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.
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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.

The No Spin Zone

I often find it alarming what news media outlets cover in their "investigative" journalism reports. Always striving for higher ratings and viewership, few actually fact check or demand quality out of their pieces. I found this piece outlining a series of egregious errors and cover-ups after one of Bill O'Reilly's uninformed outbursts. Of course, I don't enjoy O'Reilly and so I love to see him called to the carpet in such an indepth manner. But, I feel like the information outlined here really sheds light on some of the problems facing 24 hour news and the amount we rely on our reporters to be presenting the facts.

Playing Catch Up

So, despite my lack of postings, life has been rather eventful around out house. Here are some highlights I could have written about, but since so much time has passed, I will only provide a list.

1. My big sis, who likes to make it clear she is older than me in every way possible, visited and brought along a few Euro games (please visit her blog if you don't know what a Euro game is). Much to our suprise, we had several of our own hanging about in the closet waiting for someone who wanted to play games. My favorites, in order are: Carcassone, Settlers (which I played often on my mission, bought the game for the Deli Family on my way home, but then decided I couldn't part with it--I was young and selfish!), Basari, Medici, and I am committed to giving St. Petersburg more of a chance.

2. I wanted to post this picture for my friend Stewart who commented long ago about a bike he wanted to make for grocery shopping. This bike, and many like it, was spotted in Amsterdam. Most commonly with a kid or two playing contently in the box.


3. Despite the scandal that seems to plague the sport and keeps it difficult to really get your heart set on one athlete (Nothing has ever been proven against Jan Ullrich so I remain a loyal fan), the Tour de France made its appearance on the Champs Elysees on July 28th. We stood outside for 5 hours waiting for their 8 lap finish in Paris. Seeing the yellow jersey race in ahead of the peleton left no regrets. Next year we will take seats and provisions (I was smart enough to take along Harry Potter).




4. Harry Potter has a different cover in Europe. I never took a picture, so look it up online if you really care to see it.

5. We celebrated our one year anniversary of arriving in Paris last weekend. A bittersweet occassion. Sweet because we truly can call this place home and bitter because we only have a year left.

6. We celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary. And while to some it may seem unromantic, we used the last bit of time we had with a babysitter and treated ourselves to dinner (a famous steak and fries restaurant) and a movie (The Simpson's). It was the perfect evening with someone, who after four years, I still believe is the perfect one for me.

Salsa

(Did anyone catch the Seinfeld reference? Super bonus points for you!)

Nate and I threw our annual 24th of July party last Saturday and it was a triumphant success (at least in my book!). I had planned on serving--in addition to a wide array of pancake options--scrambled eggs with roasted asparagus and parmesan, but discovered that asparagus is only in season in Peru (hooray Country of Origin Labeling exists in the EU!!) and it now costs 6€ a bundle!! So I made some last minute adjustments, serving only scrambled eggs and put a small bowl of salsa next to it. Since the party was for Pioneer Day, people were asking a lot of questions about Utah in general. But then my big shock came, someone asked if salsa was a Utah-thing.

Now, I like to think of myself as quite informed and cultured, etc...but this threw me completely off. Salsa with scrambled eggs is a novelty? Not everyone does it? Can someone who was raised outside of Utah, and those within, please tell me if they grew up with, or have seen other people eat, scrambled eggs and salsa?

Velib: Another Reason to Love Paris

On Bastille day, the city of Paris launched a new public transportation system in the form of 10,000 bikes placed in hundreds of locations through out the central areas of the city. Everyone was stoked to try them out and while it is only two weeks into the new program, the excitement continues to increase. I found this article in the NYTimes regarding Velib and Parisian public transportation in general.

I Love Paris on a Bus, a Bike, a Train and in Anything but a Car
From the NYTimes, July 26, 2007

Now that Michael Moore has broken a taboo by holding up France as a model for national health care, maybe it’s safe to point out other things France seems to do right. Like how Paris is trying to manage traffic and auto pollution.

