maureen's movie list
this is a running list of movies that meet two criteria. they are movies i think you should see b/c i like them and think you might too. or they are movies that i didn't 'like' in the traditional sense of the word but b/c they are thought provoking. i will try to update this as i think of movies and give a brief explanation about the movie or why it made the list.

please make suggestions of things that i have omitted or re-arrange my categories.

CLASSICS
here defined as movies that you should really see. in my opinion.

shindler's list :
everyone should see this movie.

glory:
everyone should see this movie. the first black platoon to fight in the civil war.

GodFather series:
b/c it's about the mob.

shawshank redemption:
really really good. dismantling institutionalization.

les miserable:
if you can't see the show- rent the movie. the book i hear is best.

the mission:
robert deniro was incredible... really.

***

FUNNY
(AKA COMEDY)

the anderson trilogy:
i know- i left bottlerocket off- but if you watch these three movies and if you watch these three movies and like them- then watch bottle rocket.

rushmore:
definitely my favorite wes anderson. and definitely in my top five favorite movies. i think of it as the film version of catcher in the rye.

the royal tennanbaums:
putting the fun- back in dysfunctional.

life aquatic:
william defoe is the secret weapon of this movie. loved it!

ala director christopher guest...
a mighty wind:
mockumentary of folk music era.

best in show:
mockumentary of dog show culture.

spinal tap:
mocumentary of 80?s glam rock band.

waiting for guffman:
start here for a christopher guest addiction. my favorite one of his...

ferris bueller's day off:
had this memorized at one point. my first of many 'favorite' movies.

steel magnolias:
b/c there's nothing like girl friends.

breakfast club:
b/c it's a cult classic of anyone that graduated highschool in the early nighties.

sixteen candles:
see above.

pretty in pink:
see above.

wayne's world:
obviously... i had this entire movie memorized at one point.

city slickers:
billy crystal's midlife crisis.

when harry met sally:
a legendary nyc movie. saw it when i was trying unsuccessfully to convince myself i could have jeff abbott as my best friend and not try to jump his bones all the time.

fried green tomatoes:
girl power!

parenthood:
very funny and sentimental look at family life with steve martin.

tootsie:
again... dustin hoffman kicks ass.

patch adams:
b/c laughter is good for the soul. and you can come back from a nervous breakdown and make a contribution.

my big fat greek wedding:
a primer in cross cultural marriage in the make-believe world.

high fidelity:
jack black before he got to be unbearably crude.

about a boy:
thought his movie would be a fun mindless whatever. it was one of the most pleasant surprise of a movie in a long time! loved it!

elf:
will farrel in tights is always a good thing.

the joy luck club:
thought it should be on here... the power of the relationship between mom?s and daughters is universal.

napolean dynamite:
fun to see another round of highschool cult classics emerge. it's about time breakfast club was replaced.

***

MAKES YOU PEE YOUR PANTS A LITTLE
(AKA SUSPENSE)

good fellows:
b/c it's about the mob.

the siege:
every american should watch this and think of the patriot act.

platoon:
really intense.

gladiator:
honor.

apocalypse now:
b/c it makes every other list- but it's pretty creepy. and i'm sure it would be better on acid.

witness:
before kelly migillis was all that and a bag of chips in top gun; she was in this movie. it's about a guy (harrison ford) that hides out with the amish.

LA confidential:
great suspense mystery movie.

all the president's men:
robert redford= hottie.

the insider:
no one talks about the amount of weight russel crow put on to do this film.

arlinton road:
b/c a guilty pleasure of mine is conspiracy theory.

7 :
my first introduction to kevin spacy. i've not been able to stop since.

the usual suspects:
see the part about not being able to stop...

12 days in september:
about the bay of pigs. kevin costner is bearable.

the matrix:
just the first one b/c it blew my mind. the others lost their novelty.

the lord of the rings trilogy:
b/c i would get yelled at if it wasn't on here.

a midnight clear:
ethan hawk on the fears of normal boys fighting wars and wetting their pants.

