Sunday, October 31, 2004

Really Lanny, is that the best you can do? P-Diddy said that if I don't vote he'll kill me. You're going to need to step it up if you want to be taken seriously.

Also: According to our landlord, our house is haunted! This is so cool. Priscilla gave five reasons for why our house is haunted:

1. Priscilla believes that her difficulty with procurring reliable contractors to repair the house is a reflection of the house's unhealthy spiritual nature.
2. At one point a woman was pushed down the basement steps by her son and died.
3. A while ago a little girl living here would see a woman with a blue hat walking around the house.
4. Other residents have reported hearing strange noises.

I've been having quite a day with this. There are problems with joking about it so much, however:

1. I don't know anything about the capabilities of ghosts in general or the Woman with the Blue Hat in particular, but it seems conceivable to me that they would not be pleased with being treated lightly. I certainly wouldn't.
2. If I do ever uncover evidence of ghosts, no one will ever believe me...

posted by weiss @ 5:09 PM

Saturday, October 30, 2004

update on pre-holloween party at sojo house
"uh-oh, kitty is eating the cheese and alcohol" - val amstutz
posted by kate @ 8:08 PM

Fresh shit


Highlight from the Wooster Collective. Pretty great art right there (though not as great as what comes out of Wooster, OH of course).
posted by sasha @ 4:27 PM

Friday, October 29, 2004

Western Tennessee Legal Services

When I got there, Steve Xanthapoulus wasn't there. There was a note saying that he just found out he had to present something over the same time and that maybe we could meet in the afternoon.

Trial Lawyers for Public Justice

The interviewer asked me what drew me to TLPJ and I told her that it was the DC location and the statement in their description on the Career Fair webpage that interns should "have a healthy sense of outrage." I told her that I do in fact have a healthy sense of outrage. They do a lot of interesting, cutting-edge kind of work. On one hand that could be really engaging. On the other hand, for whatever reason run-of-the-mill kind of work appeals to me maybe a little more. There's so much blatant violation of the law out there, I'd like to get my share of the potential attorney's fees.

Community Legal Aid Society, Inc.

I had assumed that this would all be in Wilmington, but not so. They have offices in Dover and Rehobath as well. As many of you know, I used to go to Delaware beaches for day trips during high school, so I have overwhelmingly positive associations with the Diamond State. I'm not sure about Dover, but Wilmington would be a nice extension of Philly, and Rehobath apparently has a pretty happening gay scene which would keep it from ever being boring. Oh, that and it's right by the beach. And this one would pay.

DC Employment Justice Center

My off-and-on volunteering at the DC EJC's Wednesday night Workers' Right Clinic is, I think, going to give me a good shot at this position. This is the only interview that scored an "A" in both location and work. The interview was conducted by an older guy who I'd never met before rather than David Colodny who I had expected to be there. The older guy spoke very softly and I had to ask him to repeat himself a lot. Though once I caught on that a lot of the things he was saying weren't things I needed to have a verbal response to I let a lot more mumblings slide.

Western Tennessee Legal Services

When I came back at three Steve was there. This had rated double "Ds" before but now I'm not so sure that I wouldn't take it. I still probably won't take it if anything else is available, but I don't think that I'd be unhappy there. It would be interesting to live in the rural South for a spell.
posted by weiss @ 3:12 PM

a great big blog
linkText
Helloooo everyone!! Today is a very monumentous day--I have joined the shoup house blog!! do do dooo! ok ok, I will get over myself. Anyway, first I want to express my general excitement that IT IS ALMOST HALLOWEEN!!! The very bestest of all holidays celebrated in this great big weiner country. A day of transformation, suger highs, fake eyelashes, glitter, hedonism, and magic. It doesn't get much better. Ok also, today is going to be critical mass!! yay!! Everyone will be in costume and we will be riding by hotel workers on strike, to express our solidarity, which makes me happy. My costume is super lame, I am a nija pirate, which means I will be wearing an eyepatch and a karate uniform. I also am obsessed with buying hot pink fake eyelashes, although I realize that this will only increase confusion over my costume, but shmehh.
OK on a diffferent note, I was reading some of weiss's posts and started thinking about radical social change. When thinking about past situations when the status quo was uprooted and new social systems implemented (i'm thinking Bulshevism, Paris Commune, Spanish revolution) it seems as if violence is inevitable. The writings of many intellectuals back this up-- most say that for the revolution to be succcessful, while violence cannot be the main the main proponent of the change, it is also inevitable. This seems to me slightly bleak. Now, looking at history, there is always Ghandi, and India's "non-violent" break from the British empire that defies the violence criteria.n Martin Luther King also was a huge advocate of nonviolent change. However, this country's civil rights movement was far from a nonviolent one (as weiss's last post touches on). Please Goshen, help me out. What other examples are there of large social upheaval achieved through non-violent movements?
posted by Teresa @ 1:11 PM 0 comments

Lancaster you make me proud
Good to see Lancaster folks giving Bush a proper reception. And it turns out this is part of an ongoing tradition. How come none of you Lancasterians have mentioned the "Smoketown Six"?

P.S. Thanks for the photos Sasha, they make me homesick. I miss y'all. I'll be around in Goshen over Christmas and in Lancaster over the New Year. Let me know if you're around.

P.P.S. It's nice to see a shouper fronting for GC.
posted by Unknown @ 4:14 AM

Pictures & thanks
Thank you to all who made my Fall Break 2004 trip such a success! It was kind of overwhelming, in the best way, to catch up with so many great folks and hear what you all are up to. I also ate a lot of great food, for which I am always thankful.

I'd like to thank, in order of appearance:


My aunt Rita in Hamilton and her son Andrew; also Rebecca and my Opa who drove me down.



My aunt and uncle Ruth & Jack who let me stay with them in Scottdale; also my cousin Cory who drove me to the Turnpike.



The really salty but friendly trucker who took me all the way to Lancaster, even though it was out of his way.



Juice & T-Mo for the Lancaster hospitality.

  

My cousin Peter and his wife Rachel, who fed me when I was hungry; also little Daniel.



My Holzinger grandparents--who also fed me--and my aunt Anne who drove me around.

    

Redekopp, who let me stay at her house and showed me a good time in our nation's capital; also my cousin Debby who taught me about sushi and stuff and her wonderful grandparents who took us for lunch at their swank Virginia country club.

            

E Hersh, Jayne, Jules, Hofer, Allen and the Schrocks for some kicking times! (Also Betsy, Ben, all three Tims, Rose, Hannah, Alex, Derstine and that woman who was afraid to go back into her house.)

  

Mr J. Landon Y, whose ham just keeps getting hotter.

