And now a moment of silence for the ugliest dog in the world... Friday, May 26, 2006
The Ugliest Dog in the World
There once was a dog.. so ugly he frightened little children and some grown adults, (such as myself). I hadn't known about this dog until my friend Melissa sent me his picture. Apparently he was in the news before and after he died. As a Chinese Crested he was primarily hairless but maintained a little tuft of hair on his head to keep his look as vengeful alien intact. He died last November at the ripe old age of 14 having secured three consecutive wins as the World's Ugliest Dog. Way to go Sam!
And now a moment of silence for the ugliest dog in the world...
And now a moment of silence for the ugliest dog in the world... 
Thursday, May 18, 2006
A night with Madlenka
In a typical Mike and Dacia uber-goober moment I had a nice little interlude with the former Secretary of State. No, Colin and I didn't have our midnight rendezvous; rather his predecessor and I shared an intimate moment of mistaken identities.
Last night the Tattered Cover Bookstore hosted this rofessor/diplomat/author/all around amazing woman for a book signing of her recent foray into publishing - The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs.
It was Mike who last time Madeleine was in town, so graciously waited in the line to have our copies of her memoirs, Madam Secretary, signed. Now it all came down to me.
Having gotten there fairly early I was happy to find I was only the 15th in line to meet and greet this renowned heroine of modern politics. Before the presentation began each person got a ticket with their number in line and had the choice of personalizing their signature with a name. Since I had two books I asked for Dacia and Michael. The organizer lady dutifully wrote the names down on a sticky note and put it on the inside of one of the books. Then we sat and waited, Madeleine came out and after a bit of a speech and some lively Q&A (Questions & Answers this time), we all excitedly queued (yes, you heard me right, queued) for the big moment.
So all was going well until the moment I reached the signing desk. She asked how I was, I responded with the usual “Fine, thanks. How are you?” and then suddenly felt emboldened! I managed to sputter out, like in some horrific scene of a teenage girl getting a hold of her boy band idol, “Mike and I are DU alumni and we owe so much to you and your father!”
Mad: “He loved that place.”
Dac: “We love it too. We’d like to go back and teach there someday.”
Just when it was starting to get good in the conversation and I could feel an invitation to join her on her next assignment, I realized that she’d signed the one book with the sticky note “To Dacia and Michael, Madeleine Albright”.
Ahhhhhh! No, wait, not right! I was then determined that to save much unnecessary embarrassment I’d keep the doubly dedicated book and have her sign the other one just to Michael, since I know he’s not much one for sharing. But before I could slyly pull off that task the organizer lady realized the mistake and was already handing Madeleine a new copy to sign just my name! Now there were not one or two, but three copies that she’d signed for me, (although I only walked out with two). Having completed my task of getting signatures, more than expected, and feeling much too chatty for my own good I resolutely walked out of there on a cloud of excitement and giddiness with a hefty helping of embarrassment on the side.
Walking as fast as I could without drawing too much attention to myself I made it to my car and immediately dialed Mike’s number. The second after I finished leaving a message and hung up the phone the parking inspectors came down right behind me and I managed to slip away ticket free!
In retrospect (I’ve now had many hours to digest the event, and after an exhaustive philosophical discussion with Darren quite calmed from the excitement) I realize it wasn’t all that big a deal. However, as Mrs. Sparks can attest when she met Bill Clinton at a similar signing, the prospect of meeting a figure only known from a distance can be overwhelming and in some cases freeze a person completely. Had I been so lucky!
And now to end, I will finish with a bit of my own Q&A, Humanities style:
"Ours is a country of abundant resources, momentous accomplishments, and unique capabilities. We have a responsibility to lead, but as we fulfill that obligation we should bear in mind the distinction pointed out by John Adams. Liberty, at least in the sense of free will, is God's gift, not ours; it is also morally neutral. It may be used for any purpose, whether good or ill. Democracy, by contrast, is a human creation; its purpose is to see that liberty is directed into channels that respect the rights of all. As the world’s most powerful democracy, America should help others who desire help to establish and strengthen free institutions. But, in so doing, we should remember that promoting democracy is a policy, not a mission, and policies must be tested on the hard ground of diplomacy, practical politics, and respect for international norms. Our cause will not be helped if we are so sure of our rightness that we forget our propensity, as humans, to make mistakes. Though America may be exceptional, we cannot demand that exceptions be made for us. We are not above the law; nor do we have a national mission to spread Christianity. We have, in short, the right to ask—but never to insist or blithely assume—that God bless America.”*
*Quote read by Madeleine from The Mighty and the Almighty, pg. 32.