***

MADE ME CRY OR SOMETHING
(AKA DRAMA)

eternal sunshine of a spotless mind:
the most creative movie of 2004 in my opinion.

rainman:
for no other reason than see dustin hoffman act like nobody's business.

good will hunting :
could make you respect ben affleck again.

crossing delancy:
a great nyc movie about the lower east side.

michael collins:
my people! very well done epic and accurate irish history. with liam neason.

you've got mail:
one of my favorite new york movies- loved it- but no- i didn?t live on the upper west side.

moulin rouge:
wow. i can't think of anything descriptive to help you know about this movie but i remember it being wonderful and beautiful. very creative- romantic. i think it had a lot of skin. be warned.

amelie:
love love loved it.

macbeth (w/ ethan hawke) :
contextualized shakespere. set in modern day new york city at a corporation named denmark.

fiddler on the roof:
b/c it's one of the first movies i remember seeing.

dead poets society:
i mean- come on! 'oh captain my captain!'

in america:
irish immigration in america isn't just turn of the century. loved it. kinda bleak.

chariots of fire:
i like this movie for many reasons- but the soundtrack alone makes it worth it.

american history x:
edward norton rocks.

higher learning:
john singleton.

boyz in the hood:
lawrence fishboune was really good. Cuba was a cute teen.

moonstruck:
sentimental b/c my mother and i acted out a scene right before charles and i got engaged. it included me saying, 'ma- i love him awful'.

stand by me:
i miss river. great movie.

born on the 4th of july:
vietnam vet's who is disabled in the war and his experience with re-entry to our grateful nation.

malcom x:
b/c i think he was a great leader.

philadephia:
a philly attorney has AIDS and his struggle with bigotry around the disease- very prophetic. this nearly made it to the classic list.

remember the titans:
racial reconciliation.

road to perdition:
my people!

castaway:
30 minutes of no talking just acting. really impressive. loved the relationship with wilson.

saving private ryan:
truly the greatest generation.

white man's burden:
good idea- bad movie. but it's a good enough idea for you to rent it from the libary. race relations reversed. white people get treated like black people.

JFK:
b/c i think he was a great president.

it's a wonderful life:
obviously.

reality bites:
i heart ethan hawke. cult classic of college friends.

flawless:
when i decided phillip seymour hoffman totally ruled. bigoted cop (deniro) meets drag queen- really about the humanity in all of us. prophetic.

magnolia:
wow- good movie. really crude language. be warned.

say anything:
"i gave her my heart, she gave me a pen". love lyod dobler.

garden state:
love scrubs, love zach braff, love the music.

gattaca:
a caste system based on genetics. very interesting.

***

HOMELESS
(AKA OTHER- DOESN'T FIT IN ANY PARTICULAR CATEGORY)

donnie brasco:
b/c it's about the mob.

purple rain:
not really- but this movie saved my life. it's a long story but it involves diarrhea, and one weekend of using my limited albanian in a remote city near the border of kosovo.

taxi driver:
b/c i have to put scorcesse on here.

pulp fiction:
b/c i should put it on here... but it was really bloody.

fight club:
not for the faint of heart- very rough. nihilism just got cool.

the incredibles:
this was such a pleasant surprise. i'm not a cartoon sort- but wow- was this good! made me very happy.

st. elmo's fire:
angsty but funny. identity crisis of your twenties.

link o rama**

ala creative

ole' standbys:
harpers
the economist
new york times
bbc
new yorker

stuff i'm thinking about:
urban enviornments and money
community building

devotional
our daily blog (the imitation of christ online)
my people (the irish jesuits)
pray for the world (remember that america's not the center of the universe)

images i like:
art
art 2
cimabue
schielle
close
harlem renaissance
soutine

blogs:
some of these people i know and love,
others i only know,
and others i don't know at all

chelsea
jeff
jamie lee
scott
karen
pk
eric
mark
brian
john
dan
real live preacher
beth
andrew
nycbloggers

blog resources
blog tips
blog templates
blog templates #2 (although i can't figure out how to make these work)

ecards
all things irish
u2
moma
new yorker
nyt

for fun:
pong
zefrank
all things wes anderson

helpful odds and ends:
weather
rare out of print books
public transport
my library
movies
nyt bookreview
supreme court rulings
aljazeera english
geohive

lists on me
check back for updates

favorite books
(if asked right now)
on the road
portrait of an artist as a young man
calvary road

most influential books
(if asked right now)
money sex and power
divine conspiracy
man's search for meaning

two lies and a truth
~ spent an hour in conversation with this man
~ my uncle was a body gaurd for this man
~ my great uncle died in this historic irish melay

when faced w/ daunting tasks...
i sing this movie theme song myself.

