Presidential Woes

News this evening of Rudy Giuliani quitting the presidential race put a big smile on my face. I equated him to the closest thing to Bush that we could put in the White House. I feared having to watch him talk for four (or eight) years, all the while bugging his eyes out with each accentuated word that fell from his thin little lips (if you never noticed, watch now...it will drive you nuts). My biggest assumption was that he would eagerly carry on the Bush Family War overseas in Iraq. On a side note, I also personally never liked that the guy was fine with having mistresses while married either.

So, Rudy, I happily bid you farewell. Thank you for declining the idea of running for a VP spot too.

I am already nervous about the upcoming elections in November. I have to admit, that I am just not feeling Hillary, even though she is a woman. She just irks me a bit, and once again, it bothers me that she stayed with her stupid cheating husband (okay, Bill is supposedly a genius, and my guess is that a pre-presidential run divorce may not have looked so good to voters). That aside, her professional and personal can be separated, and that leaves me still just not 'feeling' the lady...and I don't give a damn if she cried and that the media said it made her 'human.' Maybe the media is the reason I am so irritated with her.

My ticket is really on Obama at the moment...my thinking is that the so called 'inexperienced' politician may actually utilize more of a positive team effort and not just assume himself the all mighty office idiot (like that one asshole in office right now). Obama is personable, has a Guy Smiley smile, and, in the end, seems to back a lot of my own beliefs.

So, here's the big fear. And it may be irrational, BUT, I really think that if a woman or a minority makes it into office, some idiot is going to try to assassinate them. And not just some idiot...many idiots. This will not change my vote. I embrace the chance for change in the office and am ABSOLUTELY voting for a non-Republican. I just see the potential out there for extremely racist and/or sexist individuals to really have a hard time with such a change in the USA and do something really stupid as a result.

I can only hope that my irrational assumption turns out to be unnecessary pessimism.

Song of the moment: Over My Head by Red House Painters. It is a mellow Sarah song, but you may like it.

Dear Oregon, Stork, Dems, and Jack...

Dear Oregon,

Thanks for giving the Beavers a stellar football season. I always knew we were better than those Ducks.

Please give us some more days without rain. The sun would be a good accomplice to everyday right now too. Especially my birthday on Friday (that's a hint people...I only turn 30 once)!

Please HEAVILY consider speeding up this smokefree establishments movement so that I can go out and not have to overdramatically cough when people blow smoke in my face all night or take a shower when I get home (we ARE trying to make the world a greener place you know...at least until all the celebrities move on to a new cause).

Dear Stork,

Thanks for bringing me a new niece or nephew to hang out with this coming July. Twins would be good, but my sister Lexy and her husband Ben may want to try one kid to start with, so you decide.

Dear Democrats,

Please beat the Republicans over the next 11 months. I think we need a change in that whole mess that Mr. Bush and his pals have created. Screw executive power...get some competent people in office!

Dear Jack Johnson,

Thanks for coming out with your new CD Sleep Through the Static on February 5th. I already love the first song and will be in line at Borders to buy it when it comes out. Could you please be there so I can ogle you in real life for a while?

Love, Sarah

Oh, my song of the moment is Can't Complain by Nickel Creek...not Nickelback, Nickel Creek...the group that is actually talented and deserves radio airplay. Go listen to it.

News and Opinions, Part 1

I figure that if I title this Part I, I will be more likely to post a Part II sooner than two months from now. So, posting few and far between, here is something to fill the void:

No More Mapquest: Justin bought me a Garmin for Christmas. I couldn't be more excited because I, as everyone knows, don't know north from south or east from west. Yes, I still utilize the 'it's that way' shout/pointing of the finger. The POI's and voiced directions will SURELY help with the upcoming trek across the country in a few days, which leads to...

Oregon Again: As I reduce the use of my blog over the years to post terrifyingly personal info about myself (I STILL haven't erased some of my posts from 2005 EVEN though I go back and read them and think, did I SERIOUSLY write that?!), I will use this short and sweet description of what is to come...

I will be back in Oregon...A LOT.

