You Win Some, You Lose Some

Some people knew that I was running for the National Board of Directors spot with my non-profit security organization that I belong to. 6 people were running for 5 spots, so my odds were pretty good. Unfortunately, I lost the election. Bummer. Although I am fairly well recognized in my field in the DC area where I am the chapter Secretary, I am not so much recognized on a National level. Apparently, this is what hurt me in the election. It took me a few days to recover from the loss, as I am now not sure what I am going to do with my professional life for the next 2 years (it would have been a two year term). Some have suggested that I run for the Chapter Chair position of my chapter this year, others have suggested that I run for BOD next year. Whatever it is, I need to do some thinking. Staying active in the organization is a great way to network and give back to the security community. We are a very small group (probably less than 10,000 of us nationwide), so positive networking is a really good way to move up in the profession.

On the other hand, this may be an opportunity for me to focus more on the rest of my life -- perhaps do some charity work or get back into my hobbies. All I know is whatever I am meant to do these next two years, does not include being on the Board.

Back From Seattle

We had a blast! Here's a few interesting photos from the trip.

Success!

AURGH!

If anyone can figure out how to get the 3rd tile, let me know!

http://www.kotarogame.com/archives/53702998.html

The Delicate Art of Life

I received a post on this blog early this morning that made me take pause. It was from a woman that used to date my late uncle. Apparently, she was searching for him and came across my grandfather's obituary that I had posted last year. She said she had been looking for him for a while, and this was the closest she had come to finding him. I responded to her explaining that my uncle passed away in a car accident 17 years ago, and also explained that he was able to save several lives by being an organ donor. I was glad that I was able to help her get some closure.

Writing her tonight made me think about how short life is and how delicate relationships can be. I have often wondered if I have told everything I need to everyone that I care about... that if I were to die today, if I have said it all. But what never occurred to me, is has everyone else told me everything they need to? Or are there even people out there at all that would care enough about me to search me out 17 years after my death?

I hope that my life will make a difference. It's my job to find out how.

The Art of Friendship

Best friends require one-on-one contact to survive. Telephone calls and getting together are musts for best friends to continue.

In fact, probably the quickest way to end a friendship is to neglect it and sever contact.

Yet it is hard to make time in a busy day and busy life to maintain our friends. But you don't have to have hours to spare to maintain a friendship.

Instead try the following to keep from neglecting your friends:

• Send frequent email. Email is a boon for a quick note.
• Call once a week. Telephone calls do not take long.
• Keep in touch through brief messages left on answering machines.
• Send an occasional card. Funny and/or appropriate cards take minutes to choose and address.
• Exercise together. We all have to exercise. It is more fun with a friend, plus, there is no better place for talking than a walk in the park.
• Clean house together. This is another must do and two makes cleaning fun instead of boring.
• Send pictures. A picture is still worth a thousand words.
• Go to lunch at least once a month. More often would be better.

Follow the advice of Victoria Rayner, author of The Survival Guide for Today's Career Woman:

• Be a good listener; refrain from offering advice or moralizing.
• Respect your friend's point of view. Different personalities can complement each other; it isn't always necessary to see eye to eye.
• Never betray a trust. Trust, when violated, can ruin even the best friendship.
• Support and praise your friends; ignore their failures and imperfections.
• Never resent a friend's success. Instead, strive to admire her achievements.

Flexibility is always important for maintaining friendships. Be understanding when your friend has a last minute change in plans. Learn to accept "I'm sorry to cancel, but we will have another time together Sunday."

When paths begin to separate (you are married; he isn't or you have a baby; she is still childless) at forks in the road of life, that is the most important time of all to stay in touch with friends.

When there is conflict, it must be resolved for friendship to continue. Confrontation is one way to resolve conflict. Talking it out is another.

A cooling-off period is sometimes necessary when conflict has occurred. Once you reinitiate conflict, it may not even be necessary to discuss the conflict.

By Joy Stevens

Poems

I wrote this February 9, 1998. I believe this was for a creative writing exercise in college. At the time, I was happily in a relationship so I don't think I had a muse for this, but was trying to do some play on words and see if I could pull it off. Although a bit cheesy, I kind of like the 4th stanza:

The Four Elements of Love

How I dream to be the mighty wind,
To carry the wings of your love,
To whisk you away to far off places,
And anywhere else I dare dream of.

And Oh, to be the placid water,
That from your cup you sip,
To be brought to your glorious mouth,
Feeling the sticky sweet touch of your lips.

Oh, to be the trembling earth,
That lay beneath your feet,
To be the stable ground you rely on,
To have your trust be mine to keep.

But oh! I beg the Lord above,
To let me be a ravishing fire,
For there is nothing that I’d rather be,
Than your very own burning desire.

This one was written in 1997 for an English project:

A is for Apple

Apples fall
briskly from the
careless tree
drizzling an
enormous amount of
fruit in one
gigantic
heap of
indecision.
Just then, a zestful
kite flies
lightly across the sky into the
mass of branches
now no longer bearing apples. The
odious tree, that
plummeted red gems,
quietly imprisons the kite in
revenge and
secures it in a
teasing,
ultra apathetic and
violent
way. Then-- the anti-
xenial plant releases the
young aerodynamic
zestless aircraft to join the heap of victims below.

I wrote the below poem in 10th grade when my best friend and boyfriend started dating. That was a traumatic year for a 15 year old. Although the poetry is dreadful, I really like the clever use of shapes to describe what happened that year:

Shapes

There were four of us,
Two happy couples,
We were thrilled to see,
Our love in doubles.

It was her and him,
And me and you,
Our square was wonderful,
As it was brand new.

Then her and him split,
Yet we still remained,
The three of us were friends,
In happiness uncontained.

Soon we had a triangle,
I had yet to perceive,
Because you and her,
Began to deceive--me.

The triangle formed a nasty circle,
With fighting, and yelling,
What would happen next,
There was no telling.

So now the circle,
Became a single line,
Connecting two points,
And neither point was mine.

You and her connected,
Ignoring the square,
You acted so happy,
Without so much as a care.

Then she cut the line,
You two had to part,
And all of us involved,
Were back at the start.

Now we're all points,
Just floating around,
None are connected,
No shape can be found.

All I ask,
As if you even care,
Is for me, you, her, and him,
To again just be square.

New Look

I thought I'd change things around a bit and gave my blog a new look, with the help of google's new interfaces. I also like the green theme -- a little more serene than my old blog.

Enjoy!

Don't Have Room For a Compost Heap?

Compost in your kitchen!

Whateva

I was walking Bailey tonight in my 'hood when I found a CD on the ground labeled "Whateva - February 23, 2007". I popped it into my computer and the following tracks were found:

• Wouldn't Get Far -- Kanye West
• That's That Dirty -- Snoop Dogg
• Go Getta -- Young Jeezy
• I Luv It Dirty -- Young Jeezy
• Soul Surv -- Young Jeezy & Akon
• Locked Up Remix Dirty -- Akon
• Don't Matter -- Akon
• This is Why I'm Hot -- MIMS
• Throw Some Ds -- Rich Boy
• Oh Yeah -- Lil' Scrappy
• Money In the Bank -- Lil' Scrappy
• Want You -- Young Lloyd & Lil Wayne
• What Goes Around Comes Around -- Justin Timberlake
• Runaway Love -- Ludacris
• Affirmative Action -- Nas
• You Never Know -- Immortal Technique
• Dance With the Devil -- Immortal Technique

I don't really have anything to say about it, but I may submit the CD to FOUND.

