Is looking back a bad idea?

I often wonder how life might have turned out if I'd made decisions differently. This usually happens when I get involved in something like politics or the theatre arts that I considered at one point being my destiny, before I realized they were not within my reach. Or so I thought at the time.

Do you ever torture yourself with shoulda/ woulda/ coulda? Looking back, I think I didn't give myself enough credit and, if I could do it again, there are things I'd change.

For instance, but am not a political campaign manager or strategist, but I considered it as a career option at one point, and can't help but be annoyed whenever I see lame political ads and poor decisions. I majored in Advertising in school, because I had a way with words in a promotional sort of way (novel writing is not for me - I can't finish reading one, much less writing one), but I never pictured myself working on Madison Ave. I didn't want to leave Florida for New York.

Ironically, I ended up doing just that three years after graduation, landed a job writing ad copy for Macy*s in Manhattan. I loved it, and walked away with a very full portfolio of work I'm still proud of to this day. So, in the end, all turned out alright.

But 5 years earlier, as a Sophomore in college, I realized that I wanted to go to law school. My father was busy with his shiny new family, and buying my half-sister (18 years my junior) a horse, (true story,) so I was told not to pursue graduate school, as there were 3 younger sisters to come after me that needed their college paid for, and there was no more money for me.

But if there's one thing that compels me to go for something, it's being told "No." Only when my dad says it, it's more like "Hell, NO"

So just before graduation, I actually went behind my father's back, registered for a Stanley Kaplan LSAT (Law School Admission Test) study course, snuck out for several weeks to take practice tests, and sat for the LSAT early one Saturday morning. Why? because all I ever wanted was to go to law school...not to be a lawyer necessarily, but to be able to go to Washington and make a meaningful contribution. I figured it was a great way to combine my knack for promotion with my passion for politics.

It's not as though I was sneaking out of the house to go drag racing...I wanted to go to Law School! But my father was not the kind to be toyed with - his decisions were final and not open to negotiation, and no one was permitted to express other opinions or do anything that had his complete backing.

I know, I know, you thought no one ever actually WANTS to be a lawyer, but I did!  In my dreams, I become a senior campaign manager, or speech writer, or political analyst... with my adoring husband, George Stephanopoulis, by my side, and our 4 perfect children (2 boys, 2 girls), living  in our historic Georgetown home.

Back on terra firma, I obviously ended up not going to law school, because aforementioned father (who is himself an attorney) refused to pay even one penny for my education, even after my grandmother (on my mom's side) offered to match any amount he would pay.

At the end of my Senior year, my dreams of law school had been plucked away from me...I sold my broken down car for parts, which armed me with the hefty sum of approximately $150 upon graduation. With no place to live, and a retail management job offer in hand, I had no choice but to take the job. And I watched my dreams of legal-ish career disappearing in the rear view window, as I went another path in life.

Since then, I've had a bumpy career path filled with corporate downsizings, layoffs, horrible bosses, and general misery interspersed with the occasional awesome supervisor and great employer that actually taps into my skills, and teaches me to do things I never knew I could.

Looking back, I could have done things differently, applied for 100% financial aid and done whatever it took to make my dream come true... but at the time, I didn't know that. I was told in no uncertain terms that was not an option, and I dutifully obeyed.

As you can tell, it still stings. It has taken many mistakes like the law school example in life to teach me what to look for, and how to choose, when I come to a fork in the road.

Sometimes, the road less traveled is the best choice. But sometimes, the road that's paved is the smarter move. I didn't like my first 3 jobs out of college, but eventually I found a wonderful writing position. And then, as often happens, life took me in another direction, one where the pay checks were larger.

I no longer write for a living. When I started blogging, I found myself staying up late at night (and I'm not a night owl,) and willing to toss aside anything else that needed to be done in lieu of writing again. There are few things in life I feel as passionate about, or as comfortable doing. If only someone would pay me to do it, life would be sweet!

In Jan 2014,I lost my job in yet another layoff (my fourth, at last count). Here I am at another fork in the road. Which direction will I go? Not sure yet, but when I decide, it will be my own decision, one based on lessons learned. If we don't look back occasionally, we'll never move forward, because history is doomed to repeat itself.

What would you do differently if you were given a second chance?

