Thursday, April 30, 2009
The Killing Fields and S-21
That's a rib bone sticking out of one of the mass graves at Cheoung Ek or, The Killing Fields.
These are the shackles used to keep prisoners tied to the beds. Specifically, these ones are for children.
Those indentations are the mass graves themselves at Cheoung Ek.
There are 8,000 excavated skulls in a buddhist stuppa at Cheoung Ek. Most of them have large holes in them. The Khmer Rouge refused to "waste" a bullet on people they believed were political spies or traitors.
CNN is running a story about Duch and the rest of the S-21 keepers who killed over 17,000 people in their, well, concentration camp from 1975 to 1979. Even looking at the pictures on CNN, it doesn't do justice to what you see when you're there.
We walked past a tree at Cheuong Ek that said, "This tree used to kill babies". They used to beat babies against a tree and, if they didn't die, they'd toss them in the air and catch them on their bayonets. When you go to S-21, you can STILL see where the blood was on the floor. The floor has a large, somewhat brownish stain that takes up a good part of the center of the room. THAT IS STILL BLOOD. From 1979.
I'm glad that the people of Cambodia can know that justice is being sought. 30 years after the fact, you can tell that it effects people almost daily. There are STILL not enough teachers to teach a full day of school. Children have to go in shifts. Almost anyone you talk to has lost someone because of the Khmer Rouge.
I guess my question is, why do we let it keep happening?
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
I did not speak up
“First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me."
- Martin Niemoeller
Help Us!
If you have any friends in Chicago or Richmond, Virginia, these cities STILL need rescued! YES! From Saturday night and The Rescue, hosted by Invisible Children. These people have true heart and I am in awe of what they are doing. They have been outside since Saturday and they will not leave until they are rescued! If you know of any media or of any local celebrities or even just people to gather and grow the numbers of the crowd, please visit www.invisiblechildren.com and they'll tell you where either of these two teams are at any given time.
Monday, April 27, 2009
My article is up!
I wrote an article for MTV News about The Rescue done by Invisible Children.
Please read it and send it to everyone you know (or don't know). This is something so, so important. The raping and murdering of innocent children needs to stop.
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1610077/story.jhtml
Please read it and send it to everyone you know (or don't know). This is something so, so important. The raping and murdering of innocent children needs to stop.
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1610077/story.jhtml
Friend-Makin' Mondays!
I like doing this. So Kasey over at All That Is Good does Friend-Makin' Mondays. I've done a few and I'm doing this weeks because it's super cool!
So, using the 5 senses, list 4 things you like and 1 thing you dislike for each. My dislike will be in color.
Smell:
1) Cookies (especially my chocolate chip ones)
2) Steve (is that too weird? I just love how he smells!)
3) My mom's fried potatoes
4) The air before it's about to rain.
5) New York City in the summer. Someone just told me that New York City is the only city that stews in its own juices. This is absolutely true. I have seen three people pee on our street in the past few weeks.
Touch:
1) Steve (a trend, as you can see)
2) Grass, especially when I get to roll down a hill.
3) Swimming pool water that is not too too cold, but somewhat so that it's the perfect comfort.
4) Cats.
5) Sweaters made from this certain material that my mother-in-law LOVES to buy me. I love my mother-in-law, but...I know that people buy it because it feels soft...it's like...fake cashmere or something. I HATE it. It makes my skin crawl.
Sound:
1) Oboes and violins. I love classical types of music.
2) The ice cream truck. Even though the ice cream man rejected me as a child (I once waited 3 hours and he didn't stop), I still love to hear it. It makes me excited. Steve says I'm like a child more often than not. ;)
3) Certain church hymns make me want to dance for joy. Like "Lord of All Hopefulness" and "I Love To Tell The Story"
4) The laughter of anyone in my family. I love it.
5) The shrieking cackle that can be heard in Harlem. Typically the noise of a teenager, it can be found quite often and it makes me cringe. It will also be followed by lots and lots of yelling.
Taste:
1) Mango shortcakes that my mom sends from HK.
2) George's potatoes (they're mashed potatoes with cream cheese)
3) Any type of meat from Plataforma Churrascaria. I love Brazilian steakhouses. It's a good thing they're so expensive, otherwise, I'd have a TON of heart disease.
4) Mangoes. I just love mangoes. A whole lot.
5) Nyquil. Most over-the-counter medicines make me want to gag.
Sight:
1) Seeing my husband smile :)
2) The stars at night when I'm not in NYC
3) My parents waiting behind the line at Hong Kong airport
4) The sun and children playing in the park (even if being in the park also means I see a girl taking pictures with the back of her dress up. She was 18 and NOT wearing underwear. Steve and I were walking by and we were like...hmm...shouldn't you do that in private, if you're going to do that at all?!)
5) Hurt children. I watched The Rescue Of Joseph Kony's Children on Invisible Children and there were images of children with their mouthes cut off. CUT OFF. Noses and mouthes. How, how, how do you do that to a human being, let alone a child?! I don't understand. I don't understand at all.
So, using the 5 senses, list 4 things you like and 1 thing you dislike for each. My dislike will be in color.