Those of you who talk to me on a regular basis are the ones who know what is going on, and that is how I would like to keep it. Over revealing post be damned, that's all I have to say. Oh, AND that I am looking forward to girl's nights and family time quite a bit. My younger sister and her husband are headed back the same time as me, so that is really exciting.

Never Buy Me the Stars: Sorry if you think it is awesome, but buying someone a star is stupid. You really want to pay $54.95 for a spot of gaseous light in the universe?! As this article says:

"Who gave them the right to name stars? And then charge someone for the name?" The answer is simple: Nobody gave them the right. They just do it.

So, unless you plan to lasso that star and put it in a really cool display box for someone (especially me), never buy a star as a present. Apparently, they are occasionally sold as part of fundraisers, so if buying someone a star sends a kid to Space Camp, go right ahead. But likely, you are just paying for a certificate from some slimy webrunner.

One last note. If the sun happens to be for sale, you can buy me that because you all know how much I love that big ball of happiness. As a favorite dialog with one of my good friends goes:

Him: What are you doing?
Me: Sitting in the sun.
Him: I knew it!

Speaking of Presents: Okay, not really, but my birthday is exactly one month away. It's one of those big ones that starts with a 3 and ends with an 0. My goal is to celebrate making it this far rather than freaking out about it. I mean, in some countries I would be LUCKY to live to 30, so why wouldn't I celebrate the big milestone? Though I have to admit, I will REALLY miss my twenties.

ALL CAPS: Yeah, so, I never got up to speed on writing in all caps being equal to yelling at someone. But, I like to emphasize my words in all caps...so don't take it personally alright.

And now, for the song of the moment (in all caps to emphasize that you MUST go listen to it):

DO YOU FEEL ME by ANTHONY HAMILTON

Absolutely obsessed with it right now. He appeared as himself in American Gangster (damn good movie by the way) and sang it. Great song from yet another often overlooked talent.

Alright, Part II should be coming to you from a desk in Oregon. Goodnight.

Life in Simple Sentences

I'll be home in Oregon for a week starting Sunday night. It snowed today in Ohio. The Beavers officially have a winning season. I am giving those #2 Ducks some love this year because I have to as a faithful Oregonian (until the Civil War at least). We'll be going out on Friday night in Portland if any of you wonderful Oregon people want to come out with us. Go listen to, well, how about you all tell me what to go listen to. I need to find some new music!

Dear Beavers,

Please beat Stanford tomorrow. And then USC the week after that.

Love, Sarah

Good Stuff of the Moment

1) Jim and Pam are together on The Office. If you were hoping they wouldn't be, you just don't get it. Though I wish they would have kept us hanging a little longer.

2) 75 degrees and sunny weather for me

3) A triple bogey yesterday (apparently, this is bad for some, but for me...it's improvement. And a 6 on a Par 4...whatever that's called.

4) The Wind by Amos Lee, Dig by Incubus

5) Me home in Oregon for New Year's Eve again (I have a standing tradition with the Andersons that just can't be broken because of 2400 miles right...break out my annual shot glass!)

6) My team of lovely girlfriends who are always there when I need them (mushy love alert, but they're great...and Robin, well, she is borderline psychic).

7) Niagara Falls. Pretty tourist trapping, but really worth seeing. See...

Making the Rounds From Heaven?

A friend of mine just posted a story to her blog about a dream she had last night where a friend who passed away was there, sitting at a table talking to her. She got to hug him and ask for him to stay until he finally said, "No. I'm sorry. But I'll always be here." I decided to leave a comment, mentioning that the night before her dream, I had a dream about our friend Greg where we were talking as if life was going on like normal. Minutes later, she sent me a message...He must be making his rounds because the dream was about Greg.

Being me, I refuse to think that it's just a coincidence we both had dreams about our very close friend on consecutive nights. Just because someone moves on doesn't mean that they don't have their ways of letting you know that they are still around. Especially this guy...if you knew him, you probably knew that he could get away with whatever he wanted.

So, I guess all I will say is that I'm happy to know that you're still checking in on us, Greg...and that I hope you know you are never far from our minds. Thanks.

Oh, if you click on the picture you can read the promissary note I made that he kept until he died...as an Alaska native, he had a plan to take AK back from the US. Would he have succeeded?

Something Other Than Turtles!

