White meat or dark meat ?

I won a turkey, I won a turkey, I won a turkey hey, hey, hey, hey! Well, not even just one turkey - I won three turkeys, and not just me but my dad and brother had something to do with it too. And before anyone asks, not great, big, live gobbling turkeys either : great big frozen turkeys. And so, seeing as it is heading into November and i still miss my US family on special occasions, I am going to attempt a Thanksgiving dinner.

Yes, you read that right - I, an Australian, am going to attempt the very American tradition of a Thanksgiving dinner. I remember the dinner from the year i lived in NJ. I had only been in the country just over a week and my host family had a big celebration with a whole nucnh of extended family. For a young Aussie girl barely used to being on the other side of the planet the whole occasion was quite overwhelming. We had that many people over we had to cook one of the turkeys in our neighbours oven ( i believe they were off visiting their family in another state at the time ) and the kids had to sit at their own table in the unfinished sitting room. We had the turkey and cranberry sauce, of course; brussel sprouts ( umm...eww ), mashed potatoes, green beans and this awesome whipped sweet potato with marshamllows. At the time i thought that was near about the craziest concotion i had ever heard of but O.M.G Sweet vegetabl-ey goodness. Ooh, ooh.... and pumpkin pie!

So there you have it- come Thanksgiving ( which wont actually occur here in Australia, so i can have it any day i like really ), i'm going to have me a big, fat roasted turkey with super sweet marshmallow sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie. Oh, and cranberry sauce. And oh, its going to be good.

P.S I had planned on doing a Halloween post tomorrow and i was going to include a picture of the one, and only, pumpkin i have ever carved. However, my stupid HP Mini laptop has shat its pants and died so whilst it is being repaired ( and my other computer is in storage ) i dont have any access to those once in a lifetime Halloween pics. Poo to that! Damn them for being, like, the only photos i havent uploaded to Facebook!

Unsustainable Economics

Disdainful, but dependent. That’s how I would describe the teenagers who seemed cool to many in junior high and high school. Parents, most teachers, and other authority figures were objects of their disdain because they were hopelessly uncool - not as aware of how the world was changing as they themselves were. Most of those teenagers grow up, however, because their parents tolerate their rebellion only up to a point and then cut them loose to fend for themselves. Thus they learn what Margaret Thatcher said: “The facts of life are conservative.”

Others don’t. They never seem to learn the facts of life, probably because they continue to blame something outside themselves for their personal failures. Other people are to blame, or the system is to blame for all the world’s problems as well as their own. They were ostentatious non-conformists who portrayed themselves as “counterculture.” They wanted to bring down the establishment culture, but didn’t have anything plausible to replace it with. Those young people had a vague idea of what they were against, but little idea of what they were for - and they still don’t as “adults.”

A few “cool” teachers indulged the fashionably-alienated teenagers in the old days because they didn’t fit in either. Now, however, they comprise whole faculties. As they do in any time or place in history, these “rebels” believed they knew the ways of the world while their “establishment” parents and teachers did not. But they were dependent for their physical sustenance on the very system they disdained. They needed food, clothing, shelter, medical care, and someone to pay their tuition at the colleges and universities they eventually went to, rebelled against, and ultimately took over. That’s how I understand people like Bill Ayers, his wife, Bernadine Dohrn, and the other pampered radicals from the sixties and seventies who steer the Democrat Party today.

The free-enterprise system they rebelled against is what produced in abundance the material necessities they consumed but didn’t appreciate. Capitalism, and the democratic republic in which it operates and thrives, have long been objects of their disdain. Now, with the impending election of Barack Obama and the bolstering of Nancy Pelosi’s and Harry Reid’s majorities in the Congress, those cool, disdainful, and still dependent people are about to secure their lock on the establishment. They’re not young anymore, but they haven’t grown up enough yet either to understand what they’re doing. As they expand New Deal and Great Society entitlement programs to an unsustainable level, the system they hate will no longer will be able to provide material necessities. The national debt is over $10 trillion and the dollar is no longer the world’s currency of choice. The hand that feeds them has been bitten and gnawed upon so long and so much it’s getting weak. The goose that laid the golden egg is going into molt. Those overgrown teenagers are about to discover that there’s a limit.

As they go about their Robin Hood redistribution policies over the next two to four years - as they “spread the wealth around” like Obama told Joe the plumber - it’s not going to be “good for everyone.” How much do Democrats think they can crank up taxes on “the rich” who are already paying most of the taxes? And how is Obama going to cut taxes on 95% of Americans when over 30% of them aren’t paying any taxes at all? What will he do with them? Just give them our money? They can call it whatever they want, but the rest of us “Joe the Plumbers” out here know what it really is. It’s Marxism: “From each, according to his ability. To each, according to his need,” with Obama, Pelosi and Reid deciding who is able and who is needy. That’s “Change” all right, but not “Change You Can Believe In.” I sure don’t believe in it.

Those of us who work our butts off aren’t going to keep doing it if government is going to take the fruit of our labor and “spread it around” to those who sit on theirs. That’s the hard reality. A radical leftist Obama Administration with a radical leftist Congress to back it up promise everything. As columnist Mark Steyn puts it: “The spirit of the age is: Ask not what your country can do for you, demand it.” He’s a Canadian who came to the United States and admires us as a last outpost against encroaching European-style socialism. Now he laments what he sees coming if Democrats sweep the election next week: "[For] a vigilant republic of limited government and self-reliant citizens, [an Obama Administration] would be a Declaration of Dependence.”

Pictures from the retreat

Pictures-

#1- Nikki, the girl we went to surprise

#2 All of us and Nikki before we headed home

#3 Adrienne, Aimee, Kelsie, and Kelly, the girls who sat behind me on the van ride there

#4 The view from Nikki's dorm

#5 Emily

#6 Kelsie with a bucket on her head. Don't you wish you could look that good in a bucket?

#7Aimee and Adrienne, they stole my camera and took tons of pictures of just them

#8 Kelsie not being happy about her picture being taken

The Retreat

Just in case any of you were waiting in suspense for me to reveal where we went for the retreat her I go. We went to Maryville TN, to Maryville College(Go Scots!) to surprise Nikki, our music minister's daughter, for her last home game. It was so much fun. There were so things of course when you stick six teenage girls who are all very different and are running on low sleep and high sugar intake, you're going to run into conflicts, but it was still a lot of fun. Here's how it went.
4:00- when we were supposed to leave, but didn't cause one girl was late
4:30- when we finally left
5:15- picked up Mrs. Janet(Nikki's mom)
7:00- stopped to eat, note* never eat food at a DQ, the ice cream's okay but the food, just don't eat it
10:00- got to the college and surprised Nikki
close to 11:00- left the dorm, followed Nikki and a friend and got lost on the way to the house we stayed at
11:30 got to the house we stayed at to the relief of the family
12:00- made our t-shirts for the game
3:00- went to bed, well got ready for bed but talked till 5:30
9:00- when most of us woke up
11:00 am- left for the mall to go eat lunch with Nikki and her friend
1:00pm- left the mall to go watch Nikki warm up
2:00- the game, Maryville won and is undefeated
4:00- went to a shopping center to kill time while Mrs Janet and Nikki went to a cook out(I hung out in McDonald's with Adrienne and Emily the whole time)
6:00- said our goodbyes to Nikki and load up into the van to head for home(that took thirty minutes)
10:00- got to the church and headed home

All in all it was a fun weekend. It was really nice to see Nikki again and can't wait to see her during thanks giving break.

