More YouTube: Borat Takes on Letterman

Along with the rest of the world, I loved Borat....and this spot of his on Letterman was truly funny. If you haven't seen it, here it is: Borat on Letterman

The One Campaign Is Working!!!

I'm on a mailing list for the atU2.com web page and I was sent this article today. The One Campaign is apparently not only changing the lives of folks in Africa, it's changing the lives of folks who are working on it here. Please read the following article:

By Shayne Moore
March 12, 2007 |

Back in 2004, I found myself in a remarkable place: sitting with a
group of doctors in the government offices of Tegucigalpa, Honduras,
on an AIDS fact-finding trip. As a stay-at-home mom of three, this was
not my usual stomping ground.

But several years ago Bono, the lead singer of the rock band U2, came
through the Midwest on his Heart of America Tour. While it was Bono's
star power that drew me that night, it was the presentation on the
ravishing effects of extreme poverty and the spread of HIV/AIDS that
changed my life.

After hearing that sobering message, I woke up from my suburban stupor
of Target and Starbucks. I woke up to the reality that today 1 billion
people live on less that a dollar a day. I woke up to the reality that
I can make a difference, and I started educating myself and others.

I joined Bono's ONE Campaign , a nonpartisan, nondenominational
campaign of 2.4 million everyday people joining together to fight
global AIDS and extreme poverty.

With the ONE Campaign I have had extraordinary experiences. As an
ordinary, stay-at-home mom, who represents the heart of the movement,
I was chosen to travel to both Gleneagles, Scotland, in 2005 and to
St. Petersburg, Russia, in 2006 to attend the G8 Summit to urge world
leaders to keep their promises to Africa and fully fund initiatives to
fight global diseases like AIDS, TB, and malaria, increase
international assistance, cancel debts, and make trade fair. I have
spoken at a press conference, been in a public Service announcement
with Julia Roberts, George Clooney, and Matt Damon, and been
interviewed by CNN, NBC, and the Wall Street Journal.

I met Bono at a show for his fair-trade label EDUN in Chicago, where
he also spoke. He said, "The National Rifle Association pays lobbyists
big bucks to take their interests to Congress. We are the lobbyists
for those who don't have those kinds of means." With ONE, I email and
call the White House and my Congressmen. As a member of the ONE
Campaign I have a voice.

I first realized this in a meeting with the Honduran Vice Minister of
Health back in 2004. The Vice Minister is responsible for distributing
the money from the Global Fund for AIDS, TB, and Malaria, and I was
able to ask some questions about the HIV/AIDS situation in Honduras. A
true diplomat, the Vice Minister ended our meeting with smiles,
handshakes, and goodbyes, addressing us as "The Delegation of the Lost
Cause."

Since this was the beginning of my journey into global AIDS advocacy
and activism, I suppose I could've felt the sting of the insult.
Instead, I left that meeting thinking, "I must be on to something."
The words of Scripture, "Be a voice for voiceless," started to be a
silent rhythm in my steps.

In 2005 I traveled to Kenya with my church. While in Kenya I visited
an HIV/AIDS clinic, and I watched as a woman left with some
life-saving medication in her hands. Her small son trailed behind. I
turned to the nurse next to me and asked where the medication came
from. As the nurse told me, I realized the ARVs (Anti-Retrovirals)
came from the funding I, along with other Americans, had lobbied
President Bush and Congress to support.

I still smile as I think about that Kenyan mother. It's true that some
extraordinary things have happened through my involvement with the ONE
Campaign, but mostly I'm that ordinary stay-at-home mom who's now a
voice for the voiceless.

You can join the One Campaign by clicking here.

Rocks, or No Rocks?

ROCKS, OR NO ROCKS? KNIGHT, OR NO KNIGHT? March 06, 2007 posted by @U2.

Poor Bono has all kinds of dilemmas to address in the latest installment of our Achtoon Baby cartoon: Why don't some people want him to be a Knight? Should there be more rock(s), or less rock(s)? And how did one of his friends turn into the Grim Reaper? Kelly E. and BUN the cat ponder those questions and more in this month's Achtoon Baby! check out the latest Achtoon Baby.