favorite movies:
(if you asked me right now)
rushmore
amelie
reality bites
you've got mail
moulin rouge

places i've lived...
where i grew up
new york city
albania
ocean city

my favorite radio
day: saturday
program: this american life
station: wcbe
personality whom i will name my first child after: the legend

things i care about:
DATA

odds and ends:
:: i used to be an avid WHO fan and loved the doors as well...
:: but i've always loved these guys. they're still my favorite band.
:: my must see tv
:: if into t.v. it is difficult for me to talk and focus on anything going on around me.
:: i believe comic sans should be band from the font directory.

:: i listen to rush sometimes until i want to vomit;
:: then i forget the he annoys me,
:: and listen to him again... it's a vicious cycle.

:: my first car

(look up)
those are my mama's tennis shoes and bathrobe

weekend rituals and whatnot...
here is a sample schedule for my weekends.
it is almost routine.

friday nights...
this will be the first friday night when charles does not work at lido's.
we are relieved.

in the past, friday nights have usually been spent in one of two ways. i would work until 8pm and god home and do nothing, or i would goto a meeting. sometimes i hang out with my sponsor. then i goto get charles sometime around 1am from work.

our new friday night routine will include our kinship-
which we're very excited about.

saturdays...
we have a very leisurely morning in bed that includes reading the paper and my indoctrination of charles to saturday radio on wcbe. i take off for a little me time which generally happens at one of our neighborhood starbucks. then off to my favorite meeting at 1pm. this whole routine is bypassed monthly, when we try to go down to help out at fruit of the vine- a food pantry through our area. this helps me remember to pull my head out of my ass.

after i get home- we putz around and get ready for church. afterwards- we go out somewhere and raise a little hell. which for us means going out with friends or going to the dollar movies.

sundays...
another lazy morning of coffee drinking and paper reading.

then we meet my family for breakfast or have them over. my niece does here latest performance and make us laugh and lights up my life for the day. charles and laurel (my niece) proceed to sign lionel richie songs. not really- but they do many wiggles songs and moves together- which can only lead to charles singing soft rock.

when we come back from brunch, we have our weekly prayer time. [sidebar] as it turns out the duke (as i like to call him) is quite an intercessor. so if you need us to pray for something let us know- b/c we pray for people. maybe the gift will rub off on me. i am used to praying for myself only.

the remainder of the day is spent preparing for the week and doing chores and crap like that. charles worked (again past tense) sunday nights so that meant i would maybe goto a meeting, maybe get lost in a bookstore, or maybe meet with a friend.

we're inserting a time to talk about money and how we will budget it saturday mornings. left to my own devices- i would assume never talk about money. i just like spending it.

do you have any weekend rituals?
if so- what are they and how did they evolve?

in other news-
i have the following things on my mind...
:: how to get wcbe from cutting tal, thistle and shamrock.
:: should we alert the hand flushers of the existence of foot flushers? if i was a hand flusher (which i'm not)- i would want to know that people kick the flush toggle thingy. we owe it to them.
:: i'm looking forwar to talking to my nephews about ghana. they are traveling back today.
:: my farewatcher just alerted me to a fare to belfast for $480. hmmmmmm.
:: i'm anxious and praying for the elections in iraq this weekend. even in iraq- they vote on weekends!

i'm bleeding...
a stream of explitives flowed freely from my mouth just moments ago
because i stapled my hand by accident.
i'm such a good christian witness.

anyways- reason i'm writing is b/c
charles is taking his gre and thought i'd ask you to pray for him today.

thanks,
maureen

feeling the effects...
feeling dull today. blah. my mood suffers from the lack of sun.
i heard he came to visit this afternoon- but alas- i am in a cube.

soon i will post some different things. namely...
a movie guide of all my favorite movies
and the state of my union. you can read last year's here.

for now- i leave you with this...

chewable vitamin

"Christ’s glory and beauty are interiorly experienced and it is within you that he delights to be. he frequently visits the man who loves the interior life. He gently speaks to him, lovingly comforts him, gives him deep peace, and shares an intimacy beyond words.