From Dictionary.com...

tic·ky-tack·y
–adjective

1.	shoddy and unimaginatively designed; flimsy and dull: a row of new, ticky-tacky bungalows.

Little Boxes

There's a fairly new show on Showtime called Weeds. The premise of the show is pretty interesting -- it's about a suburban housewife whose husband dies and she's left with no money. In order to keep the lifestyle that her and her children are accustomed to, she decides to become a drug dealer.

The theme song of the show is called "Little Boxes" which describes South Riding and all the other neighborhoods like it perfectly:

Little Boxes

by Malvina Reynolds

Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes made of tickytacky
Little boxes on the hillside, little boxes all the same
There's a green one and a pink one and a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky tacky and they all look just the same.

And the people in the houses all went to the university
Where they were put in boxes and they came out all the same,
And there's doctors and there's lawyers, and business executives
And they're all made out of ticky tacky and they all look just the same.

And they all play on the golf course and drink their martinis dry,
And they all have pretty children and the children go to school
And the children go to summer camp and then to the university
Where they are put in boxes and they come out all the same.

And the boys go into business and marry and raise a family
In boxes made of ticky tacky and they all look just the same.

I often wonder how much longer I am going to be able to continue to live in my "box made of ticky tacky" and still be a unique, functioning member of society.

Religious Persecution A-OK, Gay Bashing? Not so Much...

From the front page of msn.com today:

When a few classmates razzed Rebekah Rice about her Mormon upbringing with questions such as, "Do you have 10 moms?" she shot back: "That's so gay."

After Rice got a warning and a notation in her file, her parents sued, claiming officials at Santa Rosa's Maria Carillo High violated their daughter's First Amendment rights when they disciplined her for uttering a phrase "which enjoys widespread currency in youth culture," according to court documents.

But school officials say they took a strict stand against the put down after two boys were paid to beat up a gay student the year before.

"The district has a statutory duty to protect gay students from harassment," the district's lawyers argued in a legal brief. "In furtherance of this goal, prohibition of the phrase 'That's so gay' ... was a reasonable regulation."

Rice's parents, Elden and Katherine Rice, also claim the public high school employed a double-standard because, they say, administrators never sought to shield Rebekah from teasing based on Mormon stereotypes.

Ok, granted... the suing of the school may have been a little much, and the expression "that's so gay" is not the most PC term in the world, but seriously -- giving a child a warning for saying "that's so gay" but turning a blind eye to the kids that were making fun of her religion?

Digging for Graves

A week ago, I started delving into my genealogy projects some more. My newest discovery was that I was able to determine that Lord Calvert of Baltimore was my 10th- great grandfather... pretty cool stuff. At any rate, while digging up my past, I came across a website called findagrave.com. Apparently, there are people that go around to cemeteries all over the world and document graves. Findagrave has even listed its top posters -- some people submitting over 50,000 graves to this site!

There's also a neat feature on the site where if you really want a picture of a grave, and you are not able to travel there, you can request that a grave hunter go and photograph it for you. Cool!

I was able to find my grandmother on this site who passed away in 2005 and some of my ancestors as well. You can also do searches for famous people and leave "virtual flowers" at the graves.

My Makeover

For my birthday, my mother-in-law purchased an "Excitation" for me -- basically it was a gift certificate for an experience of my choice. I chose to have a one-on-one makeup consultation with celebrity makeup artist Erwin Gomez in Georgetown.

The whole experience lasted about an hour and a half, and was a lot of fun. I learned a lot of great makeup tips like dont use your fingers to put on foundation, never put concealer on your pimples (go figure) and dont use brown mascara on a fair complexion. After my "free" experience, he promptly asked me if I wanted to take home some of the "product" he used on me. "Sure," I replied.

Before I knew it, he loaded everything he used on me into a bag and handed it to the cashier. "That will be $400 dollars please." GULP!!!!!!!!! So much for my celebrity experience.

Erwin was great -- apparently he does the Bush twins' eyebrows and after some googling, I found out they attended his wedding in 2004. Wonder what W thought about that one?

First Honeybees, now Frogs?

I think humans are next...

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,251365,00.html?sPage=fnc.science/naturalscience

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,252215,00.html

Even Drug Smugglers Have Rights in America!

Not sure if any of you have heard about this one. Apparently, a while back, there were two border patrol agents that caught a Mexican citizen trying to smuggle 725 pounds of marijuana into the country. The guy decided to run, so the agents shot at him, hitting him in the butt. Not only are the two border patrol agents in jail serving 11 and 12 year terms, but the drug smuggler has been granted amnesty and is suing the US Government for 5 million dollars.

There's a million articles swirling about on this one, but here's one of them:
http://www.startribune.com/484/story/995662.html

Blast from the Past

I was reading a bunch of my saved documents from college, and happened across this letter that I posted on our school cafeteria's comment board. The board was designed for note card sized comments, but I took it a bit further by posting this...

Dear Wood Company:

I have just read the article in the student newspaper about your services. Although I am not fully satisfied with everything you have to offer, I believe that the letter was not fair to your company because it did a lot of complaining and didn’t list any solutions. Therefore, I would like to tell you a little about what I have observed my 3 semesters here at Mary Washington.

First of all, I am very pleased with your comment board. You always respond promptly to students ideas and if an idea is not feasible, you list the reasons why. This tells us that you actually do care about our concerns. Also, I understand that it is very difficult to provide for a large amount of students. You either please most the students some of the time or some of the students most of the time. It is a no win situation, and I congratulate you on putting forth your best efforts. With that said, I would like to list a variety of concerns that I have and possible solutions to remedy these problems.

The first thing I would like to point out, is your cakes. These cakes taste so good when they’re fresh! However, when you cut them up in individual slices, they quickly get stale because all four sides are exposed to the air. Why don’t you place the entire cake out uncut and let students cut the cake themselves? That way, you don’t have to worry about cutting the cakes, and we don’t have to worry about them getting stale!

The second thing, is the sodas. This seems like a very simple solution to a very frequent problem. A day doesn’t go by when all the syrup is gone from the soda machines leaving us with a glass of club soda. This past week, all the sodas but Dr. Pepper were out of syrup in the North Room. This leaves students with little options when the milk is frequently sour and the juices are just as watery as the sodas. If you could check the syrup on the machines more often, I do believe this could be solved.

Another thing I’m sure you have noticed is the ice cream. Have you noticed that after a while, the only thing that is left in the freezers are popsicles? This is because none of the students will eat them because of the thick coating of slime covering each one. If you could either order less popsicles and more ice cream, or find a way to regulate the freezers so the slime doesn’t appear, you’d have a lot more students eating the frozen treats.