Last night the Tattered Cover Bookstore hosted this rofessor/diplomat/author/all around amazing woman for a book signing of her recent foray into publishing - The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs.
It was Mike who last time Madeleine was in town, so graciously waited in the line to have our copies of her memoirs, Madam Secretary, signed. Now it all came down to me.Having gotten there fairly early I was happy to find I was only the 15th in line to meet and greet this renowned heroine of modern politics. Before the presentation began each person got a ticket with their number in line and had the choice of personalizing their signature with a name. Since I had two books I asked for Dacia and Michael. The organizer lady dutifully wrote the names down on a sticky note and put it on the inside of one of the books. Then we sat and waited, Madeleine came out and after a bit of a speech and some lively Q&A (Questions & Answers this time), we all excitedly queued (yes, you heard me right, queued) for the big moment.
So all was going well until the moment I reached the signing desk. She asked how I was, I responded with the usual “Fine, thanks. How are you?” and then suddenly felt emboldened! I managed to sputter out, like in some horrific scene of a teenage girl getting a hold of her boy band idol, “Mike and I are DU alumni and we owe so much to you and your father!”Mad: “He loved that place.”
Dac: “We love it too. We’d like to go back and teach there someday.”
Just when it was starting to get good in the conversation and I could feel an invitation to join her on her next assignment, I realized that she’d signed the one book with the sticky note “To Dacia and Michael, Madeleine Albright”.
Ahhhhhh! No, wait, not right! I was then determined that to save much unnecessary embarrassment I’d keep the doubly dedicated book and have her sign the other one just to Michael, since I know he’s not much one for sharing. But before I could slyly pull off that task the organizer lady realized the mistake and was already handing Madeleine a new copy to sign just my name! Now there were not one or two, but three copies that she’d signed for me, (although I only walked out with two). Having completed my task of getting signatures, more than expected, and feeling much too chatty for my own good I resolutely walked out of there on a cloud of excitement and giddiness with a hefty helping of embarrassment on the side.
Walking as fast as I could without drawing too much attention to myself I made it to my car and immediately dialed Mike’s number. The second after I finished leaving a message and hung up the phone the parking inspectors came down right behind me and I managed to slip away ticket free!In retrospect (I’ve now had many hours to digest the event, and after an exhaustive philosophical discussion with Darren quite calmed from the excitement) I realize it wasn’t all that big a deal. However, as Mrs. Sparks can attest when she met Bill Clinton at a similar signing, the prospect of meeting a figure only known from a distance can be overwhelming and in some cases freeze a person completely. Had I been so lucky!
And now to end, I will finish with a bit of my own Q&A, Humanities style:
"Ours is a country of abundant resources, momentous accomplishments, and unique capabilities. We have a responsibility to lead, but as we fulfill that obligation we should bear in mind the distinction pointed out by John Adams. Liberty, at least in the sense of free will, is God's gift, not ours; it is also morally neutral. It may be used for any purpose, whether good or ill. Democracy, by contrast, is a human creation; its purpose is to see that liberty is directed into channels that respect the rights of all. As the world’s most powerful democracy, America should help others who desire help to establish and strengthen free institutions. But, in so doing, we should remember that promoting democracy is a policy, not a mission, and policies must be tested on the hard ground of diplomacy, practical politics, and respect for international norms. Our cause will not be helped if we are so sure of our rightness that we forget our propensity, as humans, to make mistakes. Though America may be exceptional, we cannot demand that exceptions be made for us. We are not above the law; nor do we have a national mission to spread Christianity. We have, in short, the right to ask—but never to insist or blithely assume—that God bless America.”*
*Quote read by Madeleine from The Mighty and the Almighty, pg. 32.