I've been on a blog break and plan to pick back up again soon. In the meantime, here are some things I suggest you do:

1) Root for the Beavers. Even if they sucked against Cincinnati and are playing a lame blip of a team on Saturday...they need the love to get going again. Remember last year? It took a little time to make it to the glorious bowl games, but we did it.

2) Pick up some litter off the street (really, I bet if you look down when you head outside, there will be something).

3) Tell me what the hell has happened to Outkast...Big Boi, Andre, I miss you. Just because Idlewild tanked doesn't mean you had to call it a day. Come back!

4) Watch Zodiac. I liked it. True story too. Maybe watch anything with Clive Owen too...he's got a smoldering hotness about him and he can actually act!

5) Quit smoking. Smoking is rampant out here in Ohio, even with the no smoking laws in effect (which I love). Sorry smoking friends...I only want you to stop smoking so I can have you in my lives that much longer.

6) Hope that I quit having dreams that I am in jail. Ever since I've started going into the jails to interview inmates, I have dreams that I am getting locked up. It's really irritating.

7) Look for me sometime in the fall in an Oregon near you. I need Oregon time!

8) Listen to some songs of the moment...Breathe Me by Sia, the new Rogue Wave tune Lake Michigan. Then, go cry for Kanye West because he is such a whiny SOB...talented yes, but so, so, so in need of someone to tell him to quit with the pity party. I foresee a 50 Cent/Kanye West compilation in the next two years.

9) And lastly, give love to my lovely girls Jessica and Delainie. If you don't know them, you are missing out because they are two of the best friends a displaced Oregonian could have at the moment. Love you girls.

Night.

A Snapping Success

The turtle above is celebrating with his arms in the air because all 32 of his snapping turtle family members successfully hatched and were released...3, then 6, then 20, then the final three today. (Well, maybe he is just terrified of the huge person hovering over him to take this pic). I'm surprised that they all made it and suffered many bug bites transporting them all out to their new home in the marsh. When there were just a few, I thought they were pretty cute, but as they grew in numbers, the prehistoric features started to creep me out a little. Here are a few more pics to check out..

Turtle Birthday!

The first snapping turtle started hatching on Monday night and climbed out of his shell this afternoon. He is a little camera shy and I figured it would be mean of me to go all paparazzi on him and try to get a better shot by making him pose or yelling his name (which he doesn't have yet). So for now, you get this shot of his back turned to me. Of course, you also get to see turtle #2 hatching...it seems to take about a day for them to come completely out of their shells. I'll release these two in a few days together and then continue to pair them and release them as they hatch. Stay tuned for more pics of the rest of the bunch.

The Kidz Bop Slaying

I don't like the sound of children singing. Call me a cold and heartless person, but unless they are in a prestigious choir or they are a cute little button of a three year old trying to eke out The Itsy Bitsy Spider, I simply tune them out.

I can trace my disdain all the way back to elementary school music class. When it wasn't 'instrument day,' I would sit on the bleachers with the other kids and literally SUFFER through the sound of us all singing together. I always hated participating in holiday music festivals. I never owned a kid music tape or record (except for the Alvin and the Chipmunk records…but those were chipmunks singing, not kids).

And so we have the release of Kidz Bop 12, a horrific compilation of mega hit covers sang by tone deaf tweens and untalented adult leads. It debuted at number seven on the Billboard Charts this week selling 71,000 copies.

I did some iTunes research and backtracked through the Kidz Bop years. It appears that no song released after 2001 is safe from a kid friendly butchering…Snow Patrol, Rascal Flatts, Gnarls Barkley…if they've had a top twenty hit, chances are that an assault has been made on their musical integrity.

What do I really think is so wrong with kids singing top hit tunes that mostly suck anyway? Well, besides the REALLY terrible singing, let's look at the song selections…What Goes Around…Comes Around by Justin Timberlake. Seriously?! It's a song purely about infidelity and revenge! I don't think I knew many shady 12 year old hookers who was wronging the boys in my day. Ditto on Beautiful Liar…not that I even know who sings the real version of that useless garbage, but it sucks. They also attempt a hardcore 'rock out' (and hardly angry) version of Never Again by Kelly Clarkson. I had no idea that tweens were so head strong about love and loss! But wait, in addition to being 'angry' they can also be so 'sad' too, evidenced as they emotionally convey it off tune in their rendition of Boston by Augustana. And of course, they can all "stand under my umbrella, ella, ella" too. Didn't that song just come out like two months ago?

