Stuff white people like

Behold the white, middle class mirror: Stuff White People Like

(This website is hilarious.)

(Thanks for the link, Chris.)

House of Representatives Passes an Official Apology for Slavery in the U.S.

I feel like singing Handel’s Messiah… Hallelujah-the U.S. House of Representatives passed an official apology for slavery in the United States. I believe this is an important first step in racial reconciliation. I pray it continues with the senate and the President.

“Whereas a genuine apology is an important and necessary first step in the process of racial reconciliation;

Whereas an apology for centuries of brutal dehumanization and injustices cannot erase the past, but confession of the wrongs committed can speed racial healing and reconciliation and help Americans confront the ghosts of their past;

Whereas it is important for this country, which legally recognized slavery through its Constitution and its laws, to make a formal apology for slavery and for its successor, Jim Crow, so that it can move forward and seek reconciliation, justice, and harmony for all of its citizens: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives:

(1) acknowledges that slavery is incompatible with the basic founding principles recognized in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal;

(2) acknowledges the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery and Jim Crow;

(3) apologizes to African Americans on behalf of the people of the United States, for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow; and

(4) expresses its commitment to rectify the lingering consequences of the misdeeds committed against African Americans under slavery and Jim Crow and to stop the occurrence of human rights violations in the future.”

Vancouver, here we come.

Tomorrow we leave for Vancouver, BC to attend a friend’s wedding and to take a much needed vacation. I am so excited to attend a wedding where I am not the photographer. I get to just show up when everybody else does, wear cute uncomfortable shoes, and most importantly I get to eat, drink, and dance… in that order. I had forgotten that weddings can be an enjoyable event. And Vancouver! Oh how I have missed your sushi, spanish banks, mountainous views, and perfect summer temperatures (70’s and sunny). I will be sure to take photos… this time for me.

Now here’s a blog worth reading

idiot dreams

I hear the author of this site is promising the first 10 viewers with a free cd single of the song “idiot dreams” off his mega hit album “Wood on Wood”.

bbq with the carolina chocolate drops

It’s gonna be knee-slappin’ and finger-lickin’ good!

(photo links to an NPR interview and music)

i want to smash your firecrackers…over and over…

Call me a cranky old fart, but I dread July 4th in Missouri. Here’s why. Last night just as I was about to drift off to REM sleep, around midnight I hear what sounds like multiple missels shrieking and then igniting in our back yard. Of course it didn’t start or stop there, all day yesterday and even this morning firecrackers are booming through the neighborhood followed by every neighborhood dog barking their heads off. Every dog that is except mine. One of our dogs rarely barks and the other one was shot before we adopted her, so every time a loud boom occurs, she runs and hides behind our recliner. This happens over and over and over again. I have this theory that everyone in our town comes to our neighborhood to set off their cheap firecrackers. We get the firecrackers and south (wealthy) columbia gets the trick-or-treaters.

here kitty

Oh the adventures of Nate’s job… so once a week Nate travels 30 miles south to a job-training farm where he hangs out with formerly homeless men. For the last few years, this farm has become the dumping site for a variety of unwanted animals, ranging from dogs, cats, and goats, but especially CATS. Two or three abandoned un-spayed cats, eventually leads to a dozen and then a couple dozen, and then soon you have a Hitchcock film. The local human society near the farm is always full and is never accepting animals. But the town we live in, they for the most part will accept any animal. So this leads to a new job for Nate today,–animal control and transporting boxes full of cats 40 miles to the human society. Sounds pretty harmless right? Hmm… no. The mama kitty who is pretty much pissed about the entire situation finds a way to chew her way to escape, followed then by all her little kitties. This leads to kitties crawling all over the car, up Nate’s leg, batting his head, and this is all happening while he is talking to me on the phone and driving the car down the interstate. I could barely hear him over the screaming meows. But here’s the best part… mama kitty decides to show her extreme dissatisfaction over the entire situation and poops all over the backseat of the car.

I am so a dog person.

for the love of wii

I am AMAZED at what people will do to get a Nintendo wii… if you are one of those poor souls who have tried the normal route of walking into a store to purchase a wii or wii fit, you have probably been given the salesperson’s tired speech, “NO, we do not have the wii OR the wii fit and NO I do not know when we will get them in (how dare you ask me such a stupid question).” So here is another route you could take, Heather Armstrong’s mother could call your lucky number.

So now it is time for my confession. Yes, I was one of those poor souls who stupidly asked a salesperson at a box store if they had a wii or a wii fit (BTW Tara H. is to blame for my wii hunt). So, instead of saying okay and walking away from the wii purchase headache, every once in while (Nate will like this) my OCD side will pop out and decide to spend 4 hours of my life tracking down something that is impossible to get. Yes, I managed to score a wii and wii fit by calling every store within 60 miles of our town, all because I heard you could snowboard and that you get your own personal trainer. After calling over a dozen stores, I found this little town called Eldon, MO which is 50 miles from our house, and I managed to talk the sales lady into hiding their last wii and wii fit in the back storage room for me. I gave her and her big hair the biggest hug! Now that we have the wii, I will say it is pretty fantastic. But of course I skipped a few generations of video gaming… the last video game system I owned was an Atari back in the 80’s. Gotta give props to Frogger and Space Invaders.