Saturday, May 06, 2006
Deep thoughts... (Not By Jack Handey)
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them?
-Hamlet, Scene 3, Act 1
That is really the question now... fight the good fight or run away to fight another day. Living the life you envision for yourself is much harder than one would expect really. So many obstacles from people to situations stand in the way to the path you choose. How can one be true to thine own self, when one has to be true to everyone else as well. Like some mystical ancient god, we all wear many masks and rarely show our 'true' selves. And in the end...
One's real life is often the life that one does not lead.
-Oscar Wilde, L'Envoi
Friday, May 05, 2006
"Inspirational Espresso" or Going the distance
"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes." ~Marcel Proust
Every morning on my work's email account, I receive an email from the head of my region (The Central Region) entitled "Inspirational Espresso". This top manager sends all his underlings a quote each morning to inspire and motivate them. . . I've started a little collection from such emails. For now, due to lack of truly inspirational and deeply motivated blogs, I've decided to start a little online Q&A board (Quotes and Announcements, see previous blog). So therefore I'll put up a quote or two and discuss a little something and hope that appeases my readers for now until I can find my blogging self again.
Today, my discussion is about the annoyance of long distance relationships. Now I must say I wouldn't have started this whole "going the distance" nonsense with Darren had I not thought it would work, but I didn't realize quite how trying it could be. Most of you know I had to leave England because my visas expired there and most know that Darren's business (Dazbus) is just getting kicked off. Because it's a tour company, he'll obviously need to stay in England for the tourist season, meaning we probably won't see each other again until about October/November time. For now, we talk on the phone and email each other but that can only take you so far. I wouldn't say we 'fight' on the phone - we rarely fight anyways unless it's about broader philosophical questions and Darren hasn't yet realized that on this front I am always right. But I will say that every so often our conversations are strained. That's what happens when we try to cram too much 'practical' stuff into our conversation like his asking me how to get the pictures off the digital camera or my asking him to check with my bank there to make sure money got transferred correctly... See, the great thing about Darren's and my relationship is that we talk - a lot. But having that confined to an hour every day or so makes it difficult to keep up the relationship we developed over six months of almost non-stop yaking! In the end this separation will make us stronger... yadada ya... but for now it makes for very strange bedfellows and let's just say annoys me greatly.
"The river delights to lift us free, if only we dare let go. Our true work is this voyage, this adventure."
~Richard Bach
Every morning on my work's email account, I receive an email from the head of my region (The Central Region) entitled "Inspirational Espresso". This top manager sends all his underlings a quote each morning to inspire and motivate them. . . I've started a little collection from such emails. For now, due to lack of truly inspirational and deeply motivated blogs, I've decided to start a little online Q&A board (Quotes and Announcements, see previous blog). So therefore I'll put up a quote or two and discuss a little something and hope that appeases my readers for now until I can find my blogging self again.
Today, my discussion is about the annoyance of long distance relationships. Now I must say I wouldn't have started this whole "going the distance" nonsense with Darren had I not thought it would work, but I didn't realize quite how trying it could be. Most of you know I had to leave England because my visas expired there and most know that Darren's business (Dazbus) is just getting kicked off. Because it's a tour company, he'll obviously need to stay in England for the tourist season, meaning we probably won't see each other again until about October/November time. For now, we talk on the phone and email each other but that can only take you so far. I wouldn't say we 'fight' on the phone - we rarely fight anyways unless it's about broader philosophical questions and Darren hasn't yet realized that on this front I am always right. But I will say that every so often our conversations are strained. That's what happens when we try to cram too much 'practical' stuff into our conversation like his asking me how to get the pictures off the digital camera or my asking him to check with my bank there to make sure money got transferred correctly... See, the great thing about Darren's and my relationship is that we talk - a lot. But having that confined to an hour every day or so makes it difficult to keep up the relationship we developed over six months of almost non-stop yaking! In the end this separation will make us stronger... yadada ya... but for now it makes for very strange bedfellows and let's just say annoys me greatly.
"The river delights to lift us free, if only we dare let go. Our true work is this voyage, this adventure."
~Richard Bach
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