Holiday Poem

In line with my last post, please enjoy this, thanks to Leftist Grandpa and of course thanks to Congressman Dingell for his poetic brilliance.

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From Congressman John Dingell, (D) MI, by way of Gordon at Alternate Brain:

Dingell’s HOLIDAY Jingle for O’Reilly and House GOP

Washington, DC - Congressman John D. Dingell (MI-15) recited the following poem on the floor of the US House of Representatives concerning House Resolution 579, which expressed the sense of the House of Representatives that the symbols and traditions of Christmas should be protected. “Preserving Christmas” has been a frequent topic for conservative talk show hosts, including Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly:

‘Twas the week before Christmas and all through the House
No bills were passed ‘bout which Fox News could grouse;
Tax cuts for the wealthy were passed with great cheer,
So vacations in St. Barts soon would be near;
Katrina kids were nestled all snug in motel beds,
While visions of school and home danced in their heads;
In Iraq our soldiers needed supplies and a plan,
Plus nuclear weapons were being built in Iran;
Gas prices shot up, consumer confidence fell;
Americans feared we were on a fast track to…well…
Wait--- we need a distraction--- something divisive and wily;
A fabrication straight from the mouth of O’Reilly
We can pretend that Christmas is under attack
Hold a vote to save it--- then pat ourselves on the back;
Silent Night, First Noel, Away in the Manger
Wake up Congress, they’re in no danger!
This time of year we see Christmas every where we go,
From churches, to homes, to schools, and yes…even Costco;
What we have is an attempt to divide and destroy,
When this is the season to unite us with joy
At Christmas time we’re taught to unite,
We don’t need a made-up reason to fight
So on O’Reilly, on Hannity, on Coulter, and those right wing blogs;
You should just sit back, relax…have a few egg nogs!
‘Tis the holiday season: enjoy it a pinch
With all our real problems, do we honestly need another Grinch?
So to my friends and my colleagues I say with delight,
A merry Christmas to all,
and to Bill O’Reilly…Happy Holidays.

Xmas Already?

Once again I have been a bad blogger and have neglected my floundering little blog here. But what can you expect -- I've been slightly overworked lately, I apparently have terrible time management skills (otherwise I'd be able to find the time to visit here now and again), and now Xmas is almost here with all its attendant responsibilities.

That's right - xmas . . . I'm not using that shortcut because I don't care about Christmas (hello, if I used the american spelling of my name, christ would be a part of it), I'm using it because time is money people and it's just way easier to type, write, etc. "xmas." So everyone just stop bitching. Its fucking xmas. Dammit. Where's your xmas spirit? And as far as saying happy holidays instead of merry xmas, well, my guess is that people (and places like Target) use happy holidays instead of merry xmas because . . . well . . . shocker . . . not everyone celebrates xmas. Some people actually celebrate other winter-time holidays, like Hannukah (sorry, not sure of the spelling on that one -- is it supposed to start with a C or not?), Kwanza, and Solstice. And, according to the Daily Show, even Zoroastrians have a holiday this time of year. Saying Happy Holidays is just a way of respecting the fact that not everyone is Christian. Besides, the whole idea that the "Christians" in America are somehow being demoralized or whatever the fuck their bitch is this week because people don't say Merry Christmas (happy -- that took a whole millisecond longer to type than xmas) is simply ludicrous. Poor you, yeah right. You people are the majority. You have your man in the white house. Your "God" can be found on our money, in our national songs, and (gasp) in our courthouses. What is your problem? Can you please, for pete's sake, give the rest of a break?

Speaking of Christians, I recently learned that my brother has "become" a Christian. I say "become" because we were born Catholic but weren't really a 'churchgoing' family. He recently started going to new church. And really enjoys it. Of course, that scared the bejesus out of my pagan ass (what the fuck is a bejesus anyway?). I was way paranoid that he was going to become a bible-thumping asshole who stopped talking to me because I didn't think like him, or worse, tried every minute of every day to "convert" me. We've had serious conversations about it. And arguments (although afterwards he said he was mostly just playing devil's advocate to get a rise out of me -- I like to argue, obviously). But those "talks" taught me a very important lesson -- or rather retaught me and highlighted something I already knew. I should not let the radical right, neo-con, fundamentalist wackos speak for all Christians. Those people, who preach hate, and intolerance, and bomb abortion clinics, and beat up gay people, etc. etc., may call themselves Christians, but they're no more Christian than I am. Hell, they're less Christian than I am, in my humble pagan opinion. I may not believe Jesus is my savior (although I do believe he was a real person), or that Jesus is the one and only son of God (sorry, but doesn't the bible say we are all children of god?), but I believe you can't go wrong following his teachings (love thy neighbor, do unto others, and all that). As my brother explains it, true Christians seek to spread the word of God, but allow people to make their own decisions whether or not to listen. They do not judge or condemn people for differing viewpoints or behaviors, because that is not man's job, only God can do that. And they certainly do not use their own religious beliefs to oppress or harm others. And yet, the people who do these things are precisely the kinds of "Christians" I see in the news every single fucking day. It is these type of "Christians" who complain when people write xmas, or say happy holidays. And it is these type of Christians who are giving the "true" Christians a bad name. It is these type of Christians that caused me to be nervous when I heard my brother was going to church instead of happy that he has found something important to him. So all you non-psychos out there -- maybe you should speak up and stop letting the neo-con bunch let the rest of the world think that their brand of Christianity is the only brand out there.

OK -- well, I didn't intend on going off on a religious tangent, but with xmas around the corner, I suppose it could have been expected. All I really wanted to do was stop in, say hi, and maybe recap the past couple of weeks. But since I've already rambled for long enough, I'll save the recap for later.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! (and screw you if you have a problem with that!)

Who knew Indiana & Illinois were so cool?

From the December 2, 2205 issue of New Jersey Lawyer Daily Briefing... (emphasis is mine)
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The state of Illinois requires pharmacies that dispense contraceptives approved by the Food and Drug Administration to fill prescriptions for emergency birth control, commonly called the "morning after" pill. But four Walgreens pharmacists in the St. Louis area have refused to fill the prescriptions, saying they're exercising their religious or moral objections. Walgreens responded by putting the four on unpaid leave. So far, six other pharmacists have sued over the rule imposed in April, contending it forces them to violate their religious beliefs. Many of the suits were filed by Americans United for Life, a public-interest law firm in Chicago. The state could revoke the license of both a pharmacy and the store's chief pharmacist if they don't comply with the regulation.
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Fucking Walgreens rocks! And apparently so do the laws in Illinois. I mean really, how freaking awesome is that? Of course who knows what the hell will happen with the lawsuit, but seriously -- if you don't want to hand out what has been legally prescribed then don't be a fucking pharmacist. I really don't understand where the fuck these guys get off (and excuse me, but if I had to fathom a guess, my guess is they are all men, and white men at that). In the words of John at AmericaBlog, "I already have a priest, and he doesn't work at Target." (11/14/05). Or Walgreens, as the case may be. OK -- I don't have a priest, but I do have a doctor. And if she prescribes something for me, these guys fucking JOB is to give it to me. If they can't manage to do that because they have some moral objection, then find another fucking career. Because if pharmacists get to decide what drugs people were allowed to have, they aren't pharmacists anymore -- they're doctors. And most people generally prefer that their doctors went to, oh I don't know, medical school? I would love to just bitch-slap one of these guys. But at least Walgreens gets it. Go Walgreens.

AND...
_________________________________________

The speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives is barred from mentioning Jesus Christ or endorsing any religion in prayers at the beginning of legislative sessions. While U.S. District Judge David Hamilton didn't ban prayers completely, he ended a 188-year tradition when he ordered that any person chosen to give the invocation must be instructed that it must not advance one faith or be used to convert listeners. The American Civil Liberties Union sued the state, contending the prayers overwhelmingly promoted Christian values to the exclusion of other beliefs.

__________________________________________

I swear, I want to go to Indiana and shake Judge Hamilton's hand. Because the ACLU was right. And its about time someone started recognizing it and started treating Christianity, and Christians, just like everybody fucking else. Maybe if enough people do this, Christians will start to recognize that their religion and their beliefs do not make them almighty. Maybe they will realize that freedom of religion doesn't mean they are free to push their religion on the rest of us. Thank you Judge Hamilton. Let's just hope the judges on the Court of Appeals share your good sense.

On issues of equality, America lags behind...

SOUTH AFRICA?

That's right folks -- the good 'ole land of the free has just been surpassed when it comes to equal rights for its citizens by that former bastion of apartheid and all things unequal, South Africa.

