Recycling Gates

Today is the last day for "The Gates." The awesome public art display by artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude has decorated New York's Central Park for the past 16 days, creating quite the topic of conversation. Central Park officials said an estimate on the total number of people the piece drew was not yet available, but it will be millions. More than 1 million saw it in the first four days alone. The $21 million cost for the exhibit was picked up by the artists, who say they haven't made any money from it. Profits from the sale of souvenirs, including posters, T-shirts and maps, are being donated to the city's parks and to Nurture New York's Nature Inc., a nonprofit that supports arts and the environment.

A huge dismantling project starts tomorrow, with 300 workers aiming to remove the 7,500 fixtures within a week. And now the saffron gates could soon be a part of your home - as a flowerpot or piece of gutter. Every part of the artwork, which brought massive international attention - and lots of tourists - to Central Park, is scheduled to be recycled. From Central Park, every single part of 'The Gates' will be taken to a warehouse in Queens. From there, they will be sent to recycling plants.

And then it's back to battling bureaucracy for the artists, who hope their next project, "Over the River," will cover sections of Colorado's Arkansas River with fabric.

- When I first saw this project previewed, I thought it was rather awful. However, after seeing many amazing photographs in various weather conditions, from aerial photos to close-up shots of a father carrying a child on his shoulders under one of the gates, the project grew on me a great deal. I suppose there is more to be said about the fact that the work of art created such a stir. While "The Gates" was unusual, I appreciate the fact that the public display pushed the envelope on what people consider to be art. The other projects of these two artists - created all over the world - have all rendered fascinating photographs as well as public controversy. At the very least, the public displays stimulate people to talk about art, and in my opinion, that is nothing but positive.

Barrister's Ball v. Cowboys

Kelly and I hit the mall today, and we both found dresses for next weekend's Barrister's Ball (i.e., Law Prom). Kelly's dress - a beautiful lavender sheer asymetrical dress - is absolutely stunning, no question about it. Mine is, at the very least, phenomenally better than the alternative. I no longer have to fear the sequined blueberry! I found a classy black, floor-length gown. The length is key - I can wear comfortable black shoes or no shoes at all on the dancefloor, and no one will likely know the difference. On the other hand, the dress also shows 1) my arms, which I think are rather unattractive, and 2) my Chi tattoo between my shoulder blades, which is either good or bad depending on one's opinion of tattoos. I got it when I was about 24 or so, and it is symbolic of "balance" which I am always in desperate need of. I like it just fine, but I am always a bit leary of backless dresses. Ah well, the dress is black, the tattoo is black - I suppose it matches anyway! As for the arms, a couple glasses of wine and I'll probably forget how much better they would look if I'd consider hitting the gym instead of the mall.

Last year's ball was a good time, although I decided the day of the event that I wanted to go. I had no date. I had no new dress. But I had a LOT of fun. Last year's shindig fell smack in the middle of my separating from my now-ex-husband. I was a bit of a basket case at the time, but my friends were really great about laying on the pressure to go anyway. They dealt with a potential trainwreck such as myself in the most appropriate of ways - we drank, we laughed, we ate, we drank, we gossiped about what other people were wearing, we drank, we danced, we drank, we laughed. I spent too much time outside by the downtown canal smoking cigarettes with a fellow law clerk (I will NOT be smoking this year!!). I almost fell into the canal after taking on a dare to dip in my toes, and I lost my lipstick. At the end of the night back in the hotel lobby, I found myself in farm-girl heaven amongst a bunch of hot cowboys - bullriding cowboys from the PBR (Professional Bull Riders), who were in town for the weekend. My mom is a HUGE fan (which is a great story for another time), so I wandered around in my formal dress looking completely out of place and got her an autograph or two, and then I called it a night. It was an interesting end to an impromptu evening, to say the least.

If only those beautiful cowboys could show up at the ball next weekend....

COLD

We're supposed to have decent weather this weekend. At the very least, it won't be as bad as the picture above, which is a shot from Lake Geneva, Switzerland in January.

Spring is just around the corner!

Hooray for teeth and sporks!

Well, my doc put me back together again today. I don't even care that it's only a temporary fix. I can now comfortably go out into the world and smile without scaring the bejeezus out of young children. Wooohooo!!

I just finished off a painkiller and a pint of KFC mashed potatoes. With a spork.

I love the spork.

Rock out with your tooth out!

I heard the following song this morning on the way in to class. It's one of my favorites, and given my current state of affairs, it's rather appropriate today! I've been getting caught up in work and class, but yesterday I had a pretty rough day. First of all, the dress I ordered for the big law prom next weekend arrived, and when I tried it on, I looked like the most heinous, old, mother-of-the-bride, big fat sequined blueberry. Seriously, folks - it was wretched. What idiot buys a formal dress online? Who does that? Me. I do that because I am an idiot who didn't want to take the time to go shopping, but apparently that is exactly what I'll be doing this weekend.

Second, and my most major crisis, is that I am currently walking around in my world with no front tooth. Unless you have ever been in this particular unenviable position, you cannot imagine how much it sucks (and hurts). It doesn't matter what you look like - take out the front tooth and you are hideous. Add in the fact that I've got a mouth-full of stitches all around where my tooth once was, and I'm extra pretty! I'm having some complications from my surgery last week, and my front tooth has been a casualty once again. Anyhow, I'm off to the doctor today to get at least a temporary fix. Until then, I refuse to open my mouth. I'm going to class this morning because I can't afford to miss any more, but I have a note that says "I can't talk." Nice, huh!