Hugs and kisses to you all.
posted by sasha @ 1:27 AM

oh man, such a happy day!
i got to work on time today, (the first time in about a month) and Hien told me i didn't have to work. Super hip-hip-hooray because boy-howdy was it sunny-BEAUTIFUL! over come with happiness ('cause working sucks on a sunny day, or in general) i called everyone i knew that was working and told them i wasn't. then i visited my mom and watched slides from her trip to france, then i bought a hot dog. then i went to the bank and told them i wans't a student anymore, then i took off down PA ave. and shook the hands of Adam Eigingeringeringer and presidential candidate Cobb who are very much opposed to the baseball moving here. good for you. then i skimmed the front page of all newspaper 50 states and canada, all of which recognized that the socks won except for SD, New Hampshire (who only informed us the cardinals lost) and the guardian, who took up nearly the entire front page with the old hobit people story. then i went to the big fountains on the north side of the capitol and napped with the homeless people for the rest of the afternoon until i had to pee. then julia came home and i got a bag from celeste and alisa, yay yay yay. very exciting cause my other bag just got a new whole and went from smelling like fish to pickles. (peh) nasty nasty. thanks guys! i'm so happy, it even has a reflector strip and POCKETS!!!!! woo hoo, then i wandered around the hardware store with julia and ate dinner with val too! yay! so HAPPY! i like fall days with nothing to do, hooray for pretty leaves! heh heh heh, whew, okay, come to our house if your around for thanks giving, i'll probably be working, but if i'm not, i'll guarantee you a happy-go-nuts fun-by-golly time!

posted by kate @ 7:10 PM

scruple please: heavy on the caffeine
joel's conundrum -
listen up now, because this a great story.

the other day, i went to one of the coffee shops near my house here in indianapolis. the name of the coffee house is abba moses, located across the street from "the joy of all who suffer orthodox church". i went with two objectives in mind: begin writing my "personal theory of social change" paper for dean johnson's class and read from the book "a patch of eden: america's inner-city gardeners" by h. patricia hynes.

i ordered a vietnamese coffee, thick with grounds and sweetened condensed milk and set about tackling my interpretation for the cause of social problems and how i want to fix them. theofan and mary, the owners of the coffeehouse and resident cool people, and i began a conversation about the the cause of such problems. we talked about the fallen nature of humanity, how, if it is necessary, salvation plays a part in the role of social change and what humans inherently desire and search for. after talking for about and hour, a customer walked in and order a coffee to go, but overheard our conversation and asked to join.

in his mid- to late-forties, robert smith, wore a tan, heavy cotton hat, not a baseball cap, but one with a brim all the way around. one edge of the brim was folded up and attached to the side of the top with a snap. the hat and robert's button down, short sleeve tan shirt, overlaid on a dark long sleeve shirt, elicited the image of an australian outback explorer. on his hat, three pins: each one from a different union. the operators engineers, the teamsters and one more i forget at the moment. robert holds three union cards and three different pensions.

robert joined the conversation and as more people filled the coffee shop in the afternoon, theofan and mary were taken away, leaving just me and robert to talk. our conversation touched on topics including the biased media, how union pensions work, how he works in asphalt paving eight months out of the year than goes to the city aquas calientes, in the state of aguas calientes, in mexico for the winter; returning once in the late winter to file his taxes. the conversation turned towards me and what i want to do with my journalism, peace studies and, ahem, limited design skills. i told him i wanted to farm.

then, we began talking about different travels we have made and i mentioned that i had spent a year in hong kong, volunteering my roberte as a web editor, writer and photographer to the social movement. at this point in the talk, robert's interest noticeably increased and would continue to exude more fascination as i explained all that i experienced and knew about hong kong culture and to less extent, my limited knowledge of china. we talked about the social structure of society in hong kong and how hundreds of thousands of domestic workers come from thailand, indonesia, the philippines, cambodia, vietnam, south china and others to work in homes of hong kong chinese as care takers and domestic servants. robert then surprised me by asking how he could become one of these domestic servants. i immediately cautioned him, telling about incidents of abuse and indentured servant labor. then, robert pulled out his business card: quantum realty.

http://www.quantumrealestate.net/

robert, on the side, owns and operates quantum real estate and lists thousands of properties on his web page. through the help of a friend who worked or works for nasa, a database adds and clears the listings every two weeks. apparently this is far more up to date than many other realtors claims robert.

aha, i thought to myself, i see where this is going. incredible, really.

i arrived at abba moses at around 2 pm. i left at 6:15, late for my house dinner; an offer on the table. if i should so choose, i have a free ticket and accommodations for a month in hong kong, plus a cut in the profits if i take robert to hk and show him around. inspired by the book, "ugly americans: the true story of the ivy league cowboys who raided the asian markets for millions" by ben mezrich, robert wants me to help him sell north american properties to hk investors.

so the question: why me? why me, a person who just sat down to write his personal ethos on why society fails to provide for people and basic human rights; i firmly believe that our capitalist system is one of the root causes of the injustices among others. yet, even as i write this, i must be honest and admit that when i left hong kong, i did so not knowing when i would return, if i ever would. the people i left behind, i miss dearly and yearn to see them in person again.

as i close this story, i ask you, my community, to respond to this decision. spread the anecdote and ask others to add their input.

as i left the coffee house, robert wrote his cell phone number on the back of the card. he lives only blocks away from my house, and we will undoubtedly meet again. i did not give my contact information to him and i withheld my last name. but then again, if my journey is such as it has been in the past years, where far fetched opportunities catch me and hold me, i do not doubt that i will receive an e-mail all too shortly.

in conclusion, i raise my cup of fair trade coffee to internal conflicts.

note: the name of the realtor has been changed, but the website is real.


posted by joel @ 1:23 PM

Bo Sox Win!
posted by sasha @ 11:45 AM

soapboxes and new blogs. yup.
today in the life of peace house, guest speaker, matt guynn, took us through the direct action equivalent of a high ropes course: street speaking. half way through our afternoon class he posted a challenge on the board saying that we would all be leaving in 15 minutes to go and speak on the corner of a main street in indy about any topic we felt strongly about. this challenge included all present, including dean johnson and erika galyan, who was in class to observe. ha. here is a link to the page where i posted some short videos of our speeches to the world. go here

this, my phriends, is the link to the VERY UNOFFICIAL peace house blog link me
posted by joel @ 10:56 PM

Okay, so here's the list of all of the interviews that I have tomorrow and Friday. I'll let you know how they pan out, and where I might end up for the summer.