There ain't no party like a political party

Ever since Obama was first elected, I have felt the President is extremely well-intentioned but ill-advised, and needs to surround himself with better strategists and political advisors. He seems to lack advisors who would have guided him to do things more for public approval because, let's face it, it does matter what others think.

The executive office is much more than just one man - it "takes a village," one that's filled with specialists in every department, from Defense to defending against your critics.

The Democrats did an amazing job working hard to get Obama into office, but they began making terrible mistakes, like focusing first on healthcare, ahead of the economy. Both were high priorities, for sure, and Obama has done the seemingly impossible, completely reversed the economic free-fall we were in when he took office, making this what history will likely show is the most dramatic economic recovery ever. This in spite of the most antagonistic Congress in recent memory trying their darndest to undo everything he's done. So this administration can, and should, be credited with amazing results!

But, IMHO, there was no higher priority in 2008 than the dismal Depression, and his advisors should have insisted that Obama attack it the minute he got into office. By prioritizing healthcare first, it made him look cavalier about the U.S. economy-which he is not- but image is everything. Add to that the extreme complexity of the subject matter of healthcare, and that's a recipe for discontent, any way you slice it.

His image suffered, his popularity plummeted, and that's one recovery that has not been made.

So, what else has the Democratic National Committee managed to blunder? Well, how about preparing candidates for office...Have you seen those Hillary Clinton ads, "Ready for Hillary" - that is just about the worst presidential campaign slogan I have ever heard, I mean, a sixth grader could be more creative (no offense to sixth graders).

Yes, I can only imagine how much money was spent to come up with that little nugget of marketing genius. Not much, apparently. It's a slogan more suited to a middle school student council election.

I thought maybe those ads were a joke - a spoof- but sadly, the ads indeed were sponsored by the DNC. Worse yet, the photograph they chose to use of her from the tens of thousands of images they have at their disposal, shows her in this cheesy pose, pointing her finger and winking. Winking?! Really?

Sadly, Hillary Clinton may in fact be an outstanding candidate for president, but in America, it takes more than great potential to get elected and, with this team, she's got her work cut out for her.

Recently, Obama supporters were mailed and asked to Tweet the following:
"I'm getting President Obama's back -- will you join me?"
Not only is this grammatically painful, it doesn't provide a hash tag. A hash tag, people! It's Twitter. Welcome to Social Media 101, please take out your textbooks (and smash them against your head). Attention marketing team: #YoureFired.

Anyone who has any concept of social media understands how buzz is built. Hash tags expand your reach, the chance that your brand (including your personal brand) will be exposed to others. It's not rocket science. I may not be the greatest marketer who ever lived, but I kind of expect the folks handling the most important campaign in the civilized world to be.

Anyway, I digress...

Every now and then, I just need to vent about this. I like lots of things, but there are only a handful I can get passionate about. I get fired up about politics. I am thrilled to live in a country where you can have and express opinions freely.

Sometimes that backfires on us. There's freedom of expression, and then there's disrespect.

Where I come from, you show respect for your elders, your senior management, and pretty much everyone you come into contact with. You don't go around trash-talking people that have way more education, experience, and depth than you do. You don't smirk and roll your eyes during a State of the Union address, like our current (Republican) Speaker of the House did recently for the whole world to see.

I really like Barack Obama. I think the man is brilliant, trustworthy, and inspiring. Is he perfect? No. Are you? Okay then.

But in light of the old men he's followed during my generation- fun young upstarts like Johnson, Nixon, Reagan and Bush, he is lightyears ahead of most of his predecessors. He's the first US President who gets us, who actually seems to be one of us, and who will stand up for us, at his own peril.

While the Democrats have made their share of faux pas, Republicans have just been, well, faux...take, for example the fake ads they've created to try to lure Democratic voters. CNN reported that there are no less than 15 deceptive websites parading as Dems which are actually created by Republicans. Now, that's pretty crappy in my book.

When asked, a Republican leader replied they are "proud" of their faux web sites. I know that not all Republicans are that sketchy and sneaky (or, as they like to call it, "clever"), but I'd be pretty damn embarrassed and disgusted with the Democrats if they did that kind of thing. So I hope they are going to take the high road in all this.

The ridiculous partisanship and political infighting in the U.S. is at an all-time high - or low, depending how you look at it. We need to stop fighting with each other so we can take on the world. United we stand, divided we fall.

#America