So now, here's the song of the day:

Have you ever had one of those days when nothin' goes right
Your wife starts bitchin' 'bout whatever it was she was bitchin' about last night.
So you escape into the bathroom just to sit there on your throne;
but after you finish your business, the toilet paper's gone.

Well it's a great day for me to whoop somebody's ass.
It's a bad day, so you'd better get off my back.
You might get cold-cocked if you cross my path.
'Cause it's a great day for me to whoop somebody's ass.

Well I was runnin' late for work, so I poured some coffee to go.
And just before I had a flat tire, I spilled it all over my clothes.
When the highway patrolman pulled up, I thought that help was on the way.
But when he was the tire tool in my hand, he shot me with pepper spray.

Well it's a great day for me to whoop somebody's ass.
It's a bad day, so you'd better get off my back.
You might get cold-cocked if you cross my path.
'Cause it's a great day for me to whoop somebody's ass.

When I finally made it to work, I was 15 minutes late.
I told my boss about the flat tire, but he fired me anyway.
So here I am in the parking lot just waitin' by his car man.
I'm gonna give him a goodbye present that he never will forget.

Well it's a great day for me to whoop somebody's ass.
It's a bad day, so you'd better get off my back.
You might get cold-cocked if you cross my path.
'Cause it's a great day for me to whoop somebody's ass."
- Paul Thorne from Bob & Tom's Cameltoe album

Well, all bitching aside, things could be much worse and my life is really pretty darn good. I'll get fixed up and back on track soon enough!

Bilingual blogging

I just found the most interesting thing, via Sitemeter. There is a complete translation of my entire blog in spanish here. Fascinating.

Saturday Night Fever dancefloor for sale

The multi-coloured dancefloor where a white-suited John Travolta strutted his stuff in Saturday Night Fever is to be auctioned.

The cult item of memorabilia from the 1977 movie has been saved from a doomed Brooklyn nightclub. Organizers of the auction are expecting bids of more than 80,000 dollars for the piece of Hollywood history. The 24-feet by 16-feet dancefloor, which came to symbolize the 70s disco craze, has more than 300 colored flashing lights under a Perspex surface.The club where the dance floor had been a fixture since the movie was made closed last week after being sold to a real estate investment company.

Bar owner Jay Rizzo who saved the floor told the New York Post: "It has literally been the heartbeat of this club." Saturday Night Fever earned Travolta an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of teenage Brooklyn paint-store clerk Tony Manero, who every Saturday night would take to the dancefloor.

The dance floor will be auctioned on April 1 with bids expected in a live sale and on eBay.

Main motivation for posting this: That picture! I love it! Story also posted here at Lawren's place.

The end of a love affair

So here's the deal with the quitting smoking:

I had lunch a couple of weeks ago with some friends. Someone at the next table over was smoking, and it was making me nuts. I turned to Kelly and said, "I cannot wait until I quit smoking so I can bitch about all the people who smoke."

See, I am a major hypocritical smoker. I hate smokers. I hate 2nd hand smoke, including my own. I hate smelly clothes, smelly hair, smelly breath, ashes, ash trays, cigarette butts. I hate paying almost four bucks a pack for a cancer-causing agent. I hate using Crest White-strips every other week so I don't have nasty teeth. I hate always trying to sit downwind from non-smokers to minimize the offense. I hate lying and saying I only smoke when I drink. I hate knowingly and intentionally causing my perfectly pink lungs to turn black. I hate knowing that every time I light a cigarette, someone who loves me silently (or not so silently) wishes I would quit.

But damn if I don't love the nicotine. I love the end-of-the-day glass of wine cigarette. I love the long drive in the car cigarette. I love the Starbucks or any other cup of coffee cigarette. I love the talking to a girlfriend on the phone cigarette. I love the friend smoking a cigarette so I'll have one too cigarette. I love the blackjack or euchre cigarette. I love the studying my ass off during finals cigarette. I love the ice-cold diet coke or beer cigarette. I love the "a girl with short hair sitting at a martini bar smoking a cigarette is sexy" compliment I got from an incredibly attractive man one night. I love the Bridget Jones' way of counting and justifying each day's "fags" based on level of drama in life. I really love the I have drama cigarette. That actually might be my favorite cigarette.

But I just can't justify it anymore, even to myself which is funny because I've been justifying it for nearly 15 years now. I'm an on-and-off smoker - I can go several days without a cigarette, or I can smoke a whole pack in one night out - so I never considered myself a real smoker. I quit completely in my early 20s for about 2 years, but one crappy day (yes, yes, the day I got dumped. Believe me - it's a reoccuring theme in my life.) I bought a pack of Marlboro lights, and one puff later I was a smoking again. Then I said I would quit when I was 30, but 30 came and went, and then 31, and now 32, and I'm still smoking. And then I said I would finally quit, for real this time, after the bar exam. Whatever. I'm always going to quit. It's just a matter of when and for how long.

Anyhow, it's been 10 whole days, nights included. With this recent surgery, it would be asinine for me to even think about putting a cigarette in my mouth, so I might as well give quitting a decent shot. I haven't had any alcholic bevvies either, which will likely be my greatest temptation, so I'm thinking I'll get some nicorette gum before I attempt any social outings.