Also, college students are scared of “gourmet” foods. I wanted to give you an example of a name of one of these foods but when I asked my friends, they all said, “I don’t remember… I don’t eat those.” And it’s true! The food in the South Room is unappealing mainly because of its “exotic” names. Instead of oranges and zucchini, serve things like mashed potatoes and gravy! Give us old fashioned foods that our mothers make like fried chicken and stuffing and corn instead of eggplant and rutabaga. I’m sure you’ll get a much larger response if the foods we are given are familiar to us.

Another concern we tend to have is that of “recycled food.” This means that one day, you’ll serve sweet potatoes and the next day, you’ll serve sweet potato soup. I understand your need to conserve, but it automatically triggers a red flag in our minds and we tend to steer clear of foods served the day before. A large concern of students is food poisoning and “recycled food” poses a huge threat to our weak tummies.

I hope that these suggestions were of a help to you and I thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Michelle Lambiasi

New Game

It's pretty easy, but fun for a few minutes.

Global Warming

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17042993/?GT1=9033

Dog DNA -- Email

Hello Michelle

Thank you for your interest in the MMI Genomics Canine Heritage™ test product. Canine Heritage™ test kits will be available at the end of February. We will send you information to request a sampling kit at that time. Please watch your mailbox for further Canine Heritage™ news over the next few weeks. The cost of the test will be $65 per dog.

Currently, these 38 breeds (listed below) are included in the Canine Heritage™ test.

If you have any more questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely,

Paul

Afghan Hound
Akita
Basenji
Basset Hound
Beagle
Belgian Tervuren
Bernese Mountain Dog
Border Collie
Borzoi
Boxer
Bulldogs
Chihuahua
Chinese Shar-Pei
Chow chow
Cocker Spaniel
Collie
Dachshund
Doberman Pinscher
English Setter
German Shepherd Dog
German Shorthaired Pointer
Golden Retriever
Greyhounds
Italian Greyhound
Labrador Retriever
Mastiff
Miniature Schnauzer
Poodle
Pug
Rottweiler
Saluki
Samoyed
Shetland Sheepdog
Shih Tzu
Siberian Husky
St Bernard
Whippet
Yorkshire Terrier

Dog DNA

Ok, so I've tested myself, my next step is to test Bailey. Once the kit becomes available at the end of the month, poor ol' Bailey is gettin the cheek swab!

http://www.metamorphixinc.com/products3.html

In the News

I subscribe to Popular Science and in reading some of the recent issues today, I found some cool things going on in our technology world...

• Open Source Textbooks: At www.curriki.org, you can register to start reading free, online textbooks. Although it is in its infancy now, this tool may be just the key to saving our schools hundreds of millions of dollars.
• Growing Bladders from DNA: A scientist was able to build a bio-degradable scaffold of a bladder, spray a patient's bladder cells onto the scaffold and presto! A new bladder.
  
• Cure for Asthma: By sticking a tube down a patient's throat and into their lungs, radio frequency signals blast the walls of the lungs to get rid of asthma attacks.
• Katrina-Stopping Nails: By re-engineering the nail, inventors were able to create a nail so strong that the roofs of houses no longer will sheer off in hurricane winds.
• Periodic Table: One of the editors of PopSci spent four years assembling a collection of elements for a real-life periodic table and photographing them. It's kinda cool to look at -- you can even order a poster of the table for your home or office enjoyment!
  
• Censored Hammer: Although not necessary revolutionary, I also read an article about a new hammer called the "FUBAR" which was designed for demolition work. Now tell me, how in the world did Stanley get away with that? I can picture 5 years olds watching their Dads hard at work and asking if they can have a try at the FUBAR.
  

Best Wiitie Ever.

My pet name for John is "Weetie" -- short for "Sweetie". That's not public knowledge, and he'll probably kill me for posting that here, but it's important that everyone know he is now "Wii-tie". This morning he told me he was getting up early to work on a car. So I sort of just grumbled a goodbye and went back to bed. When he got home around 11:30, he proceeded to tell me he had lied to me about where he was going and then produced a newly acquired Wii!

Apparently, he had to wait in line in the 20 degree weather for 3 hours for this thing. Now that's true love! So today will be spent learning how to play in between watching football with friends.

What a great Sunday!

Recent Cake.

Where I've Been...

I realize it's been a while since I've written something substantial on this thing. So I better fess up to what I've been doing for the past month or so.

December was fairly hectic. John and I hosted several parties and attended several parties. I was able to get together with the old HR Gang from Integic -- which was so incredibly awesome. We swapped stories and presents and had a grand time at my house. Bailey enjoyed being spoiled by them as he licked their plates clean. We attended the American Systems Christmas party which was a total joke compared to the Integic days, but had a moderately fun time. My brothers were able to come home for Christmas from Japan and Florida, and we had a great time hanging out. John's family came up from South Carolina for a while so we had a full house for about a week. After they left, I was suckered into having the Underwood Christmas party at my house. My Mom's 6 siblings, their spouses, and children came for food, fun and gift exchanges.

John and I exchanged gifts this year. Items of note would be a Pabst Blue Ribbon light up sign from the 1970s that I got off of eBay and a hydroponic herb garden for the kitchen.

For New's Years Eve, we went to Maryland to see Rob's band play. We were able to convince our neighbors, my brother, my cousin Emily and her boyfriend and Tommy to come with us. If it wasn't for Rob, I wouldn't have voluntarily stepped foot in Maryland, but I ended up having a good time all the same. Probably too good, because apparently there is video footage somewhere of me jumping on a trampoline with Rob's girlfriend after having about 8 drinks. Hm.

For the past few months, Rob and Jen and I have been holding a "Dawson's Creek/Wonder Years" night on Wednesdays. It usually consists of a bunch of dogs running around the house, cooking good food, and then us watching DC/WY and making fun of every other line in the show. So far, we have finished the first 2 seasons of both shows. It's a great break from real life in the middle of the week, so anyone who is interested, feel free to join us!

Other than that, work has been kicking my butt. I've been pretty swamped trying to take a department that has had 20 years of neglect and try and make it a fully functional environment where we are able to help grow the corporation into a billion dollar company. I have some awesome employees, so the good news is, I will not have to go it alone.

That's it for now. I must sign off so I can bake a cake for a 5 year old. It's a pony theme, but she doesn't want My Little Pony stuff. So I have to try and make a girlie pony that doesn't resemble a My Little Pony. Fun stuff.

Hapland, Part Three

http://www.foon.co.uk/farcade/hapland3/

Merry Christmas, Everyone!

I had no time to do Christmas cards this year, so this is my Christmas card to everyone. I hope everyone is doing well and is in good health and good spirits. Below is a pathetic picture of Bailey for your enjoyment.

Spare Me My Life -- New York Style!

This is really really bad, but kinda funny if you're not sensitive to this type of thing.