Quotes from the retreat-
"Stay in the right lane! But turn left up here!"
Kelsie as she gave Mrs Manda directions
Our little Devo skipper.
What I was called Saturday morning when I was late to the Bible study that we did because I had to go to the bathroom.
"Chahooahooa-mooa"
what Kelsie called her stuffed dog
"HOO-TERS!!!"
Mrs Manda after we saw a sign for Hooters and no we did not go there.
"Kelsie sit down the UPS guy is staring....hard"
Kelly, It's to long of a story to explain

International Relations

I've been having relations, with Andy of WildARSChase. NO, not those kinds of relations - international relations. See young Andy decided the best way to make up for a recent cultural faux pas was to do a co-blog ( my first co-blog - excited much!?! ) , in regards to cultural cliches, if you will. So, the following are two sets of lists, one by WildARS, one by my good self. In an attempt to create a better understanding of Americans and Australians, we've compiled lists of common stereotypes that may or may not be true about both countries. We hope it's your favourite (or favorite!) list of all time.First up, the list compiled by WildARS.

( Note: Comments by Andy are in italics, comments by AmyXXOO are in bold. )


AUSTRALIANS:

1. All sound like Steve Irwin - Crikey, this one is a load of crap mate! Which is to say no, we don't all sound like Steve Irwin. God rest his soul, but the man was a walking cliche, at least when it comes to Australian language. To be honest, i think he just spoke like that to play up to you Americans - you eat that stuff up.
That we do. We love pigeonholing people. Just ask Native Americans. We think all of them live in tepees and drink, forgetting that whole part when our ancestors slaughtered their ancestors.... It is sad Irwin died, though. What a good dude.

.2. Are frequently eaten alive by Great White sharks - Leave the sharks alone! Seriously, I think the Great Whites get a bad rap - as far as experts tell it, the frequency of their attacks is, well, pretty infrequent. The best way to NOT get attacked - stay out of their ocean!
Tell that to Rob Schneider. See, I think sharks are the best, even if I am terrified of them. Shark Week on Discovery Channel is a good time, but it constantly shows people getting eaten off the Australian shores. You should write Discovery a stern letter.

3. Know what a dingo is. - Wait, this one is true. We all know what a dingo is, but having seen one in the flesh is a whole other matter. I mean, unless you live in either Northern Queensland or anywhere in the Northern Territory. I thought i saw a dingo once, but it was just a skinny German Shepherd...
Is the Northern section the place to stay away from? Sounds like Hicksville.
It's the place to stay away from if you want to avoid: crocodiles, sharks, dingoes and people missing numerous teeth.

4. Think rugby is better than football - Are we talking American football ( which we call Gridiron ) or soccer ?
Uh, the only good kind, American football. Americans pretend we like soccer, but we're not good at it. We just think we should be good at it. I will say that rugby is the manliest of sports.
Correction - rugby league is the manliest of sports. Rugby and rugby league are two different sports. Ah, so much for you Americans to learn....

5. Have an inordinate amount of actors working in Hollywood, who all immediately drop their accents - We don't have an inordinate amount, it's just that all the actors we send over there are good enough to be working. Yay for us! That whole dropping their accents thing is annoying though - be proud of where you're from, people. Like Hugh Jackman - sure, he'll change his accent for a movie but when he's offscreen, it's Australian twang all the way!
I always forget Nicole Kidman is Australian. You can have Russell Crowe back, however.

AMERICANS:

1. Are fat and lazy - This is proven by the fact that you have " drive thru " everything: drive thru voting, drive thru pharmacies, drive thru banks. Seriously, you are too lazy to line up for anything if it means you'll have to stand up!
Wait, you don't have drive thru banks? You're missing out. Our banks have drive-thru ATMs with Braille on it. You know, in case a blind person is driving and needs cash fast. We will, however, stand in line for hours to see a celebrity. Even a minor one, like John Goodman or Cuba Gooding Jr.

2. Think we are the best at everything - You own Michael Phelps so you can lay claim to being the best at anything he's in, I'll give you that. But you guys think you're entirely awesome at any sport you try your hand at. Plus, when you get beaten and it's been proven that you are, in fact, not the best - well, you are sore, sore losers.
We are terrible losers. When the USA men's basketball team didn't win the gold in the 2004 Olympics, everyone freaked out like, "How is that possible." Some of us in the South are still upset about losing our Civil War.

3. Like to force democracy on unsuspecting nations - You mean like Vietnam ? Or Iraq ? You mean like that ?
Pick a country. I am surprised we aren't forcing something on you of some nature. We do like to force democracy a lot, even when a country doesn't ask for it. As if democracy is the only way to exist. You know what they had in the Bible? Kings. You know what God actually wanted? Nobody in charge but God. But democracy, evidentally, has become the chosen form of government, "in God we trust"-- unless it's in a classroom, and then God's gotta take a backseat. We've got no problem killing people in other countries so they can get their share of democracy, but we definitely will not force kids to listen to silent prayer. Let's not get crazy here.
Woah, i think we hit a nerve there Andy. Democracy, God, the education system - that's a whole other blog post right there.
I feel better now. And slightly un-American. Crap.

4. Think we are trendsetters in music and fashion - The Beatles? British. The Rolling Stones? British. Vivienne Westwood, one of the greatest innovators in modern fashion? British. Versace, Armani, Dolce and Gabbana? Italian. Nope, no Americans on that list at all. I mean, I'm not saying you guys have NOTHING - just, the world does not revolve around you.
It's sad, isn't it? We're so far behind, and yet are so ethnocentric in thinking we are tops in that stuff, even when it was all done in Europe first. We do have the Jonas Brothers, though. And jean jackets.
The Jonas brothers? Uh huh....
We have Britney Spears, too.
I have three letters for you Andy - O.M.G.....

5. Believe we should own the only nuclear weapons - You do, don't you ? Its kind of like a dad chastising his son for having Playboys under his bed: he's going to say " son, those are bad! ", then he's going to confiscate them, but then he's still going to watch porn on his computer.
Excellent point. Instead, dads and sons should watch porn together on the computer. It keeps families together. Also, we should all get rid of nuclear weapons. I don't see the point in having them if no one is allowed to use them. Either let's get this nuclear holocaust ripping and roaring now, or let's get rid of the toys.

So, there you be ladies and gents, the first half of the greatest, most awesom-est, most incredibly ace list of all time. For the second half of the list, do yourself a favour and shoot on over to Andy's page - the second half of the list, the stereotypes i compiled, should be posted in the next day or two.

Seriously, get on over there! If you like funny, intelligent, vibrant writing, Andy is your man!

Wow! Finally some tough, relevant questions

If you haven't seen it already, you simply have to check it this interview of Joe Biden on WFTV Channel 9! (in Florida somewhere, I think)

Better late than never with some tough questions for Democrats.

" 'From each according to his abilities. To each according to his needs,'" quoted newswoman Barbara West from Karl Marx. "How is Obama not being a Marxist if he intends to spread the wealth around?" she asked Biden.

"Are you joking? Is this a joke?" Biden asks.

"No," she says.

It's about time someone put it to these guys! I love Barbara West. Is it too little - too late? We'll see.

