Halloween fun

Went to the "Haunted Compound" on Ryan's base last night. It was creepy, if not outright scary. I was mostly annoyed by the 12 year old harpies screaming their way through the whole thing. Ahh, fun times.

Bin Laden is back ...

And aside from taking credit for 9/11 he doesn't really say too much new. So which way does this play politically?

I am woman, hear me ...

Went to a Women's Conference today. Aside from the shameless sales pitch at the beginning, it was a fun day. My boss asked me to follow a certain track to get ideas for the Women's Group we're starting at Pathmark. My track was all about wellness and health. Nothing earth-shattering, but gave me some good ideas about how to not turn into a complete marshmellow with my fancy new desk job.

Tomorrow ... back to the stores. I can't believe how quickly the last 9 months have gone. Whoa.

One week out and still undecided

So here I am, one week away from what could arguably be one of the most important elections in my life and I still don't want to vote for either candidate. Why? Mostly because while I know what they say they would do, I don't have confidence in either candidate that they will actually do what they say they will. Is this a policial malady in general that I've missed because of my lack of attention or is it unique to this race? Either way, I'm scared that I'll walk into the voting booth next Tuesday and play eenie meenie miney moe. Uk.

50 Dead Iraqi Solders

Truly one of the sadest things I've heard in a while. Here is proof that the insurgents don't just hate us, they hate everything and every one that threatens their power. 50 unarmed Iraqi solders were killed, execution style. What is going on in this world?

Tim & Jenn's Wedding

Went to Tim & Jenn's wedding yesterday. We had a nice time. I've heard a lot about how the weddings on the East Coast are a lot different than MidWest weddings. I didn't really notice that it was all that different, aside from the completely open bar. We did get to see an interesting custom where the man who catches the gartner has to slide it up the leg of the woman who caught the bouquet with his teeth. Fun in any case, but even better when the guy who caught the garter was 16. Good times!

The electoral college is a joke

Just read another article about how there is a real possibility that we could have a tied vote in the electoral college this year. This is just one more reason that the electoral college system needs to go away.

Others:
* Minority voters (political, not racial) in states that are heavily one sided are ignored.
* Small states are ignored (And I know all the arguments about how it would be worse if we got ride of the college, I just don't buy it. At least if candidates were elected by popular vote voters in Wyoming could come into play because then ....
* Each vote would count. Seriously though. In a race that is likely to be one of the tightest in our Nation's history, a few thousand votes could make a difference.
* It's just dumb that a person can be elected President but not win the popular vote. Dumb Dumb Dumb. While I realize that I'm not making a great argument here, how can we say we live in a democracy (or even a republic) when we can have a President who didn't win the highest number of votes. It is an outrage to my sense of justice that this is the system by which we elect our highest leaders. Dumb!

In conclusion: The Electoral College Blows.

'I don't think Laura Bush ever had a real job.'

What!?! Once again, Teresa Heinz Kerry has opened mouth only to insert foot. Because being an heiress is such a challenge? Just another reason that no one cares.

Oy my aching back!

Day number two: Grocery Manager Dave and I spent the essentially running around the store, building displays and unpacking endless, very heavy boxes. Needless to say I think I'll be a little sore tomorrow. I've gotten soft from 9 hours a day in my office chair. It's probably good for me, but I wish my feet would quit throbbing. At least tomorrow I am spending time with someone who doesn't lift heavy boxes for a living.

I underestimated their sneakiness

Must admit that it's really hard to stay up on my work when I spend 3 days a week in the stores. My boss and I realized today that we won't see each other again until November. Time's fun when you're flying!

Who cares?

Anyone else tired of hearing about how offended the Cheneys were about John Kerry talking about their daughter. Why is this an issue with all of the back-stabbing and political mongering this year? I'm done with the presidential race this year ...

Go Illinois, Go Illi - noooooo!

Today was a disappointing football day. After leading Michigan for a quarter, Illinois once again choked under pressure and lost 30 - 19. Sad ...

We also saw Navy get a beating by Notre Dame today at the Meadowlands. On the up side, I saw my cousin, Andy there (pictures to follow). It took me about an hour of tailgating before I realized that he might be there. Sure enough! Since he is in the drum and bugle core and one of the tallest humans on the planet, he was pretty easy to pick out of the crowd. He seems like he's enjoying his first year at Annapolis, although he looked a little peaked. All in all a good day and fun to watch all the uniformed men stand throughout the entire game. Yeah football!

Just back from the Big Apple

I unfondly recalled my college days this week. Three full days of training and 6 hours of homework later, I am officially empathied-out. "I understand that working with a difficult person can be frustrating." I'm a trainer, not a therapist. In all seriousness, I learned some valuable information and had a great time. Ghislaine (my supervisor) read through my feedback and told me that I get to keep my job for another week. We get to pay our rent again this month, alright!

New York was great. Ryan came up with me Monday night and we saw Newsicals. If you're ever in the City, I highly recommend this show. It spoofed every current event, from John Kerry ("blah blah, Vietnam") to George Bush ("Uh, what's going on?") and the benefits of modern medicine ("Ridilin, Thintrim & Prozac"). We laughed for two solid hours and left feeling good that at least someone else sees the ridiculousness of the world today.

Glad to be home, nonetheless. I have to admit that paying $19 for a BLT is not my idea of a good time.

My good friend Jason

Has a great blog himself. I'm quite amused on an almost-daily basis. If you would also like a daily dose of an unabashed liberal attemping to take a fair look at things, please take a look:

www.theminards.com

Welcome

... And so begins my adventure in blogging.

This site is the brainchild of my fabulous husband (hi Ryan) who has been telling me consistently over the last several months that I should share my thoughts. Personally, I think it's just his really nice way of saying "Please please stop talking". So, this site will be whatever I happen to be thinking about (fixating on) in any given day. Given the likelihood that anyone will actually be reading it, I'll think of it as a public diary. Hehe.

And we're off ...