They’re back.

                State senators returned to the Capital last Wednesday, as Nebraska’s 60-day legislative session kicked off. On opening day, 77 bills and a constitutional amendment were presented. Several proposed bills caught my attention.

                Two bills deal with cell phone use and driving.

                LB724 would make texting while driving a primary offense for commercial truck and bus drivers. Introduced by Senator Deb Fischer of Valentine, this law would put the state in compliance with federal rule.

                I’ll admit, I’ve dashed off a quick ‘yes’ or ‘no’ response via text while driving. And whether or not you admit your culpability, many of you have probably jotted a quick text while behind the wheel, too.

                Generally, I don’t text while driving. If something is so urgent that I need to call or text, I pull over and call. I’ve witnessed friends and family members suffer from consequences associated with distracted driving. I would not wish that agony on anyone.  

                So, I cannot imagine sponsoring a busload of speech kids and watching the bus driver text while maneuvering the bus.

                Omaha Sen. Gwen Howard introduced LB875, making it a primary offense for provisional operator’s permit holders to use a cell phone while driving through a construction or school zone. Currently, if a provisional license holder is caught using a cell phone while driving anywhere, it’s a secondary offense. Offenders can only receive a ticket for the infraction if they are pulled over for a primary offense, like speeding. 

                While LB724 falls in line with federal law and LB875 deals with cell phone use in specified areas, shouldn’t common sense tell you that distracted driving of any kind can, and will, eventually lead to more serious consequences?

                My concern is this: how difficult will it be to enforce these bills, if passed?

                Speaking of difficult to enforce laws, another proposal became the punchline for a couple late-night hosts.

                When is a kiss a just a kiss and when does it cross criminal lines?

                Sen. Bill Avery’s LB797 would make a lip plant on the mouth without consent of the recipient a form of criminal sexual contact. Avery, who serves Lincoln, proposed the legislation after an incident in his district. A young woman was mowing her yard when a man approached her, proffered a drink of water, and then clutched at her and kissed her.

                When the young woman’s family decided to press charges, they discovered the man, a registered sex offender, could not be indicted on sexual assault charges; however, he could face disturbing the peace charges.

                Again, this bill makes sense and helps clearly define another act that can be considered sexual assault.

                But what happens when an overzealous kindergarten boy (or girl) plants a smacker on his/her first-love crush? Can this child be punished, by law?

                In addition to pipeline regulations, health insurance guidelines, Sunday liquor sales, the renovation of Centennial Mall, and the tax battle in the soda vs. obesity debate  , this year’s legislative session is gearing up for creatively interesting and lawful discussion.

A New Year’s resolution is something that goes in one year and out the other.

I’ll admit it, like 40 to 45 percent of our population, I have rung in January 1 with a “to do” list filled with declarations that tend to be broken or forgotten or perhaps not even embarked on by January 15.

Maybe Mark Twain was right when he wrote, “New Years Day: Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week, you can begin paving hell with them as usual. “

Oh, sure, some have lasted for half a year. That’s fairly typical for 40 to 46 percent of us who make resolutions. Only 12 percent of the good intentions are actually met by year’s end.

The idea of establishing promises for the New Year isn’t exactly new. It dates back to around 153 B.C. when Janus, the Roman god of gates, doors, and beginnings, became the head of the calendar. In 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar came up with the idea of a solar, or Julian, calendar, the Romans donned the first month after Janus.

The mythical Roman king had two faces, one looking back at the past, the other looking forward to the future. He became a symbol of forgiveness and new beginnings.

So, the traditional reflecting on bygone days, shaking our heads and thinking ‘wow, I can do better next year’ trickled through time. Today, the majority of resolution-making individuals still see the introduction of the New Year as a way to reinvest in the future, or in some situations, reinvent themselves.

Most resolutions can be broken down into four categories: health, wealth, work, and personal goals. Many of us say we’re going to battle the bulge, put down the potato chips and pick up an orange, or get out of the chair and exercise. Some say they want to save for a vacation or take a class, improve relationships or manage their stress level.

And then, reality sets in. We become too busy to get to the gym every day. Overbooked schedules lead to another night of take-out. Instead of saving for a rainy day, we’re flooded in debt.

Why do we only make resolutions in the days leading up to the first day of January? Shouldn’t we be reevaluating personal goals, work, wealth and health on a monthly basis? Weekly?  In some cases, daily?

Why do we allow ourselves a new start on old habits?

Or as my husband says, “Why set yourself up for failure?”

I may stumble, but I am not going to fail. My plan is uncomplicated. I’ve established personal and career goals for the year, devised an action plan, and now, I’m ready for change.

Is goal-setting an individual thing or should the state also consider resolutions for the upcoming year? Multiple issues – state budget cuts, a proposed pipeline route, flood damage recovery – continue to face our state’s decision makers.  Hopefully, they will listen with both ears.

What resolutions have you set for 2012?

As a writer, it’s tough to find to exercise. And I’ll admit, I don’t always make the best food choices. But if you’re like me – and most writers – we’ve established resolutions for the new year. Why not include making healthy lifestyle choices as part of the writing life? I share tips on today’s blog at WOW! Women on Writing.

I made a list and checked it twice. Now, one last wish remains: a Husker bowl victory. Let’s remind Steve Spurrier what happened the last time Nebraska met one of his teams.

