Vibrant.(Still) Unrepentant. Badass. Old. Queer

Good morning, Kittens. We need to gather 'round and have a bit of a chat, so pull up your chairs nice and close, put on your Thinking Caps and Listening Ears, because VUBOQ is getting ... concerned. I had a thought which has been plucking at my brain for about a week or so now. And the hum is starting to drive me a bit batty. As you may know, I am not one who falls for Conspiracy Theories; however, I am beginning to believe that something is afoot . It began with a simple April 15th tax protest. In which, people were encouraged to send Tea Bags of Protest to their congress person ... or the President. " Teabag Obama," the Conservatives screamed. And, Those in the Know, giggled. Then, another group (which I am too lazy to research, but Rachel Maddow reported on this) wanted to have 2 million people protest for (straight) marriage [or against gay marriage?]. And, they called it 2M4M. And, once again, Those in the Know, laughed heartily at them. Finally, a horrible g...

Good Morning, Kittens. We're Blogging from the Bus this morning. VUBOQ is going to take a bite from the Big Apple. VUBOQ also thinks that typing on a rattling bus is quite difficult. So this post may be shorter than expected ... Anyway, yesterday was Chock Full o' Aweseomeness *and* Stress. The Aweseome part was serving, along with another alumna, as an outside evaluator of graduate student research presentations for one of my former professors. It was totally cool, but intellectually draining. We had to listen to 10-minute presentations, then ask relevant, guiding/probing questions. At the end of the nearly 3 hours, the professor thanked us and paid us a very nice compliment when he said, "I wish I had scheduled you for the presentations next week, too." The Stress part involved getting ready for this trip. I over-packed. Then, this morning, remembered I had forgotten to pack the Pottery Thank You Gifts for my hosts. So, I took out some clothes. Guess who...

Good Morning, Kittens. I'm waiting for FedEx this morning. They are coming to pick up the Nokia 6650, which I test-drove for a few weeks. I will be typing up a little review about my thoughts this week about the phone. Stay tuned. You can, of course, see pictures (I'm Chapter 2!) various bloggers took using the phone here . Yesterday was fun. The symposium on tropical extinction was cool; however, we didn't stay for the reception. After 4 speakers, I was done ... so we left. There were still 2 speakers and a moderated panel discussion left. We probably should have skipped the first speakers by arriving later. That might have been better. On the plus side, there were several cute boys in attendance. On the minus side, why is every man in DC so short? Napolean complex? After leaving the symposium, Dana and I goofed around the Natural History Museum for awhile. We headed back to Silver Spring, picking up some Obama cookies at the Safeway before heading to McGinty's for hap...

(And, no, this doesn't have anything to do with the Pope) Today, BOSSY wrote a fun little post about evidence that the polar ice caps are melting. The comments have been quite interesting. I suggested, in the comments, that, if people were interested in learning more about the science of climate change, they might want to read The Weather Makers: How Man is Changing the Climate and What It Means for Life on Earth by (respected scientist) Tim Flannery. In the very next comment, someone countered by saying that people should read State of Fear, the well-researched (*cough*) and fictional story about the Global Climate Change Conspiracy by (respected science fiction author and creator of ER ) Michael Crichton. Seriously, people, if you are basing your entire thought process about a significant global event on a work of fiction (and I'm looking at you Sen. Inhofe), then you may want to .. um ... I dunno, broaden your horizons a bit? I'd like to think that having a Master...

Have you ever read a book which you thought was really interesting/thought-provoking, but then come across a line which made you question all of that? Well, it happened to me this weekend. I was reading Power to the People: How the Coming Energy Revolution Will Transform an Industry, Change Our Lives, and Maybe Even Save the Planet by Vijay V. Vaitheeswaran. It's an older book (published in 2004), but some of the ideas presented are still relevant: fuel-cell technology, energy deregulation, etc. I thought a lot of what the author was arguing made a lot of sense ... until, towards the end of the book, I read this: "And while none of this fancy technology will change the locations on the planet where God put petroleum, it should certainly debunk the claims of those that insist that the world is about to start running out of oil." Um. What? And, now, for me at least, the book is ruined. *sigh*

A few days after 1999 melted into 2000, I was in the courtyard of Bai Yun Si, the White Cloud Temple, in Beijing with a friend. The temple was near her boyfriend's home, and I was looking for something special, something jade, something I could wear to remember my time in China. The jade disc I bought spoke to me. I probably paid more than I should have, but at less than $10, it was still a bargain. I tied it around my neck and it didn't come off for 7 years. Then, the cord broke. I replaced it, but the new knot would untie itself every few days. I wondered if Someone was trying to tell me Something. Frustrated and scared that I would lose my bi, I stopped wearing it. Last week, DUN bought new cord for me and spoke to a worker at a bead store about the best way to fasten it. Last night, I added a hook and eye clasp to the new cord. I put the bi back on ... and, it's weird, but I felt like a little piece of me had returned. I felt complete. And, then, I remembered a story I ...

