Top Ten Tuesday: Albums

Have you ever listened to a song and felt that the music spoke to your soul? These records are not only great memories, but when I listen to them I feel like I am at home.

1. August and Everything After, The Counting Crows: My all time favorite album since I first heard it in 1994. Although everyone knows Mr. Jones or Rain King, I play the song Anna Begins over and over.

2. Legend, Bob Marley: Is it possible to listen to this album and not be happy by the end? And Redemption Song, has a better song ever been composed?

3. U2, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb: I was listening to this album when Ruby was born, I don't think she could have had a better introduction to the world around her.

4. Lauryn Hill, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill: The kind of music I can play over
and over and never tire of-- great beats, a beautiful voice, and powerful lyrics.

5. Sarah McLachlan, Surfacing: It is hard to find a Sarah album that I prefer over the others. I love her. Surfacing was the album that pulled me through a time in my life when I could only turn to my stereo and the open road to calm my heart and clear my mind.

6. The Cranberries, No Need to Argue: Some people hate the voice of the lead singer, but for me she does emo better than anyone else. This was the first non-Rap or R&B album I ever thought was fun to listen to.

7. Madonna, The Immaculate Collection: While her songs don't speak to me in a spiritual sense, in a very worldly way no one beats Madonna. The songs on this record remind me of every period of my life--childhood, college, motherhood. Madonna is sooo universal.

8. Bruce Springsteen, We Shall Overcome-The Seeger Sessions: If you ever thought a road trip was complete without this collection, you just don't know what you have been missing.

9. Frou Frou, Details: It changed my life.

10. Dido, No Angel: I guess the addition of this album should prove how much I loved Roswell and convince you all to add it to your Netflix queue.

What is diplomacy post 9/11?

I often find myself wishing I were still in academia, while simultaneously rejoicing in the fact that I left it long ago! But, there are times when a topic comes to mind in which I find the available answers to be less than even a cursory understanding of the topic. Perhaps this comes largely because I read mostly national and international media sources as opposed to professional journals. But, then that leads me to my major issue (and when it comes to academia, I have so, so many) with academics. They spend their time writing and researching, discussing and debating and have no true ability to reach the masses with their writings. Thus making them, more often than not, disposable. I could also mention, and will, the issue I have with media sources requiring degrees in journalism--because that will really give someone the background knowledge to write on domestic politics or environmental issues with any real degree of understanding?

OK, so what is my point? Recently a well-televised town hall meeting was held at the US Department of State to discuss the new policy of directed assignments of Foreign Service officers to Iraq. I mention "well-televised" to emphasize the fact that the officers were given no other forum in which to discuss concerns they have on a policy that hasn't existed since the Vietnam war. The event has topped headlines in the political section of papers, to the extent that even uninvolved-in-matters-of-diplomacy-and-international-relations (unless you include immigration) Utah rep Chris Cannon has called for an inquiry into what he referred to as a "mutiny," stating:

"I believe it is incumbent upon this committee to investigate whether the Foreign Service, as it is currently constituted, is suited to fulfill its mission or whether it is in need of serious reform, including the personnel flexibility to remove officers unwilling to fulfill their duties."

What IS the mission of the Foreign Service post Cold War, post 9/11? What is diplomacy in this new environment?

Does diplomacy, regardless of historical precedent, belong in a war zone? If so, what kind of training and security resources are essential and does it exist? For example, much has been said of Foreign Service personnel who are not willing to serve, but no one is mentioning that when a diplomat serves in a war zone, unlike members of the Armed Forces, his/her life insurance policy becomes null and void, a great concern to individuals with families (and something Congress actually has the power to change). What kind of work, given the level of security in a war zone, can really be done? Does the United States truly require a 1,000 man embassy in Iraq? It will be the largest in history and has cost the US taxpayers 6 billion dollars to build.

