many happy returns

Happy happy bday Suzy Q. See you this weekend!

new college admission blog

Attending college and universities has become more competitive as institutions cap enrollment. Tuition continues to increase at many public colleges as state’s cut back on their funding.
The New York Times has a new blog that can help parents and their college-bound children.

greenery?

What is your experience with compact fluorescent bulbs? I’ve had mixed results.

update on the jason and molly story

What is happening to the bachelor and Molly?

caution: words at play

I like words. I like made-up words, archaic words, poetic words, brash words, foreign words, jargony words, lyrical words, onomatopoeias, oxymorons, word games, word twists, clever turns of phrase — and especially new words. I used to be a snob about new words that slithered their way into the dictionary simply because they had become [...]

interesting perspective …

.,, from Gail Collins at the Times.

octo-mom

She fired the free, donated nannies?
Was it my imagination or did she sound much more lucid and intelligent in her phone conversation with Dr. Phil? With all the attorneys, bad press, media glut, nursing transitions, people with an opinion (not to mention children), it’s hard to sort through what the state of affairs truly is [...]

two sides to every story, including aig

Here is a break up letter to Edward Liddy.

celebration

Tonight we celebrated the conclusion of our first-ever fundraising campaign.
We raised more than $27 million on a $20 million dollar goal.
It was a good night.

go tom

Thomas Friedman on the current crisis.

bridezillas run amok

This just in from Atlanta.

what do you cut from k-12 budget?

This is a smart perspective on the potential budget cuts facing Orange County.

ceos: if you lose your corporate jet …

Jet Blue’s new campaign is a riot.

star trek: things that make you say, huh?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/19/garden/19trek.html

C’ead Mile Failte

A hundred thousand welcomes! Happy St. Patrick’s Day.

i want to go there

discovery aloft

Godspeed.
It was a beautiful sight from my backyard in Central Florida. Once again, all my neighbors were in their backyards (with their very loud patio TVs on, lol) watching the launch. The collective “whoo hoo” was fun.
You can watch it here: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/
11,000 miles per hour. Wow, that’s fast!

bumper sticker: honk if i’m paying your bonus

Surely we can figure out how to get out of these AIG bonuses. I understand that they’ll pay the government back at some point but what message does it send to the rest of the bailed out firms? I fear in-trouble companies will sign contracts with their execs so that they can follow suit …
The [...]

bernie in chains

I think that I shall never see
a sight as lovely as Bernie
in handcuffs.

the rand report

The Colbert Report
The Word – Rand Illusion

Colbert Report Full Episodes
Political Humor
Rap Battle
NASA Name Contest

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minimalist kitchen design concept that vanishes

This modular kitchen system is really remarkable. The author suggests that abodes are getting smaller. Susanka aside, I’m not entirely sure that is entirely true so far. However, the next stage of our economic recovery will likely see downsizing for many families.
Philosophical and economic debates, notwithstanding, this is really an intriguing concept, especially for a [...]

the market, the law, the criminals, the constitution

All things being relative, it’s encouraging to see some green arrows on the ticker two days in a row, even if today was basically flat. Flat is better than a nose dive.
Also a bright spot: Madoff’s attorney told the judge he expects the criminal, um the defendant, to plead guilty on all 11 counts, which [...]

what’s good on tv?

I don’t watch as much TV as this list would suggest but I was sad to hear that ABC is axing both Life on Mars and Eli Stone. So I decided to make a few lists. I hope you’ll share yours.
TV shows that I am sorry will be leaving:

Life on Mars
Eli White

TV show I am [...]

barbie hits 50

How is that possible? Oh, that’s right: I am 44 …
Turns out, that, Barbie’s creator lives nearby. But for the record, despite the camper and the dream house and that goofy boyfriend, Ken, who she finally dumped, I preferred Skipper and her friends. Are they still even around?
More on Barbie’s birthday here. I had no [...]

twitter twisdom

Are you twittering? I haven’t tried it yet (hands full with my FB friends) and the blog. Here’s a helpful article from the Wall Street Journal on How to Twitter.

kismet

You know those life changing moments?
I can think of a few. Most good. Some, well, they are what they are.
Can you remember a seminal moment that changed the course of your life?

whoo hoo

OK, so truth be told I am actually working during this whole break between the houses and the graduate school dissertation. And um also I kind of forgot (well, they changed the week last fall and somehow I didn’t write it down), so I have a few meetings. And I have to be out of [...]

kelly is so smart

I have often referenced Kelly at Kitchen Sync for her brilliance and insight. What I love about her blog is the fact that she offers contextual clues, whether they be history or usage or philosophy or design or whatnot. She is willing to defy conventional wisdom which I love.
She did much the same with this [...]

mindful meditation

I am a huge fan of Jon Kabat-Zinn (where ever you go, there you are) and Eckhart Tolle (power of now and more recently a new earth, among others) and Sarah Ban Breathnach (simple abundance).
Together these authors brought to me the notion of mindfulness. And I’ve had hours of being brilliant at it, lol.
I haven’t [...]

ok, fine, i was jo

When you read Little Women, which character  spoke to you?
I related to Jo on many levels. In fact, mom even sprung a sort of silly amount of money for a used Jo doll (Madame Alexander) because I was so connected. It wasn’t a whole lot but let’s say it was more than a Barbie at [...]

electrolyzed water

It’s safe to drink at the same time it scours your house. Hmmm, read more here. Remember the meatavitavegim product with Lucy?

removing paint from old hardware

I love to cook with my crockpot, but I’m delighted to find it has other uses. Check out this one from www.thisoldhouse.com
Apparently, the editors at This Old House magazine have discovered a secret use for the old crockpot: it can be used to easily strip paint off hardware such as doorknobs, hinges, light sockets [...]

20-minute skillet lasagna

1 tablespoon olive oil or spray of olive oil Pam
1 small chopped onion (or 10 oz of frozen chopped onion)
26-ounce jar no-salt-added marinara sauce (or your favorite)
1/2 of a 12-ounce package multigrain extra-wide egg noodles

1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon each: salt and crushed red pepper
1/2 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded Italian six-cheese [...]