For those of you who know me very well, okay, sometimes I make different voices for my pets...apparently this whole cartoon is written by BUN the Cat, and that in itself is funny to me. Click on Achtoon Baby!, and then click on the The Littlest Knight, By Bun and read the story...you have to click to turn each page, but I found a great deal of humor in it. For those of you who don't know, Bono has been offered to be Knighted by the Queen and has yet to accept. Also, U2 has an album pending and there is going to be an alleged "sound change". Noboby knows if they are going to add more keys and be more Coldplay or if they are going to rock yet again like they did this time. Even if you don't know the backstory, well, the cartoon and the dialogue is pretty funny in itself. Enjoy!

Bono At the NAACP Image Awards

Bono was honored on this show on Friday, March 2nd for his work on extreme poverty and AIDS in Africa. Here are some clips from the show.

TRIBUTE

THE ROOTS TRIBUTE TO BONO

and finally BONO ACCEPTANCE SPEECH

All this, and as Chris Tucker says, "And he ain't even black!"

Two Great Movies To Check Out

First on my list: "Little Miss Sunshine". That was THE BEST movie I've seen in years, and I watch literally hundreds of movies per year. Anybody who doesn't believe the hype needs to go get this and check it out. It touches on so many different angles of family/cultural dysfunction in a humorous and hopeful way. Great movie.

2nd: "Running With Scissors" Despite bad critical reviews in my opinion this was one of the most deliciously twisted movies I've seen in a long time. Great charactors who you can't decide whether to love or hate, great acting and again a great view of human dysfunction with a little hope and humor thrown in along the way. Don't let the critics fool you, this is a good watch!

Click on either movie title to go view the respective home page.

Until next time "I'll see YOU at the cineplex!"

PS: Justin Timberlake's SNL Video

And while I'm on a You-Tube roll, this is pretty dang funny too.


And after seeing this, Justin's People's Choice Awards speech made better sense to me....watch that here:



I realize I'm old enough to be his mom, well, almost, but I'm finding this guy to be guilty pleasure man/boy candy. I just turned 41, I'm entitled.

Matt Damon Impersonates Matt McConaughey

If you haven't seen, or more to the point heard this impersonation that Matt Damon did of Matt McConaughey on Letterman, then you are missing out...Click on this link and go check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuYD2cwMbpw

Netflix vs. Blockbuster Online

I am one of the citizens of this great country who just can NOT get movies back to the video store on time. I love to watch movies, but I hate late fees, and boy did I have a lot of them. Then I discovered Netflix in 2004...For those of you who don't know how it works, you create a queue of movies you'd like to see on the Netflix website, then depending on what plan you have (I chose the $19.95 per month, 3 movies out at a time plan) Netflix sends them to you in the mail. Over the course of my membership it seemed that most of the time I got next day delivery from Netflix; I'd send a movie back, they'd send an e-mail to say they'd received it and then they'd send the next one out, which for the most part I would get the next day. I watch a lot of movies, the amount you can rent per month is unlimited, depending on how quickly you watch them and send them back in. I was very happy with the plan.

One problem was you are at the mercy of the U.S. Postal service...if it's a 3 day weekend, then that means with turnaround times you couldn't replace your movies for 6 days. So, I'd try to offset that by renting television series disks on the long weekends, aka Grey's Anatomy, Lost, the Sopranos, etc which are generally 4 hours per disk and would keep me busy for awhile. However that didn't always keep me sated either.

So, I'd been seeing the Blockbuster commercials which stated you could trade your movies at a store if you wanted to rather than wait for the mail. I was mildly interested, but too lazy to switch off Netflixs. Then Netflix had the bad fortune of messing up my account 2 weekends in a row. The first weekend rather than skip a movie in my queue for the next one, they instead shipped it from Denver, which took 3 days. Since I'd recently downgraded my account to 2 at a time, that meant I only got one movie that week. Then last weekend they were supposed to send me disk 1 and 2 in a series, instead disk 1 didn't ship and I got disk 2 on a Saturday and had to wait for disk one to arrive the next Tuesday. Sort of messed with my weekend. Since the Oscars are fast approaching and I have a lot of movies to watch before February 25, well, no time for incompetence here! I went online and checked out Blockbuster....

WOW! Is THIS a better plan! I'm paying the same money ($14.95) to have 2 movies out at a time, yet as soon as I signed up I was able to print out an e-coupon which I was able to redeem at the Blockbuster store for a free movie that night (I have a Blockbuster across the street from me). Also, as soon as I get my movies in the mail and I'm done with them, I can take them across the street the Blockbuster (same distance as going to the post office), hand them my movies and pick out 2 new ones right then. As soon as my movies are received at the mailing center they will send my next 2 movies on my queue out as well! Do you know what that means? No more running out of videos on a Saturday and having to wait until the following Wednesday for more. I'm going to give it a try...

