We are close to Visalia, CA, relatively far from the fires, but air from all over California gets trapped here in what is called the Fresno Eddy, and we've got lots of smoke. The air quality is bad. It's not record ozone levels. It's not record particulate matter levels. But it IS a record to have exceedingly unhealthy levels of both at the same time. In applied terms, it's not good to run or jump or wiggle the way kids need to, especially outside. We have to stay inside.

Right now, we're at 110 for ozone (unhealthy for sensitive groups) and 163 for particulate matter (2.5 ppm, just plain unhealthy). This means that breathing deeply is bad for your health, no matter what your condition may be.

Check out AIRNow and find out how your air is today, all over the country, then take care of yourselves.

I'd write more, but I'm in a scurry, trying to pack for camping so we can go high in the mountains today, where all this is still bad to breath, but at least it'll be cooler. We have 100 degree weather down here in the valley.

A very happy wedding day to Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, who will marry today at 5:01 p.m. Pacific, after waiting over 50 years. Two other plaintiffs in the marriage case, Robin Tyler and Diane Olson, who got the ball rolling for the lawsuit when they were denied a marriage license at the Beverly Hills Courthouse in 2004, will also get their license tonight in the selfsame city. (Martin and Lyon will receive theirs in San Francisco from Mayor Gavin Newsom.)

Marriage is all over the news and likely to remain so all week. I particularly like this article on New York Governor David Patterson, and the straight people who are thanking him on behalf of their daughters and sons for his recognition of out-of-state wedded same-sex couples. I also think it's cool that the California ruling is boosting the sales of a company that makes same-sex cake toppers. (The company was started several years ago by an African American woman who could not find a cake-couple for herself and her fiance, a Japanese American man.)

Lest we forget, too: marriage isn't the solution for everyone. Read Nancy Polikoff's well reasoned Beyond (Straight and Gay) Marriage: Valuing All Families under the Law for a look at why we also need to be thinking about recognizing other forms of committed relationships.

Finally, the title of this post is not just a comment on geography, but a nod to Katherine Lee Bates, author of "America the Beautiful," who lived for 25 years with fellow Wellesley College professor Katherine Coman in what is commonly called a “Boston marriage.” (When students and alumnae sing this song at Wellesley, we always change the last line of the first verse to ". . . and crown thy good with sisterhood.") As we move forward into a future of increasing equality, it's good not to forget the past.

Congratulations to all the same-sex couples about to marry!

On Friday, teachers protested the California state budget cuts in Los Angeles, spending the first hour of the instructional day picketing and slowing traffic and leaving kids  to hang out for an hour on the athletic fields. The proposed budget cuts from Sacramento are draconian, rolling back gains that have been made in the past decade. Parents are getting into the act, too:

On the LAUSD superintendent's "warm plea" for parents not to support the action, because it will "hurt the kids":

And as for our kids? Well, not having teachers at all is what will hurt them far more than missing an hour of school. Sitting in airless, overcrowded trailers next year trying not to get left behind while yacht owners sail off into the tax free sunset is really going to hurt.

Us mommies are mad. We have baked and fund-raised, sold magazines and clocked in endless unpaid hours at our children's schools trying make up for previous budget cuts that have left us without teacher's aides, arts programs, working computers, you name it. We have labored beside these teachers collating handout pages and collecting money for field trips, serving snacks and writing grants and they have become our friends and collaborators. These are the people (not Brewer, nor Schwartzenegger) who are helping us to rear our children into informed, responsible citizens. Citizens who hopefully will have learned by our example that sometimes you have to stand up for what you believe in and do what is right, no matter what the cost or inconvenience.

I'm mad, too. They take and take and take. Schwartzenegger knows better. He knows this is important.

And if tomorrow's action isn't enough for you, then please join us in Sacramento on June 17th for the California Children's Rally Led by artist, activist and "Mother on Fire" Sandra Tsing Loh, this will be an historic event. Thousands of pissed-off moms, put-upon dads and their underserved children will converge on the capitol steps to protest these draconian cuts. But you won't hear adults making speeches. Instead the children will square dance and tell jokes, they will dress up and sing gold mining songs and construct a giant elephant out of trash. Together we will celebrate the creativity, brilliance and vast potential of California's public school children that is being jeopardized by these cuts. We will kick off the hootenanny tomorrow by standing shoulder to shoulder with our teachers, who are sacrificing an hour of well-deserved pay to fight for their future, the future of our children and the future of California itself.

A friend from my Boston days just wrote to ask for help. A pregnant mother in her online community came down with a rare form of leukemia. She is only the sixth pregnant woman in the world to contract the disease.

The mother in question, Leslie, is seeking accomodations near Cedars Sinai Hospital in Beverly Hills during the course of her treatment, pregnancy and delivery this summer. She may need housing for weeks or even months.