Burfday weekend rundown

So that, right there , is my beautiful sister Erin. Doesnt she look cute? The angle of the eyeborws looks slightly wicked, but thats how she is really. So, just in case any of you have been living under a rock, or reading my posts without actually understanding them, this past Friday was Erin's 18th birthday. I am slightly sad to say that the weekend was a bit of a bust for me, but very happy to say she partied hard and loved it all ( after all, her birthday is about HER, not me ). Let me explain:
I'd taken the day off work on Friday so that we could hang out - i thought it might be nice to share the whole day with her, plus the idea of a day off for any reason was appealing. So while she was having a facial and a massage i hit the gym, and then we met back at home so we could go out for lunch. Not just any lunch mind you, but " $10 Tradie Lunch ", the best invention in the world. Basically one of the local pub bistro's offer a choice of meal, plus a drink, for only $10. I had the best chicken carbonara EVER - seriously - and enjoyed the company of my mother, my sister and her best friend.

Next on the agenda ? Tattoo time! Now we all know that i have four tattoos ( you knew that, right ? ) but i think i started a trend in my family. Since i got my first one, my father and brother have both been inked, and now it was Erins turn. She had to wait, legally, until she turned 18 to get tattooed but, in a stroke of genius, she decided to ask my parents if she get a tattoo as a birthday present - that way she wouldnt have to pay for it. And they agreed - well done little Erin! So my father and I went with her, less for moral support and more so we could witness the looks of mild pain and agitation on her face as the job was being done. Does that make us nasty ? No, just family. The tattooist Paul is a sweet guy though so he was always enquiring whether she was doing okay, did she want to stop for a break, stretch her legs, things like that, so he didnt make to easy for us to get inside her head. Incidentally, in a brief taste of D-list fame, Paul holds the world record for the longest tattooing session ever ( 42 hours people ).... take that " Miami Ink" !

So after lunch, the tattoo session and the traditional gathering for birthday cake ( caramel mud cake... uh, yum.... ), the immediate family went out for dinner. Witness below the astonishing beauty that was us ( ahem... yea, right ):








So thats her and, uh, me posing for a happy snap before the dinner arrived. For the record, my garlic chicken and prawns was lovely, thank you for asking. The place we went for dinner is a balcony resturant above my favourite pub, so it has a great atmosphere and made it really easy to move on after dinner. My heavily pregnant sister-in-law, neice and my flu-ey father went home after we'd eaten, and myself, my mum, brother and little Erin headed downstairs. Friday nights are always a little bit of a bust - i'm glad she wasnt completely geared up for a huge night, because Fridays tend to be a little quiet and the problem with eating out before hitting the pub is that there is usally a period between the end of the meal and the point in the night where other people start turning up. That period is the one that gets you - you get bored waiting for some action to arrive, and if your a birthday girl who woke up really early and has been running around all day you start to get a little tired too. So we had a few quiet drinks and decided to head home around 10pm. Kind of an early time to be calling it an evening, but my brother had to work in the morning, my mum is NOT a party animal,and the birthday girl was happy to have been able to get a few drinks in with her nearest and dearets. Aww, bless.

Which leads me to Saturday:

Nevermind the fact that I look completely washed out in that photo ( if you could get closer I had really sweet gold eyeshadow and black liner... it was cute! ) but, for me, the night was a bit of a washout. I was really looking forward to it - my best friend P ( thats her in the dots ) was going to be home, it was going to be my sisters first big night out and my first big night out for 6 months. And for a while, it was great: P and I had a great dinner together and then joined my sister and some friends at the pub. We started having some drinks and got to dancing - god, how i missed pub dancing! - and it was all going great. And then code name Mary showed up. I cant believe i let her ruin my night. One minute i'm dancing a way, not a care in the world and the next there she is, shotting me the death stare.

Once i knew she was there, she was EVERYWHERE. Turns out she was one of Erins friends cousins, so after having a short toilet break, P and I returned to the dancefloor to find Mary dancing with our group. That was it - i could not be there and have her either giving me the evil eye or, alternatively, completely ignoring me and making me feel uncomfortable in my own group. Once P decided she was going to go, I couldnt stay on my own, even though my sister was there living it up. I gave her amy apologies and told her if Mary was going to be hanging around, i couldnt.My sister, in her 18 year old wisdom, loudly announced she'd throw a drink in Mary's face, her tell her to piss off, because its not fair that i should be made to feel that way. Knowing that if she did try any of that, the situation would only be worse, I made my exit.

I'm really cut at myself for letting her ruin my night. I'd been excited about celebrating with my sister for weeks and, on the actual night, i skulked home before midnight. All because some girl with apparent issues has some cold of emotional hold over me. My sister showed me all her photos in the morning, and excitedly told me about how the rest of the night went, and she had such a great time. It only made me feel worse for having missed out. So apparently i'm going to have to suck it up, and learn to ignore Mary - its just hard because i'm very non-confrontational, and i always feel that if i'm in " her " way too long, she's going to go off her nut again. My only other option is to pack up and move to some place she doesnt live. Poo to that, and poo to her!

And so endeth the burfday weekend adventures. Overall, i know my sister had a great weekend and thats all matters. Plus, my hair looked h-o-t on Friday and i had sexy shoes last night - beat that Mary!

24.10.08

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERIN JAYNE!!!

Okay, so in case you havent been following my blog, today is my little sisters 18th birthday. Happy burfday to her! We kind of have a full day ahead of us ( i have taken the day off work so we could hang out ) : we're almost ready to go to lunch, then she has an appointment at the tattoo parlour to have her first tatoo done, after that people will be turning up for birthday cake and then the whole immediaqte family is going out for birthday dinner. Ooh, plus, seeing as 18 is the legal drinking age in Australia, tonight will be her first real taste of Aussie pub culture - yay for that!

So she and I are going out tonight and tomorrow night aswell. Its been a while since i've been out both nights of the weekend so i'm expecting to feel, i dont know, like a 100 years old come Sunday afternoon. Everyone look forward to my posts after that....

Palin's "Prop"

A local feminist Democrat accused Governor Sarah Palin of using her handicapped infant son as “a prop on late night television.” It caused a fuss and she resigned last week from Representative Carol Shea-Porter’s (D-NH) campaign as a result. It’s not clear whether she was asked to resign or she did it on her own initiative. No matter. The remark crystallizes why Palin drives feminists crazy.

Radical feminists say they’re “pro-choice.” It looks to them like Sarah Palin made a choice when she got pregnant in her forties after being inaugurated the first woman governor of Alaska, but we can’t be sure of that. To make a choice, she would have had to consider an abortion and we don’t know if it ever entered her mind. Only she knows that. Maybe she discussed it with her husband before anybody else knew she was pregnant and made a choice then. We just don’t know.

During the pregnancy, she found out her baby had Down Syndrome. She’s bound to have known families with such children and thought about how difficult it would be to raise her child. Maybe she considered abortion then. Maybe not. Maybe someone else asked her if she thought about abortion. Maybe not. It could be her friends and family believed she would never consider it because she had borne four children already and knew what was inside her was her child. Maybe they knew she believed abortion was murder so they never brought it up. Maybe she and her husband had a private conversation in which they weighed the prospect of living with a Down Syndrome child against the prospect of living with the guilt they would feel for killing it. Maybe they made a choice then. Or, maybe it never came up because each knew what the other would say.