Smell:
1) Cookies (especially my chocolate chip ones)
2) Steve (is that too weird? I just love how he smells!)
3) My mom's fried potatoes
4) The air before it's about to rain.
5) New York City in the summer. Someone just told me that New York City is the only city that stews in its own juices. This is absolutely true. I have seen three people pee on our street in the past few weeks.
Touch:
1) Steve (a trend, as you can see)
2) Grass, especially when I get to roll down a hill.
3) Swimming pool water that is not too too cold, but somewhat so that it's the perfect comfort.
4) Cats.
5) Sweaters made from this certain material that my mother-in-law LOVES to buy me. I love my mother-in-law, but...I know that people buy it because it feels soft...it's like...fake cashmere or something. I HATE it. It makes my skin crawl.
Sound:
1) Oboes and violins. I love classical types of music.
2) The ice cream truck. Even though the ice cream man rejected me as a child (I once waited 3 hours and he didn't stop), I still love to hear it. It makes me excited. Steve says I'm like a child more often than not. ;)
3) Certain church hymns make me want to dance for joy. Like "Lord of All Hopefulness" and "I Love To Tell The Story"
4) The laughter of anyone in my family. I love it.
5) The shrieking cackle that can be heard in Harlem. Typically the noise of a teenager, it can be found quite often and it makes me cringe. It will also be followed by lots and lots of yelling.
Taste:
1) Mango shortcakes that my mom sends from HK.
2) George's potatoes (they're mashed potatoes with cream cheese)
3) Any type of meat from Plataforma Churrascaria. I love Brazilian steakhouses. It's a good thing they're so expensive, otherwise, I'd have a TON of heart disease.
4) Mangoes. I just love mangoes. A whole lot.
5) Nyquil. Most over-the-counter medicines make me want to gag.
Sight:
1) Seeing my husband smile :)
2) The stars at night when I'm not in NYC
3) My parents waiting behind the line at Hong Kong airport
4) The sun and children playing in the park (even if being in the park also means I see a girl taking pictures with the back of her dress up. She was 18 and NOT wearing underwear. Steve and I were walking by and we were like...hmm...shouldn't you do that in private, if you're going to do that at all?!)
5) Hurt children. I watched The Rescue Of Joseph Kony's Children on Invisible Children and there were images of children with their mouthes cut off. CUT OFF. Noses and mouthes. How, how, how do you do that to a human being, let alone a child?! I don't understand. I don't understand at all.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Love Weekends!
This is Laren Poole (and a gaggle of ladies), one of the originators of Invisible Children. Can I tell you how awesome it was to be a journalist for a day? I got to meet him and a few other people. The Rescue in New York City was AMAZING!!! We got there around 4:00pm (I had already been doing Hands On New York Day planting trees and had to come home and get a shower. Otherwise, we would have been there a bit earlier, I think) and they just were so, SO good
to me. Not only is Invisible Children a great cause, but everyone I worked with was super, super nice. So around 5pm, they started gathering groups of 20 people and placing them on ropes and heading them across the Brooklyn Bridge. Some of the tourists on the bridge were nice and some...not so nice. Some asked us what we were doing and some made fun of us. Chris Lowell (from Private Practice, Veronica Mars, and Grey's Anatomy) walked across the bridge too.
So we walked across the bridge and got to Empire Ferry Fulton Park. Can I tell you how absolutely beautiful that park is? It's right underneath the Brooklyn
Bridge. All the pictures we used for New York City were standing in front of the Brooklyn Bridge. It's absolutely beautiful. Let me put that underneath.
By the time Steve and I left, I had interviewed Yin Chang from Gossip Girl, Chris Lowell from Private Practice, Laren, and a few other celebrities. It was an incredible day. We raised so much money for the Invisible Children. I pray, I pray, I PRAY that the Ugandan civil war comes to an end soon. No child should ever EVER be forced into these sorts of things. Children deserve love. Children were not born with the idea to kill. Here's a question for you: So I live in America, should I only be worrying about what happens in America? Because that's all the comments I see on some news articles about Invisible Children. That we should only deal with America because Africa will always be this way. I'm glad that I know what love is. :) People were saying that The Rescue could be used so that people could do nothing and feel good about themselves. Do not be cynical! The world is so beautiful and we are so blessed by God. Even in hard times, we could be child soldiers who had to watch our families be murdered.
JUST got an e-mail from a midwife and I'm going to call her tomorrow to get an appointment!! I'm so excited! I also went to the Broadway Panhandler and got some cheap kitchen supplies. Finally, a metal spatula and a thermometer for baked goods!!!
How was your weekend? Tell me about it!
Friday, April 24, 2009
So what do you do?
I mentioned my sonohysterogram a little bit ago. I really didn't want to do and I STILL don't want to do it. I think my uterus is fine and I skipped a period from being on so many yeast infection pills.
So I decided to try garlic. Yes, I guess garlic in your hoo-hay WILL end a yeast infection. I found an article online and e-mailed the midwife who wrote it and told her about the situation. She sent me an e-mail and this is how it started:
"Hi Dana
Good morning. I hope you wake up this morning
Wake up and realize that you dont need a hysterosonogram. Any doctor who tells you that you do is just trying to make money off of you. He or she is a bad doctor."