Finally, we have heard much over the last two years of Secretary Rice's plan for transformational diplomacy in which resources are being moved from more traditional posts, like Europe for example, to places such as India where the population greatly exceeds that of European nations. Does an embassy the size of the one in Iraq fit with this policy? And if so, what is the goal on an immediate, medium, and long term basis?

Friday Night Lights

Since we can't watch our favorite tv show until it hits dvd at the end of the season, we find other methods to get our much needed fix.

For all those of you who believe that a team can make a miracle happen, and don't care how ugly that miracle looks along the way, this clip is for you.

Background: Last play of the game, offense (Trinity) down by 5 points with 2 seconds left (which means the game ends when the ball touches the ground) they are on their own 30 yard line (and therefore can't realistically kick a field goal). And break...

Happy Halloween!

Today's inspirational thought:

Obama said he would accompany his daughters in trick-or-treating on Halloween while wearing a Mitt Romney mask, which has "two sides to it, it goes in both directions."

Top Ten Tuesday

This week's Top Ten was inspired by our friend Matt who cannot deal with top ten lists in general (too much pressure and commitment I guess?) He felt that in order to have a truly representative list we needed both a favorite men list,as well as a favorite male characters list. I thought that task would be nearly impossible, but as you will see, I had no shortage of great options.

10. Sam Seaborn-

The Deputy Communications Director in Aaron Sorkin's tv drama, The West Wing. Sam was young, intelligent, idealistic, witty and he had my dream job (he was primarily responsible for writing the President's speeches).

9. Jerry Maguire-

No matter what Nate says I believe it is a movie for everyone, football and Tom Cruise--that is not a chick flick. I know we all got sick of hearing the line playing over and over again on the radio, but really when Jerry declared "You complete me" I think any of us who have hearts melted.

8. Gilbert Blythe-

He really makes me believe I don't need star bursts or marbled halls.

7. Maxwell Evans-

The hottest alien EVER! If you haven't seen the series Roswell, you absolutely MUST netflix-it. Especially if you like the Stephenie Myers books, she just copied the plot line from the series and changed the characters from aliens to vampires.

6. CK Dexter Haven-

Could a top ten list really be complete with an appearance from Cary Grant!! CK Dexter Haven is the debonair playboy ex-husband of Catherine Hepburn in Philadelphia Story. And how can you not love a man who everyone refers to by his full name!

5. Lloyd Dobler-

One question, after you saw him confess his love didn't you wish that someone would hold his boom box over his head, playing your song, outside your window? I mean, he gave her his heart and she gave him a pen!

4. Mr. Darcy-

Wet t-shirt contest winner hands down...of course it wasn't Pimberly she fell in love with.

3. Ethan Hunt-

He orchestrated a break in of Langley--how hot is that!

2. Maverick-

"You've lost that lovin' feelin'!" And while Ice Man shows him up with his shirt off during the volleyball scene, we all still want Maverick to be our wing man!

1. Legolas-

All I can say is, I sat through nearly 9 hours of film, full price, in crowded theaters just to see an elf. That earns him top billing for sure!

Serendipity

(noun) 1- an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident. 2- good fortune; luck. From the Arabic Serendib, or Sri Lanka.

We have the good fortune, and luck, to have been assigned to work in Sri Lanka for our next post. We are really quite excited and think it is the perfect location for us. It has just the right balance of comfortable living and an exciting job opportunity.

Sri Lanka is located just off the southern coast of India, from which it obtains one of its many names "The Teardrop of India."


If you are interested in
pristine beaches


herds of elephants


ancient buddhist temples


or even yoga retreats and excellent cuisine--you just might want to start saving now (airfare isn't cheap).

Top Ten Tuesday

This week my friend Shannon and I decided to create a weekly feature on our blogs that truly represents who we are, and one of the many reasons our friendship is so strong: Top Ten Lists. We have one on every topic, and if we don't, we can't wait to figure it out. The first time I met her we were driving to a restaurant and she asked everyone in the car, "What are your top ten favorite albums" I had previously given this topic much thought and was readily able to give detailed answers. Our friendship was solidified.