Organization	City	State	Date	Time	Location	Work
Texas Civil Rights Project	Austin	TX	10/27/04	09:15 AM	B	A
Community Justice Project	Pittsburgh or Harrisburg	PA	10/27/04	11:40 AM	A	B
Indiana Legal Services	Indianapolis	IN	10/27/04	01:30PM	B	B
Public Justice Center	Baltimore	MD	10/27/04	02:00 PM	B	B
Sylvia Rivera Law Project	New York	NY	10/27/04	02:30 PM	C	A
Legal Aid of North Carolina	Raleigh	NC	10/27/04	03:00 PM	C	B
Greater Boston Legal Services	Boston	MA	10/27/04	03:30 PM	C	B
West Tennessee Legal Services	Jackson	TN	10/28/04	11:00 AM	D	D
Trial Lawyers for Public Justice	Washington	DC	10/28/04	11:30 AM	A	C
Community Legal Aid Society, Inc.	Wilmington	DE	10/28/04	01:30 PM	C	B
DC Employment Justice Center	Washington	DC	10/28/04	02:30 PM	A	A

posted by weiss @ 11:51 AM

check it out, honk, beep, honnnnk, check it out
link that Text

posted by joel @ 11:14 PM

Let's PARTY on Nov.2!!
So, come to New World Players to watch the election live on a big screen! There's also FOOD! The events start at 8 p.m. It's $10! BUT, if you're voting, it's only $5! (This is all happening after I return from a taping of "Jerry Springer." Yeah! Aren't you jealous? ... No, I guess you probably aren't.)

Also, there's a great Onion this week. Here are a couple highlights:

"That's it. I'm voting for the candidate who would flip-flop on sending my son to die, rather than the one who'd do it without hesitation."

And:

"Republicans Urge Minorities To Get Out And Vote On Nov. 3."
posted by D-Bo @ 7:31 PM

Birmingham was awesome.

Thursday night was the opening reception at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. Yes, that Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. Afterwards I went downstairs to find a bathroom and I could help wondering: Where exactly did the four little girls die? Was it this hallway? How about this room? Maybe that corner?

John Lewis spoke at the reception. "We choose nonviolence as a way of life," he said. I didn't pay much attention otherwise. I have minimal interest in members of Congress, regardless of their history. I was annoyed when the Black Panther member on the program didn't speak. Later I found out that she had simply been a no-show.

The next day I went to a discussion about Civil Rights in Birmingham given by a professor of African-American Studies at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. When he asked for questions I raised my hand. I said: "Growing up in Pennsylvania you learn about the Civil Rights movement in fifth grade and through PBS documentaries. Later if you read about it you learn that a lot of what you've been taught was wrong. What would you say are the major misconceptions that people who didn't have direct involvement with the Civil Rights movement have about that movement?"

The professor said that it was the extent of armed self-defense. Blacks didn't simply accept the bombings of their homes and churches. They posted armed guards at the houses of leaders, at their churches. Road entrances to black neighborhoods were watched by a man in a car with a gun. It wasn't a nonviolent movement. This was the response I'd expected, having done my own reading.

So why did John Lewis say what he did? He was there. It's impossible to believe that at the time he didn't know what was going on.

Perhaps the most benign explanation is that in the end it didn't matter. While there were black folks running around with guns, that activity wasn't really what brought an end to legalized segregation.

As strange as it might sound, I wouldn't rule out that John Lewis has truly forgotten. He's a politician, not an historian, so he isn't involved in trying to accurately represent past events. And like all of us he wants to believe that his participation was meaningful and so it's quite possible that he simply doesn't remember the extent to which armed self-defense was present or relevant in Birmingham. The misremembering is reinforced by mainstream presentations of the Civil Rights movement.

Or perhaps the explanation is less benign. Perhaps John Lewis consciously ignores the history of black armed self-defense because to speak about it would jeopordize his political career. After all, the writers of every fifth-grade history book and the producers of every eight-hour documentary on the Civil Rights movement aren't all incompetant. Certainly if they tried to look into the history they would find the history of armed self-defense. But it's never there. And if they can prevent every textbook I've ever read and every documentary I've ever seen from including that history, no doubt they can keep it out of John Lewis's mouth as well. The next question, of course, is why.


posted by weiss @ 10:30 AM

And now for something completely nonpolitical
Yesterday, Charletta and I took a trip on the London Eye, the gian ferris wheel on the Thames. The view was great, but I was equally fascinated by the wheel's mechanisms as we smoothly glided along in our pod. See the nonsense gallery for more photos like the one at right.
posted by Unknown @ 9:52 AM

The prima facie and effusive egress maundering from indigence is an undulant obeisance to fecund convivial affray and corpulent vatic popinjays who caterwaul an acerbic and tremulous rapprochement enunciating an excursus that harangues attempts to quash an ignoble but credulous wiseacre's cacophony working to acclimate abuliated didactic cudgels.

heh heh
posted by meg @ 10:57 PM

How I learned to love the neocons
Went to see Embedded last night. Its written and directed by Tim Robbins (certified Hollywood liberal). Seems to me to be part of the first biting liberal salvo specifically targetting neo-conservatives and Leo Strauss. The programme had some devestating quotes from Straussians including a neocon saying that certain truths are appropriate for children, certain truths are appropriate for students, certain truths are appropriate for most adults, and certain truths are appropriate for highly educated adults. And that the idea that one truth works for everyone is a "democratic myth." I got the impression that Straussians are into Plato's "philosopher king" idea as well.

In otherwords, I get the impression that neo-cons are saying what Chomsky accuses the "elites" of saying since Walter Lipman. Unfortunately, his book "Manufacturing Consent" is written off by most as "shrill" or ridiculously lefty. Fortunately, neocons appear to be doing much better job at exposing the foundations on which U.S. democratic hegemony is built. And this just reinforces my view that Bush and his cabal are radicalizing 10 times as many people as Chomsky has in his entire life.

Of course, Chomsky's biggest argument about media bias has always been himself. The fact that most Americans have never heard of him despite the fact that he's the eleventh most quoted intellectual in history. To a lesser extent, Tim Robbins has also been raked over the coals himself for his anti-war involvement. You can tell this play was really his chance to get even with the neo-cons and get out some of the pent-up anger. Sometimes it was a bit over the top for my tastes. But maybe that's just because I've been around restrained Brits for so long.