What Paris has done right is to make it awful to get around by car and awfully easy to get around by public transportation or by bike. Any tourist in a rent-a-car who’s circumnavigated the Arc de Triomphe most likely will never drive in Paris again. But there are plenty of Parisians who do it all the time — far too many, in fact. So Mayor Bertrand Delanoë, a Socialist, vowed in coming to office in 2001 to reduce car traffic by 40 percent by 2020.

He’s serious about it. I live near the Boulevard St. Michel, and two years ago the city laid down a granite divider between the bus-only lane and the cars, squeezing private cars from three lanes to two. Taxis and bicycles may use the bus lane.

At the same time, every bus stop was newly equipped with a screen that told you how long the wait was for the bus. During rush hour, when the cars stand still along Boul’ Mich, there’s nothing better than zooming past them in a bus.

Bus routes reach the most obscure corners of Paris. There’s also the Metro — and especially the great Line No. 1, which runs on tires under the Champs-Élysées and beyond. Then there’s a nifty new tramway that runs along the southern rim of the city and several suburban train lines that can be used for rapid transport within the city.

In short, public transportation will take you where you want to go, and you can use it all you want on an electronic card that can be paid by the week or by the month (about $70 these days). Taxis, of course, can also be summoned anywhere by phone.
The lesson for big-city mayors: If you’re going to squeeze the cars, first primp the public ride.

Mayor Delanoë’s latest front in the anti-car war is the bicycle. Last week, more than 10,000 stolid, gray-painted bicycles (no Tour de France speedsters) became available for rent at 750 self-service locations across Paris. The cost is modest, less than $1.50 for a one-day pass, about $7.50 for a week and about $43.50 for a year — and the bikes can be dropped off at any docking station. The number of bikes is supposed to double by the end of the year. Already in their first week, the bikes are all over central Paris, many carrying commuters — and, yes, some New Yorkers. (An outdoor advertising company paid for everything in return for exclusive use of city-owned billboards.)

Lesson for all big cities: This is an idea whose time has come.

Now, a word about cars. In American cities, it’s “big.”

Parisians overwhelmingly buy small cars. And it’s not because people are petite, but because fuel is drop-dead expensive. Gasoline costs more than twice as much in Paris as in New York.

But the price of diesel fuel is deliberately set far lower. That’s because diesel-powered cars produce about 30 percent less greenhouse gas pollution than equivalent gasoline-powered engines. So car-buyers in Paris get small, diesel cars not because the French are virtuous (a separate topic), but because it makes economic good sense.

Many of these small cars have ample room for full-size people and have no trouble maintaining (or seriously exceeding) the 130 kilometers-per-hour (about 80 m.p.h.) limit on the national highways and are as clean and almost as quiet as gasoline engines.

The lesson for the next U.S. president: raise the taxes on fuel. A lot.

Shakespeare & Co

When I was in college we had a special lesson on "creative dating" courtesy our Bishop and his wife. As ideas were prattled off one after another I continued to roll my eyes at the ridiculousness of it all: ice blocking, progressive dinners with a twist...and on...and on... Now don't get me wrong, these can all be well and good, but when that is always what one does it loses its inheirent creativity.

Being naturally outspoken and somewhat contrary, I raised my hand and sweetly said "These are all nice, but sometimes I would just like to be taken to Barnes & Nobel to leaf through books together for the evening." I received a round of applause, literally, from the men in the room and was asked on four dates that week alone--some were creative but not one took me to Barnes & Nobel.

Last night we had the luxury of a babysitter, a rare event since living here. We opted to spend the evening at Shakespeare & Co. A famous english language book store located on Paris' Left Bank. For three hours we wandered through the books stacked floor to ceiling, wall to wall, piled on the floor, strewn across tables, hidden in corners, and spilling out on to the street. While the rest of the world stayed up late to welcome in the new Harry Potter, we became reacquainted with Edith Wharton, Irene Nemerovsky, and others (no, we weren't protesting, we just didn't reserve our copy in time). We dug through books on cinema, street photography, Zola, and Flaubert. We learned who the real Butterball is and what Axel's Castle was, through we might not understand it. We climbed the stairs to the second floor where the shop owner keeps an extra bed in case a weary traveller needs a place to stay. We left just as the store was closing to grab a gyro in the Latin Quarter before lazily walking home along the banks of the Seine.