Who Really Cares

There is a new book out called, "Who Really Cares". I haven't read it yet, but just watched a 20/20 special on it. What the book has in it, was quite intriguing. The book compiles hundreds of statistics about charitable giving in the United States and who gives the most. What was surprising to many, is that conservatives give the most (most in money, their time, and even in giving blood) -- even though liberals make an average of 6% more than conservatives. Of the 25 states that give the most, 24 of them voted Republican. How odd that is, considering the richest states were not among the top 25. 20/20 suggested this was the case because liberals believe the government should be responsible for giving aid, and conservatives feel it should be the citizens' responsibility.

The 20/20 show went on to say that our government gives the most foreign aid of any other country in dollars. However, it is very low ranked when it comes to percentage of worth. But when you talk about citizens giving percentages of income to charity, Americans give a much higher percentage of their income than any other nation. During the tsunami, the US gave 900 million in aid -- however, Americans independently gave 2 billion. Why should our government always be responsible for giving? Don't we as Americans have an obligation to help our fellow man? I would much rather see our government cut foreign aid altogether, but then lower taxes so that Americans can give MORE.

So -- how much do you give? At my church, our priest recommends that each family give 1 hour of their salary to charity each week and that they volunteer their time in at least one charity. I have always thought that was a good starting point and have found it very easy over the years to automatically increase my donations each time myself or John gets a raise. We are so very fortunate to live the lives we do here in America. Isn't it time we started giving more?

Spare Me My Life!

My brother Jim sent me this YouTube video the other day. It's a Japanese TV show from the 80s that attempted to teach English using "real life" situations and aerobics. Apparently, this one tells you just what to do in a mugging. I am not sure why the second mugger has a handkerchief tied under his nose, but it adds to the humor.

Birthday Recap.

Turns out, turning 28 aint all that bad. I had a great birthday weekend. Events were:

• On Friday, we had donuts and coffee in the break room with my department in honor of my big day. Got to chat with employees I have not yet met and hear stories of the "good ol' days" from employees that had been there 20+ years.
• Had lunch with John and two of my coworkers at Blue Water Grille.
• Had dinner with friends at Damon's in Chantilly that night. Rob gave me a 40 and beef jerky -- his gift of choice. Also in attendance were Julie, Delvaux, Gill, Jennifer, and Karsten came with his beautiful daughter Maggie.
• Saturday was spent at my parents where my mother gave me a beautiful skirt and the keys to the Corvette for a joyride through Middleburg. John and I left Bailey with her and toured my High School grounds and the Purcellville area. It had been years since I was on Snickersville Turnpike.
• Saturday night we went to Gabe and Shelly's to pick up the futon they were giving away. As we were leaving, Genevieve starting having a cow and screaming that she "wanted to go home with John." I told them that I was making chili and they were welcome to come over. An hour later we were breaking bread with the Butler family and their newest addition, Aubrey. We ended the night watching Tech win and trying to get the girls to sleep at a decent hour.
• Sunday morning was spent Wii hunting -- with no luck.
• Sunday night we went to Houlihans in Centreville (GREAT food) with my in-laws. They gave me an Excitation as a gift. If you haven't heard of it, you MUST take a peak on the website (www.excitations.com). Basically, you get a gift card and the option to choose one of many adventures in your local area. My package was the blue package which included hang gliding, a hot air balloon ride, racing, learning polo, and much more. Although I would love to take a hot air balloon ride, it is for 1 person only, and that is the type of thing I'd love to do with John. I am leaning more towards a one-on-one session with a famous makeup artist since all my friends tell me I always look like I never wear makeup (which I do!!)

In summary, it was a great 28. I'm looking forward to what this year will bring.

Wii Wii Wii all the way home...

Armed with the assurance from my husband that "the manufacturing process" allowed for a large distribution of Nintendo Wiis to the states, I went against my gut (and every article I've been reading) and decided not to pre-order one. So this morning wii got up at 8:00 and drove to Target to ensure that just in case there may be a line, I would be at the front.

We walked in to see a flurry of activity, with many people standing in line, holding tickets. But surely I didn't need a ticket??? So I asked a kid standing in line and he promptly told me that the tickets were given to the 69 people that camped out last night and there were no more left. "Good luck," he called after me as John and I walked out the door.

So we drove to Fair Lakes to check out the Toys R Us. Yup. About 100 people in line in front of the store. Across the street? About 100 people in line at Best Buy. So we went to Kmart in Chantilly as one last try. Although there was no line, there was a sign on the door that read, "No Wiis Available."

So, alas. My wait for the Wii must continue a little longer. And finally, I will be able to tell my husband, "I told you so" for once in my life.

Deep Thoughts

My boss came into my office today and said to me, "Do you know what I like about this job?"

"What?" I asked.

He responded, "Nothing!"

I thought that was pretty funny.

In Remembrance of Steve Cavanaugh

You'll be missed by all.

Remembrance

by Ray Bradbury

And this is where we went, I thought,
Now here, now there, upon the grass
Some forty years ago.
I had returned and walked along the streets
And saw the house where I was born
And grown and had my endless days.
The days being short now, simply I had come
To gaze and look and stare upon
The thought of that once endless maze of afternoons.
But most of all I wished to find the places where I ran
As dogs do run before or after boys,
The paths put down by Indians or brothers wise and swift
Pretending at a tribe.
I came to the ravine.
I half slid down the path
A man with graying hair but seeming supple thoughts
And saw the place was empty.
Fools! I thought. O, boys of this new year,
Why don’t you know the Abyss waits you here?
Ravines are special fine and lovely green
And secretive and wandering with apes and thugs
And bandit bees that steal from flowers to give to trees.
Caves echo here and creeks for wading after loot:
A water-strider, crayfish, precious stone
Or long-lost rubber boot --
It is a natural treasure-house, so why the silent place?
What’s happened to our boys that they no longer race
And stand them still to contemplate Christ’s handiwork:
His clear blood bled in syrups from the lovely wounded trees?
Why only bees and blackbird winds and bending grass?
No matter. Walk. Walk, look, and sweet recall.

I came upon an oak where once when I was twelve
I had climbed up and screamed for my brother to get me down.
It was a thousand miles to earth. I shut my eyes and yelled.
My brother, richly compelled to mirth, gave shouts of laughter
And scaled up to rescue me.
"What were you doing there?" he said.
I did not tell. Rather drop me dead.
But I was there to place a note within a squirrel nest
On which I’d written some old secret thing now long forgot.
Now in the green ravine of middle years I stood
Beneath that tree. Why, why, I thought, my God,
It’s not so high. Why did I shriek?
It can’t be more than fifteen feet above. I’ll climb it handily.
And did.
And squatted like an aging ape alone and thanking God
That no one saw this ancient man at antics
Clutched grotesquely to the bole.
But then, ah God, what awe.
The squirrel’s hole and long-lost nest were there.

I lay upon the limb a long while, thinking.
I drank in all the leaves and clouds and weathers
Going by as mindless
As the days.
What, what, what if? I thought. But no. Some forty years beyond!
The note I’d put? It’s surely stolen off by now.
A boy or screech-owl’s pilfered, read, and tattered it.
It’s scattered to the lake like pollen, chestnut leaf
Or smoke of dandelion that breaks along the wind of time...

No. No.

