Break the Curse Cookies: My very thoughtful (and highly skilled) assistant Elena brought me a Break the Curse cookie today. On the packaging it directed me to a website, where not only did I learn about the cookies (which are made by a wonderful, socially responsibile company here in Boston, whose cookies I adore!) but there are also ideas on "Random Nice Things" to do...one is even to do something nice to a New Yorker...now come on!!!

Another Reason I May Move to Canada: A judge threw a party complete with balloons, streamers and a cake to welcome a former fugitive back to her court -- and sentence him to life in prison.

Laughing Too Hard to Type: If you haven't already done so (I'm a bit behind the times) you should check out the most recent installment from our frineds at Jibjab entitled "Good to Be In DC! Giggle giggle!

With the Red Sox in the World Series, and the Patriots having the longest winning streak in history, I figure it is fitting to have a Sports Friday Five:
- What is your favorite sport to watch on tv? Football! Love it! In person I find it too hard to figure out who is carrying the ball, and seeing what the penalties are, but on TV the camera oh so conveniently helps me out. It is embarrassing at times how loud and crazy I get when I am sitting at home alone watching the Pats.
- What is your favorite sport to watch in person? Minor league baseball, preferable the Lowell Spinners. Em and I got hooked three years ago and I have gone to at least 4 games each year since. The erratic (somewhat Bad News Bears-esqe) plays, the insane between innings shenanigans, and really cheap food, parking and tickets, what more could you ask for!
- What sport to you most like to play? Dumb question for me to propose since I don't like to play sports at all. I "play" (word used VERY loosely) on the work softball team, but let's just say we won 2 games this year, which beat last year's record. Not to mention, I am more fond of the First Base Dance I created (and have actually had cause to do a couple of times this year) than actually playing the game. But I am a damn good cheerleader and a wonderful beer drinker afterwards.
- If you could be really good at any sport, which would it be? Boy, I am so much not an athlete that this is almost hard to answer....probably tennis, since you can do it in lots of places, you don't need to pull together a team, and if you are really good you can look like a superstar.
- Who will find the World Series? The Red Sox in six games. (knocking on wood as we speak...or type!)

Miracles Do Happen: As stated in the New York Times, "It was actually happening. The nerd was kissing the homecoming queen. Paper was beating scissors; scissors were beating rock. Charlie Brown was kicking the football. The Red Sox were beating the Yankees for the American League pennant." God damn I better rest up the next two nights in preparation for Saturday night (and as recovery for the last month!)

And Rebecca Clarie xxx one week old in daddy's arms. If you want to see all my pictures, send me a note in the comment section. 

As long as I am posting photos, here is one of me, Hilary and Steve at an orchard last month. 

The ladies and I celebrated my birthday a day early...Sex in the City style. So much fun! 

YEAH RED SOX: Two, four, six, eight, who do we appreicate? Ortiz, Ortitz, Daaaaavid Ortiz! Go Sox! (Sorry MM, but you're going down!)

It's Cool To Be From Ohio: My classmate Jeremy Kahn, managing editor of The New Republic, wrote an article about how it is now cool to be from Ohio, a/the privitol swing state. I was particularly amused by this part, "Attending college on the East Coast, I found that many of my classmates--experts on the subtle class distinctions between Long Island towns and able to exchange knowing nods at the mention of certain New Jersey Turnpike exits--seemed only dimly aware of where Ohio was. "It borders Illinois, right?" Well, no. And there were frequent mix-ups about my hometown. "You're from Cincinnati right? No, wait, don't tell me. Columbus." Cleveland. I'm from Cleveland."

With A Grain of Salt: I don't put too much stock in polling results, especially when things are so close, and especially after how it turned out four years ago, but this week, for the first time since July 18, the CNN polls show Kerry leading Bush (49% to 48%).

Travel Friday Five: Since I have been traveling so much in the last few months (Ohio, Nevada/California, Connecticut) and will be traveling so much in the coming months (Washington, California, Israel, Ohio, Arizona, London) I thought I would use this theme...
- When was the last time you were on a plane? Coming back from Cleveland last Sunday night.
- When was the last time you were on a train? (for travel) I think it was when I went on my East Coast trip before I went to grad school-- to NYC, Boston and Vermont.
- How far will you travel this weekend? Thankfully, I think the farthest point will be Emily and Nat's house in Watertown, to watch the Red Sox on Saturday.
- What is your favorite mode of travel? In terms of getting me from one place to the other, probably a cruise ship. Of course, not always so feasible, but fun none the less.
- What is your least favorite part of traveling? How much it hurts my back.