Whatever went on in Sarah Palin’s mind during her pregnancy, she clearly carried a handicapped baby to term and delivered it when she could have had an abortion. She rejected that most prized “constitutional right” feminists believe they “won” for women everywhere in America and has a highly successful political career without it. When Palin’s family is on stage with the older girl holding her handicapped, infant brother, it drives the local feminist mentioned above and all the rest in the “sisterhood” of feminism nuts. She calls the infant boy, whose name is Trig, a “prop” because, although he’s the smallest, he stands out most in her eyes.

Perhaps it would be petty of me to speculate about another thing that annoys feminists about Palin: In addition to all the above, and after bearing five children, she’s attractive. Back in 1987 when Rush Limbaugh wrote that “Feminism was established so as to allow unattractive women access to the mainstream of society,” I believe he was kidding - mostly. As with all humor though, what makes it funny is that there’s a grain of truth in it. Feminists have long railed against societal standards of female beauty and they’ve made some good points along the way, but many of us have sensed that, as Shakespeare put it, they “protesteth too much.” Do many feminists resent attractive women and the advantage it gives them? I think so. Is there a disproportionately large number of angry, man-hating, homely women in the “sisterhood”? I think it’s pretty obvious that there is. I believe it’s safe to say that jealousy is also a factor in their hatred of Governor Palin.

The feminists favored candidate, Barack Obama, has the most pro-abortion record in the US Senate - indeed the most pro-abortion record of any candidate for president in history - by far. Speaking on sex education and his two daughters during the campaign last April, he said: “I am going to teach them first of all about values and morals. But if they make a mistake, I don't want them punished with a baby.” To Obama, babies are “punishment.” While in the Illinois State Senate, he voted against the “Born Alive Infant Protection Act.” He would rather leave babies born alive after unsuccessful abortions to die on a shelf in another room, alone and unattended, because to recognize them as human beings would threaten the legality of abortion itself. Explaining his vote, Obama said, “I mean, it - it would essentially bar abortions, because the equal protection clause does not allow somebody to kill a child, and if this is a child, then this would be an antiabortion statute.” If it’s not a child, Barack, then what the hell is it?

Ignore that crying baby in the other room. We must protect abortion. No wonder feminists love Obama and hate Palin. To them, her baby is a prop, a symbol that she rejects their culture of death.

Love is all around me....

I am not alone. Obviously - i live with my parents and my younger sister, i'm NEVER alone - but thats not what i meant. I mean I am not alone in my quest for true love - apparently you all have issues too. Seriously. If i was to have a rough guess-timate I'd say that 67.3% of the blog posts i have read in the past week have related back to L-O-V-E . People falling love; out of love;having new crushes; crushing over exes; wondering where it will lead and wondering where it all went wrong. It seems that we in this particualr blogopshere are a complex set of creatures, and we're all looking for lurve.

So i said in my last post that I'm going to give a second date with Joe a shot, and Steph wonders if my date must have been all that terrible in the first place. Wel, it wasnt - it wasnt terrible, it was just " meh ". And, on the scale of things, " meh " is not as bad as " argh! ", is it ? If you're wondering what scale it is that i refer to, it is as follows:

1. " Argh! " = terrible; horrible; could not have been worse;
2. " meh " = yea, it was alright .... i suppose...
3. " Woo hoo! " = great; fantastic; mind blowingly ace;

So no, i wasnt tearing my hair out at how awful it was, but i wasnt exactly " Woo hoo! "ing either. And so, on this occasion, I've decided that " meh " deserves a second chance. I mean, what if the first date was just a one off and the second one completely rocks my socks? I could potentially miss out on that sparky " Woo hoo! "ing because Joe was having one off night. If worse comes to worst, the second date totally blows - but then i know for sure right ? Plus, we all need bad date stories, the horror stories we tell our friends and siblings ( and blog buddies ... ) to demonstrate just how bad the whole love caper can get. Like, I dont know, when your date spends approximately 97% of the night talking about how uch he earns, how much he owns and how much it costs - and even goes so far as showing you numerous pictures of his flat screen tv. Like they were pictures of his kids. Prententious much ?

So, if any of you blog readers are in half of a loved up couple, how did you meet your other half ? Is there anything i should be doing that i'm not ? I want the secrets of the love universe people! Open up!

The Long awaited Uh-Uh game

Average Joes, wearing chocolate and super boys

Right, so i've decided to give Joe one more chance. This may be against the general consensus - according to the comments on my last post, all of you guys think its a lost cause and both my father and sister are in agreeance that he sounds like a total knob, but you never know, right ?I've agreed to go out with him again, if only to see if that elusive spark suddenly appears or to confirm my suspicions that he falls into friend territory. However, I have told him i will be busy for the next two weekends so he wont be seeing me before then. See, its my sisters 18th birthday this coming weekend and then my brothers 23rd the following, so i kind of have a good excuse to sit and mull over how to let Joe down gently if that spark doesnt appear.

In other news, like i said, my sisters birthday is now only 3 days and 4 sleeps away. Yes, she is about to turn 18 years of age and she is still counting down in the number of " sleeps ". Bless her little cotton socks... anyhoo, i bought the cutest black gladiator style heels to wear on Saturday night. Again, no picture for you yet but you can be sure i'll sneak a few pics of my tootsies at some point. I'm thinking after going out Friday AND Saturday nights, i'm going to have plenty pictures to choose from. Old school, drunk-at-the-pub, uploaded-to-Facebook style pictures. Look out!

Also, my neice insists that she will be wearing " chocolate " my sisters birthday dinner. What the? yes, when i asked her what she was going to wear, and i told her it had to be something nice, she replied, " Umm... chocolate! ". Well, yes, chcoolate IS nice, i just dont think its appropriate night time attire for a 3 year old. A 23 year old maybe ( especially if he has dark hair, and those goregous V hip muscle things..... ) but for a 3 year old, not so much.....

Oh, one last thing - i just want you all to know, in case you didnt already, that the boys on " Supernatural " are the prettiest boys on tv.

" So how was it ? " - " Umm, yea, it was alright ".

So, I had a date last night with a guy i met through Match.com, and that was my reaction to it. It wasn’t that it was entirely terrible, it just wasn’t great. It wasn’t one of those dates where you’re really excited that the night is almost over because you anticipate getting a goodnight kiss; it wasn’t even one of those dates that you get home and you go “ I had a really good time – i hope he calls! “ This was more like “ Oh, it was nice, he was nice, just the whole thing was a little – meh”. And i hate to say it, because my date – lets call him Average Joe – really does seem like a nice, well intentioned kind of guy. Just not the nice, well intentioned kind of guy that i am into.

