Now, we all know the trick about "I didn't really try, so it's no big deal that I didn't do so well..." My students say this all the time when they write bad papers or do poorly on tests. My question to him, why didn't you try? Do you not think West Virginia voters are important, or are you getting complacent? Are you afraid of confrontation? Afraid of appearing weak? Is this the going to be the tortoise and the hare, Senator Obama?

So back to my original mission:

 State: Colin Powell. OK, he really messed up by joining the GWB administration, but he saw his mistake and got out. He still has dignity, though, and this would be a bi-partisan appointment without taking in an ideologue.

Treasury: Still thinking...make suggestions

Attorney General: Connecticut Attorney General Blumenthal. This guy is amazing! Saving either Walter Dellinger or Larry Tribe for the US Supreme Court.

Defense: Still thinking...make suggestions.

Interior: Chief Wilma Mankiller. This is not a joke. It's about time a well-respected Native American chief took the helm of this department which has a self-reported "culture of fear" that needs undoing. Its corruption is notorious, especially in the Bureau of Indian Affairs. I don't know whether the chief would take it, but it would be great to have her there.

Housing and Urban Development: John Edwards has led the way with his anti-poverty platform and could do a lot of good in this position. If she does create a cabinet post on poverty, then obviously Edwards would get that spot, and it would be a good call.

Transportation: Jackie Speier is one of those people who has extraordinary life experiences. Surviving gunshot wounds in a fact-finding mission to Jonestown, Speier has worked her way up in bi-partisan positions and earned a lot respect. She has experience in California with Caltrain.

Energy: Carol Browner, served the EPA under Bill Clinton for 2 terms and is well respected. She deserves this upgrade.

Education: Congressman Ciro Rodriguez has experience in education and mental health. He'd be a great pick for this post or health and human services, but I put him in education, where I think he'd really shine.

Veterans Affairs: Charles Rangel, a decorated veteran and congressman from Harlem. He has a controversial position about bringing back the draft, but it's basically an anti-war and equality measure. He certainly cares about veterans issues.

Homeland Security: General Wesley Clark here. Sound policies. Of course, it wouldn't upset me too much if we simply did away with this rather Fascist-sounding department altogether, in which case, Clark could be national security advisor.

 Unlike Obama, who seems to think he could get former presidents and vice presidents to serve under him, Clinton would show more respect. I think she'd take Gore's advice on whom to appoint to energy and the EPA, which would be prudent. But she wouldn't try to get him to take a post.

One another post I will deal with Agriculture, Commerce, Labor and Health and Human Services.

If anyone reads the news, an earthquake of magnitude 7.9 struck the SzeChuan Province days ago.

In my very honest opinion, i think only o.ooo1% or even lesser than that amount of China's population die. I think its a very reasonable amount of people, and seriously i think more should die. 20,000 is just a tiny amount of people.

Whats more? landslides, heavy thunderstorm has worsen working condition, blocked roads and time is life. So when more time passes by, the number of people dying will rise. Hmmm, sounds cool. The world is changing la, who tell China to always tou gong jian dian, factories giving out poisonous fumes, excreting poisonous liquid into sea/rivers whatsoever. This is call hai ren hai ji. Definitely they deserve it, its considered too little. For the harm they cause to the world, like skinning Pandas alive, boiling fish while they are still alive, drinking monkey brain and the many animals they kill for the sake of money, which i think exceeded 20,000, they really deserve to die.

Luckily pandas around that region didnt die. Its call destiny i suppose. They(human) are fated to DIE!

and as for Myanmar, i think the government should die. Aiya human should all die. i sense  that the world will be regenerated into its most basic form in no time. Earthquake, tsunami, hurricane, asteroid hit earth, acute diseases, world war 3 and clear every human beings on earth, returning it to prehistoric age where everything is so peaceful. This is call retribution of humans evil doing.

I'm currently listening to this really amazing mesh-up by a group called Norwegian Recycling. Olivia pox sent them to me, and there is another where 8 songs come together and yet it still sounds really good (:

You know how certain songs remind you of someone when it starts playing? It would be perfect if it was someone worth being reminded. But sadly, Sorry by Buckcherry does remind of someone, someone I've not spoke to for some time now due to a really dumb argument, in my opinion. And now, whenever this songs starts playing on my iTunes, iPod or on the radio, this person just pops up in my mind. And I get reminded of that really meaningless argument.

