Artistic Fascination

I am not sure that many of my friends know this, but I love art that is created from something that has nothing to do with art. As an example, I am working with a friend to create pieces of art out of blueprints, etc. Another great form is represented in this picture I found. Simply using colored arcs (color based upon length) to show connections between chapters of the Bible. Maybe it's strange for me to enjoy such things, but alas, I do, so here I am sharing it.

No surprise in the facts, but good action

For years we have known that the current administration has "misled" us about the need for our costly and unproductive war. Now, there's some nice, if not very surprising proof from the Center for Public Integrity:

President George W. Bush and seven of his administration's top officials, including Vice President Dick Cheney, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, made at least 935 false statements in the two years following September 11, 2001, about the national security threat posed by Saddam Hussein's Iraq. Nearly five years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, an exhaustive examination of the record shows that the statements were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses.

On at least 532 separate occasions (in speeches, briefings, interviews, testimony, and the like), Bush and these three key officials, along with Secretary of State Colin Powell, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, and White House press secretaries Ari Fleischer and Scott McClellan, stated unequivocally that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction (or was trying to produce or obtain them), links to Al Qaeda, or both. This concerted effort was the underpinning of the Bush administration's case for war.

It is now beyond dispute that Iraq did not possess any weapons of mass destruction or have meaningful ties to Al Qaeda. ...

In short, the Bush administration led the nation to war on the basis of erroneous information that it methodically propagated and that culminated in military action against Iraq on March 19, 2003. Not surprisingly, the officials with the most opportunities to make speeches, grant media interviews, and otherwise frame the public debate also made the most false statements, according to this first-ever analysis of the entire body of prewar rhetoric.

The good news is that several representatives (including a personal favorite, Tammy Baldwin) are urging the Judiciary Committee to conduct hearings about misconduct. Rather than throw out an impeachment charge right off the back, these intellegent people are urging that we gather all the facts in a formalized manner then make a decision. I have no douby that the CPI's information will be valuable indeed.

Fun Quotes 1/18/08

Some fun random quotes to make our day more interesting:

"Illegal aliens have always been a problem in the United States. Ask any Indian." --Robert Orben

"I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it." --Mae West

"The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because they are generally the same people." --G.K. Chesterton

"There is no moral precept that does not have something inconvenient about it." --Denis Diderot

"If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough" --Mario Andretti

Hope you enjoy. I like them.

Home?

So the trip is over, and I return now "home" to New York. The past few months ending with this stint back in Kansas City have certainly solidified something that I have been mulling over for years. I don't have a sense of home. I don't think that I ever have. When I first went to Harvard, I felt a feeling that was very alien to me, and I thought that I had felt at home for the first time. Perhaps that it true, or it is entirely possible that I have never felt that feeling of Home.

Like most true sensations, I think that without experiencing something you can't be sure what it feels like. Sometimes in the interim you think you feel one thing when in fact you are feeling something else entirely. Love is a perfect example. If you have never been in love, you might feel like you are in love simply when you lust after someone, or perhaps feel an incredible comfort from them. Of course once you are in love, you then get to experience all the different types of love, each one meaning something different and having a feeling that is quite distinct from everything else. I imagine it is the same with the feeling of Home.

I am positive now, that I feel comfortable wherever I am. I am not saying that I couldn't feel out of place living in some specific place, but thus far, I have felt comfortable anywhere I have lived. Some might call this feeling at home. Perhaps. In that case, I suppose I have always felt at home, but somehow I doubt it.

I know for sure that I was happier living in Downtown KC than I was living in the suburbs. I know for sure that I am happier now living in New York than I was in Kansas City. I like the lifestyle better, and I am happier overall because of it. But do I feel more at home? I don't think so.

Coming back to Kansas City made me realize how little I missed the place. I missed people for sure, and I miss going out to my favorite bar (of which I have yet to find a better one for me in NYC), but I don't miss Kansas City as a place. Now that I am finally going back to New York, it is apparent to me that I do miss my life in New York, but I am not sure that I am feeling any less at home. Wouldn't I miss it if it was truly one and only Home?

I am pretty positive that I could maintain a mobile life. I have friends that call three or four places home, living there for three or four months at a time, and going onto different things. Some do it for their careers (one friends does shows for a couple months in each city, every year), while others do it just because they can (Brazil for 3 months a year? Sure!). One wonders if they ever feel at home at any of these places. Are they like me? Do they feel comfortable wherever they are? Does this mean they are at home anywhere? Or are they disconnected? If I make that my life would I feel disconnected? Or would I even notice since I have may have never been connected to begin with.

I do notice that I like having something that is mine everywhere. Something about me enjoys not giving up my apartment in KC, or making my family save me a room at their house. Places that are MINE when I am there. I don't need these for fear of needing to escape, or as a safety net, but something about me enjoys having these places, and makes me want more of them. Perhaps it is just more example of my ego wanting to leave it's mark everywhere, or perhaps that is my own subconscious way of making a little bit of Home wherever I go.