Anyhow, smoking is like a crappy, destructive relationship that keeps talking me into getting back together again. I've had enough chutzpah to finally get rid of the crappy men in my life. Surely I can kick this habit, too.

It's my blog and I'll bitch if I want to

I am so freakin' busy this week. Unbelievably busy this week. It's insane. And it's Tuesday. Yesterday, I didn't use the bathroom for 13 hours simply because I didn't have time to think about it. I'm absolutely swamped at work, woefully behind in classes, and about to lose what little sanity I have left. Add to that the fact that I am on a diet AND I quit smoking 10 days ago, and you've got one frazzled chic.

I'm not complaining. Okay, yes, I am complaining. But alas, you know me - I'll always find something happy and sparkly in a day of gloom, like the fabulously detailed coroner's report I got with a new case yesterday. Absolutely tragic case, yes, but a riveting coroner's report makes the file so much more interesting.

The best thing I can say about this morning is that I had a green banana for breakfast (love the elusive green bananas) and, as I've mentioned before, the coffee at my office kicks ass.

And here's the happiest thought of all: At least I am not currently sitting for DAY 1 of the INDIANA BAR EXAMINATION. Personally, I'd rather be poking out my eyes with a cocktail sword than be sitting for the bar, so I better stop my whining. I've got six short months before I take the horrid beast myself.

Anyhow, best of luck and wishes to Chuck and Kyleen! I am sure they will both pass with flying colors!

WWGD

I had lunch today with my grandparents and parents. My grandparents are wonderful, sweet people who have been married for 60 years. I adore them.

Over lunch, my mother asked us what one question we would ask God if given the opportunity. She has been assigned this task in her group bible study at church, and she's having some trouble coming up with just one question. So, in all her motherly wisdom, she posed the question to us, which may or may not have been a good idea. My dad didn't say much - he was in the middle of his entree and besides that, he is a very private man and not quick to openly share such deep thoughts. My grandfather, a very Godly man, had several poignant and religious-based questions he would ask. At the age of 80, he is still so brilliant. I had already shared my ideas with my mom when we discussed this the night before, but I threw out a couple of "serious" answers, i.e. not the wacky questions I'd really like some answers to. There are many things I would like to ask God, but given the opportunity to only ask one question, I'd probably try to choose something of some importance.

Then, my quiet and demure grandmother piped up. "If I could ask God one question, I would ask him why he created sex."

WHAT?! I almost choked on my food! Is it not obvious why God created sex?! Grandma did have an interesting take on her question, though. She said that she would want to know why God created something that would bring about so much sin. Well, good point. However, she seems to be looking at it from a "glass half empty" perspective. Apparently, my grandmother has decided that sex is just more trouble than its worth.

A sure sign of a generation gap if I've ever heard one.

McMoose

In case you haven't noticed, I like pictures of animals doing strange things. I'm just sharin'.

Simple luxuries

One of my most favorite things is having freshly washed sheets on my bed. There's nothing else like a good set of crisp, clean linens.

Court groupie

I returned, for the most part, to my normal life yesterday - Indy, class, general chaos - which meant the end of my lazy recovery in K-town. More importantly, it was the end of Court TV, and I am already going through live trial withdrawal. I don't have cable TV in Indy, and even if I did, I am rarely home during daytime hours to watch the live trial coverage. The only viable solution would be to invest in cable and TiVo, which I seriously contemplated on my way home today. However, that would result in taping hours of video and my staying up hours at night analyzing the trial right along with the talking legal heads. There I would be, all by myself, talking legalese to my dog, at 2am. I decided this probably was not a practical solution for me.

I definitely got hooked this week on the live coverage of the two separate teenagers on trial for murdering their family members. I am fascinated, as I always am, by watching trial lawyers do their thing in court. For me, witnessing courtroom proceedings rarely gets boring, even when there is nothing dramatic to witness. There's an art to the delivery - of opening statements, direct and cross examinations, the argument for favorable rulings, closing arguments, winning your case. Elements of trial practice can be taught, but to watch seasoned lawyers perfecting their craft - that is my favorite way to learn. You can learn from the good, and you can learn even more from the bad.

I got a bit of actual courtroom experience during a six-month internship at a county prosecutor's office last year. After I'd been there a couple of weeks, I was conducting infraction trials on Thursday afternoons, which rarely lasted more than 30 minutes each and rarely were contested with opposing counsel. They were infractions - traffic violations, barking dogs, etc. Still, I loved walking into the courtroom and sitting at the prosecutor's table. I loved introducing driving records into evidence for the judge. I loved questioning the ticketing officers on the stand. Tickets or felonies or civil suits or appeals, I love being in court. I get that nervous energy that heightens my senses and keeps me on my toes. Being in a courtroom seems to sharpen my mind. I wonder if it will ever get routine for me once I'm an attorney, and I think probably not.

Anyhow, I'm going to miss my Court TV.

It's back!

I admit it freely - I am a total Survivor junkie. In the past 5 seasons, it is the only thing that automatically makes me put down the law books and watch television every Thursday night, at least for the hour.

So the new season started last night, and I am thinking that the cast might actually be pretty interesting this time. The last couple of seasons, with the exception of the All-Stars, have not been all that dynamic. The players just weren't as fascinating as they had been in the past. This season seems more promising, even after the first episode, although I usually am optimistic at the beginning. At any rate, even if the players turn out to be dull, uninteresting, typical reality TV cast members, the location - Palau - is absolutely breathtaking. I'll keep watching just for the scenery.