Meg, one of these days I'll get around to writing something non-political. Really.
posted by Unknown @ 8:26 AM

I wish I were more musical...
.. basically because I have this wacky idea that it would be fun to turn a poem or some form of writing/communication into a music piece.. mainly by using moris code.. I'm mean, it's all just a matter of long-short patterns that you can add notes to.. but seeing as I cannot compose I guess I won't be doing this.
However, I do have my idea for my children's book completed. It's educational, and fun! wooboy! It's all about this cat, who sneaks in places, like art galleries and aquariums, etc and then learns things.. yeah...
oh and for some good news, my roommate and I are finally getting a long really well.. we're still too completely different people though.. and she still reminds me a bit of an older version of one of my half sisters.. hmm.. but hey, at least there's less tension in the room!
posted by Erini CS @ 10:55 PM

one time
i was riding my bike
to work again
an' i saw a BIG back-hoe
and then it went rrum rrrummmm!
and then it did a wheelie
wheeeeee!
VRRRRUMMMMM!

here's a prayer my grandma of SR 38 reads every oct 22
"We do not pray because we doubt but because we believe. To pray without
believing is unworthy of the children of God. No, Lord, we do not doubt
your words and we believe that each one of them is a solid base for the
boldest of expectations. We come to you in saying to you, 'Act according
to your word.'
Bless the house of your servant; heal our sicknesses; save those who are
hesitant among us; bring back those who are wandering, strengthen those
who live in reverent fear of You.
Lord, give us food and clothing according to your word; bless the work of
our hands, especially our efforts to make the Good News known to those
around us. Make of our employees your employees, of our children, your
children and may Your blessing
be poured out on the future generations. As long as even one of our
descendants remains on this earth, may that one remain faithful to You.
Eternal Lord, bless the house of Your servant."
We ask this in the Name of our risen Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen
posted by kate @ 9:32 PM

Life imitates art for the lead actors in "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas"
Hmm. Do I really want to open up my Elkhart Truth to find out why?
posted by D-Bo @ 4:47 PM

Funny ass shit
food
dance
music

Alisa!
you love macs! oh joy!
you're coming to DC!! Double joy!

Persephone is out cat

her favorite toys are:
-those plastic things that hold the metal top of frozen orange juice things to the cardboard part.
-the little thing that tears off of a milk jug cap, similar to frozen orange juice thing only smaller
-cheerios

couldn't give a damn about:
-string
-yarn
-bells

stupid nocturnal feline on crack
posted by meg @ 1:57 AM

Blacks aren't worth Bush's time.
From IMDb:

President George W. Bush has turned down an invitation for a primetime interview on BET, the Viacom-owned cable network that focuses on black viewers. Senator John Kerry, who had also received an invitation, accepted and was interviewed on Oct. 7. BET said that its founder and CEO, Robert Johnson, had sent a letter to top African Americans in the Bush Administration, including Secretary of State Colin Powell, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of Education Rod Paige and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson, asking them to urge the president to reconsider his decision. The letter said that the invitations to the two candidates were intended to give them the "chance to show African Americans that their issues, opinions and their votes really matter."
posted by D-Bo @ 1:32 AM

Okay, I'm going to Birmingham for the NLG Convention where the weather is nice! It's going to be great.
posted by weiss @ 8:38 PM

Jesus Loves you, Derek
posted by meg @ 10:52 AM

Yes sir, I like it.
Oh RAPTURE! It looks like praying to the shaven yak finally paid off. I am so happy that I now own the entire first two seasons of "Ren & Stimpy" on DVD that I can hardly contain myself!! So, wear unwashed lederhosen, fill your hip boots with coleslaw and be sure not to whiz on the electric fence; otherwise you're just a bloated sack of protoplasm, you eediot!

Robin, Lance and I have a lot of fun sitting around watching it. Happy happy, joy joy!
posted by D-Bo @ 10:51 AM

The Ethiopians who run Cup'a Cup'a at G and 21st don't wait to for me to tell them what I want. "Medium coffee?" they ask and I nod. They know me by now, the kid with the buzzed hair and the black hoodie who always comes in right before 10am, scowling at the Italian IMF staffers and really the whole world in general except the three people who are busy getting him coffee.

Partly I'm scowling because I'm angry that I'm so tired, partly I'm angry about my increasing coffee consumption.
posted by weiss @ 10:24 AM

strange but true, in or around foggy bottom
1. last friday, i was waiting tables at the Froggy Bottom Pub. As I was wrapping up a check for table 33, check # 3333, for three people, i noticed their bill was for $33.33

2. i ran into someone meg met in New York

3. Yesterday, after locking up my bike in the parking garage at the kennedy center i heard a little tinkle and looked over an saw a shiny pair of tweezers, i looked and no one was around, it seemed like they had fallen from the ceiling, but my best guess is i probably kicked them. anyway, i picked them up and stuck them in my pocket, after a short while i noticed a splinter in my index finger
posted by kate @ 9:44 AM

From: alexa@nyhotties.com
Subject: Saw Shoup House
Date: October 19, 2004 12:29:29 AM EDT
To: katees@goshen.edu


Hi,
I recently came across your blog Shoup House, and I think its fabulous! I was really sad when I heard Chris Reeve died. He was so sexy in that outfit. He could save me anytime.

My blog has a bunch of regular visitors and I think that some of them would enjoy your blog. What would you think about doing a link exchange? If you'd like to, here is my link A New York Escorts Confessions. Please let me know what you think.

xoxo,
Alexa
posted by kate @ 9:29 AM

I saw two people fall flat on their faces today. oh man. it was way funny.
posted by meg @ 4:30 PM

digging a root cellar
geez, i feel ooooooooooold. remind me not to sit in the new coffee shop w/o a friend near by, cuz i don't recognize any one. hmmm...it must be time for me to say...yup, that was censored.

any ways, here is a link to a photo gallery from the weekend past when i and anna marie from earlham, traveled to paoli to visit darren and espri on their kickin' farm. we dug a pit and then put a fridge in it and then decided to call it a
root cellar. when not busy digging in solid red clay, i chased guineas around or fixed bike tires. then a bit more digging, then i would walk around and take more photos. then i would marvel at the red okra.






posted by joel @ 9:27 PM

Stories from the Million Worker March

1. Talked to two Marxists today. One was a kid from the Boston chapter of the Progressive Labor Party, a group that he repeatedly referred to as "hard line." Once we established that I wasn't going to buy his paper we had a pleasant chat. He was impressed when I knew both the name of the Marxist sect who kept bothering them (Spartacist League) and their origin (one of the remnants of the breakup of SDS at its 1969 convention). The PLP, he told me, refuses to support any of the world's Communist states, referring to them all as "deformed workers states." I asked him how if the PLP acknowledged (quite rightly in my view) that all Communist states throughout history have been appalling they could still sensibly call themselves "Communist." Isn't it a little bizarre to claim to adhere to an ideology while opposing its every manifestation? He said that he'd have to think about that, and that I'd obviously thought this all through. Hopefully he will, as he seemed a pretty nice fellow, but frankly it doesn't take that much thinking-through to see the innanity of the PLP and related groups.