We had been sending each other emails for about two weeks and decided it seemed like the right time to meet up, so we organised a movie. Joe lives in a town about an hour and half away, so he drove in for the night. We had been joking before about his deep and abiding love for milkshakes, so i figured before the movie we’d take a stroll down to my local ice creamery where he could pick a good, old fashioned milkshake. He offered to buy something and when i declined, saying i didn’t want anything, he ordered me a large Slushy anyway. “ Thats what you were angling for, right ? “ Whats up with that? So by saying no, thank you, i’m not thirsty right now I am somehow subliminally asking for a large Slushy? We watched “ Eagle Eye “ – a film I had been looking forward to – and i discovered Joe likes to talk during the movies. I mean, call me fussy, tell me i’m being a little anal, but talking during a film is a big no-no with me. We followed up the film with a drink or two at my favourite local pub. The conversation was mostly good, but i had alternating moments of interest and boredom. There were things he said that made sense, and a handful of things that just rang “ Incompatible! “ bells in my head. For example, he was asking me about my family and asked if we are close. I said sure, we’re close on my mothers side, everyone usually comes home for Christmas, i love my toddler aged cousins etc etc; he says he doesn’t enjoy big family gatherings and cant see a big family Christmas being something he would be into. Yes, you’re right, only a minor detail now, but if a relationship were to progress wouldn’t family big a big issue ? Methinks so.

So I’m in two minds now. He has sent me a message today saying he had a great time, he would love to do it again – but i’m thinking if we were to do it again we’d only end up friends. There were no fireworks for me last night at all. I left thinking he was a nice guy, it was a decent way to pass the time, but that was it. No wondering about whether he would call or not; No running conversations back through my head to make sure i sounded intelligent; No scrutinising his behaviour to see if he was giving me “ signals “. If none of that is happening, i’m thinking he’s just not my type, however nice he might be.

To put it in terms men might be able to understand – as explained by the most awesome Andy – i’m thinking young Joe is about to fall into “ friend territory “.

Mighty to Save

Everyone needs compassion
Love that's never failing
Let Mercy fall on me
Everyone needs forgiveness
The kindness of a Savior
The Hope of Nations

(My) Savior
He can move the mountains
My God is Mighty to Save
He is Mighty to Save
Forever Author of salvation
He rose and Conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave

So take me as you find me
All my fears and failures
Fill my life again
I give my life to follow
Everything I believe in
Now I Surrender

Shine your light and let the whole world see
We're singing for the Glory of the risen King

Those are the words to one of my favorite worship songs. The lyrics really ring true for me. Especially the second verse.

Random Pictures I took of things around my yard

Aren't I Already Wise Enough ?

Seriously? I mean i’m no Socrates or anything, but i’d rather not be if it means i don’t have to suffer the growing in of wisdom teeth. Or rather, just the growing – they aren’t growing through my gums at all. This may be kind of an overshare but i finally dragged my arse to the dentist only to be told my wisdom teeth are impacted- that is, there isn’t enough room in along my jaw for them to break the gum and come through, so there are growing into other teeth. Pushing themselves against teeth in an effort to break free! Go little teeth, push, be free! You say? Hell freakin’ no! These stupid teeth are causing me immense pain. Every few weeks or so they throw a little tantrum, try and push their way up, and i walk around for a week feeling like someone has punched me in the jaw. Not an entirely pleasant experience really. So i’ve decided its time to get the damn things taken out. I have a referral to an oral surgeon so i rang today to make an appointment for an initial consultation. When am i going to see him ? 6pm, November 12th. Thats like a whole month away! Which all means i’ll probably have to put up with the whole dull, thudding, aching jaw thing at least twice more. You suck, health system!

In completely unrelated news, I’m having my measurements taken at the gym again tomorrow night. It will be the first time since the implementation of my new program that i’ve been measured up, and my fingers are crossed that i’ve made some progress. You know how i posted about my butt feeling like it had suddenly become a whole lot bigger ? I was right! I had my measurements done before i started on my new program and my bum had gotten a whole 3 centimetres bigger than it was the last time i was measured up. 3 whole centimetres – thats like an inch to you American type people! And i know i should be all out and proud about having a little junk in my trunk, but no woman that frequents the gym as much as i do wants to hear that her bum is getting bigger. Seriously, if thats going to happen, what the hell am i sweating it out five times a week for ? You know, besides the fact that i quiet enjoy it ? The only thing i can think of, and would be quite happy to accept, is that my butt is sitting higher – that is, the muscle is more toned and perkier. Okay, maybe thats an overshare too, you all don’t really want to be picturing my apparently big perky bum, but there you have it. I could accept that, that much would work for me. But if its just a case of the rest of me is shrinking and my butt is officially trying to take over the world, well, that would just suck.

So now that you know all about my health concerns and body issues, rest assured that i’ll keep you in the loop. Yes, i’m going to overshare everything from now on, just so that you don’t miss out. Because, you know, NOT knowing how my teeth are feeling or how big my butt is feeling on any given day would just be a tragedy now, wouldn’t it ?

Criticize Obama? You're a Racist

“If the election were held today who would you vote for: Obama or McCain?” I asked them.

By a margin of greater than four-to-one, my students favored Obama. They indicated their choice enthusiastically - shooting their hands straight up without hesitation. McCain supporters, however, kept their elbows on the desk and shyly showed their palms while pulling their head down into their shoulders and glancing around to see who was watching. When I asked the Obama supporters why they chose him, most told me it was time for America to have a black president. Others said McCain was too old, or that Obama was cool.

That was last spring when my current students were finishing seventh grade and were in my classroom on “Step-up Day” to meet their future teachers. I asked why they thought it was time America had a black president and they said it would be proof that Americans are not racists. In September I asked them again with the same result. It’s very clear that they chose their favorite candidate on the basis of race and style over substance. Not one of the Obama supporters mentioned any of his positions on the issues as a basis for their choice. When I pointed this out, most just shrugged. A few then said they liked Obama because he would bring American soldiers home from Iraq. That was all they knew about what he planned to do if elected.

These, of course, were fourteen-year-olds and we don’t expect them to discharge their civic responsibilities maturely. Until I teach them, they’re not likely to understand many of the challenges facing our country. Very few understood differences between Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, or left-wing and right-wing political philosophies. After learning a few of those things, some of their choices have changed. Most still support Obama over McCain, but only by a two-to-one margin or less.

My circle of friends is mostly conservative, with a few liberals. The political philosophies of people in my wider circle of aquaintances is unknown to me for the most part, but most seem to be Obama supporters if I were to extrapolate based on overheard snippets of conversation or seeing their bumper stickers. When meeting new people, I avoid bringing up politics, but it comes up often in this election year. When it does, I usually listen rather than talk. If I’m drawn in, I prefer to ask questions rather than state my positions. What I’m learning dismays me.

Perhaps it was always thus, but I’m noticing that many adult voters are not very different from my fourteen-year-old students in that race and style are much bigger factors in their considerations of whom to vote for than substance. They’re excited about the prospect of a President Obama because he’s black, or says he is. That his mother was white and his father was mixed Arab and black (they’re both dead) is immaterial. Obama has chosen to think of himself as black and presents himself thus. That choice is a major subject of his two auto-biographies and it’s working well for him so far if opinion polls are any indication. Spoken or unspoken, it looks like the biggest single dynamic in the presidential campaign. Many voters who think of themselves as white are troubled by the notion that, if they were to vote against Obama, others may think them racist for doing so.

This notion is strongly encouraged. According to a Washington Post article last Sunday by Anne Kornblut: “In Youngstown, Ohio, last month, two Democratic state legislators accused swing voters who were not backing Obama of being racist. ‘Race - that's the only reason people in the Valley won't vote for him,’ state Rep. Thomas Letson said.”

Is that so, Representative Letson?

Philadelphia Daily News columnist Fatimah Ali wrote: “If McCain wins, look for a full-fledged race and class war, fueled by a deflated and depressed country, soaring crime, homelessness - and hopelessness!”

