Moment of Silence: Coretta Scott King, the widow of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., died Monday night. Here's a question, what is the likelihood that Bush will make note of this in his State of the Union address tongiht, and what is the likelihood he will sound sincere?

Fascinating Fact: As always, last night's Ladies Night was fun, loving and INFORMATIVE. Little know fact-- the cheese in SmartFood is the same stuff in Annie Mac n Cheese! Now that's Good Eats!

Because I Don't Travel Enough: I have decided to go on a long weekend to LA in early March. I have frequent flier miles, and since I am cancelling my Utah trip planned for May (I still hope to go on the trip in August) I decide to go on a trip out West. I actually haven't been there for a non-work trip in awhile (although it doesn't feel that way because I usually stay on for a weekend of fun at the end of a work trip) I will go between my work trips to Austin (where I will see high school friend Jen and her wife Jackie/Jacquie) in February and Philly in mid-March.

Is It A Bird? Is It A Plane? Is It A Harp Lady?: Emily, Eve, Brenda and I went to see Deborah Hansen-Conant, who plays the electric harp, tells rambling (usually amusing) stories, has her hair in extentions and wild ribbons, and seems to amuse herself AT LEAST as much as she amuses her audience at the tiny Jimmy Tingle's Off-Broadway Theater. Eve was able to get us free tickets through her job, and I won a CD by being a smart ass during the raffle. (Deborah had us practice screaming and cheering if we won the free raffle. After we practiced, she "read" a raffle entry (a bogus one-- we entered with only our names and she read off a long number-- as if she was reading a traditional raffle ticket. I cheered as if I had won-- to be silly-- and she gave me a CD. Even funnier was that Brenda won teh grand prize (legit!) which was a copy of each of Deborah's cd's (5 I think).

The Return of Friday Five (well, a bit more than 5): Thanks to Em for reviving this tradition.
- What were you doing ten years ago? I was entering my final semester at Macalester College, but not really attending classes, as I was student teaching in a fifth grade and then sixth grade classroom. I was living IN the football stadium (a small, almost off-campus, dorm) I was unsure of my post-graduation plan, but knew I wanted to find a job doing reproductive health education.
- What were you doing five years ago? I had just moved to Boston (well, Cambridge to be exact) after finishing my Masters in Nonprofit Management. I was dating someone who lived in Worcester, MA. I was working at Teen Empowerment doing fund raising and organizational advancement.
- What were you doing one year ago? I was going to chiropractic three days a week, in hopes of finally ailing my back. (somewhat successful) I had just gotten back from a fantastic visit in Arizona with my college pal Eva. I was entering my second year living in my condo in Somerville.
- Five snacks I enjoy: ice cream, chips & guac, popcorn, Triskets & cheese, Sun Chips
- Five songs to which I know all the lyrics: “Greatest Love of All”, “I Will Survive”, the Oreo cookie theme song (Ice cream and an Oreo cookie, go together, made forever, the classic combination…), …hmmm….struggling here… “Happy Birthday” and “Mary Had a Little Lamb”
- Five things I would do if I were a millionaire: start a philanthropic foundation, go on at least one major international trip a year, go one a couple of trips with friends (my treat), buy new furniture for my house, eat out at all 50 restaurants on my list of places I want to go
- Five bad habits: interrupting people when they talk, getting impatient with other drivers, not changing my linens as often as I should, being short with my mom, thinking the WORST when someone is late/forgets to call/etc
- Five things I like doing: traveling, eating at restaurants, having quality time with friends, sleeping, dancing
- Five things I would never wear again: my high school prom dress, ….this one is stumping me….
- Five favorite toys: I better not go there.

Another Reason...: To go on vacation more often. For the second time, the morning after returning from a vacation (Cancun with my parents and brother), my co-worker who is responsible for the MIT Alumni Travel Program, walked into my office to ask me to be the staff host on a travel program. This one is in May and goes to Croatia, Slovenia and Italy. The only minor downside is that I was planning a trip to the national parks in Utah at that time, but that trip can be postponed and I am thrilled to go on this trip. What a wonderful opportunity! Woo woo!

Meh-he-co! I leave for Mexico early on Saturday morning, to meet up with my parents and brother! It is a fast trip (returning on Wednesday), but oh am I excited! Sun. Fun. Water. Relaxation. Bring it on!

The Wierdest Ailment: I just had to share...although I don't even know if I can describe. Last night at Curves, I was simply running in place on the little square, and I turned my head to talk to Emily, who was right next to me, doing her little exercises. WELL! Apparently I pulled? strained? pinched? some nerve in my front neck, which went into a crazy, painful thing! Kinda like when you turn your head the wrong way and a muscle on the side of your neck cinches up, and sometime hurts for a few hours....but it was the muscles that go down the FRONT of my neck, and it felt like someone had punched me under my chin on my the muscle that helps you swallow! I was doing NOTHING when it happened! It hurt every time I tipped my hear higher than straight ahead, and with other similar movements. I exercised for about ten more minutes and then stopped (it was basically time to stop anyhow) I couldn't do my stretches, and, although it slowly started to feel increasingly better, it still hurts a little bit now-- almost 24 hours later! Insane!

Regisration is OPEN: The registration for my big April event went live today, in conjunction with the first marketing email that is going out this afternoon. This is the first time that MIT has ever invited all alumni with a graduate degree back to campus...and it's my baby. I am in charge of the concept, exectution, web site, marketing, speakers, venues, EVERYTHING. Check out the web site and learn more! (I know you are just dying to!)

Carry a Condom or Pay: A western Colombian town has threatening males over age 14 with fines if they fail to carry a condom. Young men in the community, most of whom start having sex at about age 15, according to a poll, should carry condoms just as they have to carry identification cards, Tulua town councilman William Pena told El Tiempo newspaper.
Those who fail to show a condom would have to pay a small fine or take a three-hour course in AIDS prevention in Tulua, where 14 people died of sexually transmitted diseases last year. -- As they say, if you don't have protection, you will pay!

Fun Sports Slideshows: I found two fun slide shows on Sports Illustrated.com...one of sports figures tatoos and one of the dreadful, soul sucking transformation that the Evil Empire (i.e. Yankees) impresses on their players, including our dearly departed Damon.