   The other was a member of the Freedom Socialist Party and an administrative law judge in Seattle. He presides over administrative hearings for claims to unemployment benefits. I asked him if his pro-worker bias makes it difficult for him to render impartial decisions. He told me that his understanding of the science of Marxism gives him the ability to truly understand what is going on in the cases over which he presides. He said that he has a better record for not being reversed than other administrative law judges he knows, so if that's true I guess he has a point. He asked for my email address and I gave him the Goshen one that I don't check much.

   I'd never really spent much time talking with assorted Marxists at demos before, and this was actually more interesting than I anticipated. But don't get any ideas, LaRouche people. I will still blow you off.

2. It's illegal to sell anything without a permit on National Park Service land, and the Park Service won't give you one. The courts have carved out exceptions for political materials, which includes buttons, stickers, and literature because to forbid the sale of those items would violate the First Amendment. T-shirts, however, are not within the exception. Local 10 had made up a bunch of t-shirts for the rally and was trying to sell them for $20 each to raise money. Being as the shirts were ordered by longshoremen the sizes ranged from large to larger.

   And they weren't supposed to be selling them. Around 1pm the Park Police started to shut down all t-shirt sales. At first it looked like a big deal, longshoremen yelling at park police and vice versa. I pushed myself right up next to it for a while, but then I noticed Zak hanging back some and stopped for a moment to think. Really, what was going to happen here? The police are going to shut down t-shirt sales but not arrest anyone. There isn't much to see.

   So for a while they kept bickering back and forth with the police insisting that you needed a permit and longshoremen arguing variously that selling things shouldn't be prohibited, that there isn't any meaningful difference between buttons and shirts, and that they were just going to start selling buttons for $20 and including a free shirt in the deal. There wasn't much to see until at one point Officer Young said that he was going to get the Lieutenant and a dredlocked longshoreman replied that "that doesn't mean anything, your higher-ups don't mean anything, this isn't top-down, this is a grassroots movement, this is bottom-up." Even if he did have to close the t-shirt box after a few more minutes of shouting, that, ultimately, is the point.

posted by weiss @ 8:45 PM

Julia totally rocks my socks

She took 8 of us goshenites-turned-washingtonions to see leonard slatkin conduct the NSO in a modern concert with pieces by dvorak, corigliano, and wagner. score for her.

posted by meg @ 10:20 PM

As always, I have no political news. But I do have this!!
So, the other day Val had some kids staying after school, so she thought it would be a good idea to have the kids write birthday cards for me and kate. Here are the results:

<star> Today is your 22nd Birday. Happy Birday to yuss. From Breon	A new age has dawned. Good Luck		Happy B-Day	This is the age where life gets hard. Sincerely, Amstutz <star><smiley>		Happy Birthday	Happy Birthday Meg! I hope it's a good one!! At least you're still in your 20's! 30 & up is old! (just kidding) Sincerely, Laura <heart>
front	inside		front	inside		front	inside

oh man, they were the best birthday cards ever.


posted by meg @ 10:13 PM

Forgiveness for what?

Tim, I clicked on your link to the text "debt forgiveness" and it did not work! I suggest this one: debt cancellation.

Opening up a semantic debate with substance behind it, Jubilee South advocates using only verbs such as drop, cancel, eliminate, abolish to refer to global debt. To relieve debt implies letting the World Bank and IMF get away with continuing to collect on some of the debt they claim is owed to them by nations in the global south. To forgive debt is the worst of all, because then the world's wealthiest nations get to think themselves benevolent and wonderful for getting rid of onerous and often odious debt. The rightfully radical Jubilee South says, "Don't Owe, Won't Pay!"
posted by celestial @ 5:02 PM

Since some others are name dropping...
So, I had to attend a meeting today on the crisis in Sudan at the Canadian Mission. And I look over next to me and the person sitting there is none other than the older sister of our rather lanky Democratic presidential nominee, Peggy Kerry. It was kinda neat. She works for the US Mission and surprisingly, they've been very on top of the Sudan crisis. She's also very, very skinny.
posted by Landon @ 4:39 PM

On harmonicas and lefty culture
So this evening after work I headed down to register for European Social Forum. The sun was settting as I got on one of the old routemasters. These are the double-decker buses that everyone thinks of when they think of London all red and rounded. The conducter on my bus was a black guy with dreds, a beret and a harmonica that he played the blues on for most of the ride. I figured it was a good start to the evening.

I got off in Holborn and headed off to "Solidarity Village" at Conway Hall, an old hangout of lefties and dissenters in London. As I came in the door I felt a wave of nostalgia. It was just like every Convergence Space I've ever walked into. From Quebec to Miami. Organic food stall, banners all over, the feeling of expectant hustle and bustle. Of course in England any space like this attracts socialist workers in swarms as well. All trying to sell you their newspaper and give you their social faq. I felt a deep resonance as if some part of me was coming home again. Despite cutting my hair and getting a job, I'm still a hippie, Aaron.

I found my registration table and picked up my free travel pass for the weekend, my red ESF bracelet to get into events and my program. I spent the ride home reading through the 64 page broadsheet, an a-zed of every lefty org, cause and movement under the sun. There appears to be about 30 different seminars and workshops to choose from in each 3 hour timeslot through the weekend, culminating in a massive march to Trafalgar square. Should be a weekend to remember...
posted by Unknown @ 2:09 PM 0 comments

New 534 housemate!
Well, there are now seven of us living at 534. This is an open invitation for all of you to come over and meet Lance Miller. He's a lot of fun.
posted by D-Bo @ 11:32 AM

What do you call a lawyer who fights for social equality
Roll over this link for answer

hee hee, I'm sooo funny (I just made that one up).
posted by meg @ 8:03 AM

Celeste left today, shiny new teeth and all.

I didn't have time to miss her, though. I was too busy. We had a legal observer training this evening. Nineteen people turned up, which was great. The trainers were pretty good, too, though I felt like Anais was playing up the "I'm hardcore, getting arrested is scary but I do it" line, which is unfortunate. Much better is to point out that: (1) if you're trying to avoid arrest, you almost always can; (2) in the off chance that you are arrested at a demonstration it is uncomfortable, but you'll live; and (3) if you're trying to avoid arrest, the arrest is probably unjustified anyway and you'll get off with no charges at all. But nineteen is a great turnout. Wow. I was so pleased.

