Letters for Lyrics [Support Our Troops]

Check out 'Letters for Lyrics' HERE.

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The Dream Realized.

One man had a dream.
That dream carried us all a long way.
It moved us forward.
It was a little light that nobody could keep from shining.
That dream lasted forty years and then some.
Then, as a country, we woke to find
it wasn't a dream at all.

For anyone who's ever had a dream
and anyone who's ever helped them realize it...

The Dream Realized.

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"This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions..." [MLK, Irony]

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National Day of Service [1/19/09]

Monday, January 19 is Martin Luther King Day. And wonderfully, instead of adding yet another shopping day to the calendar, it's being transformed to a day of service.

If every person in the US spent an hour doing something selfless, useful and leveraged, what would happen? What if you and your circle committed to doing it an hour a day for a year? 300 million hours is a lot of hours for just one day, a year of that would change everything.

While I applaud stopgap contributions like helping out in a soup kitchen (where labor and supplies are really needed), I wonder how those that are lucky enough to be web savvy can create work that really adds leverage. What if you did one of these things every day?

Here are some ideas that you can do online or in your community, with time, not so much with money.

- Go through your house and find beloved books that you're glad you read... and give them to the library.

- Create and promote an online petition for a cause you care about.

- Start a Facebook group for like-minded people who support the same non-profit you do. Commit to spending time to promote it, organize the people there and actually create outcomes of value.

- Find a cause that supports soldiers or diplomats or other public servants that are on the road, and make it easier for them to connect with people back home.

- Lobby Congress with letters and blog posts to make a change to a law that doesn't benefit you at all, but helps the community in the long run.

- Write a great wikipedia article every day about a person who is changing the world for the better.

- Find video and remix it into an insanely viral video that promotes a cause that you believe in.

...and HERE are plenty more ideas.


[via sethgodin]

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Beautiful, bittersweet memories flood my mind when I listen to this song...

...the lyrics speak of grasping special times in our lives and not letting their opportunities slip away...when we are young it is so hard to really understand that...someday today will be a long, long time ago.

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An Open Letter To The Scumbag That Thought This Was A Good Idea:

dear piece-of-shit-detective-from-alaska-that-thought-it-was-a-good-idea-to-make-this-cake-for-god-knows-what-occasion,

you're a fucking asshole. there's not much more to be said. i'm sure your fellow police officers in new york will get a real kick out of seeing this.

karma's a bitch. be careful hunting.

sincerely,

the guy that just called a detective an asshole and doesn't care who knows it


[photo via slog]

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"A Family That Drinks Together, Stays Together." [A Thought, Rethunk]

though i humbly prefer a snifter or two (or ten) of grand marnier to a christmas foo-foo drink, i also know that they have their place at family gatherings. because as my family has always said, "a family that drinks together, stays together." then again, come to think of it, judging by the fact that three of the five of us will each be alone on seeming opposite ends of the earth this christmas, i'd have to question the legitamacy of that statement... but i digress. a few of you buttersweaters have asked me for some recipes for the holidays and such, to which i am happy to oblige, and to which i add a bonus gift. almost like the fourth jonas brother, only this one'll get you drunk. but a bonus nonetheless. eight recipes to help you fondly remember or quickly forget this holiday season, depending on your consumption of course. cheers to a merry christmas!

1. The Grinch
The Grinch, with his hideous appearance, is a repulsive creature. So why create a cocktail inspired by that monster? The Grinch’s color scheme actually looks appealing when carried by an alcoholic beverage. The cocktail’s pale green base and red garnish bring a balance of elegance and mystery, which you will surely enjoy.
Ingredients:
2 oz Midori
1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
1 tsp sugar syrup
1 cherry



2. Candy Cane Martini
Vodka is a pretty versatile drink, when it comes to the flavors you can incorporate. Unconventional ingredients like chocolate and mocha can be easily turned into a luscious martini, when combined with vodka. So is a candy cane-flavored martini possible? Of course!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 oz vodka
1/2 - 1 tsp Peppermint Schnapps
1 oz club soda
ice
crushed candy canes



3. AJ's Orange Christmas Punch
A.J. Rathbun, senior editor of Amazon.com, happens to be an ace in mixing drinks. He created this wonderful concoction, perfect for large gatherings. Ready your friends and your punch bowl before you savor this cool creation.
Ingredients:
4 oz Cointreau
4 oz brandy
large chunks of ice
2 bottles of champagne
2 oranges - wedges
1 cup of cranberries