If you do not know how to meditate on sublime and heavenly things, then find repose in Christ’s passion and gladly dwell in His sacred wounds. If you devoutly seek refuge in Jesus’ wounds- those priceless signs of our salvation- you will feel great comfort in time of trail and you will learn not to care when men despise you. Instead you will easily bear whatever slander vilification they cast upon you.

When Christ was among us in this world, He too was despised by men, and during his greatest need on the cross He was abandoned by friends and acquaintances and left to suffer insults alone. Christ chose to suffer and to be despised, and you dare to complain if someone insults you? Christ had his enemies and His slanderers, and you want everyone to be your friend and benefactor? How will your patience receive its crown if no trail ever comes your way? If you want to live a life free from all opposition, how will you be a friend of Christ? If you desire to reign with Christ then suffer with Christ and for Christ."
~ Thomas a Kempis

today's chewable vitamin
"i refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of nuclear annihilation... i believe that even amid today's mortar bursts and whining bullets, there is still hope for a brighter tomorrow... i still believe that one day mankind will bow before the altars of God and be crowned triumphant over war and bloodshed."
--martin luther king, jr., address in acceptance of nobel peace prize - 10 December 1964

chewable vitamin

"the nation is sick; trouble is in the land, confusion all around... but i know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. and i see God working in this period of the twentieth century. something is happening in our world. the masses of people are rising up. and wherever they are assembled today, whether they are in johannesburg, south africa; nairobi, kenya; accra, ghana; new york city; atlanta, georgia; jackson, mississippi; or memphis,tennessee, the cry is always the same: 'We want to be free'. "
~ dr. martin luther king jr.

maggie and new friends

in celebration of martin luther king jr.

today's chewable vitamin
"we have moved into an era where we are called upon to raise certain basic questions about the whole society. we are still called upon to give aid to the beggar who finds himself in misery and agony on life's highway. but one day, we must ask the question of whether an edifice which produces beggars must not be restructured and refurbished."
~ dr. martin luther king

blogging...
the good
the bad
and the ugly.

my opinions about the medium and the boundaries that may benefit it.

primer to this post...
i have been blogging for almost two years now. on the whole- i find it to be a fun and fairly harmless hobby. over that time- i have noticed some tendencies within the blogdom- that could serve as pitfalls in the medium. these are just my observations and opinions. it should be noted that i could be very wrong about my opinions and observations. so- take it with a grain of salt; my hope is that it is received in the spirit in which it was written.

things i consider when composing a blog post...
b/c i follow jesus, i try to filter my thoughts, my speech and therefore my writing through phil. 4.8**
(i know that not everyone is a christian that stumbles across this blog- but evenso- it's a good filter. if you experiment with it for say- a day- let me know how it goes.)

i, ofcourse, don't succeed all the time-
but it's a filter (or compass) nonetheless.
i consider that anyone could be reading this...
there seems to be a mentality out there (in the blogdom) of 'i need an outlet and this is my exercise of the first amendment and it's my right to put whatever i want on here and blah blah blah.'

i'm not disputing that this is true. it is true that you have the perogative to post whatever you want. the real question is can i live with what i've posted. can i bear the consequences? if i write something that is complex, can i bear to be misunderstood?

things i would never put on my blog...
i would never put something on my blog that is a sensitive process.
some examples of this?
i would never post any of my artwork on here.
why?
b/c i would be crushed if you said they sucked.
likewise- i would never post an emotional process that i was sifting through that was unresolved.
what does that mean?
say i'm facing a particularly lonely time in my life. i wouldn't pontificate about it at length on my blog. why? b/c if anyone said the wrong thing (which when i'm in an emotional funk could be just about anything anyone says online)- i would flip.
i would avoid negative talk about my job, or my coworkers.
right or wrong; people get fired for that kind of stuff.
i would avoid mentioning my place of employment altogether.
i would avoid processing things that involved relationships with other people (that were complicated or negative)

so now what... how do i apply these things?
i do post some personal things on here. but they are things that i feel very resolved about- very comfortable with...

meaning, if someone writes something nasty; i think to myself,
'hmm. someone thinks i'm weird. good thing i don't care'.
as opposed to 'what's wrong with me??!!'
(which would be my response if i wrote something i was not personally resolved about).