OK, granted, South Africa has what could perhaps be called the most liberal constitution in the world -- banning discrimination based on sexual orientation when no other constitution in the world does, for example -- but that doesn't negate the fact that people, gay people anyway, will be more free there than they will ever be here.

Less than a week ago, South Africa's high court, in an 11-1 decision, announced that the country's ban on gay marriage violates their constitution. The South African parliament has one year to amend its marriage laws. What if they say screw you to the court? Doesn't matter. If parliament fails to act, the legal definition of marriage will change automatically at the expiration of the one year deadline. That means that one year from today, if not sooner, South Africa will become the first country in Africa, and the fifth around the world, to legalize gay marriage.

My question is simply -- what the hell is wrong with our country? Everyone likes to throw around words like "freedom" and "equality", but no one really seems to understand what those words mean. Not only do we not provide for gay marriage on a federal level, we actually have the Defense of Marriage Act (signed by Clinton of all people). What the fuck is up with that? We might as well be living in the stone age. And not only on the gay marriage issue, but others too -- one issue that particularly comes to mind is the death penalty. At least we are still part of the majority on the gay marriage issue (that doesn't make our position right, but it makes sure we don't look like total extremists either). With the death penalty, we are only one of three democracies in the world that have the death penalty and 97% of all executions are carried out in four countries -- us, China, Vietnam and Iran. Nice bunch, wouldn't ya say? My gravest concern is that what has happened in Spain, and Belgium, and now South Africa, will spread around the world and country after country will realize the error of their ways. And there we will be, still banning gay marriage, sitting on the sidelines with our legalized death friends.

Thinking about all of this, more and more I wonder if perhaps my thoughts of leaving the country and returning to the motherland following the 2004 elections should not have been so hastily thrown aside. Excuse me while I go call the consulate.

New Places...

Today was a very political day. I spent the morning being shushed by a partner, and the better part of this afternoon web-sufing...or more specifically, blog-surfing, and even more specifically, left leaning political blog surfing. And what a blast I had. Well, not so much the shushing part, although he did explain himself and apologize afterwards, but the blogs. I was aware there were people out there just as pissed off as I was with the current state of this country (and blaming the mother-fucking-neo-con-corporation-loving-back-room-dealing-administration for the bulk of it), I just forgot how fun it can be to read any type of "media" that didn't totally piss me off. Let me rephrase -- the topics being discussed pissed me off -- and if you can't get pissed off about what the whole cheney-bush-rove etc. etc. bunch of dickheads is doing to this country then you have mental problems -- but the manner of discussion was refreshing. For soooooooooo long I've heard complaints from "conservatives" about "the liberal media" (the liberal media, the liberal media...fucking babys), but, call me a dumb-ass-jersey-girl-bitch (and except for the dumb-ass part I would take it as a compliment), but I don't seem to have access to the same liberal media as those cry-baby cons, so finding it online was a pleasure. And if you agree even one iota with anything I've said, you should check out some of my new Happy Places, and maybe you too can be happy like me. Even if its only until you see the "regular" news...and then you can be pissed off again. Aaaahhhh -- the circle of life.

Too busy to write anything particularly inspired myself, so here’s some inspired words from across the blogosphere for your reading pleasure….

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“Somebody....Please tell me...Why in God's name do we hold Mary Mapes and Dan Rather to a higher standard than the President of the United States?” (Thanks to This Is What I Think)

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“I already have a priest, and he doesn't work at Target, thank you.” (Thanks to AmericaBlog)

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“A child will sit and mope when they don't get their way. The religious right will send up an order to General Republican Jesus to take you out.” Thanks to Am I Patriotic)

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“Then there's her criticism of your Bridge to Nowhere. Doesn't she understand that the less than 50 residents of Gravina Island are special Americans.” (Thanks to Jesus’ General)

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Enjoy!

Dirty Politics & the Curse of Bush

In both New Jersey and Virginia, the Republican candidates for governor were accused of playing dirty politics and using smear tactics to gain an advantage against their Democratic opponents. In both New Jersey and Virginia, the village idiot president took time from his vacation tough schedule to stump for the Republican candidates (early on in NJ, and on the eve of the election in VA). What did all this dirty politics and support from Washington get these Republican candidates in VA and NJ? Simply put, the combination of dirty politics and support from the president won each of these guys the opportunity to to congratulate their Democratic opponents when they were elected Governors of New Jersey and Virginia. Dare I say things are looking up?

Now all of this may not amount to an actual curse, but as a citizen of the US, I plan to respectfully ask Mr. President to go out stumping for some more of his fellow Republicans. Look at it this way -- in New York City, a hot bed of liberal ideology a.k.a. the heart of the blue states, the Republican Michael Bloomberg was re-elected (and won by more than 20 points)...and he neither played dirty, nor did he have Bush out stumping in the greatest city on earth. OK - Bloomberg spent a small fortune to buy win his re-election, and he did (at least previously) openly support the prez, but sometimes coincidences are more than just coincidences. In the words of Mr. Ollivander (HP ref for those of you not in the know), it is all "curious, very curious."

I know I just posted, but...

On a totally different note (didn't want to mix this with the politico-speak) -- since my sis with fiance and bambino were visiting from VA this weekend, DH & I took them into the City (the fiance had never been!). One of the highlights of the day was actually the last thing we did -- we went to the "Top of the Rock", which just "re-opened" last Tuesday (11/1/05). Even if you think you've seen it all, and been to every observation deck in the City, or are an otherwise jaded New Yorker (or New Jerseyan for that matter) this is an absolute must see and worth every penny of the $14 it costs to ride the elevator to the 70th floor (which is pretty cool all by itself cause of the glass ceiling - in other words, you can look up and see the elevator shaft above you!). The views are amazing and totally unobstructed thanks to the thick ass glass walls in place of the metal bars you usually see at observation deck type places. But I'd hurry if I were you - because as people start hearing about it the lines will get crazy; plus, according to the website - the $14 is only an introductory fee.

Politicians Are Dumb

Saturday night I was just relaxing on the couch, watching some TV, when a series of political ads for Doug Forrester came on and I had to wonder -- does anyone pay attention to which ads play when? Because if so, Doug Forrester is dumber than his biggest supporter (i.e. the prez). And if not, maybe he should. Here's why...the first ad was Forrester's wife telling us what a great man her husband is and how John Corzine is a big fat lying smear campaignist. I thought -- actually, said out loud to no one in particular --What the fuck? Your fucking husband started the smear campaign business -- what was Corzine supposed to do? Sit back and take it? At this point, my sister & her finace (visiting from VA -- where I hear they're having one hell of a smear campaign as well) looked at me like I'd lost my mind. I tried to explain how Forrester started the mud slinging a few days before, with an ad quoting Corzine's ex-wife, how the race had been pretty clean so far, and how Forrester had previously promised not to use the quote, but something was lost in translation. But then, un-fucking-belivably - Forrester's ex-Corzine-wife smear ad was the very next ad on. That's right - the very next ad! First, we got to hear about how Corzine is a son-of-a-bitch for smearing Forrester; and then, in the very next ad, we got to see Forrester's ad making a personal attack on Corzine that started the whole mess. Uh - duh - hullo? Anyone in the Forrester campaign paying attention out there? I may not be the most politically savvy chick out there, but even I know you do not follow up a "My husband is a great guy and the other guy is is playing dirty" ad with an ad in which the supposedly wonderful husband is playing dirty. That's just common sense. Then again, as pointed out by DH -- if the best person you can get to say you're a good guy is your wife, and the best person you can get to say the other guy is a dick is his ex-wife, then perhaps you've got bigger problems than an inability to pay attention to which of your ads are running when.

Cause for Joy or Further Worry?

Harriet Miers withdraws her name as a Supreme Court nominee. Hoorah!
But wait -- what does this mean? What's the lunatic (for those who are new here, I mean Bush) going to do next? Try to appease his uber-religious-right/neo-con base? (You know the ones -- the ones who all of a sudden don't think perjury is a real crime...even though it was real enough to impeach Clinton). Or will Bush do the smart thing and pick a moderate that will make his whole party happy? Never mind - I just answered my own question -- Bush and smart just don't mix. Which means all us moderates out there (yes, I'm a moderate, fiscally anyway) are going to have to band together to keep the lunatic from ruining our country with an uber-conservative pick for the next justice. Really, if Bush or whoever it is that is advising him these days (I imagine that Rove and the VP have their minds on other things...can you say indictments) really want to help this country (yeah right) they should just ask Sandra Day stay for the season, so to speak, and worry about a replacement after the Court's fall session is over. I somehow doubt that will happen, but one can always hope. Besides, if the fucking idiot Bush picks a uber-conservative court nominee, he may very well piss off enough Republicans that he'll end up getting himself impeached. Wouldn't that be fun?