Good morning, kittens. Via Scott-o-Rama , I've been introduced to all sorts of social-networking naughtiness. Of course, as much as I totally *heart* Mr. O-Rama, I need more friends. Will you join me over at Plurk? Will you? Pweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeez? It's twitter-like site with a much more interesting interface. Trust me . If you want, you can use ping.fm (betacode: landofping) to update all your sites, like twitter, plurk, facebook, jaiku, etc. etc. etc. Total grooviness, kittens. Try it. You might like it. Now that that's out of the way ... Last night, I watched Stranger Than Fiction . It's the first Will Ferrell movie that I've truly enjoyed. I think the rest of the cast, including Maggie Gyllenhaal, Queen Latifah, and Emma Thompson, certainly helped. The movie made me think (eek), because its central question was if you know you are going to die, would you live your life differently? Since I know I'm going to die [hopefully later rather than sooner], am I...

Al Gore, on whom I still have a big ol' boycrush even though his face is as wide as a glacier ( according to BOSSY ), and the UN's Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have won the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize . The Washington Post (I think I read it in the article linked above) raised the point that the Nobel Prize Committee is trending away from conflict resolution and towards people and organizations that promote and work to attain social stability. I would like to take it a step further and say that the Committee is not merely awarding the prize to those who promote social stability, but also to those who promote stability through environmentally sustainable/beneficial ways. The Nobel Prize Committee is turning over a new, greener leaf. Al Gore and, 2004 Laureate, Wangari Maathai 's green credentials are obvious. Al Gore has become the face of climate change, while Wangari Maathai founded the African Green Belt Movement . Perhaps, less obvious are the green contri...

Very rarely do I feel guilty about things; however, my desire to spend my *woot* bonus frivilously on BOOTS! and JEANS! and A SUPERFABULOUS PARTY! has made me feel a slight twinge of ... something. For the lack of a better word, let's call it "guilt." Thus, I'm reorganizing my savings plan and opening up a ROTH IRA. Fortuitously, one of my $500 6-month ING DIRECT CDs matured today. I transferred that to my ING DIRECT savings account. I sent half of the CD (minus interest) to my BOFA checking account. I will use that money to open up my ROTH IRA with PAX WORLD (the balanced fund ). I am liking PAX WORLD because of their socially responsible investment approach (and their 8% annualized return). Currently, I have $60 automatically deposited from my BOFA account into my ING savings account every 2 weeks. 4.3% interest, kittens! Much better than a regular bank account! You can open your own ING DIRECT Savings Account HERE ! In order to grow my ROTH (Did you know y...

This is it, kittens! P1K! One thousand posts! *woot* * fireworks * * confetti * * marching bands * * snarky comments about clos eted Republicans * Last night, Isa and I discussed a certain Idaho Senator's ... um ... situation . And by "situation" I mean "penchant for cruising various public restrooms for sexual thrills." I floated a theory, which is still hanging around in my brain ... Why is it we've been hearing more about GOP gay shenanigans than Democratic gloryhole frolicking? Besides Barney Frank in the 80s and Jim McGreevey a few years ago, what other Democratic gay scandals have there been in recent memory? Are Democrats smarter than Republicans? More discreet? Probably ... but that's not my theory. My theory is this: Because Dems tend to skew more socially liberal than Republicans, they are also more comfortable with issues of sexuality, including their own. Out and proud Democrats don't run for public office. Or they run as out and pr...

I've been mulling over the concept of power for the past few days. A simple decision became decidedly more complex. And it's all about power. Power that's been handed to me on a plate. People may think that power makes you happy, but I am refusing to lower myself to pick it up. Now, my question is: If not power, what will make me happy. Apparently, the answer was not "a Chipotle Vegetarian Fajita Burrito." *Feodor Dostoyevsky (1821–1881), Russian novelist. Raskolnikov, in Crime and Punishment , pt. 5, ch. 4 (published 1866), trans. by David McDuff (1991).

You know it's a slow day at the office when VUBOQ resorts to doing math problems . As some of you know, I used to work for the National Lead Information Center . Thus, the recent recall of some toys has piqued my interest. The question that I (and I'm sure YOU ) have been dying to know is: How many toy cars does a child need to eat to become lead poisoned? First, a few fun lead facts: Lead-based paint is defined as being 0.5% lead by weight . This converts to .... 5000 micrograms/gram (ug/g). The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has since decreed that no paint shall contain more that 0.06% lead by weight , or 600 ug/g . The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has set the blood-lead level of concern for children at 10 ug/dL (micrograms/deciliter). A persistent blood-lead level as low as 10 ug/dL can be associated with subtle learning and behavior problems. There can also be negative impacts on hearing and growth. Children with blood-lead levels under ...