What I'm enjoying about this situation is how Blockbuster has worked their brick and mortar stores into an advantage over a HUGE online business. Most of the major businesses have websites now, but very few are dominating over the online entities...I'm sure that online DVD rentals put the hurt to video stores, and at one point there was a rumor that the video store as we know it may eventually become extinct. Blockbuster managed to morph with the times, find the weakness in Netflix system and overcome it. When I cancelled my Netflix account they have an exit poll for you to take. Under the "reasons for leaving" one of the options was, "switching to Blockbuster online". I checked that one. If Blockbuster can make the delivery times to me at a reasonable speed, then this appears to be a much better program. Fairly novel for a brick and mortar to morph and overcome online such as Blockbuster seems to be doing.

If you have no Blockbuster store close to you, and you aren't that hung up on delivery speed, well, Netflix does have more titles than Blockbuster...If you are a movie watching fiend such as myself, well, then Blockbuster may very well be on to something. I'll keep you updated!

The Last Refuge For Scoundrels

I made a friend in Delaware last year when he wandered onto my blog via my post about the Second Hand Lions quote. Although this man waves the dreaded flag with the Elephant on it where his politics are concerned (I can barely utter the "R" word), I've found a great deal of symmetry between his views and mine. (I'm still trying to work out how that happened). Anyway, give this first in a two part series of articles by Ken Grant a read and tell me what you think.

The Last Refuge For Scoundrels

By Ken Grant
Samuel Johnson wrote, “Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.” While I have no doubt about the truth of that assertion during Mr. Johnson’s lifetime (1709-1784), I have to argue that Patriotism has been replaced as the refuge of last resort for just about everybody, not just scoundrels.

To properly identify this refuge, I’m going to attempt to coin a new term – “Childrenism” – as in “Childrenism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.”

So, if I’m going to have the audacity to create a new term, I guess I have to offer up a working definition. Let’s try this one on for size:

child-ren-ism noun (2007) 1: any attempt to restrict personal freedom, infringe on public liberties, or forward an agenda “for the children” 2: any use of the rhetorical question “what about the children?” to justify a weak argument 3: filler

Be honest, how many times have you listened to, or even engaged in, an exchange of ideas and you’ve heard the person proposing something truly pathetic – or even abhorrent – as being an absolute necessity “for the sake of the children”? By the way, when you say “for the sake of the children”, “What about the children?” or any other phrase associated with childrenism, you must do so with an extremely earnest expression on your face and in your voice – you know, almost whine it out of your very being.

One of the most common uses of childrenism is in the realm of censorship and broadcasting. We’ve all heard the conversation:

Self-Appointed Moralist: You have to sign this petition to the FCC! We have to make sure that these radio stations keep their language clean and stop making crude jokes!

Free-Market Advocate: Um, if you don’t like what they’re broadcasting, why don’t you just switch to another station – I mean, I’m not interested in listening to some of this stuff, either, so I just don’t listen.

Self-Appointed Moralist: Well, yes, you and I can do that – But What About the Children?

That’s it, end of discussion, thank you for playing, you can pick up your parting gift at the door.

Now let’s go into something a little meatier.

I have two teen-aged children attending a local public school. Recently there were two incidents, one involving some girls taking over-the-counter cough medicine to get high, the other involving a student bringing a starter pistol to school.

The school administration and PTA held a meeting with parents to discuss these incidents and address any questions or concerns we parents had. As you can imagine, there was much more of a focus on the gun incident than the cough medicine. Personally, I found the administration’s approach and answers to be informative, forthcoming, and reasonable.

Then, it happened. One of the other parents started asking about the possibility of installing metal detectors in the school. That’s right, metal detectors in a middle school in Newark, Delaware.

And why would we need metal detectors in a middle school in Newark? Why, for the sake of the children!

Like I said, I’m a parent. I have two children attending this school. If this school were to install metal detectors, it is somewhere in the realm of possibility that at some point a student brining a gun into the school could be stopped and my children would be safer. If I oppose this idea, then am I saying that I would rather my children live with that risk hanging over their heads?

Yes, I am willing to put them at risk of physical harm. I would rather have them live with that risk than be trained and conditioned to sacrifice their freedom for some added sense of security. And yes, I’m willing to fight for the rights of every broadcast radio and television station to air whatever they think the market will bear even if it means my kids might happen to hear a few naughty words and an obnoxious shock jock once in a while.