For me, as I had suggested in college, sifting through the books was the perfect night.

Vegetable Free Zone

It is official. In our house we watch a huge variety of media. But Veggie Tales are VERBOTEN! My mom accidentally picked up a copy for us. The following clip Iinfuriates and annoys me on so many levels, I can't be bothered to make a coherent argument about the right-wing ode to the SUV or the mockery of the upper-middle class from a cartoon that is meant to instill good values in children (last time I checked mockery based on socio-economic status was not an admirable quality). So here it is, in the very least you will just be annoyed by the bad lyrics and voices.

What a Girl Wants

Ruby has a few things she adores:
1. Her Harrod's kitty, a gift given to her from our friend Tom-- she never goes to bed without it.
2. Silver "widdy" shoes ( I think that is her way of saying pretty). Anais sent them to her for Easter and she demands they are put on as soon as she catches a glimpse of them peeping out from her closet.
3. Tap dancing numbers in the silver shoes, a la Happy Feet. She saw it once and has been busy at work mastering the choreography.
4. This probably should have been listed at number one, talking on the phone. She has been known to answer it when it rings and just starts babbling. At a recent softball game she wandered into the field busily chatting on a toy cell phone, looking like she was trying to find the best signal. You will notice in this picture she in fact is multi-tasking with two phones.

5. Purses and necklaces, she already has an eye for accessorizing. Quite the fashonista with her totes, cell phone and necklaces! I can honestly say that while I love it, she really picked up this all on her own.
6. When Papa comes home, she throws whatever she has in her hands and fights Barkley to get to him first.
7. Go Dog! Go. Her favorite book, she will search high and low until she finds it and she wants it read over and over again. "Dog. Big dog. Little dog. Big dogs and little dogs. Black and white dogs."
8. Saying, "Mmmmwah" when she gives kisses.
9. Saying "Yummy Yummy" while she is eating.
10. Her binky. There was an incident at the playground with binkies yesterday. Let's just say she will go to great lengths to get a hit when she needs one.

House Calls

When you need to visit the doctor there is a well established procedure we all follow. First you make the call and deal with an often horrendous and incapable secretary. Second, depending on how bad you feel, you try to convince the not-medically-trained nurse that you are in fact close to death. Once she places you on hold for ten minutes, she asks if you can make it there at a most inconvenient time, and of course, you are obligated. This routine becomes even more complicated when you add a child to the scenario. For some inexplainable reason, when I need to get out of the house with Ruby I require a minimum of 10 additional minutes to my routine to cover the check list: water, diapers, wipes, snacks, binky, books, change her diaper, shoes and socks, jacket in case it rains, sweater in case it gets cold (that is a product of our crazy weather however). Inevitably I find myself in the hallway, baby loaded in the stroller waiting for the elevator when I realize I didn't put the dog away or I forgot my ID, or I left my address book that has the door code so I can get into the place I am going. I promise myself regularly I will be more prepared and streamlined...but at some point I just need to embrace who I am.

Ruby was sick recently and I wanted to take her to the doctor, but when a baby is sick you want to keep her in when it is wet and cold outside and for her to get as much sleep as she can. The medical system here operates quite a bit like it does back home, with a few nice exceptions. First, if a nurse can't immediately assist you she gives you the doctors direct cell phone number, which he answers without fail. (Note: I use he simply because our pediatrician, is a he). The doctor will then tell you if there are any over the counter medications you should try or he will schedule an appointment.

In our case there was also a third option. We called SOS Medecin. An on call doctor service, that for a price LOWER than a office visit, comes straight to your home at a time best for you. Once they have made their analysis they call your doctor on his cell phone, tell him what they found for his records, inform him of prescriptions they are giving and seek his advice on further treatment recommendations. I don't think I will be going back to the doctor's office for anything other than a routine check up and vaccines in the near future.