Before you guys jump into any conclusions, I would say and admit that it takes two to clap. Even so in disagreements, but I've made my move to apologise when it happened. So I really can't be bothered to do anything more about it. Even if we're not going to speak ever again because of it, then it is going to stay that way I guess.

Anyway, I've been thinking, I'm pretty adamant about getting my hair to grow now. Just need to persevere and dismiss any thoughts about cutting it short again. But my hair always get pretty out of hand at some point in time, hahaha, so I would need to deal with tha and yet keep the length going. Hopefully I'd be better off with long hair. Hahahahhaa, can't imagine :P

Oh oh, and I'm once again stuck on this song :)

you know, sometimes, I feel sad.. but most of the time I feel happy.. reasons I feel sad is the thought of not having that smile, those eyes, that pure heart in my life...... he makes me happy....happier than I've ever been before...he understands me.... no-one else understands me..

forever and always I'll love that angel..

X Daloo3a X

no matter what.... love guarantees something.........

heartache......no matter what..

because - someone has to die.

X Daloo3a X

i see nothing but empty space. im still working on an explanation for this! :S

In the spiritual tradition of Ifa, the calendar year is usually associated with an Orisa that would take the focus or priority for the year’s happenings from our human perspectives. In practical terms from the Orisa perspective, no Orisa takes priority over another. Yemonja would never be more or less important than Obatala. Each Orisa has his or her job to do in the natural environment and the absence of one would be a serious detriment to the whole. But it is human nature to setup hierarchy and priority in order to satisfy our human need for some type of order. In order to help us establish our relationship with Orisa, we will be given various priorities for nature using various Orisa. This is truly an oversimplification for the definition of this relationship between humanity and nature. An entire volume can be written to help define this phenomenon. This definition, although true, barely scratches the surface of the complexities of this relationship.

According to the year’s reading given to me by Baba Orunmila, 2008 is the year of Olodumare, for all practical purposes, the Supreme Being in Ifa spirituality. Olodumare, the Supreme Being, is not an Orisa. He is not one of the manifestation of nature, but the founder and top manager of the manifestations of nature at this level of existence throughout the universe. So in essence, 2008 is the year of the Supreme Being.

When I first heard this bit of news, my heart skipped a beat. I kind of felt like one of the guy who works down in the mailroom of a world wide conglomerate and word gets out that the chief executive officer in another city is now paying attention to what’s happening in our mailroom. What in the world would draw his or her attention here? Certainly the CEO’s time would be much better spent studying other aspects of the business. What in the world could be happening that would draw top management’s attention? Suddenly, I would be much more self conscious about the way we went about our business. The only problem is that nobody else in the mailroom is listening or believes the news. So it is business as usual.

A few days ago, I asked Baba Orunmila about Olodumare’s year. I told Baba that I expected Olodumare’s year to be a time of significant impact to humanity. Orunmila laughed and asked if I had not been paying attention. Orunmila knows I’m not the deepest oar in the ocean. My paddle barely reaches the water from the row boat. So he didn’t wait very long to break it down for me.

One thing we must remember about Olodumare is that he doesn’t move like he is the Supreme Being. He doesn’t have to. It is human nature to expect the person in charge to manifest a personality that can command attention at the drop of a dime. The CEO of a multinational can walk in the room and people will notice a change in the air. Everyone in the room will turn and face him or her. People will drop their conversations to hear what he or she has to say.

But the realm of orisa doesn’t operate on such superficial principles. While some Orisas have a very commanding presence, the ladies man Baba Sango quickly comes to mind, other Orisas are more comfortable with the attention being elsewhere, like Baba Osanyin. But, everybody has their job to do. Regardless of his size or his ability to command attention, Olodumare is Olodumare. Everybody knows who he is without him having to throw weight. More importantly Olodumare knows who he is without having to command submissiveness or subservience from the orisa.

