World Press Fotos

Foto 1 -- Darfur Region, Sudan
Foto 2 -- West Bank
Foto 3 -- Beirut, Lebanon after Israeli bombing

Courtesy: www.worldpressphoto.com

What I am Listening to...

The Crane Wife, The Decemberists www.decemberists.com
The Warning, Hot Chip www.hotchip.co.uk

Life's ...

a joy when you have a little. a little of everything goes a long way. reading my journal from asia. the emotion rushing back, the simple thrills of a boy with his backpack in the middle of another continent pushing to find the edge of everything. the smells, tastes, contrasts, cultures... that is living at its finest.

why can't we live like that everyday? that is a question I truly pose as a solution to the world's ills. live with the simple joys, understand them, cherish them, and come together as a people. religion shouldn't have to serve as a barrier; faith as well. they should both push us closer together instead of farther apart. just a thought that hit the noodle.

as my good friend anthony de mello would say, Get into Today.

What I am Reading...

Awareness by Anthony de Mello (late) -- Recommended

The book sounds a wake-up call to the reader and discusses of what spirituality really consists. Contrasts "I" vs. "me". Labels, being human, not being a puppet, dependence and self-observation are some of the topics explored. I am about 2/5's the way thru, so I'll have a quick post with some afterthoughts when I'm finished.

A real Christmas story...

A boy who died in a traffic accident donated his organs to seven recepients in Hong Kong...how 'bout that? Just thought it was a great thing to do when the lights go out.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/hongkong_life_donor_dc

UPtown Cycles: Egg nog and Blondes

Hello life. How's it goin? Good? Great. Well, this was a pic from last nite at Uptown Cycles (Donovan aka Cycle Pimp's new pad). It was quite a good time with excellent egg nog, bikes up for drawing, and that mello bike crowd that I've grown to love. (i.e. flower couple, malaysia gal, dude named stuart)...but where was my swell italian pal damiano?? hmm.....well, anyways, go to http://www.uptowncycles.com if you want to hop in on some rides, always a terrific way to spend an evening

JFK Speech at Yale University, 1962

Too often we hold fast to the cliches of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought. Mythology distracts us everywhere. For the great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie - deliberate, contrived, and dishonest - but the myth - persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic.

Some Wedding Fotos

http://josephmarkblog.blogspot.com/2006/11/arti-andrew.html

they are just gorgeous..really, check them out!

My First Real Purchase!

Well, it has been a two year search and, finally, the result is in: my new car is a...duh da duh daaaaaaa 2007 Lexus IS250! I get it in a week. I still can't believe I bought a car. It's an exciting feeling and one that puts a lot of responsibility on the shoulders. Sort of a feeling of growing up, coming of age, etc etc.

Sadly, this requires the giving up of my current baby, Carolina (said with a Argentine accent). Seven years, the longest relationship I've ever had, is coming to an end soon. I plan on selling her with only 48k on the odometer. She's never given me much trouble and has been faithful. If anyone wants to gently take her from me...please let me know.

Ahh...the bittersweet moments of life. I guess that's just the way the ball bounces eh?

Diamonds in the Rough -The Bataka Revolution

Interesting Ugandian Rappers speaking for the struggles of their country

Trip around the world (teaser)

Funny and shifted movie of two young french sphere trotter around the world!!!!! Countries: Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, New Zealand, Burma, Singapore, Indonesia, India

Arti's Big Wedding Weekend!

Wow, it was a great weekend. All of the cousins came into town, we ate a lot of food, and now my sister is somewhere in Mexico with my new brother-in-law. Nice.

Week in Review (Nov. 6th - 10th)

Here's a summary of the week...
-Monday I worked late preparing for a budget meeting that included Sabre's CTO and CIO
-Tuesday I stayed until 7:30pm, when the meeting concluded
-Wednesday I worked until 10:30pm helping my co-worker with her budget
-Thursday I got a good run in during lunch and worked until 8pm
-Friday..well, that's today, we'll see...manager is out, worked late yesterday, so maybe early?

Other news...
-Democrats took both the Senate and the House (woohooo!)
-My sister's fiance, Andrew, is having his bachelor party this Saturday and I will be rockin' hard with him
-My sister's bridal shower and bachelorette party is this weekend on Saturday
-I am 4000 miles over the recommended oil change mileage which means it's time!

Ambitions...
-To set up an online Second Life real estate business
-Run a half marathon in the next 6 months
-Make tennis a weekly event
-Create a new website for NPAK Hospitality Inc., my Dad's business
-Come up with a business plan with Sid

Tired and Wired to VOTE!

Yep, I got up this morning at 5:15 am. My boss, let's just call him "S", had told me that the polls opened up at 6. Since I haven't voted before (yes yes, very sad, but never again) I didn't know any different. Well, I get there at 6:08am to see older men and women just starting to set up the booths; definitely not ready! So here I am..mildly exhausted, big day at work ahead, no breakfast (besides milk w/ Carnation), still ready to vote. It's 6:53am now and I am heading out the door. 7 am is when they let the voting begin. I'm not giving away who I'm vote for, but I'm feeling pretty K i n k y. Cheers.

GO VOTE! www.vote-smart.org

Sufjan Steven...... &*1

Sufjan Stevens - Come on! Feel the Illinoise!
http://www.youtube.com/v/IOanm6mbMYE

"Saints are Coming"

Check this out.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seGhTWE98DU

:) my halloween costume

That's right, I was a squirrel last nite! whooooooooooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaa.

Lou Dobbs is an idiot

The guy parades around on CNN (a respectable news channel) everyday pushing for protectionism and subsidies with the aim of retaining inefficient US manufacturing jobs. As a consumer, why would you want to pay more for a lower quality product? Just does not make sense. Free trade agreements form the groundwork that has created such a competitive advantage for the United States. Countries that continue to shun free trade (i.e. North Korea, Venezuela, sometimes France) grow at a slower rate than countries that embrace free trade; these rate differences are reflected in the living conditions within the countries. A policy is not bad just because people lose their jobs. America is moving forward towards service sector and information technology jobs that pay more. The key is for the government to provide subsidies for the retraining of structurally displaced workers. With this safety net, workers will be shifted into these higher paying jobs, increase their living standards, and receive cheaper goods from low-cost manufacturers abroad. That is the message Lou Dobbs should be spreading.

Prem Panchal

Tasers are Fun!

My friends watched as my roommate, Justin, fried Casey! "Its like a constant spasm that you can't get away from!"

Tell us something we don't know --

"I think there is great room for strong criticism, because without doubt, there was arrogance and stupidity by the United States in Iraq"

Alberto Fernandez, US state department official

This is just another confirmation and a long series of confirmations (besides the mounting deaths, currently at 2,792 and 20,468 wounded) that tells us how badly we, the US and the Bush Administration, handled the war. Lack of ground troops, lack of an exit strategy (what is victory anyway?) and no real threat doomed us from the beginning. How long will it take for us to understand the affect this is having on potential terrorists around the region (remember the NIE earlier this year?)? Iraq was not our problem, terrorism was (and consequently still is).

Let's just hope that the mid-term elections bring change in congressional leadership and change in our foreign policy.