And one more thing -- I can't help but think that this whole "withdrawal" is nothing but another smoke screen meant to distract the American people from more important news. Can you say indictments? Not that this is much of a smoke screen -- it's kind of pathetic actually. But they're still trying. Isn't that cute?

The Clients Are Listening...

But are the lawyers?

I went to another exciting ICLE class last night (see 'Day 6' on "9 Days Gone" for more details) – this time to sit through what I thought would be a three hour lecture on “Professional Responsibility” (aka Ethics). I generally do not look forward to these damn things, but I was especially uninterested in this class – not because I don’t believe in being ethical, but because I’ve already sat through 7 hours of ethics lectures in the last few months, and its starts to get a little repetitive after about the first hour. Anyway – lucky me – it wasn’t a three hour lecture I had to attend last night…it as only part lecture; the rest was a video! That’s right – a video…little role playing vignettes followed by discussion of the vignettes with regard to the NJ ethics rules. ICLE classes are bad enough when real people are talking, but on video…Zzzzzzzzzzzz…

My point is that this was the ethics lecture. And ethics are (sorry to say) boring enough without having to stay awake through a boring ass video. And considering how important ethics are (esp. for lawyers, given that our rep already sux as it is), you’d think the good ole’ NJ Bar powers-that-be would try to make it a little interesting; you’d think they’d want people to at least stay awake . But, I was there, and looking around I saw people sleeping, reading novels, zoning out, nodding off, etc. – everything except actually paying attention. And considering that NJ lawyers NEVER have to take another ethics class as long as they live, that’s more than a little scary. Half the people in this class have no idea what’s going on because they're in la-la land and the other half will forget because they never have to take a refresher course. Now some states do require refresher courses (like NY which requires 3 hours of ethics every 2 years, thus my recent experience with ethics classes) – but not NJ. Nope – NJ just makes you watch a dreadfully boring video and hopes for the best when it comes to professionally responsible and ethical lawyering in their state. What a fucking waste of time. No wonder lawyers have such a bad rep! Our clients listen to everything we say (or so says the video vignette), but we, as a group anyway, don’t listen to shit. Instead we use our ethics class as naptime (or at least some do). It made me (who was not fucking sleeping) want to stand up in the lecture hall and scream, “Wake up assholes – this is my rep on the line too!” I didn’t, but I really wanted to. Then again, maybe I’ll get the chance again tonight – that’s right – another fun and exciting ICLE ethics session featuring the NJ Bar Players in…. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Let Them Build

Let me first say that my sympathies are with everyone who lost a loved one in the September 11 World Trade Center Attacks. Only by the grace of the goddess do I not count myself among one the “families of the victims.” My brother was working on the 90th Floor of one of the buildings when they were senselessly attacked. He felt the building shake as the first building was hit and he immediately left his work area and began running down the stairs. When over the loudspeakers came an announcement that every one should return to their workstations, my brother, never really one to listen to authority, once again didn’t listen. He kept running. He ran all the way out of the building and home to his children. And as much as his problems with authority used to get on my nerves when we were younger, I am thankful for it now because I believe it saved his life. So, because my brother doesn’t listen when people tell him what to do, I am not a member of the “families of the victims” group. But I do feel their loss; and my heart goes out to every single one of them.

But that doesn’t mean I won’t give them a piece of my mind when I think it is due. And right about now I think someone should stand up to “them.” I understand their wanting a proper memorial for their loved ones. I really do. But “they” seem to be forgetting that “they” are not the only people in America to have lost their loved ones in a senseless tragedy. And their loss does not give them the right to dictate what is done with that very large piece of real estate in land starved Manhattan. It’s getting ridiculous. Seriously. If you don’t follow the drama of the rebuilding, its long and convoluted, but here’s a quick snippet: the families of the victims have put their two cents in at every step in this process. At this point, nothing has been finalized, because every time it gets close to being finalized, the families find something else wrong. If its not one thing, its another. They got the biggest press though, I think, when they decided that they didn’t want the International Freedom Center on the site. “They” didn’t want it there so it got the boot. (Doesn't any one besides me see how fucked up it is that the International Freedom Center got thrown out of rebuilding a site of a terror attack?) Going back to the beginning, there were some who wanted to leave the site an open wound, to remind everyone of the horror. But what has set me off is their latest bitch – apparently, “they” have now decided that there should not be a PATH train at the site. Don’t ask me why. Probably something to do with honor or some other fucking thing. But come on – no PATH? How the fuck are people supposed to get to work? Walk across the river, you fuckers? Really, their demands are getting out of hand.

So, enough already. It’s time that everyone stopped cow-towing to the families of victims. Yes, they suffered loss. Yes, they suffered tragedy. But they are not the only people to do so. What makes the lives of their loved ones more important that the lives of other people’s loved ones who also died in senseless tragedies? How is it that they get to dictate what happens to a particular piece of land? A piece of land, I might add, that they neither own nor are making any financial contribution towards. They just complain. Complain about the location of the building – its in the footprint. Complain about the Freedom Center -- we don’t want people to think about anything but our families members. Complain about the PATH train – (I got nothing on this one). And while they complain the City is struggling through a financial crisis of epic proportions. A large, and lucrative (for the owner, yes, but also for the City) parcel of land is going unused. Thousands remain out of work; business has fled to Jersey because there isn’t any where else for them to go. At this rate, if people do not stop all this bullshit, nothing will ever get built there. But perhaps that is the point.

Maybe this is brutal. Maybe I’m a total fucking bitch. But you know what, I really don’t give a fuck. There is no rule or law that says anyone has to listen to these people. People are listening because they don’t want to look like assholes. Well, I’m not afraid. I’ve had enough. First, rich bitches complained they were only getting $1 mil from the government and they would have to move out of their mansions. Boo fucking hoo…ever heard of life insurance? Now, they want to decide what happens to the WTC site; they want to decide how everyone else has to commute, and work, and whatever the fuck else they come up with. Well if no one else has the guts to say it, I do. I say no more. People are victims and die senselessly every single day. Their families don’t get to rule over the scene of the accident like kings. And there’s no reason why these families should be treated any different. You don’t hear the police department bitching, or the fire department bitching (other than a few concerns about safety – which makes a lot more sense than not wanting a Freedom Center). If they were, perhaps that I would understand – those men and women were the true heroes of that day and they deserve a fitting and profound memorial. But I don’t get why the lives of “the families” loved ones are so much more important than the life of a child who dies from being shot by a stray bullet during a gang fight, or the father who dies coming home from work when some drunk asshole runs a red light; or the mother who dies when her abusive husband beats the shit out of her. People die senselessly every single day. But for those who are still living, life has to go on. We still have to eat, and sleep and love. We still need to work. And commute. And talk. And think. And argue. And politic. And everything else. And if these “families” can’t understand that nearly four years after the horrors of that day, well then tough shit. Because life goes marching on whether you want it to or not. So, enough already. Let them build.

God Damn Blogger.com

Twice now I have spent entirely too much time drafting posts that were just freaking awesome only to have them disappear for no fucking reason. The first had to do with a string of bad luck I'd been having...and the glory of seeing Frist and Delay going down. The second -- which I just lost a moment ago, was an open letter to the religious right. And it was beautiful. Just spectacular, if I do say so myself. But I am out of time and so I cannot rewrite the whole damn thing - even assuming I could reproduce what I already did. SDo from here on out, I'm not going to draft my entries here. I'll draft them somewhere else and then copy them -- because when I can't use Ctrl-Z to undue whatever I did that erased the entire entry, I get pissed. And that's no way to start a weekend. Especially a weekend I don't have to work.