WHOA! She goes on to say that it will could hurt my fertility in the future and that I should only be having this done if I've had abnormal bleeding for a long time. (I had a DNC done awhile ago and they didn't find anything then. 2007, I think?)
Honestly, I don't know any better for myself. I looked up a sonohysterogram, but I'm going to assume that a doctor would only order a test if they thought it was necessary. I didn't want to do the test and I figured they'd find nothing BUT they won't change my birth control until I do this.
She asked if I'd like to go see a nurse midwife. I would...I guess I never thought it was an option. The older I get, the less I want to be messing with my body chemically. Sometimes, I think New York has turned me into a liberal, tree-hugging, peace-loving, hippie. I kind of like it. ;)
So now I'm not sure what to do. I really want to change doctors, but will a doctor still force me to get this done? Then, if I go to a midwife nurse instead, will insurance cover it? I'm gonna be honest: we're doing okay, but we've been draining our savings and everything for a lot of stuff and...it's scary.
On a brighter note, I found my tape recorder so that tomorrow, when I do my interviews, I'll look like I'm from the 1960's. :-D So I'm quite excited.
How are you doing? How is everyone? :)
So I decided to try garlic. Yes, I guess garlic in your hoo-hay WILL end a yeast infection. I found an article online and e-mailed the midwife who wrote it and told her about the situation. She sent me an e-mail and this is how it started:
"Hi Dana
Good morning. I hope you wake up this morning
Wake up and realize that you dont need a hysterosonogram. Any doctor who tells you that you do is just trying to make money off of you. He or she is a bad doctor."
WHOA! She goes on to say that it will could hurt my fertility in the future and that I should only be having this done if I've had abnormal bleeding for a long time. (I had a DNC done awhile ago and they didn't find anything then. 2007, I think?)
Honestly, I don't know any better for myself. I looked up a sonohysterogram, but I'm going to assume that a doctor would only order a test if they thought it was necessary. I didn't want to do the test and I figured they'd find nothing BUT they won't change my birth control until I do this.
She asked if I'd like to go see a nurse midwife. I would...I guess I never thought it was an option. The older I get, the less I want to be messing with my body chemically. Sometimes, I think New York has turned me into a liberal, tree-hugging, peace-loving, hippie. I kind of like it. ;)
So now I'm not sure what to do. I really want to change doctors, but will a doctor still force me to get this done? Then, if I go to a midwife nurse instead, will insurance cover it? I'm gonna be honest: we're doing okay, but we've been draining our savings and everything for a lot of stuff and...it's scary.
On a brighter note, I found my tape recorder so that tomorrow, when I do my interviews, I'll look like I'm from the 1960's. :-D So I'm quite excited.
How are you doing? How is everyone? :)
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
What?! And Happy Moments
I received an e-mail from Laren Poole today. Laren Poole. In the Invisible Children world, Laren Poole is up there. He's one of the creators of both the movie and the non-profit. And he's like, please, if you need anything, please let us know. HOLY COW!!! Me?!
And I'm starting to wonder if God put me at MTV for all these stinking years for this. I mean, I could see it. Maybe this is why I needed to be in NYC all this time...
Maybe I'm looking too much into it. But maybe not. Either way, FREAKING AWESOME.
I have all these pictures, but since I stink at putting pictures up here, I'll have to remember to do that at home.
It's still super early in my day, but I may have a few happy moments already!
1) Laren Poole e-mailed me and that's crazy.
2) Steve and I figured out how we'll be doing rent this month.
3) My friend Sam's older sister got a job!!! And a job that pays more than she's ever made before!! :) Very excited.
Do you have any happy moments today?
And I'm starting to wonder if God put me at MTV for all these stinking years for this. I mean, I could see it. Maybe this is why I needed to be in NYC all this time...
Maybe I'm looking too much into it. But maybe not. Either way, FREAKING AWESOME.
I have all these pictures, but since I stink at putting pictures up here, I'll have to remember to do that at home.
It's still super early in my day, but I may have a few happy moments already!
1) Laren Poole e-mailed me and that's crazy.
2) Steve and I figured out how we'll be doing rent this month.
3) My friend Sam's older sister got a job!!! And a job that pays more than she's ever made before!! :) Very excited.
Do you have any happy moments today?
Monday, April 20, 2009
God's Got His Hands Full With Me...
MTV News didn't want to cover a story about Invisible Children, but I bothered the VP and so now I'M doing the story.
The Invisible Children people are treating me like I'm a legit journalist.
I am terrified. I am beyond terrified.
Everyone is telling me that it's going to be okay, that I'm going to do great, that this is what I'm born to do...and all that jazz, you know? And maybe they're right...but I'm still terrified. I'm going to be doing a whole lot of praying over the next few days.
And I'm going to try and stop giving myself migraines!!! :)
The Invisible Children people are treating me like I'm a legit journalist.
I am terrified. I am beyond terrified.
