"you think you're radical, but you're not so radical"

I am constantly frustrated by the amount of waste Americans produce. In fact, it disgusts me! I am by no means perfect and still think I produce far too much waste, but I am trying to make an effort to reduce. I guess what really annoys me the most is that in an era of change people make no effort at all. Things like recycling and composting require next to no effort! Go ahead, make remarks about how a lot of our recycling gets thrown away, and it has or can, but really its no wonder! Recyling can't compete with waste (here in America anyway). We are severly lacking the infrastructure. We were set up for failure early in life because our market was based on comsumerism. If you have not seen the Story of Stuff you should jump on it. Its a quick show on production and consumtion in the US that will really opens your eyes!

My own parents cook enough food to feed an army every night and rarely eat the leftovers. Not too mention we have enough food in our freezer, fridge, pantry to last us a month without shopping... which means fruits and veggies go bad, bread molds, and cereal gets stale. So next time you are shopping (go European) buy only what you need, please! Food waste is only one type, and if you do not care at all about the earth at least try to save some money (in the food department).

I hope I am not imagining things when I dream about Lesotho. My picturesque world where everyone uses every resource available to them and wastes very little. Oh it warms my heart!

"You can never get enough of what you don't need to make you happy." (Eric Hoffer)

You aren't bugging me!

The other night when I went to climb into bed this awesome bug
was crawling on my wall. Bugs do not bother me one bit. I think they are fascinating, especially ants. As you can imagine I was on a high because this awesome bug chose my room as a resting place. While I do not mind bugs I did not want to wake up with this guy crawling on my face, they are much preferred in their natural environment. Search and Rescue was in order. Naturally because I did the searching, C.A. was there for rescue. He caught the bug and took him outside where he belongs. When I say rescue I truly mean to save from confinement, danger, and evil. I do not understand how people can go around squashing these harmless little creatures.
"Kill the flies and you starve the cats" (Unknown)

Bring on the rain

There is nothing more motivating and exciting to me than a good thunderstorm! When it rains I am forced inside to tasks that are less than thrilling: finishing up a good book, going through my clothes, or catching up on sleep. Thunderstorms are one of the few things in life that actually slow me down. They transform me into a dreamer! I see myself drinking coffee (yuck) and reading thought provoking books (scary) on an oversized chair with the window open and my ears tuned to the sound of nature! Oh ideal life, come soon.

I always have thought it was so ironic how in the thunderstorms of nature we are often cool, calm, and collected but in the storms of life we are distressed, full of emotion, and put our minds on overdrive. A couple of my friends are going through difficult times right now. The way I see it is storms are always for the better... whether providing water for our plants or giving us time to reflect and re-evaluate.

Sweet Neighbor

My neighbor heard through the grapevine I like sun-dried tomatoes (and she has probably heard how much I love cooking too) so when she was cooking dinner the other night, she made a little extra for me! I am so appreciative of the delicious meal I received on H leftover night. She is so sweet anyways... but this was noteworthy. I was not sick nor am I in need, yet she still went out of her way. As naturally self-centered human beings it's nice to be a witness (and beneficiary!!!) of the generosity of others. This was a good reminder to reach out and lend a hand, whether it be to someone in need, a total stranger, or a friend.

Thanks Sweet N.J.M.

"Don't wait for people to be friendly, show them how" (author unknown)

Star UNstruck

Instead of asking me if I wanted to go see a Beach Boys concert my parents asked me if I wanted to go see Mike Love perform. Sure, who is that? was my response. Only the lead singer of the Beach Boys. Maybe as someone who is relatively in touch with the music scene I should have known this, although I am sure I do not stand alone in not knowing who Mike Love is, in my age class anyways. Probably more striking is the fact that I did not know who John Stamos was. I played it cool as I watched everyone freak out until C.A. finally mentioned Uncle Jesse. It was only then I realized it was one of the stars of Full House (ER, General Hospital, etc.) all the excitement was about. As an extreme Full House fan in my time I had no idea what Uncle Jesse's real name was.