I put my hand into the nest. I dug my fingers deep.
Nothing. And still more nothing. Yet digging further
I brought forth:
The note.
Like moth wings neatly powdered on themselves, and folded close
It had survived. No rains had touched, no sunlight bleached
Its stuff. It lay upon my palm. I knew its look:
Ruled paper from an old Sioux Indian Head scribble writing book.
What, what, oh, what had I put there in words
So many years ago?
I opened it. For now I had to know.
I opened it, and wept. I clung then to the tree
And let the tears flow out and down my chin.
Dear boy, strange child, who must have known the years
And reckoned time and smelled sweet death from flowers
In the far churchyard.
It was a message to the future, to myself.
Knowing one day I must arrive, come, seek, return.
From the young one to the old. From the me that was small
And fresh to the me that was large and no longer new.
What did it say that made me weep?

I remember you.
I remember you.

November 17th, 2006

In order to celebrate the anticipated wedding of TomKat on November 17th*, I figured we should gather at Damon's in Chantilly at 6:30 for ribs, beer and trivia. Anyone that wants to come is welcome -- hope to see you there!





* or my birthday

Only in America...

People in countries around the world are literally dying in order to get the right to vote. Here in America, apparently we have to PAY people in order to get them to vote:

Arizona | Proposition 200: $1 Million Voter Reward

Would establish a "voter reward" random drawing every two years with a first prize of $1 million or more in an effort to increase voter participation. Voters who cast ballots in primary or general elections would be eligible to win. The money would come from the Arizona Lottery and private donations.

More Addicting Fun.

A couple of these I got right away, others I am still trying to figure out.

http://www.freeonlinegames.com/play/8370.html

Good News for Delvaux, Bad News for the Rest of Us

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/15532333/?GT1=8717

Halloween 2006

Thanks for all the help Delvaux!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoHRYKiGAD8

One Man's Take on Revelations

Robert Conte, Jr. is a Catholic philosopher that (supposedly) figures out future events by interpreting the Bible. Some would say he's genus -- some would say he's crazy. Even if you don't believe what he has to say, it is still some interesting material. He correctly predicted in 2004 that the next Pope would be named Benedict. I guess only time will tell if he's right about the rest of this timeline...

2009/2010 to 2039/2040: the first part of the tribulation, including the first Six Seals and the first Six Trumpets.
2009: U.S. President Hillary Clinton becomes Prolife.
2009: Pope Benedict XVI suggests building a Church, a Temple, and a Mosque in Jerusalem.
2009: A small war among the Arab/Muslim nations consolidates power with extremist leaders. Iran and Iraq lead them.
2009/2010: Pope Benedict XVI dies. The next Pope, Peter the Roman, enforces true doctrine and practice.
The First Seal and First Horseman of the Apocalypse: World War 3
2010: New York City is struck by a nuclear bomb, sometime between June 1 and December 31.
2012: The Pope, Peter the Roman, is captured during the war, tried, convicted, blinded, and imprisoned.
July of 2013: Rome and Vatican City are struck by a nuclear missile, because the Arab forces could not hold the city.
2010 to 2018/19: World War 3. The Arab forces conquer Europe, Scandinavia, parts of Eastern Europe, northern Africa.
The Second Seal and Second Horseman of the Apocalypse: Worldwide Civil Unrest and Violence
2010/2011 to 2018/2019: the civil unrest is more widespread than World War 3, including rioting, street crimes, etc.
The Third Seal and Third Horseman of the Apocalypse: The Great Famine of the 21st Century
2013 to 2020 or so: Most severe in Europe, the great famine affects developed nations more than poor nations.
2013 to 2019: During the Famine, like the Prodigal Son, the Protestant Churches repent and seek unity with Catholicism.
The Fourth Seal and Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse: Death from a Variety of Causes
2014 to 2020 or so: Many others die from a variety of other causes (not directly from war, civil violence, and famine).
The Inter-war Period between World Wars 3 and 4
2020 to early 2030's: The Arab forces occupy and oppress a vast territory.
2020 to 2023: All Christian Churches are united in one holy Catholic Church with seven parts.
The Fifth Seal: The Great Martyrdom
early 2030's: Christians are massacred in the occupied territories. It will be more severe than the Jewish Holocaust.
The Sixth Seal: World War 4 - an all-out nuclear war
about 2033 to 2037: Spurred by the great massacre of Christians, with approval from the Angelic Shepherd, the U.S. and its Allies, and the great Catholic monarch, attack the occupied territories. The Allies call upon the help of Almighty God, and they win the war, but at great cost. Both sides use many nuclear weapons. Millions upon millions are killed.
about 2037: The most faithful Servants of God are given a visible Seal on their foreheads. They are protected by God.
The Seveth Seal is divided into Seven Trumpets - only Six of the Seven Trumpets are for this generation
First Trumpet (2038) Pieces of broken Comet Tempel 1 fall to earth and burn up 1/3 of the land.
Second Trumpet (2038) One large piece of the same comet falls into the ocean causing great destruction.
Third Trumpet (2038/2039) Nuclear fallout from the war, and ash from the fires of the comet, contaminate the waters.
Fourth Trumpet (2038/2039) Nuclear Winter, due to World War and the effects of the comet pieces.
Fifth Trumpet (5 months in 2039) Something like locusts, but not natural, afflicts anyone without the Seal.
Sixth Trumpet (late 2039 or early 2040) Three Days of Darkness kills 1/3 of humanity, then the planet is healed by God.
2040's and 2050's: the reign of the great monarch and the Angelic Shepherd; a time of relative peace and holiness.
last part of the 21st century: the great monarch's kingdom is divided into four less holy kingdoms.
22nd century: The world continues to become more sinful. Russia becomes the dominent world power.
23rd century: Africa, India, and China become allies and the dominent world power, causing much harm.
24th century: The reign of the ten kings begins. Nine of the ten kingdoms reject Christianity very thoroughly. The one that includes Israel tolerates Christianity. There is very much sin in the world, and even in the Church.
25th century - the 2420's: The Antichrist rises to power in the kingdom of the North (Europe). He fights within that kingdom to increase his power to the point of dictatorship.
2430: The Antichrist defeats the Christian king of the South (Israel, Middle East, Northern Africa). The Pope of that time, the last true Pope before the return of Christ, is killed.
2430/2431: The Antichrist defeats the kings of Africa and of the East; he now controls two more kingdoms.
2431: The other six kingdoms submit to him. The symbolic beast with ten horns and seven heads is the ten kingdoms led by these seven leaders: the Antichrist plus the six remaining kings.
2431 to 2437: The nearly seven years of the reign of the Antichrist.
the first half of his reign: the Antichrist consolidates power worldwide by military force; he greatly exalts himself.
the second half of his reign: the Antichrist loses a battle to Christians. He then tries to destroy the Church by giving power and approval to apostates and heretics. The false prophet is a woman who is an antipope. The two prophets of Rev. 11 preach the truth. They are killed, raised from the dead, and assumed into Heaven.
2437: The Antichrist attempts a fake ascension into the sky. The Archangel Michael throws him down; he is broken but not dead. His reign ends. Faithful Christians go out and preach the Gospel, seeking repentant sinners.
2437: Jesus Christ returns with the Virgin Mary. More time for preaching and repentence is given.
2438/2439: The Seven Bowls of God's Wrath (i.e. the Seventh Trumpet) is given to the unrepentent wicked of the world.
about 2439/2440: The first Resurrection, for those who died as martyrs (and perhaps some Saints who lived as marytrs)
Thereafter: Then Jesus ascends to Heaven (Second Ascension) and Mary is assumed into Heaven (Second Assumption).
Next: Jesus sends the Holy Spirit (Second Pentecost), this time on the whole world.
Then, beginning in the 2440's: The Millennium of peace and holiness, when Christ reigns, not in the flesh, but in the Eucharist, and through the other Sacraments, and through Tradition, Scripture, Magisterium.
* * * * * * * * * * * * The Millennium continues for well over a thousand years * * * * * * * * * * * *
And then: The events of Revelation 20:7-9 occur: a rebellion against all that is holy; but the rebels are destroyed by God.
And sometime after that: The General Resurrection of the just and unjust.
And at that time: God takes away Heaven and Purgatory and Earth and Hell. And God makes a new Heaven and a new Earth and a new Hell. But Purgatory is no longer needed "...and death shall be no more." (Rev. 21:4).

