Needs a Good Home

The Mini is officially on the market so if you know anyone who wants an awesome little car please let us know. We have an ad on Craigslist here if you want more detail.

so much to be thankful for...

yesterday we gave thanks for our blessings...a new direction in our country, our friends, our health, our families and so much more.

today i hope we can keep those who are no so fortunate in our prayers.

especially the people in mumbai who are dealing with this horrible situation- the injured, the families who have lost loved ones, those still being held by these madmen and the indian national guard who are risking their lives to save them and restore peace.

this, of course, is weighing heavy on us with our impending trip to india but we know coke will always put our personal safety above all else.

it is a sad and unfortunate fact that we live in a world where this sort of senseless violence and terror could happen anywhere.

The Santaland Diaries

To continue our new favorite Christmas tradition we are going again this year to see The Santaland Diaries.

If you're not familiar, it's a play based on the hilarious short story by David Sedaris all about his adventures working as an elf at Macy's for the Christmas Holiday. If you're not familiar with David Sedaris then you need to go directly to the bookstore and get a copy of "Naked" right now...like now!

We're going on the 11th and would love for anyone who can make it to join us. You can buy tickets online through the theater. FYI- don't spring for the front row "VIP" tickets. The theater is tiny and you don't want to sit that close...unless you want a ride on Santa's sleigh :)

We'll probably do dinner/beverages beforehand so if you want to join just let us know.

And if you can't go that night I highly recommend you go at some point...you will not regret it! Unless you hate laughing until it hurts...then maybe you should go see The Nutcracker instead...which I think we're going to see as well, but that is another blog.


Just a tidbit of holiday cheer from my favorite elf, Crumpet...


"She said, "I'm going to have you fired."

I had two people say that to me today, "I'm going to have you fired." Go ahead, be my guest. I'm wearing a green velvet costume; it doesn't get any worse than this. Who do these people think they are?

"I'm going to have you fired!" And I wanted to lean over and say, "I'm going to have you killed."

balls of fire

i have officially reached the point of "stressing out" about leaving...i have a ball of fire in each of my shoulders that have not let up for 2 weeks. my acupuncturist even did "cupping" on my back but all i got was a round bruise that hurt like heck for the entire day.

there is still so much to do and finalize and it seems whenever we check something off the list we add three more things to it.

the american who left last january only had like 2-3 weeks notice...i have no understanding of how she got everything done.

all the peeps we know in the international dept are so laid back and nonchalant about it all...i hope after we leave that i will somehow reach this seemingly stress-free nirvana they all seem to live in. do we get a bunch of xanex in our medical bag or what??

i guess until then i'll just continue eating advil like their candy and waking up at 4am worrying about stupid things like where i'm going to find a one-piece bathing suit this time of year for ever-so-modest india.

booked

Plane tickets to Delhi are booked! We leave at 5:20pm on the 24th!

Poor Wife has to travel coach because I'm with her...it is going to be a long 19 hours and 10 minutes!!

Delhi here we come!

No more speculating, wishing, crossing our fingers or guessing...we are definitely headed to India in January.

We are really excited to be going to Delhi for 2 main reasons...one, we couldn't ask for better weather to be spending our winter months in (average high 75/average low 55) and it's a part of the world we probably would have never seen otherwise. I mean, we love to travel but it's the places that we'd probably never vacation that are the ones I am most excited about visiting.

We are already trying to plan our weekend excursions...thus far we've thrown around going to Nepal, visiting the coast in Goa, going to Dubai, doing a desert tour and obviously seeing the Taj Mahal.

We'll be there for 7 weeks so if you have been to India or know anyone who has it is finally time to start giving us travel advise!

thank you

a very sincere thank you to everyone who came out on saturday to protest prop 8. it was amazing to be surrounded by like-minded people who believe in equality and actually gave up a few hours of their saturday to fight for it.

knb pointed out how awesome it would have been had there been the same number of people there that go to pride each year...sadly it seems that a large part of our community ranks drinking above their status as second class citizens in this country.

big thanks to our amazing neighbors that may be straight but are definitely not narrow. you guys are gr8te!!

there are going to be more protests to come and i really hope to see more of our friends there.

