I've had a few offers of sponsorship, but I determined that they wouldn't quite cover my costs, so I'm holding out for something larger. $200,000 should do it.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
The hidden rules of Kansas City
I've had a few offers of sponsorship, but I determined that they wouldn't quite cover my costs, so I'm holding out for something larger. $200,000 should do it.
Monday, March 29, 2010
If someone sponsored me for a year...
Friday, March 26, 2010
Keep going! You're wearing him down!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Nowhere to hide
Sunday, March 21, 2010
What's up with Texas?
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Can I eat humanely for $50/week?
Grocery list:
- Small roast, Pisciotta Farms: $9
- One dozen eggs, Pisciotta Farms: $3
- Blackberry Jalapeno Jam, San-Man Gardens: $5
- Spinach, locally grown: $4
- Quinoa, organic: $1
- Freshly ground peanut butter: $2.50
- Whole wheat bakery bread: $3.50
- Garlic, organic: $0.50
- Onion, organic: $1
- Half-gallon Shatto milk: $2.50
- ¼ lb free trade coffee beans: $2
- dried blueberries, organic: $2
- oatmeal, organic: $1
- dark chocolate bar, fair-trade: $2.50
- Breakfast: oatmeal with splash of milk, dried blueberries, cinnamon and sugar
- Lunch: peanut butter & jam sandwich
- Dinner: scrambled eggs or slow-cooked roast, spinach salad, quinoa
- chocolate, coffee, and milk to my heart's delight
Rules:
- Only eat from my grocery list. I am allowing myself to cheat the tiniest bit on this one when I go out with friends for coffee or beer, but I am not going to eat any food out.
- Fresh produce must be locally grown, and no frozen produce. If I could have found local, frozen produce, I may have allowed that, but the energy cost of shipping frozen or fresh produce discouraged me from it. I did allow myself the luxury of dried berries since, because of their reduced weight and no need for refrigeration, the energy cost of transportation is significantly lower.
- No sodas. Between the high fructose corn syrup of regular and the artificial sweeteners of diet, there’s really nothing good about them. Besides, with only $50 to spend, I couldn’t afford to waste any of it.
- I did allow myself to utilize my stock of herbs and spices.
- Because I cannot survive without chocolate, I allowed myself to buy one bar of fair-trade dark chocolate. There’s nothing local about chocolate, but it has become a staple for me.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
I-70 closed in Colorado? Is there any other interstate in CO?
Monday, March 8, 2010
Don't elect to have your miscarriage in Utah
In Utah, a 17-year-old girl, desperate to end her pregnancy, paid a man $150 to beat the crap out of her in hopes that it would end in miscarriage. The man obliged. He ended up in jail, but no charges were filed against the girl.
This seriously upset Utah legislators. A 17-year-old girl in that much distress and obvious emotional trauma and they can’t send her to prison? That must be remedied.
Thus, the creation and passing of HB 12, which states that, “a person commits criminal homicide if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes the death of another human being, including an unborn child at any stage of its development.”
What does this mean? According to the New York Times, what concerns civil rights activists, women’s rights activists, and many Utah residents, is what could be defined as “reckless.” The way the law is worded, a woman who knows she is pregnant and engages in risky activity such as skiing, drinking alcohol, continuing to live with an abusive mate, driving without a seatbelt, drinking too much caffeine, or running down the stairs, could be tossed into prison for life.
The bill's authors say no, no, surely it wouldn’t be used in cases like those. No, they only mean to persecute girls who were so desperate, so hopeless, that they would actually pay someone to beat them. That’s who they’re really after, they claim.
So, at best, we increase the number of criminals in our society. We add to the guilt and shame of desperate women. And for women who suffer natural miscarriages but wonder, in the middle of dark, cold, lonely nights what they did wrong, we reinforce their tendency to blame themselves.
Maybe, instead of asking themselves, “how can we imprison more people,” the Utah legislature could ask themselves, “how can we help more people?” Here are a few ideas:
- Offer free and confidential counseling to any woman suffering a miscarriage.
- Offer free and confidential drug counseling and immunity from criminal charges to any pregnant woman struggling with an addiction.
- Initiate a program to educate the public about the causes, and mysteries, of miscarriages. Doctors do not know the root cause of most miscarriages, and many women don’t know that a high a percentage of pregnancies end in miscarriage.
Do you need more ideas, Utah?
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Why is a RAVEN like a WRITING DESK?
Read my full review here.