lake, big lake

ok, the first one is actually a frozen puddle, but then there's the lake. i think we're off to the big city, looking for something and/or somewhere eclectic to do a little shopping, eating, drinking, etc. wish us luck. i'm not exactly hip, so i think we'll start with U Street and see what happens.

happy christmas from the dogsburgers

if you wanna know what we're up to, see Mel's blog. otherwise check back for more holiday silliness soon.

kerfluffled ... more soon.

big deadline yesterday for school; bigger deadline today for work. i'm all kinds of kerfluffled. but it looks like this outside:using the scientific method of taping two rulers together and sticking it on the recycling bin, i estimate we received 16 inches of snow.
roads

and now for something completely different.

i'm tired of attempting grammatically correct writing. so yep, finally ... more photos.
often see the trains on the far track @ the metro, but sometimes wonder about their currentness - after all, pan am only folded maybe eighteen years ago.
this past week's farmer's market was all about the purple and green. i'm still eating cauliflower curry.
re-organized a bit of the kitchen. now i find myself turning circles to figure out where the trash can has gone. oops.
today was last day of my internship. i finally brought homemade (veg) leftovers to heat in the microwave, but really thought they should go ahead and redact the timing instructions. no one is cooking bacon, chicken, fish or ground beef. period.
the only thing left of trapeze school is the marking on the pavement. but mark your calendar, they're re-opening mid February.
i'm not sure why my neighbor insists on having christmas throw up on her lawn. that is all.

and another thing

The facts, as gleaned from local newspaper: school cancels assignment for a model UN that would have had some students represent Taliban views on the US presence in Afghanistan. Other assignments include: conflict between China/Taiwan; India/Pakistan; Russia/Chechnya; North Korea/Western powers and Columbia/FARC.

Why the cancellation might make sense? the parent-created controversy would overwhelm the basic assignment that emphasized how to research and present one side's position in a conflict. the students are 8th graders and simply g00gling Taliban might lead to some potentially age-inappropriate results. there is a decent sized population of servicemembers in the area who may have served, are serving, will serve in Afghanistan, making it potentially a little too immediate and personal for some students.

~ ascending small soap box ~
Why this just seems dumb? Well, a little supervision and/or assistance in formulating the internet search or a little direction towards generally accepted reputable sites such as the BBC that would contain good basic information might alleviate the internet worries. It's not like the assignment was: define obscenity.

And then there's the parent who found it "morally questionable to ask students to represent the Taliban's views about the United States." [quote from newspaper, not direct quote from parent] Same parent was directly quoted as saying the assignment "seemed like ... an abuse of the academic freedom that we cherish."

Why is it morally questionable to represent the Taliban but not Russia or FARC or ... whichever side of the approved conflicts you find to be the bad guy? I also wish I knew what academic freedom he refers to, because it sounds a lot like he thinks freedom means learning to never question exactly what everyone else in that [family/community/school/church/country] does. I happen to think one of America's positives is that, at least in theory, we don't have to agree on every issue.

Maybe it's easier for me to find this bordering on the silly because I had to argue the pro-slavery side in a Civil War era debate for my HS history class. I could make the economic arguments, but could not bring myself to make the moral arguments out loud. And that was my teacher's biggest critique - I should have made the religious/moral arguments of the time: God separated the races, made them unequal, etc. In any event, I'm pretty sure that assignment made me think about both sides of the issue, but did not make me wish for slavery to still exist or believe that it was a morally just practice.
~ descending soap box ~

anyhow, maybe i'll stop reading the paper again for a bit. it's usually safer than watching the news in terms of the irritation factor, but apparently not always.

this is gonna be all over the place (and doesn't have pictures)

"By holding ourselves accountable, we reinforce our moral authority to demand that all governments adhere to obligations under international law -- among them not to torture, arbitrarily detain and persecute dissenters or engage in political killings." -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Dec. 14, 2009, speech at Georgetown University.

The first and only time I wrote a letter to the President, I wrote to President Clinton, to express my concern over the former Yugoslavia. I did not understand how the memorial I had recently visited at Dachau - nie wieder - translated into allowing genocide in my lifetime. And yet, it has happened again and again.

Today, i rolled an IRA CD over into some mutual funds, looking for a better return for a portion of my retirement account. let's be honest, standard interest rates are currently in the toilet; given that i'm going to be working another 25+ years, there's not a lot of need to be tied to a CD right now. i tried to explain that i had had a few jobs over the past 14 years and in an effort to consolidate 401ks, i chose a firm for a significant chunk of those funds that does socially responsible investing (SRI). i think it has a different buzzword now, but the idea is i'm investing in companies that, very generally speaking, not only sell [vegan]butter; they don't trade it for guns. my current advisor (!still feels weird to say that!) noted that while that's nice, the SRI just don't have the same return as the standard funds. It's a trade-off and in the end run, i want to benefit me.

A few weeks back, I opened my morning paper to see yet another picture of an AIDS victim in Africa. But she was not in Africa; she was less than twelve miles away from me. And I felt shame that I did not know. I live just outside the District of Columbia and often think of moving back within the borders, to become a 2d class citizen in a different way than I am here in Maryland [teh gays might be allowed to marry in DC next year, but DC'ians are still paying federal taxes with no representation in the federal government].