To introduce you all to the topic, this week is the old standard, a first step in embracing the world of top ten lists: Top Ten Men (famous men--no cheesy "my husband" answers--PUHLEEZ! Of course he is, so give us 11 in that case). Give it a try and enjoy the show.

Flashback Friday

One of my college roommates started Flashback Friday's on her blog. I thought it was a great idea, so I have copied it and have decided to devote my first flashback to our days as roommates, or as we called ourselves (along with Marisa), the Trinity--because we were one in purpose.

We loved:
-Monday night trash tv and would leave FHE early to watch the new movie of the week
-Late night water fights
-Jessica's red sweater
-Bill Nye the Science Guy
-Angela eating the cord
-Roommates who respected the no talking before 10am rule
-Late night runs to Maverick
-Afternoon naps while watching Days and Oprah
-"I always feel like somebody's watching ME-ah! and I have no privacy!"
-Playing "Sweet Dreams" as we plotted revenge
-Renting video recorders and recording ourselves performing

The following clip is sadly not our performance, but we did recreate it-- both in front of the vanity mirror and for the video camera...if only I had been able to post the performance. Here's to you Baby Spice!

Halloween 911!

I have a costume party Saturday, and I am on the committee, I just realized today I am supposed to dress up!! Any last minute, super simple ideas? We have no access to anything like DI or Salvation Army!

HELP!!

Transformers, More Than Meets the Eye

When we arrived in Paris last year, we bought two of the cheapest transformers we could find to convert our 110 volt electronics to the 220v system most of the rest of the world uses. These transformers could operate the tv and dvd player for 30min-1.5 hours max before quitting. If we were watching a movie we would have to switch transformers,when one overheated (which inevitably occurred at the most crucial point of the film). Of course this situation lead us to determine not to get cable tv, what was the point, we couldn't trust to get through a show. A couple of weeks ago we blew both transformers within a few days of each other. The real tragedy is that disc 4 of Veronica Mars season 1 was trapped inside the dvd player before we had a chance to watch it!

This last weekend we made a trip up to Belgium to do some American style shopping at the commissary. It was heavenly: shopping carts instead of strollers, large isles, clean atmosphere, Toaster Struddle, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and reasonable prices. We also found another cheap transformer, it was only $8 more than the others we had purchased. To our surprise, it was the little transformer that could. It ran for over nine hours without quitting. We finished watching season 1 of Veronica Mars without pause. Which leads me to the following insightful poem from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Moral of the story, maybe it was better with the 30 min transformers!

The most important thing we've learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let
Them near your television set–
Or better still, just don't install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we've been,
We've watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone's place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they're hypnotised by it,
Until they're absolutely drunk
With all the shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink–
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSES IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK–HE ONLY SEES!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!' you'll say,'
But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?'
How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?
'Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow:
THEY...USED...TO...READ! They'd READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic takes
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching 'round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it's Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy–Winkle and–
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How The Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There's Mr. Rat and Mr. Mole–
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks–
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They'll now begin to feel the need
Of having something good to read.
And once they start–oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts. They'll grow so keen
They'll wonder what they'd ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.

A New List

While Nate and I were dating we took sea kayaking lessons together. In an attempt to learn and practice a new skill we discussed how to go about it over and over again, in great length. Our instructor, a bit exasperated, rolled his eyes and said, "You two sure do talk a lot." It truly defines our relationship and how we go about making every decision. And while that can be quite tedious with the mundane scenarios (like what to have for dinner and where to park the car), it comes in quite handy in major life choices, like moving your family to an unknown country. Deciding on a location far removed from the comforts and quality of life with which we are familiar requires a great deal of negotiation and communication skills.


After talking a lot, we submitted our final list for our next posting today. In typical fashion (we are both procrastinators) we finalized the list mere moments before it was due. Luckily, we feel really good about the cities on our new list.