Everyone is telling me that it's going to be okay, that I'm going to do great, that this is what I'm born to do...and all that jazz, you know? And maybe they're right...but I'm still terrified. I'm going to be doing a whole lot of praying over the next few days.
And I'm going to try and stop giving myself migraines!!! :)
My Happy Moments
Hello, hello! I hope you had a great weekend. I have some photos to post, but I was "running late" this morning (Steve wasn't even AWAKE and I was running late. I came in to work with him today), so I'll post those after I get home and after I wash the dishes. The dishes are about to consume our kitchen. Literally...it's an NYC kitchen.
But I'm happy! Here are my happy moments for the day.
1) I got to spend a quiet weekend with my husband at a lighthouse in upstate New York. It was relaxing and quiet and it was so nice that I wish I was there now. But that's okay! Workin' hard for the money.
2) My pastor agreed that I could do something, but it's a little top secret until it's in the bulletin. At least, that's what Steve thinks it should be so that I don't get overly excited and then it falls through.
3) The Rescue and Hands On New York Day are this weekend! It is going to be INSANE, but I may MAY be interviewing Nicolas Cage at The Rescue. How random is that?!
This isn't a happy moment, but it made me laugh. All of my containers look the same and are not see-through. So, instead of bringing my lunch with me today, I brought a container of spaghetti sauce. OOPS!
So what's made you happy today?
But I'm happy! Here are my happy moments for the day.
1) I got to spend a quiet weekend with my husband at a lighthouse in upstate New York. It was relaxing and quiet and it was so nice that I wish I was there now. But that's okay! Workin' hard for the money.
2) My pastor agreed that I could do something, but it's a little top secret until it's in the bulletin. At least, that's what Steve thinks it should be so that I don't get overly excited and then it falls through.
3) The Rescue and Hands On New York Day are this weekend! It is going to be INSANE, but I may MAY be interviewing Nicolas Cage at The Rescue. How random is that?!
This isn't a happy moment, but it made me laugh. All of my containers look the same and are not see-through. So, instead of bringing my lunch with me today, I brought a container of spaghetti sauce. OOPS!
So what's made you happy today?
Thursday, April 16, 2009
My Happy Moments For Today
So today has been INSANE. And I've freaked myself out to a point of a headache. It's a good headache and it's all good freaking out, but it still makes me want to shove popcorn in my mouth and throw caution to the wind and pay NO ATTENTION to the scale.
1) I am now writing a blog story about The Rescue for Invisible Children on April 25th for MTV News. That means, I guess, that I'm interviewing celebrities. I just want this story to go up. I would talk to someone's pet as long as it got this out there. But now I have this fear that I won't do Invisible Children justice.
2) I'm doing ANOTHER voice-over today. I did one yesterday for College Life for MTV and then I'm doing one for 16 & Pregnant. (By the way, I'm a production assistant for MTV.com and I just get pulled into other things. Which is fine. Voice overs pay.)
3) I'm taking tomorrow off to spend some time with my husband. :) I am so excited!!!
What has made you happy today?
Also, could you please pray for Lori? There's a button to her blog over to the left. She is such a wonderful person and she could use your prayers for her son's adoption.
1) I am now writing a blog story about The Rescue for Invisible Children on April 25th for MTV News. That means, I guess, that I'm interviewing celebrities. I just want this story to go up. I would talk to someone's pet as long as it got this out there. But now I have this fear that I won't do Invisible Children justice.
2) I'm doing ANOTHER voice-over today. I did one yesterday for College Life for MTV and then I'm doing one for 16 & Pregnant. (By the way, I'm a production assistant for MTV.com and I just get pulled into other things. Which is fine. Voice overs pay.)
3) I'm taking tomorrow off to spend some time with my husband. :) I am so excited!!!
What has made you happy today?
Also, could you please pray for Lori? There's a button to her blog over to the left. She is such a wonderful person and she could use your prayers for her son's adoption.
What Is a Miracle?
This is going to sound ridiculous, but I love gangster movies. Gangster, mafia movies and one of my favorite movies of all time is Pulp Fiction (Love Quentin Tarantino!). AND I find that there's a part that has also given me some faith and is part of how I love God today. It comes at the end, at the diner scene, after Jules and Vincent have accidentally shot their partner in the face.
(I scrubbed it for you too ;) )
Jules: What is a miracle, Vincent?
Vincent: An act of God?
Jules: And what's an act of God?
Vincent: When God makes the impossible possible...but this morning I don't think qualifies.
Jules: Hey Vincent, don't you see that s**t don't matter? You're judging this s**t the wrong way. I mean it could be, God stopped the bullets, he changed Coke to Pepsi, he found my f***ing car keys. You don't judge s**t like this based on merit. Now, whether or not what we experienced was an according-to-Hoyle miracle is insignificant. But what IS significant is that I felt the touch of God. God got involved.
ISN'T THAT WHAT IT REALLY IS?! Isn't it?! Maybe He didn't cure us from something we find awful, but maybe He let us see that something awful in a different way? It's the touch of God that's important.
