Ask me anything!





I took some video as well, but I'm having trouble getting them off my camera for some reason. If I ever figure it out, I'll post those as well.

Anyway...

Yes, she is as smart and genuine in person. Even more so, actually. She fielded some really tough questions on health care, Iran and education...and she was able to recall numbers and statistics without even pausing. Amazing.

or, "I'll write-in the candidate of my choice" or anything along those lines: I hope to God that you're doing everything in your power right NOW to make sure that X (be it Hillary or Obama or Edwards) does NOT win the nomination.

I've been pondering a post like this for a while, but now I have to say this.

If you will not or can not support any of our Dem nominees should they win the primary, you had BETTER be out there working for someone you CAN support.

If the thought of voting for Hillary (for example) makes you ill, get off your ass and campaign for Edwards. Or Obama. Or Kucinich.

What I cannot tolerate is people who are willing to throw away their votes (yes, I said it...THROW AWAY THEIR VOTE) by voting for a 3rd party candidate or a write-in, but are not willing to set aside some time now to ensure that won't become necessary.

If you're sitting behind your computer playing keyboard commando, but you're not doing everything in your power to make sure that your guy (or woman) wins the nomination, then YOU HAVE NOBODY TO BLAME BUT YOURSELF. Put your time/money/whatever you can where your keystrokes are. Or shut the fuck up.

No, this isn't one of those "I'm leaving DU!!! DAMN IT!" threads.

But I did want to let you all know that I'm not going to be around much for the next few months. No worries, it's good news. In fact, I'm really, really excited.

Simply put, I'm putting my time where my mouth is. Through *at least* the California primary, I'm going to be really busy with a certain someone's campaign.

I'm sure I'll still lurk a bit, and if anyone needs me I'm just a PM away. But I didn't want anyone to wonder what happened to me.

She's starting to get some tabby markings. Her fur intrigues me though...it's like velvet! I've never felt cat fur as soft as hers.


Caught mid-yawn


She and Riley are turning into really good buddies



And Spencer has started grooming her

Kyra and Riley


Spencer...cuz we don't want to leave him out!

Husker's Excellent European Vacation pictures are back! I'm really hoping to be done with the organization this weekend. But for now...Brussels, Belgium!


(I'm the one on the left)



And as always, more here: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome...

Next up: LONDON!

Brugge was one of my favorite towns. It's very quaint...it was basically left alone for over 500 years after the canals dried up and it was no longer a major port city. They've since re-dug the canals, and it's lovely. Enjoy!





More here: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome...

Welcome to Ieper, Belgium...also known as Ypres...the site of a famous WWI battle.





And again, many more here: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome...

Enjoy!

And many, many more here: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/picture...

I just got back from New Orleans, and I had a fabulous time! The food is second to none and the people are extremely friendly.

Canal Street, between the Convention Center and the French Quarter:


Near Canal Street:


Inside the Palace Cafe (highly recommended):


The infamous thunderstorm. Notice how the street lights are on. It was NOON.


Mmm, beignets! (and yes, I ate them with Coke. I know that's blasphemy, but it was WAY too hot for coffee)


This was right outside my hotel...


French Quarter:


A church in the French Quarter:


Jackson Square...or is it Jefferson Square? Whichever one's in the center of the French Quarter, lol


Bourbon Street (aka Where Husker got her ass kicked by a Hurricane)


Bananas Foster at Brennan's (home of Bananas Foster, and frankly, the best food I've ever tasted):


The House of Blues! WHEEE!


And, really, the best street sign EVER (I have NO idea what it was advertising. None. It was outside a bookstore somewhere in the French Quarter)

I helped set up the crosses/stars/crescents and also placed personal mementos in front of some of them. One of the crosses I did belonged to Casey Sheehan.

I have to say, that was one of the harder things I've done. So many lives wasted. So many hearts broken. The personal notes and pictures were painful to look at. But at the same time, it's so very necessary.

The people who work with Veterans for Peace are really fabulous. So kind and inviting...and they work so hard setting up this memorial, but they do it with such grace.

One of the things they do every week is place a flag-draped coffin for each soldier killed the previous week. Did you realize that we lost 37 soldiers this week? Thirty seven. It really becomes more than a number when you help drape flags and carry them onto the beach.

But amidst the sadness, there were definite moments of true humanity. As we were carrying the coffins, a group of 20-something guys walked up and asked if they could help. Turns out, they were members of the Belgian Air Force, on vacation in Santa Monica. They were so kind to help! It really made all of us smile.

I'm planning on volunteering once a month or so. If you're in the Santa Monica area, you should consider it. It's such an eye-opening experience.

It's actually been a rather cold winter in LA this year, so I jumped on the chance to head to the beach on our first 80+ degree day in MONTHS.

I was playing with my new camera, so I thought I'd share some pictures...

I'm traveling to Europe this summer for the first time and I'm totally excited. Just got the ok on the vacation time, so I started looking at airlines. I'll be flying out of Los Angeles, and into either London or Brussels, so there are quite a few choices.

Any advice on airlines? Any of them better than the others? Worse? And if you've got any general travel tips, I'll take those too!

Ok, I lie. It was a year ago last week, but I kinda missed the anniversary...

I moved out here to Los Angeles and started my new job!

I cannot freaking believe that it's already been a year.

Thank you all for your support. It's been a crazy year, but I love it here. I even love my job (most of the time).

So, I believe there's a Lounge rule: Ask me anything!

All Saints Church in Pasadena, CA has been sued by the IRS, who is claiming that a sermon given by a guest lector in October 2004 violated IRS regulations regarding the endorsement of a political candidate by a tax-exempt organization. The IRS has threatened to revoke the church's tax-exempt status.

I attend the church and am on their mailing list. This is the latest information they have sent out to their parish:

On September 15, the IRS served All Saints with two summonses--the first, seeking a wide range of documents concerning the October 2004 sermon of George Regas; and the second, the testimony of Ed Bacon about those documents and our policies against campaign intervention. In considering what our appropriate response to the summonses should be, the Vestry and Ed listened to the wise counsel of our parishioners and many of our friends and supporters from outside of our parish, consulted with our legal counsel and clergy staff, and prayerfully considered our two options--compliance now or challenging the summonses first. On September 21, the Vestry voted unanimously to challenge legally, and in a court of law, the right of the IRS to proceed with either of these two summonses.

We made this decision not because we have anything to hide: Indeed, we have reviewed the most relevant of the many documents that the IRS has summoned and believe that they fully support our position that we have always been mindful of the IRS regulations against campaign intervention, respect those regulations, take steps to ensure compliance and have always been in compliance. We believe that All Saints has not engaged in campaign intervention on behalf of any particular candidate or party--not in October 2004 nor at any other time.

Rather, we made this decision because of our belief that these summonses intolerably infringe upon our Constitutional rights and the IRS regulations that embody those principles--namely, the First Amendment rights of our church to speak and worship freely--rights we see as indispensable to our core mission, as well as to that of other faith communities throughout the country.

More available here: http://www.allsaints-pas.org/saintsalive/a...

Background, including text of the sermon in question available here: http://www.allsaints-pas.org/all_saints_ch...