A few thoughts from episode one:
* Willard is my favorite so far, and not just because he's an old attorney. I also like the dolphin trainer, Ian.
* I'm not surprised Jolanda got the boot. She deserved it, with the bossy attitude that basically lost the challenge for her team. I kind of like that leadership style, but I didn't think it would go over very well with the younger members of her tribe.
* The guy with the really awful southern accent - James - is annoying as hell. And I usually find southern accents charming.
* The younger tribe - Ulong - is going to have problems. They couldn't even paddle their canoe in the right direction! Of course, Jolanda must not have known how to paddle it, either; otherwise, I'm sure she would have been right up there telling everyone how to do it.
* Tom, the NYC firefighter was kicking everyone's ass at the challenege. Not surprisingly, he is currently leading the popularity polls.
* Fire, folks, is all you really need at the beginning. You don't have to be all that bright to realize that fire is the most important thing to acquire as soon as possible.
* Jeff was much more pointed with his criticisms at tribal council than I've noticed in the past. I hope he keeps them on edge like that all season.
* Poor Wanda. She couldn've been so interesting.
* Lex's little sister - not as fun or smart as Lex himself. And I just don't get that whole stretching of the earlobes. I'm just sayin'.

Million Dollar Baby

Well, I look like I got the crap beat out of me, but I am on the road to recovery. This particular surgery consisted of a reconstructive gum graph to repair gum tissue damaged as a result of two surgeries I had last summer. Basically, I had a section of gum tissue grafted from the roof of my mouth to my upper gum line above my front teeth. Last summer, I had a portion of my upper jaw replaced with a titanium implant, but it pretty much mangled my gumline. The implant was placed as a result of weakened bone structure and a bone infection, which was a long-term result of getting hit in the face with a creekbed rock while crawdaddin' (see previous post) when I was a kid, which shattered my upper jaw and knocked out a couple of teeth. More information than you probably wanted or needed, I'm sure. At any rate, this surgery is (hopefully) the last one, and I'm almost to the end of a really long road of surgeries since the accident, which makes me very, very happy!

I've been watching Court TV like a fiend the past two days when I'm not sleeping, and I got to see the closing arguments in the Chris Pittman trial - the kid that killed his grandparents and was using the Zoloft defense (which I personally thought was a load of crap). The prosecutor gave an impressive closing argument, and the jury returned guilty verdicts. Today, I've been following testimony in another trial of a teen accused of killing both of her parents, supposedly because her parents disapproved of her boyfriend. The prosecution's case appears to be strong so far. Both cases make me sad - how is it that teenagers can find something within themselves to rationalize and justify the murder of their parents or grandparents? On the other hand, it also makes me sad that young teens are being tried as adults for their crimes. In the Pittman case, he was 12 when he committed the murders. Twelve years old! In the other case, the girl was sixteen at the time of the crime. There is so much to be said on this topic - it is definitely another soapbox of mine - but I don't feel coherent enough at the moment to articulate my opinions very well, and I don't have any solutions to offer. Juvenile crime is simply tragic any way you look at it. Anyway, Court TV sure beats out other daytime TV, such as yesterday's Maury Povich - "My Brother's My Baby's Daddy." Societal issues boggle my mind if I let myself think to much about them, so I just took another Vicodin and went back to sleep.

I'm hoping to be back to class tomorrow, although I still look pretty rotten. I'm trying to get past the vanity issue so I don't get any more behind in my classes. I keep reminding myself that law students are not so concerned with what you look like, but rather with what you say. They probably won't even notice my freakish face.

Goin' Crawdaddin'

When I was a kid, we used to hunt for crawdads in the creek down the road. This was major summertime fun for 4 little girls who were more tomboys at that age than anything else. The goal of the crawdad hunt was to wade out into the creek under the bridge and find the biggest crawdads (some grew to 4 or 5 inches long), although we'd catch the smaller ones, too. Once we saw one worthy of a catch, we would sneak up on it with two fingers and try to catch it right behind the pinchers. They were hard as hell to get, and if you missed you were likely to get pinched.

I don't know what the goal of this game was. We were kids - I don't think there was much of a goal. Sometimes we would catch a few in a bucket and haul them back up the road to Shelly's driveway where we would race the little suckers down a painted racetrack. Most of the time, we just rejoiced in the catching and then threw them back in the creek. I suppose it sounds silly, but we were 10 years old. To us, sitting on the creekbed in jean shorts with our toes in the water looking across the rocks for creepy crawdads, waiting for the perfect one, was great fun.

Every time I try to tell someone else about going crawdaddin' as kids, they don't get it. I can't believe that we were the only kids doing this on hot Indiana summer days. Surely someone else out there has gone crawdaddin' before??

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!

I have a hot date scheduled with an oral surgeon today. WOOHOO!!!

I'll be out of commission for a couple of days and will resume blogging once I've emerged from my drug-induced fog. Until then - hope y'all find yourselves some very fun valentines!

The Friday Five - better late than never, right?

Today's Friday Five taken from here:

1) Would you rather live in a world with or without technology such as computers, cars, airplanes, bombs? There's certainly something to be said for the "Little House on the Prairie" days, but I'm going to stick with technology anyway. I could probably do without the computers, cars, airplanes and bombs, but I don't think I could live without my phone.

