The Paper Moon

Hi.

2010-02-12T23:52:00.000-05:00

This dusty ol' thing hasn't seen the light of day in a while... and laying here in my bed, scanning through our several conversations, I thought I would just say "hi."

No more posts. The end.

2007-05-20T17:45:00.001-04:00

This is going to be my last post for a while. Not that there are a ton of people that visit this blog (cause there aren't). But I'm so focused on music right now. I just don't do this kind of thing anymore. When I have free time I'm @ home practicing, listening to music, or trying to learn more about it. (That is of course if I'm not chilling with friends or riding my bike). I know that it sounds like something I should have been doing all along.

And I was. I've been practicing clarinet since I was twelve. But...recently I got this burst of inspiration and a strong need to put all of myself into art. And right now I'm exploring every single angle of music I can. I'm going to more concerts than I can keep track of. I'm constantly discovering new things in music. Right now is such an exciting time. Unfortunately, I just don't feel the need to share it in this blog any longer. This blog has taken some hard bouts of neglect from its authors in the past. Currently neither author is posting on it very much. I've lost interest in doing this. So I'm not shutting down this blog just yet. But I don't plan on posting any further for a long time. Sorry Gwenn! I love you and I'll still check out your blog. But I think it's hasta la vista el blog for a while if not forever.

Been a while...

2007-05-05T20:55:00.000-04:00

So things have been busy and sometimes I forget why I even started a blog. I was so into it...I don't know what happened. Lately I've had one thing after another. This weekend is the first break I've had from anything. Everyday, even weekends, I've been preparing for recitals, concerts, auditions, competitions, boards, rehearsals, on and so forth. I also had weekend classes and tons of other commitments. It happens. I loved it and hated it.

I guess the only way I could cope with all the tremendous demands I had to meet was to isolate myself, practice as much as I could, devour reeds like four year old with a Chocolate bunny three days before Easter (I used to dig in my grandmother's pantry before big holidays), and exercise A LOT.

Oh Vlady

2007-04-12T15:38:00.000-04:00

I LOVE Vladimir Ashkenazy's shirt. In fact, I want it. I want to know where he got that kickass shirt. I love Sibelius and that shirt is just SO COOL. Have I mention yet how much I like this shirt?

This kid is so lucky because:

2007-04-02T20:15:00.000-04:00

When I was his age (5 yrs old) I didn't even know what a clarinet was. And to be honest, I didn't even know what one looked like till I was 11. Anyway, I think it's great that youngsters are being exposed to music.

home...

2007-03-28T20:55:00.000-04:00

Spring Break was great! It was everything I wanted it to be and more. I spent a majority of my time either taking long walks for miles and miles outdoors, playing x-box with my brother, catching up on cable programming from the past year and a half, hanging with my OKC/ Norman friends, long talks with family members.

It was great. One of my favorite moments was on a long walk through the Faircloud trails with my dad. Faircloud is the edition my parents live in and my dad showed me a secret path I'd never seen before. I must have road past it a million times on my bike or roller blades during the 12 years I lived there and I ALWAYS missed it. And it's not really too hidden. It was about 7am and we were talking about different things...and I just remember how good it felt. My dad has lost a lot of weight. I'm SO proud of him. SO has my mom. But she's ALWAYS looked fantastic in my opinion. And my opinion is right when it comes to my beautiful mother. Anyway, it was the best time I've ever had with my family. I'm really glad I went home instead of to the Golan Heights in Israel, surprisingly enough.

But the best part about leaving it all behind and coming back to school is my comfy warm bed...the one thing I missed in OK was good sleep.

UN Nightmare

2007-03-27T17:47:00.001-04:00

Home...

2007-03-11T21:45:00.000-04:00

I just can't wait to be on the flight home already.

Polar Bears, Pop, and Current Events

2007-03-10T09:58:00.000-05:00

Don't drink Coca Cola like this ad tells you! Drink Pepsi instead.....

Actually, I don't drink carbonated beverages unless it is in a mixed drink. All the same, I am currently boycotting Coca Cola until they stop "pouring bad business ethics on Israeli recycling laws".

Check it out at treehugger: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/03/cocacola_pours.php

Apparently Coca Cola doesn't want to continue shelling out the 5 cents per bottle to recycle and would rather trample Israeli law than throw away a measily $5 to recycle 100 plastic bottles. That's $50 to recycle 1000 bottles etc. The process helps keep Israel clean and beautiful. When I was in Israel I never saw waste or trash on the ground anywhere. For the most part it was very clean. If you think about it Israel is a tiny little country comparible in size to about 17 Rhode Islands and has about 7 times the population. They recycle at least 80 percent of recyclable waste. Not half bad. But Coca Cola, one of the largest distributers of carbonated beverages is getting selfish and brown when it comes to the little Jewish state's laws. Personally, I can drink something else if Cola intends to be so ungreen and so mean.

Another note: Coca Cola's Favorite Spokesman, the Polar Bear, is Now on the Endangered Species List
A summary of what's happening: The sea ice is melting away. Polar bear NEED the sea ice. They can swim long distances for long periods of time, but they need to take breaks. With less and less ice, polar bears swim for longer distances for longer amounts of time. Lately, a lot of polar bears haven't been making it and consequently have been drowning. They've also been losing weight. Less fat means less insulation, meaning that some female polar bears may not have enough insulation to carry baby bears to term. Sad isn't it? Scientists predict all the sea ice well vanish by 2040. But the polar bears will be long gone by then. And what does the Bush administration think? They think you shouldn't know about it. According to the New York Times, memos being circulated at the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service place a gag order on employees in order to keep them from discussing polar bears. The government is forbidding biologists from discussing “climate change, polar bears or sea ice if they are not designated to do so.”

Check out the article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/08/washington/08polar.html?_r=1&ref=washington&oref=slogin

Save the Polar Bear? You sure can! Some of these websites contain prewritten emails to important government figures and all you have to do is type in some info and click a button on your mouse and you already did something incredibly helpful for the polar bear. He'll thank you in 2040:

http://www.polarbearsos.org/?gclid=CL2N6La_6ooCFQgTWAodMEgMqA
http://www.worldwildlife.org/polarbears/
http://www.earthplace.org/about_earthplace/support.html
http://action.environmentaldefense.org/campaign/polar_bears_list?qp_source=searchpolarbears
http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/where_we_work/europe/what_we_do/arctic/polar_bear/index.cfm
http://www.projectthinice.org/
http://www.savebiogems.org/polar/

Happy IWD!

2007-03-09T12:24:00.000-05:00

Today is International Women's Day. Be excited ladies! You get your own special holiday just for being a woman! I say celebrate. Celebrate the sexy, smart, amazing, woman that you are. And men, celebrate women too. You wouldn't be here if it weren't for one.

To learn a little more about IWD check out the official website : http://www.internationalwomensday.com
The website contains a great timeline about the history of IWD and how women's lives have changed over the past century.

I also recommend learning more about women from different parts of the world that are currently struggling for their freedoms.

http://electroniciraq.net/news/2941.shtml
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=21236
http://allafrica.com/stories/200703050855.html

Simplest things

2007-03-08T11:55:00.000-05:00

The simplest things in life are the things that are the most amazing.

Yesterday a guy gave me pistachios because he was happy he finally got his laptop to connect with the wireless. That made my day yesterday. I thought how interesting it was that just a simple joy made him want to share it somehow with others.

I ran into a couple people that I know and haven't seen in a while today. It's so pleasant to see old friends...

Speaking of seeing old friends... Can't wait. ;)

VAGINA

2007-03-07T18:42:00.000-05:00

Three highschool girls were suspended for saying the word "vagina" while reading a feminist play, the Vagina Monolgues.

