A Note to My Hair

Dear Hair -

Get a grip.

You really need to have more emotional control. Going crazy with just a hint of sucky weather is a sign of weakness. Shape up, or I will burn you more often with a 450 degree curling iron.

Love,

Me


P.S. I'm going to see Michelle Obama speak this afternoon. Score!

The Good and the Bad, Live from Mpls

First, let's start with the good. I just found out Thomas Friedman is from Minneapolis. NICE. He's like the smartest man I read in the New York Times. That makes two prominent NYT writers Minneapolis Natives; him and David Carr. So they seem to be saying I have a chance.

Also good, it appears that John McCain cleaned up his act when he visited Lakeville yesterday. He actually stood up to ridiculous attacks on his opponent. Which now leads to the Bad, live from Minneapolis.

Apparently, among other ludicrous comments, a women raised this concern at yesterday's McCain rally: She told McCain that she couldn't trust Obama because he was an "Arab."

Are you F-ing kidding me???? I am ashamed to be in the same geographic region as someone like that. Props to McCain though (even though I would NEVER vote for him), he replied: “No, ma’am, he’s a decent family man, citizen who I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues. And that’s what this campaign is all about.” Thank God he actually stood up to blatent racism. Whole article found here.

Okay, I'm going to go practice my Arabic now. I know, be afraid. Be very afraid. Masaalama.

FINANCIAL THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Stolen from Molly, good stuff:

If you had purchased $1,000.00 of Delta Air Lines stock one year ago you would have $49.00 left. With Enron, you would have had $16.50 left of the original $1,000.00. With WorldCom, you would have had less than $5.00 left.

But, if you had purchased $1,000.00 worth of beer one year ago, drank all of the beer, then turned in the cans for the aluminum recycling REFUND, you would have $214.00 cash. Based on the above, the best current investment advice is to drink heavily and recycle. - It's called the 401-Keg.
A recent study found the average American walks about 900 miles a year. Another study found Americans drink, on the average, 22 gallons of alcohol a year. That means, on average, Americans get about 41 miles to the gallon. Makes You Proud To Be An American!

Awesome News Site. Seriously! Not Another Sucky Source Like CNN

Reuters Alert Net is an awesome news source I never knew existed. It covers humanitarian issues, legitimately, that mainstream media tends to ignore. That's all.

26.2 Miles of Joy

For a reason incomprehensible to me, my dad and my sister decided back in May that they didn't have enough pain in their lives and didn't really like sleeping in on Saturday mornings. Thus, they signed up for the Twin Cities Marathon and began a training regime that included awaking at 6:30 a.m. each Saturday morning (and other mornings) for a lengthy joy fun. Fun.

Well their early-morning efforts paid off, because they finished the Twin Cities Marathon this morning. I saw them running, and they didn't even look like they were about to die! Amazing.

Going to the Twin Cities Marathon (to watch, of course) is rather exciting, for it provides an atmosphere equipped with peppy bands, running Uncle Sams or ballerinas, rowdy fans and Medtronic-provided blow up clappy thingys (for free!). I love the sequence of emotions I go through when watching a marathon - it's the same every time. When I first arrive, I get caught up in the excitement. Naturally, it's excitement perpetuated by the first runners who pass me by; an energetic, toned group, effortlessly breezing through their 22nd mile. "Man," I think, "I really should do this next year, it looks like fun!"

However, 45 minutes later, I'm always swearing off that possibility.

Mainly because as time goes on, the super-human runners are replaced with normal beings, who at 22 miles, look like their muscles have turned to noodles, and they are about to breath their last. This group either walking or doing that like, limp run thing. At this point I think, "Man, this looks like hell, something I never want to attempt." In pity, I bang together my clappers and shout, "You can do it, you've trained so hard! I could never do this!" I don't think that cheers are encouraging the runners at this point. I only received one thumbs up for my cheers, and that was from a walker (who had given up the pain of running) wearing a Barack Obama shirt. He most likely gave me a thumbs up because I didn't heartlessly tell him to keep going, rather, I yelled "Go Barack Obama!" It was genuine.

Anyway I have to go do homework now and stop writing about this. But the point it, marathons are fun to watch, and do not look like fun to run. Congratulations though, to my dad and sister and many others who finished today's 26.2-mile run of joy. There's nothing you can't do!

Straight Talk from "Say it Ain't so Joe" Biden

Favorite quote from Thursday's debate, from Joe Biden:

"Vice President Cheney has been the most dangerous vice president we’ve had probably in American history. The idea he doesn’t realize that Article I of the Constitution defines the role of the vice president of the United States, that’s the Executive Branch. He works in the Executive Branch. He should understand that. Everyone should understand that. [..] The idea he’s part of the Legislative Branch is a bizarre notion invented by Cheney to aggrandize the power of a unitary executive and look where it has gotten us. It has been very dangerous."

Say it ain't so Joe!!! Haha, that's so great.

Sorry to get all political on ya, but it's the nature of the season. Also, check out this star-studded voting video if you get a chance

Good Enough

A scenario in my class yesterday:

 

Professor: Does anyone have any ideas on what the advantages to using radio as a method of communication in development would be?

 

20 second silence from the class.

 

Finally, I decide to speak up.

 

Me: Well it can be interactive.

 

Professor: (pause). Good enough.

 

What? Good enough?? No wonder no one speaking up in class! I don’t think I’ve ever received a “good enough” comment from a teacher before. Most of them have at least been generous enough to spare the “that’s an interesting insight, are there any others?” line.

 

Good enough. Hmph. Plus, I would like to add, my answer was actually valid!! I mean, he obviously hasn’t listened to Dave Ryan in the Morning enough. Group Therapy, War of the Roses?? Extremely interactive. So there, now who’s “good enough.” ME.