A “race war,” Ms. Ali?

According to the New York Times, Georgia Democrat Congressman John Lewis accused McCain and Palin of “sowing the seeds of hatred and division” for their criticism of Obama’s close association of terrorist Bill Ayers. Lewis said it could lead to racial violence like the 1963 Alabama church bombings that killed four girls. Apparently, that Obama is black should insulate him from criticism of any type in Lewis’s view. “Senator McCain and Governor Palin are playing with fire,” he said, “and if they are not careful, that fire will consume us all.”

Really, Congressman Lewis?

According to the Wall Street Journal, Obama stoked it himself in a speech last summer, saying: “What they're going to try to do is make you scared of me. You know: ‘He’s not patriotic enough. He’s got a funny name.’ You know, ‘He doesn't look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills.’ ” He made similar remarks in three different speeches.

Who is “they,” Senator Obama? Anybody who criticizes you?

It's our hearts that really matter,

It's our minds that really makes us,

Our actions are simply the results.

Do you eat Zebras ?

Thats what my neice wanted to know at dinner last night - " Aunty Amy, do you eat zebras ? ". We'd already gone over the fact that i eat chickens, and cows and pigs and little lambs, now my almost three year old neice was concerned that i might eat zebras.
Me: " Nope, i dont eat anything that has stripes ".
Her : " What about tigers, do you eat tigers ? "
Me: " Do they have stripes ? "
Her: " Ummm..... ( big long pause )...... yes. "
Me: " Then i dont eat them ".

All this stemmed from my dad mentioning that he was going to cook up some kangaroo sausages for his lunch the next day (he wasnt making that up by the way, we do eat kangaroo here in Australia ). My neice, however, thought the whole idea very funny. " Poppy, why are you going to eat a kangaroo ? " was the first question, which progressed onto what we do and dont eat. I felt honesty was the best policy - its important that she knows when we say we're eating chicken, we mean we're eating A chicken. What is also important is that you tell her that we DONT eat worms, dirt or boogers. Because sometimes she does eat boogers and, well, thats just not acceptable.
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Ah, shoes. Every woman worth her salt loves a pair of shoes, especially if they're on sale. I've had a handful of guys ask me about womens fascination with shoes, and i cant really explain it. Its just a sisterhood thing, i suppose - secret womens business to which there is no real answer. So when my mum asked me to take her shopping to find a pair of shoes to wear to my sisters upcoming 18th birthday dinner, i sure wasnt going to turn her down. My reward for this completely selfless act of kindness ? Getting the " second " pair of shoes when my mum waa offered a " buy one, get the second pair half price " special. Yay for me! So i chose me a really cute pair of shoes*- tan, leather, stacked heel, sling backs. They'll be perfect with a pair of jeans and white tank top. Too cute!
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Now, i know that we discussed whether or not i eat zebras, which was a no. What i do eat is Thai food, and my mum and dad decided tonight would be great night to go out for Thai. Bless their hearts for letting me come along for the ride. I am telling you, there is nothing in the world like a good mussaman curry, and the mussaman curry at our local Thai place is to die for! Tender chunks of beef in a smooth, sweet, peanutty sauce, accompanied by bite sized pieces of potato and large helping of rice. Absolute culinary heaven. I have never eaten so well as i did during my three weeks in Asia. I'd always liked your regualr run-of-the-mill Chinese food, but i developed a real love for Asian flavours whilst travelling. Everything was so fresh and light and i never went hungry. The best meal i had ? We had lunch with some Buddhist nuns in a monastery on a hillside in Vietnam and the food was gorgeous. Being nuns of the Buddhist variety they arent allowed to eat meat so everything we had was vegetarian. I was kind of thinking it was going to be quite a boring, stodgy meal but it suprised me - i dont know how they did it, but it was great! You know what else was great ? Tamarind crab. Seriously, i should not get started on how good this crab was....
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So, now, onward to tomorrow. I aske dmy mum if she'd like to go to the movies, so we're going to see " The Duchess ", with Keira Knightley. Umm, i mean she's in the movie, she's not coming with us, although that would be cool. I saw an interview with her on " 60 Minutes " and she seemed really down to earth, the kind of girl i'd be friends with. Keira, if you're reading this, give me a buzz and maybe we could do lunch or something.....


*I couldnt find a picture of them, so you'll just have to imagine them for yourself.

Elevator Luge

Doesn't that sound fun!!!! Like street luge, except your in an elevator going down at break-neck speed until you hit the bottom of the shaft with a big giant SPLAT!
Sounds extreme right? Fun, maybe not. But hey why not.
This week in school I started the devotional book God's Will God's Best. It pretty cool. It was talking about how most teens have a list of things that they want to do with their lives. It listed the one's that are generally on the lists like Finding True Love, Having a purpose, having good friends, things like that. Well one of them was wanting to do something to the Extreme in life. In other word wanting to do something different. I want that too. I don't want to just fit into the norm. I don't want to be a cookie cutter mold of everyone else. I want to stand out in a good way. Then it said something that caught me off guard. It said that "The most extreme, fulfilling life you could ever live happens when you make your way into God's plan."
I think that's so true. Living to the fullest means letting God have his way instead of fighting for your way. That way we can live to the extreme life God wants for us instead of risking life and limb to have an extreme life by what the world sees.

"Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart."
Proverbs 37:4

Today is my mom's b'day. To wish her a happy one I'm going to list the things I love most about her.
1. Sh has a great daughter
2. She's about the coolest mom ever
3. She someone worth looking up to
4. She's there when I need her and even there when I don't
5. She has never tried to hold me back from anything
6. She lets me decide what I'd like to do instead of just telling me how to do it
7. She taught me to sing harmony
8. She is patient enough to deal with me
9. She always listens to what I have to say even if she doesn't agree with it
10. Did i mention she has a great daughter?
11. She feeds my need for books
12. She never treated me like a little kid
13 She taught me to speak adult
14. She always holds me to what I need to do but doesn't put too must pressure to make me explode
15. She doesn't care that i play the piano at all hours
16. She leaves me alone when I'm sick even though she really doesn't want to
17. She asked my advice on things that she could probably decide on her own
18. She supports my ever budding talent for music and is my number one fan
19. She works on a website to allow me to take horseback riding lessons
20. She does her best on that website to make sure it's really good
21. She asks me for advice
22. She does for everyone else before she does for herself
23. She inspires me more than she knows
24. She loves God with all of her heart and isn't afraid to let it show
25. SHE'S THE GREATEST MOM IN THE WORLD FOR ME

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOMMA!!!!! I LOVE YOU!!!!!

I think i need my head read

You know what ? I hate cryptic dreams sometimes. Dont get me wrong - sometimes the absurdity of my own subconcious amuses me, but sometimes it annoys me no end. I especially dislike it when i wake up in the middle of a crazy dream, because then there is no chance of making it to the end and maybe making some sense of it. I hate that - i'm left completely puzzled for at least an hour later. How can i enjoy my peanut butter on toast for breakfast when i'm puzzled ?