Article: http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=bizarre&id=5099458

First of all, if they didn't say VAGINA I want to know what they did say. PENIS? or BEAVER? or PUSSY? What exactly were they supposed to say? And why would an anti-feminism highschool board allow the performance of a feminist play that so obviously concentrates on female sexuality? This I don't understand. This is an obvious attempt at censorship and a pretty obvious rejection of feminism. It's a pitty such ignoramuses run high schools.

First of all, VAGINA is a perfectly suitable word for the community to hear. Half of all children have them, all children come out of them, and the community includes vagina-havers among its members. So....why censor it? Oh yes. Not everyone has one. Jealous are we?

Vagina Monologues: http://www.randomhouse.com/features/ensler/vm/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Vagina_Monologues

V-day: http://www.vday.org/peace_vmailsplash.html

Please watch this!!!!!
video of eve ensler performing her play herself: http://www.ted.com/tedtalks/tedtalksplayer.cfm?key=e_ensler

THEEND

2007-03-06T17:41:00.000-05:00

UGHHHH! I am SO sick of school. I can't wait for it to be over. I really did very well this quarter up until this week. I can't wait to go home. It's all that's on my mind besides men. And that's always on my mind being that I'm 21 years old and constantly...um...something. So anyway, I was doing great. And then this week I just fell apart. I have 4 papers due, three concerts, a lesson, like 4 more rehearsals, a final, and probably something else. I'm just gonna explode. I don't really know if I can survive the next 7 days.

I think I can I think I can I think I can

2007-03-03T11:54:00.000-05:00

I've been slacking in a few classes... actually, a few areas of my life, as of late. My room is a mess, and has been for weeks. My car needs to be clean and the oil needs to be changed. Econ needs a lot of work, and so does Soil. I haven't worked out in so long. And Spring Break plans need to be finalized, I need to make my portfolio, I need to write the firms in San Diego, and I need to find out my living situations next year. A lot of these things I can't do much about until further notice, but all the same... there's a lot of fine tuning that I need to do. It's time for some motivation!!!

Boo Grey's

2007-03-02T08:16:00.000-05:00

So last night my friend Yafit came over to watch Grey's Anatomy with me, but alas we were surprised by the unfortunate rerun. I couldn't take it, so we left and went to Meijer. Yafit wanted some hairdye and I wanted to get some food for the fridge. It gets hungry. What can I say?

Anyway, the deli was closed. Boo. But...they did have some persimmons. So I got as many as I possibly could. I LOVE persimmons. I was introduced to them last year by my teachers best-friend, Laura. She's a clarinetist out in FL. Anyway, I believe she came into Ixi's house carrying a carton of persimmons and I implied, "What's wrong with your tomatos?"

Anyway, persimmons are a fruit. They are a delicacy. They are almost gone.

And meanwhile, it is gorgious outside. I love waking up before my alarm clock because my apartment is flooded with the warm orangey glow of sunlight. My bedroom window faces West. But there's a window in the living room directly opposite that faces East. It's a lot easier to get up early in the mornings if it's not dark as night outside.

P.S. I am going to a Purim costume party this weekend. What should I dress up as?

Goodies

2007-02-28T09:36:00.000-05:00

So my current phone is going...going...dying...almost....dead. The battery works alright. But the phone itself is not really functioning. The ear phone really sucks so a lot of times in order to hear someone I have to put them on speaker phone. It constantly dies suddenly or drops my calls (which is more than likely a Cingular problem). It gets pretty shitty reception and it used to rock. And it's supposed to take pictures but then they always come out blurry or messed up after I save them. Anyway, the phone is old. It's seen good times and bad times. And now it's going to be retired. For a beautiful new w300i!!!!!

Cloud Facts

2007-02-26T15:19:00.000-05:00

Definition: a cloud is a visible mass of condensed droplets or frozen crystals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of a planetary body.

Study of clouds: nephology

A droplet of moisture in a cloud is about .01mm in diameter. It takes billions of droplets to make a cloud. There are three ways to make a cloud: 1) air is cooled below its saturation point. This happens when the air comes in contact with a cold surface, like a cold front. 2) when two air masses below saturation point mix. Examples are breath on a cold day, aircraft contrails and Arctic sea smoke. 3) The air stays the same temperature but absorbs more water vapor into it until it reaches saturation point.

So why does it rain? Well, the best I can do to explain it as simply as possible is that something happens inside the cloud and the present droplets start to make even more droplets or ice crystals and fall from the cloud and melt, and you can only assume that if they don't melt then we get snow etc.

The color of cloud tells you whats going on inside of it. It doesn't really take a brainiac to figure it out though. If a cloud looks dark and ominious you can safely assume that more than likely a certain size droplet is forming rapidly...and melting on it's way down....etc.

Bottom line: I really wish it weren't cloudy outside. But obviously I can't do anything about it. Boo.

The Weekend Review

2007-02-25T12:20:00.000-05:00

This weekend had a great kickoff with active civil disobedience, a birthday dinner, close friends, some hookah and vodka, and unfortunately...Salad Fingers.

My friends, Gary and Nate, were mean enough to go to www.fat-pie.com/salad once everyone had some hookah. It's technically a deranged cartoon of a sick character called "Salad Fingers" that has a thing for rusty spoons. Whoever made these sick videos had to be on crack or needs to be locked up. I totally believe in freedom of speech...but that doesn't necessarily mean I need to know about this stuff. It's just creepy and wrong. But aside from that smoking hookah, knocking back vodka with crazy Israeli friends and debating liberal vs. radical feminism was a great kickoff to the weekend.

Crazy/Fun Friends

Saturday the highlight was the CSO concert with Jimmy followed by The Departed followed by a debate of Godfather vs. Departed. Excellent.

Sunday: biking, running, and strength training followed by a call home, practice, FOOD, and probably a DHW gathering at mi casa, followed by a prompt Good Night. And then...another week of....CCM.....

the truth

2007-02-22T17:32:00.000-05:00

Film Review: An Inconvenient Truth
I had been wanting to see this film for a while but I had to get on a waitlist with Netflix so I opted to wait till it was more available. Since the summer, I've been reading up a lot on Global Warming or what I call "Anthropogenic Climate Change". I prefer that name better than "Global Warming" because it inferrs that the damage being done to this planet is being inflected by the human race, primarily the part of the human race living north of the equator...

And Al Gore emphasizes the same point. The film is great. I think it's a great tool for informing people of what global warming is, why it's a climate crisis, and what needs to be done to halt it, and what we can do individually to help in the fight to save the planet.

GREAT WEBSITES:

http://www.climatecrisis.net/

http://www.onetonco2.com/index.php

http://www.environmentaldefense.org/home.cfm

check out CFLs: this is one huge way to save lots of $$$$ and lbs of CO2
http://www.environmentaldefense.org/page.cfm?tagid=483&campaign=mts

http://zerofootprint.net/

http://www.seventhgeneration.com/index.php

http://www.truthout.org/index.htm

Israel yafeh meod!

2007-02-22T00:03:00.000-05:00

My favorite chaverim: Debbie and Idan!
View of Yaffo from Tel-Aviv beach:
Vender selling sesame treats or b'ivrit "sum sum matok":
Underneath a Chabad outside the Kotel and down the street from Chadaya:
Camel ride in the Negev:

Taylor'd for a Graceful Legacy

2007-02-21T11:59:00.000-05:00

This is my mom's beautiful pup. It was supposed to be Ned's, but as always, the dogs bond to her instead... and it doesn't help that Ned is on travel most of the time.

So this is him. At 4 months. 40 lbs. He'll be about 80 lbs of pure power. A massive pooch, yeah?

So I would post pictures that I have taken, but Nooooooo. Those pictures are lost. Gone. You don't understand what I do with pictures! I treasure them. And I keep my little disposable camera for months, and pull it out on a random, memorable occasion and take a picture. And they are lost. Gosh. Freaking. Darn. It.

Oh well... I'll just have to get batteries for my digital.

