Go ahead, stick it to the French President. Twelve times in fact.

Offensive to the French President? It doesn't matter says a judge in a lawsuit brought about by said President to get these dolls pulled off the shelves of French bookstores. What you are looking at is a voodoo doll of Nicolas Sarkozy, which comes with an instruction manual and 12 pins for poking. On the doll are famous sayings of Mr. Sarkozy. The only concession the company has to make is the paying of a $2000 fine and the inclusion of a label that will inform the consumer of the offensiveness the President feels because of the doll. Its funny, because if nothing would have been said about it in the first place it probably would have just disappeared by the wayside as a political gag gone wrong, but now that there has been such a big deal made over it it has become quite the hot item. So hot in fact that even I, a lowly American, wish that I could get my hands on one (but am not willing to post a bid on the one on Ebay which is currently at $61.00 + $10 shipping). It just goes to show that a little publicity goes a long way, and that if you really want something to go away you shouldn't put a world spot light on it...

With the Moon and sextile Pluto? What?

I normally do not even read my horoscope but today for some reason, maybe to alleviate my boredom, I decided to check it out. Eerily, it was pretty dead on:

"Deep emotions will be expressed today with the Moon sextile Pluto. Memories that were buried and forgotten will resurface. Courageously, you will face the past. This combination will help you go after something you want with passion and zeal"

Now, if only it was to say what the outcome of the facing of the past would be..
But that would be too easy, wouldn't it?

An essential element that cannot be missing.

Without it, it can drive even the sanest mind to warrant a stay in a mental asylum.
It can cause knots and painful sensations in an otherwise healthy gut.
It can cause someone who is deathly tired to not be able to sleep for hours.
Wondering, and waiting...
Doubting and disbelieving...
Tossing and turning...
Sour and suffering.
What am I talking about?
Trust.
Something that once gone is very difficult to regain, and even more difficult if there is no effort to regain it.
Honestly, I think that unless it does come back, and come back soon, something drastic must be done to end the perpetual suffering that not having it causes.......

Who says that Politics and Government doesn't have a sense of humor?

Its the little things that can make all the difference

I am a little beside myself at the moment.
This feeling of happiness is so foreign to me that I am almost waiting for the dream to end and for me to wake up in my bed as I was before..
But it seems to me that I am truly awake, and I am loving life.

The cause of my current jubilation came in the form of a wake up call at 5am this morning. It was so simple, but to me, its the little things that matter the most. For someone to take the time to remember to call me when they said they would; to take time out of their day just for me.. well, it means the world. The smile that came with the realization of who was calling this morning has yet to leave my face...
:D

Oh how fast everything can change.

A couple of days ago I took a leap of faith and decided to meet with someone whom I hadn't seen in months. We had been conversing via email, telephone, etc for a few weeks or so, but it is not the same as actually being face to face. People change; feelings change; sometimes even the best of things can never be the same..
So to say that I was a little apprehensive on the way down would be an understatement. I felt more nervous then I did when giving a live speech in front of 100's of people. I couldn't eat anything and for some reason I had to keep reminding myself to breathe.
I was amusing myself to say the least.
It was even worse after I finally did get there, I felt like a giddy school girl whose crush just tagged her on the playground at recess, but I didn't mind the feeling; I was happy. Something that I haven't felt in that fashion in a long time. All the fears that I had felt vanished as soon as he got out of the car to come and greet me. There was no awkwardness, it was as if we had just stepped right back into the way things were ages ago. I finally got the hug that I had been wishing for all weekend and I can truly say that it felt good to be home again in his arms.

For some reason time had rocket blasters attached it its boots that day because before I knew it it was already time to go. It was the quickest 3 hours that I have ever known, but in those hours everything that I had been hoping for was confirmed and I walked away knowing that I had made the right decision.
You never know unless you try and if you want something you most definitely have to ask.. who knows, the answer may be just exactly what you were wanting to hear.

Iranian Censorship ... amazing...

Lets play a little game of what is different between the two photographs. Study the picture above very carefully, look for anything that you may consider to be obscene, tasteless or worthy of censorship. After you feel like you know the photo take a look down at the second picture because it was what was published in an Iranian Newspaper.



(only scroll down when you are ready to laugh)









This was so ridiculous that I couldn't help but share it. Apparently, the people of Iran have never seen a woman's legs before... and the communist flag of China is just as inappropriate...
To live in a country where even a posting like this would be considered a jailable offense baffles me. Yes, I do believe in national pride, and not wanting to leave the homelands, but why subject yourself to this sort of torture? It is no way to live.


(courtesy of http://jadi.net/)

A Sunny Day Spent at Isabel in the Pearl - and a little bit about Tully's

I don't know what was inherently different about yesterday that made the day so wonderful, but lets just say that I woke up with a smile plastered on my face and kept that smile through out most of the day.
My 7am wake up call was no different than any other, aside from the fact that there was a little something on my phone which warmed my heart (hmm...), after hitting the snooze at least 3 times I finally got up because I tired of hearing the snide Republican remarks on the annoying AM radio station I have my alarm set to (when I had it set to a station that I liked I would find myself sleeping right on thru it, so only hitting the button 3 times is a much better alternative if I do say so myself).
I dropped E off at school and on the way home I decided to stop by the new Tully's that they recently put in on 78th and what I believe to be Hazel Dell Avenue (right next to the LA Fitness). I had heard many good things about this place from an ex friend up in Seattle and I wanted to see what all the hoopla was about. Because I was not dressed for public (what happens if I want to get E to school on time) I opted for the drive thru.
As drove away with my typical (of late) Grande Soy Vanilla Latte in hand I took a sip...
Backing up a few moments before this, when I was handed my drink I noticed that it felt significantly lighter than my typical drink, and there was water all over the lid. No big deal, I don't want my drink spat in so I didnt say anything. With my first sip I couldnt tell if the drink tasted so watery because of the fact that it seemed to have been held over the faucet or if the soy itself was actually watery but I was able to discern a very delicious espresso flavor which I loved. My final impression: Don't buy the soy from Tully's. I will give them one more shot with a regular, dairy variety, latte, but probably not any time soon.