My friend, Ursula, is looking for ways to post this information. I suggested Craig's List and other online communities. She was also wondering if we had press contacts in the Los Angeles area to get Leslie's story out. Of course, I have already forwarded to our resident SoCal reporter Erika, but would welcome additional contacts if you have them. If you can help Leslie in any way, drop me a line here or at elisa at mothertalkers dot com. Thanks all!

Heartwarming Breastfeeding Story: In case you missed the many stories stemming from China's deadly earthquake, which has claimed more than 67,000 lives, CNN covered this heartwarming story about a Chinese police officer nursing babies orphaned from the tragedy.

Officer Jiang Xiaojuan, 29, the mother of a 6-month-old boy, responded to the call of duty and the instincts of motherhood when the magnitude-7.9 quake struck on May 12.

"I am breast-feeding, so I can feed babies. I didn't think of it much," she said. "It is a mother's reaction and a basic duty as a police officer to help..."

At one point, Jiang was feeding nine babies.

"Some of the moms were injured; their fathers were dead ... five of them were orphans. They've gone away to an orphanage now," she said.

She still feeds two babies, including Zhao Lyuyang, son of a woman who survived the quake but whose breast milk stopped flowing because of the traumatic conditions.

LA Times story

SAN FRANCISCO -- The California Supreme Court ruled today that same-sex couples should be permitted to marry, rejecting state marriage laws as discriminatory.

The state high court's ruling was unlikely to end the debate over gay matrimony in California. A group has circulated petitions for a November ballot initiative that would amend the state Constitution to block same-sex marriage, and the Legislature has twice passed bills to authorize gay marriage. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed both.

More at the link.

After winning a court case that changed a California law against men taking their wives' last name, Michael Buday picked up his new driver's license bearing his new name -- Michael Bijon, according to Reuters.

Two years ago, Michael and wife Diana Bijon were surprised to learn that for him to take her surname, he would have to pay $350 and face a barrage of bureaucracy, including court appearances and paper work usually not obstacles for women. The couple took their case to the American Civil Liberties Union -- and won.

"Women have fought for so long for equal rights and it feels like this is part of that fight," said Diana Bijon. "When we got married, the law basically said, 'Don't be silly, only a woman can change her name when she gets married."'

"I am really, really proud of him. Not many men would do this," she said.

A subsequent lawsuit led to a new California state law guaranteeing the rights of both married couples and registered domestic partners to choose whichever last name they prefer on their marriage and driving licences.

"This disposes of the rule in California that the male surname is the marital name to the same trash bin where dowries were once tossed out," said Mark Rosenbaum, legal director of the Southern California chapter of the ACLU.

Michael said he decided to take his wife's last name because he is closer to his father-in-law than his own father.

I learned about this story through Salon's Broadsheet.

Last night I attended a private book signing in Palo Alto featuring writer and California First Lady Maria Shriver. A group of us mom bloggers gathered for some Lovin' Scoopful ice cream-- a business venture by Shriver and her brothers to also benefit the Special Olympics -- and to hear her discuss her latest book, Just Who Will You Be? ($15). The tiny 91-page-tome is a commencement speech she gave at her nephew's high school graduation. It is peppered with inspirational quotes and would make a good graduation gift or stocking stuffer.

After her spiel, she took questions from the audience, although I did not feel comfortable posing mine amidst fluff like "how do you fit in time to meditate?" Once I reached the front of the line for her to sign my book I asked her, "So, are you encouraging Arnold to fund our schools?"

"I am encouraging him to put money in a lot of places."

The problem, she said, is identifying other sources of revenue for the state. She was not sure how we could pay for education and other services without increasing taxes. Fair enough.

"He wants to," she said of her husband's willingness to fund our schools. If he puts his money where his mouth is, he will encourage his fellow Republicans to support the necessary tax increases. Of course, lack of federal funding and Proposition 13, which puts a tight cap on property tax revenue, doesn't help.

Anyways, Shriver was really friendly and articulate. Also, what can't money buy, including a killer body after having 4 children? Seriously, she looked more amazing in person than on television!

Public education, which is a free service guaranteed by the California Constitution, is no longer free. According to the Los Angeles Times, various school districts are asking parents to fork over cash in an effort to hold onto teachers after proposed budget cuts by our Governator.

South Orange County families are being urged to donate $400 per student to save the jobs of 266 teachers in the Capistrano Unified School District.

Parents at Long Beach's Longfellow Elementary are among countless statewide who are launching fundraising foundations.

Bay Area parents launched a campaign featuring children standing in trash cans; the theme is "Public Education Is Too Valuable to Waste..."

"Public education is free, but an excellent public education is not free at this point," said Janet Berry, president of the Davis Schools Foundation, which recently launched the Dollar-a-Day campaign, urging citizens of the city near Sacramento to donate $365 per child, grandchild or student acquaintance.