Venting

OK - so this other lawyer was supposed to serve us with papers today in response to papers we served him weeks ago. And then we were supposed to respond back by Monday. I planned my whole week & all of next week around this stupid thing. I have plans for dinner with a friend I haven't seen in ages; plans to participate in this really awesone pro bono program; plans. I actually made plans. What the hell was I thinking? So here we are - 30 minutes before the court closes & the guy actually calls to ask for an extension. Um - hello - what if we say no -- does he have the papers ready to go? And if he has them ready -- why does he need more time? And why the fuck didn't he ask us yesterday? Could it be he was enjoying a federal holiday while suckers like me worked our butts off? Of course I'm still just a lowly junior associate so I have no control and don't get to make the decision....I just have to track down the partner (in court!) and the client (who doesn't seem to want to return my calls) and then let this other guy know what we think. Oh - and - the other (junior) partner on the case (who is leaving the firm!) doesn't seem to think that any of this is a big deal. But what the fuck does she care - she's leaving. All she has to do is cash out her partnership shares and give away her work (to suckers like me). But I get to sit around and wait - wait for the senior partner to call me back, wait for the client to call me back, wait and see if all my plans for next week are about to go south. DAMMIT! If it was up to me, this asshole would be SOL -- none of this last minute bullshit. If he wanted extra time, he should have asked in advance . If it were up to me, I'd tell him to take a long walk off a short pier because fuck that -- I am not giving up my whole week becaue this guy is a slacker. But its not up to me. Welcome to my life.

The New & Improved All-Nighter

I just pulled an all-nighter for the first time in I-don't-even-know-how-many years. Needless to say, I'm feeling a little punchy. ; ) That said, please forgive me for any nonsensical things I'm about to say.

It would be awesome if the all-nighter was the result of a crazy night out or even a crazy night in, but, alas, it was not. No such luck for stina. No, I got to pull an all-nighter so I could draft an opposition brief. Doesn't that sound like fun, children? OK - I admit it - except for the not sleeping part, it actually was kind of fun. (Well, maybe "fun" isn't exactly the right word, but I haven't slept since 9:00AM yesterday and I'm running on pure caffeine so my vocab may not be up to snuff. OK? ) Anywho -- I was granted the privilege of losing all hopes of sleep to draft this brief, for work, and the sad part is I didn't mind it all that much. Well, while I was doing it, it kinda sucked (especially when DH went up to bed and I ran out of coffee and didn't want to go out in the torrential rain to get more), but overall, it wasn't so bad. Holy shit - did I just say that? Who am I? Especially since this was the first time I've had to work past 9PM and only the second weekend day I've had to work since starting my new job (somewhere on this damn blog is an entry about that, but I am way to tired and fuzzy headed to find it and put a link here). My point, as sleep-deprived and poorly thought out as it may be, is that although I've billed more than 20 hours since yesterday morning, the whole experience was not too terrible. At least they (the powers that be at my new firm) trust me enough to actually draft a brief (not like my last firm where I was lucky they even let me use a computer -- I swear, that place really must have thought I was gonna run with scissors or something, because they didn't let me do squat). But like I was saying, it wasn't too bad -- I got to do some pretty interesting research and writing, scored some major brownie points with the firm's managing partner (who, by the way, I was doing this work for), and above all, I get to feel like I didn't waste the disgusting amount of money I spent getting my J.D. Does this mean I'm a grown up now, because I don't really want to be.

This does not mean I am looking forward to any more of these. But they're not as bad as I remember, and so long as I have a stockpile of coffee, I'll survive, which is a good thing because its possible I'll be doing it again on Wednesday for a different brief. Fucking courts with their fucking deadlines!

Now that I have dutifully managed to ramble on about nothing in particular, and keep to my self-imposed rule of blogging at least once a week, even if I have nothing really to say (i.e. see my last entry, which was kinda cheating, but due to a technology malfunction beyond my control, or understanding, I lost a entry I was working on that was so freaking awesome, you would not believe it), I bid you all good night. Come on, that was fun, wasn't it?

Books 2005

I read alot. I mean seriously, ALOT! I admit it - I'm a book worm. Always have been, probably always will be. One of my favorite websites is Bookcrossing.com and if you like reading, even a little, you should check it out. Especially if you like reading but don't necessarily like buying books. Anywho - I'm a member of Bookcrossing and on My Bookshelf there, I was keeping a list of every book I've read or re-read (or tried to read but couldn't finish) for the Year 2005. That list was getting a bit long so I decided to move it here. Plus, that way I can shamelessply plug my blog twice on my bookcrossing page. So anyway, here's my 2005 list...

Books I've Read, Re-read, or Gave Up on in 2005 -- as of 12/31/2005
Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvik
Milk Glass Moon by Adriana Trigiani
Big Cherry Holler by Adriana Trigiani
Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani
Matilda by Roald Dahl
Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins
Crossing the Line by Lauren Baratz-Logstead
The Thin Pink Line by Lauren Baratz-Logstead
The Magic Circle by Katherine Neville
All Over Creation by Ruth Ozeki
Where is Joe Merchant by Jimmy Buffet
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons
Neurotica by Sue Margolis
The Playboy by Carly Phillips
The Dominant Blonde by Alisa Kwitney
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Kidd
The Nanny Diaries by Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom
The Invisibles by Grant Morrison
Shopaholic Takes Manhattan by Sophie Kinsella
The Pilot's Wife by Anita Shreve
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells
Angels and Demons by Dan Brown
Outer Banks by Anne Rivers Siddons
Little Altars Everywhere by Rebecca Wells
From a Buick 8 by Stephen King
Was It Something I Said by Valerie Block
Seventh Son by Orson Scott Card
White Oleander by Janet Fitch
Catch Me If You Can by Frank W. Abagnale with Stan Redding
Nights in Rodanthe by Nicolas Sparks
The Madhatter's Guide to Chocolate by Rhett Devane
Eragon by Christopher Paolini
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
Dog Handling: A Novel by Clare Naylor
Nectar yb Lily Prior
A Widow for One Year by John Irving
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling (re-read)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling (re-read)
Girl's Poker Night: A Novel of High Stakes by Jill A. Davis (gave up on)
Romiette & Julio by Sharon M. Draper (gave up on)

You Have to Try This!

1. Go to Google
2. Type in "Failure", without the quotes
3. Instead of hitting "search", click on "I'm Feeling Lucky"
4. See what comes up...and then, have a good laugh and pass it on to brighten a friend's day!

Blue Tuesday

Ever woken up sad and don't know why? Well, that's what's happened to me today. When I got up, I felt like crying (and if I'm being honest, shed a few in the car on the way to work) and I can't, for the life me, figure out why. I didn't fight with DH or anyone else. Everyone I know is relatively healthy. I got plenty of sleep. I didn't have sad dreams (at least not that I can remember). I even got to go to the Giants-Saints game last night and watch my boys win. And yet, I just can't shake this blue feeling. Granted, I've only been up for a couple of hours, but still. I hope it goes away. And soon. Because this sucks.

9 Days Gone

Its been 9 days since my last post. And since that glorious day 9 days ago, I haven't had a moment of rest. . .

Beginning on Day 1, the overtime started. Multiple motions and memos had to get out to multiple partners and senior associates so that meant no rest for stina. Oh - and DH got sick...which meant a late night, after work trip to CVS for Nyquil and other goodies.

Beginning on Day 2, I apparently caught whatever DH had. Fun - now I've got overtime and sickness fighting over my seriously dwindling energy supply. Not to mention the $50 I had to spend to fill up my tank just so I could go work the overtime.

Day 3...still sick, still working overtime. Only this time I actually got to do my overtime from home. A sick day of sorts -- only I couldn't veg in front of the TV or sleep all day like DH gets to do -- he gets actual sick days. I remember what that was like. Sort of.

Day 4... no news. nothing's changed. Still sick, still working overtime. Actually, today its officially working weekends. Fuck.

Day 5...could it be a reprieve from my toil? A day of rest? NOPE! No rest for the wicked my friends...besides...it's Sunday now and the Giant's are at home. It takes more than a little sickness and tiredness to keep me away from the stadium. So tailgating we went. A couple of Captain & Diet's later and I was feeling mighty fine. Of course I probably should have did some more work or slept a little extra, but fuck that. I don't have season tickets so I can stay home!

Day 6...back to the trenches. Only now, instead of overtime, I have "ICLE". A torturous little program invented by the New Jersey bar that is mandatory if you want to become or stay a lawyer in NJ. The class alone would be bad enough - but there's actually homework. Fucking homework. Didn't I do enough damn homework in law school? Apparently not. Supposedly this ICLE thing will make me a better lawyer, but since the topics have absolutely nothing to do with my practice area...I think the real purpose, like so many of the rules governing lawyers in NJ, is to scare people from the City away. Don't want 'dem City folk comin' in and stealin' our bidness. So after a fun day at the office, off I went to the totally useless, first of many, 3 hour ICLE sessions. Oh - and I got lost on the way thanks to the equally useless directions that came with my ICLE schedule.

Day 7...pretty much the same as Day 6...too much work, followed by another equally useless ICLE session. At least I didn't get lost this time.