1. Ankara, Turkey
2. Warsaw, Poland
3. Colombo, Sri Lanka
4. Riga, Latvia
5. Bangkok, Thailand
6. Frankfurt, Germany
7. Toronto, Canada
8. Rome, Italy
9. San Jose, Costa Rica
10. Mexico City
11. Maputo, Mozambique
12. Ljubljana, Slovenia
13. Oslo, Norway
14. Shanghai, China
15. Budapest, Hungary
16. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
17. Krakow, Poland
18. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
19. Tokyo, Japan
20. Hong Kong

The Name Game

I am catching up on all of my friend's blogs and along with the Tag from below, I found this fun little personality analysis based on your name. Mine is freakishly accurate, IMHO and I think Nate and Ruby's are right on target as well. You can "Discover the hidden meaning behind your name" at http://www.bostonuk.com/name_meanings.php?f=Boston.

Sina
You are a charismatic individual with a dynamic and attractive personality. Probably not known for your caution or patience you are a risk taker who hates to be restricted in any way. Freedom is very important to you. Your thinking and intuition is strong and you have a talent for communication. You enjoy the sensual and material pleasures of life and with the application of care and wisdom you can achieve wonderful worldly success.

Nathan
A gift of God "Hebrew"
You are an inspiring leader whose originality, creativity and wisdom are applied to creating practical solutions to "unsolvable" problems. Humanitarian and idealistic your vision is to make the world a better place and you will work to this end. Hardworking and tenacious people admire you for your honesty and integrity. You are a loved and loyal friend and partner. Your have the potential to achieve enormous success in the world.

Ruby
You are charming, talented and have a very positive attitude to life so it is hardly surprising that you attract success and recognition. Focussed and patient you understand that material rewards are a result of discipline. Being so creative and with a need for self-expression you may be drawn towards the arts, travel is also likely to be important. A loyal friend, you are a person who must be allowed freedom and independence.

Tag Your It

Life with Shannon tagged me, and to insure she knows I do in fact read her blog regularly, I am dutifully responding (not to mention, I actually like these lists!)
Jobs I have had:
1 – Legislative Aide
2 – BYU Student Leadership Event Planning
3 – BYU night shift custodian
4 – Lockheed Martin Consultant
Movies I could watch over and over:
1 – Pride & Prejudice (the BBC version)
2 – Return to Me
3 – Bottlerocket
4 – Anne of Green Gables
Favorite TV Shows:
1 – Entourage
2 – Friday Night Lights
3 – Heroes
4 – Grey's Anatomy
Favorite Hobbies:
1 – walking around Paris
2 – planning parties for Ruby and her friends (also known as playdates)
3 – discovering a new tv show to obsess about via Netflix with Nate
4 – Imagining how I would decorate my dream house
Places I have lived:
1 – Henderson, NV
2 – Hamburg, Germany
3 – Washington, DC
4 – Rexburg, ID
Favorite Foods:
1 – Jr. Crown Burger cut iin half with fries, fry sauce and a pineapple shake
2 – Cafe Rio grilled chicken burrito, enchilada style with black beans and green sauce
3 – Sushi
4 – Root Beer Floats (notice all things I can't get my hands on here!)
Places I'd rather be:
1 – In America
2 – In a mall
3 – At a hairdressers
4 – Getting a manicure and pedicure
Websites I visit:
1 – washingtonpost.com
2 – BarackObama.com
3 – gmail.com
4 – babycenter.com
Who I am Tagging:
1 – Daph (because she needs to post something new)
2 – dasstew
3 – The Last Unicorn
4 – Beaux Mondes (does she still blog!)

Where in the World is...

These are the options we have narrowed it down to for our next overseas assignment:
Ankara, Turkey
Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Tblisi, Georgia
Riga, Latvia
Bangkok, Thailand
Warsaw, Poland
Bogota, Columbia
Frankfurt, Germany
Rome, Italy
Toronto, Canada
Maputo, Mozambique
San Jose, Costa Rica
Mexico City
Maseru, Lesotho
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Minsk, Belarus
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Budapest, Hungary
Beijing, China

We should find out in November which one it will be...and who knows, maybe they will throw us a curve ball and give us something besides what is listed. Any votes for vacation destinations? I know Rome would be nice, but the chance is slim.