“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” -MLK Jr.

why marriage equality is important

just three out of thousands of marriages that had and still have no protections...



i pray the wife and i are still not fighting this fight when we have our 30th anniversary...

saturday

I want to seriously ask that everyone come out on Saturday to either the rally Downtown or the vigil in Midtown or both if you can.

I don't care if you are straight, gay or somewhere in-between...this is my family, this is your family, these are our neighbors' families...we need to stand together against Prop 8.

I know one day I will want my children to know that I stood up and was counted...that I was a face in what I hope is a sea of faces that stood up to discrimination and hate...that I wanted to not only fight for my marriage but for true marriage equality for all...I want them to know that I fought to protect them before they were even born...

I hope I can tell them you were there with me.

say no to H8!!!

2 very important events happening this Saturday. I urge all of you in Georgia to come out and show your support. The Wife and I will be at the candlelight vigil so anyone who wants to come with is more than welcome!

This is NOT just California's issue nor is it just a gay rights issue. This is a CIVIL RIGHTS issue and we cannot stand on the sidelines and let our rights be chiseled away at by fear, hate and ignorance.

A message from the event organizers:

"A nation-wide protest is planned in opposition of California's Prop. 8 for this Saturday, November 15th. Join The Impact is organizing the event via the web and organizers have two Atlanta events planned to coincide with the national protests.

The first event (rally) will begin at 1:30 PM outside of the Georgia State Capitol building. You are asked to bring signs, flags and wear t-shirts voicing your opposition to Prop. 8. The official blog for this event is Atlanta's March for Equality.

The second event to follow will be a candlelight vigil at the corner of 10th and Piedmont outside Outwrite Books in Midtown from 5 PM to 8PM. You are asked to bring candles and again signs to demonstrate your resolve for marriage equality. If you are on Facebook you can view more details about the vigil here.

So please plan on attending one of these events. You should be aware the local media (television and print) will likely cover these events. Show the city, state and our country that you care about your civil rights and that you demand equality now. The more people that attend the greater the visual impact on television and we need to demonstrate the strength and power of our community. We need numbers and now is not the time to pretend you do not care.

There is not much time so get the word out. Tell all your friends, send emails, post on your blog, and make your voice heard."

yaba daba goodbye!

I just heard Jack Cafferty on CNN describe the Obama family's visit to the White House today as a "Flintstones meet the Jetsons Moment".

Love it!

I can't wait for Fred and Wilma to pack their bags and high-tail it back to Bedrock...I mean Texas...I always get those mixed up.

historic pack rat

Hello, my name is MAV and I'm a Pack Rat...

I have worked really hard to fight my addiction of gathering and saving things over the past couple of years. Mainly, because the Wife is a much bigger pack rat than I and if we both kept doing it we'd end up being those weird old ladies with the house you could barely walk through due to the stacks of newspapers, magazines and orange peels.

Anyway, I fell off the wagon today when I read at PT that the AJC was selling an 11 page collector edition of the important front pages of Obama's campaign and win.

You can buy it at any Kroger or Publix in the city or at the AJC office downtown.

I think the most historic Presidency of our lifetime is worth a few inches in the attic.

the wedding that wouldn't die...

Okay, so I know it has been like 2 1/2 years since our wedding but now that I'm packing it has come to my attention that we never gave any of the wedding party a copy of the video.

Russ did a great job with the video and the reception is pretty hilarious. If you don't see it now, believe me, you'll be seeing footage at your 40th birthday party ;)

So man and matron of honor, bridesmaids, and our bridal champion, you know who you are and if you want a copy before they go into storage for 2+ years you need to let me know.

apparently monkeys don't like the taste of leaves

dear california- kiss it.

Although our dear friend's sister who resides in California said it best (see comments on previous entry but beware there is no holding back with the language)I would like to say how incredibly disappointed I am in Prop 8 passing.

This vote of course doesn't directly effect my already unlawful Georgia marriage but it very much effects the prospect of it becoming lawful in the near future. It also greatly effects our plans to get married in Napa Valley when we return in two years...so say goodbye to that tourism revenue Cali, and if you knew us you'd know we don't do anything on a small scale, especially a wedding.