Why? Why would I have this attitude? Why would I choose a course of action that could risk my children’s physical and mental health? Well, for starters I would rather they lived with a sense of freedom than a sense of security. I would rather they think for themselves than try to create a false world around them.

Yes, I am doing all of this for the children.

By the way, Samuel Johnson wrote something else, and this one remains true today and will most likely remain true until the end of time: “Hell is paved with good intentions.”

Ken Grant lives in Newark with his wife and two kids. He can be reached at ken.grant7@gmail.com

The Last Samurai, Grey's Anatomy & Other Stuff

Long time, no post, huh? Been busy...or maybe not in the mood, not sure which...:-) Anyway, enough about me, first thing: I watched The Last Samurai about 2 or 3 years behind everybody else. I must admit, in lieu of Tom Cruise going what appears to be mental lately, I've slipped off his band wagon a bit...the whole Matt Lauer, Brooke Shields thing didn't really work for me. HOWEVER, anybody who knows me at all knows I have an amazing power of forgiveness, and thus is the same with Tom Cruise. I actually think The Last Samurai is possibly the best work he's ever done...if nothing else it's one of the deepest charactors he's ever played. If you've never seen this, give it a watch, it's really good.

On the thumbs down category? 8 Below. That damned Disney...they've been pretty good about not ripping your guts out through your tear ducts with tragic animal stories as of late, but this one sure went back to the old Ol' Yeller, Bambi days of yore. Okay, I must admit, I watched the whole movie and it was very well done, but the STORY, oh my GOD!!!! That's a KIDS story? Come ON! If you haven't seen it, the gist is this scientist guide in Antarctica has a team of 8 sled dogs he is very, very attached to. Circumstances occur that mean the humans have to fly out without the dogs, however with intentions to come back and get them within 24 hours before the storms set in. Since they don't want them to run off, they crank their collars down so they can't get loose and leave them on the chain. Well, of course circumstances work out as such that they can't go back and get them, and the poor frost bitten guide has to live with the fact his dogs are most likely starving to death on a tether in Anarctica with no hope of making it in for 6 months. Not good. Poor guy tries to get back and can't...for several months.

In the meantime, we know that 7 of the 8 got off the chain, however, the old dog gave up and willed himself to die alone in the snow. Another of the 7 falls off a cliff and dies, and the female gets wounded but still lives. Is that brutal enough for you yet? LOL! I snuffled and bawled all the way through it, horrified by several different angles of this story.

Okay, in the end he gets the 6 back before the female dies as well and it's a happy cheerful ending...with the exception of the dead dog frozen in the snow from months previously...that's sort of a buzz kill, but other than THAT it's happy. Geez...I repeat, that's a KIDS movie? Okay...I guess that's why I don't have any kids, because I don't get it. If you want to cry until your guts hurt, well, 8 Below is your movie...if not, leave that one on the shelf and go for Cars instead. :-)

Last thing, Grey's Anatomy sure is everything the buzz makes it out to be. Again my Netflix subscription pays off in my ability to slog through the entire series of DVD just in time to pick up Season 3 on network. Great charactor relationships, great soundtrack and yes, lots and lots of man candy...lots of it. I will have to admit that although I remember Patrick Dempsey as the dork in Can't Buy Me Love, he nonetheless does it for me as McDreamy...and McSteamy isn't hard on the eyes either...not at all.

And, see ya for now!

Several Examples of "CAN"

My nephew Ray Walser had one hell of a football game.

"High school sophomores can't start varsity games, and if they do they can't lead a team of older team mates to a difficult victory".

Really? Go read this article: Ray's Game

Lately I've made some choices in my life that other's are having a difficult time understanding; I quit a long term steady job to pursue a freelance writing endeavor, I've decided to sell my home and move out of the state where I've lived my entire life and into a community where I literally know nobody. Honestly, I don't understand everything I'm doing either, I just know that a voice inside me tells me this is what I should do, and for the first time in a really long time I feel inspired.

Over the course of my long train of decisions, ideas, endeavors I've noticed more and more how I hear what I can't do, why I shouldn't attempt this or that, how I haven't considered what could go wrong in enough depth. I CAN'T sell my house in this stagnant market, "nothing can be done", I CAN'T write a book manuscript about the homeless because it's been done too many times before and nobody will want to read it, I CAN'T move into another state and expect to find a job that will support me in the manner I have visualized because my college education and pending MBA isn't going to make that big of a difference. I CAN'T believe that at 40 I still have time or a chance to experience a lifelong love I've always known was there for me but wasn't quite ready for previously. The people want to know, "Where's my proof?" The only proof I have is a feeling deep down inside.