This past weekend was full of celebrities, from David Beckham and the LA Galaxy to Mike Love and the Beach Boys. I am going to be honest though, celebrities are not at all impressive to me! They live extremely undesirable lives! It is not that they do not accomplish a lot during their time or that they do not do anything to better the world. It is more the fact that they are constantly being watched, judged, and followed. There is absolutely no privacy! It is a little weird we have these obsessions with people we do not even know. I am not going to tell you it was not fun backstage meeting them, having our pictures taken, and singing on stage... but a part of me felt so awkward. I am confident they are used to this behavior but still...

I appreciate celebrities entertaining me on television, enjoying an occasional movie, and I am definitely thankful when they produce good music. I just do not care to stalk them in US Weekly or People or any other celebrity gossip column. I am not interested in where they live or how they chose to live. Do not ask me for help identifying them. I can't tell you Halle Berry from Angelina Jolie. And if I was forced to pick a favorite celebrity, it would be Katie Couric! Now if we are talking about sports celebrities that is a-whole-nother story. I probably would have been stoked if I got to play baseball with Jeff Francoeur, get an autographed football from Bo Schembechler, or have my picture taken with Tony Gonzalez!

A friend of a friend, Mike Love

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go to a Beach Boys concert.  While the Beach Boys are no where near one of my top favorite groups, I thought it would be an experience and it was.  On top of having seventh row tickets to the show we got to go back stage and meet Mike Love, have our pictures taken, and get some autographs.  Lets face it, the guy could be my grandpa so I was really intrigued by the idea of a 68 year old man singing and dancing his heart out on stage.  He did not disappoint!  He is such an entertainer and puts on a really fun show.  If you do not mind being hit in the head with beach balls for two hours I think anyone could enjoy the show.  

To add to all the "excitement" it turns out John Stamos is a huge fan of the Beach Boys.  I guess I should have known that after all my years of being a Full House fan.  Anyways, he had the day off so he drove down from New York to Virginia to accompany the group.  You can just tell how much fun he has performing with the group.  Of course, we also got to meet him (and have more pictures taken)!    

During "Barbara Ann" we got to sing and dance on stage with the Canadian keyboard player.  That was probably the best part of the whole afternoon!  The fact that there is no sound on stage plus not knowing the lyrics made it a laughable experience!  Who knew Mike Love was a friend of a friend of pops?  Thanks Beach Boys for all you did for us!   

"All you need is a cool head and a warm heart" (Mike Love)

D.C. United

Last night as the rained came down on all the fans and players, C.A. and I lived the high life!  We enjoyed the D.C. United game under the shelter of the VW Lounge; free drinks, free food, & nice clean bathrooms.  It's pure bliss!  However, there are two things I can't quite wrap my head around when enjoying the games and all the benefits of the lounge.  First and foremost, Volkswagen sponsors D.C. United.  Does anyone else think it is ironic that a foreign company sponsors the capitol of the United States soccer team?  My other confusion pertains to the food served in the lounge.  I am not complaining, its free, but they serve German food cooked by Americans for Americans.  It is not that there are no Germans working in America for Volkswagen, but the large majority are American.  It just seems a little off... so veggie burgers please!   

As much as we all love D.C. United, most of the fans were gathered to watch David Beckham and Landon Donovan.  After watching countless soccer games of my brothers, M.E.C., and the Kansas City Wizards, even playing a few games myself I have a general appreciation of the sport.  The final score of last nights game was 0-0.  There is something to said about a competitive sport where no one scores or the score ends in a tie with no actual winner.  If nothing else, the fact that these players run up to ten miles in a single 90 minutes game is impressive.  There game requires them to be patient and sharp among other things; super fast (especially Donovan), agile, aware of their surroundings, quick on there feet, competitive, and in incredible shape.  While soccer is by no means my favorite sport, I am mesmerized by the sport.