Here's the clip it's from. It's about 1:34 in that the conversation happens. By the way, uncensored. :)
(I scrubbed it for you too ;) )
Jules: What is a miracle, Vincent?
Vincent: An act of God?
Jules: And what's an act of God?
Vincent: When God makes the impossible possible...but this morning I don't think qualifies.
Jules: Hey Vincent, don't you see that s**t don't matter? You're judging this s**t the wrong way. I mean it could be, God stopped the bullets, he changed Coke to Pepsi, he found my f***ing car keys. You don't judge s**t like this based on merit. Now, whether or not what we experienced was an according-to-Hoyle miracle is insignificant. But what IS significant is that I felt the touch of God. God got involved.
ISN'T THAT WHAT IT REALLY IS?! Isn't it?! Maybe He didn't cure us from something we find awful, but maybe He let us see that something awful in a different way? It's the touch of God that's important.
Here's the clip it's from. It's about 1:34 in that the conversation happens. By the way, uncensored. :)
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Random Aside
Can I just say that it hurts my heart a bit when people say, "If you don't like America, you can get out." I know they think that's patriotic, but really, it's not. Our system was built on the idea that we can have differing opinions and still BE Americans. Though our system is far from perfect, we should agree to disagree, really.
Happiness Overload
God has done so many things today!!! And almost none of them have happened to me, but I can't help but just jump for joy!!
1) Have you heard of Susan Boyle? Well, you SHOULD. God's lesson #1: He uses those we least expect to show us that we are WRONG. A 47-year-old, never-been-kissed, unemployed woman who looks frumpy with the bushiest eyebrows has the voice of a Broadway star. I cry every time I watch this, which isn't entirely good since I've been watching it at work. Ha!
2) I just saw on Grains of Sand that Vashti and her husband Martin MAY be getting a weaving place to turn into a school. God's lesson #2: God will ALWAYS do the unexpected. How awesome would this be?! I'm like bouncing up and down about it. Whatever God's will, it will happen for them and I KNOW it.
3) I'm not even selling the cookies today (but I still have them) and I made $2!! Sweet. :) I'm VERY excited by that.
4) I'm recording tonight and I got to see Waiting for Godot last night and eat Mexican food!!! (Please excuse that run-on sentence. I'm hyper-active today)
5) IT'S TAX DAY!!!! Though the government took a good chunk of money from us, I got my husband in return!!! So I'm fine with that. We've planned an excursion for Friday. We're going to stay at a lighthouse/bed and breakfast upstate and I couldn't be more excited!
I don't even know what would make it a better day except that I was at the lighthouse and it was as warm as they think Friday will be. :)
What about you? What's made you happy today?
Here's a happy picture of me to share. What could be happier then mustaches?
1) Have you heard of Susan Boyle? Well, you SHOULD. God's lesson #1: He uses those we least expect to show us that we are WRONG. A 47-year-old, never-been-kissed, unemployed woman who looks frumpy with the bushiest eyebrows has the voice of a Broadway star. I cry every time I watch this, which isn't entirely good since I've been watching it at work. Ha!
2) I just saw on Grains of Sand that Vashti and her husband Martin MAY be getting a weaving place to turn into a school. God's lesson #2: God will ALWAYS do the unexpected. How awesome would this be?! I'm like bouncing up and down about it. Whatever God's will, it will happen for them and I KNOW it.
3) I'm not even selling the cookies today (but I still have them) and I made $2!! Sweet. :) I'm VERY excited by that.
4) I'm recording tonight and I got to see Waiting for Godot last night and eat Mexican food!!! (Please excuse that run-on sentence. I'm hyper-active today)
5) IT'S TAX DAY!!!! Though the government took a good chunk of money from us, I got my husband in return!!! So I'm fine with that. We've planned an excursion for Friday. We're going to stay at a lighthouse/bed and breakfast upstate and I couldn't be more excited!
I don't even know what would make it a better day except that I was at the lighthouse and it was as warm as they think Friday will be. :)
What about you? What's made you happy today?
Here's a happy picture of me to share. What could be happier then mustaches?
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
My Happy Moments For Today
"My cup runneth over and I worry about the stain." -Caedmon's Call (Thank you for this, Lori!)
It's true. With all the good things in my life, I freak out about stupid STUPID things. Well, I'm going to be thankful for something today. For a few things. For my happy moments!
1) I have made $49 in my bake sale for this week! I like round numbers, so I'll wait for $50 and then get really excited.
2) I started The Challenge (again)! My friends and I all chip in $10 each, set a date, and then whoever loses the biggest body mass, wins the pot. My goal is 10lbs for these last 4 weddings that I have to get to.
3) Even if we don't get tickets to see Waiting for Godot tonight, I'm still going to spend time with my friend Kate. I love her and I'm so glad that we're getting together tonight.
4) (a bonus) TAX SEASON IS OVER TOMORROW!!!! I WILL HAVE A HUSBAND AGAIN!!! Even if he does have to study for tests until May 9th.
What are the little things in your day that have made you happy?
It's true. With all the good things in my life, I freak out about stupid STUPID things. Well, I'm going to be thankful for something today. For a few things. For my happy moments!