Since I have no personal doubts about what I'm doing I've been trying to muscle through and keep the faith with myself. The problem is it recently occurred to me that I'm not sure where the folks are who tell me, "You CAN, and you WILL...anything is possible if you want it badly enough". Once upon a time those people seemed to be everywhere, but as of late they've been virtually non-existent. And honestly I will have to admit that many cannots really CAN make things much harder than they need to be.

So from there I pondered, do I tell people what they can't do? Actually....no. I listen to what they tell me they'd like to do, I weigh how much research it sounds like they have put into it, and then I wish them the best. No, I'm not a saint by any measure, but I am NOT a "cannot"...that I can say. So, the thing for folks reading this to consider is, "Are YOU a cannot?" If you are, then you should attempt to contemplate why that is? Why are you telling others what they can't do when it would take the same amount of time to tell them what they can? Is it because you attempted the same thing and it didn't work out for you, therefore you figure it won't work for anybody? Or is it because they are attempting things you wish you had the courage to try so you subconsciously (or consciously) shoot them down to make yourself feel less stagnated? Is what Ray accomplished likely? No. That's not the point, the point is that it's fairly apparent that the part Ray left behind that night are all the reasons why he "cannot" do things, and look what happened.

To end this impromptu sermon by Denise, here's another link about what CAN be done if you don't listen to what everybody else tells you is possible. A friend of mine sent this to me and after reading it I became inspired to make this post. Sports Illustrated Article.

In these times more than ever, everybody can tell themselves in their heads what they doubt they can do, or what they can't; we all seem to be pretty good at that. I believe the kindest thing we can do for each other is to make a point to ENCOURAGE each other, rather than shoot down, and help people do better rather than hold them back via your own worries.

Edge the Cat's Bad Day

This is Edgy "The Edge"....Edgy has had a tough week...I'd been gone at my folk's for a week and left Edge with the sitter. When I came home he had an impressive case of the squirts that he was getting everywhere in my house I'm trying to keep clean and fresh for prospective buyers...So, Edge spent the first night in the puppy's carrier in which he yowled all night. I eventually scooted him into the laundry room where I couldn't hear him yowl. He not only yowled, he dumped his water in the litter box, which created kitty litter paste and then he rolled in it...Edgy was not looking good (or smelling good). I realize I should have kept him in, but I couldn't take it, so he went outside to hopefully clean himself up while he remembered how to make solid terds, not squirts. LOL! Well, every time Edge came in he didn't really look any cleaner...he did leave a terd in the litter box, so that got him off quarantine, but he still looked and smelled terrible. About the 5th time I was watching TV, smelled this horrible smell (again) and realized it was because Edge had walked over to me and wanted to sit in my lap, well, Edge went in the bathtub. To be subtle about it? That is not how Edge was planning on spending his day....He threw a rather impressive fit. I've been at this long enough that no, he didn't win, but I will say he thru an impressive stink, and without scratching or biting me once....he may not smell his best or be very good at hygiene, but when you get right down to it, he is a pretty well mannered guy.

So, this picture is Edge post bathtub...I'm not sure, but I think he's giving me the kitty finger with merely a dirty look...What do you think? (I call that, "The Claw" since kitties don't have fingers....)

Top 10 Things That Make Me Angry

10. WWF. How fucking stupid is it, and even worse, how stupid are the people who watch it? I had to watch 5 minutes while I was waiting for B.G. on the SciFi channel, and this list came to mind. While we are at it, what does WWF even have to DO with SciFi geeks? Seems to me they would be intellectual, scrawny guys who don’t get laid much. Why would they be into wrestling? Extreme Strip Poker, okay…but not wrestling. Made no sense.

9. Coupons in the grocery store line. Okay, coupons are fine, but people who will haggle for 5 or 10 minutes over a nickel REALLY piss me off.