Olodumare doesn’t do things in a big kind of way. He is very subtle. He doesn’t beg for attention. This year has seen more pressure for change than I give it credit for. Throughout the Midwest and southwest portion of the nation tornadoes have been scouring the landscape almost on a daily basis. The tornadoes started early and have come often. Entire towns have been changed. The winds of Oya have been extremely busy. The rains of Yemonja have deluged other parts of the nation that were already trying to cope with extraordinary snowfall. Parts of the northwest were inundated with ten inches of snow in the first week of May. This was on top of a particularly snowy winter. Fires have returned to the west. And there was a good sized earthquake of a magnitude 5.2 on the Richter scale in Illinois along what used to be considered a stable fault line. And there have been subsequent earthquakes in Missouri along the New Madrid fault line where the big one, a magnitude seven plus, could come any day now.

On the global perspective, Marynmar has been hit with a cyclone that was initially estimated to have killed four thousand. However the latest estimate now says that more than a hundred thousand people have perished. The government of Marynmar has been slow to respond to the crisis and it is just a matter of time before Baba Babalu Aye, the orisa of health, lets loose with a barrage of diseases on the devastated population. And this morning, China was hit with a massive earthquake estimated on the Richter scale to have a magnitude 7.8. The initial death toll in China was estimated to be about four thousand. But if Marynmar is any indication that death toll will rise high very quickly. The death toll has already been adjusted to upwards of twelve thousand.

And how do we respond as a people to these incidents? The price of fuel has skyrocketed. A relatively small pool of people have actually benefited from the inflation of petroleum. The vast majority of people have been forced to deal with lining the pockets of people already wealthy. The extra cost of fuel has rippled through the economy driving up the price of food. People already trying to cope with budgets devastated by housing costs are now dealing with the elevated costs of everything else. Like most things in life, there is an opportunity for somebody to make a profit and the opportunity to make money has a knock too strong for most people to ignore. It is business as usual for most people.

We are barely into the second trimester of the year. We have a long way to go to get to December. And there will be far more subtle changes in weather and the rest of nature to come our way that will have a significant impact to humanity and challenge our ability to cope. We can take all the changes coming our way and dismiss them as little more than the cost of doing life on this planet. Natural disasters are natural after all.  Tornadoes will spin.  Rain will fall.  Droughts will be will the rain refuses to fall.  Forest will burn.  Earthquakes will rumble.  Mountains will slide.  Some of us are bound to suffer extraordinarily.  But some of us will figure out a way to take advantage and profit handsomely.  There is nothing wrong with our collective sense of socialism.  And what's the harm of a little profit between friends?

We should be more aware of what is going on in the environment.  We should be practicing a much more socially oriented consciousness. But that would be business unusual for a world so focused on the global economy.  Like the pharaoh of Egypt that famously refused to exercise some kind of social responsibility and let go of his preconceived notions of irresponsible entitlement, we won't have a change of heart until the disasters have us all on our knees.  We won't ever change our attitude until we all lose big.

I have lost way too much sleep over this. Nothing turned out the way it was supposed to, and the entire week just seemed to be one major disappointment after another. How fitting, for such a time in the year.

Porter Airlines offers complimentary everything, including alcohol. It also services many-a-suit on the run between corporate conferences about trading and planning. The ferry offers a fantastic view of the Toronto skyline too. Aside from the worrying low-level flight status, I'd highly recommend it if it's still in business by the time this is read.

I wonder if I can do a no sleeper.

• teaching four SS2 classes (I have to give up one, you'll see why),
• handling AKSIS (now also aksyon.iskolar ), and
• assuming the duties of batch adviser for 2011
  

Yeah, that last one literally fell on my lap. There might be another assignment which is pretty important, but I can't talk about yet.

But that isn't all. I'll also be spearheading some new initiatives and projects such as:

• leadership trainings and seminars for officers and student leaders (AKSIS)
• a "Battle of the Bands" type activity with AKSIS and the SS Unit (finale at Bantayog ng mga Bayani)

And possibly, I'll be involved in designing the YMSAT project. Ma'am Dacs and I will be talking soon.

I'll be presenting my plans and ideas for these different assignments in the coming weeks.

Jack Sprat could eat no fat

His wife could eat no lean

And so betwixt the two of them

They licked the platter clean

So goes the traditional British rhyme, well in this household the roles are reversed. Mr Uhdd continues a pace to prepare for his attempt at the 'Bob Graham' fell running challenge next month (its a while since I mentioned it, so here are the statistics; length 74 miles, taking in 42 Lakeland peaks and over 28,000 feet of ascent, to be completed in 24 hours.)