After heading to the gym for a vigorous work out, which I am paying for today, I went downtown to meet up with my good friend Ivonne for our weekly lunch excursion. This week we opted for Isabel, a new, modern chic healthy food type of venue.
The food was great, very fresh, very tasty, and very recommendable. Our waiter was a little sketchy... but he left us alone for the most part so that was a plus in his direction. We arrived right during the peak of the lunch rush, but we didnt have to wait at all for our table, and we got a perfect corner seat right by the windows. It was chattery, but not loud at all, ideal for conversation. Most definitely a place I will want to try again.

Since the day was perfect for walking, almost with out a coat even, we decided to do a little window shopping before we went our separate ways. Breathing in the crisp fresh air, with the sun streaming on your face, with a slight breeze running through your hair, does wonders for the senses.. :)

Death by Politics

Politics can bring out the best and the worst in people...

...and you would think that now that the election is over Hyde would go away and this said individual would go back to being Jekyll but unfortunately this doesn't seem to be the case.
Emotions ran high during the presidential race but in no way does that justify treating anyone in the opposite party with disrespect. There is even less reason to justify acting with obscene vulgarity towards someone who is supposedly your friend.
I said that I needed an apology and apparently that was too much to ask.
After as many years of friendship that the two of us shared, I would have never guessed it would have ended like this.

Here's to yet another new beginning!
Change can be a good thing.

I finally upgraded: Blackberry Curve 8330

For those of you who know me you would know that prior to a couple of days ago I have had the same phone, the Samsung A880, since October 2005. Yes, you read that right, one cell phone; over 3 years. Who does that, right?
This phone went thru hell and back and is still functional, with the same battery it came with in 2005, to this day. Three days after I got it, on a Sunday stroll it started raining, who'd of guessed it, but the phone fell out of my pocket in my haste back to the house and was out in the torrential rain for a good 20 minutes before I found it. After a thorough dry out it was working just fine..
This phone has fell over 60 feet from the bleachers at a blazer game and when the attendant brought it back up for me not only was it still in once piece but it was on and working as if nothing had happened at all.
I have thrown it in the garbage in the pearl, dropped it too many times to have kept count..
The most recent abuse was when my dog, Charlotte, decided that she wanted to try and eat this shinny thing that I always have in my hand.
Through it all, it withstood the torture and always had a crystal clear signal and service from Alaska to the Grand Canyon to Utah to the woods of Alabama..
But with its age its prime function for me was starting to get difficult, and that was text messaging. It was getting annoying enough that it actually started to curve the amount I would text message, causing me to opt for *gasp* actually talking on the phone.
We can't have that now, can we?
Time to get a new phone!

After doing my research I decided that the phone that I wanted was none other than the Blackberry Curve 8330. Not only is it a phone, but it doubles as a mp3 (yes, you still owe me that ipod, and I still want it!), it has gps, much better access to the internet and a full qwerty keyboard that allows me to text and email to my hearts content. After playing with it for the past couple of days I have configured all my email addresses to send to this phone, facebook automatically notifies me when I have something new, I am waiting for a friend to get me the Microsoft Office product that goes with the phone which, theoretically, will be great (now I will never have an excuse for not getting homework done, right?). The phone works great, its easy for me to figure out and other than the fact that I am getting used to the keyboard the transition has been very, very easy. For me, its like comparing a car from the 80's to something from this current decade so to say that I am loving it is an understatement.

Tree Scene 114 by Hajime Namiki

A print I found today that I find to not only be beautiful but very inspirational as well.
Looking at this piece through my eyes makes me feel as I do whenever I take the time to sit and look at the stars: Small. Insignificant. But in awe of the wonder. Even the tree which would be monstrous in real life seems but an afterthought to the perils of the sky. But moreover, it makes me feel peaceful, knowing my place in this world...
Its only $425 for my own copy.. and Christmas IS coming up soon. Hmm... hehe

Quality makes that much of a difference.

My boomerang came back.
I threw it as far away from myself as possible, yet here it is again.. polished, shiny and better than ever.
Very, very grateful am I because with everything that has been going on in my life of late its nice to feel like I have my best friend back :)

They say everything happens for a reason. I'd like to have a talk with They.

They say that everything happens for a reason, but I want to know why things happen the way they do. Is there really a reason that my feelings have to be drug through the mud time and again? Is there something that I am supposed to be learning and for some reason I just never get it? Am I doomed to continue this cycle time and again until I discover the message I am supposed to be grasping out of the situations I perpetually find myself in?
If A leads to B and B leads to C and C leads to D why is it that for me A leads to B, B leads to B, and yes, you guessed it C and D both lead to B? Maybe I am out of the loop on this one, but that does not seem very progressive to me.

Is it too late to retract my vote??

You see, maybe if she WOULD have told me the incorrect price for postage I could have actually voted for the most qualified candidate...
See what happens when I attempt to do things early? Tsk!! haha