The House has approved the Children's Health Bill , much to the chagrin of House Republicans and our Compassionate Conservative President, who has threatened to veto the Bill. Which raises the interesting and important question of "Why don't Republicans want the poorest children of this country to have adequate medical and dental care?" Our Compassionate President stated his fear: "When you expand eligibility . . . you're really beginning to open up an avenue for people to switch from private insurance to the government." OMG! The private money-grubbing insurance companies will lose business ! Won't someone think of the insurance companies? Thank GOD we have elected officials with giant conglomerates' best interests at heart. The poor kids without insurance, dying of brain infections because they can't afford dental insurance? Well, they're just going to have to fend for themselves. Mr. President, I don't think you need to worry abou...

This is what happens when someone dates a linguist. After ranting about the travesty of spelling that some environmental groups are inflicting on the children of the world (Won't someone think of the children ?), Y declared that I am a prescriptivist . And I agree. I do believe in the rules of language and spelling. I'm not entirely averse to those rules changing and modifying to adapt to an evolving culture, but come on environmental groups. DaVersity ? DAversity? Are you trying to KILL me? My impending death by misspelling travesty aside, I wonder if my prescriptivist nature transcends language and influences my daily life. The simple answer would be "yes." The more complex answer would be "um. I'll have to get back to you on this later." And that's what I'm going to do. The absolutely silly thing about this post is that I got to thinking about this after reading a post on Joe.My.God . I don't usually read his blog, being that i...

One thing I hate about attending the Capitol Pride Street Festival is running the HRC gauntlet . Every five steps one is accosted by a perky little volunteer saying, "Hi, do you have a few moments to talk about HRC ?" Erm. No. And I also don't have a few dollars to give to HRC either. Their cute little faces get these sad little crushed expressions, and it makes me feel a teeny-tiny twinge of guilt. I don't really like explaining that 1) I don't give to political organizations, 2) HRC's administrative and fundraising (AFR) expenses seem a little high, and 3) HRC hasn't impressed me with their overall effectiveness. According to Charity Navigator (which is a very cool site, until it stopped working for me), HRC's AFR is 35.4%. The Combined Federal Campaign website states that "an AFR in excess of 35% is considered high by many in the philanthropic community." I prefer to give my money to smaller, more locally-focused organizations. I have do...

I have been following the whole Ken Burns’s* WWII documentary controversy with the mild interested reserve of someone who doesn't watch TV and has no plans whatsoever to watch the documentary. According to the WaPo article, Latinos' Battle With Burns Taken to 'War' Sponsors , “the controversy began last fall when, after a screening of the film, Burns's team acknowledged that Latinos were not represented in the documentary.” The Post goes on to state: “PBS and Burns have said that they will add additional material to address the issue and that they have hired a Latino filmmaker to assist in producing it. But Burns and PBS have said repeatedly that the film itself is complete and that the new material will not be part of the stories detailed in the documentary. “The addition of new material hasn't quieted the protests; the organizations are concerned that such content will be a mere "add-on" that marginalizes the war service of Latinos.” I am still uns...

In high school, I had a crush on the one of the bad boys , the leather jacket wearing, smoking in the boys' room, skipping class bad boy. Billy was rarely in school, but, when he was, everyone knew it. You couldn't miss the 12-inch mohawk coming down the hall. He was tall, dark-haired, with stunning eyes which were usually clouded over in some sort of narcotic haze. I admired him from afar. Same school, two different worlds. Then, those worlds collided. The summer before our Senior year, Billy found God and cleaned up his life. The hot mohawk-sporting bad boy was gone. In his place, stood a typical Dockers-wearing Young Republican with a dream to become a minister. *shudder* He was still attractive in a clean-cut way, but the crush was gone. We became more than acquaintances, but not quite friends. Last night, I dreamed about him. As I sat at my desk this morning, reading the WaPo articles about the events at VA Tech, I began to wonder if that's what triggered my ...

It's always a day away. The people have spoken. Or at least some of them. So here's my exposition on: #4 Big city life and the creation of the societal expectation of "Someone Better Will Come Along Tomorrow" A few months ago, I sucked it up and stuck my toe back into the Dating Pool. Dating is hard. It should be fun, but I'm too busy thinking things like "stop babbling" and "make eye contact" and "ask questions" and "be interested" to truly enjoy a first date. I hit my stride (I think) with the second date. However, since I started dating again, I've only had one second date out of 4 [or was it 5?] dates. I didn't date a lot until I moved to DC, so I do not have a strong frame of reference. However, I wonder if Big City Culture has created a society in which people are never quite satisfied with what they have, because something new (and possibly better) may be right around the corner: Men are like buses. There'...