Joisey's new slogan. You got a problem with that?

New Jersey: Come See For Yourself.

That's the state's new slogan, announced today. Coming soon, to a tourism ad near you.

Officials hope that the catch phrase will boost their tourism by changing the Garden State's image as a home of mobsters, jam-packed highways, ugly oil refineries and ... those chemical smells.

"When it comes to image, New Jersey really cares," Gov. Richard Codey said. "I am proud to be governor of a state that has pride - and shows it."

He better be, because his state paid $260,000 for this.

Out of 80,000 ideas, they narrowed it down to five contenders. Here's the remaining four choices:

1. "Expect the unexpected"
2. "Love at first sight"
3. "The real deal"
4. "The best kept secret"

Personally, I prefer a slogan I saw on a t-shirt once: "New Jersey: Only the strong survive."

Heh heh.

Props to my homegirl in The Jerz, Amanda, for the link.

Project Runway After Party

I know I missed last week's episode where the designers had to fabricate a dress for Nicki Hilton. Now that I've seen the 9 p.m. rerun episode, I just have to say: LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the Zoolander-inspired designer walk-off. I'm sorry. But Santino was working the Sexy.

It's good to know that Diana's got a little freak in her. I was relieved.

Also, I've noticed that Nina Garcia has been totally rocking the ginormous-pendant-with-tank-top look. Do I smell a trend?

Guadalupe's dress was not very cute, I'll admit. But I'm sorry that she got cut. How can you hate on a girl that can bust a mean centipede? I hate that she's gone!

Now on to this week's episode!

Episode 6: Banana Republic Challenge
In this episode, the designers were tasked to design day-into-evening outfit for a typical Banana Republic customer. Members of the Project Runway Faithful remember that last year, Wendy "The female Richard Hatch without the alleged tax evasion" Pepper won this challenge. Will the most annoying designer clinch the BR Challenge again this season?

The designers were paired in teams of two. And from here, the drama ensues! The winning team of designers gets their outfit produced and sold at select Banana Republic stores. The losing team of two gets eliminated. Two people! Ooooh!

Immediately, you get the sense that people - especially Nick - are getting sick of Santino's braggadocio. It's going to blow up in his face one of these episodes, I just know it. Bring on the catfight!

Two hours before their midnight deadline, Zulema and Kara don't even have a strong design. Yikes. So Zulema takes control, eschewing the popular navy blue silk charmeuse and picking a circular print that no one else touched, while Kara goes hysterical. Zulema's inner bully comes out, but she wins the quote of the day with her "I don't care if you cry and cut, but you gotta cry and cut." Sounds like something I'd say.

But I'm not a bully.

So anyway.

On the day of the runway show with one hour to spare for finishing the garments, fitting the models, and getting them to hair and makeup (honestly, how do they do it?), Zulema and Kara finally finished their dress, and it didn't look half bad.

For the second part of the challenge, each team got a display window at Banana Republic, using their models as live mannequins. Sound the Kim Catrall alarm! They had to create a visual display at the storefront to help sell the outfit. NYC sidewalk gawkers would vote for the display they liked the best. Comeback Kids Zulema and Kara had the best display window by far (although Andrae and Daniel actually got the gawkers' votes), with their Manhattan skyline theme. Phew!

Honestly, all of the final outfits were gorgeous. But Nick and Santino's outfit, while beautiful, I think was a little too edgy for BR. I mean, I don't think I've ever seen BR do an exaggerated kimono sleeve, have you? And I think that after Nick's clumsy answers during the Q&A, this is going to be the end of any future Nick/Santino partnerships.

Diana and Marla's design, according to Heidi, was "dull and cliche." Ouch. They're out.

See you next week!

P.S. Chloe is a midget!

Lizzie Dole and her survey.

I don't know why, but somehow I got on the mailing list for GOPsenators.com. And I've already posted about the first time Elizabeth Dole sent me something.

This time (the subject line reads "Howard Dean Says We Can't Win"), she wants me to take this "pulse poll" on Iraq. Here's what the "email" says:

Do you agree with Howard Dean and the Cut-and-Run Democrats?

Or do you agree with President Bush who has a sensible plan for a strong, stable and democratic Iraq?

Please vote in our poll now.

I will share your answers with our Republican Senate Leadership. We need to know where you stand.

I also want to know if you think the Democrats are trying to use Iraq for their own partisan political gain.

The Democrats, led by Howard Dean, have increased their calls in recent days for the U.S. to cut-and-run from Iraq.