Fuel to the Fire (aka Preaching the the Choir...I hope):
BUSH SAID: "He [Kerry] voted to increase taxes 98 times."
REALITY: Attack Debunked as "Dubious Claim," "Wrongly Claimed," "Iffy," "Misleading," "Exaggeration," "Padded," "Baffling," "Questionable," and "Inflated" are just some of the phrases newspapers and independent analysts have used to describe this bogus charge. The truth? Kerry has gone on the legislative record over 640 times for lower taxes.

BUSH SAID: "Most of the tax cuts went to low and middle income Americans, and now the tax code is more fair, 20 percent of the upper income people pay about 80 percent of the taxes in America today because of how we structured the tax cuts."- GWB, 10/13/04
REALITY: In 2004, Top One Percent Will Receive Average Tax Cut Of $35,000; Middle Class Will Receive Average Tax Cut Of $647. The benefits of Bush's tax cuts primarily benefit the rich. The top one percent of households will receive tax cuts averaging almost $35,000--or 54 times more than middle-class families. Households with incomes above $1 million will receive tax cuts averaging about $123,600.

The list goes on and on. I truly just don't understand why someone would prefer Bush as our leader than Kerry. Health care, domestic policy, international policy, intellect, critical thinking skills, articulateness, foriegn policy, tax policy, abortion rights, presence in reality, ability to admit when you are wrong and change stances, abilty to look at changing facts and change stances, slimeyness....Seriously.

Back in the Saddle Again: Yes, I am still here...just very busy. I'll try to get some info posted today and this weekend.

Baby Rebecca: Need I say more? Oh yeah, I get to meet her this weekend! Tomorrow!

Argh: I just wrote a fairly long post about the Minary Conference, but there was an error and it is gone. So, the Cliff Notes are: good conference, great place, kayaking, hiking, fantastic food, Disco Bingo, learned a fair amount. Scroll down on this page to see some great photos from the place. BEAUTIFUL! I took some other photos which I will post on Snapfish soon.

"Conference" Recap: I am back for about 36 hours from the Minary Conference near Lake Tahoe before heading to Cleveland for the weekend. (where I will meet Rebecca Claire Carter!!!!) So, to summarize...
- We were given a Pontiac Sunfire...a cheap level sports car. It had manual windows, was kinda dirty, and had almost zero "umph"
- I was able to go kayaking and on a great hike during network free time (I really did network too) We also played Disco Bingo (just as you would imagine and then some) and ate wonderful food.
- I learned a fair amount from the other participants (Its a small conference with about 50 people), have a better understanding of how/why MIT does things the way they do after having to explain it to others, and feel re-charged from being out in nature. (Our cabins sat directly on the lake and it was just like being back at Kamaji...well, not quite)

Kimpossible Has Left the Building: I will be working at the Alumni Leadership Conference today and tomorrow, and then leaving for a conference near Lake Tahoe from Sunday through late Wednesday night. Then I am in Boston on Thursday and leave for Cleveland on Friday evening through Sunday night.

You Read My Mind: Stressed spelled backwards is desserts.-Barbara Enberg

Fall Friday Five (gosh I love alliteration):

- What is your favorite season? FALL!!!! I love the cool (but not yet cold) crisp air, the changing leaves, the sense of a new school year (since I have been in school or working with/for schools since I was 6), my birthday, apples, the Jewish New Year, and fall clothes.

- How many times have you FALLEN in love? Twice.

- What is the last thing that made your heart FALL? Realizing that there were 3 things I *could* have done last night, and I had to do the one I least wanted to do. (Attend an event for work...I actually was excited to go until I found out two other things I could have been doing)

- How many major waterFALLS have you been to? Niagara Fall (NY/Canada), Dunn River Falls (Jamaica), Multanoma Falls (OR), and a couple in Costa Rica (can't remember their names) are the big ones I remember. At camp we would stop on our canoe trips to sit under the pounding water, which was always a highlight.

- What five words best describe your upcoming FALL? unhaltingly busy, geographically dispersed, apples