quote from the enquirer (cincinnati)

"life... is not about winning and losing. It is not, edifying as it sounds, even about how you play the game. It is simply that you play - that you live until you die, wake until you sleep, move until you're stilled, try until you can't." for dada -- because he did try until he couldn't

A sobering quote, but one that caught my eye this morning. pnp

Interesting Article...

http://www.slate.com/id/2161901/

Producing coinage for collectors is lucrative. Since the Treasury spends about 12 cents to make a dollar coin, it makes 88 cents' profit whenever one is pulled from a pocket and stashed away...The Mint has raked in $4.6 billion thus far on its similar state-quarters program. Making money, it seems, is a decent way to make money.

Life and the Pursuit of Happiness

What is life, happiness? it means not one thing to everyone, but everything to each one of us.

whether it be an emotion, a social status, an abstract idea that no one attains, or something that each of us has at all times, it is all of these ends and more, or not.

one cannot fathom the extent of joy, suffering, discovery, and failure that occurs each second of everyday... but to try to in one life, that is something.

let us all dedicate ourselves to the pursuit of ourselves in the hope that this brings us all up from the bottom

let us understand ourselves and, in turn, understand each other.

buon?

Create, Discover, Live
pnp--travel = good

Movies to Watch...

Beerfest -- Really funny! Good if you like to drink quality beers, especially from Germany.
Frida -- Very touching story of the famous Mexican artist.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon -- Good story, great action, intertwined w/ a love story.
Pan's Labyrinth -- Incredible fairy tale of a girl during the Spanish Revolution; great picture.
23 -- It's an interesting movie; worth your money, but nothing more...I really expected more tho.

Innovation

http://pipes.yahoo.com -- I am looking into this...a novel way for aggregating feeds to make them more useful.

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