Green Thumbalina

2007-02-20T08:46:00.000-05:00

On Sunday it was gorgious and sunny outside, so I ventured ouside of my apartment and took a trip with Rachel *pictured below* to Home Depot.
I felt that I desperately needed some life in my apartment. It's been snowy, icey, and grey outside for about a month. Not being able to be outdoors and being cooped up inside all the time and not being able to see the grass started to become pretty depressing so I got some plants.
They really brought some life into the apartment. I bought a lot of primroses in different colors: orange and red with yellow in the middle, some cacti, and some "folliage" (sp?) as well as simple pots to put them in. Makes a huge difference. And it's even becoming warmer outside. Very nice changes! These plants have also sparked an old interest of mine: Botany (a topic Lady G and I loved studying in high school).

Here are some links to some interesting plant sites: http://plants.usda.gov/
http://www.botany.com/
http://www.nmnh.si.edu/botany/

Spring Break

2007-02-19T08:12:00.000-05:00

I'm looking forward to Spring Break.
I'm coming home to OK. I think I'm leaving Wednesday March 14th, in the a.m. And I don't plan on coming back to Cincinnati till March 24th or 25th. I can't wait! I can't wait to see my friends and family. I can't wait to see Oklahoma. Go biking. Practice in my bedroom. Etc. I need to get some warm weather.

Yisrael...

2007-02-18T09:50:00.000-05:00

View from the top of Tzipuri

rachov yehudim: (translation) Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem

Top of a wall outside of Tzion Gate: the glass is to keep people from climbing. Built in security system.

Masada: King Herod's cistern

A Thousand Words...

2007-02-18T01:06:00.000-05:00

I am going to try to get back to my former love of photography. Nothing huge, but I want to do something here and there... even if it's with a disposable camera (undoctored) --->

There's this album that I'm also getting in to... just testing it out right now, but I really like it. Can you guess what it is?

Justin Timberlake's Future Sex Love Sounds.

Yeah. That's right.

Visualization Board

2007-02-17T12:06:00.000-05:00

I know this is going to sound "hokey" (sp?) but I have a Project 2A: a Visualizatin Board.
I got the idea from watching a DVD called The Secret (http://thesecret.tv/) which I had heard about on Oprah (http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200702/tows_past_20070208.jhtml) and had to watch in my Sports Psych. class. The Secret focuses on the Law of Attraction. Essentially, the idea is that you attract things to yourself in some way or another. And if you know this you can use it to your advantage. The way this tied into Sports Psych. was that in sports psychology (mainly Psychological Training Skills- PST) people have to have motivation and goals in order to have the results they want. And one of the strongest tools of successful people is imagery: being able to clearly and vividly see what you want. And James Cambell, the author of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books, had a board hanging in his office. He had pictures of the things he wanted to see in his life. There was a picture of the house he wanted. A picture of a family. All sorts of things. And years later he dug up the board and he found that he had all the things that he had taped to his board. I'm not saying it's magic or anything silly. I just think that because he had a clear tangible vision of what he wanted he was able to maintain his focus, remember his motivation, and attain his goals.

So I've accomplished Project 2A: empty corkboard.

Project 2B: put something on it. have a clear vision.

An End to A Week

2007-02-17T00:24:00.000-05:00

This weekend I plan on having one of these kinds of weekends --->

So I went to pick up my disposable black and white pictures that I've been looking forward to getting for the past 4 days, and they couldn't find them. They were supposed to call me back today, and they haven't... It really makes me sad. So hopefully they'll find them because some pictures you just can't replace.

TGIF

2007-02-16T07:54:00.000-05:00

All the snow days are over and slowly the ice and snow are melting. Very slowly. At the rate it's going the extra H2O will be frozen in some form or another till spring.

I wish I could take credit for this photo. But my friend Travis took it. Very gorgious. Anyway, I only have one class today and I think it's going to kill me. I'm out of cat food. Boo. And I need some other things. Which means....I have to run errands...I don't mind running errands very much. What gets to me is usually the amount of money I end up spending. Whenever I go through the check out line I always end up ditching three things from my basket before half my things are even rung up...Instinct perhaps? And then once I get home it's a chore to carry all the bags in. It's not like I have a garage. I have a parking lot with ice-covered snow 7 inches thick. And it's between 1-11 degrees F. Not fun. But...it's nice to have shampoo and cat food etc. At least, the cat thinks so.

Cheeseball Day

2007-02-14T09:51:00.000-05:00

I saw this card. I enjoyed the humor....

Anyway, I was talking to my friend Debbie yesterday about the pending doom of V-day. Pretty much we agreed that on some sort of terms V-day is a day for all the "cheeseballs" to come out and be themselves. All those people who secretly desire to let their cheesiness reign and reek havoc on the world. I'll be completely honest, as a child my only connection to V-day was the candy. I hated pink and red. And the combination of the two was really a bit too cheeseball for me. But V-day was like a second Halloween...without the awesome costumes. And you have to admit the cheeseballs come out of the woodwork. Heart shaped boxes of chocolates, powdery/sugary candy, teddy bears holding hearts, and childrens cards with lolipops. It's so cheeseball. It's so American. It's so....cheesy!

Life's game.

2007-02-13T18:12:00.001-05:00

I just took a test in a class that I know nothing about. But a lot of the questions are similar questions to the quizzes, exercises, and reviews... so if I memorize how to do those problems, I'll know how to give the answers on the test. I'll know how to pull of the class.

So what's the lesson here?

Play it right.

Life is a game in the sense that you have to play it right. It can be a gamble, but if you think smart, you can act smart. And therefore, you can be smart.

Trolls

2007-02-12T18:32:00.000-05:00

Sometimes when I'm down or something is getting to me my mom says, "Don't let the trolls get ya down." Well...today was a Munday not a Monday. And the trolls definitely tackled me today.

the cheer factor: http://www.lileks.com/institute/index.html James Lileks is insanely hilarious and sharp. And the Official Institute of Cheer is a no fail cure for any frown.

Death To Answering Machine

2007-02-12T11:51:00.000-05:00

Problem: it works.

Symptoms: excessive voicemail pileages; over-usage; voicemails containing expressions of distaste for getting voicemail; phone operator incapable of answering damn phone which is why operator has damn phone so why have damn phone if you're not going to answer damn phone!

Cause of death: stressed caller.

Time of death: 1:00 am, Monday, Feb. 12, 2007.

Hey, You thought it. I just posted it.

Project 1A

2007-02-11T20:22:00.000-05:00

Project 1A: Refurbishing Vintage sterio cabinet
I plan on taking this wonderful piece of furniture and stripping the paint and I was originally planning on staining the wood but I'm not sure that's a possibility. SO now the new plan (1A) is to strip it and then paint it a light green color and put a nice finish of some sort on it. I want to possibly take the handles off and either switch them out with something else or I want to take them and make them look a bit dirtier and make them look like they are made out of copper.

By the time it's done it's going to look just amazing.

Not only will it look amazing. It's going to be ripped. I'm hoping that if I give my current sterio system, speakers, and turntable to my brother perhaps my parents will help me get a new dj turntable, speakers, and a smaller system to fit into the cabinet. The current equipment is ancient and amazing. But I'm worried the needle on the turntable in there will scratch up my records and the radio system works wonderfully, but it was built before casette tapes were even used so the system in the cabinet is essentially worthless even though it is still in functioning condition. Anyway, this is going to be a project that I plan to finish in a year...it'll be a while till this pops back up on thepapermoon.

Game Over

2007-02-11T15:47:00.000-05:00

My Sports Psych. Class concluded with a class excursion to the Cintas Center to watch Xavier U kill University of Dayton in the first period.

So I got to go home from class 3 hours early! Talk about a good deal. I really love these accelerated courses. They are perfect for me. I'm seriously surprised that more UC students haven't caught onto this. And not only are the classes optimal in appeal but they also focus on topics that can help people in their everyday life. For instance, I'm taking a stress management courses next quarter. I would love to learn techniques that can help me cope with my pressures.