Saving the world, one laptop at a time

What a phenominal idea... OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) is a non-profit project that seeks to create a $100 laptop in order to educate the world's poorest children. With money saving ideas like a crank (for power) and no harddrive (USB ports instead), this could not only revolutionize technology, but how we educate.

More here: http://laptop.org/

My next purchase.

https://www.aerogrow.com/store/step1a.php

Thanks, guys -- I'll miss you too.

Movin' On

I just resigned yesterday. I am not a quitter and I do not give up easily, but the conditions at my job were so bad, I really had no choice. I will be starting at American Systems on October 16th as an FSO. They offered me a pretty nice raise and a lot of great benefits, so I'm making the move. Is it the right decision? Only time will tell.

This Nation Has Secrets -- Big Whoop!

I am so sick and tired of the media and their "earth shattering" news stories about how this nation has secret this and secret that. Those secrets are called classified information and millions of cleared citizens have access to those secrets everyday. Those secrets are what is keeping this country safe and what are keeping the bad guys out. I personally don't WANT to know what our government is doing behind those SCIF walls. There are some things we're better off not knowing. Can you imagine if we tried to orchestrate D-Day in this day and age? The plot would be leaked to the media so fast that our soldiers would be killed before they were even halfway there.

In my job, it is my responsibility to make sure that this country remains safe. I brief hundreds of people a year about what could happen to them if they divulged classified information. What a slap in the face to the security community for one Geraldo or Katie Couric to blast all over the news the whereabouts of our secret bases or the intricacies of our spying missions. I could be thrown in jail for divulging such things and even given the death penalty. What do they get? An Emmy.

The Solution for Everything!

I was talking to a good friend of mine yesterday about a decision that I may have to make in the not too distant future. I was quite confused about it, and didn't really know what to do. She gave me some great advice that I thought I'd pass on.

When you cant decide, flip a coin. The coin flip isn't supposed to make your decision, but it's supposed to tell you how you'd react to a decision. So if you act really upset when it lands on your "heads" decision, you'll know that the right decision is "tails".

I think I know what I need to do for this one. Thanks, Bobbe.

More Family Photos...

After my grandparents passed away, my family started to divide up the items. My aunt got all of the family slides and negatives. She had no where to keep them, and asked me if I could store them for her. I have about 2500 slides from the 1950s to the 1980s and about a hundred black and white negatives from the 40s. I've started scanning the black and white negatives and have found quite a few lost family treasures. The below pictures are some of my favorites.

Ode to Dawson's Creek (thanks, Rob)

Withering, torrid, tormented soul floating through life just

waiting for the moment

when clarity

will be obtained. Craning neck trying to peek around the next corner knowing that

whatever is next must be better than

what is.

With each step into the future, tears are shed for the past as

whatever is now can never be as good as

what was, and yet

what has not become is

what is

wanted most. Each new discovery is an adventure to be conquered and

with each heartbreak, the end of the

world. Sappy music to cry to as a soundtrack to off balance hormones,

whispers to ignore in a hallway of divas

while trying to master seven subjects in an eight hour day. And still,

what I

wouldn’t give to be fifteen again.

What are you when you're in the bathroom?

European! At least that's what I paid National Geographic $100 to tell me.

Apparently, my DNA results are back and my maternal lineage is from Europe, a part of hapologroup "W". This group makes up 10% of the world's population. I would post more, but I'm late for work. In the meantime, let this graphic representation of my maternal lineage satiate you.

One step closer...

Well, my DNA kit is in the final stages of being evaluated by National Geographic's third party lab. In a week or so, I should be able to find out where my mother's ancestors originally lived thousands of years ago. I will not be able to track my Dad's side unless I have a "Y" chromosome to test, so I may have to sucker my brothers or my Dad into giving up some cheek skin in the name of science.

I'll be sure to post my results when I get them!

Small Mishap.

For the Bibliophile.

http://www.librarything.com

Conference

I just got back from Atlanta, GA on Thursday. I went down there for a security conference. It's basically an organization that promotes security awareness and education. Once I got back from the conference, I decided to spice up our chapter's site a little bit and have spent the majority of the day working on it.

Free Dog!

So uh -- anyone want a dog? I've got this really cute one that I'll give up for free. He's perfect in everyway except he barks at EVERY GOSH DARN THING IN THE WORLD WHEN YOU TRY TO WALK HIM. We've tried choke collars, "gentle leaders", trainers, treats, psychology, and I've read 2 books. So far, NOTHING WORKS.

I know they turn bad horses into dog food -- can they turn bad dogs into horse food?

Meet Bailey

This weekend, John and I picked up our new pooch, Bailey. We rescued him from Howard County Animal Shelter, in the depths of scary Maryland. So far, he's been really good with a few minor issues. He knows "sit", "down", "come", "stay" (sometimes), "out" (to drop a toy) and he's pretty good on leash. He's housebroken, crate trained (with coaxing), is great with kids, and doesn't bark. Sounds like a dream come true eh?

He is very HYPER. If we do not walk him and play with him a lot to tire him out, I can forsee him being a handful. But we've been doing pretty well with it so far (granted, it's only day 3). He has an interest in our cat, Dawn, but doesn't chase her or bark when he sees her. Our big task will be getting her to tolerate him.

He also goes ballistic around other dogs. I am enrolling him in a behavior class, so hopefully that will get better. Because we have so many friends with dogs, I want them to be able to play and get along.

New Addition.

If all goes well with the approval, John and I will be adopting this cute little guy sometime this week! We went up to Columbia, Maryland tonight to meet him and we really fell in love at first sight. He's cute, smart, sweet and just all around lovable. We're trying to think of a name, so any suggestions are welcomed! The shelter has dubbed him "Rudy" but we're looking for something with more piazzas.

Growing Up.