8. Mini van drivers who load up the van with everybody they know and then order food in the drive- thru lane. Not only do I get to wait for them to all decide what they want to eat, but then I get to wait for them to collect the money at the paying window, and I get to wait again for all the food to be gathered up and bagged and handed off. (Mini vans may appear in this countdown several times…) Added bonus? Van full of really FAT people, because then I can assume they are ordering an insane amount of food and the reason they are in the drive thru is because they are too fucking lazy to get out and go inside. Yes, I said FAT, but it’s like the N word and being black, I am one, so I can say it…if you aren’t, you can’t.

7. Businesses that don’t call me back in a reasonable amount of time. Any business I e-mail or contact by phone who doesn’t respond within a few days really chaps my ass.

6. Bad customer service. Period.

5. People who are apparently unaware that the far left lane of the freeway is for passing only. The guy who will sit there oblivious and create a huge backup of traffic really pisses me off. The crème de la crème of this group is the person who will STILL sit there after people manage to pass him one after the other in the center lane…get a CLUE! Oftentimes these drivers are in mini-vans.

4. People who text people from the movies with their annoying glowing LED lights on REALLY chap my ass.

3. People who will talk during concerts…just because the music is loud and they can’t hear themselves doesn’t mean that their constant yammering behind me doesn’t annoy the piss out of me.

2. People who smoke in doorways. In Washington you are technically not supposed to smoke within 25 feet of a public building…not so in Oregon. Once you walk thru the smoke then it sticks to your clothes and YOU smell like smoke. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I used to smoke, but you know what? I don’t now and I REALLY have no desire to smell anybody else’s.

1. And the Number 1 thing that chaps my ass? Hummers and Escalades (and any other insanely large SUV). To me when I see that with 2 people in it, it says, “I have a lot of money, therefore I don’t care what things cost, nor do I feel I have to worry about conserving resources….fuck the war...they'll find more oil somewhere else".

Ask Me About My WEINER!!!!!

This would win my vote for the FUNNIEST trailer bit of the year....I went and saw this movie tonight, and it was actually funnier than I expected. HOWEVER, this bit with the guy in the hotdog suit was definately the BEST part. Kudos to the actor for pulling this off so well!

John Stewart for President!!!!

As I'm sure it's inspired many people, that new movie with Robin Williams as the comedian who runs for president got me to thinking: John Stewart needs to run for president...I'd vote for him in a second...He should ride the publicity of the upcoming movie and run...could happen. A website where you can sign the petition is at http://www.petitiononline.com/Daily17/petition.html

Sign it...let's see what happens....

Taking Jesus Back

After Bush won the last election, and many of the people I know and associate with were stunned (to put it mildly) that the people actually DID that, a friend of mind made a quote I've never forgotten.

"They won the election by hijacking Jesus!"

As we all know now, that is EXACTLY what they did. The Republicans successfully outcampaigned the Democrats by portraying themselves as "God's people", and the other side was a bunch of liberal gay loving, science creating pagans who were going to all be reponsible for bringing on the next Armageddon. And Bush won.

I was as despondent as anybody....HOWEVER, two years ago on the Grammies I noticed a change: There was some form of "power to the people" or spiritual sense to almost every performance. The highlights were Green Day's performance of Amercian Idiot, which doesn't even beat around the bush on what it has to say, Kanye West's performance which was combined with the Staple Singers and a gospel choir and was intense, to say the least....Most of the performances had something to do with spirituality, hope or in some form Jesus...And I'm of the opinion that the Grammys are not really a "red state" crowd....That's when I noticed a change.

In my little 2 cent opinion, I think that the Religious Right zealots made it so "uncool" to be associated with Faith of any sort that the liberal people have all been "in the closet" from a Faith standpoint for several years. Everybody needs something to believe in, especially these days, but what are you going to do when the number one religion in the United States has somehow become associated with a war most people don't want, and a cabinet most Americans are ashamed of? Thus, the sudden popularity of New Age thinking and more importantly, people ADMITTING they believe that way. Virtually EVERYBODY believes in a higher power of some sort; even a friend of mine who proclaimed herself an Athiest feared "bad karma". I don't want to break it to her, but Karma is a result of a Higher Power making judgement calls....she's not an athiest, but shhhhhh....:-)

My last post was about the series Lost...there are a lot of spiritual messages in there, and a blaring message I'm getting is "instinct over education" works best..."Instinct" in my opinion, is another word for Faith. The show has a huge message, actually MANY of them, and it's wildly popular...I just finished slogging thru the Season 1 DVD set of Battlestar Gallactica. Boy, is that different from the old version I must say...Right away I pegged that the Cylons had obviously been programmed by the Bush cabinet to believe what they were doing is right, the rest of the world are sinners, and there is only one way things are and that is the Cylon way. They had even successfully programmed themselves so that if the body vessel they were in died, the programming would radio wave itself to another recepticle. They'd created "Eternal Life". Initially, the Battlestar Gallactica human survivors were scoffing at the whole angle of higher power and faith...BUT, as the series progressed, a belief set amongst the humans began to surface as well. Towards the end of the season an entire "Biblical story" had been created that was loosely based on the Old Testament, and the crew of Gallactica are following their quest to fulfill an ancient prophecy and find the planet known as Earth. The Gallactica folks are going to survive with "help from God". And the show is wildly popular...