Anyway, all this extra could mean that I have time to practice and do homework. Or...it could mean that I have time to get some sleep and maybe watch a movie, right? I did just go 7 days straight without a break and I'm still holding up.

French Toast

2007-02-08T19:13:00.000-05:00

Anxiety is a negative motional state characterized by nervousness, worry, and apprehension and associated with activation or arousal of the body, Thus anxiety has a thought component (cognitive anxiety) and a physical component (somatic anxiety).....

Bla bla bla....

Our Close Up

2007-02-08T10:57:00.000-05:00

Recently, I have been talking to a guy (through facebook messages, of course) and he says that he's continuously "caught up in laughter with my lucky insightfulness." He says that I speak with wisdom and confusion, with curiousity. That I complicate things because I try to find the positive and negative in everything.

Perhaps I try to look at life too closely?

Life has both good and bad. When I'm looking at it from every angle, I'm just doing that. I'm just trying to understand the things that come my way. Usually, it makes me appreciate them more. So I think that it's fair to find the positive and negative in everything, as long as you don't let the negative affect you. And I don't, for the most part. I did for a while there, but I'm not now. I'm all smiles.

Op. WU

2007-02-07T10:32:00.000-05:00

Today, following my lesson with Ixi (one of a few clarinet extraordinares that play in the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and grace CCM with their presence http://www.cincinnatisymphony.org/home.asp) I plan on working on a little something called Operation Warm-up which is being run by my good buddy, Nate. Essentially, once every year people get together at Hillel and take toiletries and other oerishable goods and package them so that they can be taken to Over-the-Rhine (a depressed area in downtown Cincinnati) and hand the packages out to homeless people during the harshest and coldest time of the year. I'm really excited. I have a lot on my plate right now and it's not going to be easy to set aside time to do this, but it is something I really want to do.

Where does it all go?

2007-02-06T19:11:00.001-05:00

Where do the calories you eat go?

Here:
25 percent to muscles
23 percent to the liver, pancreas, kidneys, spleen, and adrenal glands
10 percent to the kidneys
10 percent to the brain
10 percent to breaking down the food you just ate
5 to 10 percent to the heart
2 to 3 percent to fat cells

As for which 'fat cells' I cannot tell you. You're on your own. But it is interesting. And I'm sure those %s also depend on the person.

2 Degrees F outside

2007-02-06T09:40:00.000-05:00

And F stands for Fucking COLD. That's right. It's cold outside. So cold that they say with the windchill that if your skin is exposed for more than 5 minutes you can get frosbite or something. They said that on some channel. Maybe I'm wrong. But either way....I don't want to leave my apartment, let alone my bed. It's so cold I stand in front of my oven sometimes just so that I can feel my fingertips so I can practice. I hate hate hate this cold weather. This is the coldest month of my life so far.

It is what It is

2007-02-05T19:11:00.000-05:00

I can never stop wondering about the beautifully, infinitely glorious things thate are around. Especially those that I haven't even imagined yet. And when I get a taste of it, I'm simply in awe. And I remember how much I don't know, how small I am, and how beautifully complicated it all is, And yet, how terribly simple. But the good thing is that it is never enough. So I will always be reminded about these wonders, and I will always be seeking more. Perhaps I will find my place... but until then, it will always be what It is, and that is reassuring.

I love...

2007-02-04T15:18:00.000-05:00

My Depression Era vintage vaseline glass juicer!
That's right...I went to an antigue annex off of Red Bank Expressway (Exit 9, N. I-71, OH). I was looking for a sturdy good looking table of some kind to put my T.V. on or a book case to replace the audacious piece of crap that has been decomposing in my living room for the past 6 months. So I found something for my T.V. A vintage sterio cabinet. Misha and Mike helped me pick it up and get it into my apartment. It's from at least the 1940's, if not later, and it has an old turntable in it and radio. And it all works!!!! I plan on stripping the paint and either staining it, if the wood is good, or repainting it with some fun colors (Albeit, not too fun. Just sensibly chic, appealing, and smart).

Anyway, I crossed paths with a sexy cheap green juicer...I couldn't leave her there. So I bought her. And then I came home to find out how absolutely amazing it is!
And just now I found out some pretty insane facts about vaseline glass on http://1st.glassman.com/vaselineglass.html.

For instance, in 1835 experiments with uranium as a glass colorant were being carried out by Whitefriars Glass Works in London and that in 1836, a pair of uranium glass candlesticks were presented to the Queen. Production of uranium glass in Britain ceased by the end of the second world war but a small amount is still being manufactured in the USA and Czechoslovakia.

HEALTH AND SAFETY ASPECTS OF VASELINE GLASS / URANIUM GLASS
One of the most significant aspects of uranium glass is that it is radioactive and does give a positive reading on a geiger counter. This may cause some concern as to its safety with regard to health but I am now able to report that in June 2003 I assisted the UK's National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) in a study of uranium bearing glass. During this study, technical representatives of the NRPB visited my home and conducted extensive tests on a very wide variety of uranium bearing glass from many manufacturers and time periods. They confirmed that the radiation levels detected were low and quite safe with normal use. The full results of the NRPB study will be published in the near future and at that time I will be providing a link to the publication.

ADDITIONAL SAFETY NOTE: The grinding or abrasive polishing of vaseline glass cannot be classed as 'Normal Use' as the dust and residue produced by these actions can be toxic if inhaled or ingested and therefore should be avoided.

The other significant aspect of uranium bearing glass and that which is of major interest to collectors, is that it glows a vivid bright green under Ultra Violet light (blacklight). This is due to the Ultra Violet radiation exciting the outer electrons of the uranium atoms which as a result give off energy and which is seen by our eyes as a bright green glow.

"Now that's whack!"

Follow the Leader

2007-02-04T01:52:00.000-05:00

I am happy with where I am at, but I am still somehow unsatisfied. I wish I could just be content. I wish I could not wonder, or want... Sometimes I wish I could see where I was going. Most of the time, I wish that I am satisfied that I am follwing Someone who knows where we're headed.

Fred

2007-02-02T12:15:00.000-05:00

Recently I got these "MonKeys" So that I can tell my keys apart. A lot of my keys are the same color and same shape and I go through minutes everyday trying to pull out the right one to get into my apartment etc. Anyway, I checked out the company that makes my MonKeys (http://www.worldwidefred.com/goods.htm) And they are amazing! They have so many things I really want...but...will probably never buy. That's what dreams are for right? Something to look forward to? Like...a dream home...

I have a problem with my sink plug sealing and I thought this was hilarious and cute.
And these coffee cups were unique, playful and funny.

Pepto-Bismol

2007-02-01T11:12:00.000-05:00

Is for: nausea, heart burn, indigestion, upset stomach, diarrhea!

Haha.

Chamber Music

2007-02-01T10:10:00.000-05:00

So today I have a Chamber Winds concert. And I'm really excited. But I'm also kind of anxious. I play on two of the music selections: Parthia for two solo horns by Krommer and "Sept Dances" by Francaix.

I love both the pieces. Krommer is like solo clarinet flourishes with horn duo. It's stressful and in every rehearsal the tempos varied. Sometimes I felt like I was rushing, other times dragging. In the Francaix it's all gravy except one lick at the end of the third movement. Anyway, regardless of what happens I'm sure I'll perform fine...It's just that it's the last two pieces. I have to sit there and wait for that. It's not going to be easy. Especially because it is an atrium concert and it's so cold outside, all the people walking in and out is going to bring in the cold...

Anyway, once I am up there performing these feelings will go away. Until then I'm just going to feel like I'm holding my breath underwater, waiting to come up and breathe.

Would you?

2007-01-30T10:52:00.000-05:00

If you could see where you would be in 10 years, would you?