4. Christmas Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan has always been a hit with the ladies, regardless of season or occasion. You just have to serve a well-mixed supply and they will go for it, without hesitation. It certainly brings the party out of any animal.
Ingredients:
1/2 oz Cointreau
1/2 oz cranberry juice
1 tsp fresh lime juice
frozen cranberries
ice



5. Christmas Cookie Concoction
Cookies are prevalent during the holiday season. Mothers devote some time in baking these tasty creations, which turn into a parts of the Christmas dinner or gifts to friendly neighbors. Naturally, a drink centered on the cookie is bound to be concocted.
Ingredients:
chocolate sauce
2 oz vodka
2 oz Irish Cream
1/2 oz half and half milk
1/2 oz Peppermint Schnapps
chocolate shavings



6. Deck the Halls Shooter aka "The I Don't To Talk To My In-Laws Shooter"
Christmas is a holiday filled with merrymaking, even for alcoholics. When everyone is clamoring for fruitcake and cookies, alcohol lovers want nothing but a strong and tasty drink to fill their appetites. Here is a mix that they will truly appreciate.
Ingredients:
1 part Jagermeister
2 parts Sambuca
1 part Grenadine
club soda



7. The Three Wise Men aka "The I Don't Want To Talk To Anyone Shooter"
The three wisemen, after journeying for the north star, decided to rest as they converged. When you listen to them, you will hear their merriment and the sound of clinking glasses. Puzzled? They’re not really Melchor, Gaspar and Baltazar. They are the three wisemen of Scotch and their message is, “Drink up, for it’s the season to be jolly.”
Ingredients:
1/3 oz Jack Daniels
1/3 oz Jim Beam
1/3 oz Johnny Walker



8. White Christmas
White Christmas is a creamy drink with a hint of nutmeg. The blend is perfect as an after-dinner beverage and a cocktail that accompanies intimate conversations. Try this one. After a few sips, it may become your staple drink for Christmas parties.
Ingredients:
1 oz vodka
1 oz amaretto
1 oz heavy cream
nutmeg
ice


[via lifehackery]

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Clinton's Socks, Near Death

We had some bad news yesterday on the presidential pet front. Socks the cat, probably the most photographed presidential kitty in history, has cancer and isn't expected to live. "His days are numbered," says Barry Landau, a friend of Socks' master, Betty Currie. Landau, a presidential historian and author of The President's Table, tells our Suzi Parker that the Currie family could have put Socks on feeding tubes, but decided against it. "They fear he is too old," adds Landau, who is writing a book on presidential inaugurations. And a second source told us that Socks is gravely ill.

Recall that Currie, who lives in Southern Maryland and was Bill Clinton's personal secretary, took Socks after the Democrats left office. At the time, Hillary Clinton had been elected to the Senate and Bubba was moving to New York to run his foundation.

In recent years, Socks has been hanging out at Currie's Hollywood, Md., home and sometimes making guest appearances. But since we last wrote about Socks, his conditions have worsened and included weight loss and kidney problems. Southern Maryland Newspapers Online did a wonderful story about this last year, quoting Currie's husband Bob saying what lots of us pet owners say: Socks "lives better than I do."

Linda Kulman, who ghost wrote Hillary Clinton's book, Dear Socks, Dear Buddy: Kids's Letters To First Pets, was saddened by the news, telling me, "He is the last of his kind." For the book, Kulman, says she "spent time" with Socks and Clinton's first pup Buddy. "He was nothing but a gentleman. He was elegant and a perfect resident of the White House." She adds, "he won't soon be replaced."

The Clintons adopted Socks in 1991, when Bill was still governor of Arkansas. Neither the Curries nor the Clintons had immediate comment.

[usnews via somecrazygarbage]

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Fade Into You [Mazzy Star]

can we talk about how i haven't heard this song since high school? thank you thisrecording.