I LOVE that!!! Maybe a lot of it is subconciously, but the new thinkers vs. the old thinkers is becoming a more even battle. It's not that we don't believe in God, it's that we are disgusted with how God's word has been contorted and twisted to serve other's financial and political gains. Most of the decent people I know want nothing to do with that....however, those same people have also realized they are unwilling to give up their belief set in the name of disassociation and are fighting back via the best media: Art. Jesus was hi-jacked, but we've put on the black leotards and the face paint and we've sneaked in and hustled him out of jail in the middle of the night! That's the most hopeful thing EVER!

U2 has been doing this for YEARS...open spirituality despite whether it was cool to express it or not is something they've been masters of. On the Vertigo Tour they sold out EVERY arena they played in minutes...not days, minutes. EVERYWHERE. Name another band in the world that can do that? There isn't one. When The Stones come to PDX, tickets are available for several weeks; when McCartney came, tickets were available for several days...U2 sold out in 10 minutes or less. Why can they do that? The feeling. The U2 fans who have gone to dozens of shows and will go to several performances every tour know exactly what I'm talking about: The feeling. At a U2 show there is a spirituality and a commeraderie amongst the fans that is unlike anything else I've ever felt. Despite what is going on in the world at the time, at a U2 concert you are allowed to feel whatever you'd like without feeling guilty for the pleasure for a couple of hours. THAT is their draw; all the fans out there know exactly what I'm talking about, the folks who have yet to go think I'm dilluded. That's okay. As I mentioned above, there are now a LOT of ways to exercise your belief set through the Arts these days...And that speaks a much brighter picture for the outlook of the world if you ask me.

The message Jesus gave was great, "Do unto others, love each other, turn the other cheek". He was the original hippy, without the tie dye and the joint...And what he had to say WAS good. To quote The Edge, "I'm cool with Jesus Christ....it's a lot of Christians I have a problem with". Amen brother, Amen....

Lost...Possibly the Best Television Show EVER!

Okay, I am an admitted fighter of fads; I was the last one to listen to Alanis Morrissette- Jagged Little Pill and Hootie and the Blowfish-Cracked Rearview, but yes, when I did listen to them I had to say, "Wow! Those are really great albums...where have I been?" I don't get sucked into a lot of the television shows...I'm virtually finished with reality TV; I will still watch the occassional American Idol episode or Rockstar Supernova, but for the most part I've nixed all that as well. I like to watch a couple of the CSIs (Grissom is a god among men so far as I'm concerned...he's that legend we single women are always seeking: the intelligent male. Most of us see that as the Unicorn, the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot: they may exist, but we've never seen them first hand yet...Haven't given up hope though!!!!!), Criminal Minds and Medium...other than that, not much regular TV for me.

So, being a Netflix subscriber I got the season 1 Lost dvd's awhile back...I sat there in my living room for virtually 12 hours straight watching that...Picture me, glassy eyes, slack jawed with a little drool trail running down the side of my mouth; looked like a mental patient on Thorazine...couldn't get enough!!!! Finally Season 2 came out and I just finished watching the last of that last night. What an AMAZING show this is!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is the most hopeful thing I think I've ever seen in my life. I know everybody's take and interpretation on it is different, but what I got from Season 1 is that the show is very much about teaching that we all need to learn to forgive ourselves for our past sins and shortcomings. Also, that we all need to allow ourselves to think outside the box and trust what we feel over what we've been taught. Locke and Jack represent opposites sides of the spectrum on that; Locke has been screwed time and time again for believing in the greater good, yet he is STILL attempting to continue to believe in just that. Jack has a hard time believing in anything that can't be explained by science, yet things keep happening on the island that even he can't completely deny.