Day 8...today started out looking like it would be pretty awesome. Work was starting to level off. I was starting to feel a little better. And, to top it all off, I was going to leave the office at a normal hour and go shopping!!! (of course it was shopping for suits, for work, but shopping is shopping, right?). Plus, DH was feeling better and was making dinner (have I mentioned he can cook his ass off?). Like I said, awesome! At least until I went outside after work to find I'd left my driver side car window cracked during the day's torrential rainstorms. Great. Wonderful. Shopping with a wet ass, how fun. Of course, I still went shopping. A wet ass wasn't about to keep me from Tahari suits at 75% off. But I wasn't happy about it.

Day 9 -- so here we are. Hard to believe its been 9 days. At least the rain has stopped. I'm still swamped, and still a little sick, but there's a light at the end of the tunnel. Of course I'll probably have to make up the time I've spent posting here, but what can ya do. I only hope it won't be another 9 days before I have the time to post again. After all, I still haven't even told my stories from Hawaii, and we've been home for 6 weeks! Hard to believe. It'll be xmas before ya know it. But at least I'll get some time off.

And again...

If you've been anywhere near a TV, radio or computer with internet access, then you know that there are massive unanswered questions about what the fuck happened with the Katrina response. Everyone is either pointing fingers at someone else or trying not to point any fingers at all. Well, everyone knows somebody fucked up...somebody in government. And having been a boss before, I know that when an employee fucks up, the boss is just as much to blame. Which means that Bush, whatever anybody says, is at least in part to blame here. He was in change. This happened on his watch. As a previous US president said, the buck stops with him. So you think maybe there wasn't a fuck up, that everyone did the best they could? OK - let's investigate. And who will be doing the investigating? Someone uninvolved? Unconnected to the debacle? NO, that might lead to real answers. The person who will be leading this investigation is none other than the person being blamed for the problem...Bush apparently will be investigating himself. Nice.

AND, if that wasn't enough...

Around the country, and even the world, people are being asked to make monetary donations to help the victims of Katrina. Do not head down there and actually lend a hand, they say, just give money. My question is, if I give money how do I know it will actually go to survivors? And the answer...thats right - you know -- I DON'T know my money will actually go to the surviviors. Because aside from perhaps the Red Cross, many of the charities seeking donations are recently created with no track record of any kind. That doesn't mean I won't donate, just that my donations will be in things people can actually use...water, food, clothing, schoool supplies, etc.

And speaking of shady charities, did you know that people seeking to make donations in support of the Katrina victims were pointed, by FEMA, to a "charity" run by none other than the pro-assasination, televangelist, allegedly reverend, Pat Robertson? Yeah - thats right - the same asshole who prayed for the death of Supreme Court Justices and the assasination of the Venezuelan president (who by the way was one of the first world leaders to offer aid for Katrina victims). FEMA though it a good idea for people to give Robertson their money so he could, well, no one is really sure what he intended to do with it. Of course, since this story broke (check out Sploid) FEMA has changed its website (again, check out Sploid) to remove the referral, but still...what the fuck is wrong with our goddamned government?

I've got tons more I could say about this whole mess -- I was without a computer all weekend and just dying to wax poetic about any number of relevant issues, but as I am lucky enough to still have a job, I better get back to it.

Bush Strikes Again

Unless you have been totally disconnected from current events, you know of the disaster Katrina has caused in New Orleans and elsewhere. This morning on NPR I heard that Venezuela offered assistance as did other foreign nations. And what did our esteemed leader do? He puffed up his ego and said, nah, we don't need your help; we can do it all by ourselves.

WHAT!!!!!!!?????????

Nearly every single person in New Orleans has been rendered homeless. Gas prices here in NJ have hit $3.29 a gallon. Lives are being lost. People who were helping with rescue efforts had to be moved to police duty to stop the civil unrest that has erupted. And our president says we don't need any help? Perhaps if he'd given the city the money they asked for to update their levies this wouldn't have happened. But he chose to use that money to fight the war in Iraq instead. And, perhaps if Louisiana's national guard wasn't in Iraq...along with the money... there'd be enough folks to rescue everyone who needs rescuing and evacuate the tens of thousands of people stuck in a place with no food and no fresh water. But that isn't the case. The policies of our government may not have caused the hurricane (although some argue they didn't help since we are the worse contributer on the planet to the green house effect and refuse to ratify the Kyoto protocol), but the policies engendered by the right definitely contributed to the inability of the levies to withstand the storm, and have created a situation where there is not enough money or manpower for the rescue and cleanup that is needed.

I don't usually tell people what to do, but I'm telling everyone now that they need to give whatever they can to help the situation. Contact the American Red Cross for ways you can help (be patient - their website is encountering some seriously heavy traffic -- you can also call 1-800-HELPNOW). Or check out www.guidestar.org for organizations that will use your donations to help the victims of this tragedy. Just do something.

Oh - and most importantly - when the time comes...vote for someone that isn't tied to the current war machine.

Bastard Ass Mega-Stores...and lawyers

From today's New Jersey Lawyer, Daily Briefing (an email based newsletter):

As if Wal-Mart doesn’t have enough revenue, it recently sued in Oregon state court and was awarded $175 from a retired couple who forgot to pay a $10 bill for 10 bags of steer manure. Charles and Cheryl Gastorf say that after they forgot to add the manure tab in a hectic shopping spree, the giant retailer sued under a state law that allows retailers to pursue civil penalties regardless of whether a person is found guilty of theft. Mr. Gastorf said the couple did not fight the claim, but denied guilt, noting, “We wouldn’t want to embark on a life of crime at our ages and become manure thieves.” Wal-Mart has said it plans to refund the money. 8-23-05

Now I love a bargain probably even more than the nexy guy, and when living in VA where WalMart ruled the land, I spent a lot of my money in that place, and I of course realize keeping prices low probably ain't easy, but goddamn this pisses me off! What I'd like to know is how much the fucking a-holes paid their lawyers to go after a retired couple for a few bucks. And what fucking lawyer thought this was a worthwhile case? God, lawyers are assholes. Or at least some of us are. I like to think I'm not quite that bad. But then again, I still new to this so I guess the jury is still out.

Here we go again...

My bitchiness over (for this month at least)...I feel I can write again wthout scaring anyone :)

SO.............


Goooo Giants!!!!!!! We went to our first home game on Saturday night and had a blast watching the G-man slam Carolina. Granted, it was only pre-season, but it is always fun watching the Giants win, even if it doesn't count for shit. Of course I spent all day Sunday with no voice, but that happens the day after every home game. And we go to them all!! At least last year we did - we didn't miss a single one, not even when it was cold or raining. We're like freaking mailmen when it comes to our boys (FYI -- we are lucky enough to have season tickets thanks to my awesome Uncle Joe who moved too far away to take advantage of his tickets). In fact, I actually passed up a day at the beach to go to Saturday's game -- when I got up on Saturday morning, it was so dreary and the weather man said it was gonna rain, (plus I had a bit of a hangover), so I figured, fuck it -- there are still a few more weekends left to hit the beach. And if not, well, I'll just have to take another vacation. I already am gonna miss the next home pre-season game (unless I want to buy an extra ticket: DH has a deal with a Jets fan friend of his and they always bring each other to the pre-season Giants-Jets game). Not that I'm against having the house to myself for the night -- that almost never happens. Plus, I'm not in full obsession-mode yet (that won't start for a few more weeks yet) but I still may buy a ticket.

Anywho - not a whole hell of a lot has happened since I last chimed in. Friends are getting divorced; other friends are getting married; amd still yet other friends are having kids. Same shit, different day. I did get some Maui pics printed - OMG they are so fan-fuckin-tastic, they look like postcards. Seriously. I can't wait to have them framed. Oh - and to post some here. I still have more to tell about my vacay to end all vacays. But that will have to wait for another day. After I've had time to transfer the pics to disc. Or something. Or whatever. I'll get to it eventually. Really. I promise.

Today sucks

Sometimes I really hate being a girl. I'm crampy and bloated and bitchy and just plain sick & tired. You males have no idea how easy you have it.

Oh and if you don't want to hear about it, then don't listen. Or read. Or whatever the fuck you call it.

Did I mention I'm feeling a little bitchy?

I'm melting...

I think I may have lost about 10 pounds this weekend. I believe I actually sweat it all off. In a matter of hours. Indoors. And I was not at the gym.