what i'm not suggesting is that people cannot blog about their lives honestly.
sometimes (this is totally my opinion) honesty, transparency and the like are the evangelical christian's trump card. i think it can lead to emotional masturbation and i'm worried about it.
so i'm writing this post. owning one's feelings isn't simply confessing it to the anonymous masses via the internet- it is confessing it to God, to another and then (if the feeling is negative and unproductive) taking action to change it (via repentance, service, bible reading and submission to the spirit among others^^).

people compare blogging with journaling.
each time i hear it i get very nervous.
our lives,
no matter what kind of life it is-
no matter what walk of life-
no matter what have precious contents.
the inner workings of each and everyone of our hearts- are so beautiful, and wonderful. even in the muck and junk- but we are (atleast i am) fragile.
and if you laughed at that in me, i just don't need it.
so i don't do it.
well- i mispoke.
i do it.
i just don't entrust it to the two dimentionality of the internet.
i entrust myself, my heart,my thoughts, my feelings to people.
people who i can hear the tone of their voice, people who can tell me i'm full of shit and i know that they say it in love, people who can hug me, people who i can read their body language.
entrusting those things to the internet- might work for some-
but not me.
so i don't do it.

i think blogging can be a authentic interesting and thought provoking medium. it just seems that discretion and dicernment are the bloggers best friend.

what do you think about this topic?
talk to me...
cannell- comment dammit!

** 8 finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable. if anything is excellent or praiseworthy?think about such things. ~ phil. 4.8

^^ no intention to oversimplfy this. but this is for starters and i speak from expereince. i have learned a lot about how to be geniune but not a slave to my emotional life... but that's another conversation (notice i did not say post).

a couple of things...

i love my brother.
i love the family he and andrea have created.
i love that they took four kids...
to ghana...
for a missions trip...
for a month.
granted- i think they are crazy...
but i love them nonetheless.

i wondered if you would like to goto their blog and read about their adventures.
perhaps you could even pray for their ministry and saftey too.
i'd consider it a favor really.
it would be great to have more people praying for them.

this...
has been a public service announcement.

thanks,
maureen

(note- please appreciate jack's 'who'd dhat' look)

need

tsunami help

here's some video footage of the tsunami.

some images

not gory- but terrifying.

here is some information on giving towards the relief efforts.

i don't know what to endorse-

but here are some links that you may find helpful:

secular:

oxfam

nytimes clearninghouse list of relief work

faithbased:

aerdo

campus crusade for christ

sojorners clearinghouse list

you can check with these folks to help determine your giving preference.

i am not going to critique anyone's level of senstivity to this crisis. while i can appreciate that there is an under-reported disaster happening in africa- i must say that the outpouring of support for the tsunami is not something i take lightly. it is certainly a step in the right direction. there are lots of good byproducts to giving. i don't just mean monitarily. you can give your time to prayer, you can talk to your employer about donating a service... whatever. but giving is good for you! sorry if this sounds preachy. but i just want to say that i think it is a really good thing that people are giving- b/c we gotta start somewhere.

i felt compelled to post something that would inform people on giving options. these images are haunting.

precious boy

+++

today's chewable vitamin

"The quality of mercy is not strain'd,

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath.

It is twice blest: It blesseth him that gives and him that takes. '

T is mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes The throned monarch better than his crown;

His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,

The attribute to awe and majesty,

Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;

But mercy is above this sceptred sway, It is enthroned in the hearts of kings,

It is an attribute to God himself; And earthly power doth then show likest God's,

When mercy seasons justice. "

~ william shakesphere (from the merchant of venice)

the fives

i have a number of gmail invites.
please let me know if you’re interested.
we start our new kinship friday. this tops the list for our weekend.

we are devising our hopes and dreams for 2005 and committing them to prayer this month. other than that, charles is prepping for his gre and the day he gets is $% $#@!*^ social security card. i tell you for a government set up on a market economy based on the survial of the fittest- they make it nearly impossoble for a nice immigrant like charles to be self substaining.

but this, my friends, would be a diversion from the topic at hand. perhaps latter this month i will boil over and post a tyraid about the treatment of immigrants.

for now-i thought i'd recap some of my favorite things about 2004. it may be considered too late to do this- but i don't care- it's my blog.