This weekend is the Million Worker March, so hopefully we'll get some folks out to LO at that and cut their teeth on it so we can send them off to smaller demos later.
posted by weiss @ 9:31 PM

So I've noticed that name dropping has become a favorite game recently on the blog, so I thought I might join in. This evening after the Christian Peacemaker Teams UK meeting at the LMC I was hanging around with my friend Justin doing dishes when his phone rang. He proceeded to spend about an hour talking on the phone with a woman who seemed to be a journalist interested in the recent oil-for-food revelations that have been coming from the UN. He seemed to know her fairly well and they chatted about a variety of debt forgiveness related things.

Turns out it was Naomi Klein, one of my favorite journalists of all time! She's doing research to follow up on her latest story. And I was standing right there. Oh my gosh.

P.S. I fixed the link and the wording Celeste. I wish you could come visit and have a long chat with Justin. The weekend before last he was in Washington lobbying the IMF to cancel Iraq's debt. I'm sure you'd find a lot in common.

Epilogue: Sure enough, Klein quoted Justin in an article the next day for the Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1328664,00.html on debt cancellation and who should really being paying reparations.
posted by Unknown @ 5:14 PM

On the road again
Yo, respect.

I'm coming in to Lancaster tomorrow for some Juice and T-Mo. Friday we'll be in our nation's capital. Here's to then!
posted by sasha @ 10:19 PM

Lasagna
Kate made this super lasagna and then almost all of the goshen kids who live in DC and some who don't came over and we ATE IT!! yum. then we had ice cream. but before it all we had twizzlers and brie. good times. thanks to all who came. plus it was our birthday so everyone drank good beer and vodka.

also, old policy reinstated: who ever visits gets free prints from john blosser's printmaking class last year. the good ones are going fast. so y'all better hurry and come visit before the limited edition prints are all gone and you have lost your chance to invest in a future piece of art that will someday make you rich when one (or both) of us-here-schrocks-mm-hmm becomes famous.

so watch out fer those killer cacti.
posted by meg @ 10:07 PM

Christopher Reeve Died
Very sad. But I was watching some morning news show and they replayed an interview with him from two years ago and the interviewer was talking to him and he was like, I dream about sailing a lot and I'm never paralyzed in my dreams. and then the interviewer was being all sensitive and she said "so, when you wake up are you ever like, 'damn.'"

I thought that was hilarious.
posted by meg @ 7:14 AM

Largest Urban Parks in the United States

Park	Location	Acres
Rock Creek Park	Washington, D.C.	1,755
New Orleans City Park	New Orleans, La.	1,300-1,500
Mt. Airy Forest	Cincinnati, Ohio	1,469.91
Central Park	New York, New York	843

I've been curious a long time what the actual data was regarding urban parks, having spent much of my youth in Rock Creek Park, and being a competitive megalomaniac (i.e. from the U.S.), wanting my park to be the biggest. And as it turns out, I win.

A qualification on the data, though, that Rock Creek National Park actually stretches into Maryland and borders quite a few suburban urban areas as well.

Cincinnati still sounds like an awesome city. I should come visit for those drag shows. And hey, D.C. may get the largest urban park, but we still don't have voting congressional representation.



posted by celestial @ 9:54 PM

Meet Wally Sparks
OK, I have decided that I want to watch this infamous movie. Does anybody have a copy, or did that leave town when Tool left?
posted by D-Bo @ 5:13 PM

who partied for 12 straight hours last night?
it was me!

we organized a little goshenite get-together at Asylum for 5pm yesterday. Meg and i were there with Julia at five so she could get in a round before going to work at 5:30. some water dripped on out head while we were drinking our 25¢ high lifes and offered to give us our next round for free to make up for it. by this time julia was gone and celeste and tasara and some of her friends trickled in. before the drinks were $0.75, dirty and elise and stan and emily hershberger arrived. by the time drinks got to over $1(7pm), i had managed squeeze in 4 drinks the the whole party of us plus sophie wandered in to a completely empty Chez Antoine for some dinner, after a bit, betsy joined us for her birthday. after nuttella specials, we moved the party to the house and celeste and meg and i went to go hang-out with sara in SW for a round of cranium and some brownies and ice cream. then meg headed home and i metroed back to columbia heights with celeste to hang out with julia for the rest of her shift (2am) after this point i don't remember much except i kept opening bottles of beer and at least starting to drink them. some one puked in the bathroom and we cleaned it up, then i puked all over the bar, then it was like 5 am and julia and i biked back to my mom's house. i started the evening with $40 bucks in my pocket and when i went to see how much i spent this morning i found a little over $300, i'm assuming this was like a pay-check or something.... all-in-all i had a good time, it's been a long time since i puked, and the first time as a result of drinking. it was neat to see all the goshen kids in DC and to hang out with sara and get to know my boss on a whole other level. now i'm going camping!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
posted by kate @ 1:39 PM

What if Jay-Z got drunk with Weezer...
...and made some of the headiest music ever? Jay-Zeezer.com, that's what. Highlights include "Surf Wax Off Your Shoulder," "The World Has Changed Clothes & Left" and "Undone - The Threater Song." At yer own risk.

posted by sasha @ 8:36 AM

yeah, I totally met this hunky monkey on the street. well, at least he said hello, and then we jumped in the air and said, "dude! that was george stefenopalopolopolosifus!!!"

posted by meg @ 9:39 PM

Really? You think so, Toronto Star? And to think I'd been betting on the ETA all along...
posted by weiss @ 1:54 PM

food.
so, those of you in GC Monday...
I'm going to be cooking dinner, you should come and eat it.
As of now, I really don't know what I'm cooking.
It's either pasta or Mexican-inspired. (or both if that many people show up)

So:
Kulp West (First floor kulp, with stairs leading to Main st; from campus, it has Santa on the door).
6:00-ish in the evening
Food. Free food.

.. um, since I do live on campus, just be sure that I don't get screwed if you choose to bring your own beverage.
If you have a record you love and want to share, feel free to bring that too.

call x7022 or e-mail me: erincs for more info if needed.
posted by Erini CS @ 9:44 AM

Job description: must love to travel
In the mornings my grandfather and I paint. We also nail, buff and strip, but those verbs don't quite cut it. We work until noon, when we eat bread and cheese. Then he sleeps and I go to work. I spend the afternoon there, doing whatever needs to be done. At five we eat supper and in the evening we talk. Sometimes I have time to catch up on old ERs. It's a good routine.

But, like all things it cannot last. On Sunday I'll return with my Opa to PA, and we'll hang out. On Wednesday a hitchhike to T-Mo (and the Juice) in Lancaster, and drive with him down to DC on the evening of the 15th. A weekend there with Redekopp and my cousin Debby (hopefully the Schrocks, too) with high chances of humidity and noseliness. I hope I see everybody I can see, and I'll email you all as I get more of my act together. Finally, a surprise visit with Lando in NYC on the way back, and then my new job on the 25th.