I've already posted about my Uncle Steve the Big Red Alligator dream, which has got to be one of my all time weirdest dreams, but the dream/s i had last night rank right up there on the crazy list. So in the first one i was back nannying in the US, back with the same host family, but my room upstairs wasnt quite the same. It was configured slightly differently but i didnt have stairs - i had a slide ( or a slippery dip as we call them in Australia ). So, if you can imagine, i had a few stairs to get TO the room, but to get back down i had a slide that ended in the kitchen. Plus, i was naked for the majority of the dream. Whats up with that? I'm running along the incredibly long hallway - like absurdly long, 50 rooms long - with the the three year old, and i'm naked; I'm driving the boys to school and i'm naked; i'm folding the washing in the living room and i'm naked. The only time i wasnt naked in the dream was when i was introducing the boys to my aunt and 6 month old cousin. What the freaking hell ?

And in my second dream, i was back working retail at the place i worked before i went to the US. But instead of being indoors, it was like the shop was surrounded by walls but had no roof, and i was manning a register in the boiling hot sun. I was frying people - frying! And nobody cared. And all these people i went to school with, people who were grades above that i was never friends with, they all worked there too. But they got shady spots to work in, unlike poor old me who was turning lobster like in the sun. My old bosses just walked right on past and i started yelling about suing the arses of the company for letting me burn. What is up with that ?

See, you've just read what i dreamt - none of it makes sense, right ? What is any of that supposed to mean ? So i'm naked and burning, which might make sense if i lived in the middle ages and was afraid of being outed as witch, but doesnt make so much sense right here and now. They were both set in places i worked in the past, but so what ? Whats going on there? Does anybody have any ideas here ?

Seriously, please tell me i am not the only one who is mildly nuts like this....

In The Tank

They’re not even embarrassed about how obviously they’re in the tank for Obama. Rather, they seem to feel righteous about it. Our media elite are so smug and insular in their world view, they don’t realize or care about how out of touch they’ve become with ordinary Americans - how we live or how we think. Paradoxically, our media elite see themselves as champions of the oppressed, of “minorities,” and other “victims” of “American oppression.” They’re embarrassed when ordinary Americans express our patriotism or our faith in God, considering it childlike and unsophisticated. Their friends are far too sophisticated to look at the world that way.

They know Obama goes to church and professes love of country, but they figure he does those things because he has to in order to get elected. And they want to see him elected because he’s one of them. He pronounces words as they do and he went to Ivy League school as they did. And like them, he sees the world from a hard left perspective. If we wonder why they don’t go after Obama’s William Ayers connection, that’s why. It doesn’t alarm them. Ayers fits with mainstream Democrat politics in Chicago. And why not expose racism in the Reverend Jeremiah Wright? Because they’re not alarmed by him either. He fits in with their world view too - way better than Justice Clarence Thomas does. Wright and Obama profess a belief in God, but it looks as if Thomas actually has one and lives his life accordingly. To our elitist media, that qualifies him as an intellectual lightweight and not qualified to serve on the US Supreme Court.

Seldom, if ever, do they question Barack Obama’s qualifications to be president, though his is the thinnest of resumes. Most of his career was as a “community organizer.” What the heck is that? And he served in the state senate? Big deal. He avoided nearly every controversial vote that came up when he was there, voting “present” instead of yes or no. US Senate? If ever there was a club for political prima donnas, it would be the US Senate and Obama did only two years there before running for president full-time.

Obama wants to be our chief executive, but his only executive experience was as Chairman of the Annenberg Challenge - a position Bill Ayers secured for him. Obama cited his Annenberg tenure in an unsuccessful congressional campaign, but has hidden it since and no wonder - it was a $50 million boondoggle which purported to raise standards for Chicago schools, which showed no measurable change when the money was all spent. Most of the money was authorized by Obama and spent by Ayers and his radical friends to push Chicago’s educational establishment further to the left than it already was. I remember getting $25,000 of Annenberg Challenge Grant money here in Fryeburg around the same time. A few other teachers and I trained students in the use of digital imaging technology and local history. I’m proud of what we did with just a tiny fraction of what Obama spent. The Chicago Democratic establishment, however, is trying to block reporters from investigating records of where Obama’s and Ayers’ $50 million went.

Then there’s Obama’s purchase of his Chicago mansion with convicted felon Tony Rezco - possibly using money from Iraqi/British billionaire Nadhmi Auchi, implicated in the infamous Iraqi “Oil For Food” debacle, the biggest financial scandal in world history until the sub-prime mortgage crisis. Obama is tangled up in that one too through his close associations with infamous Fannie Mae executives James Johnson and Franklin Raines (who, as CEO, took $90 million in bonuses). Johnson headed Obama’s vice presidential search committee and Raines advised his campaign on housing issues.

Since McCain selected Sarah Palin for his VP running mate, however, investigative reporters have swarmed over Alaska looking for dirt. Palin’s got at least as much experience as Obama, but all we hear about is her lack of it. She epitomizes ordinary Americans and the elite media’s contempt for her is sickeningly obvious. When she galvanized the GOP’s conservative base, they declared relentless, all-out war on her. They dug into her private life and even hung out her seventeen-year-old daughter to dry. They seemed to have Palin on the ropes until the debate with Biden last week. They were expecting Biden to knock her out, but instead, she took control and spoke directly to the American people, even looking into the camera and winking.

I’ve been watching presidential politics a long time from both sides of the spectrum and I’ve never seen the media go as softly on a candidate as they have on Obama. Nor have I ever seen them attack anyone as vociferously as they have gone after Palin. The elite media’s power is waning, but possibly still powerful enough to deliver a radical leftist into the oval office in January.

Oh lord, now i'm starting to count down....

I cant believe its almost the 8th day of the month and i've only made one post. What in the crap is up with that ? What have i been doing ? Truth be told, not s very much, but hey, it was a long weekend. I was content to sleep in, eat a late lunch, and watch bad cable tv. I introduced my father to " Date My Mom " and " Room Raiders " on MTV - i secretly think he liked them ( i'm sure i caught him watching that horrid soap " Passions " once ..... ).

So, now that the long weekend is over the next thing on my calendar that i'm looking forward to is my sisters 18th birthday in 17 days time. For those of you who dont know, 18 is the legal drinking age here in Australia so its the birthday where you get to go to a bar for the first time and get trashed with your friends and your older sister. Umm, i mean, you get taken out and shown how to drink responsibly. Of course thats what i mean. So everyone in our immediate family plus my best friend P is taking my sister out for dinner and then we're moving downstairs to the bar. I kind of like that my sister invited P, and i know P appreciates it to, seeing as she doesnt have a sister of her own. And, o0f course, my sister has friends of her own but she's going out with them the night after her birthday. She's chosen to go out with her family first ? Aint that sweet?

Anyhoo, i'm not sure why exactly i'm so looking forward to someone else's birthday. It is probably mostly because i havent been out since P's hens party ( the night of the Mary incident ). I mean, i went from going out every Saturday night, leaving the house at around 10:30am and getting home around 3am, to not going out at all for an entire 6 months. Its been a big jump and, to be honest, i've missed it sometimes. I've missed Mary's sisters ( lets call her MS ) friendship, for sure, but i've also just missed the atmosphere of a crowded bar, dj playing, people dancing, escaping the hot dance floor for some fresh outside. I wasnt like a disco diva or anything, i just liked being around so many people, even if i hardly knew any of them. I've missed sitting in MS's bedroom drinking a bottle of cheap champagne before we went out, gossiping and laughing our arses off. I've missed that.