five favorite books from 2004

1. a year in provance. a book about the author's life in provance france. i loved it. pure escapism.
2. better together. a sequal of sorts to bowling alone by robert putnam. very good and very accessible book about community building.
3. memoirs of a geisha. a wonderful book. i think it was my favorite of the year. i know i know- this was 'in' like four years ago. what can i say- i'm behind the trends.
4. celebration of discipline. second time reading this book and it did not dissappoint. a great balance of the biblical roots and practical.
5. the celtic book of prayer. this book has really enhanced my devotional life more than any other in recent memory.

five favorite days from 2004

1. the day we got engaged: february 14th

it was a cold day and charles took me to shoku to partake in the foods of the gods... sushi. we went to my sisters for dessert where he was staying. they had vacated the premises. i walked in to rose petals on the floor and candles lit. music playing and delictable cheesecake. he proposed; i said yes! we were happy.

2. the day we got married: may 29th

i stayed at a fancy hotel with my family in nashville. anne and i shared a room for my last night single. jess and joe came. chris and chels came. we woke up around 9am and jess and anne took me to breakfast. we relaxed. we swam. i went to get my hair done. we went to a tiny stone chapel on vanderbilt's campus. i saw charles. he was so handsome. we sang songs and cried. we had communion together. my brother (a pastor) married us. and we were very happy.

3. christmas day: december 25

we had a wonderful first christmas. it included the exchange of simple gifts due to our budget, many games of scrabble with my family, snow, candles, laughter, time with WSA (world's smartest aunt) and watching my niece have the time of her life!

4. st. patricks day: march 17th

this was my last day in the corporate world's version of pimping. i'm referring to temping. they took me out to lunch at mary kelly's in dublin and had a nice party for me and i entered the world of the insured. and i was grateful. i had thought that all my work woes would end- but they did not. but that was ok with me- b/c i knew i was insured. and i began the lesson of learning that it is not my job's responsibility to bring meaning and order to my life.

5. any day on our honeymoon.

not to be exhorbanantly mushy- but we had a wonderful time on our honeymoon and got to eat fresh seafood everyday. our days were long and monotonous and contained a lot of sleeping on the beach, reading and walking at dusk. and other stuff too. but that's all i'm going to write.

i guess i could do the five worst days but i thought that would be a downer and honestly- i can’t think of too many worst days- b/c 2004 was a pretty stinkin good year!

five people
(who made 2004 what it was)
1. my husband charles. for obvious reasons.
2. my mom. my mom has been so supportive and understanding during our engagement and now in our marriage. she has welcomed charles as a son and really been of more practical help than any one person ever in my life!
3. chelsea. my friendship with chelsea has added so much to my life! watching her walk with Jesus is nothing less than inspiring. she and her husband were kind enough to let charles live with them for four months.
4. anne. her humor and devotion to me has meant so much. inspite of any difficulty she faced personally, she was excited and supportive of me through my wedding and made the trip to nashville! she also raised some hell on the old blog during the election period. she challenges me and makes me laugh.
5. jess has been an endless source of wisdom and love for me. she serves as an anchor in many ways on things that are important and helps me sift what is not important. she rawks.

ok my peeps. that's all i got. i'll leave you with...

today's chewable vitamin

"you must be the change you wish to see in the world."
~ mahatma gandhi

what i learned in 2004...

:: i was reminded that i am not always right by living with someone from a different culture.
:: i had concrete illustrations via marriage that although my sinful choices never simply affected only me; that it is truly truly true.
:: i remembered that i like to dance.
:: i began to learn that my experiences and contributions that i have learned over the years in my friendships can benefit my marriage.
:: i was reminded that i should hold a friend contest and stack my friends up against anyone and how they would win friends of the year.
:: i was reminded that the very best thing i can do for my marriage is foster my love relationship with Jesus.
:: i learned that being a democrat and being a follower of Jesus are not mutually exclusive.
:: i was reminded of just how cool of a mom i have...
:: i learned alot of things through the blogosphere. i will write a little bit about that later.
:: i was reminded of why i love u2.
:: i learned that racism is still alive and well in this country.
:: i was given ample real life examples of how disheartening, cumbersome and bureaucratic our government’s treatment of immigrants (this is a coded slam of the patriot act)**.
:: i learned in a new way what it means to be broke.
:: i learned about attorney fees.

** oh man is this a whole nother post!