As a child, I always envisioned adults as these demi-gods that could do no wrong. Every word that came out of my parents’ and older siblings’ mouths were gospel. I can remember one time asking my mother why we had to say prayers before each meal. She responded, “So you won’t choke on your food.” As a child, I truly believed that was the reason and diligently said my prayers.

A few months later, my father went on the Optifast program—it was a fad at the time, mainly because Oprah did it. For 3 meals a day for 6 months, Dad had to drink milkshakes. Kind of like Slimfast on steroids. I can remember sitting around the dinner table, all of us with plates of food and my Dad with his sole milkshake. Right before we started to pray I asked, “Why is Dad praying? He can’t choke on a milkshake!” Everyone laughed and I couldn’t understand why. In my own mind, I had asked a legitimate question! I think I was 20 or so when I actually realized you prayed before meals to THANK God for the food – not to save yourself from the Heimlich.

So after I moved out on my own, I slowly began to realize a lot of things that my parents told me were just plain bogus. Granted, they had their reasons for most of it, but it was certainly an eye opener for me to start to realize that my parents were not the smartest people in the world. Then my niece and nephew entered the world and it became even more apparent that parents are just winging it most of the time. It also amazed me to watch them repeat everything my sister said and did. I know we are preprogrammed to be brainwashed by our parents – it is nature’s defense mechanism. If we did not absorb so quickly, how would we learn how to walk, talk and function in society? Although, my niece is quite observant. Just a few weeks ago she said to my father, “You have four children and Michelle is the smartest.” Ha! Gotta love her.

Soon after realizing parents are well intentioned imperfect people, I entered the workforce and became another worker bee in the big cubicle hive gleaning all I could from my boss, the Queen. She knew all and was never wrong. I learned just about everything I know about management from her. She was a perfect supervisor, awesome mentor and friend. Now that I am a manager myself, I am beginning to realize that half of the time, my boss was probably winging it—as were my parents, and as am I. I am often asked many questions a day from my 3 employees and I have to make quick decisions. Decisions that could impact people’s clearances, jobs and lives. It’s quite a scary thought that this responsibility has been entrusted in a 27 year old that thinks you don’t have to pray before drinking milkshakes.

I really didn’t have a point to this when I started writing it. Except maybe that I’m having a bit of a reality check being in lower management. It’s weird when employees ask me if it’s ok if they have the day off. Half the time I think to myself, “Why are they asking me?” The other half of the time I’m thinking, “Holy crap, they’re asking ME!” I’m sure this will all wear off in no time and 20 years from now when I’m CEO of a mega conglomerate, I’ll wonder how I ever second guessed myself as a management fledgling.

Way Cool.

I just ordered my DNA kit -- get yours here and participate in this once in a lifetime oppourtunity!

Ew.

While reading my Popular Science magazine, I came accross this exhibit called Body Worlds. Apparently, this place takes REAL bodies and plastifies them -- then puts them on display. They have over 200 bodies right now, and a waiting list of donors! Gross -- but yet, eerily interesting.

Very Cool.

This guy is making the news all over the world. What would you trade?

Elizabethtown.

Great flick. If you haven't seen it already, you must.

I Don't Think Wiley Liked My Gift.

Or Else.

Found.

Discovered this site while reading the Post Secret site. Turns out, PostSecret and Found are pairing up in Old Town for a short PS flick and some live music. Sounds like fun... who wants to come with me?

Is There Still Hope...?

Maybe AD fans don't have to look like this after all? More info here.

SLUM CREW 19

From Friday night June 9th, 2006 through Sunday afternoon, June 11th, 2006 you will escape from the routine to join us for a leisurely weekend of canoeing, camping and partying. This is always a great time as we celebrate the greatest outdoor weekend party we started back in 1988. See below how it all works and directions. (Please read this entire e-mail.)

Cost: $75 per person (includes a spot in a canoe, use of the campsite, and a custom-made T-Shirt)

You may still invite others, but please confirm your attendance and better yet, please send me the $ so I know you're definitely going.

PLEASE CONFIRM YOUR ATTENDANCE BY REPLYING TO THIS E-MAIL AND LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED A SPOT IN A TENT. PLEASE FORWARD THIS TO ANYONE WHO MIGHT BE SERIOUSLY INTERESTED. I NEED TO KNOW WHO'S GOING ASAP.

This canoe trip is way too much fun. Come along.

Thanks everyone,

Karsten "Milk" Kinzer

When: Friday night, June 9th, 2006 to Sunday, June 11, 2006 (late afternoon)

Where: South Fork of the Shenandoah River between Luray and Front Royal, Virginia

What: Two days of canoeing (Sat and Sun.)(2 people per canoe) and two nights (Friday and Saturday nights) at the Compton Campground plus an Official Slum Crew T-shirt to commemorate this historic event. We camp next to the cars so there is no hiking and you can bring more stuff.

Cost: $75 PER PERSON. Make checks out to me, Karsten Kinzer. This includes your spot in the canoe, the use of the campsite and the T-shirt. Food and drink are NOT included.

THIS IS A RAIN OR SHINE EVENT!!! (If it does rain, it usually doesn't rain for long.) HOW IT ALL WORKS:

We are assembling at the Compton Campground (a.k.a. Golden Rock Campground) Friday afternoon or night (arrive when you can-directions follow). Carpool as best you can. It takes about an hour and a half to get there from Northern Virginia. This is a rain or shine event, so no matter what the weather conditions, we'll be there (unless you hear from me.) Weather conditions can change quickly in the mountains. We'll be prepared at the campsite for any weather.

The campground is located along the banks of the South Fork of the Shenandoah River and is equipped with Don's Jons, a fresh water pump, picnic tables and fire pits (no showers). We will set up camp Friday night near the cars. With that in mind, don't worry about compacting your gear for hiking and such. Bring any and all amenities you think you might want. There will be some community tents to sleep in, but make sure you have space in a tent. Those who have room in tents or tents to share, please make them available to those who don't have tent space. Let me know if you need tent space. THERE WILL BE KEGS OF BEER IN CAMP FOR THOSE WHO WISH TO JOIN US IN GETTING OUR DRINK ON FRIDAY NIGHT.

On Saturday morning, we will be outfitted with lifejackets and paddles and then taken by bus up-river about ten miles. All personal gear will be left at the campsite except what is needed on the river such as suntan lotion, food and plenty of beverages, first-aid kit, etc. Depending on the number of canoes we rent, there will be designated bar canoes we will outfit. These bar canoes will hold all beverages, food, trash, and anything you don't want to get wet. Remember which bar canoe has your stuff. There will be NO GLASS containers of any kind on the river. We will canoe about 5-6 hours Saturday depending on the river level. The river is quite tame (except for one class two rapid at the campsite), but it is strong, moving water, so please take that into consideration. Always keep your footwear and your lifejacket on when canoeing or swimming. If it is sunny, please wear suntan lotion as you can burn very quickly. We finish Saturday back at the same campsite we stayed at Friday night.