Season 2 took us deeper into the charactors: Is Sawyer really a bad guy? No...Sawyer has yet to forgive himself, so he acts as he does to punish himself by being hated by his peers. When Anna Lucia was shot Sawyer showed his true heart: he's a good person. Locke's faith was tested and he called it out: turns out that what Locke believed in all along was NOT a lie and the work he was doing was NOT for naught...Rose could feel that her husband wasn't dead...turned out a season later that Rose was right...Even though everybody thought she was disraught from the crash, seems what Rose's heart told her was true. Mr. Eco is an incredibly interesting charactor as well...I look forward to more of him in season 3.

This show is impossible to describe in a blog post, but I did feel it at least merited an effort. If you haven't seen it before, then you should go rent the DVD's and check it out. I think it's a Love/hate sort of thing...if you don't get hooked on the pilot, the show isn't going to be for you...I don't think you have to let it grow on you, I think it gets you or it doesn't. Well, I'm not easy to get to, but this got me...I recommend it to anybody who questions their own heart or belief set or direction....Maybe anybody who just can't figure out "what next" or "what do I deserve"....I think there's a little bit for everybody in here if you need some personal affirmation. It worked for me.

Farewell Crocodile Hunter...You Will Be Missed...

Along with the rest of the world, I was stunned to read that Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter had been killed by a Stingray. Who hasn't immitated Steve on his show picking up some horrible venemous snake and yelling in that thick Aussie accent, "It's the most dangerous snake in the WORLD!!!!! Isn't he a BEAUTE???????!!!" We've all done that.

My first thought when I heard how he'd died? I'll bet if Steve could comment on it, he would say, "Can't ask for a better exit than THAT mate!" He allegedly died peacefully, doing exactly what he loved to do...Although his death is extremely premature and tragic, at the least we can say that he did die on his own terms, doing what he loved to do.

The best of human nature seems to surface in the face of a tragedy; hopefully in this case that will ring true as usual. With Irwin gone, a strong voice of advocacy for the animal kingdom has now been silenced. Hopefully Steve's legacy will be 1,000's of new voices piping up to carry on where he was forced to leave off.

On behalf of the animal kingdom as a whole, I would like to say, "Thanks Steve! You made a difference, and you will be missed."

My Coexist Tattoo...Finally...

Got this Bono inspired tattoo a couple of weeks ago....I don't have my other tattoo posted because I don't want it copied; this one however I think EVERYBODY needs to have one drilled on. Isn't that the most important message: Quit blowing the asses off each other and get along!!!! I think it's a good message.

Bless you Bono!

Be Kind To Canvassers....

Okay, I had an interesting couple of weeks: I attempted doing a little cavass work for the Gifford Pinchot Task Force ( www.gptaskforce.org ). It's a great organization doing extremely noble work. The problem is that work requires going door to door and attempting to get people to listen to what you have to say and THEN write you a check to sign up for a membership. Honestly, considering my less than warm reception with door to door people in the past I'd imagine I should be surprised I got as many people to sign up as I did...I did okay. Others on that team do even better, with people routinely giving $50 to $100 at the door. That speaks well for some people I must say.

The downside? The people that listen and the people that give are about 1 in every 30 doors or so...inbetween those givers there can be some REAL S.O.B.'s, if I do say so myself. But the extreme S.O.B.'s aren't even the worst part; the worst part are the people who listen to what you say and then tell you that they appreciate what you are doing, keep it up, but they are not going to join anything like that ever. THOSE are the people who can suck the life right out of you...The final straw for me was a middle aged lady in a nice neighborhood with a brand new BMW in her driveway. She told me that it was her policy not to speak with anybody who comes to her door or calls on her phone for ANY reason; however, she likes what I'm doing and I should keep it up. She went on to add she wasn't going to listen to anything I had to say, but she appreciated me nonetheless......That was my last door as a canvasser. What sort of horse shit is THAT?!!!!

Although I'm no longer going to pound the pavement knocking on doors, what did I learn from this? I will NEVER be rude to somebody who has the courage to come knock on my door with a cause they consider worthy, I will buy candy bars from little kids on fundraisers, and I will even listen to the Mormons...(well, maybe I'll listen to the Mormons)

It's all hard work, and it takes incredible courage to do it. The next time somebody knocks on your door with a cause they want to tell you about, listen to them...if it sounds worthy, give them some money...even if it's just a few bucks. It's not about the money, it's about the courtesy, respect and common decency we should ALL have towards somebody who is working to try and make the planet a better place.