2) If you had to live without either heating in your house or air conditioning, which one would you keep? Definitely heat. I hate being cold.

3) If you had to own five dogs, what kind would you get? Yorkie, yorkie, yorkie, mutt, and a Burmese Mountain Dog.

4) If the world had a front porch, what would you do on it? I would furnish it with great porch furniture, some pots of flowers, a big cooler, and a grill. And I would invite the world to join me for a beer and some neighborly world peace.

5) Would you rather live in a neighborhood where you know all of your neighbors by name, or where everyone sticks to their own business? Definitely where I know all my neighbors. They're likely to be nosy anyway - I might as well know who's looking in my windows.

Hey baby!

What I read via e-mail:
A baby-hippopotamus that survived the tsumani waves on the Kenyan coast has formed a strong bond with a giant male century-old tortoise, in an animal facility in the port city of Mombasa.

The truth according to Snopes:
The above-quoted account, which has been circulated widely on the Internet, is but one of the many news articles about this unusual pair. Bereaved by the forces of nature and discovered by wildlife rangers near certain death in the Indian Ocean off Malindi, the one-year-old male hippo calf dubbed Owen was on 27 December 2004 placed in Haller Park, a wildlife sanctuary in the coastal city of Mombassa, Kenya.

As soon as he was placed in his enclosure, the orphaned youngster immediately ran to the tortoise also housed in that space. The 100 year-old tortoise named Mzee (Swahili for "old man") was not immediately taken with the brash newcomer — he turned and hissed, forcing the hippo to back away. Yet within days, the pair had forged a friendship, and now eat and sleep together. Owen has even been seen to lick the tortoise, whom he regards as his new mother.

Some news accounts (including the one being sped from inbox to inbox) assert the little orphan was swept into the sea by the tsunami that devastated numerous coastal countries in the Indian Ocean on 26 December 2004, yet wildlife officials were alerted to the imperiled hippo before Christmas, when hoteliers in Malindi spotted the little fellow, in the company of a number of adults of his kind, floundering in the surf off the coast. By the time wildlife officials arrived, Owen was alone, having become separated from his herd. Had he not been rescued, the ocean's waters would have done in the youngster because long immersion in salt water would have led to fatal dehydration.

It is hoped that Owen will eventually mature into a romantic companion for a lonely female hippo named Cleo who is also housed at this wildlife park.

I am a teenager trapped in an adult body

Last night I went with some friends to watch the Pacers game. About halfway through, I found myself in a stall of the ladies restroom calling my mother and trying to plot a super-top-secret escape from the restaurant. Why?

Because I saw my old college boyfriend, the absolute love of my life, who dumped me the day before I graduated and single-handedly screwed up the next 2 years of my life. I hadn't seen him in about 8 years, and I sure as hell didn't want to see him last night. There he sat, drinking a beer with friends, looking much better than I really wanted him to.

Here's what I find interesting about this encounter: I am now a relatively normal, well-adjusted adult. Relatively. And I am a happy, happy person. I am in my 30s, for God's sake! But as soon as I saw him, I instantly turned into some kind of completely insecure, sick-to-my-stomach, anxiety-ridden, emotional teenage trainwreck. I completely freaked out. Thus, the trip to the bathroom and phone call to Mom.

And all morning, I've been asking myself - what is up with THAT?

Well, whatever. Maybe I'm not so well-adjusted after all. Anyhow, I did eventually leave the ladies room. And I managed to do so without walking past him and pouring beer on his head. At least I can be proud of that small victory.

Ash Wednesday confusion

I just saw a lady with a black smudge on her forehead. We got on the elevator together. She smiled at me, and I am sure I gave her a confused look. I was contemplating telling her about the smudge, not unlike I would contemplate whether or not and how to tell a strange man in the elevator that his fly was unzipped, when I realized it's Ash Wednesday.

Geesh. I may not be Catholic, but I still feel like a jackass. What if I had actually reached up to wipe it off??

Anyhow, for a funny Ash Wednesday picture, go here.

Another fall from Grace

Look who is in trouble again - W.R. Grace, the global chemical company accused of contaminating drinking water in Woburn, Massachusettes, causing a leukemia cluster, various other illnesses, and deaths in the early 80s. The case against W.R. Grace and other defendants led to the book and movie, A Civil Action. The book and corresponding supplements were used during my 1L Civil Procedure class to illustrate elements of litigation. The story impacted me far beyond learning civil procedure, sparking my interest in civil litigation and tort actions.

According to a federal indictment unsealed Monday, W.R. Grace and Co. and seven high-ranking employees knew a Montana mine was releasing cancer-causing asbestos into the air and tried to hide the danger to workers and townspeople in Libby, Montana. More than 1,200 people became ill, and some of them died, prosecutors said.

Highlights, or lowlights, include:
* Top Grace executives and managers kept secret numerous studies spelling out the risk the cancer-causing asbestos posed to its customers, employees and Libby residents.
* Grace and Alan Stringer, former manager of the now-closed mine, are accused of trying to obstruct efforts by the Environmental Protection Agency to investigate the extent of the asbestos contamination beginning in 1999, when a study by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer linked asbestos from the mine to nearly 200 deaths and hundreds of illnesses.
* The EPA, which has never disputed the findings of the study, has since declared the area a Superfund site and has spent more than $55 million on cleanup so far.
* The company could face a fine of up to $280 million, twice the amount of after-tax profits the government alleges W.R. Grace made from the Libby mine.
* Several Grace officials have been indicted and face lengthy prison sentences.
* Of interesting note: Grace's chief legal counsel has also been indicted.

