I might have an opportunity to share a house with a cool lady in Central Austin. I'm a little anxious, but also excited. Need to think it through...

Cons:

• My room would be rather small compared to my 1bed apt where I currently live--alone.
• I'll have to down-size a LOT. I've been planning to do that anyway, but wasn't expecting to get rid of quite as much as this move will require.
• Not sure if my cats and the dog will get along with the adorable pig already living there.
• The landlord is on the fence about the dog.
  

Pros:

• Location, location, location!
• The rent is $650/mo, utilities paid and free internet and cable. Almost unheard of in this area.
  
• I love this neighborhood and have had my eye on it for several months.
• It's central and close to UT.
• My dog, Kali, would have free run of a huge backyard.
• Not very many situations would allow for someone like me with so many pets--this is luck!
  
• The roommate is willing to make sure Kali takes potty breaks during the day while I'm at work, so I won't need to have the dog walker come as often.
  
• I could ride my bike anywhere--to work, even to Yovette's house.
• Shopping--2 grocery stores, lots of eclectic shops, and local coffee houses all within walking distance.
• There's a hot tub in the backyard.
• There's a vegetable garden and a large fire pit too.
• The roommate loves to cook meals with wholesome food.
• She's a really cool hippie.
  
• We have a lot in common and meshed well when we met last night.
  
• She is spiritual but not religious...studying Buddishm.
• She can teach me how to paint and finish my beady creations.
• I get to simplify more.
• Change is good.
  
• The bus stop is right across the street and will drop me off right in front of the bldg where I work on Campus.
• The kitchen and bathroom still have the original hexagonal-shaped tile from when the house was built in the 50s.
• Hard-wood floors.
• On-site washer and dryer and clothesline. Oh, the little things make such a difference...
• Lots of plants and a huge tree in the front yard.
  
• It's super-cute!

Bad stuff

• Trying to keep up--I can't believe it's already mid-July. How is the summer already half-over?
• innuendos
  
• hot hot weather that makes you wanna stay inside out of the beautiful city
• my apartment complex--it stinks
• 10 hr work days (that are not part of the new 4 day work week plan)
  

So sooo Good

• chicken cordon bleu for lunch
• stories
  
• flying mustaches
• my dog walker
• movies starring Bender
• access to all of my music all of the time--the Nano-G is worth every penny
• Central Austin

It all feels like a dream...

Fifteen years ago today was July 15, 1993. I was 19 and getting a first taste of how to "hurry up and wait". I waited in line to get breakfast at the Denny's in Amarillo, waited for someone to tell me what to do at MEPS, waited to get a physical, waited to find out my ASVAB test score, waited even longer to find out what type of jobs were available, and finally stood up with a group of about 30 other young men and women to take the oath to serve in the United States Army.

Then I took my very first ride in an airplane to Ft. Jackson, SC (just outside of Columbia) to begin Basic Training. My adventures would not end there--the fun continued on to Supply Specialist job training at Ft. Lee, VA a few miles from Richmond where I was lucky enough to experience a glorious Autumn. A few weeks later I was back home for a short Rest and Relaxation stay with my family, and then my Mom and I were off to St. Louis to put me on a plane to Frankfurt, Germany.

I arrived on Thanksgiving Day, 1993. It was snowing--one of only 2 times I witnessed snow in Hanau. The sun was gone by 4:30 in the afternoon and I ate Turkey Dinner with a new friend in the mess hall. The barracks at Fliegerhorst Kaserne were old and needed new paint, but the building was sturdy and had been used by German soldiers during WWII. Before going to sleep that first night in a foreign country I turned on the radio to a bunch of gibberish and it finally sank in. I was in Germany!

For the next 5 years I would work harder than ever before or since. I would meet a man and marry him even though I swore to my Mom that I wouldn't. I would make lifelong friends. I would travel to several different countries and see beautiful architecture and old cathedrals and meet different people and embrace the culture of the Old World--and be disappointed that almost every city in Europe has a McDonald's. I would also see more of Europe than I bargained for. I would learn what it feels like to be imprisoned--it's very much like that when you are confined to a base camp for a year in a country that's been engaged in Civil War for years such as Bosnia. Along with that comes boredom and complacency--a very scary situation. Upon return I would end my military career and get a normal job at the Post Exchange. I would also have a torrid love affair and be excited about returning home to the US.

And then my stint abroad was over. Then my marriage ended and a huge burden was lifted from my shoulders. Then I changed careers and moved to a new city where I began and ended another torrid love affair. Now I'm the happiest I've ever been despite a broken heart. My travels and experiences made me strong enough to handle it.

I miss Europe. I need to go back one day. Soon.

If all the songbirds in the world came together to make the most beautiful music, I imagine it would sound something like this. (It makes me think about Nature--it's strength, fragility, fleeting existence, connection to us all, and brings tears to my eyes every time I listen to it.)

10 Variations On A Theme By Erik Sat

Sooooo...

It's the Christian way to intimidate and abuse others who are different so as to encourage them to find Jesus?

wtf???

It's crazy reading about soldiers in the Army these days--I've been out of the service 11 years and it seems so different. Religion was rarely an issue in my unit. We even had a couple of Muslims peppered in with the Bible Thumpers. But, the situation changes when troops are face to face with the possibility of death each and every day and suddenly religion becomes very important.

