11.30.2004

What to buy, and where

Gorgeous beaded jewelry: www.yumichen.com Yumi is a French-trained pastry chef and accomplished violinist who turned to jewelry-making after a kitchen accident that left her temporarily unable to chef or fiddle, and her creations are beautiful and incredibly inexpensive. She uses the best materials, and has an amazing eye and design ethic. Buy early, buy often!!! Necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and did I mention great prices? You know you want to.... (Oh, and in case you're wondering, this is not a paid endorsement, but merely an aesthetic tip for you and yours.) UPDATE: Through Dec 31, 2004, all fabulousness at yumichen.com is 20% off, if you put in the discount code "holiday2004" at checkout. BUY STUFF!

Books: www.alibris.com This is a great site if you're a bibliophile or know one. Great used books, including out-of-print or hard to find titles, and a nice little feature where they'll e-mail you if books you want come into one of their network of sellers' stores.

Inexpensive yarn: www.smileysyarns.com Good cheap practice yarns, and some real bargain finds. Another good site is Elann, at https://secure.elann.com/frames.asp and I've heard good things about http://www.knitty.com

Clothing: www.jjill.com Go see. I won't need to say anything more. A little spendy, but their sales are truly boffo.

That's it. Spend money. It's the American way.


11.24.2004

Who I love (by way of being a "What I'm thankful for" list) -- Happy Thanksgiving -- give thanks!!

My darling adorable husband who is wonderful and I don't care if you think that's gushy

My personal family of which I am a member by birth (and I mean, love, almost without exception...jusssssst kidding)

The McB's

Amy, Will & Andrew, like crazy

Dawg & Diane & Botto

My girls in HR & Compliance

These boys: Russ, Scotty, Hermann, Wade, Mikaal, Rob, and Matty
These girls: Liz, Tanya, Molly, Rangana, and my imaginary friends on IM from Ocrisis

Babies.

11.11.2004

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!

Sure, it's true that I would probably not want the dad to read the blog, but it is nevertheless his birthday and should be noted. Not, perhaps, feted, because he hates birthday celebrations (and surprises, and fuss or to-do of any sort -- he must be so baffled by having a daughter like me, who lives for such things!), but noted, at minimum.

Oh, and happy Veterans' Day, and thank you to all veterans and current soldiers and sailors and their families for giving them up to serve for our country. (Dad's a veteran, too, so it's a double day for him.)

It's a funny thing: I'm not in favor of this preposterous exercise in Iraq, but I absolutely respect and admire and appreciate every single member of the rank and file who's over there. Thank you!!!



11.03.2004

What are you people THINKING?!?! ARE you thinking?!?!

Look, I can understand (a little) if you're a life-long Republican, casting your vote in a blue state where it doesn't much matter who you vote for. Ok? You didn't change anything; your state still ended up going to Kerry/Edwards. But you red-staters and Bush-supporters who refuse to acknowledge that the man (or at least the people he surrounds himself with and takes his cues from) is deeply flawed baffle me. Seriously. All 50-some million of you.

I believe that in this society, whatever the President's (or, more accurately, Karl Rove's) personal values and morals, they have no place dictating public policy or morality for the masses. Do you understand that with the debt now owed to the 4 million "evangelicals" with whom you voted, America is going to be a little bit of Hell on earth for anyone not married, white, and Christian, now? (Don't even get me started, by the way, on whether this voting bloc bears any resemblance whatsoever to anyone with true Christian values, because I'd have to start quoting passages about not judging lest ye be judged and the ones without sin being the ones entitled to cast stones, etc. -- and PLEASE don't tell me that any credence whatsoever should be given to the notion that born-again means you should not be held accountable for the things you did in your pre-saved life, 'cause I think that's absolutely unconscionable.)

There seems to me to be no such thing as "compassionate" conservatism. It's bunk. It's all about getting more, more, more, and screwing over the less-fortunate, and hoping noone's looking. I am as big a believer as anyone in working hard for what you get (and was raised by a single mother myself who never took a dime of money from anyone other than Dad, who was legally obligated to pay it monthly), but I do think noblesse oblige, and that there's no excuse for not lending a helping hand, within limits, sure, within reason, of course, but not kicking people off the welfare rolls without some sort of assessment, on a case-by-case basis or at least within narrower socio-economic bands of people than just wholesale....

Anyway, this is the point: do you want to live in a country where people are starving, and where we care more about fetuses than babies, and where measly checks for $600 to people who are already wealthy could bankrupt us as a NATION? (Please note that I got the check AND the "tax cut" but I'd give 'em both back and more if asked. That's what living in society is about.) Go overseas, and see what the dollar's doing, if you're curious as to whether the international community is bullish or bearish on W.

WAKE UP!

Oh, and last but not least: OMG OMG OMG, THE RED SOX WON THE SERIES! THE RED SOX WON THE SERIES! THE RED SOX WON THE SERIES, take THAT you lousy smug Yankee fans!!!!! (All right, all right, I don't mean Rob, who's had a hard week, but everyone else! Nyah!)