I wish I could say that I am shocked and appalled by this story. Grace should have been on notice, they should have learned something of the certain environmental and health consequences of their careless (at the very least) business practices after Woburn, even as the Woburn contamination was of a completely different nature than this one in Libby. Grace should have taken necessary measures to make sure their business was conducted in such a way that it did not kill people.

But I am not shocked. I am furious that this happened yet again with this particular company at the helm. Grace's history of conduct can only be described as outrageous and offensive. It appears that Grace officials were well aware of the consequences of their actions, just as too many profit-driven corporations are as they recklessly and intentionally destroy the environment and destroy lives for the almighty dollar.

I really hope they nail the bastards to the wall this time.

Hey y'all! Watch this!

There's just too much going on in this story. In a nutshell, a Welsh rugby fan cut off his own testicles in celebration of a Wales win over England in a match. Not surprisingly, there was drinking involved. There were fellow insane rugby fans involved. There was a bet involved. And of course, there was some prior history of mental illness involved.

In other oddball news of the day, a Slovak man trapped in his car under an avalanche freed himself by drinking 60 bottles of beer and urinating on the snow to melt it. Story here, link sent our way compliments of Chuck.

Again, I'm just sharing the disturbing stuff that comes across my proverbial desk.

Fooled again!

Well, apparently the alien fish photo I posted yesterday and attributed to the tsunami wasn't true after all. According to Snopes.com, the images themselves are genuine pictures but have nothing to do with the Indian Ocean tsunami. They date from mid-2003 and were taken as part of the NORFANZ voyage, a joint Austrailian-New Zealand research expedition conducted in May-June 2003 to explore deep sea habitats and biodiversity in the Tasman Sea. The photographs can be viewed here on Australia's National Oceans Office web site.

Tsunami-related or not, some of these creatures are simply amazing. And creepy.

Other untruths from the tsunami include the picture of the wave about to break over the city skyline and a satellite photo attributed to the tsunami (it was really a hurricane off the coast of Florida). Snopes.com might be my favorite new website.

Be careful what you wish for!

Okay, my shameless self-promotion of my birthday paid off in a pretty big way this past weekend. I had enough fun this year to make up for staying home last year and staying home next year on the 5th annual celebration of my 29th if I so choose (doubtful, I know, but it could happen). I am, however, completely exhausted from an overload of fun. I'm not even going to complain about getting old, but I will say that I need more than 6 hours of sleep in a 48-hour span of time these days.

Friday night I went to dinner with a couple of girlfriends. Originally, we really thought it would be a relatively early night since we were just going to dinner. But that plan kind of flew out the window after the first bottle of wine and we hadn't even left my house yet. A few thoughts from Friday night:
* Every once in awhile, there will be a random guy in a parking lot with a flashlight to come to the rescue when you accidentally dump your entire brand new PINK purse (birthday gift compliments of Melanie and AJ) when getting out of the car.
* Bang-bang shrimp at Bonefish Grille is fabulous. And very fun to say.
* After-dinner coffee drinks apparently make me want to call people and insist on going to Joe's Bar & Grill on 96th Street.
* Those Hypnotiq glow-sticks are cool beyond their intended use in martinis.
* Meeting up with friends who happen to be police officers can be fun. It can also be trouble when they are used to working the night shift and not going to bed until the crack of dawn. Even worse when they like to drink.
* Shots are a really bad idea. Really. Bad. Idea.
* I kept AJ up all night before she had to catch a flight for a business trip early Saturday morning. She wasn't mad. She totally rocks.

So, suffice it to say, I was a running ragged Saturday but had little time to rest. I had plans to meet my parents for an early lunch and then drive up to Muncie to commence birthday celebrating all over again with Kelly P. and Kelly, and later on with Kelly P.'s fun boss, Doug. I headed up to Muncie in the afternoon, pretending to not be reaping the punishment from those shots, not tired, and totally cheerful in an attempt to avoid being lectured by the Kellies. It was to no avail - they both lectured me for not saving up my fun for Saturday night. I assured them repeatedly that I would be fine. I would be more than fine. I was FUN. And so we were. A few more thoughts from Saturday night:
* I don't think I have ever laughed so much or so hard in my entire life. I seriously almost wet my pants more than once. According to one of the Kellies, that would have been just fine because it was fun, "fun" being the buzzword of the night.
* Muncie Mardi Gras is a pretty good time, and you don't have to show anything to get beads.
* I still have remnants of glitter in my hair. That stuff doesn't wash out easily, does it?
* Doug rocks for many reasons, but one being that his firm picked up our dinner tab and he acted as our personal chauffeur. He is fabulous. I adore him.
* Reading the directions to your new digital camera would probably be useful unless you prefer the speed mode.
* Wearing stupid shoes on purpose forfeits the right to bitch (too much) about them.
* How does someone lose her purse behind a couch at a bar??
* Spilling French martinis all over the front of yourself apparently causes a seriously sticky mess.
* Parrothead martinis come in more than one color, but the green ones are sooooo good.
* Finding $20 on the ground makes some people giddy for hours.
* Kelly has the greatest stories, the most fun secrets, and knows how to buy perfect birthday presents.
* The night wasn't over until we all fell down.
* We really could have made it to Sunday morning mass if we had tried hard enough. I should have put money on that bet.