But their calls ring hollow. On the heels of successful democratic elections in Iraq, it is clear we're making progress.

The Howard Dean Democrats' short-sighted foreign policy prescriptions will not win the war on terror, nor will they help create a free and democratic Iraq. Instead, their cut and run approach would only embolden the terrorists and rogue regimes throughout the world.

I suspect you are just as proud of our men and women in the armed forces who are serving bravely and nobly in Iraq. They deserve our support and our gratitude. And they deserve the chance to finish the job they've been sacrificing to achieve.

Your answers to our poll will help make sure our leadership knows where you stand. They obviously hear the doom-and-gloom in the media everyday. And they're being pummeled by the Democrats seeking partisan advantage.

Our Republican leadership needs to hear from you.

Please complete our poll today.

Thank you and may God bless you.

With heartfelt thanks,
Elizabeth Dole

So of course, I'm taking the poll. And using my real name and address, because well, you know, it's the law.

Get out those message maps!

This just cracked me up.

So for 2006, Bush is trying to again shape the argument and his vision on the Iraq war, so he spoke to some folks in Kentucky today about it.

It's yet another example of how out of touch Dubya is. All scripted-questions aside, this was his answer to a question from a 7-year-old who asked how people can help the war on terrorism:

"One way people can help as we're coming down the pike in the 2006 elections is remember the effect that rhetoric can have on our troops in harm's way and the effect that rhetoric can have in emboldening or weakening an enemy."

Do 7-year olds know what "rhetoric" means? Or what it means to be "emboldened"? I mean, maybe it's just me, but I didn't even know how to spell rhetoric until college, when I found out my friend was majoring in it. Sure you have smart kids, you don't need to leave me comments about how your kid's been in MENSA since birth or anything. My point is that his inability to even see his audience, to modify his speech, to basically, humanize things, shows his one-track mindedness when it comes to the way he governs.

This kid was probably like, "huh?"

Two. Trillion. Dollars.

Still think the war in Iraq is a good thing for democracy and peace? How about the effect it's going to have on our economy?

Marie Antoinette over at Let Them Eat Cake points out that after all is said and done with this War on Terr, the costs to us will be somewhere in the area of two trillion dollars.

This ungodly amount - derived from analysis from professors from Columbia (Joseph Stiglitz) and Harvard (Linda Bilmes) - accounts for certain long-term costs that the Bush Administration, in their creative accounting, decidedly leaves out, such as long-term health care for veterans. From the BBC:

Professor Stiglitz says 20% of injured US personnel have brain injuries, 6% have had amputations and another 20% have other serious injuries.

On the strength of evidence from previous conflicts, he said, still others will have various health and mental problems in the future.

There will be disability pay and health care costs to the US budget that will continue for several decades.

His figures also include the loss to the economy from injured people being unable to contribute as productively as they would otherwise have done.

Of course, the White House hasn't commented.

e-nnoyance

How the fuck is this constitutional?

"Whoever...utilizes any device or software that can be used to originate telecommunications or other types of communications that are transmitted, in whole or in part, by the Internet... without disclosing his identity and with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any person...who receives the communications...shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than two years, or both."

Aside from the use of the most annoying word ever - utilize - this new federal law totally goes above and beyond the whole "yelling 'fire' in a crowded theatre" test. How the hell can anonymous comments that annoy be unlawful? Last I remember from a past constitutional law class, simply being "annoying" was still protected speech.

Ugh.

Here again is an example of our civil liberties being taken away from us. But then again, what else is new with this administration? I'm not even surprised at this.

Shall we all clasp hands and sing "Kumbaya" now? Now that I think about it, singing "Kumbaya" is annoying.

Hmm ...

You get what you pay for, I guess.

Jack London Square residents are complaining about the dearth of construction going around in their neighborhood.

All the construction is driving residents crazy — not because they oppose new development but because it is happening all at once, and construction crews do not always adhere to the rules regarding work hours and parking of construction vehicles.

"I think that most of the residents are sort of willing to put up with it because we've been waiting for the area to be developed, but you wonder how much you have to choke down at one time," said Kathy Lemmon, a freelance copywriter who has lived in a low-rise loft development on Fourth Street for eight years.

This reminds me of the complaints many years ago from residents in SF's SoMa district complaining that the nightly crowds from the neighborhood's bars and clubs were disruptive and noisy and just needed to be stopped.