Personally, had I been in this guy's shoes, I wouldn't have mentioned it at all. My beliefs are no one's business - kinda falls under that 'don't ask don't tell' rule in my book.

Good luck suing the US Army, dude. I don't see it happening, but I admire your conviction and the principle of the matter just the same.

Atheist soldier sues Army for 'unconstitutional' discrimination

KANSAS CITY, Kansas (CNN) -- Army Spc. Jeremy Hall was raised Baptist.

Army Spc. Jeremy Hall, who was raised Baptist but is now an atheist, says the military violated his religious freedom.

Like many Christians, he said grace before dinner and read the Bible before bed. Four years ago when he was deployed to Iraq, he packed his Bible so he would feel closer to God.

He served two tours of duty in Iraq and has a near perfect record. But somewhere between the tours, something changed. Hall, now 23, said he no longer believes in God, fate, luck or anything supernatural.

Hall said he met some atheists who suggested he read the Bible again. After doing so, he said he had so many unanswered questions that he decided to become an atheist.

His sudden lack of faith, he said, cost him his military career and put his life at risk. Hall said his life was threatened by other troops and the military assigned a full-time bodyguard to protect him out of fear for his safety. Watch why Hall says his lack of faith almost got him killed »

In March, Hall filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, among others. In the suit, Hall claims his rights to religious freedom under the First Amendment were violated and suggests that the United States military has become a Christian organization.

"I think it's utterly and totally wrong. Unconstitutional," Hall said.

Hall said there is a pattern of discrimination against non-Christians in the military.

Two years ago on Thanksgiving Day, after refusing to pray at his table, Hall said he was told to go sit somewhere else. In another incident, when he was nearly killed during an attack on his Humvee, he said another soldier asked him, "Do you believe in Jesus now?"

Hall isn't seeking compensation in his lawsuit -- just the guarantee of religious freedom in the military. Eventually, Hall was sent home early from Iraq and later returned to Fort Riley in Junction City, Kansas, to complete his tour of duty.

He also said he missed out on promotions because he is an atheist.

"I was told because I can't put my personal beliefs aside and pray with troops I wouldn't make a good leader," Hall said.

Michael Weinstein, a retired senior Air Force officer and founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, is suing along with Hall. Weinstein said he's been contacted by more than 8,000 members of the military, almost all of them complaining of pressure to embrace evangelical Christianity.

"Our Pentagon, our Pentacostalgon, is refusing to realize that when you put the uniform on, there's only one religious faith: patriotism," Weinstein said.

Religious discrimination is a violation of the First Amendment and is also against military policy. The Pentagon refused to discuss specifics of Hall's case -- citing the litigation. But Deputy Undersecretary Bill Carr said complaints of evangelizing are "relatively rare." He also said the Pentagon is not pushing one faith among troops.

"If an atheist chose to follow their convictions, absolutely that's acceptable," said Carr. "And that's a point of religious accommodation in department policy, one may hold whatever faith, or may hold no faith."

Don't Miss

• Blog: Is the military a Christian organization?
• AC360.com

Weinstein said he doesn't buy it and points to a promotional video by a group called Christian Embassy. The video, which shows U.S. generals in uniform, was shot inside the Pentagon. The generals were subsequently reprimanded.

Another group, the Officers' Christian Fellowship, has representatives on nearly all military bases worldwide. Its vision, which is spelled out on the organization's Web site, reads, "A spiritually transformed military, with ambassadors for Christ in uniform empowered by the Holy Spirit."

Weinstein has a different interpretation.

"Their purpose is to have Christian officers exercise Biblical leadership to raise up a godly army," he says.

But Carr said the military's position is clear.

"Proselytizing or advancing a religious conviction is not what the nation would have us do and it's not what the military does," Carr said.

The U.S. Justice Department is expected to respond to Hall's lawsuit this week. In the meantime, he continues to work in the military police unit at Fort Riley and plans to leave as soon as his tour of duty expires next year.

Not so sure about:

• putting on sunblock and having a co-worker/friend say, with a perplexed look, "wow, you're whiter than usual..."
• stale air
• no free parking at UT Austin
• spending 8 hours in the sun on a party barge
  
• cramming another 4 hours into the work week

Doing fine with:

• meeting cool new people
• migas
• my handmade poplin purse
• long chats with Mom
• submitting a work order to have the A/C fixed, and actually getting a response the SAME DAY!

If only I had my own garden. One day...

YardWise

http://www.yardwise.org/

Your yard is your little piece of the planet, the environment over which you have the most control. By working with Mother Nature and not against her, you'll have a naturally beautiful yard, save time, save money, and improve the quality of the environment (yours and ours).

Now that's good satire.

http://www.buynlarge.com/

Buynlarge

Photo, video or song... Show us laughter.

Warning: might be loungey, but completely inappropriate for hotel lobbies.

Richard cheese - i'd like a virgin

1 comment

Ever heard Jet's "Are you gonna be my girl" sung in lounge style? And then there's Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher"...

04 Are You Gonna Be My Girl

Richard cheese- tuxicity

09 Hot for Teacher