The amount of training required for this sort of challenge, needs fueling and 'catering control' (and that's me) is struggling to stop him from eating himself, his body mass index is now down to 20.6 and his body fat is 3.7 that's heading for pro cyclist levels. Meanwhile I am shopping for and living amongst food I most defiantly shouldn't be eating; it's high in protein and fats and there seems to be no restriction on the flapjack, chocolate and biscuit consumption. It's hard to cater for a more modest diet for me and keep focused on the salad draw in the fridge, when the other shelves are laden with so many tempting goodies and the fruit bowl is juxtaposed with the biscuit tin.

I'm awash with commitments and challenges of my own over the next few weeks, though non so energetic. So posting and blog reading may be a bit spasmodic till mid June, when normal service will be resumed.

There is a new thread that has been started in our office 'discussion forum' where people are heated and boiling over this post published by aamir (not sure if he really has posted such a thing). It seems aamir said the following: "Shahrukh is licking my feet and I am feeding him biscuits every now and then. What more can I ask for? "

If you read aamir's blog carefully, the story goes like this: few years ago, Shahrukh Khan had gone for a film shooting at this same house (Aamir had not purchased it then). The guards were so happy that they decided to name their dog as Shahrukh. Even Shahrukh knows about this. Years later, when aamir bought the house, obviously, it came along with the guards and the dog. Hence.....

True that the post refers to SRK indirectly but i dont think it needs so much of a hype. SRK is a sport...rememeber Om Shanti Om? I guess he will take it with a pinch of salt.

Moreover, i believe its we/media who are unnecessarily making this into such a big issue.. more than what it deserves. even if aamir really has said such a thing nothing will change for him nor for SRK. we need not increase our blood pressures on this topic.

PS: if i had to add some humor to this.. i think SRK should name his cat - 'Aamir' and make the cat eat dry grass... also he should make the cat listen to himesh reshemiya songs everyday and yes... he could possibly make the cat a software engineer.. that would be an ultimate revenge :P

Mood: m scared thinking of what our dear news channels (Aaj Tak, Star, etc etc) will make this into..guess this will be in news for another month or so.. sigh...

I come before you at my first official weigh in roughly 2 months post quitting. I am roughly 9 pounds <collective gasp> bigger. God knows how long it will take me to take them off. It's not entirely the cigarettes fault though. See.. what happened is (this is science right here so brace yourselves) my endorphine drowned brain started to drain and as a result I started to

1. eat sweets to make myself feel better

2. drink alcohol to forget about quitting

3. mope around & become a couch potato

And for those who can't read:

This all happened after the first 2-3 weeks, you know, after the energy pill feeling goes away-right & about the time the reality sets in.

"Oh God..I'm going to be quit forever. I need some 151 to forget about this shit!"

So now I have love handles. I have boobs. I have ass. Major ass. I like big butts ass. And I hear it's mighty hard to loose it..perhaps even impossible. So like I said a while ago..it might be time for a tonsil operation.

I'm trying to go on a diet. I do these things called mini exercises. For example I try to move around a lot in the shower. I do calf-ups <collective ewww>. I walk with my arms slightly elevated. I pinch my fat. I think thin and I make other people feel fat. The system is not really working yet but I am hopeful and already feeling better about myself.

Above all else I try to do everything except quit drinking alcohol, exercise and stop eating. Why? Because eating has become delicious now with all the extra taste buds; alcohol is my fall-back feel good drug and exercise is just plain tiring.

Our relationship really started in my early 20's.  I think I really grew up at that point and began to be able to appreciate her as a person, and all she had been through.  I was able to look at things objectively and cut some of the negative tapes from playing in my own head.  Plus, she was in a better position too mentally to be able to give since I wasn't relying on her for financial support and things had eased up a bit in her own life.

I realised that my mother was actually a human being when I was 23.  One day I woke up with the idea of "Wow, what would I have done at the age of 26, having to raise 3 children completely alone 3,000 miles away from my family and everything I knew?".  Suddenly how close it was to me.  That wasn't too far from the age I was.  How the hell would I have coped with such a daunting task.  Would I have been any better equipped?  Especially with her set of circumstances?  A whole new respect and understanding for her came into focus.  I also realised that she too is a person, and a human with feelings and needs.  How amazing.  That was a big thing for me to come to.

