good point

We can blame big corporations, but we're mostly making this bargain with ourselves. The easier it is for us to get great deals, the stronger the downward pressure on wages and benefits.
-excerpt from Don't Blame Wal-Mart (NY Times)

"i don't wanna sleep in the little house!"

this wked was perhaps the most enjoyable time i have had thus far in dc. a few main points:

-lebanese food. i don't know if all restaurants are as good as the one we went to, but it was Amazing.
-"ALABAMA MANNN!"
-i ripped my pants while dramatically falling to the kitchen floor.
-heather gave me a lapdance.
-the jlo jeans serve me well.
-i made brownies.
-navy boys invaded.

here's a random heinous quiz:
Your Seduction Style: Siren / Rake

You possess an unbridled sensuality that appeals to many.
The minute you meet anyone, you can make the crave you almost immediately.
You give others the chance to lose control with you... spiraling into carnal bliss.
A dangerous lover, you both fascinate and scare those you attract.

What Is Your Seduction Style?

and here's an amusing story.
when mandy was a little gal, her father was putting her little brother into his baby swing. he didn't get him in well enough, and her brother fell & bumped his head. they had to take him to the hospital, but their father was having a hard time with it because she kept screaming, "daddy killed my baby brother! he killed him!"

for those of you who aren't up on the dc jive: meg is my roommate. heather is from school and in The Program. mandy lives on my floor and is a republican.

oh, and speaking of which, i got a new pin:
friends don't let friends vote republican
wahaha

(pictures to hopefully follow)

i love you, toothpaste

jlo wants us all to just get right already

but duuuude, it's about dinosaurs!

work has been a bit bahhhh lately. i'm having a hard time being an overachiever in a chronically underappreciated role.

tonight was WIN's young women's achievement awards, which was nice if only for 1- the free champagne, and 2- the chance to talk to someone else who feels the same way. it makes it hard to support the cause when those you're working with seem just as capable of being bitchy and full of themselves as any daddy's little princess i've ever encountered. don't get me wrong, there are good ppl working there as well, and everyone works hard. i don't want anyone reading this and getting discouraged by the movement. all i'm saying is, the way you treat 'the little people' definitely has more of an impact than those supposedly on top may realize. remember that next time you're looking down.

oh, and then there's housing which i am completely underreacting to. WHERE AM I LIVING NEXT YEAR????? BAHHHHHHH << a more appropriate reaction at this point. meanwhile, i'm hiding out in the computer lab and what looks like an 8 yr old has just come in to join me.

"hey little buddy... whaaaat's happenin'?"

and now...
THE TOP 13 MOST USED LIES (cynical?)

13. The check is in the mail.

12. You get this one, I'll pay next time.

11. You look great.

10. Of course I love you.

9. It's not the money, it's the principle of the thing.

8. ...but we can still be good friends.

7. Don't worry, were not lost -- I KNOW where I'm going.

6. In this car, I can always go another 20 miles when the gauge is on "empty."

5. Don't worry, he's never bitten anyone.

4. I'll call you later.

3. I've never done anything like this before.

2. I'm from your government, and I am here to help you.

1. I DO

fun with itunes... allegedly

Body: How many total songs?
1515 songs 4 days 5 hours

Sort by Song Title - first and last?
first - "'39" - Queen
last - "Zombie" - Cranberries

Sort by Time - first and last?
first - "Horn Intro" - Modest Mouse
last - "Street Official Mix Tape, Volume 1" - Various Artists

Sort by Album - first and last?
first - 80s hits - Various Artists
last - Zauber Der Klassik - Ludwig van Beethoven

Sort by Artist - first and last?
first - 10,000 Maniacs
last - Zwan

Find "sex," how many songs show up? - 12

Find "death," how many songs show up? - 3

Find "love," how many songs show up? - 129

Find "peace", how many songs show up? - 1

...deep breaths...

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered; Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway.
If you are successful you will win some false friends and true enemies; Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous; Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God; It was never between you and them anyway.

-Mother Teresa

no more pineapple under the sea?

oh man, thanks bill. thanks a million.

<3 bill + spongebob = BFF <3

ya got to live what ya sayyyy

awh, there was a reason for this showing of vday love:


(senator boxer yo)

ha, and probably a fun reason for this one as well...