Saturday night was the long awaited housewarming of a good friend and former colleague of mine. This poor guy had been through hell and back buying his top-floor-sweet-ass-apartment in NYC and after finally closing and moving and setttling in, he invited a bunch of folks over for a pre-clubbing houswarming event. Well warming is not exactly the word I would use. Housesweltering is more like it. It seems my friend had landed himself back in hell.

I know - it sounds kinda bitchy, but it was fucking hot. I mean like seriously uber hot. Who throws parties - in August - when the AC doesn't work and the windows don't open? Even Satan himself would have been like, What the hell is wrong with the AC up in here? It was actually hotter in his place than it was outside. And that's saying alot because Saturday in the City was about as nasty as it could get without people actually dropping dead in the street from heat exhaustion. And that may have actually happened - I can't be sure cause I don't watch the news.

In any case, we eventually learned that the reason it was so hot was because the little slats on the AC would not point in any direction except straight up so we took turns standing directly in front of the AC unit. Of course that meant that I spent Sunday with a miserable AC cold. But even with the heat, it was still a good party - mostly because apparently my friend can cook his ass off (which obviously did not help with the heat issue). There was tons of booze too but it was my turn to be the designated driver so that wasn't helping me any. And we didn't make it out after -- I was feeling a little ill from losing 50% of the water in my bod. Plus the Giants were playing - there is no clubbing when Big Blue is on.

Don't Stand Behind the Gripman

As promised, I am finally going to tell some stories from my vacation.

We arrived in San Fran on a Friday night. Our plane had been delayed on the way out but they made up the time in the air. The flight still sucked. Coach always sucks.

We arrived late on a Friday night, grabbed our luggage and went outside to find our ride -- one of those vans that charges per person. We ended up being the only people in the van so that was cool - it was like a really comfortable cab ride, but cost way less. We got to our hotel and were pleasantly surprised. We had found it on Hotwire.com and knew nothing about the place til we got there. The room was kind of small but we didn't plan on spending much time there so that wasn't a problem. In fact, as soon as we checked in and dropped off our stuff, we headed right out. We went to some bar called Whiskey & Thieves near the hotel. Cool place: good crowd, good music, cheap beer and you could smoke. Having been used to NYC bars, that was a nice change. I know, I know - smoking is a disgusting habit, but whatever. I like it and it was nice being able to do it indoors over a cold one. We stayed at the bar til it closed and stumbled back to our hotel.

The next day, we made a plan to see as much of the City as we could without getting on one of those stupid tour buses. I hate those stupid buses. Instead, we rode the cable car from Union Square to Fisherman's Wharf and laughed our asses off at the tourists who kept standing behind the gripman - in obvious disregard of the blatant language on the man's vest. And yes, I realize I was a tourist too, but we were not nearly as ignorant as most. Again, having lived in NYC, hating tourists, and knowing how not to act like one, was second nature to us. And yes, I realize the Wharf is a tourist trap, but like I already said, we were tourists, just not assholes.

Anyway, we hopped off the cable car at the top of the crookedest street in the world. While walking down to the Wharf we spotted this thing called a "Go Car" -- after realizing it wasn't too pricey, we rented one, hopped in, got our picture taken, and took off for a GPS guided tour of San Fran. And no - I didn't put the picture of us in the Go Car here because, well, I look like a dork 'cause they make you wear a helmet. So off we go, zipping around the city at a top speed of...30 miles per hour. Not Indy, but in these things, fast enough. We got to see a good part of the city, including the Golden Gate shrouded in fog, but while we were turning into Golden Gate Park, our GPS stoppped working. After several seriously aggravating calls to the rental place, we learned it wasn't coming back on and had to find our own way back to the Wharf. Which we eventually did, after giving up trying to climb the hill to Twin Peaks -- the Go Car just didn't have the muscle for it. Needless to say, we got back to the rental place safe & sound - having thoroughly enjoyed our tour. We even got a discount due to the defective GPS. But later that night was when the real San Fran experience happened...

After checking out the Wharf area, and eating at Joe's, we stopped at the hotel to shower and change and then off we went to Haight-Ashbury for the night. By the way - if you are ever traveling to San Fran in July, bring a sweater. And some jeans. And maybe even a scarf. Because it is fucking cold there at night. And nobody warned us. Not even our friend who used to live there. Thanks, dickhead. (fyi - that's not an insult, its a nickname).

Anyway, we grabbed a cab to the Haight and hit some bar with a sweet backyard. Before long, we had made friends with some locals, mostly thanks to DH who can strike up a convo with just about anyone. The folks we met were uber-friendly (uber - that's my new San Fran word) and we decided we loved this city. As the bar was closing, our new friend Patrick invited us to his place for more drinks. Who were we to say no. By 2AM, this is the best part, we found ourselves drinking beers (and partaking of other party substances - wink, wink) while looking out Patrick's living room window over the corner of Haight & Ashbury. That's right - the actual corner of Haight & Ashbury. In a apartment. With big picture windows. I know, it sounds unbelievable -- we get to the city not knowing a soul and in about 24 hours we're hanging out, literally, at Haight-Ashbury--unbelievable, but its true. Of course I don't have pictures to prove it. Despite my usually being a picture taking freak, I didn't bring the camera that night. But we were there - until almost dawn!! - and it was fucking awesome. I think maybe it was karma's way of paying us back for the GPS debacle. Of course the Haight ain't what it used to be (or so I've been told). Staring out over the corner of Haight & Ashbury, besides us, was a Gap, a Ben & Jerrys, and some other corporate outlet. DH thinks it was Starbucks, but I can't remember and their website doesn't show one there. Whatever...Starbucks, WiIlliams Sonoma, it was some neighborhood culture sucking monster. But is was still too cool for words. Even if you don't believe me. I went to bed that night (well actually, the next morning) with dreams of flower children and the astonishing looks my friends would give me when I told them this story.

The next day, Sunday, we were a little spent. Staying out partying til 5 or 6AM is not exactly our usual M.O. But since it was our last day, we forced ourselves out of bed and intothe city. We rode one of the antique streetcars to p[cik up some tees at the San Fran Harley shop and then headed to Chinatown. Mostly we wandered the shops and had a fucking fantastic meal at Empress of China (if you like Chinese and are ever in San Fran, you have to eat there. Try the Walnut Prawns. I can only describe the dish as orgasmic). My favorite part of the day, however, was the "Wake Up America" man (see pic). I know you can't really read his signs in the pic, but this was a man after my own heart. His signs basically say Bush is a liar , that the neo-con-Christians who are trying to run this country know nothing of God's love (otherwise they wouldn't support war or Bush the liar), and that Amerca should be ashamed of it all. Goddess bless that man!

So that's our San Fran trip in as few words as I can manage (if you're reading this and know me well, you know I am not exactly a person of few words). We didn't go out that last night - the night before had wiped us out. Plus, we had to catch an early flight to Maui the next morn. Which we did. And which I will ramble on about another time. Until then, remember, don't stand behind the gripman or people will laugh at you.

Oh - and if anyone knows how to get rid of date stamps on pics, please comment here and let me know. I included them by accident and they really piss me off.

More hours in the day please

As much as I really, really want to brag about my vaca, and tell stories about the wonders I saw and the adventures I had, I just haven't had the time to get online. I don't even really have the time to do this entry. But after missing nearly 3 weeks, I feel I should at least say something every few days or so; not like anyone really reads this thing (except maybe D-bud) but what the hell, ya never know. :)

Anyway - I figured if I could just find an extra hour or so each day (without, of course, giving up any sleep) I would have the time to get things done. Well, maybe not everything - but most things. I at least would have a chance to look at the gazillions of pictures I took in Maui. I'd cut my work hours but (1) I think my bosses might frown on that, and (2) I already have barely enough time to get everything done I need to get done while I'm here. It seems everyday I come into the office, my "to do" pile has grown exponentially -- they gave me 5 new cases in just the last couple of days. I really have no room to complain - I did after all just come back from an extended vaca, and also did only start my job 6 weeks before taking that vaca, but still...What ever happened to easing back into things? So - my point - I need an extra hour which I can't take from work, and won't take from sleep, so whoever the powers that be are that rule time, hook me up. Kay? Because, if I didn't have a nasty 'to do' pile staring at me right now, maybe I'd have time to tell the story about me and DH having drinks in an apartment on the corner of Haight & Ashbury...but that pile won't go anywhere on its own, so that story will just have to wait for another time.

Back to the real world...

And I don't mean the series on MTV.