I guess I should really give some credit to my mother for protecting me from the shitty kids music trend. She managed to instill a true sense of musical appreciation in me. At a young age, our mom was making us compilations of Harry Chapin, Fleetwood Mac, and Led Zeppelin to stick in our tape players. We watched movies with great soundtracks like The Big Chill and Footloose (I saw it three time in the movie theater when I was five years old) and had a shelf full of great musicals. We decorated the Christmas tree every year while watching Billy Joel videos or collections of videos she'd record off of MTV. She'd go to concerts and come back and tell us all about them and then play the music for us (which wasn't always good…I don't know if I will ever listen to another Billy Squire or Journey song in my life because they got deathly overplayed in my house). And of course, I had THREE posters of Billy Idol on my wall in the second grade and a t-shirt that I sported to school every chance I got. My sister still has a killer collection of records (yes, records...we're getting old here) that she got from our mom.

So, here's my thought...If you want your kids to grow up with a true appreciation for music, let them listen to the real thing. Saturate them with all different genres. Rarely turn on the radio. Their (and your) reward? The singers will be in tune, the instruments won't be synthesized, and best of all, there won't be a bunch of obnoxious kids singing you the chorus.

Back to the Working World

After a long two and half months of not answering to anyone except the dogs whining in the morning to go outside, I'm heading back to work full time in community corrections.

Starting Monday, I'll be wearing the 'social service' hat again as an Intake Specialist for a non-profit in a neighboring city. My job will be to assess inmates for suitability in community intermediate sanctions...basically, I will be helping to reduce the inmate population by moving suitable inmates to other programs like residential facilities and house arrest. Some positives to this job:

1) No caseload...I just get to screen, test, and interview and then move them on to an assigned caseworker. 2) The company I'll be working for has saved the state something like $40 million by keeping people out of jail and by reducing reoffending. 3) My ego can become re-intact now that I will have a job title other than 'house manager' and 'full time dog mom'...not that I think staying home full time is bad...it's just not for me at this time in my life. 4) This will be my shortest commute ever at 17 miles.

Hopefully, I'll have some updates for you next week on what I think.

In the meantime, go listen to Jailhouse by Sublime. A fitting choice for the new gig and one of the few Sublime songs I never got sick of after our freshman year of college when everyone played the self titled disc over and over and over and over and...

32 Future Yertles

Warning: This post is exclusively about turtle eggs, so you may want to skip it if that bores you to death. My nephew Cedar just asked me over the phone today if I "could maybe send the turtle eggs in the mail to him for a few days." That I can't do, so I thought that posting this pic instead might make him happy.

We have been working on leveling our backyard, and unknowingly hit this clutch with a shovel last week. Three eggs were sacrificed, so I decided that the best thing to do would be to move them to a safer place until they hatch (mother turtles are DONE with the babies after they have laid the eggs). So I did some research online, created this nest, placed all the eggs in the same direction that I pulled them out in, and check them every few days to see if they are hatching. A snapping turtle had been in our yard a couple months ago while I was home in Oregon, so it can be assumed that these guys are due to hatch between now and the end of the month. Once they are hatched and done digesting their yolks (eww), I will take them out and release them in the swamp behind our house. I don't expect them all to hatch (some were very light compared to others), but will take some pics of the babies before I let them go and post those. Justin asked if we could keep one as a pet (but I think he is joking). We could, but I think that the chance of a monstrous snapping turtle chomp on a dog's nose or person's finger weed out that option.

Good Dirty Fun

I took part in a mud volleyball tournament over the past weekend and thought I would share some pics from the experience. My hesitation about spending a day in the mud quickly disappeared after I duck taped up my shoes (you have to if you want them to stay on in the mud and not get cut by the rocks underneath) and jumped in. We beat our first competitors 15-1 and ended up 4-2 to clinch a spot in the third place bracket. To the left is part of our team, The Itsy Bitsy Spikes, after three games. Not so dirty! There were some teams with people swimming, floating, and diving into the mud, but most of our team heeded the warning that sharp rocks were at the bottom of the pits (may have had something to do with our team being one of the fewer sober teams there).