Okay, I hear you. I’ll settle for a victory. No need to win by 40. Again.

Yes, let’s go bowling. I’m not talking heave-a-14-pound-ball-down-the-lane bowling. I’m talking about the road trippin’, Christmas vaca away from home kind of bowling, where trips to Dallas or Miami or San Diego or, yes, even El Paso are part of the fabric of my football fanatic life.

From the third weekend in December until the national championship game, I’m in football heaven.  Between bowl games and the NFL season wind-down to the playoffs, my football fix is satiated until Super Bowl weekend.

Once satisfied, the countdown to spring and fall conditioning, opening kickoff, and what I call “empty Saturday syndrome” begins.

The Husker holiday tradition stems from a 1941 Rose Bowl trip, where the scarlet and cream fell to Stanford 21-13. Since then, the Huskers have accumulated an impressive bowl record and rank fifth nationally with 47 all-time bowl appearances. And, if it hadn’t been for that coach who shall remain nameless (because I refuse to utter it aloud), the team would have increased its streak of consecutive bowl appearances.

Will anyone beat 35 consecutive bowl trips?

By the numbers, the ‘Skers have a 24-23 bowl game record. They’ve played in 14 different bowls, appearing in the Orange Bowl 17 times, Fiesta Bowl 6 times, and both the Sugar and Cotton Bowls four times apiece.

The Huskers have met 29 different teams, squaring off against Miami five times, LSU and Florida State four times each, and we’ve battled ‘Bama three times.

My first bowl experience was the 1974 Cotton Bowl. It was cold, but the atmosphere and adrenaline hooked me. I remember lots of funny (meaning ironic) signs spattered amongst the crowd. Unfortunately, I can’t repeat them here. I remember attending a pre-game concert by the UNL marching band before the game and singing along to “The Band Song.” Cue the trumpets. Dave Humm and company pounded the Texas Longhorns, 19-3.

There have been others, too, some with tough losses and some in places I don’t care to return to, but that first trip will always be my favorite.

If you are a football fan and you haven’t been to a bowl game, consider adding it to your bucket list. A bowl trip is about so much more than the game. Parades, great tailgate parties, and bowl-related events are just a few examples of the offerings associated with a bowl and its respective city.

My dad figures that 1974 trip cost our family about $500 to attend, including fuel, food, hotel, and events. Today, airfare may cost that much, and tickets for our family of four equaled the price of one Capital One Bowl ticket.

Unfortunately, I won’t be in Orlando for this year’s game, but I’ll be watching and getting my football fix.

Go Big Red!

            Out of curiosity, I Googled “top Christmas gifts 2011.”

            With a single mouse click, I remembered why this most wonderful time of the year doesn’t always bring enjoyment.

Overpriced electronic devices. Spikasaurus back packs. A drum-banging Elmo.

            Cheap. Impractical.

            Definitely not the reason for the season.

            I’m not saying “Bah, humbug” to the holidays. It’s just that I want Christmas to get its true groove back.

When airwaves and advertisements bombard us with a stocking full of unnecessary “must-haves” and prey on our psyches, making people feel like inadequate parents or grandparents or siblings or significant others because we didn’t go to “that” jewelry store or a certain major electronics outlet,  I draw the line in the yellowing Christmas snow.

            I dare you to show how the revolutionary, got-to-own-it item will make my holiday merry and bright.    

            No, this time of year, my mind drifts to writer Lawrence Ferlinghetti, who wrote a beautiful, truthful poem – “Christ Climbed Down” – about the holiday and how for many people, Christmas has lost significance because of the commercialization associated with the season that begins as early as July in some retail stores.

            Shoot, daughter Cassie made it on a CNBC report about early Christmas sales back in September because she snapped a photo of Christmas decorations in Grand Island’s Hobby Lobby in early August.

            Look at Christmas by the numbers supplied by the U.S. Census Bureau. Last year, retail sales for December totaled $27.2 billion, with five retail areas noting major increases: clothing stores, 33 percent; electronics, 44 percent; sporting goods, 58 percent; book stores, 92 percent; and jewelry, 113 percent.

            Online shopping and mail-order retail totals hit $34 billion dollars.

            What about decorations? Tree ornament imports – primarily from China – reached $983 million. And those tinseled or artificial Christmas trees, also shipped from China, had sales reaching $79.7 million.

            Staggering figures. Are you willing to bankrupt your bank account or max out credit cards so those you love have a holly jolly Christmas?

            If you think about some of your happiest holiday moments, I imagine it’s not the pile of presents you’ll remember most.

            No, I imagine for many of you, some of your fondest moments involve hope, faith and family.

            And, probably food. Definitely the traditional Christmas Eve pot of chili or oyster soup served at our annual get-together.

            All of us cousins may have begged our grandparents to let us open a present prior to Christmas Day, but it never happened. Nope. Instead, we’d put on our Christmas best, load up in cars and pickups, and follow the bright star to town for Christmas Eve service. We’d sing “O Holy Night” and listen to the Nativity story. When the lights would dim and only candlelight glowed through the church, we’d stare with wonder and delight at the promise of hope and love surrounding us.

            Suddenly, the premise of a pretty package paled in comparison.

            From the Schindler house, we wish you a Merry Christmas and joyful holiday season, filled with family and renewed hope.