"We reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals...
We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense. "

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Gaping Maw of Sinful Doom...

Absolutely wonderful story from the San Francisco Gate:

"I am sitting here right now smiling just a little, fondly recalling that famously controversial children's book, the one about the gay penguins.

Remember? That positively adorable pair of them, at the Central Park Zoo, who had adopted an abandoned egg and then hatched it themselves and were raising the chick together as a couple, even though the chick was clearly not theirs -- though of course how penguins can actually tell whose kid is whose is still a question. Never mind that now.

The best part: the story was absolutely true. The book, "And Tango Makes Three," was beautiful and sweet and touching in all the right ways -- except, of course, for the fact that it was also totally evil.

For indeed, the penguins in question, named Roy and Silo, were both males. This meant they were clearly in some sort of ungodly, aberrant homosexual relationship, mocking natural laws and defying God's will that all creatures only cohabitate with the opposite sex and buy microfiber sofas from Pottery Barn and eat their meals in silent resentment and never have sex.

Worst of all, the book depicted this relationship, this "family," as perfectly OK, as no big deal, as even (shudder) normal. After all, Roy and Silo didn't seem to give much of a damn. Tango sure seemed happy, what with not being left for dead and all. As of this writing, the Central Park Zoo has yet to be swallowed into a gaping maw of sinful doom. Any minute now, I suppose."

Full Story here

"Gaping maw of sinful doom" is my new favorite phrase- I'm thinking of getting a t-shirt made...one with cute little penguins of course!

Friday, June 26, 2009

"It had to be you, wonderful you, it had to be you"

Five years ago, Brad did me the honor of becoming my lawfully wedded, with the whole old-fashioned "til death do us part" line (even the priest who married us said he hadn't used the old wording for years!)

Among family and friends, and with me dead on time for perhaps the only time in my life, we exchanged rings and vows and made a lifetime commitment. Then we had a kickass party!

Our lives have been far from normal since then, and we still don't get to live together or see each other that often, but despite it all, I know we made the right choice, that we are better toegther (even when we're not together)- our whole is more than the sum of our parts.

I'm sharing some pictures below because I remain enamored of my wedding photos even five years later (thanks Greg!) and in case anyone else wants to check them out. Brad and I are together for the next few days, so my already sketchy posting might get even worse, but I'll be back eventually...

Happy 5th Anniversary Bradley!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

new levels of tinkering dorkiness



OK, so I did indeed manage to (1) fix an vintage 8-track player we inherited from my aunt, and (2) jerry-rig it to play my iPod. It is a nerdy insane thing, but it made me so very very happy. I've blogged about it over here:
http://www.unplggd.com/unplggd/how-to/how-to-give-new-life-to-vintage-tech-087722

Check it out for more details and some pictures.

Monday, June 15, 2009

twitter twitter tweet tweet

I'm not sure about it, but I'm giving it a shot. feel free to follow me- ForeignCircus is my name. if there is an easy way to link to the feed, I haven't found it yet!

edited to add:
wait, is it maybe this?

Thursday, June 11, 2009

News that makes me happy...

Item One: Gay Penguin Pair Raising Chick



BERLIN - A German zoo says a pair of gay male penguins are raising a chick from an egg abandoned by its parents.

Bremerhaven zoo veterinarian Joachim Schoene says the egg was placed in the male penguins' nest after its parents rejected it in late April. The males incubated it for some 30 days before it hatched and have continued to care for it. The chick's gender is not yet known.
(story continued...)


Item Two: Carrie Prejean stripped of Miss California title

LOS ANGELES - Miss California USA Carrie Prejean, who stirred up trouble for herself when she said gays shouldn't be allowed to marry, got two dreaded words from pageant poobah Donald Trump on Wednesday: "You're fired."
(story continued...)

Saturday, May 30, 2009

so many books, so little shelf space

OK, I have 7 bookcases with 8 shelves each and yet I am out of shelf space. I've gotten a bunch of free books to review lately which I love, but my goodness they start to pile up. In fact, at the moment, there are lots of piles of books all over my living room. I need another bookcase, but I'm not sure where to put one as I am completely out of space. I also need to purge books from the shelves but am terrified to begin such a project because it will lead to house chaos and I can't face that right now.

I don't know though- I really am beginning to think the books are reproducing somehow when I'm not looking...