Yesterday, I got back from a 15 day vacation. Today, I had to come back to work, and I was none too happy about it. My head is still reeling from the beauty of Maui, my heart is still a little broken at having had to come home (and back to work), and it appears that jet lag has taken hold of my ability to stay awake or concentrate on anything more complex than this post. Plus, my new tat is starting to aggravate me -- if only I could have stayed on a permanent vacation, I could be wearing shorts instead of slacks and flip-flops instead of whatever you call these stupid fancy shoes they make me wear. I need to either (1) win the lottery, (2) have some long-lost relative leave me a ton of bucks, or (3) find a sugar daddy for me and a sugar mama for my DH, because I have come to the realization that it is highly unlikely that I will ever to be able to afford the lifestyle we want without one of those things happening. Sure, I could work my whole life and hope to have a cool retirement, but I'd much prefer to begin my retirement while I'm young enough to enjoy it. People say to do what you love and then the money will follow. But that's crap -- you need at least some financial backing (parental or otherwise) to take the time to figure out what it is that makes you happy in the first place. For folks like me who have always had to have a job in order to have things such as food and a roof, figuring out what makes you happy is tougher. In my case, I still don't know.

Anyway, in the days to come, I will recap my vacation adventures, and even include pictures if I can manage to stay awake long enough to review the hundreds of shots I took while away and upload the best ones.

Reality TV, Esq.

I should have known it would only be a matter of time until there was a lawyer-based reality TV show. It just better not suck. That would piss me off, because I may not be Perry Mason, but I definitely don't suck. And I could have used the $250,000 grand prize, too. How is that these peope found out about this show anyway? Do they just have more time on their hands than I do? If that's the case, then the show probably will suck.

Speaking of TV lawyers, Comedy Central says, perhaps only partly in jest, that they'll be hiring extra lawyers now that Carlos Mencia has his own show on that network. That might be kind of cool. I've always thought about going in-house some day. Comedy Central seems as good a place as any, maybe even better.

Anyway, I saw the first episode of Mind of Mencia last night and while I didn't think it was as funny as his stand-up, I still laughed my ass off. Especially at the end when he showed our Pres giving everyone the finger. Yes, that finger. I can't say whether the video Mencia showed was real or not, but it looked real to me, and, let's be honest, does anyone really think Bush is beyond that? I've been a fan of Mencia for some time - ever since seeing his stand up in which he proceeded to insult pretty much every single group out there - whites, blacks, hispanics, asians, gays, straights, men, women, you name it, he probably said somehting that would piss at least one person in that group off. His whole point was that political correctness is bullshit. I could not agree more. Better everyone speaks their mind so we know who the true racists are then let everyone use PC bullshit to hide their true thoughts.

I only have one more thing to say, and that is that my thoughts and prayers are with the people of London. Having nearly lost my brother on September 11 (a story for another day), I empathize with anyone who has been affected by this horrible tragedy and my heart goes out to the victims and their families.

Stupid headlines...

I'm not much in the mood for writing today, mostly because I can't think of anything but Maui, but felt I should post something, ya know, to stay in the habit, to make up for the two weeks when I won't be posting anything, etc. Did I mention I'm going on vacation in 10 days?

So -- here are just a few stupid headlines from around the 'net, which, stangely enough, almost all have to do with kids (or teenagers anyway)...

Three studies suggest TV hampers kids' academic skills

I'm sorry, but did they really need to do a study to determine that?

Happy kids make for pleasant road trips

No shit, really? I thought screaming brats made for pleasant trips.

Pediatricians' group: Abstinence not enough...Experts: Teens need access to birth control

I'm not even gonna touch this one.

13 Days and counting...

Today we had near perfet beach weather. Not too hot; nice ocean breeze; my only request would have been for a little more sun. And of course a cheaper beach pass. It was $7! for a day pass. That's the biggest thing that sucks about Jersey beaches - the cover charge. And they don't even play music or anything. I guess somebody has to pay for the hottie lifeguards to sit up in those chairs all day, but $7 still seems a little steep. But, what can ya do. I paid my $7, got some sun, and had a nice rlaxing day next to the ocean with some old friends. And, I still got home in time to go out for some drinks. Fabulous.

And speaking of "f" words, you will notice that from time to time, like in my last post, I tend to use some other "f" words, and "s" words, and other words not meant for young ears. I try to be good, but DH has told me several times that I'm in the wrong profession. He thinks I should be driving a truck. Maybe he's right. What can I tell you, I'm a loud-mouthed Jersey Girl. And after today, I'm a loud mouth Jersey Girl with a nice been-at-the-beach-all-day glow.

Sandra Day Steps Down - Goddess Help Us

Just when everyone thought the conservative Chief Justice Renquist would submit his resignation, the moderate Sandra Day O'Connor stunned the legal world and has announced her resignation from the Supreme Court. This is the worst possible thing that could've happened. If Renquist had stepped down, nothing much would change if a conservative was put in his place -- he is a conservative. But O'Connor, well she's been the deciding vote on almost every major decision since she joined the bench. Known as a swing voter, O'Connor is one of the only justices free of a political taint. Check out her bio, here

And you know what that means -- the neo-cons pulling the strings of the presidency will try their best to fill O'Connor's spot with an extremist right wing judge. Not to mention the neo-con court packing that will be attempted if anyone else steps down from the bench. I don't know if the Dems have the cojones to stop a court packing push. They've already caved to avoid the possibility of the nuclear option, so goddess only knows what will happen when the nominees are made and confirmation hearings begin. For people who don't follow Supreme Court jurisprudence with the fervor that I do, let me just tell you -- if the neo-cons succeed, we are all fucked. F-U-C-K-E-D. Fucked. That's right. I said it. You will say goodbye to pretty much any right you have that stems from constitutional interpretation and not the Bible. Think I'm kidding? Wait and see. If the pansy Dems don't filibuster the hell out of any candidate that isn't at least close to moderate, we can all kiss our civil liberties goodbye.

Most of my friends were truly upset when Bush won the presidency, but let me tell you a little secret: having a neo-con Pres is nothing because when it comes to our civil liberties, no one has more power than the Supreme Court. The neo-con pres and the congress and whatever other politician can make whatever law they want, but if the high Court says its unconstitutional, well, then that's that. The bad law goes bye-bye. But if we end up with a neo-con court, there won't be anybody to stop the bad laws. And, even if the right loses legislative power and we get some good laws passed (check out Spain for an example of a good law), the neo-con Supreme Court can says its unconsitutional, so no good laws either (absent a constitutinal amendment, of course). And unlike the pres who can be voted out, or forced out after 2 terms, there is no getting rid of a Supreme Court Justice - they sit for life. Like I said. Fucked.

15 Days and Counting...

In 15 days I am leaving for a 17 day vacation. I've been privately counting the days for quite a while now. I figured two weeks before is a fine time to start the public countdown, but I couldn't wait for tomorrow. Plus it is very likely that tomorrow will find me as crazy busy as I have been since my last post here.

Anyway - vacation. A real one. Mostly. My DH and I leave in 16 days. We'll spend three days in San Fran, which for whatever reason I have yet to see despite having been told for years how I will love the place. After three days, it's off to the gorgeous island of Maui. That's right. Two weeks in Paradise! We are renting a condo away from the crowds, on the edge of the rainforest, very secluded, but with a pool. Like a second honeymoon - if we'd had a first one. So, its like a first honeymoon. Except while we're there we'll be attending the wedding of two of our greatest friends. These are two people who you would expect to stay together forever, but never expected to get married. They just seemed too cool, or laid back for it. But, they're taking the plunge and we'll be there to witness it. On the top of a mountain in Maui, with 360 degree views of the island, starting at sundown, on the night of a full moon. Pretty f'in cool, right?

Now, this vaca is costing an arm and a leg, but I figure, what the hell. What's the good of having money if not to spend it, right? So in preparation for this fantastic little trip, I've picked up some great new clothes from this adorable little boutique in Hoboken (Rubee's Closet -- a shameless plug for my friend that owns the joint), two new swimsuits, and some new luggage to pack all my crap in.

Of course I already have luggage, but not nearly enough space for 17 days. My shoes alone will take up half of my "weekend" bag. I know - it sounds like I am planning on seriously over-packing, but to be honest, I don't know any other way of packing. First, where we're staying is hot during the day, but cool at night. That means cover ups if not two whole outfits for each day. Then, we're not really sure what we want to do while we're there, so I have to plan for contingencies. I already picked up a one piece bathing suit in case I decide to take surfing lessons. And suppose I should pack my hiking boots so we can hike the volcano. Whatever -- all my suitcases have wheels, and my DH will be there to help, so I'm not worried. I just can't wait.