Living smack dab in these kinds of neighborhoods, you've got to know what you're getting into. And yes, it's annoying and loud, but my message to these folks is twofold:
1) You should have known about the construction and expected it to be like it is.
2) Be patient. You'll more than double your investment once the construction is all done, I'm sure.

So cool it.

No way, DeLay

Looks like The Hammer can't catch a break. A Texas court denied DeLay's request to throw out the criminal money laundring charges and also denied him the opportunity to have a "quick" trial, no doubt stemming from Jack Abramoff's recent guilty plea and questions about just how close the DeLay/Abramoff relationship was.

Faced with a possible life in prison sentence if convicted, it's no wonder DeLay is trying to get these charges thrown out of court. Kudos to the Texas court (man, I never thought I'd say that) for holding fast. Perhaps this is the tipping point in terms of exposing the systemic corruption that's going on in our legislature. It's also a moment of truth for the Republican party, according to the Washington Post (emphasis mine):

[T]here is a more fundamental question that the Abramoff mess, and the DeLay departure, ought to prompt House leaders to ask themselves -- or that voters may ask, and answer, for them: What is the purpose of the Republican majority? Is it simply, as some of the leadership's behavior would suggest, to amass, cement and retain power by whatever means necessary? Or, as Republicans claimed when they came to power a decade ago, do they stand for something: a different method of doing business, a belief in limited government, commitment to spending restraint? If there is a role for the Republican machine other than self-perpetuation, it's awfully hard to discern right now. That, as much as anything, ought to be what the upcoming leadership elections are about.

If anything, this just goes to prove that the current lesson learned from what I've seen in today's GOP is of a failure to effectively lead this country. More often than not, it seems to me that the Republican Party exists because of an almost gluttonous appetite for domination: They have everything - control of all three branches of government; unlimited [ill-gotten] wealth; and undue influence in the media, corporate structure, the healthcare and biotech industries, religion. It's almost as if the party is this huge monster, feeding on everything it can get its hands on. Binging to the point of unmitigated excess.

Hopefully, until now. It's time to purge.

(Photo credit: Fun with DeLay's mug shot found here.)

Robertson's diarrhea of the mouth

Is Pat Robertson's latest bullshit fragmenting the Conservative Christian base?

On Jan. 5, Robertson said that Israeli Prime Minister's stroke was divine retaliation, really, for "dividing God's land."

Okay, seriously? I don't think God gives two shits about land and borders and who owns what and real estate.

It's inflammatory comments like this [Robertson's, not what I just said about God not giving two shits] that are making conservatives speak out against him. From the New York Times:

His old friends and allies in the conservative Christian movement are cringing with embarrassment, giving interviews ruing his remarks. "He speaks for an ever-diminishing number of American evangelicals, and that process accelerates every time he makes a statement like this," said Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

Os Guinness, a prominent Christian writer and social critic, said: " I know hundreds of people who are just terminally frustrated with the idiotic public statements of Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson and the idea that these people represent us. They don't."

Donald Wildmon, the founder and head of American Family Association and American Family Radio, said: "Pat's comments were most unfortunate. I don't think this served our cause very well."

So now you see why conservative Christians freak me out? It's because of the Pat Robertsons, James Dobsons, Jerry Falwells, and Fred Phelps's of the world. And while there very well may be some conservatives who actually agree with the manure that springs forth from Robertson's mouth, there will be a time when Robertson's influence will no longer carry as much weight. Either conservatives' views will become more tolerant (unlikely), or they'll find another talking head who has a little more tact.

The current distancing from Robertson is pretty funny. Keep doing what you're doing, crazy old man. More and more people will begin to realize what you and your "movement" stands for. Maybe then, folks will see that your views are about as unamerican and unchristian as can be.

Project Runway After Party

I'm a bad blogger.

I've been so preoccupied with my move that I totally forgot about Project Runway last night. And dammit, this week's challenge was to design a party dress for the better Hilton sister, Nicky.

Here's what Tim, dean of the Parsons School, had to say about last night's episode.

Sorry!

The next blockbuster hit!

Props to Rich for this gem.

A great day for the coal miners

UPDATE - 1/04/06, 11:12 A.M.: BARBARian colleague Blogenlust links to an article showing the Sago Mine was cited for 208 alleged safety violations last year. What a tragedy.

UPDATE - 12:39 A.M.: ABC News is now reporting that 11 of the 12 trapped West Virginia miners have died. Phuque. So much for miracles.