On Sunday morning, we set off from the campsite and canoe another exciting seven miles to the Low Water Bridge at Bentonville. Sunday canoeing is shorter than Saturday, but is more eventful. The canoe company will then bus us back up to the Golden Rock Campground. We should be finished Sunday in the late afternoon.

WHAT TO BRING:

* First-Aid Kit
* Suntan lotion
* An old pair of sneakers (river rocks are sharp) - AN ABSOLUTE MUST
* Bug repellent
* Swim suit
* Drinking water or drinks both at camp and on the river. (No Glass Containers)
* FOOD!!! NO FOOD OR DRINK (EXCEPT KEGS) WILL BE PROVIDED. THERE IS A CAMPFIRE PIT THERE FOR COOKING AND GRILLING. BRING FOOD FOR THE RIVER AS WELL.

* Toilet paper
* Rain coat or poncho
* Change of clothes for the campsite including a dry pair of shoes
* Tent (if you have one). If you have more than one tent, please bring it. If we don't need it, we won't use it.
* Sleeping bag or blankets (a pillow is a nice addition)
* Large coolers (if you have them)
* Flashlight

DIRECTIONS:

From Washington D.C.:
- Follow Interstate 66 West off the Beltway for 54 miles to the first Front Royal exit (exit 13). Exit here.

- At the stop sign, turn left.

- Go under I66 and turn right on 55 West into Front Royal.

- Keep going straight (past McDonald's on right) to a "T" intersection (3rd traffic light).

- Turn left on to route 340 South and follow it about 14 miles through the town of Bentonville.

- After about 14 miles, at the bottom of a large hill, turn right onto a dirt road just before a small bridge over a river called Compton. Do NOT cross the bridge. There is a very large, 1/4 mile long active train trestle traversing over the campsite here.

- Proceed slowly down the dirt road as this road is rather bumpy.

- At the bottom of the dirt road, turn LEFT and park where you can. Locate us rowdy folk and we'll help you find a place to pitch your tents.

CELL PHONES WILL PROBABLY NOT WORK AT THE CAMPGROUND.

Mike in Vegas.

Mike in Japan.

Something tells me there's a "Mike in Thailand" photo out there as well...

Reasons for Immigration Reform.

Mass immigration is fueling unprecedented population growth.

Immigration now adds more than one million people—the equivalent of two Denvers—to our population every year. At our current pace of immigration, our population will grow to more than 400 million people by 2050. That’s tens of millions of additional people needing schools, jobs, and housing—as well as water and other precious natural resources.

Today’s immigration is extremely costly.

Unlike previous eras of immigration, today’s immigrants are 50 percent more likely to use welfare than native-born Americans. Providing for the needs of immigrants costs American taxpayers as much as $20 billion a year. We cannot provide high quality education, health care, and retirement security for our own people if we continue to bring in endless numbers of poor, unskilled immigrants. America is still working to meet the challenge of assisting our own poor and disadvantaged; mass immigration compounds the problem and impedes efforts to raise the standards of living for all.

Mass immigration depresses the wages of poorer Americans.

The gap between rich and poor in America continues to widen. Job competition by waves of new immigrants depresses the wages and salaries of American workers and hits hardest at minority workers and those without high school degrees. America’s focus must be on training our own labor force to face competition from abroad, not on importing new workers to compete for jobs at home.

Mass immigration conflicts with today’s national security priorities.

Current immigration levels are so high that immigration officials are unable to thoroughly screen immigrants before allowing them into the country—as September 11, 2001 tragically underscored. Lower legal immigration levels, an entry-exit system to detect those who have overstayed their visas, and heightened enforcement efforts are essential in order to regain control of the system and meet today’s heightened need to know who is coming into the country.

Mass immigration is overcrowding our schools.

In the last decade, school enrollments have increased by 16 percent, an increase that the U.S. Census Bureau attributes largely to the immigration influx. Department of Education officials say that by 2100, the nation’s schools will have to find room for 94 million students-nearly double the current number.

Mass immigration is straining our already fragile environment.

As our population grows, demands for resources increase; increased pollution, deforestation, waste, habitat destruction, and soil erosion are the result. America’s environmental priorities can’t be reconciled with the new infrastructure and resource consumption that continued population growth will require. Resources like water and energy are straining under the constantly increasing demand.

Already, America’s sprawling urban areas are encroaching on fragile coastal wetlands and paving over farmland at alarming rates. Just maintaining the current massive level of immigration will require the construction of millions of new homes (and the resulting loss of farmland and open space) and put tens of millions more cars of already crowded roads.

The U.S. today is a fully populated nation of almost 290 million people, not the sparsely settled territory of 150 years ago. Our priority should be preserving our remaining wilderness areas, conserving our natural resources, and ensuring a better quality of life for future generations.

The best reason we have to reform immigration is this:



Text taken from: http://www.fairus.org/site/PageServer?pagename=research_research9964

Cy-Col-O-G

When I was in seventh grade, I got this crazy idea to list all my classmates on a sheet of paper (there were like 20 of us) and give the sheets out to each kid in class. I asked each one of them to describe the other 19 using only one word. I have no idea why I did this -- I think I was just interested in what everyone else thought of everyone else. Well, this girl in my class, Kerri Smedley, got super upset. She said I was mean and insensitive for doing this excercise (probably because people were putting mean words down for her description) and demanded I stop doing it. I still have the sheets I managed to collect--not sure why, I just thought they were cool.

At any rate, I was reading Joe's blog and he had this cool excercise which you describe someone in 5 words. It's called a Johari window. A Johari window is a metaphorical tool intended to help people better understand their interpersonal communication and relationships. It is used primarily in self-help groups and corporate settings as a heuristic exercise.I thought I'd give it a go. So if you want to describe me, click here: http://kevan.org/johari?name=mijoy. It will show me what others seem to think of me.

To tell me what you REALLY think of me, you can describe my faults here: http://kevan.org/nohari?name=mijoy

LOST

For those of you that don't already know, I'm a huge LOST fan. My husband and I watch it every week, tivo in hand, so we can pause, rewind and review every last second of the show. In case you were wanting a close up of the diagram from the last episode, I managed to find it and have posted it here for your enjoyment.

Looks Like We Passed Inspection...

Hello, Michelle and John – I’m pleased to inform you that your application for adopting a Sheltie through NVSR has been approved. Kato and I enjoyed meeting you yesterday. The next step in our adoption process will be to match you with the best dog for your situation and profile. This may take some time. As dogs come in to us, we foster each of them for at least two weeks, often more. They are also shown on our Web site. If you see a dog there that interests you, please let us know at apply@nvsr.org. We try to work with each dog and one adopter at a time, but always emphasize that we are working from the dog’s point of view, doing our best to match the dog with the right home.

We look forward to helping you find your family's next best friend! Thanks again for your interest in NVSR.

Martha Heisel
NVSR Adoption Coordinator
www.nvsr.org

Movie Beam

As a kid, I always thought it would be cool to just choose whatever movie you wanted from your TV and have it automatically "beamed" down to you. Well folks, it's finally here! Too bad it doesn't work in South Riding --- yet.

Reality TV

Many thanks to my hubby, Johnny Dude for this one.