Abduction Precautions for Women

courtesy of jules, pass it on to the ladies in your life

1. Tip from Tae Kwon Do: The elbow is the strongest point on your body. If you are close enough to use it, do!

2. Learned this from a tourist guide in New Orleans. If a robber asks for your
wallet and/or purse, DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM. Toss it away from you....chances are that he is more interested in your wallet and/or purse than you, and he will go for the wallet/purse. RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION!

3. If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car, kick out the back tail lights and stick your arm out the hole and start waving like crazy. The driver won't see you, but everybody else will. This has saved lives.

4. Women have a tendency to get into their cars after shopping, eating, working, etc., and just sit (doing their checkbook, or making a list, etc. DON'T DO THIS!) The predator will be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in on the passenger side, put a gun to your head, and tell you where to go. AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR, LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

5. A few notes about getting into your car in a parking lot, or parking garage:
A.) Be aware: look around you, look into your car, at the passenger side floor, and in the back seat.
B.) If you are parked next to a big van, enter your car from the passenger door. Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the women are attempting to get into their cars.
C.) Look at the car parked on the driver's side of your vehicle, and the passenger side. If a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back into the mall, or work, and get a guard/policeman to walk you back out. IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY. (And better paranoid than dead.)

6. ALWAYS take the elevator instead of the stairs. (Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot).

7. If the predator has a gun and you are not under his control, ALWAYS RUN! The predator will only hit you (a running target) 4 in 100 times; And even then, it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ. RUN!

8. As women are always trying to be sympathetic: STOP. It may get you raped, or killed. Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good-looking, well educated man, who ALWAYS played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women. He walked with a cane, or a limp, and often asked "for help" into his vehicle or with his vehicle, which is when he abducted his next victim.

9. Another Safety Point: Someone just told me that her friend heard a crying baby on her porch the night before last, and she called the police because it was late and she thought it was weird. The police told her "Whatever you do, DO NOT open the door." The lady then said that it sounded like the baby had crawled near a window, and she was worried that it would crawl to the street and get run over. The policeman said, "We already have a unit on the way, whatever you do, DO NOT open the door." He told her that they think a serial killer has a baby's cry recorded, and uses it to coax women out of their homes thinking that someone dropped off a baby. He said they have not verified it, but have had several calls by women saying that they hear baby crying outside their doors, when they're home alone at night. This e-mail should probably be taken seriously because the Crying Baby theory was mentioned on America's Most Wanted this past Saturday when they profiled the serial killer in Louisiana.

ohhh the things i find at work...

You Are the Very Gay Tinky Winky!

Purple with a gay pride symbol... how could he not be gay? And that red purse is divalicious!

What Gay Childhood
Icon Are You?

em is coming to visit on saturday =O & i love veggie cream cheese. that is all.

If you asked me what I came into this world to do, I will tell you:
I came to live out loud.

-Emile Zola-

ooh, haven't gone there in a while...

You scored as Intrapersonal. You prefer your own inner world, you like to be alone, and you are aware of your own strengths, weaknesses, and feelings. You learn best by engaging in independent study projects rather than working on group projects. People like you include entrepreneurs, philosophers and psychologists. The Rogers Indicator of Multiple Intelligences created with QuizFarm.com

cute, and yet terribly reflective of our capitalistic values at the same time. hooray for hallmark holidays:

David Holder had a sign decorated with pictures of his girlfriend that read: "Help Please, In Love ... Need $$$ for Ring!"

Holder's water jug held $80 on Wednesday, but his luck took a turn for the worse, and the better, after a Chicago radio station advertised his plight on Thursday...

for the ladies

ya know when you have an outfit that just makes you stop and check yourself out?

oh yes. these are the simple pleasures in life. boots, i love you. i'm not so sure as to how i feel about the 40 yr old men i pass on my way to the office who love you as well, but you can't help that. you are divine.

ladies, dress up once in a while. strut. skirts make you feel frilly, and if nothing else, you get a fiiine breeze.

yes, i know, list of things that were uncalled for. but hey, this wouldn't be a post from moi if there weren't.


OH NO? CAN I STILL BE A FEMINIST???!!1! the saga continues...