1) I have made $49 in my bake sale for this week! I like round numbers, so I'll wait for $50 and then get really excited.
2) I started The Challenge (again)! My friends and I all chip in $10 each, set a date, and then whoever loses the biggest body mass, wins the pot. My goal is 10lbs for these last 4 weddings that I have to get to.
3) Even if we don't get tickets to see Waiting for Godot tonight, I'm still going to spend time with my friend Kate. I love her and I'm so glad that we're getting together tonight.
4) (a bonus) TAX SEASON IS OVER TOMORROW!!!! I WILL HAVE A HUSBAND AGAIN!!! Even if he does have to study for tests until May 9th.
What are the little things in your day that have made you happy?
Monday, April 13, 2009
My Three Happy Moments For Today
So my friend Sam said that, when she was little, her mom would ask her for three good things that happened in her day. She's trying to be a more positive person and I think that looking for the little things in life is a REALLY good idea. That being said...
My three good things for the day (so far)
1) I found a restaurant in NYC that looks AWESOME. It's called Ninja and it's designed to look like a ninja castle and the waiters and waitresses just disappear.
2) I haven't even advertised my bake sale yet today, but I've already made $6!! Today is a cookie day. I made peanut butter cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and world peace cookies. So far, I've made about $300 for Project O!!! I had to start my count over, so I'm at $150 at the moment. My goal is to send a few children to Hillcrest Academy in South Africa, but we'll see how it goes. :)
3) I found some places for Steve and I to go on our way to the lighthouse hotel in upstate New York! There's a Fork in the Road in Red Hook, the world's largest garden gnome in Kerhonkson, and a towering rosary madonna in Stony Point, New York!!! I love going on road trips!!
What are your happy moments for the day so far?
My three good things for the day (so far)
1) I found a restaurant in NYC that looks AWESOME. It's called Ninja and it's designed to look like a ninja castle and the waiters and waitresses just disappear.
2) I haven't even advertised my bake sale yet today, but I've already made $6!! Today is a cookie day. I made peanut butter cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and world peace cookies. So far, I've made about $300 for Project O!!! I had to start my count over, so I'm at $150 at the moment. My goal is to send a few children to Hillcrest Academy in South Africa, but we'll see how it goes. :)
3) I found some places for Steve and I to go on our way to the lighthouse hotel in upstate New York! There's a Fork in the Road in Red Hook, the world's largest garden gnome in Kerhonkson, and a towering rosary madonna in Stony Point, New York!!! I love going on road trips!!
What are your happy moments for the day so far?
The Best Advice I've Ever Received...
It's friend-making Monday over at All That Is Good. And the question is "What is the best advice someone has ever given you?"
So, it's one of those things that I've heard over and over and I IGNORED it for the most part, but I'm trying to listen more closely.
"God loves you, no matter what."
Sure, it sounds simple, but I try and think about it when I'm looking at the scale thinking..."When did I gain those 5 pounds?!" and I just want to throw out everything in the fridge but the broccoli and the water. I think about it when I'm feeling guilty, when I'm thinking, "You know, I could have done more..." (I've been have a few of those moments lately) There's a song called "Beautiful Redemption" by Joy Williams and a part of the song goes, "Father, Father forgive me. You say, Child, I already have." How ridiculous is that?! How amazing, really, is that? It's such an intense thing.
I think I'm going to have to use Kasey's dads advice too...because our apartment has been a WRECK. We have an NYC apartment (Yes, you know how small those are) and I can't even keep THAT clean. My husband is kind of a neat-freak and he thinks I'm rebelling against my mother (my mother was a COMPLETE neat-freak). I just gotta figure out this whole working/not enjoying my job/cleaning the apartment thing before we get something bigger. But not a house. Owning something that large still freaks me out a bit. ;)
So, it's one of those things that I've heard over and over and I IGNORED it for the most part, but I'm trying to listen more closely.
"God loves you, no matter what."
Sure, it sounds simple, but I try and think about it when I'm looking at the scale thinking..."When did I gain those 5 pounds?!" and I just want to throw out everything in the fridge but the broccoli and the water. I think about it when I'm feeling guilty, when I'm thinking, "You know, I could have done more..." (I've been have a few of those moments lately) There's a song called "Beautiful Redemption" by Joy Williams and a part of the song goes, "Father, Father forgive me. You say, Child, I already have." How ridiculous is that?! How amazing, really, is that? It's such an intense thing.
I think I'm going to have to use Kasey's dads advice too...because our apartment has been a WRECK. We have an NYC apartment (Yes, you know how small those are) and I can't even keep THAT clean. My husband is kind of a neat-freak and he thinks I'm rebelling against my mother (my mother was a COMPLETE neat-freak). I just gotta figure out this whole working/not enjoying my job/cleaning the apartment thing before we get something bigger. But not a house. Owning something that large still freaks me out a bit. ;)
Friday, April 10, 2009
Good Friday
I need some funny. I've been very serious lately...and life is not serious. Not. At. All. Not in the least. But I have nothing funny to say. :)
So...just Happy Good Friday to you all (an oxymoron, but I've been working it out...because though it's bad, it's still good!) and I hope that you have a wonderful weekend. I'm so excited for Easter! Not only did God do something pretty awesome (as my friend said, Jesus is the Ultimate Homeboy), I'm making Easter tacos and I have an Easter bonnet to wear. YES!