So, come the evening of October 24th i'm going to put on a slinky dress, some cute heels, do my makeup all pretty like and i'm taking my sister out - for the photographic evidence please refer back here after that date, or find yourself my Facebook page....

Gossip

Last night in Bible study we talked about Gossip. Very fun. It's amazing that we sat there saying how bad gossip was and I looked across the room, and there were people(girls) gossiping. It took forever to get the discussion over with because we kept talking. And I think we scared Mrs. Sharron on her first night in there with us.

Things we learned....

1. Evan can make a good list of things that are bad

Gossip is bad

Drugs bad

Fighting bad, unless it's in self defence or you just feel like fighting, again from the point of a teenage guy

The list goes on but then I wouldn't have learned anything else

2. Landon is wearing a blue shirt( we learned that playing telephone)

3. The people in the bible study like to play the "Uh-Uh" game and get really into it. (I did get a video and i will post it)

4. Gossip can destroy your reputation

5. Christian guys have one of the hardest paths to take in life, but it's worth it

6. Carson likes to draw on himself

7. even a youth minister can get pulled over by the cops. As proven by Mike last night.

All in all it was a very good study. I met people I wouldn't have met otherwise. It was very fun.

Talk later

Pretty awesome quote

so Wednesday night we were talking about being Inspired and what it takes to inspire people. Mike went around and asked different people what they thought it takes to be inspired. One of the guys answered "To Inspire you must first be inspired."
I think that pretty sweet. And it's deep if you think about.

I heart the weekend

Its raining, and its beautiful. It doesnt rain much where i live, the majority of my state has been in drought for 7 or more years, and so rain is always appreciated. Even though its a long weekend, and i wished for sunshine, I wont complain about the rain. Its still a beautiful day - the sky is pregnant with rain clouds but every so often the sun will poke through, and the air has that beautiful, freshg, earthy smell to it. There is nothing like a spring rainstorm.
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Yes, its Labour Day long weekend here in New South Wales, Australia. I have very little planned, which did make me a little sad, but I am now choosing to say I am up for anything spontaneous. If i had plans, i wouldnt be able to fly by the seat of my pants, would i ? I have my regular session at the gym this afternoon, and we are having a family BBQ later this evening ( prawn skewers, steaks, chicken kebabs, salads, potato bake..... yum! ), but that is as far as my plans extend. So, for example, if some guy who has been wooing me via Match.com decided he wanted to have a coffee or something tomorrow or holiday Monday, i would have no need to turn him down - would i ?
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I am currently watching a countdown of the Top 100 Rock song clips of all time. These countdowns always amuse me because i wonder who actually gets to vote. Is it the experts - the Rolling Stone journalists, the critics and the music programmers ? Or is it the punters, the Avergae Joes who buy the records and watch the clips ? Because i am pretty sure the so called experts would vote in a lot of stuff that we mere mortals probably dont really like all that much. Plus, these kind of lists are always somewhat controversial. I mean, just what exactly makes " Stairway to Heaven " by Led Zeppelin better than " Bohemian Rhapsody " by Queen ? And why was " Hotel California " by The Eagles completely missing from the top 20 of a similar countdown i watched last month ? What a travesty.
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So, Happy long weekend to everyone who is having one and for those who arent - too bad, so sad. Just kidding - enjoy whatever time you may have off !

Teaching the Crisis

I’m responsible to teach economics and current events to eighth graders - woven into a 20th century US History course - and this sub-prime mortgage crisis is the biggest story of the year. It’s complicated, charged with politics during election season, and nobody seems to understand the big picture. I plowed ahead anyway and started by asking my students how many of them had money in the bank. Nearly all did. “Do you know what banks do with the money you put in there?” I asked. Most realized that banks lend that money so people can buy houses, cars, businesses, and so forth. We discussed how banks make money by charging people more interest on loans than they pay to depositors like them.

Then I told them of the three houses my wife and I purchased or built, how much of a down payment we put on each, how much we borrowed for them - how we fixed up the first two, sold them, and used profits to pay for much of building our present house. I told them about our employment history, our credit rating, and the factors that made our mortgage contracts examples of “prime mortgages” because we never borrowed more than we could afford to pay back and never missed a payment. Then I explained that the economic crisis was caused by “sub-prime mortgages” - banks (encouraged by government) lend money to people who can’t or won’t pay it back, either because they borrowed too much, because they were unreliable, because they fell on hard times, or because they didn’t put any of their own money down and can walk away from their payment without losing anything.

Then I wrote on the board and explained that what sound like names for people are actually crude attempts to phonetically pronounce the acronyms for FNMA - the Federal National Mortgage Association, and FHLMC - the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, respectively. I explained that local banks negotiate mortgage contracts such as mine but have limited money to lend, so Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buy those contracts. Mine was for $95,000 at 6% for fifteen years with monthly payments of $801.66 and my house was worth way more than that. My contract can be sold - and has been twice, to Bank America and again to Wells Fargo Bank. My contract is worth more than $95,000 because of the interest I pay. By selling it, my local bank made a profit and got more money to lend so others around here can buy and build houses. That keeps carpenters, plumbers, electricians, excavators, dry-wall contractors, and others busy, giving us a healthy economy.

Most students understood this much. Then it got more complicated.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were created by government, I explained. Together, they control $6 trillion in mortgages - half of all American mortgages. When they buy a mortgage, they guarantee it - like a parent cosigning a loan for a teenager to buy a car. If the teenager doesn’t make payments, the parent must. When Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac wanted to sell sub-prime mortgages, few wanted to buy because they were such a bad risk by nature. So, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bundled sub-prime mortgages with prime mortgages. Those packages became “Mortgage-backed Securities” which could be sold and re-sold because buyers believed that if they failed, government would fix everything - be the parent making payments for delinquent teenagers, so to speak. Wall Street jumped on and rode the ensuing boom. So long as house prices continued rising, sub-prime mortgagees could flip their properties and even profit, but as soon as prices leveled off and then fell as they inevitably do, foreclosures skyrocketed and it all caved in. Businesses most heavily invested caved with it, including the allegedly private Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Neither the Republican Congress nor the Democrat Congress saw it coming and they should have. Neither Clinton nor Bush saw it either. Some individuals did, but they didn’t blow the whistle loudly enough. Anyway, nobody listened.

Who is responsible for sub-prime mortgages at the root of all this? There’s plenty of blame to go around, but it started with the Carter Administration’s “Community Reinvestment Act” in the seventies. Standards to screen bad borrowers were relaxed. Buyers flooded the market and prices went up in the 1980s housing boom. Then President Clinton ordered standards lowered still further in 1995 so more “minorities” and other low-income people could own homes. Welfare payments qualified as “income.” Even illegal immigrants got mortgages with no money down. Uncle Sam became Jolly John. All this triggered a second housing boom now gone bust. Trouble is, this bust is so big,“experts” predict it may bring us all down with it unless the federal government solves the mess it created. Are they Chicken Littles and Henny Pennys warning us the sky is falling? Government wants us to buy back those dubious securities for up to $700 billion and sort out good from bad, claiming taxpayers will get their money back and more. Others doubt it.

Nearly every student learned something about the problem, but none understood it all. Neither do senators, congressmen, or voters. Neither do I. Not fully. Still, many think government must do something. If we do, hopefully we won’t make things worse.