this weekend a friend introduced me to another priceless nugget of our world. npr’s this i believe concept is simple and brilliant. its an international radio essay project engaging people in writing, sharing, and discussing the core values that guide their daily lives. 

i indulged in a few of the 2 min snapshots selected semi randomly:
1) albert eintein (1950s): interesting how it seems like many of the ex US presidents also come this conclusion after they had world power in the palm of their hand.
2) newt gringrich (2005): i question the authenticity of his essay. i feel horrible for saying that becuase i want to take this at face value, but i cant. it feels political.
3) john mccain (2005): i see red flags. a core value should not be loyalty/honor, you can only serve your core values loyally/honorably? its too easy to manipulate a person who’s axis revolves around honor, loyalty and obedience. ethics 101.
4) colin powell (2005): i see the date and cant help but wonder how his personal values and professional duties may have been in conflict. maybe i am just projecting.
5) eve ensler (2006) she makes me wanna be a better writer.

i am not endorsing the moral of this story according to this specific video’s editor. no rainbows and ponies here. persons can and will disappoint you over the course of your life. i am however endorsing the broader story’s symbolism: being open minded about another’s capacity for good when the world touts “you will be disappointed. its not in their nature.”
the challenge is having a fulfilling life by trusting the right person(s), the right amount, at the right time.

(to date, failure rate in OL trust: 2/9. duration: 18 months. i am getting better at trusting, and discerning who are worthy of trust.)

okay, okay, not really…but kinda really ;)
I FOUND MY NEW ANTHEM!
some songs simply have superpowers. when it airs on the radio it puts you in a trance…a trance that mindlessly induces you hand to turn up the volume…a trance that prevents you from getting out of the car after you reached your destination because you want to feel every last cord go through your body….a trance that makes you sing at the top of you lungs about your wonderful GIRLFRIEND (regardless of you gender or sexual orientation).
only criticism is how hard it was to find this song and artist! lets just say gavin degraw is not the first poet to articulate ” [i am] in love with a girl” :P

omg weathered grand pianos totally make me gay…
…just so happy for no reason at all… ;)

saw this on a blog where someone used a keyword that i programmed into my google alerts. thought it was cute, so i am taking it for an abbreviated personalized spin. interesting how the different questions did not bring me to the same dimension…or did it?)
if i where a …… i would be …..:

1. month: january
2. day of the week: sunday
3. time of day: 3 – 4pm
4. planet: venus
5. animal: black panther
6. piece of furniture: end table or coffee table
7. historical figure: oscar wilde
8. liquid: juice
9. tree: doring boom
10. kind of weather: cloud filled sky illuminated by silver linings
11. musical instrument: grand piano (no contest)
12. emotion: curious
13. color: turquoise
14. fruit: lime
15. sound: hahahahha
16. element: O
17. car: prius
18. song: new world symphony – dvorak
19. movie: once
20. book: san tzu’s the art of war
21. food: salmon
22. a place: holideck
23. number: 17
24. body: feet

recently i have been getting glowing reviews for my multi-lingual talents. *whispers* and without even opening a book or paying for a brain transplant. the following are the responses i get from buddies and strangers roaming the internet jungle when i “communicate” with them in their mother tongue:

“hehehehe, beautiful! i see u r becoming a real linguist.”
(in response to my Croatian)

“too long for a hangman game :)”
(in response to my Arabic…okay, okay so maybe this one needs a little more rigurous study…or we could just stick to chess and theorizing on the future of humanistic psychology ;)

“[it's] broken dutch.
hahahaha my god [it's] cute :D”
(pay this one little attention. my dutch is fabulous. mr. V hasn’t even completed his MBA yet, so he is bound to make some misjudgments ;)

my secret? *shakes her hair like sarah jessica parker for garnier*
*flashes a smile like heather locklear for revlon* google translate
becuase international buddies are worth it. even those foreign ones :3

last week we published our newsletter and included a list of flood related grants, low interest loans, and tactical resources as reference for our area’s individuals, businesses and communities affected by the iowa flooding this summer. click here to view this info (and let me know if you know of more resources.)

even though several weeks have passed since the water levels crested, our communities are STILL busy draining, scrubbing and drying, STILL living with the health risks associated with the flooding, STILL in limbo on what long term solutions they should/can pursue to return to normalcy. support experts expect a surge in knocks on their doors to increase considerably right about…now.

so i stumbleupon.com this site called scrapblog.com.
the interface is a little clunky, the options a little limiting, but look at the end result!
this is the damage that one person can do in about 20 minutes :D
mhmm…some trouble with embedding the video box. so turn on your sound, and click here for the link to the video.

3) you can change your mind about shorting a new shtick: 5 years ago the business school buzz was that this neflix business model would not be able to compete with blockbuster, movielink and pay per view. now look, i too am in the fold!
2) insurance premium against movie tress pases is high: there is less cognitive dissonance and guilt when you pay $16.99 per month and send netflix movies back “at a delayed rate”, than when the librarian tells you that you owe $1 in late fees.
1) even sweet boys have agendas: never, ever give someone your netflix password to surprise you with your movie lineup. no matter how charming or knowledgeable he may seem about the topic of “your soul”. sooner or later you too will open the mailbox to find that this weekend you will be educated on his fantasies.

*shakes her head* shameful fantasies at that! not one, but TWO versions of our town (I & II) as well as the fantasticks.

…in the history of Tama-Toledo :)

two people in the community was especially articulate in defining our long-term success after we hosted the longest, oldest, biggest bicycle marathon in the US july 23 & 24.

an advisory board memeber commented this week at the wrap up:

“this is the biggest thing that has happened for the community in the past 30 years i have been here. its great that we will be in the black, but this was never about making money. we where clear from the get go that the goal was deepening the cooperative relationship between the cities of Tama and Toledo, as well as Meskwaki Settlement. good job, team.”

in a letter to Tama News Herald, Mary McBee captured the same sentiment describing how riders view this annual RAGBRAI experience:

“…[it is] unlike the speed emphasis on shorter tours elsewhere. there develops an unusual support and togetherness in this challenge. it’s about cooperation, not competition. its about building connections.”

next step? i believe the two cities and settlement are ready for an even bigger cooperative project. maybe going head to head with NY and LA CVB’s to land the shortest, newest, fastest sports event IN THE WORLD? :P

good job, team :)

i am one of those renegades who “just wanna quickly see” cnbc segments when co-channel surfing with well adjusted people. no prizes for guessing that this picture below would justifiably prompt me to wrestle someone to the ground for remote control domination to learn more. where could i possibly be learning this despicable behavior? c-span? :P

two takeaways: 1) i am really interested in working on developing assets with potential in the middle east too, and 2) i am stronger than Jeff :D