So I have a confession to make: my dad is a non-essential government employee. I've never thought of my dad as "non-essential" before, seeing as he was pretty essential in my creation, both biologically and with all his insistence on being a great parent--always being around, reading me stories, making me stop rocking my chair back at the dinner table, taking me to the doctor when I stepped on that nail I left in the backyard, inventing the cheeseburcheesegur and the holiday hotdog, coaching my soccer teams and making me listen to Paul Simon and look things up in the dictionary.
To be completely honest, I still talk to my dad almost every day and he still gives me advice and support pretty much constantly. So it's interesting to think that some people in Washington DC have decided that, due to a beef with the President over health care, all National Parks should be closed down and a scientist in the Pacific Northwest who is one of the most essential people to me in the entire universe should get labeled "non-essential" and then sent home.
I'm sure I am not the only American who has an important person sitting at home this week, questioning their value to society (The Wall Street Journal reports that more than 800,000 people are furloughed due to the shutdown) and so I thought I would make a playlist of songs to show those people that they ARE essential. Hey guys! We love you! Your work, at National Parks, NASA, the EPA, the FDA, the Forest Service, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration. WIC and every other agency that is currently shutdown, is important and it is amazing the amount of time and energy you have put in to serving our country! Not only that, you are essential to our lives on a personal level! You are good friends, good parents, good sisters and brothers, good spouses and good neighbors (most of you--I'm sure a couple of you are not that great but that's just statistics).
So sit back and listen to the music. I made you both a Spotify version and a YouTube version. It's just about the least I can do.
