To Protest or Not to Protest....that is the question

Dear Blog,

I'm sincerely torn over a very important and very current event.

The Beijing Olympics is a major political issue now. Human Rights activists are using the torch tour around the world to raise awareness of the atrocities done by China in Tibet. This has been a long running issue that has gotten very little interest, so it seems to me, and the activists are using this very high visibility opportunity.

In Paris, the torch almost got snuffed out by a couple fire extinguisher-carrying activists. The police force protecting it and any other torch committee people 5 times decided to skip parts of the route because they were afraid of uncertain events in store for the runner and his or her torch.

Though I know it can be seen as an embarassment on France, I think as long as the form of protest is not violent, I'm fine with it.

London had similar issues. Go Europe!

Some local activists climbed up the
Golden Gate Bridge to hang these
banners. They're still currently flying.

***

China has a nasty human rights record. That can't even be debated. It's fact and the world knows it. We let it happen, and continue to trade with this beast of a country. I say "beast" because it's huge, powerful, and scary--its lush history and cultural positive points aside.

The reason I'm personally torn is because as an American, I can't say that we don't break human rights too. Thanks in part to our President Bush, it's been acknowledged that we've resorted to varying forms of unacceptable torture. Granted, it's in times of war, but I don't believe that's acceptable for any reason. We can't expect anyone else to do what we say when we don't practice what we preach.

I thought we were supposed to be setting an example to the world? We used to be the one that everyone looked up to, but that image has been tarnished and I don't feel will fully be restored within my life time. I just want to be proud to be an American again. I have faith that I will again, but it's not true now.

What do you think?

Go CHO!

Dear Blog,

Friday night, Jen and I got to see Margaret Cho again! She makes me happy.

Raunchy as she wants to be, I love this comedienne. She says what she wants, delivers it in the most hilarious ways (best facial expressions ever), does voice impersonations (her Momma is notoriously great), and always delivers an overall good message.

Her current tour is called Beautiful. Because we're all beautiful. Dammit!


I'm sitting here in the living room, wearing the cool new shirt I bought and am so glad to have caught her show.

The best part about this tour? She's got Liam Sullivan in tow, and where he goes, so does Kelly!

Yeah, it was amazing.



Shoes. Omigod! Shoes. Let's get some shoes!


Love,

Cade

New and Impoved Sins!

At first when I found this out, I thought that bulldog crazy new pope (I'm entitled to my opinion--the new pope just scares me) was being his crazy/borderline-evil self.

But I think he's actually a genius in this new decree. He's stated that there are 7 new SINS.

In many ways, these feel like an update to the old ones for our modern age. I mean, who uses the word gluttony regularly anyway?

Here be the new sins. Ye addendum is as follows:

1. "Bioethical" violations such as birth control

2. "Morally dubious'' experiments such as stem cell research

3. Drug abuse

4. Polluting the environment

5. Contributing to widening divide between rich and poor

6. Excessive wealth

7. Creating poverty

I agree with all of them except the birth control one. I personally feel that some forms of birth control should be avoided (like abortion), but I am not 100% against it under certain circumstances. I'm a man, so I don't really feel like my feelings on the matter should have any say when it comes to a woman's choice. I can just state my preference. I strongly feel that it is and should be a guaranteed option in terrible situations, like incest, rape, etc. That should go without question. Oh yeah, also when a birth highly risks the life of the mother. Think of Shelby in Steel Magnolias. "Drink ya juice, Shelby. Drink ya juice!"

The other forms of birth control, depending on the nature, I am fine with overall. Unplanned births are out of control and I am sure that a child coming from a couple who are financially, and emotionally stable are likely to be much better parents--because they are willing, ready, and able. I also feel that adoption is underrated and will probably adopt when I have a child. Crack babies need love too! So do the older orphans, don't forget them.

I'm probably going to regret this post, but I feel honesty is the best policy and I also like to share how I feel on everything, holding almost nothing back.

Love me or hate me for this post (mentioning abortion will bring crap my way, I'm sure), but I hope you will think calmly before making judgement on me for my feelings.

Your Birthdate: January 29th

Dear Blog,

I recently had a birthday and because Jennifer's use of this web site was a bull's eye, I am now posting mine. My notes in red.

love,

Cade


You have the mind of an artist, even if you haven't developed the talent yet. I'm working on it!
Expressive and aware, you enjoy finding new ways to share your feelings. It's called diplomacy—straight up expression for me has not proved to be a good thing.
You often feel like you don't fit in - especially in traditional environments. No shit! (gay boy and one who is an artist and who thinks for himself)
You have big dreams. The problem is putting those dreams into action. Yes, and working on it!

Your strength: Your vivid imagination

Your weakness: Fear of failure (wow, yes, that's my biggest fear)

Your power color: Coral (creepy, considering I always wear a ring with red coral in it)

Your power symbol: Oval (that's a novel idea...never thought about it)

Your power month: November (hmmm, good to know!)

What Does Your Birthday Mean?