I am pretty certain that true volleyball skills had little to donate to this tournament. Knee deep in mud with eight to a team, the spikes were few and far between, and several times, the ball would just thud onto the water right outside arm's length, splashing tons of lovely mud right up into your face. There were quite a few rallies though and it was hard to not just dive for the ball (though hilarious when people did...they'd lie there for a minute and then stand up, soaked and shocked, covered from head to toe).

We plan to participate again next year with a more organized team and stay the whole day (half of us had to leave eight hours into it before we finished the tournament because of other obligations). If they have one of these going on in your area, I recommend taking part...you will get a free mud bath and have a lot of fun.

Eight Random Things

I have been posting a lot lately, but I can't sleep and my sister tagged me to write 8 random things about myself and then tag 8 others to do the same (and has been harassing me constantly to get it done). What the hell is a meme? Apparently this is it. So here, have some facts about my first 29 years:

1) Not really a drama queen: I was the first female in my highschool class to become a thespian. Of course, I am not much of an actress (I had my own monologue in a one act play), did mostly 'techie' work, and purely did it to hang out with my sister and stay out of our crazy house, but it's a nice factoid. Later, the school ditched thespians and labeled themselves 'Drama Club' instead. I thought most of the Drama Club people were nuts.

2) If you know me, this isn't surprising: I actually won an award in a high school summer program for having 'The Loudest Volume of Voice." Hey, for two summers in a row, I lived in dorms with 70 other high school kids...you had to be loud if you wanted anyone to hear you. It was an awesome program though which allowed me 9 weeks out of every summer to escape from my house and also helped me to become the first person in my family to graduate from college.

3) Fish in the burbs: In elementary school, I lived in a suburb with a community pool. My favorite thing to do was these extravagant flips off the diving board ALL day...until one day. The lifeguard on duty said that I should be careful because my head was too close to the end of the board when I did my flips. After her comment, I could never bring myself to do another flip again and I am still pissed about it. Another part to this is that we got to live in the suburb because my aunt wanted us to grow up in a nice place, so she registered the house she owned in the neighborhood to qualify for low income housing which made it affordable for my single mom and three kids to live there. Thanks Aunt Marlene!

4) Which one are you again? I have had two boyfriends with the last name Gardner and dated two guys with the last name Turner. AND, in highschool I dated two guys named Brian at the same time, which made messages left for me in my absence hard to figure out..."Well, which Brian was it?" "I dunno." The Gardner men were close together and had similar first names, so people would accidentally refer to the new one as the old ones name. Oh gosh, this is a terrible factoid that surely will not make a father proud.

5) Duh nuh nuh nuh nuh: In high school, I had some guy friends in a neighboring town who created a song about me while we were on a spring break camping trip. It was essentially my name over and over. It went (as Julie Engel can sing perfectly) "Dun nuh nuh nuh nuh, Sarah C----." Two years later, a college classmate mentioned that he had been down by the river a couple nights before and 'some guys were singing a song with your name.' It was pretty embarrassing because I had a huge crush on the guy (well, maybe it captivated him, because he eventually asked me out and was my boyfriend for a couple months). I think there is actually a recording of that song out there somewhere.

6) My suppressed childhood: In highschool I had to tell a judge my opinion on the custody battle for my brother to either live with my mom or my aunt. I apparently told the judge that I thought he would end up dead if he had to live with my mom and her then husband. After, I yelled and screamed at everyone that I wanted them all to get along. To this day, I can't remember anything about that day except for what others tell me, but I am happy that my aunt raised my brother. Thanks again Aunt Marlene.

7) Speaking of: Well, since I have mentioned her a couple times already, lets just tell this story: My Aunt Marlene is actually not even related to us. She is the sister of my mom's first boyfriend after my parents got divorced. The two were not together that long, but we gained some great family members from the relationship...the boyfriend is now 'Uncle David' and their mom was our 'Grandma' who passed away while I was in high school. They did a lot to help us kids turn out okay.