But in all seriousness, I think the thing it effects most is the trust I try to have in my fellow man.

To cast a vote to deny us the same civil liberties and freedoms OUR forefathers guaranteed to ALL of US is an atrocity. To cast a vote in favor of writing invidious discrimination into your state constitution is reprehensible.

No excuse is acceptable, especially religious ones...and I don't want to start quoting Bible verses here but if anyone reads this and wants to have a theological discussion about it please feel free to email me.

So to all those who voted in favor of Prop 8 in California and to those voters in Arkansas and Florida who helped them do the same thing and worse:

What you did was wrong. Period.

I pray for a time that no person ever has to feel separate and unequal from their fellow man.

At this time in our history, more than ever before, I take solace in the words of an incredible man spoken 45 years ago...

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

God Bless America

I want to first admit that I fell asleep way before the speech last night and had to watch it this morning. Sorry, but as CNN pointed out I'm no longer the "youth vote" and I was exhausted. I was very confident when I went to sleep that I would wake up to a new America and let me tell you, it felt great when I did.

I am overwhelmed today with feelings of pride and hope for my country. I know there is an incredibly long road ahead of us but I feel, for the first time in 8 years, that we now will have a leader whose intelligence and judgement we can trust to guide us, as a nation, to a brighter day.

I started to get angry this morning when I heard 3 people on NPR that were leaving the Chambliss event last night tell a reporter they felt like it was another 9/11. To compare the most devastating national tragedy we have experienced in our lifetime to Barack winning the Presidency is probably one of the most offensive things I have ever heard. I imagine that the surviving families of the victims of 9/11 would agree.

But, I decided to let the anger go. This is a beautiful day and an amazing time to be an American. I know we cannot heal the hate and division in this country overnight...but I am hopeful that in time we, as a nation, can work together for the greater good and I believe Barack Obama is the man who can help us do that.

"Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, We are not enemies, but friends...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too."

time to make up your mind

So tomorrow I go to cast my vote for Obama. The Wife and I are getting up at the crack of dawn and going to stand in what we hope to be a not-so-long line. The receptionist at my physical therapy office and I are convinced we will breeze through the lines thanks to all the suffering the early voters experienced before us.

I'm really hopeful but also nervous about the outcome of tomorrow's elections. I just hope all those "undecided" have finally realized this isn't a hard decision. You either like the way this country is going to hell in a hand basket or you want some change for the better!

Being an extremely opinionated person, I've always had a difficult time understanding those who can truly be "undecided" when the differences are so great.

I recently read the article in the New Yorker by my fave author, David Sedaris, where he, too, expressed his confusion with these people...

"I look at these people and can’t quite believe that they exist. Are they professional actors? I wonder. Or are they simply laymen who want a lot of attention?

To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. “Can I interest you in the chicken?” she asks. “Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it?”

To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.

I mean, really, what’s to be confused about?"

So come on America it is time to stop pausing, come to your senses and order the damn chicken!

tagged

i believe our blog may have been tagged by our friend in the orient...so although i am the only one who actually posts anything on this blog, it is technically 2girlsintheworld and therefore a joint blog so i'm going to write 7 random things about both of us.

1. at birth the doctor kept saying the Wife had the heartbeat of a boy and her parents were going to name her john
2. my family calls me M.D. (and it makes no difference to them that i have now dropped my middle name)
3. the Wife's favorite movie is Silence of the Lambs
4. my fave is Coal Miner's Daughter
5. i've always been really superstitious and although i try to hide it from people i'm always worried about stupid little things causing bad mojo...i think it is the island blood in me
6. the Wife's biggest pet peeve is mouth noises (i.e. smacking while eating, crunching food, popping gum)
7. we have sponsored a child for over 5 years who lives in south america named Carlos Miguel...he is now 9 and loves salsa music. his photos are always on our fridge in case you thought he was one of my relatives ;)

so there you go, and as for tagging others i don't know 7 bloggers.

but just in case (see #5)...

Cassi, Dr. Pants, Em & Beth, Gayle & Oprah -you're it!