Gov. Ahnold Schwarzenegger has proposed cutting about $4.8 billion in education this year and next. In the meantime, about 20,000 teachers, librarians, nurses and other school positions have been alerted that they will be fired.

In an effort to save money, school districts are looking at increasing class sizes, closing down some schools and eliminating programs such as International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement. Don't worry, sports will also be eliminated so this budget crisis affects everyone. Everyone except those who live in wealthy school districts and can raise the funds to keep their programs.

The liberal think tank the Rockridge Institute is holding an online discussion on homeschooling. Just FYI if you are interested in getting in your two cents. The discussion was sparked by the controversial California ruling against homeschooling without teaching credentials.

California is extremely short on funding this year, thanks to a nosediving stock market and the housing meltdown.  The governor's budget proposal, to be reviewed and revised in May by the legislature, calls for a $4.8 billion cut to education.  This cut in combination with other loss in funding has resulted in approximately 170,000 layoff notices to teachers throughout many districts in California.

(In California, school finance is extremely complex, but unlike some other areas which rely on local property taxes, school funding is done primarily through state funds, so cuts will end up hitting everyone even if a particular local district has not experienced declines in property tax revenue.)

Our district, which has a $4 million hole, issued 91 layoff notices, although they are hoping to rescind many if not most of them.  There is a good chance the final budget cuts from the state will not be as bad as the January proposal.  In addition, a certain number (typically 30-40) teachers resign or retire in a year, so that will absorb some of those cuts.  A local foundation is attempting to raise money to cover some of the remaining jobs.

The internet is already abuzz with commentary about a recent case involving a homeschooling family, where a California judge,  Justice H. Walter Croskey, wrote, "Parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children."

And so people have taken that one line and started lining up on either side of the issue, with homeschooling advocates threatening to take it "all the way to the Supreme Court" and homeschooling foes apparently declaring some sort of victory. The defendant himself declared he believes the ruling stems from hostility against Christians and vowed to appeal to the state Supreme Court.

But when you look at the details of this case in context (which even some media didn't report), it changes the debate entirely:

LA Times

The appellate court ruling stems from a case involving Lynwood parents Phillip and Mary Long, who were repeatedly referred to the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services over various allegations, including claims of physical abuse, involving some of their eight children.

All of the children are currently or had been enrolled in Sunland Christian School, where they would occasionally take tests, but were educated in their home by their mother, Phillip Long said.

A lawyer appointed to represent two of the Long's young children requested that the court require them to physically attend a public or private school where adults could monitor their well-being. A trial court disagreed, but the children's lawyer appealed to the 2nd District Court of Appeal, which has jurisdiction over Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.

The appellate panel ruled that Sunland officials' occasional monitoring of the Longs' home schooling -- with the children taking some tests at the school -- is insufficient to qualify as being enrolled in a private school. Since Mary Long does not have a teaching credential, the family is violating state laws, the ruling said.

"Parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children," wrote Justice H. Walter Croskey in a Feb. 28 opinion signed by the two other members of the district court. "Parents who fail to [comply with school enrollment laws] may be subject to a criminal complaint against them, found guilty of an infraction, and subject to imposition of fines or an order to complete a parent education and counseling program."

A few weeks ago, I wrote about an underground video by the Humane Society to uncover torture -- and even illegal processing -- of cows at a California meat packing plant called Hallmark. The meat was in turn sold to Westland Meat Co. in Chino, California, which provides meat to school lunches and some fast food restaurants.

Even though most of the meat from that Humane Society video has been eaten, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a recall of 143 million pounds of meat processed by the Westland/Hallmark Meat Company, according to the Associated Press. It is the largest beef recall in the history of the United States.

Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer said his department has evidence that Westland did not routinely contact its veterinarian when cattle became non-ambulatory after passing inspection, violating health regulations…

Federal officials suspended operations at Westland/Hallmark after an undercover video from the Humane Society of the United States surfaced showing crippled and sick animals being shoved with forklifts.

Three ex-employees charged
Two former employees were charged Friday. Five felony counts of animal cruelty and three misdemeanors were filed against a pen manager. Three misdemeanor counts — illegal movement of a non-ambulatory animal — were filed against an employee who worked under that manager. Both were fired.

Authorities said the video showed workers kicking, shocking and otherwise abusing “downer” animals that were apparently too sick or injured to walk into the slaughterhouse. Some animals had water forced down their throats, San Bernardino County prosecutor Michael Ramos said.

Both the Jack-In-the-Box and In-N-Out fast food chains said they would discontinue using Westland’s meat. It is unclear how much of the meat customers ate. But officials estimate that about 37 million pounds of the recalled beef went to school programs and most have already been eaten. Ick.