One quote has always stuck out to me from the movie "Sweet Home Alabama." A woman in the show says that you can have both Roots and Wings, in this case chasing your dreams in the big city while still having ties to where you grew up, your "Home." Does that mean that both become the true home? Or will one always be temporary, with that urge people talk about when they say they want to go home? *Thank you Michael Buble.

The cliché phrase that finds it's way into arguing against this idea is that "Home is where the Heart is." If you are with the people you love, then anyplace can be your home. I love my family, but I don't feel more at home when I am where they live than I do in NY. I love my friends, but I don't think that Home is based upon which of my many residences has more friends. Could it be that the lack of romantic love is what I am missing? If I had a family of my own would that make this elusive feeling of home come into existence?

I don't know what Home is to me, or what it will end up being. It could be, much like certain earth-shattering all encompassing love is to some people that I am simply aiming for something that isn't true. Maybe it is that I have always felt that feeling of home, but I carry it around inside me, making each location I encounter my own Home. Or perhaps the places where I find more joy in living are Home and that is what people mean. Possibly, I am still searching. With human emotions sometimes I think it is impossible to tell. The best I can do is keep philosophizing, and take things as they come. I do know that my heart is happy to reconnect with the big buildings, busy streets, and vast diversity that is New York City.

2007 Awards

Since this is the beginning of a new year, that means that it's time to hand out some awards from the previous one and look ahead. I like this little quiz because it helps me do just that.

1) DRINKING BUDDY OF THE YEAR: Justin Kennedy and Price. Strangely they both drank with me in NY and KC, are both straight, and both have the tendency to get me to drink things that are on fire!

2) LIFETIME SERVICE AWARD (longest friend): Wow. Tough to gauge. I would say that as far as *good* friends go, this would go to Chris (Curley). Though I have known people longer, I would say that at this point he is the close friend that I have had the longest.

3) NEWCOMER AWARD (newest friend): Should we again go with the good friend? I think so. I would say that Price wins this one. After working with him in Zanna he became one of my favorite people, and I didn't know him at all before this year.

4) HIGH POINT OF THE YEAR: Moving to New York.

5) LOW POINT OF THE YEAR: This was a rough year. I would say more lows than any adult year previous. Lets leave it at that.

6) BEST HOLIDAY: I would say that I had the most fun on Thanksgiving. It definitely isn't my favorite holiday, but this year being with fun people with great food really made it stand out for the year.

7) YOUR SONG FOR 2007: Hmmm. I am not sure on this one. Probably "You Can't Stop the Beat" from Hairspray. Technically it is pre-2007, but since it was released with a new version in the movie, it counts and since my year was rebounding from one problem after another, it is good to think that I can keep going no matter what.

8) MOVIE FOR 2007: 300 and Harry Potter (5) rank way up there, but there were lots of incredible ones.

9) WITH WHOM DID YOU SPEND VALENTINES DAY? Sadly, this one was a loner day.

10) BEST RELATIONSHIP: Hmm. I would have to say that the only romantic relationship that appeared this year ranks as the best, and actually the worst this year. Friends and family relationships were good, but it's hard to beat the high you feel with the right person romantically.

11) WHAT WERE YOU FOR HALLOWEEN? The Joker. Even better was that I partnered up with JVP who went as Poison Ivy.

12) RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR: Bravo. I am not sure that Kellie and I could have survived without it.

13) BOOK OF THE YEAR: Confessor. (Terry Goodkind) I have never been so impressed with the ending of a series in my life. (The Commitment by Dan Savage would be the top of the non-fiction).

14) BEST DECISION MADE THIS YEAR: To move to New York.

15) WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR NEXT YEAR? Get the job I have been waiting for for far too long, and establish a life for myself in NYC.

16) MOST STUPID IDEA WHEN DRUNK: Well, drunk doesn't really fall into my equation, but I would say that the amount of money I spent on drinking without getting drunk was certainly a string of stupid ideas.

17) TV SHOW OF THE YEAR: Tie between Brothers and Sisters and Heroes. Love them both, and they are so different from one another that I think they are each the best in their respective categories… even if I did get jipped on Chapter 2 of Heroes.

18) MOST LOYAL FRIEND: Chris Hahn, no question.

19) BIGGEST CHANGE OF THE YEAR: I would have to use it again, but moving 1300 miles is a pretty big change, oh, and getting out of business certainly counts too.

20) BIGGEST RETARD AWARD: The TV producers who aren't fixing the fact that TV seasons aren't going!

21) NEW YEAR RESOLUTION: Resolution: (Generic, I know, but I got really close last year, I just need that extra push this year) Create a "get and stay in shape" plan that I will actually follow with my crazy schedule. Goal: Find a meaningful romantic relationship that doesn't end in heartache.

In brief, despite the lack of the kiss that I really wanted, it was a great time surrounded by lots of great friends, and of course being at my favorite bar certainly helped. I ended up with very few downer moments and had a great time when all is said and done.

2007 was one of the roughest years of my life. I know that the lessons I have learned will serve me well and that 2008 is going to be the start of a whole new and incredible ball game!