Today we're going to talk about poverty

And by "we", I mean more than eleven thousand bloggers. That's thousands more than most days, so there's a plus.

I've had brushes with low income living, but was never in serious danger of starving. The only time I was functionally homeless was when I was in the process of buying a house. I qualified for free lunches as a child, and one of my college room mates was on food stamps, and that kept us in Ramen. lots of it. And peanut butter.

Welfare deform may have changed welfare as we know it, but it hasn't made life any better for the people who are affected by it daily. And if you think it has no effect on you, well, you'd be wrong.

I've had friends who delayed getting to the doctor because the co-pay was too high or the clinic wasn't open when they were off work. One got sick and ended up in the hospital.

Hunger is not going away, either. My grandmother started a food bank in 1980 - it's still going, and still needs people to help.

People aren't poor because they're lazy. They don't go for government help because they think they're entitled. When we'd visit during the summer we'd help sort clothes for the little thrift store Grandma set up in a closed restaurant. She was asked why she sold the clothes instead of giving them away.

"People don't like handouts," she said. "They want to support themselves, not be the object of pity."

So, no moral to the story, except that even if the poor will always be with us, they still end up being ignored most of the time.

Let's not make this attention just for today.

Berger Beer-Battered Bass

One of the things I dearly loved to do as a teen was visit mom's relatives in Washington state. Grandma and Grandpa had a house on a lake, and during the summer, any kids there had free run of the place as long as the chores were done.

For me that meant fishing and swimming just about every day. One of my most relaxing and cherished memories is me reclining in an innertube (a real one, not these beach-y things they sell these days) in the sun on the lake, about 25 yards from the shore. I'd passed the swim test (swim 200 yards without stopping) and so was allowed to be out beyond the dock. I was too far away from the little kids for them to bug me, but close enough to hurry in if there was trouble. To this day if I'm asked to visualize myself relaxing in some self-help excercise, that's where I go.

As for the fishing, I'd learned the bobber and hook method on trips with dad's side of the family. Now I learned bass hunting: lures, places to fish, how to set the hook, and how to get the bugger off and measure it.

I liked the bass fishing better - I could keep my hands occupied and yet not work very hard and usually could bring a few home for dinner.

We'd usually have beer battered fish when I did bring in a catch. First we'd skin the fish, then fillet. The beer batter would be flour or crackers, with salt and pepper, and whatever beer we happened to be drinking that evening. Dredge the fish planks in the batter and shallow fry on medium heat. The fish was done pretty quickly - once the batter crusted and turned golden brown.