Who Knew?

it must have been a great holiday for these lovebirds alright...

if life were a movie, this realization would have brought them to heartfelt tears.

way to go, real life.

this would be illegal in jersey

ps

this DISGUSTS me. bahhh... kids, get with the program.

U.S. students say press freedoms go too far

Mon Jan 31, 7:20 AM ET

By Greg Toppo, USA TODAY

One in three U.S. high school students say the press ought to be more restricted, and even more say the government should approve newspaper stories before readers see them, according to a survey being released today.

The survey of 112,003 students finds that 36% believe newspapers should get "government approval" of stories before publishing; 51% say they should be able to publish freely; 13% have no opinion.

Asked whether the press enjoys "too much freedom," not enough or about the right amount, 32% say "too much," and 37% say it has the right amount. Ten percent say it has too little.

The survey of First Amendment rights was commissioned by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and conducted last spring by the University of Connecticut. It also questioned 327 principals and 7,889 teachers.

The findings aren't surprising to Jack Dvorak, director of the High School Journalism Institute at Indiana University in Bloomington. "Even professional journalists are often unaware of a lot of the freedoms that might be associated with the First Amendment," he says.

The survey "confirms what a lot of people who are interested in this area have known for a long time," he says: Kids aren't learning enough about the First Amendment in history, civics or English classes. It also tracks closely with recent findings of adults' attitudes.

"It's part of our Constitution, so this should be part of a formal education," says Dvorak, who has worked with student journalists since 1968.

Although a large majority of students surveyed say musicians and others should be allowed to express "unpopular opinions," 74% say people shouldn't be able to burn or deface an American flag as a political statement; 75% mistakenly believe it is illegal.

The U.S. Supreme Court (news - web sites) in 1989 ruled that burning or defacing a flag is protected free speech. Congress has debated flag-burning amendments regularly since then; none has passed both the House and Senate.

Derek Springer, a first-year student at Ivy Tech State College in Muncie, Ind., credits his journalism adviser at Muncie Central High School with teaching students about the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech, press and religion.

Last year, Springer led a group of student journalists who exposed payments a local basketball coach made to players for such things as attending practices and blocking shots. The newspaper also questioned requirements that students register their cars with the school to get parking passes.

Because they studied the First Amendment, he says, "we know that we can publish our opinion, and that we might be scrutinized, but we know we didn't do anything wrong."

new york, newwww yorkkkkk!

what up kiddles?! *list of things i promise to never say again*

so i got this message on myspace.com about an MTVu makeover show. this girl asked me if i'd be interest. hmm... somehow, i'm not sure if i should be insulted or not. and to be on mtv? ay, pop culture, engulf me. engulfff meeeee...

so yeah, i'm in nyc for the wked for rach & smarc's bday(s). it's been interesting to jump from one city to another. dc, i long for the clarity of your metro.

"seacrest, OUT!"

you can kick an old lady and feel bad, but that doesn't mean you're gay.
-yet another pearl of wisdom from the almighty benjamin

sorry mother earth

sitting in the lunch room, rocking some easy mac, my supervisor comes in. a woman who acts twice her age and seems as if she'll break apart if one were to tap her, our interactions generally leave me with a rather uncomfortable feeling.

hey dana... i've been meaning to talk to you about this...
my stories! uh oh, what did i do wrong?
i've noticed that you turn the light off when you leave the kitchen...
i stop chewing. yes?
while that's admirable, i think it's rather impractical for an office setting.
somewhat relieved, although a bit confused, i respond. yeah, i guess it's a compulsion.
yeah, i used to be like that, too... but i'll see you leave and then people come in 2 minutes later. just try not to do that.
and with that, she leaves. i am alone. bathed in flourescent light and alone.

yep, that *was* awkward.

research at work leads to some fun news alright

here's an interesting one:

Will UN Recognize 'Gay Kingdom'?

"married people make more money!"

a fellow intern to a guy on the metro:
excuse me, do you want to get married? i'm suddenly feeling like it would be a great thing to do

this comment inspired by the lovely new "marriage is great!" ads plastering the capital south station. HOT! i just love having conservative doctrine fed down my throat during my morning commute.