Yep, I had lots of fun. Life is good!

Tsunami monsters

A friend of mine sent me an e-mail with about 20 pictures of scary deep sea creatures that washed up with the tsunami in south Asia. This one caught my eye because it looks like it must have been the inspiration for the creature from the movie, Alien. Just thought I'd share...

When I was a little girl, I wasn't the most graceful kid. Besides, that I was far from tall or willowy. I was hardly cut out for ballet. And yet, I wanted to take ballet lessons and I wanted to be a dancer when I grew up. My mom, recognizing that putting me in ballet would absolutely set me up for little girl heartbreak when I couldn't possibly do any of the moves that the other girls could, steered me towards other lessons geared toward my natural abilities - music, horseback riding, sports. My mom told me that I could do and be anything I wanted to, but being a ballerina was one of those things that I could do in Heaven. That satisfied me just fine at the age of 6. As I got older, I always remembered that comment and thought it was the sweetest way to explain to a clumsy little girl that ballet would not be her forte in this lifetime.

My mom has always been the most amazing person in my life. She used to write poems and put them in my lunch box, and she wrote me sticker letters all the way through college and beyond. She is brilliant and strong and creative and the most kind person you could ever meet. She has influenced me more than anyone else, and I am absolutely everything I am today because of her. She is my greatest role model and my very best friend.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

How to hold a reservation...

According to a recent study out regarding Great Britain's hospitality industry, London needs to improve their customer service in hotels, restaurants and pubs. In part, this article says:

In a bid to boost flagging service standards, London is funding courses starting this month that aim to improve hospitality with a $6.4 million four-year program. Participants in the scheme will learn how to improve everything from champagne pouring to meat carving, spoken English to cigar selection. The Economist magazine has described the new skills as “American-style” service standards.

I found this interesting for a couple of reasons. Having spent a brief period of time in London doing graduate work several years ago, I don't particularly remember the city lacking in hospitality. Aside from that, however, England is a different country! Their customs are different. Their social mores are different. Their personalities are different. It isn't surprising that their idea of hospitality would be different. I thought the bit of aloofness was nothing more than part of the English charm.

I also doubt that the Brits appreciate being told that their manners within the hospitality industry are sub-standard to the American ways. On one hand, maybe they are in some respects. On the other, maybe Americans are simply more demanding with unrealistic expectations of every waiter, concierge, hotel maid, or bartender, insisting that they cater perfectly to the "me! me! me!" mentality.

The Friday Five Birthday Edition

The Friday Five
In honor of her birthday tomorrow, the TOP FIVE things I like about the fabulous Kelly P.:

1. She has lots of talent beyond singing and dancing and freakish Broadway trivia knowledge, including a tendency to fall down freqently or run into things with her car, which shouldn't be funny but always makes me laugh hysterically.

2. She doesn't mind that I have a bit of a crush on her husband and talk about it openly. I *heart* him. A lot.

3. She inspires me to be more diligent and more serious, less reckless and less chaotic. I inspire her to be less intense and less grown-up, more spontaneous and more crazy. We found a very fun middle ground in our friendship.

4. She shares gossip, bottles of wine, wedding presents, dressing rooms, outlines & notes, trips to the K&T Bed & Breakfast, grumpy pants and happy pants and various other items of clothing, junior high humor, road trips with special road trip CDs, triumphs and tragedies of being called on in class, Jimmy Buffett tickets, and martinis at MoTinis with me.

5. She is my fan and my confidant and my fun sidekick. She is a girlfriend of the best kind.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SUNSHINE!

Thursday horoscope

Today you might spend some time alone, Amanda, perhaps at home. You could spend some time struggling with a computer or other vital piece of equipment, and this might prove frustrating. You should be able to put it right and get back to work, but you could well be so frustrated that it's difficult to get back into working mode. It might help to do something else for a while, and then get back to what you were doing.

Well, at the risk of getting another touchy-feely happy drawbridge castle reading, I stuck with the same horoscope source today because shopping around the internet for a horoscope that suits your purpose is almost as ridiculous as believing this stuff in the first place. What I did find out in my horoscope research is that I am feeling both aloof and friendly, I am romantic and yet distant, I'm in love, I'm not in love, I should be in love, I will be in love, I won't be in love because I am aloof, I am good with money, I suck at finances, my career is on track, my career will soon be on track, I need to change careers, I should go out, I should stay home, I should go out and then go home.... You get the picture.

Well, this horoscope is a bit more relevant, although it is not a computer causing my frustrations today.

State of the Union, silently

I am desperately trying to get an obscene amount of reading done tonight (who says you can blow off the last semester?!), so I'm not listening to the State of the Union address. I can imagine well enough what the speech will primarily consist of, and I will catch the highlights and get a bigger kick out of the talking heads battling it out tomorrow.

At any rate, the speech is on my television, only muted. I couldn't help but make a couple of visual observations as I sit here with my socks hanging off the ends of my feet. President Bush is looking rather relaxed and less intense than usual. Could it be a new self-tanner? Could it be another extended vacation? Could it be Botox? Could it be that finally someone has written a speech with no words over 3 syllables?

And that VP of ours, Dick Cheney - he's sporting the "I am trying really hard to look like I am actively listening and not bored out of my head" look tonight. I have perfected my own version of this look, and I recognized it immediately.