Missing...

2007-01-29T15:56:00.000-05:00

I really miss Oklahoma and my family right now.

P.S. This year is Oklahoma's Centenial...Yeehaw for that!

Post Card

2007-01-28T10:42:00.000-05:00

Gwenn-
I love post cards. They sell them here in cafes and book stores and those cheap trinket shops. My kitchen and refridgerator are covered in postcards. Dizzy Gillespie, old houses, cat woman, a girl with a pony, two women holding a parasol laughing on a beach in ancient bathing suits, the ones that cover everything up except your knees. It's about time I sent them.

Everytime I see a postcard, I think of you. And the postcards I lost in North Carolina. Oh they said great things on them. I wrote them during rehearsals. Amazing music. Like Debussy Nocturnes and Beethoven Symphonies and Hindemith Mathis der Mahler. I got to play a great part on that piece. It was amazing until the third or fourth movement. The damn violas weren't with the rest of the string section and I'm trying to figure out what the hell is going on....and the first oboe gets done playing her solo just as miffed as I am and I have to come in...but which of the three tempos do I take? No one is together and it's totally stressing me out and the minute the conductor stops to work with the strings I pull out a post card and release everything to you, Gwenn.

Anyway, I'm really sorry those post cards never made it anywhere. I was secretly hoping someone would find them and drop them in the mail. I thought I packed them. But something always seems to disappear when you travel from one place to the next. Like I lost those post cards. And flying from home to Cincinnati I lost a blue cardigan by Lux. My favorite. I swore I packed it. Right on top. Or on my way from Israel to JFK I know I lost a set of post cards and some charms from Rachov Ben Yehuda m'lev Yerushalim. Anyway, today I might pick up more post cards and start writing to you again. Right now you seem like a different person to me. I don't know what it is. Do you?

Anyway, Things have felt weird this weekend. I've been ruminating....I really wish you were here right now. Sometimes the one thing you need is that best friend who has known you through all your years of puberty, bad boyfriends, crazy rebellion, car accidents, everything and then college. I just need a big fat huge dose of Gwennliness. When am I going to see you next???

Love you Gwenn,

Lez

*****

2007-01-27T15:11:00.000-05:00

I don't feel like myself today. I hate it.

I love Friday!

2007-01-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

I only have one class! So plenty of time to practice extra, grab lunch, workout, etc. I might even actually get groceries too! Haha. I've been living off of what little is left in my kitchen. A box of cereal. Crackers. A couple horrible oranges that are too dry. Tostitos. So unhealthy. But I just don't want to bother with groceries. ARG! Underlying issue here is: I should tackle the things I always avoid. Like the bank, the grocery store, Fed-ex. It's about time I stopped procrastinating about certain things. Oy. And I thought today was all about practicing and working out. Oh boo!

Crazy-love!

2007-01-26T01:55:00.000-05:00

I am a hopeless romantic. Every possible interest I have I scrutinize. I wonder if he could be the one, I look to see how we're compatible, I look to see the irony and beauty of it; I look to see how numbers fit together in it; how our colors match; how songs work with it too. I'm crazy. love. crazy-love!

and now, I am being kicked out of this wonderful little coffee shop at 1:00 am because that is when it closes. I'm thinking about working here... perhaps after the summer. Perhaps sooner. Depends.

Airport Dud

2007-01-25T09:54:00.000-05:00

So back during Thanksgiving, my parents got me a last minute flight to OKC. Originaly my mother had planned on visiting me. But she's not the traveling type. She's a homebody at heart and traveling makes her nervous. And besides, it's tough for a family to be apart on Thanksgiving. So I took a last minute flight out of Cincinnati.

I was rushing to get through security because I am always in a rush. Maybe it's that whole Interlochen mentality of: "To be early is to be ontime, to be on time is to be late." So I've got the whole airport routine down pat. My shoes are off the minute I approach security because I am speed demon....but not everyone is a speed demon. I'm almost through securityand currently waiting for my backpack to come through with my shoes. Some stud was putting on his shoes and I didn't really take much notice him other than his existence. He was having a hard time and taking forever. Not a speed demon, like self. So I slipped my shoes on (Tip: always wear comfy, good walking slip-ons). And then I started to swing my backpack over my shoulder. *Wham* Knocked the stud over. Shoot! Helped him up and apologised. Then I noticed a sax case over his shoulder. So I asked him if he went to CCM (my school). He did. And we introduced ourselves and walked to the train that would wisk us to our bus that would transport us to Terminal C (Delta Terminal of CVG). So we hit it off and spent the next couple of hours digressing and waiting for our planes. It seemed like we really hit it off. But of course, you can't think too much of such meetings. Why have expectations?

So I went home. Had turkey and forgot about said stud. I also forgot that I would see him in Wind Symph. back at CCM. Well, I would expect said stud to not be dud and never say hello. The dud sits right behind me for 2 hours twice a week and I can turn around and say hello!!!! Sup with that? So said stud is now a real dud. Maybe he isn't. But there's no way he couldn't recognise me. I don't think I've met anyone who looks like me. And I'll be honest, I didn't remember him at first. But still. I said hello....(I don't remember dud's name. But I will find it on tonight's concert program. Why? I don't know. Maybe so that I can further make him feel bad by remembering his name...which I didn't remember. And one more problem. He's not the only sax player back there. Which one has which name? On second hand effort seems a waste.)

Anyway, after several hellos with a vegitative response I've given up on being polite or even further aquainting with this fellow. My teacher calls it dead fish. You shake someone's hand and it's limp. Airport Dud is totally Dead Fish.

Wednesday...out and over

2007-01-24T23:36:00.000-05:00

So all day today I stressed out about EVERYTHING. I spent the end of last week crunching for classes and for my ASAP course. And then all day Friday and Saturday I was in class, so I didn't exactly get the practice time in that I had wanted to because I didn't find out my presentation material until the Friday class so I spent Friday night until the wee hours of Saturday working on my Saturday presentation. And then Sunday I was in class all day. When I got out I went to bed. But I still did my best for my lesson. Makes me feel like I can do even more for next week's lesson. Gosh...I can't wait for tomorrow and the next day. I want to be done with the wood shedding on Rossini and just be in the polishing artsy phase where all you do is analyze why you don't sound like Sharon Kam or Mr. Neidich.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dear Mr. Neidich,

You play Rossini too fast. I'd advise laying off the expressos and prozac. I can't keep up. I hate your guts.

Sincerely,

LW

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dear chavera Sharon,

You sound so good. I hate you too.

Yours truly,

LW

Citizens of Humanity

2007-01-24T10:11:00.000-05:00

So I bought this vest by Citizens of Humanity on shopbop.com. They were 70% off and I've been trying to find a vest for a while. I have some long sleeve shirts that I like to pair with different outfits and this is the sort of thing I could use. Plus it's sophisticated, creates layers, and most importantly I like. I truly believe this is my most superficial post yet....

$$$

2007-01-23T15:40:00.000-05:00

So today I made a little dough. And it's always nice to be putting money in the bank rather than taking it out, but I'm having the hardest time finding work right now :( On all other fronts things are looking up. Yay!

And Follow... Follow... follow.

2007-01-23T12:14:00.000-05:00

"Try to remember

The kind of September

When life was slow

And oh so mellow

Try to remember

The kind of September

When grass was green

And grain was yellow ...

Deep in December

It's nice to remember

The fire of September

That made us mellow

Deep in December

Our hearts should remember

And follow ... follow ... follow ..."

I Used To Be Patient...

2007-01-23T11:31:00.000-05:00

What happened?

Case of the Mundays...

2007-01-22T18:23:00.000-05:00

Not quite. I had a tough time getting out of bed. But once I got rolling I got a lot done. Things went well. Instead of being one of those days where you can't get one thing right and it's just one thing after the next, I got a lot done and things that normally get screwed up went really well. T'was super. Anyway. Still a ways to go. Another four days to be exact. But a fresh, clean start doesn't hurt.