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Once Upon A Win [Memory Lane]

remember the good ol’ days of your childhood? when you simply got to play with your favorite toy, savor that candy you only got when you had been good, or just sit in front of the television watching cartoons.

now you can relive those classic times and moments with failblog's newest site, once upon a win. take a walk down memory lane with our visual collection of the most epic wins from the past.

remember playing with Lawn Jarts? kind of dangerous, but yet so fun.

how many hours did you waste playing nintendo duck hunt and cursing that stupid dog that laughed at you?

what was your favorite flavor of fun dip?

we all wanted to take a ride in the a-team van and do some awesome stunts.

and how cool was airwolf? that theme song was truly epic as well.

[onceuponawin]

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Damn, Do I Miss It.

every restaurant you work in leaves a mark on you. sometimes it's just a scrape, sometimes it's a scar, and sometimes it leaves you tattooed - changed forever. your scrapes are probably few. the impact of these kitchens may have hit you hard initially, but in time those marks will fade, along with your memories of these places. what were the dishes we were cooking there? who was that guy i worked pantry with? was there even a chef there? often these places were your stepping stones. these are the places that didn't necessarily inspire you or maybe they did, until you realized that maybe thai/mexican fusion wasn't your thing and you split. but no worries, these places don't remember you either. when you go by for a visit (if they're still in business) you recognize no one. the menu is full of the same stuff you were cooking years ago. the only change is that the floors are a little more worn, and the kitchen is covered in a new layer of grease. the lessons you took away with you seem remedial now; learning what the sanitizer dispenser looks like, what a 6th pan is, and how to brunoise pancetta perfectly, to name a few. you might even leave this place off of your resume.

a restaurant that scars you usually does so physically and mentally. i'm not talking emotional scars, although there might be a few of those. i'm talking about a change in the way you approach your work... that eventually starts to spill over into your personal life. your inner clock starts to adjust to your nocturnal lifestyle. when you walk the crowded aisles of a grocery store you say "behind you." your technique starts to come around, and you start to understand the language of the kitchen. spanish starts to pop up when you're talking to your friends. food looks different now. eating out, you can identify ingredients, techniques, and see a chef's style coming out. these scars are your foundation, and these years are the ones you refer to as the good old days. you pay your dues here, and come away with confidence, and hunger for the next challenge.

the kitchens that tattoo you are the most rare. these places hold a place in your heart reserved for family, your girlfriend, and anything else deeply important to you. after working here you talk differently. you listen differently. your very dna morphs into something new. and it goes both ways. you leave your mark, and you can see it rubbing off on others daily. everyone uses the same phrases, and holds themselves to the same standards. conversations ramble on and on about cooking. time spent out of the kitchen is still spent together, as a team, eating out or going to markets. on your days off you miss the kitchen. you look back on yourself before you came here, and that person is almost unrecognizable.

so the question is, how are you leaving your mark? is your impact something positive? are you contributing something? are you a part of it? or just skirting along the edges? do the other cooks mimic your style? do they listen when you speak? are you able to see the big picture - balancing the personal side and the business side? is everyone working towards the same goals? is everyone even comfortable talking about their goals? will your time spent here be something that influences and changes the other cooks careers?

i've made a difference.

and damn, do i miss it.

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What the Hell is that Flying Dog's Name?

[bestweekever via toomuchawesome]

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We Sure Did Miss You [Florida. Florida. Florida.]

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The Audacity of Hope.

at this turning point in all of our lives, emotions run deep; i feel the anxiety of a nation in the eyes of supporters at rallies on the television. it has truly been a long eight years, and for the first time in my life, i feel a connection to the history of our nation. sure, i have voted before, but i never before knew what my vote actually meant. in a conversation with my girlfriend today, i asked what it must feel like to live in a state that turns red, or turns blue, in every election. does your vote really still count? to this, i realize that the answer is, yes. at some point, in some year, a state can change color. look at virginia this year. and arizona for that matter. one vote really can tip the seesaw.

with that being said, i know hawaii is, and always will be a democratic state. but once i heard the news of barack obama's grandmothers passing, i wondered if she had voted. i had said a few weeks back, that i hoped she could hang on until election day. today, when the news of her passing came, it was my hope that at least she had had the opportunity to vote in this historic, her last, election. and so, i was humbled to see this:

