjoyable reads because of feelings that rise unwanted to the surface. Have you ever needed to put down a book because it was hitting too close to your wounded heart?