My mother and I took our first grown up trip together as women when I was 23.  We went to Belgium and Holland.  Just the two of us.  My God, we had such a great time!  We laughed non stop!  Some parts of the trip were right out of a classic "I love Lucy" episode.  I swear!  We learned alot about each other on that trip, and I think it was really the first time that we were able to really enjoy each other for who we were as people rather than just as mother and daughter. 

It was hysterical dealing with issues like sex shops and cafes that sold pot.  It was so foreign to us both.  It embarrassed us both.  Because I as her baby was seeing it, and she as my mother was seeing it.  We ended up laughing so hard and making it a huge big joke.  We even went to the Red light district together for an oogle and a giggle.  How liberating for us both!

Because I lived in England, and my mother in the US, we really didn't have much time together.  When I did move back to the US, I was busy working and so was she for the short time I was there.  I was married, I had a home and a business plus worked 18 hours a day.  My mother too worked 12 hours a day.  There wasn't much time to spend together.

Finally, when my life fell apart, and I needed to leave my marriage, my mother welcomed me with open arms.  She was not judging nor was she demanding.  She let me grieve for my marriage for six entire months as I stared at the walls in my bedroom.  The day of month six however, she came in with her big boots on and kicked my ass where it needed to be.  She put me back on track, and on the way to getting back on my feet.

Then tragedy struck.  I got sick and my world ended.  My mother suddenly stepped into my life and became my partner, my mother and my best friend.  She got me through the toughest times.  I don't know how she did it.  To watch your child suffer pain, and basically torture for years on end has to be horrendous for any parent to bear.  There were many tears shed, but she never left my side.

We found humor and friendship in these days.  She shared the wisdom of her experience and years with me then.  She even helped me to pick the perfect husband.  All while spending 7 long months cooped up in a hospital day after day together, not knowing what the next day would bring.

Roles have changed a bit.  I have in many ways become her guide.  I am her rock, and her support.  I will give her the peace in my home now, and the ability to let go without fear or stress.  I hope that I am able to share with her humor, and make her smile when times get tough for her, and repay her kindness to me.

I have come to realise through all of this that my mother is not only the woman who gave birth to me, but she's my very best friend.  I will miss her every day...

I am stubborn. Even when I see small warning signs, I try to do my best and make things better because I love the person. I do not want to realise the relationship is doomed and that is probably why I am the one who get dumped. I also has a quite naive way of thinking I can overcome every obstacle, when in reality, it takes two. This may be stupid, but I think it is a pattern which is really difficult to break. I mean, if you love someone, you try to work out your problems especially when they are just minor. I don't know what living in two different places can be defined as, a minor or a major one, objectively speaking. I thought it could work. I did not. I get over it. I move on. Can I break this pattern? Probably not, but being aware of it is at leased a step in the right direction.  

Wow.............

finally someone that thinks like me.

X Daloo3a X

Check out June's Breakfast Speaker:

Dwayne Morgan began his career as a spoken word artist in 1993. He is the founder and guiding force of Up From The Roots Entertainment, which was established in 1994 to promote the positive artistic contributions of African Canadian and urban influenced artists. His work as a poet and spoken word artist has won him numerous awards including winning the Canadian Urban Music Award twice for Best Spoken Word Recording. He has four published books and chapbooks.

But Dwayne’s creativity and talent for writing express themselves in many ways: he is a motivational speaker, who hosts Diasporic Music, a monthly spoken word show on CKLN 88.1 FM, while also serving as an advice columnist in the Sun Media daily paper 24 Hours. He collaborated with Driftwood Studios to film, “Three Knocks”, a ten minute film based on his domestic violence poem of the same name, which was premiered in Toronto’s Reel World Film Festival. Dwayne’s photography made its public debut at Scotiabank’s Nuit Blanche, 2007.

Dwayne’s drive, work ethic, and the outstanding quality of his work have driven his success, and made him one of the most respected and influential members of Toronto’s urban music community, as well as the North American, and Global, spoken word scene.