Ms. Dunham’s absentee mail ballot was received and reviewed under the Hawaii standards for processing absentee mail ballots… She was alive at that time. Her ballot will be opened tomorrow, and it will be counted in the same way that all absentee voters would be treated under our law. [slog]

and as he heroically spoke at a rally in north carolina, only hours after receiving the news of her passing, he peacefully called her a "quiet hero" — "like a lot of quiet heroes in the crowd, in the country..." as he continued to speak, with his voice mostly steady, with tears streaming down his right cheek — the first public tears he has shed, as far as we've seen, in his time on the national stage. when he finished, he reached inside his pocket, pulled out a white handkerchief, wiped his eyes, and carried on with his speech, returning a few times to the woman who shaped his character as much as anyone in the world.

on a different day, in a different year, such meditations on the emotional life of a politician might seem treacly. maybe to some they do, even now. but in the context of a historic election, and of a candidate who has earned a reputation for being unflappable, it is hard not to be moved.

ms. madelyn dunham, matriarch of hope for a nation, may she rest in peace.

More than any time in recent history, America's destiny is of our own choosing. The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels tonight, but every time we think we have measured our capacity to meet a challenge, we look up and we're reminded that that capacity may well be limitless. This is a time for American heroes. We will do what is hard, we will achieve what is great. This is a time for American heroes and we reach for the stars. God bless their memory, God bless you and God bless the United State of America. --Jed Bartlett

[via twiztv, gawker]

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"The streets of heaven...

...are too crowded with angels, but every time we think we have measured our capacity to meet a challenge, we look up and we're reminded that that capacity may very well be limitless." -Jed Bartlet

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The Outcasts...

[click photo to enlarge]
READ: 'U.S. Muslim voters are election-year outcasts'
[via msnbc]

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ZIMA [R.I.P.]

thank god i'm not in high school anymore, because i don't know what a high school party would be like without a six-pack of zima and a bag of jolly ranchers. the makers of zima ("booze" that i thought that they stopped making eight years ago) have announced that they have discontinued the increasingly unpopular "malternative beverage." *tear*

you're in luck though, because according to the official release announcing the retirement of zima, you should be able to purchase it through the end of the year. stock up while you can! (and pick up a mega-pack of tums too, you'll need it for the heartburn that follows.)

[ap via gawker]

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"They're All Kinds of Walking Sex Toys & Shit." --My Mom

that's a direct quote. by my mom. and before you ask, yes, i am proud.

here's the back story:
about a month ago, i was having a conversation with my mom about the television programs that kids watch these days. cartoons in particular. there is a huge difference between hand drawn and computer generated cartoons. am i wrong? i don't know, to me, there's something so pure & honest about hand drawn cartoons that is lost in today's saturday morning entertainment. one specific example that i recall talking about was hanna-barbera; do kids even know what that means anymore? hanna-barbera. the flintstones, the jetsons, huckleberry hound, the snorks! all lost on kids now. replaced with little 3-d people. what's fun about an animated person? i'll take yogi & boo-boo any day. and even worse is that anime crap. the slutty asian characters with blue or purple hair that are meant for kids that are 9 going on 19.

fast forward to two weeks ago. sam and i went to dinner at a friend's house. and i was so happy to see that their 5 year old daughter was watching the flintstones! sure she loves barbies and horsies, but she was watching cave people running around in rags and bare feet. and she was highly entertained. glued to the television like i was at that age; and i enjoyed a moment of nostalgia watching her stare at fred and barney being chased by a pterodactyl. apparently there is a cable station called boomerang that shows all those nostalgic cartoons, 24-7. (!!!) long live the troglodytes!

fast forward, yet again, to this past saturday, when i was surfing the tube looking for something to watch. all the usual spots, i've found, suck on saturday mornings. (no wonder i usually sleep till noon.) discovery, spike, a&e, food network- suck, suck, suck, suck on saturdays. the first channel i came across that didn't totally blow, and wasn't an infomercial, was nick junior. this show, which i later found out is called "yo gabba gabba," was on. the characters dance around, make sex noises, and on occasion, speak without moving their mouths. my mom hears this, looks up at the tv and says "what is that a walking dildo?" (ironically, she was referring to the 'one eyed monster' muno, as seen below.) then, one at a time, she identified each as a walking sex toy. she then completed the thought, as i changed the channel, by saying "they're all kinds of walking sex toys & shit." i hate to agree, but she's absolutely right. i can't agree with her opinion about the teletubbies being "cute," but i can agree that the yo gabba gabba gang looks like the treasure chest in the neverland ranch.

the only thing that we're stumped on is that green thing. what the hell is that supposed to be? any ideas?

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