Growing Pains

After weeks away from truly contributing to my blog (Twilight surveys might fill space, but come on—does it really tell anyone what’s new in Paris) it is time to share the news: I’m Knocked Up.

I could have been a bit more sentimental about it, a little less, shall we say, crass. But, it hasn’t been the easiest 12 weeks of my life. Let me give you a rundown: and answer some frequently asked questions:

1. It is worse than last time. If you were around me throughout, or even momentarily during, my last pregnancy you will know that I considered it a more trying experience than even hell would be. I promised NEVER to do it again. Somehow I convinced myself I wanted to do it…damn that Ruby for being so freaking adorable.
2. How bad is it? Does three times a day losing your lunch sound even tolerable to you? It isn’t.
3. NO, your home remedies won’t work
4. YES, I have probably tried that home remedy already.
5. NO, that prescription didn’t work
6. Neither did that one.

Pregnancy is really a life state I don’t believe I should be asked to “endure”, but I do think Ruby is the greatest joy, real joy, I have experienced in life and even increased my love for my husband, which I didn’t know could happen. I could have done with out all the nausea and health concerns, but I couldn’t imagine having done with out her. I am optimistic I will feel this same way come April 19th, 2008.

In Retrospect

I found this 1992 speech by Dick Cheney, then Secretary of Defense, explaining why the US military withdrew from the Gulf before Sadaam Hussein was ousted. It seems clear why so many of us thought we could trust these men with "experience." You have to watch the video to the end.

Twilight

If you have read the book/s take the quiz yourself and who you are! Thanks Shannon for leading me to this quiz.

Which Twilight novel character are you?

You're Esme Cullen - Your maternal instinct to take care of people and be kind draw people towards you. You're compassionate and loving, yet firm when you need to be. You appreciate hard work and value the beautiful results of your dedication to any project.
Take this quiz!








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Dinner Party Anxiety

A clip from Ellen that demonstrates why I am overwhelmed with hosting and attending dinner parties for Nate's office.

Skinniest Building Ever

I found this building while walking around in the 16th arrondisement the other day.

Transparency in Political Campaigns

I believe politicians initially enter the arena to effect change, but not long after they begin to make a name for themselves, the requisite "call time" (aka calling everyone you know and begging for money) eventually makes them beholden to various interest groups. Money drives the election machine. As I continue to read about the democratic front runners, I am even more pleased (and often times suprised) with the straight forward, non-beltway insider manner in which Barack Obama runs his campaign. Here is more on the topic of campaign finance transparency, a topic that should really top every voters list of demands from a candidate (from the Washington Post):

"On this issue, Obama leads the pack -- I'd say PAC, but he (and Edwards) don't take their checks, either. He helped pass a far-reaching ethics and campaign finance bill in the Illinois state Senate and made the issue a priority on arriving in Washington. Much to the displeasure of his colleagues, Obama promoted an outside commission to handle Senate ethics complaints. He co-authored the lobbying reform bill awaiting President Bush's signature and pushed -- again to the dismay of some colleagues -- to include a provision requiring lawmakers to report the names of their lobbyist-bundlers.

"He has co-sponsored bills to overhaul the presidential public financing system and public financing of Senate campaigns. It's nice to hear Clinton talk about how "we've got to move toward public financing" -- Edwards backs it, too -- but I don't see her name on those measures.

"Obama readily agreed to identify his bundlers. Unlike Clinton and Edwards, he has released his income tax returns. Perhaps most important, Obama has pledged to take public financing for the general election if he is the Democratic nominee and his Republican opponent will do the same."

With his pledge, I am happy to say that I marked the box on my IRS form this year to donate money to publically finance federal campaigns.