Movie Review

2007-01-21T22:21:00.000-05:00

The Last Kiss: 4 stars

Great movie about a man encroaching his thirties and reaching a plateau. His main concern is that his life might end up being unpredictable. He gets a little lost but he learns that the love is experienced through actions not emotions. Zach Braff gives a great performance. I love him...The rest of the cast is hot too.

Snow Day

2007-01-21T12:24:00.000-05:00

Here is my picture story:

I woke-up to my Women and Law teacher, Maggie, calling me to cancel class. I was so exstatic I went outside to revel in the snow! Oh snow...I love you!

Then Asher got upset that I was having all the fun so I let him out. And he got to see his first snow.

He did't know what it was and he started acting like a crazy cat...well, he is a crazy cat.

He decided to dig it all up and eat it!

And then he realized there were still birds around. But it was too cold so we went back inside.

Where he destroyed an imaginary pink bird.

And took a nap.

Before round two.

So Real

2007-01-20T14:58:00.000-05:00

Here I am, looking out the window, watching the rain fall and seeing the people moving through it. The rhytmic taps on the ground, the surrounding chatter, the casual music; it's all surreal.
Surreal... do you think that means "so real"? Like suddenly it hits you how real everything is. Because earlier we were moving through the rain, ignoring it and doing our business; not really paying attention.

And then you watch other people move through it, going on with their business. And you realize how involved in your business you are. You remember the many things that you ignore, that you forget. You remember how small you are in this world; you remember how special you and each person are; you remember that everyone plays a part in this world, somehow, and you are another unique part of it.

It's ironic. A surreal experience doesn't feel real at all, but at a closer look, it reminds you of what is real.

Women and Law

2007-01-20T09:06:00.000-05:00

So I had my first ASAP class last night, 6pm-9:38pm. And utterly loved it. Very small class and we discussed the material and women's liberation, feminism, and media and our culture. We watched Killing Us Softly 3. It was great. I've always been aware of how advertising sends us little big messages. But this video really showed me some I never thought of, but I could totally see it. There were some women in the class who honestly had no clue where the video was coming from. Very interesting....media brainwashing actually works....very scary!

Anyway, today is day two and I am pumped. I'm also going to be praying we get out early so that I can practice and still make it to the symphony tonight. 10:30am-6pm. Ouch!

Trial, Truth, and Error.

2007-01-19T12:19:00.000-05:00

It's funny what you can try to convince yourself after something has happened. "I knew this was coming." "I didn't really like him that much in the first place." "There are other people that I think work better for me." The truth is, if all of those things were true, then I would have listened to them in the first place. I act on the feelings that feel most right (and sometimes that is simply what I want the most at the time). But If something truly did not feel right, I would listen to that feeling, because it is the strongest. I can't ignore it.

In the end, When you listen to those feelings, when you seek what is right, then everything works out the way it is supposed to. I might not understand why somethings happen, why somethings work certain ways, but I can cope with that. I am seeking what is best, even if I have to endure trial after trial to finally learn how to get there, and I still believe that everything works out the way that it is supposed to.

Not a fan of Global Warming, huh?

2007-01-18T22:42:00.000-05:00

A global switch to efficient lighting systems would trim the world's electricity bill by nearly one-tenth. The carbon dioxide emissions saved by such a switch would, it concludes, dwarf cuts so far achieved by adopting wind and solar power. Wow. According to Paul Waide, a senior policy analyst with the IEA and one of the report's authors, "19% of global electricity generation is taken for lighting -- that's more than is produced by hydro or nuclear stations, and about the same that's produced from natural gas." For the individual TreeHugger, the report concludes that the easiest, most obvious switch to make is from incandescent bulbs to compact fluorescent systems, and to watch out for the LED revolution, just around the lighting corner.

Info available @ http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/06/change_a_light.php

At the rate that we are going with over 150 new coal plants in the U.S. they (Energy Information Administration) say that by 2030 CO2 emissions will be up by 43%. Everybody agrees that the weather is getting crazy. And while some people appreciate the warm weather in Cincinnati in other parts of the world it means disaster and possibly death. In Oklahoma, it isn't snowing. It's solid ice 4 inches thick. In some areas school has been canceled for over a week. Oklahoma hasn't seen this sort of weather since the ice age. An area that is seriously unprepared for this sort of weather. Salt? No. They don't do that. They do tornados. Blizzards? Not till recently. National Geographic talks about the polar ice caps melting and 4-5 hurricanes happening in odd spots all in one year. New Orleans wasn't prepared for Katrina. But in the future, even with super levies can it survive ? Who really knows? All of this is completely unpredictable. But one thing you can count on is that it isn't going to stop. It will in all likelihood get severly worse.

All the technology we have and yet not millions, but literally many billions of people live in poverty? While they starve we are to contine to emit millions of tons of CO2 and who knows whatelse in to the air, poluting the world they live in. And if you use a damn lightbulb that uses less energy you save yourself a measily $8 and you emit less carbon into the air and what of it? That's great. So you fixed one problem, but oh yea. You don't recycle. And billions of people are starving. And can you believe that George's dad died on Grey's last night?

So it's always something. And you can't fix everything. But maybe the next time you are out shopping and you need to replace your incandescent light bulbs you can at least think about the flourescent ones that save you money...and maybe...buy them...and if you do then you are making a big change. One person. If you bought one flourescent light bulb it woud last you possibly years and every time you turn it on you will know that you are not emitting tons CO2 in the air, potentially making the world an even more horrible place to live in for the billions of people who are living below the poverty line all of the globe. Even if you aren't thinking about it, one action sets off a chain reaction.

P.S. Estimated potential $90 savings a year http://www.realsimple.com/realsimple/content/0,21770,1206333,00.html

At Least It's Clearer

2007-01-18T12:40:00.000-05:00

The haze may lift, but that does not mean that it reveals an untangled mess. Thereis still a lot to work through, but at least it's clearer now. Maybe it can actually get somewhere.

oh so sleepy

2007-01-18T01:34:00.000-05:00

i am pooped.

in the past 48 hours i have subsisted on 3 hours of sleep

Things Are Looking Up!

2007-01-17T14:06:00.000-05:00

Or they will!

If you can't state the problem, then you can't find a solution for it.

Different issues have risen for me, and I couldn't understand where they were coming from. It turns out that they were spawning all from one issue. So now that I know what the problem is, I can finally do something about it.

And this week will soon be over for you Miss Les. Soon Soon Soon!

Oh Hell!

2007-01-17T03:49:00.000-05:00

I have so much work to do I don't know when I'll get a chance to sleep. And thanks to Red Bull it might never happen.

Red Bull, I hate you.

Where's the problem?

2007-01-16T23:43:00.000-05:00

My circumstances are incredible. Written on paper, I couldn't ask for more. They are ideal. So what's missing?

At some point I have to realize what's me and what's real. Aren't I real, though? So if something doesn't feel right, then something isn't right. But I might have to look elsewhere to find where the problem really is...

Until You

2007-01-16T12:34:00.000-05:00

Everything was going well, and smoothely, like pieces of a puzzle, until you started feeling crazy and out of sorts; Now I'm crazy and out of sorts! Or did I start it?

Who's pointing fingers anyway!

Things are better... because I realize he doesn't mean to do anything; it's not a Guy-thing, it's a Gwenn-thing. More or less. So now that I know that it's something I have to do... I don't know what to do. Talk, learn to deal, make something happen...

Get your events settled down Miss Les so that mine will too! Please!

chaos= my life

2007-01-16T10:24:00.000-05:00

The next two days are going to be busy as hell. Rehearsals, lesson, reed class, and ASAP course for the weekend: two essays, read about 20 articles, journal, and a project...oh yea, and I have to compose a percussion piece. Oh Crap!!!