8) Study by song: I used to make up songs out of the words in my textbooks in order to memorize important information and prepare for tests. It really worked.

So, now I get to tag eight other people. Sadly, my blog friends and 'regular reads' don't write so much anymore except for Benny K, who my sister already tagged, and Zach Braff, who, well, lets just say probably doesn't have time for this. So, this will bring me to tag...

#1 JB! JB leads an incredibly interesting life and surely has 8 facts to write about himself. So JB, write away and spread the love.

#2-8...Well, the rest are MySpace bloggers with private accounts, so what is the use in tagging them? But, I think that Marni, Louise, Liz, Sarah K St J, Julie, and Wes may actually take a stab at it because they write ever so often. So if you read this (in MySpace World), write something girls (and guy). So, there you go. Don't say I didn't try sister Jennifer.

Some From the Life of Sarah

Here are some of my opinions and thoughts of the moment...

DC: I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to Washington DC last week. I got to spend time with my good Oregon friend Marni and her family while touring what I found to be an amazing city. We battled 100 degree heat the first day and then did an evening tour of all of the monuments and memorials that night. Two favorites of the trip: The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

It was a sad reality check to walk through all the exhibits at the Holocaust Museum and realize that most of the women, children, and elderly people in the pictures did not survive. Some pictures actually have 'this man was executed shortly after this picture was taken' written right below.

This gets me to thinking...how did the world ever let something like the Holocaust happen? And how in this world are there some people who think that it never happened? And how IN THE WORLD are we still letting things like this happen in other countries everyday? Completely baffling and unethical.

A good movie about ethnic cleansing: The Mission. It's a genius 1986 film with Robert DeNiro.

On a lighter note, my other favorite feature of DC had to be The Onion, in print, free to take, at the entry ways to the Metro Station. I need a subscription to this now!

No mo Harry Po: I went to see Harry Potter the other night because the nine year old we were watching wanted to see it. I have to be honest and say that I find Harry Potter to be DREADFULLY dull and boring. Maybe if I read the books, I would be able to make it through a movie and like it, but I was literally bored to tears. Yes, I know most of the world just loves these movies. But I will never be one of them.

This is a good time for another 'this gets me to thinking'... I tend to have a problem with long movies set in fantasy. Lord of the Rings...possibly the most captivating trilogy known to cinema right? Can't stand them. Star Wars...the original three were good, but most recent ones drove me nuts. Maybe this has something to do with my attention span. Hmm. I have always been a bigger fan of nonfiction, reality, all the 'true story' flicks and books. But I really did have an imagination as a kid, I swear!

And lastly, a Sarah report: People, I am restless. I am going nuts being several states/days/hours away from most everyone who matters to me. Doesn't this always happen to Sarah when she lives far away? Maybe I will start working on warp speed time travel this week.

Song of the moment: Love Song by Sara Bareilles. So what if it was the free song of the week on iTunes two weeks ago...you can't help but want to sing along and love it.

A Wish Granted

I have been duplicating the posts from this blog into my MySpace blog. A friend honored my request to stick it to Ann Coulter by leaving this pic in the comments on that blog...


Love it! My sister also informed me of a great blog that captures politics called People in the Sun. Check it out. And here is another one called Coulter vs Predator. It's no longer updated, but what is there is pretty funny.

Travel Advice

I just got back from a three day road trip to Washington DC. According to my tiny Chicken Little resembling 15 year old cashier at Hardee's this afternoon, it's a good thing I went before 2009...

Her: Are you travelling today?
Me: Yeah (I think to myself...why else would I be in this truck stop mecca that is Breezewood, PA?)
Her: Where to? (She pushes up on the nose of her oversized glasses)
Me: Headed back to Ohio from DC
Her: Do you travel a lot?
Me: I like to.
Her: Well, you should really reconsider that because starting in 2009, they are raising the tolls on the roads by 25 percent!
Me: Oh, they are pretty spendy I guess.
Her: Yeah, when I get my license and can drive with someone, because I am 15 right now, I am going to drive my whole family to Ocean City. Have you been to Ocean City?
Me: No.
Her: You should go. That's where I am driving my whole family (didn't she just tell me this)...but we are going BEFORE 2009.
Me: Alright. Thanks for the tip.