He is Risen!!! Almost. Almost.
So...just Happy Good Friday to you all (an oxymoron, but I've been working it out...because though it's bad, it's still good!) and I hope that you have a wonderful weekend. I'm so excited for Easter! Not only did God do something pretty awesome (as my friend said, Jesus is the Ultimate Homeboy), I'm making Easter tacos and I have an Easter bonnet to wear. YES!
He is Risen!!! Almost. Almost.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Love Versus Pity?
I'm trying to figure out love versus pity. When someone is in a bad situation and you don't entirely know what to do to help, can you love them without pitying them? Is it bad to pity? Can the two emotions live in the same situation?
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Cambodia, Part 2: Laughter
We visited the royal palace while in Cambodia. It is a huge complex that is covered in gold and symbolism.
My family at the palace
So we then went into a different part of the complex called The Silver Pagoda. The Silver Pagoda holds many images of buddha and, as a tradition in many of the Asian countries we've been in, it is required that you take your shoes off before going into a temple. My father was wearing a pair of loafers that he had bought the week before and left them beside my brothers shoes. Can you guess where this is going?
So we come out of the pagoda maybe 20 minutes later and...no shoes. We tell our guide and he tells all the guards who are around and they ask my dad to wear a pair of sandals that somebody left behind. My dad is a HUGE germophobe. HUGE. My dad is like, no that's cool. So they actually take us to the front of the complex and ask us to watch people's FEET as they
walked by.
We actually thought it was really funny (my dad too). So we put on our loafer goggles and watched people walking by.
The loafer goggles did not work.
Look at those socks!
My dad was uncomfortable with staring at people's feet and accusing them of stealing his shoes. Plus, being a germaphobe, he didn't even want to put them back on after someone's stinky feet had been in them. Our guide, Wan Tay, said that in the 13 years that he'd been a tour guide, this was the first time that had ever happened. He also told us that he was going after he was done at work with us to actually go look for my dad's shoes. And my dad believed he really did go looking for them.
That's okay. We needed a good story for the trip.
Monday, April 6, 2009
10 Things That Make Me Fuzzy
So I noticed that my blog has been really depressing so far. I'm really not like that!!! Promise. So I thought I'd do this fun thing that I saw on Vashti's blog from All That Is Good. I thought it was cute. 10 things that make you "fuzzy" (AKA: Mad)...
1) Sexism. Yeah...I get it. At work. I'm the only female in my group and every once in awhile there are "Danae-the-men-are-talking" moments. Oh well. I know that I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and dog-gone it. People like me.
2) Receiving the pink mail slip that I've missed a package. I know that this is slightly anal retentive...I really REALLY hate missing packages and as SOON as I know that I have a package, I want to have it...It's really bad.
3) Slow people. This seems to be a prevalent one. I work in Times Square and almost EVERYONE is stopping right in front of me to take a picture of a tall building. There are lots of tall buildings that you don't need to stop in the sidewalk for. Please move.
4) Subway smells. How many people have to urinate in one spot for the MTA to clean it?
5) Speaking of the subway...MTA weekends. Is the train going local or express? Is the train even running? Why can I not get off at 96th street?!
6) Red-tape. It feels like that's all I get at MTV sometimes. Constant red tape. How many e-mails does it take to get something posted on the website?!
7) Bent paper. When I want to present something, I always want the paper to be completely flat. No creases, no bent corners. Once again. More anal retentive then I ever thought.
8) Blue pens. I really don't like blue pens.
9) Racism. Living in Harlem, I get racist comments every once in awhile. It's kind of weird...and it's always at times that I don't expect it.
10) People hurting children. I was told once that sometimes the anger in our lives come from our great love of something. I don't have any children, but I don't understand how someone could harm them. Ever.
Invisible Children
So I work at MTV. And I have a LARGE space in my heart for children. The Rescue is coming up April 25th. The Rescue is where tens of thousands of people will sleep outside in solidarity with the children who must walk miles and miles per night to be safe from kidnap. Who would kidnap them? Joseph Kony, the leader of the LRA, has been kidnapping children to train them as soldiers or use them as sex slaves. So this one night, we will be "abducted", like those children have been abducted. And we will wait for rescue, just as those children do every day. We will ask for our rescuers to be "moguls" and "media". We need someone famous who can elevate the story and make it more than just a blip on the radar. We need help! We need hope!
Unfortunately, without anyone famous, I don't think MTV News will do anything. I've been praying that God will change their hearts and just let them say yes and cover the story - hell, I'll even write something for it!!!
think.mtv.com said that they'd put a promo up for it. I can only hope. I may even see if Buzzworthy would be able to do something (it's an MTV blog). Would you want to help us out too?
http://therescue.invisiblechildren.com
Blah
My uterus has never really liked me. I mean, we talked for awhile, and at first we were cool. Then I turned 16 and...it turned into a hate-hate relationship. I'll never know what made her turn against me, but once she turned, I had no reason to love her anymore.