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

"Let me tell you something about my family..."


By far the best summer entertainment to come along in years- the Real Housewives of New Jersey. I know, I know- trashy and shameless. I don't care I tell you. I defy you to watch and not get sucked in- it's like watching a Sopranos/Beverly Hills 90210 hybrid, and it is magnificent.

Bravo, Tuesday nights- check it out!

Monday, May 18, 2009

Productivity

So before Brad came to visit a couple of weeks ago, I did another one of my frantic clean and purge marathons (though I didn't blog about it because even I was sick of hearing about how messy my house was). Flash forward to this weekend, and my house is still all neat and enjoyable. Yes boys and girls, I decided that to focus some time on maintaining and have actually been able to remain happy in my space. I've got four days off this coming weekend, and I'm looking forward to spending some of it sorting clothes so that I can put away those five big loads of clean laundry- like items with like items.

I've been so pleased with my ability to just sit and enjoy my living room that I've decided to actually focus on that couch reupholstery project that has been in the back of my mind for over a year. I did have to laugh at my poor mom's reaction- she's thrilled my house is tidy but terrified she'll have to help recover the couch this summer...

Friday, May 15, 2009

boys suck!

Yeah, I wrote that last post under the influence of something- I have to stop reading Dorothy Sayers when I'm looking for help with relationship definitions.

I suggested NOLA as a 5th anniversay destination, Brad responded with naughty words. I was hurt and annoyed, at work no less. Now we are not speaking which is absurd when we rely on telephonic communication exclusively as it is.

boys suck!

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Getting ready to move on...

I finally got panelled into my onward assignment so I will officially be stationed here for another year. Brad is getting ready to retire from the USMC and is suffering from typical short-timer's disease where every day feels longer now that the end is in sight. I can related; in October we'll be choosing where to bid for our first overseas post together, and this time next year we'll be getting ready to live together for the first time. I'm excited that the end of our long-distance relationship is nigh, but I do have to mock the absurdity of the whole thing as we are approaching our five year wedding anniversary in June.

Speaking of our anniversary, we might go to New Orleans to celebrate- I've never been and think it might be a fun place to celebrate us. I've been reading a lot lately, burning through my backlog of review copy books, and so many of the books involve women and relationships. I've read about women searching for the perfect man. I've read about women who thought they had the perfect man until it all fell apart. Hell, I've even read about women who did find the perfect man and live happily ever after, but those books were all trashy romance novels.

Regardless, I just keep thinking about relationships in general, and me and Brad specifically. I try to be realistic about my expectations, in the hopes that acknowledging the potential pitfalls ahead will make us better able to cope with them. I hope that thinking in advance about how hard it will be to live together for the first time, especially in a new environment overseas, will help us make it easier. I hope that the knowing it will not all be sunshine and roses will make it likely some of it will be sunshine and roses.

I've got friends who suggest the opposite, that what I perceive as a realistic outlook is in fact a negative one that will doom us before we really even begin. These friends suggest I adopt the trashy romance view and assume that we will live happily ever after because if I don't assume it, then it definitely won't happen. They think I'm too cynical and admonish me to think more posiively.

I think they might be crazy but hell, who knows, they might be right. What I do know is that I really want things to work out for us. I want us to enjoy living together, to discover that we are in fact a compatible couple, to finally get to live like normal married people. I want the last few years to have been worth the sacrifices and the time apart because they are just the start of a lifelong story. I want that happily ever after, however unlikely a dream that is in this day and age.

Oh, and I guess I'll wish for world peace and happiness while I'm imploring the universe- I can always use the good karma...

Monday, May 4, 2009

Have Passport, Will Travel: A Meme

I wanted this to be an illustrated meme, but my scanner doesn't work with Vista and I didn't want to boot up my old laptop tonight. Maybe in the future...

First trip you remember:
Tralee, County Kerry (Ireland). My mom and I were living in Dublin, and we went to the seaside with family. It was cold and rainy (not unusual in Ireland) but I insisted we had to make sandcastles. I was a well-loved child- we sat on the beach in windbreakers in the rain making sandcastles. I was probably about four, but I remember that day and the donkey cart ride a couple of days later- I was allergic to the hay and I still don't like donkeys.