After the conversation ends, she counts back my change and cheers to herself "Yah, I got the change right!"

I start to think to myself...Gasoline costing $3 a gallon and plane tickets in the hundreds...who cares? If I have to pay that extra two bucks at the toll road in 2009, I am never stepping foot outside my house again!

Thanks for the advice weird little Pennsylvania girl.

Duct Tape + Ann Coulter = PLEASE!

So, Ann Coulter thinks it's alright to use the word 'faggot' if you are using it in the right crowd...and by right crowd I mean 'right wing' crowd. Glenn Beck, a conservative himself, shot back at her that, no, it's not okay to use that word...ever...no matter what type of crowd you are entertaining. By the way, for a conservative news guy, I generally respect his point of view...it is quite opposite of how Ann Coulter goes about spouting her own.

I despise Ann Coulter. She is the epiphany of ignorance. I actually cheered a few years back when someone threw a pie in her face, and I quickly change the channel when her bug eyed bitchy voiced frame appears on the TV for fear of chucking the remote at it and breaking the screen. Why? She typically represents her side of conservatism with such hatred for the people she doesn't see eye to eye with. Those who are liberal, gay, or just pissed about the war will rarely hear a well thought out and educated explanation for why they should see it her way. Instead, she resorts to slurs, lashing out, and 'shock jock' type antics to push her points.

Those who know me know that I am pretty far left on most of my political views. And with that, I maintain strong opinions on some things...I'm sick of the war, support pro-choice, am all for same sex couples and marriage. I wish we'd cancel Columbus Day and label him a murderer instead, and think Bush is a big putz (vetoes stem cell research, takes away money from foreign countries that don't teach his abstinence plan in place of sexual health and education, cannot put together just ONE sentence that makes sense). I do however, listen to people's points of view. I try to understand where they're coming from, and maybe even get into educated debates with them.

On the flipside, I still lose it if you say 'that's so gay' or 'fag' around me. I can't stand racial or cultural slurs. I also wish that all those who are so set on removing all the immigrants from the US would step back and realize that they themselves are probably here from some long line of immigrants...know many people here who are 100% Native American? Didn't think so.

That is probably why I wish that someone would take a fat piece of duck tape and stick it across Ann Coulter's mouth. She tends to hit me on my 'flipside' way too often. And those types of people just tick me off.

I noticed tonight while watching Glenn Beck give her his POV, she actually shut her mouth and looked a little defeated. I hope that this is a true sign that she has to know, deep down somewhere, that she is almost always talking out of her ass and just hoping that her 'right wing' crowd will cheer her on.

Time to Love Spoon

And no, not the type that scoops my cereal...here is the Good and Not So Good...plenty of it too...

GOOD: Beavers win the College World Series 2 years in a row, Tar Heels boyfriend left defeated and pouting again (well, that part may not be good, but he'll get over it).

NOT SO GOOD: Humidity. Especially, 92 degree weather with high humidity. Smooth shiny hair isn't much of a trend out here.

GOOD: John Legend, Amos Lee, Rogue Wave, and now, Spoon...nothing brand new...but all so worth your ears!

NOT SO GOOD: That song by a 17 year old kid about committing suicide if she doesn't love him. Really bad. No clue who sings it. He kind of sounds like Akon (who is such a winner himself...have you heard his apology song? What a dumb shit).

GOOD: Golf...hate watching it, but really like playing it. Suburban life is swallowing me whole. Someone check my insides for robotic features.

NOT SO GOOD: Suburban teenagers with really nice cars that they drive really fast through the neighborhood on summer nights. Was I once that teen? Wait, we were worse...we did that in really crappy cars and egged houses. Gosh, I feel guilt.

And on a serious note of NOT SO GOOD...Abuse and domestic violence. Even one incident makes the list too long. A pro wrestler just killed his wife, child, and then himself. Here in Ohio, a boyfriend is under arrest for suspicion of killing his nine months pregnant girlfriend (and apparently assaulting her in front of their two year old). It's a true mess. What can we do to change it?

Oh and I forgot to mention in my last post on 6/23...love to GDD. If you knew him, you loved him.

Song of the moment: I Turn My Camera On by Spoon. Listen and like!