Thanks to Earth Sentinel for the heads up. I was going to change the title of this post using that strikethrough thingy, but I don't know how to do it. I guess this title, as it stands, has a touch of bitter irony to it.

My original post appears below.
********
According to this article, 12 out of the 13 coal miners in Tallmansville, W. Va. have been found alive. Phew.

A few minutes after word came, the throng, several hundred strong, broke into a chorus of the hymn "How Great Thou Art," in a chilly, night air.

"Miracles happen in West Virginia and today we got one," said Charlotte Weaver, wife of Jack Weaver, one of the men who had been trapped in the mine.

"I got scared a lot of times, but I couldn't give up," she said. "We have an 11-year-old son, and I couldn't go home and tell him, 'Daddy wasn't coming home."'

There were hugs and tears among the crowd outside the Sago Baptist Church near the mine, about 100 miles northeast of Charleston.

Helen Winans, whose son Marshall Winans, is one of those trapped said she believes there was divine intervention.

"The Lord takes care of them," she said.

Okay, okay. Stop groaning at the religious stuff. Sometimes when people face dire situations, they turn to religion. Just give them this moment. Divine intervention or not, it's a great thing that most of the miners survived. The family of the 13th miner whose body was found must surely be devastated.

What is more devastating is this: I remember watching the Today show this morning and Matt Lauer (or someone) interviewing one of the coal miner's daughters (no Loretta Lynn jokes, please). She was saying that her dad had pretty much hated his job and had only been working at that particular mine for six months. And the conditions at this mine were pretty poor - at least that's the impression she gave. She said (and I'm paraphrasing here) that there was a lot more water at this mine, and the company had to give each of the miners a new pair of workboots because of it. I guess that makes things bad. What do I know. I'll be curious to see if there was any negligence on the parent company's part.

I don't know why - despite this article stating safety in mining is on the upswing - coal mining still needs to be done by people. Isn't there a way to automate this process? Regardless of the steep decline in fatalities, mining still looks to me like a very dangerous job. With coal mining specifically, you're dealing with carbon monoxide and explosions caused by a buildup of methane gas. There's honor in every kind of job, but why put yourself at risk?

Scalito Blend

Supreme Court Justice Nominee Samuel “Scalito Lite” Alito has a coffee blend named after him at some 125-year-old roastery in The Jerz.

[T.M. Ward Coffee Co.] sells a popular coffee called Alito Bold Justice, made and named for the federal judge, who has been a regular customer at the store near the federal courthouse since 1987.

The brew was concocted for Alito five years ago as a birthday present. But sales of the coffee have taken off since President Bush tapped the New Jersey native in November to fill a seat on the nation's highest court.

Calls and e-mails have come in from all over the country, including Texas (a red state) and California (a blue state). Alito bought 44 pounds of the blend — at $7.95 per pound — before Christmas, [Sales Clerk Vera] Barbosa said.

It’s a blend of Indo-Pacific coffees and some dark roasts. I don't know what the coffee origins of Ward's Italian and espresso roasts, but I would wager to say that they're probably from Latin America. And now that we have documentation that shows Scalito's views that skew conservative, I gotta ask: What does this special blend say about him? Mellow, earthy, and smooth yet ... burnt?

Lawrence Herrmann, a former U.S. attorney in Connecticut and self-described liberal Democrat, said the Alito blend is telling.

"It's a pretty strong roast, but he's a pretty strong guy. He has strong principles," said Herrmann, 70, who stopped by for a cup of Alito last week. "I think having a strong blend of coffee named for him is better than an herbal tea with hibiscus."

Herbal teas aren't really "teas," per se. They're what's called "tisanes," but that's a whole other blog entry. What if Scalito was a tea drinker instead? What would that say about him? Hmm...

Seriously, what's up with Florida?

A man in Lake County, Fla. threatened to kill a sheriff's deputy and then injured a man in his neighborhood yesterday. This man, Roy Lee Henson, also claims he's Satan.

When deputies arrived, they found Roy Lee Henson walking with his boxer shorts around his ankles and screaming wildly, according to the report.

He faces charges of aggravated assault on a officer, resisting arrest with violence, exposure of sexual organs and disorderly conduct.

Jeb must be so proud.

A Former Food Critic's Lament

Salon had this interesting piece written by Ann Bauer, self-proclaimed "restaurant slut." In this article, she talks about how the practice of writing restaurant reviews started out fun and glitzy and just unreal in terms of the level of privilege she received while dining out, and then how it turned into such a "job," and how the pleasure started fading away. She likens her experience to a scene in "Klute," in which Jane Fonda, an aspiring actress and prostitute, shifts between the requisite sultriness required of her by her client, to ambivalence and annoyance. How food writing "becomes work," essentially.