Which brings my meandering mind to healthcare. Are we debating health insurance or health care? insurance is a bet against future risk. care is, well, care. If the idea is that the individual pays for care and buys insurance for the bad - maybe, just maybe, the current concept of publicly held corporations with their fiduciary duty to the shareholders will work. well, at least if you have money to pay for care before you need insurance. goodness knows it's not exactly a great system now if you have any actual health problems. and god forbid you can't afford preventive care. If the idea is that care circumvents the need for at least a portion of the insurance, maybe healthCARE is a good idea. I'm still fighting with the idea that the government contracting rules/regulations means it buys from the lowest bidder as opposed to the most qualified, but regardless, in all honesty, I'm not seeing compassionate conservatism meeting a need through charitable giving. There is a role for government.

i'm trying to reconcile all this into a think global, act local lifestyle. and my head and heart hurt. at least that's one lifestyle i'm certain is a choice.

This Week: Dec. 11th edition

idea blatantly borrowed from my cousin...

WHAT I’M READING: I'm pretty sure this should say "background material for my paper on the Migratory Bird Treaty of 1918." Truthfully? I've actually read parts of the newspaper this week beyond the comics; there's a book of short stories by the bed [Amy Bloom's Come to Me] and on the metro, i've been alternating between The Dude Abides (theological look at the Coen Brothers films) and Sin Boldly (theological look at grace) by Cathleen Falsani on the iPhone/Kindle. I tend to try to remember to download anything that sounds remotely interesting when it's free for Kindle. I've got a couple winners and a couple of books I ended up deleting.

WHAT I’M WATCHING: Top Chef finale. I know, I know. Kev had me at *pig tattoo* and a certain brother was edited to sound more cocky than kind, but I wasn't completely surprised by the outcome. I was happy to see Jesse come back to sous chef, but wish we'd actually got to see her a little more. Overall, I enjoyed this season. I am wondering about the current emphasis on local/seasonal/sustainable cooking. For example, what part of foie gras is local or seasonal or sustainable (unless you live in Hudson Valley)? I just think you shouldn't use buzz words if you're not prepared to back it up. That said, I'm still contemplating a trip to Volt over the holidays. Also, I have an itch to watch complete Coen Bros. filmography (see What I'm Reading); will start with Miller's Crossing.

WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: what i like to think of as an eclectic holiday music mix, including the free Holiday Sampler from iTunes (http://bit.ly/6CQjrs). continuing favorite: Christmas in Hollis (RunDMC); new-ish favorite: Winter Song (Sarah Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson). The Airborne Toxic Event has also hit my speakers this week at work when Pandora isn't playing.

WHAT I’M WEARING: flannel pjs, a cardigan and my fleece-lined birkenstocks. it's cold out there.

WHAT I’M EATING: Chinese food. I treated myself to ordering in this week under the guise of "[i]f i don't have to cook, I'll study more." Ma po tofu, moo shi pork, singapore rice noodles & chicken with broccoli. it's finally gone now. to balance out the MSG intake, i had a lovely salad last night with Jordan - warm onion relish over a bed of greens and hard boiled eggs. And, yes, there was bacon involved.

WHAT I’M ENJOYING: procrastinating on schoolwork, preparing for holidays, planning for future.

WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Sometimes it's better not to answer certain questions, particularly when you have (possibly) too many cats.

Good day, eh.

the 12,790 dollar ear plugs

at every exam, we are offered earplugs. i never really thought i needed them until tonight. the guy next to me was typing as if he was drilling for oil on the other side of the planet. he also had a lot more to say than i did, so i hope it worked out well for him. anyhow, i always take a pair, figuring i've more than covered their cost in my tuition payments. this semester, i've two papers to write in addition to tonight's exam. so i estimate these guys cost me almost 13k.

reorganizing

so it's almost a new year, and this was my b'day gift. one colour for each month, in a little book. i can hardly wait. i have things to inscribe for january ... and something rather important on may 23rd as well!

in the interim, i've lost track of what day it is and where i'm supposed to be. i'm fairly certain i'll be at work tomorrow and there's an ethics exam on tuesday evening after work. beyond that? all i know is that it will be okay.

yes i'd like some cheese with my whine (or grandma, you should skip this one)

momsie - you might want to skip it as well.

i'm done. stick a fork in me. done. this year has been an emotional hell and the fallout just keeps coming. if you're looking for shiny happy ponies, don't read any further. i ain't got none. i do have a cat with irritable bowel syndrome. enough on that topic.

today was my last class for the semester. i have one exam, a 15 page summary judgment motion and a 20 page memo to write. much like my oral argument tonight (too short), i am a model of brevity in my writing as well. not the best model for exams or papers.

we had guest speakers in my other class - i fell in love with international law all over again. and yet, i'm destined to not practice in that arena. conventions, treaties, NGOs, reservations, CIL and animals. that would be amazing. it was overwhelming.

i think i'm missing my self-confidence. again.

anyhow. to combat the emotional roller coaster, i've been trying different coping mechanisms: exercise, acupuncture, pharmaceuticals and beer. the exercise has fallen by the wayside; acupuncture is getting to be out of my budget, even at student clinic rates (what? if my friend was in dental or beauty school, i'd be getting discounts at the student clinics there, too.). beer is almost out of my budget as well - i do have expensive taste. and to make things better, i switched meds and am constantly dizzy, either from withdrawal or acclimation. perfect for finals.

the reality is - my life does not suck in the grand scheme of things - and it makes me all the more frustrated that i know that, but am still depressed. i did make a nice kale and white bean soup for dinner.