.*<><>**.....

2007-01-15T16:52:00.000-05:00

Oh poop.

Sometimes I get ticked off. Anyway, after a little sleep at least thats gone.

Orion

2007-01-15T12:55:00.000-05:00

David and I went to the Cincinnati Observatory last night to attend a class on the constellation Orion. It was a great class. I learned so much. And I think it was valuable because alot of the information I could have gotten off the internet, but what I learned from the class was how to use the information when you are actually staring at the night sky and trying to find the constellations. It also helped me visualize the depictions of the constellations better so that when I look at the sky I can see the stories. It was a great class. The only bad thing was that it was raining so we couldn't use the amazing telescopes they have there. But I totally intend on going back. If you have $5 in quarters laying around I highly recommend taking them to the Observatory, and they don't even mind! Actually...I didn'y even have quarters. I used nickels and dimes, and I even put in a shekel cause I ran out of quarters...oops...

I think....

2007-01-14T13:33:00.000-05:00

it is time to practice my butt off!

Sour Cream Apple Pie

2007-01-14T13:15:00.000-05:00

Rachel and I decided to bake a pie and watch season three of Northern Exposure.

And it looked delicious. And I can promise you it was, is, and always will be.

RECIPE @ http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/13330

(Only I use 1 1/4 cups of suger for the filling...)

Oh Bloggers

2007-01-13T18:25:00.000-05:00

So today I got all mixed up with the world of blogs and I was truly surprised at what I found.

Vibrant colors, tons of hot links, and just plain amazing blogs. People using amazing templates and getting rave reactions. Made me rethink how awesome this blog really is. It is awesome....to Gwenn and me that is.

But here are some blogs I just couldn't shake:

http://lenacorwin.blogspot.com/ http://rootmag.typepad.com/

http://flygirls.typepad.com/ http://featured.typepad.com/

http://lulublookerprize.typepad.com/

http://ohjoy.blogs.com/

and of course there are way too many more.....

An Artistic Mystery

2007-01-11T13:07:00.000-05:00

This was my final project in my first studio. There was a lot about that year that was just a disappointment. But when you can see how beautiful those disappointments can be, it becomes simply precious.

How does this Hamas video make you feel?

2007-01-11T10:56:00.000-05:00

So they don't plan to resolve issues diplomatically or through any sort of negotiation or reasonable pathways. They just plan to kill Israelis and their supporters. That sounds intelligent and reasonable to me. What about you?

Small print: I'm being sarcastic.

Ali G Show

2007-01-11T00:56:00.001-05:00

New Developments in Darfur

2007-01-10T21:02:00.000-05:00

Dear Reader,

I want to share some important news from Khartoum. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson just released a joint statement with Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir that, if implemented, would bring some immediate security and relief to the people of Darfur as well as provide a clear path forward to long-term peace in the region.

We asked Governor Richardson (pictured above) to travel to Sudan to discuss ways to secure peace in Darfur and to end the genocide. The Governor was accompanied by Save Darfur Senior International Coordinator Ambassador (ret.) Lawrence Rossin, Refugees International Executive Director Kenneth Bacon, and Public and International Law and Policy Group senior attorney Amjad Atallah. Since Sunday, when they arrived in Khartoum, Governor Richardson and the delegation have visited Darfur and participated in a variety of meetings with government officials, rebel leaders, humanitarian officials, AU commanders and UN officials.

The promises from President Bashir in this agreement are encouraging. They include commitments to:

A 60-day ceasefire with an international peace summit to be held before March 15, 2007.
Sudan's cooperation to work with the African Union and United Nations on the deployment of a hybrid peacekeeping force in Darfur.
Ensuring "zero tolerance" policies for gender-based violence in Darfur.
Free access for humanitarian aid workers and journalists.

Click here to read the full joint statement and the press release.
http://www.savedarfur.org/newsroom/releases/cease_fire_agreement_
offers_a_moment_of_opportunity_for_political_settlemen/

Your concerns for the people of Darfur were voiced directly to President Bashir by Governor Richardson and Ambassador Rossin. We believe that today's agreement offers a promising step forward to end this four-year nightmare for the people of Darfur. By no means, however, has the genocide ended.

We call urgently upon Sudan, the United Nations, the African Union, and the Bush Administration to make these promises become a reality for the long-suffering people of Darfur.

We must demand that the international community take advantage of this dramatic progress. Your help in this effort will be vital in the months ahead.

Thank you for your contribution to these new developments.

Best regards,

David Rubenstein
Save Darfur Coalition

Also see: http://www.governor.state.nm.us/press.php?id=338

Alicia de Larrocha

2007-01-10T19:32:00.001-05:00

Jascha Heifetz

2007-01-10T19:22:00.001-05:00

Sabine Meyer

2007-01-10T19:21:00.001-05:00

Emma Johnson

2007-01-10T19:16:00.002-05:00

Sharon Kam (m'Yisrael)

2007-01-10T19:16:00.001-05:00

Bass Clarinet = Deep Sax

2007-01-10T19:12:00.000-05:00

DARFUR. is happening right NOW.

2007-01-09T22:13:00.000-05:00

More Websites about Genocide in Darfur:

http://www.ushmm.org/conscience/alert/darfur/steidle/?gclid=CNfUmY3w1IkCFQVYSAodxBqG2g

http://www.genocideintervention.net/index.php

http://www.darfurscores.org/

http://www.standnow.org/

http://hrw.org/reports/2004/sudan0504/

http://www.darfurisdying.com/

http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=3060&l=1#C2

http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/news/sudan.cfm

There are so many sites dedicated to Darfur. Why is it important to check out these sites? Because you can't keep ignoring it. That's what we do. We see these things on TV but then we keep eating dinner with our families and talking about our days. But just across the ocean there are people who can't eat dinner with their families. And if they did, can you imagine what they would say about their days? Genocide happening for not the first time in the last hundred years. And what is so much worse than the slaying of a people is the world's indifference to it. It's not to say that people don't care. Look at all the websites, and I didn't even post half of the ones I found. Not to mention articles about Darfur. But nothing is happening. For example, if in one month alone only 10 people at every liberal arts university became interested and started to send letters to state representatives, to congressmen, to our UN representatives that would be a total of 460 people a month just with Ohio's liberal arts colleges. Think about how much of a difference your voice really can make.

There is an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond about voting. Debra runs for a position in the PTA. Raymond ofcourse, selfishly tries to foil her plot to win by voting for the guy who brought buffalo wings. Debra lost by one or two votes. Ofcourse, Raymond has a big fat mouth and gives himself away. Debra gets pissed and it's a night in the doghouse for Raymond. There are consequences for voting and not voting. Your voice makes a difference. Use it. Use it right. A choir isn't made up of one person. It's made up of a group of one persons. You are the one person that may be the tipping point in convincing someone in our government to actually make a difference.

DANIEL.......

2007-01-09T15:44:00.000-05:00

Is Almost Here!!!!!!!!!

We make Each other.

2007-01-09T12:53:00.000-05:00

When you're happy, I'm happy.

When you have a bad day, I have a bad day.

When you find romance, I find romance.

When your romance turns into a douche bag, my romance flourishes into the love of my life.

Okay, my romance douche bags too...

(which is a really bad expression, come to think of it.)

All in all, my love, we're connected, something similar to sisters, I'd imagine. We make each other feel what either feels.

And I love it.

And I'm so happy you're happy!!!

Gwenn

2007-01-09T08:08:00.000-05:00

It makes me happy when you are happy.

Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868)

2007-01-08T17:26:00.000-05:00

What we already knew about Rossini:

He was born into an Italian music family (father was a horn player and mother was a singer) in the late 18th century. Right away little Rossini was thrown into the world of music. He learned harpsichord and couterpoint among many other things. At a very young age, Rossini went off to the Conservatory of Bologna. Early on, at least by the age of 18, Rossini began writing operas and they were well-liked. Tancerdi, written in 1813, was a huge hit. The opera is pretty much about forbidden love. At the end of a war between families, the father of one family offers the hand of his daughter to the other family but unbeknownst to either family she is secret engaged to Tancerdi, some soldier. And ofcourse, chaos insues and people die. The daughter is put in prison because she's a bad girl and Tancredi rushes off to a battle and is slain. And the daughter is married off to the other family. (Copy of the score http://www.dlib.indiana.edu/variations/scores/bhr1017/index.html) After Tancredi, Rossini continued to work and was hired as a musical director for two different theaters in Italy. He was paid well and in addition to his duties as director he was also required to produce at least one opera per year. His next huge success was in 1816, when Rossini completed the opera buffa The Barber of Seville. Opera buffa made it's way into opera permanently and in the ensuing years Rossini continued in his success and composed twenty more operas, concluding with William Tell. Ofcourse, Rossini composed in plenty of other genres other than opera such as sacred and chamber music, vocal music, cantatas and instrumental music.

What you didn't know:

At the age of 6 he played triangle in his daddy's band.
His daddy was a rebel and was sent to jail for welcoming Napolean when he invaded Italy back along time ago.
Was nicknamed "Monsier Crescendo" and "The Little German"
Could have retired when he was 32 years old. I think he kept composing till the end though...
He was quite a handful as a child.

Interesting links:
http://www.rossinioperafestival.it/
http://www.conservatoriorossini.it/default0.aspx
http://www.allposters.com/-st/Gioachino-Rossini-Posters_c1598_s53269_.htm

Karl Leister (video)

2007-01-08T08:34:00.000-05:00

Mr. Karl Leister plays the last movement of C.M. Weber clarinetquintet with members of BPO (1990) Berliner Philarmonie.

Info on KL:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Leister
http://www.arborweb.com/reviews/0503.karlleister-review.html
http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~musi/calendar/karl_leister.html
http://www.niu.edu/PubAffairs/RELEASES/2005/feb/clarinet.shtml

I'll send my SOS to the world

2007-01-07T19:58:00.001-05:00

MAKE SOME NOISE!

http://action.savedarfur.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5175

http://www.savedarfur.org/section/take_action

And if you're going to make some noise you might as well make a BIG RACKET!

Tzipur

2007-01-07T09:58:00.000-05:00

Sunny day, sweeping the clouds away...

Actually it's cloudy outside. But it's Dear Sunday and while all the birds have abandoned their nests and flown off to little caves I have the entire world to myself. The entire empty world is all mine. Once a week I can traverse this hectic place without confusion or chaos. I can be almost completely isolated from the other birds chirping incessantly. I can go any which way I choose...and the day is peaceful...at the start.

Collide

2007-01-06T13:53:00.000-05:00

The dawn is breaking.

A light shining through.

You're barely waking,

and I'm tangled up in you.

Yeah.

But I'm open, you're closed.

Where I follow, you'll go.

I worry I won't see your face

light up again.

Even the best fall down sometime.

Even the wrong words seem to rhyme.

Out of the doubt that fills my mind

I somehow find you and I collide.

I'm quiet, you know.

You make a first impression.

I found I'm scared to know

I'm always on your mind.

Even the best fall down sometime.

Even the stars refuse to shine.

Out of the back you fall in time,

You somehow find you and I collide.

Don't stop here.

I lost my place.

I'm close behind.

Even the best fall down sometime.
Even the wrong words seem to rhyme.

Out of the doubt that fills your mind,

you finally find you and I collide.

Finally find...

you and I

collide.

-Howie Day

December's Rose

2007-01-06T12:33:00.000-05:00

There sits an elderly couple behind me at this coffee shop. She reads him pieces from the newspaper that sparks her interest, and he asks her for words that stump him on his crossword puzzle. While sipping coffee, they simply share a part of their lives and interests together. Each other's company have been their world for however long... Their trials, their lessons, their lives have been each other's for however long. And to see them still sharing, still content, is as touching as a rose in December.

The Long..

2007-01-06T12:16:00.000-05:00

Things happen. Your will is to accept them, to make the most of them, to learn from them, and to cherish them. But sometimes that is not enough. Sometimes you know it isn't through. You know something was missing, is missing... And sometimes you cannot do anything but wait. And long for it to unravel.

Tzion

2007-01-06T11:35:00.000-05:00

Last night, even though I wasn't in Israel physically in my heart I passed through Zion Gate and prayed at the Kotel.

Walking through is so hectic and so exciting. Cars drive through, scraping against the walls of the gate as people scatter through. Lines of taxis impatiently waiting outside, and on Yom Shishi (yom katzar!) it's even more insane than you could ever imagine.

But once you step through security and you are upon the Kotel it takes your breath away and immediately you are flooded with a deep feeling of spirituality. For me, I was in awe and I couldn't wait to pray at the foot of the wall. You start far away and slowly inch your way up. Eventually you look up to get your barings and you can't believe how close you are to the wall. There are two black doves that always nestle in on of the huge crevices in the wall. There's barely enough room for them to fit. It seems like they are always there, maybe just to hear the prayers. Who knows.

And once you are right at the wall, you can see all the prayers that hold it up. And if you are me, you can't wait to kiss it with your lips. I miss the Kotel HaMaariv. I miss Yerushalaim.

Good news!!!!!!! I think I'm going back spring break in March to help restore areas devastated by ketusha rockets fired by hizbollah.

Drowning

2007-01-05T08:04:00.000-05:00

Sometimes I feel so out of place or weird. And I also feel misunderstood. But after being at Mt. Hertzl and Yad Vashem it makes me feel so selfish and silly to complain at all. But the honest truth is that when it hurts it hurts.

I wish I wasn't me sometimes. But at the same time I like who I am. I just really hate my flaws. Some things I just can't help. Other people CAN help being mean or being assholes. Even with all my flaws I'm not mean and I don't take advantage of anyone's disadvantages. I always try to stick up for the low man on the totem pole. I try to be understanding. I try my hardest not to gossip, it's ugly and hurtful. I'm certainly not an asshole. And I am always trying to improve myself. I may have a lot of flaws. I may be quite the space cadet, but I honstly try my hardest not to space out. I just can't help it, but trust me, I try very hard to be here on earth and not out there in my thoughts. I know that I get crazy ideas in my head and get overly excited about things. But I'd rather be over enthusiastic about anything in life rather than dull and satisfied and unexcited about life at all. Sometimes I get shy or I have a hard time coming out of my shell. Sometimes I don't feel like saying anything. Or I don't know what to say. And I know some people, like you, Gwenn, think that "my version" isn't real and just in my head. And that's fine. But I disagree strongly. And it makes me feel bad that you feel that way. Because I always try to tell the truth and to imply that I don't really hurts. And you may have worded things differently, but all the same you said it. And I do not agree with you. And you don't have to agree with me. That's fine.

Right now I could really hate who I am, what with all the flaws I have, but why? I am hardworking, sweet, incredibly flawed, but always looking for friendship and understanding. I am totally a good friend. Always willing to help. And almost always willing to take advice and listen to what other people have to say. I try so hard to do the right things. Maybe I try too hard. Sometimes I even feel like the people who should be my friends are walking all over me cause maybe I'm too nice. There's not a whole lot wrong with me that I don't already acknowledge and try to fix and all the people who exploite my flaws, make caddy comments, try to hurt me, or constantly make me feel bad about myself can just shove it. So I have flaws! Ya know what, you do too. Not that the "you"s out there are ever gonna read this. C'est la vie...

It still felt good to rant.

School

2007-01-04T17:31:00.000-05:00

It's a drag....

Actually it's not. I'm really looking forward to everything I'm going to learn. It's exciting. And I'm really excited about all my new friends. Hurray for that!