In case anyone cares, I won't be posting during my vacation, which I think I mentioned starts in 15 days, but I am planning on keeping a travel journal and will excerpt from it when we get back home. Which reminds me, I need to pick up a blank journal. And sunscreen.

Picture compliments of MauiQueen

Mostly Yankee, Part Dixie

Just futzing around, waiting for the go ahead to go home and came across this "linguistics" test. My results are...

Your Linguistic Profile:

45% Yankee

40% General American English

15% Dixie

0% Midwestern

0% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Italy Rocks!

Finally someone has had the balls to stand up to the bullshit tactics used by agents for the supposed "Land of the Free." And don't you know, the country with the cajones...the motherland. Italia. Of course.

Check it out.

Winning is cool!

I paticipated in my first ever trial last night. Of course it was a "mock" trial, but still a trial nonetheless. You'd think after three years of practicing law I would have reached this milestone earlier, but alas such was not my fate (see my earlier post Overload).

In any case, I participated in my first trial (fake as it was). Going into it my partner and I were pretty nonchalant -- neither of us had too much time to spend on it, there were no real clients, there wasn't going to be any verdict (although we were "scored" on our presentation, and argument, etc.), plus we didn't want to do too good and end up having to go to the finals. That means even more work that we don't get any credit for. But...

We actually won! And now my long-dormant competitive drive is all revved up and I'm thinking, Hey, we could win this thing! Of course I haven't expressed this to my partner who I believe may still be on the let's finish 5th and skip the finals track. Whatever, fake as the thing was, and whether we get to the finals or not, winning is cool. Even if there isn't any prize.

Coke Zero and Saving Elmo

Bought a Coke Zero yesterday. Tried it today. Maybe you've heard the hype - its supposed to taste like real Coke. And I'll be damned if it doesn't! Or at least it comes real close -- I haven't done a blind taste test or anything...I don't have that kind of time.

Of course, the Coke company has been accused of some less than admirable trade practices (like assasination and racism), but what are ya gonna do, switch to Pepsi? Or worse, RC? Like that's ever gonna happen. Thanks, but I'll take my Coke and assuage my liberal guilt by giving money to public radio & PBS and by doing my part to save those fine establishments (and the cuddly characters on Sesame Street) from the chopping block. Lend a hand here.

Overload

I used to work as an associate (aka pee-on) at a big law firm in the City, who to avoid being sued I will not name. I did it for almost three years, plus a summer. For those who never worked at such a place, here's a simple run-down of how it goes:

you come in early and stay late - and I mean really late...getting home by 10PM meant it was time to par-tay. While at work, imagine yourself surrounded by box after box after box after box after...you get my point...of "documents". A fancy word meaning crap you have to read even though most of it is worthless. Joining you in your cave of boxes are little post-it flags in all the colors of the rainbow. Your job is to take these little flags and stick them on certain documents...sometimes red meant one thing, sometimes it meant another, sometimes all it meant was that a certain person was listed somewhere on that particular piece of paper, a sort of "Where's Waldo" assignment -- you find a name on a page and stick a flag on it so some other moron down the line can copy that page and put it in a new box.

The 'find the names' jobs were the worst...um, excuse me but I did not bust my ass in law school learning the finer points of constitutional Law so I could be hired to find names on a piece of paper, something which I might add a trained monkey could probably do if they could be taught to read. At the very least, even Bush could manage this one by himself. But, the pay was good - OK fan-fucking-tastic, so long as you didn't break it down to an hourly wage. The parties, at least in the summer, were, as my girlfriend Kim would say, off the hook. And the lunches -- ah, you have not experienced lunch until you've taken two plus hours to do it and spent $50 bucks plus per person (with the firm's money of course). Plus I made some great friends.

But eventually, a month ago, I traded the big city salary for a smaller suburban one, because I'd had enough of 'biglaw'. I joined a much smaller firm in suburban NJ, where associates are actually treated like real lawyers, and not just glorified paralegals. Its really a whole new world for me. What amazed me more is the new firm actually apologized to me for making me share an office -- an office which I might add is about 4 times the size of my prior cubicle. Wow. Culture shock. And this from someone who didn't even want to move back here in the first place. Now I've joined the NJ work force. The wierdest thing -- I think I like it better than I ever liked my City job, even considering that one summer when biglaw kissed my ass, before they had purchased my soul and caged me in my cubicle.

That's it...I'm moving

OK - so I never really got over the election, but I did drop my insistence that I was going to claim my Italian citizenship, get a EU passport, and go crash on my aunt's couch in Florence until, well, until this country got its sense back. So I stayed, and hoped, and avoided CNN, FOXNEWS, and anything else that would set me off. Now, however, the person who some refer to as President has made me want to start making travel plans once again. And I tried so hard to blissfully ignorant too.

What's he done this time, you ask? (drum roll please) He actually said that the Patriot Act protects our civil liberties! Ahem...uh, what? I realize the man ain't the brightest fellow in the world, but really, shouldn't one of his aides have told him what the P.A. actually says; what it actually allows? If you want to know, a good place to read about it in plain English is here (an old article, but the law is still the same). Not to mention the effect all this posturing about the act's greatness is having on our less educated folks -- someone actually wrote to NPR to say a librarian should be charged with treason for failing to turn over records demanded under the FBI. Listen here.

And now that its scariest provisions are finally about to expire (thank goddess) here comes the push from the right to renew and expand the damn thing. And too many supposed "liberals" are just sitting there, keeping their mouths shut. Its as if no one even remembers that this glaringly oppressive law was passed 6 weeks after 9-11 before most of the people voting on it had even read the damn thing. OK -- its like 300 pages long, but still -- don't you think reading a law before passing it is always a good idea? Am I the only one?

Don't get me wrong, I hate terrorists as much as the neck red-blooded (read: necked) American, but I don't think giving law enforcement outrageous and unchecked powers is going to help fight terrorists. And I don't understand how anyone can believe that it will. Forcing the Bush's golf buddies (aka Saudis) to turn over persons holed up in their country - now that might help, but the FBI reading my library records won't.

I suppose it is yet possible that there will be real debates about this thing before its gets voted on, but I somehow doubt it. All I know is that I'm going to have to start taking donations because a one way ticket to the motherland is almost two grand and I am not so lucky to be friends with a prince.

Radically stupid...

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., was quoted as saying, "We've spent weeks and weeks debating radical judges, but we haven't spent a single day debating a health care plan, or a jobs plan, or an education plan that will help hardworking Americans. Radical judges don't deserve our attention." check it out

Radical judges don't deserve our attention? What the f*$# is that? These pyschos are appointed for life (and often supported by the Christian Coalition), but our democratically elected leaders shouldn't pay attention because they have other things to do? Have the dems gone completely mad? Are they totally spineless? Have these people never heard of overtime? Us "hardworking Americans" have to do it all the time when we have a lot to deal with at work. And we aren't guaranteed our salaries for life like Mr. Reid and his co-workers are. Besides, who does Reid think will be judging the validity of his imaginary health, education and jobs plans when they are challeneged? Uh...could it be the radical judges he & the rest of the pansy dems let through?

God I hate politics.

My Story...

Born in Italy, raised in Jersey, I spent the better part of my 20s jumping from one college to the next, and finally got my fancy piece of paper from JMU in 96. Ended up staying in VA for a whole bunch of years and will probably end up back there some day.

Some people might say I can be a little bitchy, and I guess thats true but only because I used to be too nice and found that nice girls finish last. I'm actually a really nice person and I make the best Florentine Lace cookies you will ever eat.

I've been happily married for almost 8 years and am mommy to two black & white kitties. My dear husband ("DH") and I just bought our first house last year and spend most weekends working on it or the yard. Of course come football season, we'll be at Giant's Stadium most weekends! You can find us in parking lot 13A. Goooooooo Giants!

After living in DC, VA and NYC, I somehow ended up back in NJ despite my best efforts to never come back. Seems like the abyss was calling...

Coming soon...

What seems like ages ago, after spending too much time reading blogs of friends and strangers, I thought, I should do that. Being the procrastinator I am, of course, I never got around to it. Now, after finding myself posting entirely too long posts on chat boards on topics that weren't necessarily what I felt like most rambling about, I have finally taken the plunge and started a blog of my own -- a single space where I can ramble as much as I want about whatever I want. How cool is that?. Of course I'll probably only post sporadically...sticktoitiveness was never a strong point of mine. But maybe I'll surprise even myself. This, being my first post, has no real point other than to say more info (and more of my general rambling) coming soon.