to the fact that a bunch of conservative white men (and a few conservative white women) in suits believe that Texas women are incapable of making good reproductive choices for themselves and that therefore they (the aforesaid officials) need to take away some of those options.

In 2013, I slowed down a bit on the blogging, from 2-3 posts per week to 2-3 per month. Some of this year’s posts did get a lot of views, especially those that had to do with women’s rights in Texas, an issue that got a lot of us fired up.

The most-viewed post of the year was written the day after Wendy Davis’ famous filibuster at the Texas state capitol. Last night at the capitol was posted on June 26 and relates my experience.

Don’t you just love those pink tennis shoes?We had a sweet taste of victory when “the people’s filibuster” (thousands yelling and stomping under the dome, including yours truly) made it impossible for the Republican-controlled Senate to vote on restrictive abortion legislation before the midnight deadline. It seems the whole world was watching and got to see how badly Texas is governed.

Of course, the Republicans tried again and rammed the legislation through, making it clear that they don’t believe women are capable of making their own reproductive decisions, and that conservative white men should be making those decisions for them.

Wendy Davis and Leticia Van de Putte are running for governor and lieutenant governor of Texas. I will be actively working on their campaigns in 2014. They’re taking donations, folks!

The next most-viewed post written in 2013 was Abortion bill could benefit Perry’s sister? Huh? That happened after the filibuster, when some curious journalists discovered that Gov. Rick Perry’s sister is a lobbyist for (and on the board of) ambulatory surgical centers, whose standards abortion clinics now have to meet — while they are actually less regulated than abortion clinics.

So basically the argument that it’s all to provide better health care for women falls flat. It’s back-room politics in Texas, as usual, and it’s about men controlling women.

I haven’t seen a follow-up, but I’m sure one will be coming at some point.

And now for something completely different! The third most popular post was Make your own laundry soap for fresh smelling clothes and linens! I’ve made it twice and need to make it again soon. I love how inexpensive and effective it is, and how good for my gray-watered trees.

The fourth most-viewed post was more about Texas politics: Okay, so who REALLY wrote SB5/HB2? Not a Texan points out that the purported author didn’t write the bill. The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) very likely did. ALEC, if you didn’t know, is a shadowy corporate-funded organization that pushes extreme right-wing, anti-women, anti-consumer legislation in state legislatures across the country.

Number five in views was Two remedies for muscle pain that everyone should know about: arnica and epsom salt.  If you don’t know about these, read the article. Companies that make these products don’t advertise. Learning about them is by word of mouth. Consider yourself told.

I didn’t expect to become so involved in politics when 2013 began. Thanks to Rick Perry, thousands of Texas women, including me, have woken up and gotten fierce. I carry my packet of voter registration cards with me in my car to register voters wherever I am. I donate to Battleground Texas and will be volunteering this year. We will turn Texas blue again, if not this election cycle, then the next.

2014 will bring an actual election. And of course my bodywork practice continues to grow and evolve.