But food is linked to religion, history and culture. It defines ethnic groups, brings families together, and plays a role in the rituals around everything from holidays to executions. Jesus had his Last Supper, condemned men have theirs. For a novelist, this was rich stuff.

So I wrote stories about how fresh fish is sourced and shipped to the Midwest. About a slow-food chef who used only organic ingredients found within a 250-mile radius and a southern Minnesota farm that raised ducks humanely. A restaurateur whose caustic ad campaign caused picket lines to form. And a local line cook with bipolar disorder who burned through a dozen fine dining jobs before opening a Gothic-themed breakfast spot downtown.

But my signature was to interview people over dinner. It proved my theory that food is a platform upon which we build relationships and share confidences. Sitting knee-to-knee at a candlelit table, people would tell things they'd never revealed. Not shocking behind-bedroom-doors sorts of things, but facets of their stories no one had ever before heard. A famous conductor told me how his faith in God had shaped his music. A National Book Award winner admitted that she'd been surprised and frightened by her last pregnancy, at age 47.

I wrote traditional reviews, too, but I tended to avoid the places so hot only people who knew someone could get in. Restaurants opened to great fanfare, but I waited. Sometimes up to six months. And when I did visit I went casually, often without a reservation, sussing out the attitude of the wait staff toward unknown customers, pretending all the time it was my own money that was on the line. How would I feel if I'd hired a baby sitter, put on high heels for the first time in a month, and blown $200 on this meal?

Then Wolfgang Puck announced he was opening a restaurant at the newly expanded Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. So I flew out to California to interview him. It was the first week of January; back home, the temperature was below zero. But I was sitting in the courtyard at Spago in Beverly Hills. Over three utterly hedonistic hours, I was served a "taste" of everything Puck and his chefs could dream up: tiny pumpernickel blini with smoked salmon and caviar; French prawns in a fiery red-and-yellow curry; fatted duck breast studded with bacon, black truffle and dates.

Unlike Ms. Bauer, I'm all about the food. The act of dining out. Dissecting flavor. Tasting, and talking about what I taste. I work in the specialty food industry. It's what we do. And I could totally get down with this gig.

But alas, I don't think my attempts at restaurant crits are that great. I need more practice or something. It's harder than it looks. If only my reviews could be as funny as Drew's. But anyway, I digress. In grad school, some friends of mine in the journalism program (I was in the PR program - don't judge) took a class that focused on writing restaurant reviews. I wanted to change programs right then. But knowing that was impractical, I decided to tag along with them, writing my own reviews. I've even tried to write one for this blog.

I've thought about doing some kind of web-based outlet for my reviews - but then again, how could I differentiate myself from all the other online restaurant review sites out there? I have to give this more thought.

And now with the new apartment, my days of fine dining will surely be limited to very special occasions and dates - assuming I will have dates in 2006.

Heh heh.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Vera and Vera send their regards.

Here's to a great 2006. Cheers!

(Photo credit: I found this gem here.)

Project Runway After Party

The cool thing about Bravo is that at 9 p.m. Wednesday nights they show the previous week's Project Runway episode, and at 10 p.m. they show that week's new episode. Last night, Bravo took the opportunity to run repeat episodes. Normally I'd be annoyed with this, but since I started with Episode 4 last week, I figure this is a great opportunity to play catch up.

Episode 2: The Clothes Off Your Back
This episode starts with the designers attending a cocktail party to welcome them to New York. As part of their next challenge, the designers had to literally take the clothes off their backs and create an entirely new garment, using only the material from their own clothing for the fabrication.

You could almost hear the designers' hearts breaking as they struggled with destroying their favorite leather jacket (Santino) or leaving some items out (Zulema, Kirsten).

Santino's brilliance - and ego - are revealed in this episode. He seriously must think that he is the judges' darling. After finding out Chloe won for her mini dress, Santino mutters - in front of Chloe, who must have felt like she was on Cloud 9 - "They just didn't want me to give me two in a row."

Meow. Now there's no question that Santino is a great designer. His Mad-Max-Meets-Dangerous-Liaisons garment was just so imaginative and really indicative of Santino's point of view. It wasn't necessarily pretty, or practical even - but it was definitely intriguing. To be sure, Santino's got some talent (lederhosen lingerie aside). But damn. No he didn't.

