Hey! You're writing is awesome, you are extremely talented. I am interested in getting in contact with you so that I can offer you an opportunity to get your writing/blogging out to a bigger audience. If you could e-mail me back as soon as possible that'd be awesome! Thanks so much :) My email is Jess@polynate.me >> I look forward to hearing from you! — Asked by jezzicasmith

Hi Jess,

Thanks for reachign out. I haven’t blogged in quite some time. I’m not really sure I’d be a good fit for anywhere at this point in my life. I guess it depends on the opportunity, so I’m willing to hear you out, but I am much busier these days than I was back when I was blogging more!

harvestheart: Desert Choreography ~  by Marsel van Oosten Outstanding!

harvestheart:

Desert Choreography ~  by Marsel van Oosten

Outstanding!

Cells and Cigs

So apparently cell phone usage can increase the risk of brain cancer, and could be as big a public health risk as smoking, asbestos and leaded gasoline, according the European Environmental Agency. Is it ironic that I learned of this via a CNN “breaking news” feed on my iPhone?

theworldwelivein: Great Sand Dunes, Colorado©  Zach Dischner

theworldwelivein:

Great Sand Dunes, Colorado
©  Zach Dischner

Your blog is algebraic — Asked by finnsblog1

Thanks?

Military spending vs. GDP

The defense budget of the United States is nearly 10 times bigger than the closest competitor. Just because we are the self-proclaimed global policeman doesn’t mean we can’t find ways to cut some significant fat. With an economic situation as dire as it is, everything better on the chopping block.

Who is ready for the madness?

thetickr:

In cased you missed it Washington’s Isaiah Thomas won the Pac-10 championship on Saturday with this ridiculous cross-over step back jumper as time expired in overtime. Gus Johnson had the call and as usual did not disappoint. COLD-BLOODED!

Not much of a comeback post…

Not much of a comeback post…

While fiction is but a form of symbolic action, a mere game of “as if,” therin lies its true function and its potential for effecting change. For at its most serious, just as is true of politics at its best, it is a thrust toward the human ideal.
Ralph Ellison, in the Introduction to Invisible Man. I am SO pumped to read this book!
When in doubt, post breathtaking pictures of Himalayan mountains. theworldwelivein: रहस्यमय नेपाल [Mysterious Nepal] on Photography Served

When in doubt, post breathtaking pictures of Himalayan mountains.

theworldwelivein:

रहस्यमय नेपाल [Mysterious Nepal] on Photography Served

… no sector anywhere has changed less than the state. California provides perhaps the starkest example. It contains the world’s most advanced industries, but it has one of the most useless governments on Earth, a mess of thousands of different-sized, overlapping and competing cities, districts and counties. The left has indulged the teachers’ unions, the right has built prisons with abandon. Politics is hopelessly partisan.
John Micklethwait, editor-in-chief of The Economist, sees California at the center of the upcoming struggle against Leviathon in 2011.
30% chance of snow…..

30% chance of snow…..

The Civil Wars (Johnny Depp?).

Oh, Texas…

Depressing and regressive legislation is nothing new in Texas. But the recent “emergency legislation” on mandatory sonograms for women seeking an abortion caught my eye. Here are some infuriating thoughts that immediately come to mind:

  1. Someone always pays, so who will pay for mandatory sonograms? The state is $25 billion in the red already, and will likely pass a 10% cut to Medicare and Medicaid this year. Somehow I don’t see free sonograms as the cherry on top of that sundae.
  2. If the state does not pay for the sonograms, it will be up to the pregnant woman to foot the bill. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that the burden will fall most heavily on the poor, who will be more likely to be deterred by such a tax (especially during such difficult economic times). I’m sure Governor Perry would consider this a victory for the pro-life camp. Unfortunately, judging from his wanton desire to cut the throat of social services, it doesn’t appear that his “pro-life” argument applies to the newborn who will have to be raised by a poor single mother in a state with disappearing CHIP, Medicaid, and education programming. Say hello to the cycle of poverty.
  3. Finally, let’s talk hypocrisy (especially if pregnant women foot the bill for sonograms): While the current assault on “Obamacare” has adopted a distinctly economic ring (“Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act”), freedom (or the loss of freedom) rests at the core of the criticisms. Some say it is unconstitutional. Others quiver at the thought of effectively forcing Americans to purchase health insurance under penalty of hefty fines. Perhaps these criticisms are legitimate. But, if this is your platform (Mr. Perry), how is it possible for you to then turn around and support a sonogram tax on pregnant women (or society)? Keep the government out of my life, unless of course it fits with my agenda - sounds like the kind of hypocrisy that gets you somewhere in American politics these days.

Oh, and I also can’t forgive Perry for pushing this as one of his “emergency legislation” items on the high-priority fast track. What other items are on this list? 2 laws to oust illegal immigrants. Thank you Gov. Perry, for showing us that your priorities during such difficult financial times are where they should be.

Sigh…

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

I should start by saying that my experience with novels is slim. This has its pros and cons. On the plus side, I can go into these works with an open mind with little anticipation or expectation. On the other hand, my naivete makes me ill-equipped to either assert strong praise or criticism (more on this later). With all that said, I found Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close to be, on the whole, an honest and moving account of tragedy and renewal….

Read more »