Oh what a world.

In a world where shrugging off responsibility for our actions and finding someone or something to blame for any unpleasantness that comes our way is in vogue, its a good thing the world has George W. Bush. Otherwise we might actually look at the housing market, the automobile industry, the financial institutions and any other industry looking for a bailout and figure out what went wrong. We might develop long-term solutions instead of quick fixes. We might have corporations with enough corporate, social and human responsibility to try to right the wrongs and build a better system instead of shifting the blame elsewhere and allowing someone else to assume the authority for fixing the problem. 

Home Sweet Home

After 4.5 months of living like a traveling gypsy minus the arm bracelets and jewel-toned attire, I've finally moved back home in to the house I once disliked, then out right despised but now love dearly. Absence and an uncountable amount of laborious hours truly does make the heart grow fonder.  

Casserole

I've come to think politics are a lot like casseroles, as long as you put a lot of delicious cheese on top, we dont' care what is on the inside, we'll digest it anyway and be happy we ate it. We'll never know it was stuffed with things we don't like.

Boot-Leggin'

After training hard and getting in the best shape of my life I've been derailed by the diagnosis of tendonititis and a 3 week prescription of boot-leggin. While this is minor in the grand ole scheme of things, in my life its sort of "big doings". While boot-leggin, I can not run, swim, bike, or do any of my usual activities which means several of the races in which I was to participate, ranging from the moderately easy pre-season duatahlons to the quasi die-hard nature of a half ironman, have all been wiped from my calendar. While ruining my training and racing schedule, said boot-let is also providing new bothersome pains in my hip, backs, shins and opposite ankle. So for the next few weeks I'll be subsisting on self-pity, my usual dose of sarcasm and a generous helping of anti-inflammatories. 

Irony

Irony is defined as a feminist working for an institution named MANship.

 

26.2

In life there are the day-to-day moments that collectively make up our lives and every so often we have one of those big moments of singular significance that help define who we are. Training for and running my first marathon was one of the later. Running, while always something I've enjoyed, became theraputic and somewhat spiritual post-hurricane. One pretty big tree through the roof derailed my hopes of doing a half-ironman triathalon in November, so I decided to take that training and all the stress and frustration of post hurricane living and put that into running with my sights set on finally training for that marathon that's been on the "to-do" list for numerous years. Last week, I competed and completed in my first marathon.  It was every bit as mentally and physically tough as I expected it to be, thus every bit as rewarding to cross the finish line. It was quite possibly the hardest thing I've done in my life thus far. Running alone for 26.2 miles, half of which your brain and body are saying "stop running - you're not going to make it" - the other half of which your brain and body are saying "you're going to make it - don't quit running", is quite an adventure, one that is a true test of strength and determination. It was a long, and often painful journey but worth every step. Will I do another??? All signs point to YES. 

branding or bullshit

In a world where the brand dictates the buy - where do we draw the line between branding and bullshit? We all have favorite brands that we identify with and show our approval of by making purchases. However, is there a point where the brand overcomes the product and thus crumbles, becomes less believable, less desirable to the audience? How much is too much? and are we only attracted to the pretty shiny things? Does substance have a say? all points to ponder....