PS: This post is dedicated to Daphne, for always believing in me and encouraging me when I was most discouraged (really she was hogging the computer and I couldn't post the entire time she was here visiting and now she is all mad that I didn't update! Sisters!)

The Magic Kingdom

We took Ruby to experience the marketing goldmine that is Disneyland, or rather we took my Mom to Disneyland and Ruby came along. The day was fantastic, and although I was a bit disappointed not to have met up with Cinderella or Alice (my childhood faves), Ruby had a blast on tried and true rides (It's a Small World and the Mad Hatter's Tea Cups), thought she was in heaven on Casey Jr.'s Circus Train, and slept through Pirates of the Caribbean.

The Boys of Pointe du Hoc

"We're here to mark that day in history when the Allied armies joined in battle to reclaim this continent to liberty. For four long years, much of Europe had been under a terrible shadow. Free nations had fallen, Jews cried out in the camps, millions cried out for liberation. Europe was enslaved, and the world prayed for its rescue. Here in Normandy the rescue began. Here the Allies stood and fought against tyranny in a giant undertaking unparalleled in human history.





"We stand on a lonely, windswept point on the northern shore of France. The air is soft, but 40 years ago at this moment, the air was dense with smoke and the cries of men, and the air was filled with the crack of rifle fire and the roar of cannon. At dawn, on the morning of the 6th of June, 1944, 225 Rangers jumped off the British landing craft and ran to the bottom of these cliffs. Their mission was one of the most difficult and daring of the invasion: to climb these sheer and desolate cliffs and take out the enemy guns. The Allies had been told that some of the mightiest of these guns were here and they would be trained on the beaches to stop the Allied advance.




"The Rangers looked up and saw the enemy soldiers--the edge of the cliffs shooting down at them with machine guns and throwing grenades. And the American Rangers began to climb. They shot rope ladders over the face of these cliffs and began to pull themselves up. When one Ranger fell, another would take his place. When one rope was cut, a Ranger would grab another and begin his climb again. They climbed, shot back, and held their footing. Soon, one by one, the Rangers pulled themselves over the top, and in seizing the firm land at the top of these cliffs, they began to seize back the continent of Europe. Two hundred and twenty-five came here. After two days of fighting, only 90 could still bear arms.

"Behind me is a memorial that symbolizes the Ranger daggers that were thrust into the top of these cliffs. And before me are the men who put them there.





"These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war." -President Ronald Reagan, June 6, 1984

Celebrity Sighting

If you aren't familiar with this celebrity, check out the video below (courtesy Dan):

Bugatti Veyron at top speed
Uploaded by Flabber

Happily Ever After

The Loire Valley, located in central France, boasts landscapes which provide the perfect backdrops for fairy tales. A casual drive through the winding roads leads one to castle after castle--one of the most famous of which is Chenonceau. King Henry IV gave this property to his mistress Diana de Portiers (rumour has it they got together when he was 12--queue the eww factor). After his death, his wife Catherine de Medici kicked out the mistress and took over the idyllic castle. Since that time the castle has been occupied or operated by women. During World War II the front door was located in Nazi occupied France, while the rear door opened to unoccupied France.

Mc LetDown

For three years I have watched Grey's Anatomy with a passion and fervor, which was probably a little undeserved. But, I loved it. I loved every moment and couldn't wait for the next week. It was a topic of peace in my otherwise stress oriented office, something we all could really gather around the water cooler to talk about. This season, I have faithfully downloaded episides via iTunes every Friday, setting aside Ruby's nap time as my alotted slot for this guilty pleasure.

Last night I watched the season 3 finale and I HATED every minute of it. HATED it! Does anyone else out there watch this show any more? I can't think of one story line from last night's episode that I am happy about, on any level. I have read online that the writers wanted to burn the house down. But they did more than that, they ripped out the soul. I am in mourning.

Can we hope for more from Private Practice?

Barack O-blogging

Lame title, I know. But check out this great article in the recent New Yorker on Mr. Obama. Warning: weekly Barack updates from this point forward.

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/05/07/070507fa_fact_macfarquhar

Shout Out

This is for our friends in Lima...who would of thought we would see this on along a highway in Holland!