First trip you took by yourself:
My first solo flight was to VT when I was 14; my best friend's mom moved her family up there from DC and I went up for a couple of weeks at the end of the summer. My first completely solo trip was to Austria my junior year of college. I went to Paris with friends, then separated- I took the train to Vienna, saw Salzburg and Innsbruck, then made it back into France on the last train to enter before a massive railway strike.

First out-of-state (-province) trip as an adult:
If I define adult as over 18, then my first out of state trip was to the Delaware shore for beach week after I graduated from high school. If I define adult as out-of-college-and-working, my first out of state trip was to NYC to visit my then boyfriend. My first out-of-country trip as a post-college adult was my move to Barbados with the State Dept.

Most humiliating travel experience:
I was embarrassed when I got my mom and I thrown off the tour at the Tower of London for proclaiming the innocence of the Princes in the Tower, but my mom just laughed and told me we were better off not sticking with an ignorant tour guide. Heck, a few people left with us because they preferred my running commentary on the Tudors (I was a serious history nerd back then).

On that college trip to Paris I was humiliated by a fellow American at the Louvre who stood in front of the Mona Lisa and loudy proclaimed "You think he could have made it bigger!" You could see everyone around her take one step away...

Possibly best hour:
hmmm...this is really hard. One standout moment was from that college trip to Europe. When my train arrived in Paris, the Metro was on strike so I had to walk around the city. I hit the Eiffel Tower at the same time as a movie crew that pumped the area full of fake fog and made for some magical pictures.

Another standout moment comes from Kuwait of all places. One of the Army tankers I hung out with took a friend and I out into the desert to watch a meteor shower. It was completely dark out in the desert and we laid on the car and watched the stars and when the meteor shower began, I knew it was one of those moments I wanted to keep inside me forever.

Moment that most would have been improved by someone who could pick up a cue:
I can't think of one of these, so I'm going to add in Mella's addition instead.

Travel story most likely to cause the eavesdroppers at the next table to do a double-take:
"I was standing there at Irish immigration, flipping though passports to find the right one..."

Saturday, April 25, 2009

I do so love You Tube...

For Wende, who just shared a magnificent Eric Carmen video. My high school buddy Kelly and I used to sing this song walking to school from the metro freshman year...

Monday, April 20, 2009

WTF is an "Opposite Marriage"?

sigh...I should have known watching even a few minutes of the Miss USA pageant would make me want to throw things at my TV. I thought it was bad enough when one contestant listed armadillo watching as a hobby, but then Miss California set a new bar of idiocy:

"We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage. And you know what, I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised."


Monday, April 13, 2009

Seriously itchy feet...

It's that time of year when I should be getting ready to move. I should be thinking about packing out, about moving on, about life in a new country. I am doing none of those things because I took another job here in DC that will keep me here for another year. I'm happy with the decision for lots of personal reasons, but I have to say I do find myself thinking a little wistfully about hopping on a plane and jetting off into the sunset. My sister rightfully points out that I am in no way prepared to pack out as I still have a lot to purge, but even so I just can't help envying friends who are getting ready to head out. Of course, I'll have the fun of bidding on a new job in October, but until then I'll have to cope with my itchy feet...

Sunday, April 5, 2009

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly...

Wow, for someone who doesn't actually like clothes, I sure do have a lot of them...

I'm working on cleaning out my closets because despite the fac that they are packed with clothes, I never seem to be able to find anyhing to wear that I actually like. Well, OK, I like my work clothes, but when it comes to clothes for non-formal social occasions, I tend to wear the same three of four things.

A junior in my high school alma mater is collecting prom dresses for a charity dress drive, so I started this process by weeding out a few formals that I know I won't wear again, and that I though might be good for kids looking for prom dresses. I then started taking a look at my shoe collection, and realizing I really need to weed there as well. I found three (yes three) pairs of unworn sneakers in boxes on my shelves. Given how often I exercise, this is CLEARLY overkill. I'm considering it a message from the universe to (1) exercise more, and (2) throw out the pair of New Balance sneakers I've been wearing into the ground for the last three years. I have a stack of summer shoes that I'm wavering on- if they don't get worn once the weather turns, they are going to charity as well.

My house is now a wreck because I have clothes strewn about everywhere, but the thought that some of these clothes are heading out the door is a glorious one...