Really my new job will be my old job, but with government funding to make it full-time. Today my boss told me that since he was too busy to write my job description I should just do it myself. Here's what it will look like:

"L'employé sera responsable de coordiner la distribution d'une revue nationale avec une circulation de 38 000; réviser et corriger des épreuves d'articles, en plus d'en écrire par occasion; établir de liens dans les domaines de la musique classique et du commerce; aider avec les programmes de levée de fonds; concevoir et exécuter des stratégies de marketing et de loyauté; contibuer à la vision commune de l'entreprise et accroître l'image de marque de la revue et de l'entreprise à travers le Canada."

Something like this in English:

"The employee will be in charge of coordinating the distribution of a national magazine with a circulation of 38 000; editing and proofreading page proofs, as well as occasionally contributing articles; building contacts within the business and classical music worlds; helping with ongoing fundraising efforts; designing and implementing new marketing strategies and reader reward programs; creatively adding to the shared vision of the organization, and overall, enhancing the image of the magazine and organization across the country."

I'm looking forward to it, which makes me feel old. Help me kick the jams our while I can! I'm excited about seeing folks, as well as getting out of this already-frozen city for a while.


posted by sasha @ 8:22 AM

sun and water combined...move a chevy
students in arizona have invented a car that runs entirely sustainable. read the article here.
posted by joel @ 10:35 PM

OK, let's all sing along this time:
"The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins"

In the middle of the earth in the land of the Shire
lives a brave little hobbit whom we all admire.
With his long wooden pipe,
fuzzy, woolly toes,
he lives in a hobbit-hole and everybody knows him

Bilbo! Bilbo! Bilbo Baggins
He's only three feet tall
Bilbo! Bilbo! Bilbo Baggins
The bravest little hobbit of them all

Now hobbits are peace-lovin' folks you know
They're never in a hurry and they take things slowly
Don't like to travel away from home
They just want to eat and be left alone
But one day Bilbo was asked to go
on a big adventure to the caves below,
to help some dwarves get back their gold
that was stolen by a dragon in the days of old.

Bilbo! Bilbo! Bilbo Baggins
He's only three feet tall
Bilbo! Bilbo! Bilbo Baggins
The bravest little hobbit of them all

Well he fought with the goblins!
He battled a troll!!
He riddled with Gollum!!!
A magic ring he stole!!!!
He was chased by wolves!!!!!
Lost in the forest!!!!!!
Escaped in a barrel from the elf-king's halls!!!!!!!

Bilbo! Bilbo! Bilbo Baggins
The bravest little hobbit of them all
Bilbo! Bilbo! Bilbo Baggins
The bravest little hobbit of them all

posted by D-Bo @ 4:30 PM

Contrary to popular belief, God DOES support hate crimes!
"I've never seen a man in my life I want to marry. And I'm gonna be blunt and plain; if one ever looks at me like that, I'm gonna kill him and tell God he died."

- Evangelist Jimmy Swaggart, in a recent television sermon. Swaggart has since apologized for the comments.

(From the 10/4/2004 Newsweek)


posted by D-Bo @ 4:10 PM

My cousin Doug is at the hospital. He got in a four-wheeler accident. He somehow managed to get back on and rode himself back to the farm. We don't know the details because he's not really in much of a condition to be very coherent, I'm told. He's suffering heavy internal bleeding and liver damage. They put "packing" in him, whatever that is, to stop the bleeding and cushion his organs. Sometime today, maybe this very instant, they're going to cut him open again to take the "packing" out and look at his guts.

He might die. I have no idea how likely that it, but it's possible. How do I deal with that? I don't think about him that much, and I don't know how to feel about that.

I bought him a card. I'll mail it tomorrow. At first I thought I was buying it for him. When you're little you always think your older cousins are really cool. But I'm not sure that he's in much of a condition to appreciate cards right now.

Then I thought I was buying it for his parents. I worry that I'm becoming more distant from my extended family than I would like, but I don't know what to do about that. So maybe this card will help some there.

But perhaps ultimately I'm buying it for me. It's a pathetic, $2.99 gesture, but I don't know what else to do.
posted by weiss @ 11:56 AM

On the lighter side, ...
... I've been e-mailing a rodent. Muffy the Mouse is going to send me a poster with her autograph on it through the mail.

For those who don't know what I'm talking about (95 percent of you): shame ... SHAME!
posted by D-Bo @ 10:35 PM

Sorry, Tool.
Rodney Dangerfield, R.I.P.
posted by D-Bo @ 10:34 PM

draft bill stomped
The military draft bill got crushed 402-2, but they were able to repeal that awful gun control law in the capital. I just fucking love our democracy. Good people making good decisions. In other news, I was really disappointed during the VP debate that Dick Chaney did not reveal himself as Darth Siddius or use the force to choke John Edwards. What a lame-ass debate.

posted by Landon @ 9:23 PM

Thanks Eric!
posted by meg @ 9:18 PM

You know that fantasy? The one where you're driving around around a city at night? The roads are wet and glisten in the light from the streetlamps. Occasional people wander in and out of buildings, but yours is the only car. It's a small car, maybe convertible, and chromed in unusual places. You are driving in it alone.

Okay, maybe that's just my fantasy, but someone else at least knows about it, even he or she doesn't share it. I know someone else knows about it, because that person wrote a letter to Massive Attack asking for music to go along with this fantasy. And Massive Attack delivered.

Unfortunately, the album's not good for much else. It lacks the loyalty to soul that managed to make Blue Lines so friendly and approachable. Oh, and the Sinead O'Connor vocals? Those are just weird.

But hey, who wants to go see The Mountain Goats with me on Monday at the Black Cat?
posted by weiss @ 10:49 PM

yo!
guess who's excited??

me!

why?

it's getting cold!

so?

i'm not in indiana and i have a lame-ass job!

so?

that means i have a good excuse to go SNOWBOARDING(!) and get stoned(*) at least twice a week!!!!!!!!!!!!!

* not really mom, heh heh
posted by kate @ 10:32 PM

DRAFT BILL VOTE TONIGHT: 6pm EST
disturbing news from our government folks. call your reps. NOW!

---
IMMEDIATE ACTION ALERT - Political positioning brings unexpected call
for vote on military draft!

This is a completely an unexpected development which needs your immediate
attention.

October 5, 2004

Rangel Military Draft Bill, H.R. 163
Coming for a Vote

- from the Church of the Brethren Witness/Washington Office and the
Center on Conscience & War

HR. 163, which was introduced by Charles Rangel (D-NY) and which would
reinstate the military draft, is unexpectedly coming for a vote on the
House floor today.