Anyway...every time I get looked at, they find that nothing is wrong. Fine. But now I want to change birth control options (Moving to NYC made me into somewhat of a tree-hugging, organic liberal...but only a little bit) and because I was having "irregular periods" (fine, fine. One just didn't happen. I asked my uterus why and she only responded with cramps...) I need to have a sonohysterogram on Wednesday.
Imagine your uterus as a balloon. And then it being expanded with saline. I am not excited. :( I had to get a pregnancy blood test before I can do anything else this morning (they won't perform the test without it) and I noticed the girl was a student. I wouldn't say I'm a pro at getting blood taken, but I have some AWESOME veins and I NEVER bruised when I donated platelets.
I'm bruised. And in pain. And there's a hard lump where she took my blood. I feel like this is a bad sign.
Oh well! Wednesday, here I come!!!
Anyway...every time I get looked at, they find that nothing is wrong. Fine. But now I want to change birth control options (Moving to NYC made me into somewhat of a tree-hugging, organic liberal...but only a little bit) and because I was having "irregular periods" (fine, fine. One just didn't happen. I asked my uterus why and she only responded with cramps...) I need to have a sonohysterogram on Wednesday.
Imagine your uterus as a balloon. And then it being expanded with saline. I am not excited. :( I had to get a pregnancy blood test before I can do anything else this morning (they won't perform the test without it) and I noticed the girl was a student. I wouldn't say I'm a pro at getting blood taken, but I have some AWESOME veins and I NEVER bruised when I donated platelets.
I'm bruised. And in pain. And there's a hard lump where she took my blood. I feel like this is a bad sign.
Oh well! Wednesday, here I come!!!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
A quick and random aside...
Growing up, we were NOT allowed to whisper. Not at all. I do not like whispering...and it's all that's happening at the office!!
What am I?
So I'm going to write whatever I want on this blog. And maybe I'll remember to update. :) This is mainly for myself anyway.
So I have a friend who's doing a project called History Starts Now. It's goal is to end child trafficking in our generation. There was a networking thing last night that I went to and I started talking to someone about the ideas I support...or, mainly, the charities and goals I support.
And he asked me, "Are you an activist?"
Hmm...I never really thought of that. And I don't know. Merriam-Webster says that an activist is: "a doctrine or practice that emphasizes direct vigorous action especially in support of or opposition to one side of a controversial issue"
Oooooo. I don't think I'm that. I read 'Blue Like Jazz' a few weeks ago...and I watched a movie called For The Bible Tells Me So about homosexuality and the Bible... and I've been seeing things everywhere (When God tells you things, I mean, He REALLY tells you) about love. Love is not money. You shouldn't choose who you give it to. You know, 'cause I'm pretty sure Jesus gave his love to me and I can tell you that I don't really deserve it. Love is a verb. A verb a verb a verb.
Can I tell you that I would love to LOVE every child in the world who doesn't have a home or a family? I would love to LOVE the homeless people on the street. And I'll be honest, sometimes they scare me. But I actually talked to a homeless person the other day. No, really. And her name was Jess and she just wanted to get back home to Tennessee. I'm still praying for her. I hope she and her dog and her boyfriend made it back safe.
And somedays, I don't want to love...some days I just want to complain. And I want to be annoyed. Ha! But I'm trying. I'm trying to just love and love and love as if my heart would explode.
I don't really think I'm an activist. I just want to love the world God gave me.
So I have a friend who's doing a project called History Starts Now. It's goal is to end child trafficking in our generation. There was a networking thing last night that I went to and I started talking to someone about the ideas I support...or, mainly, the charities and goals I support.
And he asked me, "Are you an activist?"
Hmm...I never really thought of that. And I don't know. Merriam-Webster says that an activist is: "a doctrine or practice that emphasizes direct vigorous action especially in support of or opposition to one side of a controversial issue"
Oooooo. I don't think I'm that. I read 'Blue Like Jazz' a few weeks ago...and I watched a movie called For The Bible Tells Me So about homosexuality and the Bible... and I've been seeing things everywhere (When God tells you things, I mean, He REALLY tells you) about love. Love is not money. You shouldn't choose who you give it to. You know, 'cause I'm pretty sure Jesus gave his love to me and I can tell you that I don't really deserve it. Love is a verb. A verb a verb a verb.
Can I tell you that I would love to LOVE every child in the world who doesn't have a home or a family? I would love to LOVE the homeless people on the street. And I'll be honest, sometimes they scare me. But I actually talked to a homeless person the other day. No, really. And her name was Jess and she just wanted to get back home to Tennessee. I'm still praying for her. I hope she and her dog and her boyfriend made it back safe.
And somedays, I don't want to love...some days I just want to complain. And I want to be annoyed. Ha! But I'm trying. I'm trying to just love and love and love as if my heart would explode.
I don't really think I'm an activist. I just want to love the world God gave me.
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