That's all I've got.

Wednesday's horoscope

Things are definitely going your way today, Amanda. Proceed through the day with confidence, for it is one of those times when it just seems easier to be yourself. You shouldn't have to push too hard for what you want. A small nudge is all you need to open the castle gates. The drawbridge will come down to allow you safe passage over the moat, and all you'll have to do is smile and walk across.

I'm definitely shopping for a new horoscope source for tomorrow. Really. This touchy-feeling drawbridge happy castle crap is making it rather difficult for me to consider the possibility that there's something to astrology!

Birthday is 4 days away, and I am just grasping at straws at this point, aren't I? Maybe tomorrow I'll make up my very own horoscope.

Six more weeks of winter...

Pennsylvania’s famous Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow.

Phil's looking a bit annoyed this morning.

Coffee for thought

What I just read on the side of my Starbucks cup is infinitely more interesting than what I am supposed to be reading at the present moment:

"We must insist on listening to the voices of a true, honest, complicated past, unafraid of controversy or tragedy, but equally drawn to those stories and moments that suggest an abiding faith in the human spirit, and particularly the unique role this extraordinary and often dysfunctional Republic seems to have in the positive progress of mankind." - Ken Burns, documentary filmaker best known for The Civil War, Baseball and Jazz.

Profound and thought-provoking, I think, especially regarding the "unique role" and in what capacity that role furthers the "positive progress of mankind."

I love Ken Burns' work.

Anime us!!

Kelly has posted the most fun anime pics over on her blog! They are amazingly accurate portrayals of Kelly, Kelly P., Heidi, and myself. Scroll down a bit to see us!

Random thoughts in no particular order

1. I've put a new spin on turning 32. It's really just the 4th annual celebration of my 29th birthday.

2. The place that I go to get coffee when the line at Starbucks is long enough to make me excessively late finally pulled the pumpkin spice cappuccino. I loved the stuff, but this isn't such a bad thing seeing how the pumpkin spice was loaded. I can now return to my guilt-free venti fat-free sugar-free vanilla latte extra hot.

3. Am I the only one that gets completely creeped out by the new show Medium? I am a huge fan of crime shows, homicide shows (especially the documentary-style ones when they show the murder scenes and autopsy photos. Sick, I know), and all things Law & Order and CSI. However, ghosts and spirits completely scare me. I've watched Medium twice, and it seems to be a really decent show with a decent script. But when I find myself diverting my eyes and going to bed scared of the dark, I think I probably should stick with the ever-present (and almost as scary, just in a different way) reality TV alternative. And yes, The Sixth Sense scared the crap out of me.

4. On that same note, is it just me or are there lots of scary movies out right now? I saw previews for Boogeyman, which looks really horribly nightmare-inducing frightening; Hide and Seek, which looks almost as creepy; Constantine, which is double creepy because it stars Keanu Reeves; and Alone in the Dark, some scary video game thing. I hate scary movies, and I don't like the creepy previews, either. I know I'm a chicken-shit, but I don't like to be scared. I hate haunted houses, cellars, things under my bed, cemeteries at night, ouija boards, and sometimes I sleep with a knife. Why in the world would I want to send myself into a full-blown hyperventilating panic attack by watching a scary movie? I'm telling you, I wouldn't.

5. My dog seriously moped around the house for 24 hours after we got back from my parents' place. I think he gets that let-down feeling like after returning from vacation and realizing that your life is really quite boring.

6. Rude behavior: stopping your car and rolling down your window to yell at a traffic cop for preventing you from going forward after you almost hit him because you weren't paying attention.

7. Good behavior: honking your horn at the nasty lady and then rolling down your own window and telling the traffic cop that she's an idiot and to have a nice day.

Tuesday horoscope - a load of crap

Things may be moving at a bit of a slower pace than you would like it to, Amanda, and you may find that people aren't exactly communicating with you very well. Realize that you may be feeling a strong pull to your emotional side and that your brain may be temporarily turned off for a bit. This is ok! Indulge your sensitive emotional side and give your brain a break.

If yesterday's horoscope was a bit off, this one is completely off the charts. I would actually like it if things moved at a slower pace, and nearly everyone in my life communicates with me quite well. Too well, in fact. Let's get some passive-aggressive non-communicators around here, please! Furthermore, I am hardly feeling a pull to my emotional side, and I only wish I could turn my brain off for a bit. I have no desire to indulge my sensitive emotional side as that usually leads to an extreme over-indulgence in alcoholic beverages, and I can't possibly give my brain a break for fear that I will get fired or have to take another "U" in torts Friday morning.

I gotta get myself a better horoscope source.

Boobs and words of wisdom

Chuck sent me an e-mail that said, "Why do these quotes remind me of things you might say?" and he attached this link - quotes by Dolly Parton. There's a story between Chuck and Dolly, and I am amused that her quotes remind him of me (could it be the farm, the twang, the boobs, the occasional trampy look, the affection for men in cowboy boots??)

A few of my favorites:

I hope people realize that there is a brain underneath the hair and a heart underneath the boobs.

If you talk bad about country music, it's like saying bad things about my momma. Them's fightin' words.

Leave something good in every day.

My weaknesses have always been food and men - in that order.

The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.

Yeah I flirt, I'm not blind and I'm not dead!

You'll never do a whole lot unless you're brave enough to try.

I look just like the girls next door... if you happen to live next door to an amusement park.