Kirsten's refusal to use her family heirloom scarf [Hermes? - M.] in her design proved to be her downfall. I'm sure she thought she'd have to cut it up - but really, she could have just tied it into a bandeau (as she wore it in her exit interview), or a halter. I mean, something. That Porsche t-shirt looked like a reject from the "Flashdance" costume department.

Andrae's emotional outburst regarding his clothing - I still don't even know what he was crying about - was he tired? was he apologizing for wearing the dreaded jean + jean jacket combo? was he ashamed that his denim cheongsam was unfinished? Regardless, Nina Garcia wasn't even trying to hear it. And neither was I. I half expected him to quit the show right there.

And I know I'm going to hell for this, but I was cracking up right there with Santino while Andrae's tears were flowing.

Episode 3: All Dolled Up
The designers were told they were going to design an outfit for a fashion icon. Who could it be? Grace Jones? Heidi Klum? Alicia Keys? Sarah Jessica Parker?

Not so, bitches. "My Scene" Barbie needs a new look.

And the winner of the challenge gets their outfit manufactured by Mattel and sold as a special-edition "My Scene" Barbie, complete with the designer's own photo on the box. Sweet.

Each designer received their own My Scene Barbie as their "muse," and back at Parsons, we learn that Kara freaked out because her Barbie's hat fell in between the escalators.

Whatever.

Daniel "Deadline? What Deadline?" Franco's obsession with detail starts to further reveal itself in this episode. While attention to detail is a great quality, there's a fine line between conscientious and wasting time.

Nick, my other favorite, won the challenge with a flirty, psychedelic, flouncy, colorful dress. It was perfect for Barbie. Very Telemundo, very Copacabana, as Nick says. Santino, never one to disappoint, player hated on his buddy, muttering to himself "I can't believe that shit" when he found out he didn't win.

Most of the designers tried to introduce a couture element to it. Some, like Chloe and Diana, pulled it off. Some, like Raimundo's "surfer girl" look, was way off the mark, and cost him the challenge. He was given the ol' auf wiedersehen.

Exqueeze me?

I beg to differ:

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Internet users share many common interests, but men are heavier consumers of news, stocks, sports and pornography while more women look for health and religious guidance, a broad survey of U.S. Web usage has found.

The study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project to be released on Thursday finds men are slightly more intense users of the Web. Men log on more frequently and spend more time online. More men also have access to quick broadband connections than do women.

"Once you get past the commonalities, men tend to be attracted to online activities that are far more action-oriented, while women tend to value things involving relationships or human connections," said Deborah Fallows, a research fellow at Pew and author of the report.

A larger number of men surf the Internet for pleasure, with 70 percent acknowledging they go online to pass time, compared with 63 percent of women. Men are more likely than women to listen to music, view Webcams and pay for digital content.

I will say I'm not so much a fan of viewing webcams. But to say that women Internet surfers tend to stick to touchy-feely, relationship-oriented fluff is just bogus. I don't just use the Internet to check my horoscope, dammit.

Myth Busters in full effect.

I am loving me some Juan Cole and Media Matters right now. Why? Because they've both put together lists of top myths about the Iraq war and the whole Bush-spying-on-people thing.

Just the thing for people like me who have too much to think about, are hopped up on leftover See's candy, coming back to work to a million emails, and who are also trying to move into a new apartment all at the same time.

Oy vey.

At least Project Runway is on tonight.

Who me? Middle Aged?

Today's my birthday. No, really.

This past year has been a year of some real positive affirmations, in terms of my relationships with my family, my friends, the work that I do, and my ever-growing awareness of things happening around me. I often joke with people about how I feel I am getting so old, but really, there is still so much for me to learn, to discover, to experience, that in some ways, I still feel like I'm just a kid.

I once read a quote attributed to Hervey Allen that goes something like this:

The only time you really live fully is from thirty to sixty. The young are slaves to dreams; the old servants of regrets. Only the middle-aged have all their five senses in the keeping of their wits.

Aside from the fact that this quote puts me in the "middle-aged" category, I think it is, for the most part, very true. And it's a good thing to know that my time of "living fully" is just at the beginning ...

Happy holidays, everyone. Here's to never being a servant to Regret.


(Note: If by looking at that picture you feel that you're experiencing deja vu, fret not. You've probably seen it here. It's the only baby picture of mine I have that's scanned. It works with this post though. Go with it.)