A rarely used "Suspension" rule is being used by the Republicans to
swiftly move this bill out of committee without a vote and onto the
House floor for passage or defeat. Under this rule no amendments will be
offered, a 40-minute debate will be followed by an up or down vote, at
which point it is expected to be defeated.

The Republicans are responding to Kerry's rhetoric that if Bush is
reelected the draft will be reinstated. Bi-partisan support against
conscription is needed to snuff out this dangerous flame.

The bill is expected to be on the floor around 6:00 PM Eastern Time.

The best message that can be sent is STRONG bipartisan opposition to the
draft because the people of this country do not want a draft!!

The Rangel bill contains fundamental flaws that are detrimental to the
situation of conscientious objectors.

Call up your Representative now!!!

For more information on the dangers of the Rangel bill, visit
http://www.nisbco.org.

To find out the phone numbers for your Representative go to
http://www.congress.org and type in your zip code.

Please forward this to all your communication networks.
posted by joel @ 3:32 PM

so apparently my roommate is from the artic circle of Ohio...
it's cold to me. it's in the 40's. she says it's comfortable.
it's cold. to me, I don't want to have to wear hoodies all the time. It means I can't dress up.
I want to dress up. I want to look nice. It's hard to do when you're an Rinicycle.

but this means one thing, and one thing alone...

posted by Erini CS @ 1:30 PM

Sacrificing Civilians for Political Gain

Today's Guardian has a very disturbing commentary on the parallels between the recent Israeli invasion of the Jabaliya refugee camp in Palestine and in the Iraqi town of Samarra. Simon Tisdall points out that in both situations, overwhelming military force is being used to root out a small number of insurgents. In Israel this is standard policy. In Iraq, this may be a dress rehearsal for bigger operations in Fallujah and other problem areas:

And thus are the personal political fortunes of Mr Sharon and the US president, George Bush, bound up to a critical degree in what happens in places such as Jabaliya and Samarra.

Both men are fighting to convince sceptical electorates, and their own parties, that they know what they are doing. When elected, Mr Sharon promised to achieve security for Israelis. Mr Bush declared victory in Iraq more than a year ago.

Each man has a credibility gap. To fill it, it seems ongoing civilian carnage is not too high a price to pay.

It seems to me that these callous calculations are the logical continuation of a century in which civilian casualties have become more and more acceptable in the name of percieved short-term security from Dresden to El Salvador.

In reality, these kind of operations are like borrowing from a particularly sadistic loan shark. In the short term these massive operations can create a perception of security and stability. In the long therm, these operations are creating a generation of Arabic and Muslim children who will hate Israel and the US. What they do with their anger and rage 20 years from now is obviously not a concern for Bush and Sharon.
posted by Unknown @ 5:41 AM

nice sunny weather
i had a great weekend!
on friday i paid rent, worked two different jobs, had dinner with my mom before she left for france and saw Freddy Cole (Nat "King" Cole's brotha) at the Kennedy Center, all of these events i was at least a half an hour late for.

saturday i rocked it at the bike shop, bank, library and eastern market. there were at lest two cops on every corner starting from east of the white house to the GW campus where they got a lot thicker, many streets were closed off to cars and some even to pedestrians. motorcycle cops were buzzing everywhere and lines of cop vans were found on street corners. it seemed like the MPD was gearing up for some sort of IMF/world bank protest. coincidentally, the G7 meetings were happening inside of what they had blocked-off, confusingly, is that the cops out numbered protesters about 200 to 1. i met about 30 protesters in all. what happened to all the protesters? was the police department aware that there wasn't going to be a giant mobilization like there was in april? were they there for the 400 or so people gathered at the ellipse to mourn for the deaths in Iraq? my guess is they were there mostly to secure the area around the Bank, but still, it seemed very over done. Jubilee USA was at the world bank, and kids from Jonah House were at the ellipse. On my way home i biked through about 300 people running around in red dresses, that was also very bizarre...

heh...

on another note, i learned that Chez Antoine is trying to sell, maybe i'll buy, wouldn't that be fun...
posted by kate @ 7:20 AM

argh. such a charlie brown moment
ok guys,
so i just got home from my shift at the laundromat. as i was reaching for the door knob to go into my house, i was horrified to see that my right-hand middle finger was naked. it has happened. i have lost my ring. i've worn it for over five years now; it's the only thing i always wear. it must have come off in one of the four pairs of disposable rubber gloves i used this afternoon. but i disposed of all those rubber gloves in the laundromat's trashcans and, like the good little chirpy employee that i am, gathered up all of the trash and threw it in the dumpster out back. damn. damn it all.
so, do i drive back to the laundromat, dumpster dive and sort through maybe 10+ bags of trash to find a teeny metal ring,
or do i suck it up?
the ring is just a bent key-ring, it's like tin or something. but in emotional value, man, i don't know, it's just making me very sad. i already feel off-balance, like my right hand is too light.
anybody want to dumpster dive with me for my ring?
sigh.

in other news:
julia! may i interview you about your kickass internship at the kennedy center for the record?

derek! i thought i was the only person who had ever seen Today's Special. (i'm singing the theme song right now in my head)
the website made me happy and then creeped me out. kinda like the show.

meg! it's like we're twins! you know i always said, the three things i can't understand are republicans, mullets, and accounting majors. i just can't imagine any circumstance in which i could say "oh yeah, i think being a rep./getting a mullet/studying accounting is a good idea."

joel! maybe you could live with us. we'll be going through sophie-withdrawl though, them are some tough shoes to fill.....

is anyone going to be in g-town over fall break? just wonderin'.

love,
sara

posted by Sara @ 11:05 PM

su casa es mi casa
this applies to youins in goshen. i love you others bunches, but commuting between dc or london and goshen seems a bitt too muchh for the spring semester with all the snow and ice and snotcicles that come with living off campus.

get to the point fath. anyone have space in their house for a fath? "hey, i here he cooks fantastic, gives amazing back rubs and can occasionally be found barefoot in the kitchen" said g. miller.

so? i need to move in on december 19 and can stay till...well beyond next summer into 20020. yes, that extra zero is correct.

joelrf A T goshen D O T edu


posted by joel @ 9:10 PM

sigh
FYI: The blogpoll has changed.
BTW: You can change the damn thing yourself as long as you set the width to 152 or there abouts.

And now a not from our sponsors:

It grows in bunches
I've got my hunches
Its the best
beats the rest
cellular modular
interactivodular

Ring ring ring ring ring ring ring
Banana phone
Ping pong ping pong ping pong ping
Ponana phone

posted by meg @ 6:11 PM