They DO exist!

Dear Blog,

On my way to work today, atypically not from my home, but from my lover's, I lost my cell phone on the bus. Already anxious as I had to miss the express bus because it was crammed too full, and getting to work barely on time, by the skin of my teeth, this was not a cool thing to discover.

I lost my dang phone! (again)

This time, I knew it wasn't going to just show up back in my life again. I feared it either fell out of my jacket pocket at the bus stop or ON the bus. I wasn't sure which possibility was worse.

So, I had already resigned myself, before noon, to price out new phones online and had changed my voicemail as well to direct everyone to leave their name AND number on the messages because I had lost my awesome handset. Of course, I had tried to call my own phone to see if anyone would answer, and no go. Heck, by the third attempt at this, it went straight to voicemail, making me think that either it was destroyed or battery died.

Hours at work rolled by, and nothing. I was going to wait a couple days before ordering another one, just in case, but nothing.



Then my office phone rang.

"Hello?"


It is a man who found my phone! He was calling me to just try to figure out who it belonged to so he could return it. I kept thinking about setting up a convenient place and time for me to get it from him, but when I told him where I worked, he said he knew the exact place and would be over within the hour.

!!!

So, I check my wallet, and only have $28 bucks to offer as a reward. Crap! Well, I do work for Sephora.com, and I'm scrounging up anything and everything to make him a little "thank you bag." Hopefully, he'll be able to use some of it and share the rest with any special ladies in his life. After all, we do sell mostly items for women.

So, I'm reunited with my lovely and awesome phone. I can go back and change my voicemail back to normal and everything is happy again. I'm sure this task was brought about by tapping any and all good karma that I had stored up, but it is something I would have done myself for another, if I could have.


Thank you Good Samaritan. I greatly appreciate it.

What happened to January?

Dear Blog,

WHEW! This month just blew by! My 29th birthday has come, but isn't quite gone yet. Tomorrow, co-workers and I are going to happy hour, then I'll hopefully get myself in just the right amount of trouble with my friends later. Meanwhile, the boyfriend is in Germany, and I'm not hating him as much as I was a month ago, knowing he'd be gone. He'll make it up to me on Valentine's Day, if he's smart. ;-)

My littlest bro (though I'm officially the shortest one now), chatted me up a couple days ago and asked when I was coming to go skiing. Oops! I forgot that I mentioned during Christmas that I'd like to go skiing for my birthday with my Colorado family. Well, why the hell not?

So, Saturday morning I'm flying to Colorado to go haunt an old favorite ski range: Snowy Range in Whyoming. Yes, Wyoming. The awesomeness of Snowy Range is that it's up in that cold, windy, uneducated, and backwards-as-the-Deep-South place. Few Coloradoans, much less the rest of the world will go, or at least admit to it. I've been going to this quaint little ski resort since I was a kid. It's very well kept, has been growing a lot for years, and isn't too far from my dad's place up in the mountains. He lives dangerously close to the Colorado/Wyoming border, which actually works in my favor this trip.

Now, the question is: should I snowboard or ski? I was practically born on skis, and love them, and have only gone snowboarding once. It's a very different animal, but I had fun. I think if I had 2-3 days to go, I'd board, but this trip will likely just give me one day of fun in the powder.

I just discovered that Snowy Range is also for sale. If you happen to have a cool $6.5M, would you buy me this ski resort?

Anyway, I can't wait to go. I've been bad to Colorado thrice in the past 6 months, and I love it. Being a native Coloradoan is something I'm very proud of. It's easy because luckily, I am from a place that is actually cool to be from.


love,

Cade

Kissing Through the Holidays

Dear Blog,

Anyone who knows me, knows that I like a little pomp and circumstance as well as know that I'm a bit superstitious. The perfect way to explain this is how I value a perfect kiss at midnight on New Year's Eve.

There's a lot of important kissing around the holidays,
between the superstition of kissing under the mistletoe
and the tradition of kissing at midnight on New Year's Eve.

Well, having been single for about the past 5 years and having been in a crappy relationship for the couple years before that--I'd say I've not had a good NYE kiss in at least 7 years. There have been some of those make-outs with a cute friend, who chose me in the last 10 seconds before midnight, but they just weren't good.

One New Year's superstition that I still don't abide by is eating black eyed peas of the actual day. That's one my mom's been trying to get me to do for years, but I've only had good black eyed peas once, ever. The rest are usually last minute, cold, fresh out of the can, that my mom would try to slip a spoonful into my mouth. Yuck... maybe this year, I'll actually eat them without question or complaint.

This year, I'm staying in the city for both Christmas and New Year's Eve. I want to see how it is in my new home. Each city has a different feel, and way they celebrate each, but I want this year to be perfect. I plan to explore and see every public Christmas tree possible, find the cool small shops that I've not yet found, and enjoy New Year's likely shooting fireworks off at the beach. I've had them since the 4th of July, and what a better way to spend New Year's Eve. I have high hopes that something wonderful will happen.