For more information, or to book your spot at the meeting, please visit the WCDR Website:

WRITERS' CIRCLE OF DURHAM REGION MONTHLY BREAKFAST MEETING

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The end of temporary protection visas for refugees is a step forward for human rights
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I was at that stage a few weeks ago....things managed to sort themselves out, well almost..

And then..something else happened... which is causing me some more confusion.. but unlike last time, I'm staying strong..

I know life isn't meant to be easy.. it's not.. if it was, we'd be bored.. 9a7? Of course, we would.

I came across something this morning.....it doesn't relate to me.. because he does love me... but what happens when your loving someone that doesn't love you back?

It’s a wretched, miserable existence when you’re in love with someone who doesn’t love you back. Whether their eyes glaze over when they see you, or you’re “just a friend”, it sucks. It can do serious damage to self esteem. You find yourself wishing, trying, and thinking (maybe even obsessively. It’s ok, I won’t tell) and you can very well reach a point of despair.What I’ve noticed would happen in a situation like this is sometimes you may find yourself trying to alter yourself to the person’s pleasing. Or worse - what you THINK that person likes. Sometimes desperation makes you do things that you wouldn’t do otherwise. I just wanted to put this out there for the eager eyes that read this.

hat person’s - or anyone’s - opinion of you for that matter does not define you or your value.
You are not any less smart, sexy, clever, talented, anything. Thinking in this way only aggravates the effects you feel from rejection. It’s a quick launch to a negative space that will certainly affect all aspects of your life. I’m not saying don’t be sad. But know who you are.

Don't let anyone change you.

They should love you for you..

X Daloo3a X

You may be like my spouse who needs a lot of time alone to feel energized. He enjoys quiet evenings and weekends to be able to recharge his batteries. If he had a job like mine we would starve and he would be insane.

So what do you know about yourself? Do you understand what makes you tick, or do you feel frustrated by your moods and are unable to identify what lifts your spirits. Personality plays a big role in the choices we make for our lives and if we are not careful to understand who we are, and what our strengths allow us to do, we may well operate at the level of our weaknesses and get stuck in positions that don't suit us.

Take time to really understand what make you unique, it will help you to treat yourself better, understand the kinds of things you need to do all the time to keep yourself fresh and alive, choose jobs suited for you, and even pick friends.  Self analysis can lead to some serious "ah-ha" moments for you as you travel on your journey to find purpose for your life.

Better in Time - Leona Lewis

It's been the longest winter without you
I didn't know where to turn to
See somehow I can't forget you
After all that we've been through

Going coming thought I heard a knock
Who's there no one
Thinking that I deserve it
Now I realise that I really didn't know
If you didn't notice you mean everything
Quickly I'm learning to love again
All I know is I'm gon' be ok

[Chorus:]
Thought I couldn't live without you
It's gonna hurt when it heals too
It'll all get better in time
And even though I really love you
I'm gonna smile cause I deserve to
It'll all get better in time

I couldn't turn on the TV
Without something there to remaind me
Was it all that easy
To just put aside your feelings

If I'm dreaming don't wanna laugh
Hurt my feelings but that's the path
I believe in
And I know that time will heal it
If you didn't notice boy you meant everything
Quickly I'm learning to love again
All I know is I'm gon' be ok

[Chorus:]
Thought I couldn't live without you
It's gonna hurt when it heals too
It'll all get better in time
And even though I really love you
I'm gonna smile cause I deserve to
It'll all get better in time

Since there's no more you and me
It's time I let you go
So I can be free
And live my life how it should be
No matter how hard it is I'll be fine without you
Yes I will

[Chorus: X2]
Thought I couldn't live without you
It's gonna hurt when it heals too
It'll all get better in time
And even though I really love you
I'm gonna smile cause I deserve to
It'll all get better in time

X Daloo3a X

I really enjoy twitter. I've probably spent too much time on it, and this blog is probably going to make me twitter more, then blog more etc.

I find out stuff first mostly on twitter now. It's odd, but I'm far more likely to click on links from people on twitter than anywhere else.

Ah well, time to stop blogging again!  Trying to keep them shorter for more commentability.

Sarah Thiele - I won't let you go..

I heard this on One Tree Hill and loved it ....

I'd really love the lyrics to this song.. I can't find them anywhere.. anyone have them?

X Daloo3a X