These little guys, born in the Hodenhagen Zoo, were on display for the first time this past week.

The world needs more lions.

Look how utterly gorgeous they are! (And spotty, and fuzzy, and wild, and pile-o-cat-like they are!) I'm not sure if the cubs are set to be released at some later date--which is naturally my hope--but regardless,
the world needs more lions--and not just because there are so few remaining.

I have been an animal lover all my life, and not just a little. If I had to name five things that are most crucial to the quality of my life--aside from people/relationships--the natural world (as a whole) is definitely on the list.

But let's be REAL. It is all about my dog, The Woob, or my cat, Rudy. If it weren't for my acerbic wit and natural, effervescent charm, you'd never put up with the latest "so cute" story. Believe me.

I think it all began for me with Pooh and Piglet, really.
But as I said, the world needs more lions. (and elephants and bears and anemones and spiders and geese and tigers and frogs and whales and orangutans and so on...)
Why, you ask? Because they are stunning. Because the loss of them would make us and our lives, less. So much less.

How wonderful would it be if we saw our "job," in the grand scheme of things, as a stewardship rather than as an ownership type relationship...As an honor, even.

Because it really and truly is.

If we spent more time and resources protecting lions and their habitats, for example, perhaps we would spend less time and money and lives bombing the shit out of each other.

That'd be cool. And definitely a win-win type situation.

We need more lions so that we can remember what really matters--that we are not the only thing that matters--that the whole is the sum of its parts...

Goodbye Guantanimo

Keep up the good work, Mr. President!

Hey There

There hasn't been (and there still isn't) any plan to abandon this here blog...Though I imagine that it might rightly appear that way. I've been on a sort of unplanned hiatus.

An old friend of mine died suddenly on Christmas Eve--of all days to suddenly die... Quite, quite sad.

So there is that, and, of course, Christmas itself, which, for me, was very good and filled with wonderful people and travel and lovely times. Suffice it to say--I have been quite busy.

So, I want to reassure (myself mainly,) that I will be "back in a few," I guess.
I hope the holidays were as kind to you as they were to me!
Happy New Year!

Hoopla And Hope

I LOVE this photo! It was taken in Jakarta when it was announced that Obama was President. This election was so important to the whole world. For more lovely international photo reactions go HERE.

HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL!!!!!!!!

Wow. Seriously, WOW, it's all over.

I have had the most amazing and unexpected emotional reaction. It wasn't until John McCain was CONCEDING, until my mother and I were crying together (in our relief and happiness) on the phone, that I realized just how much I had been anticipating the privilege of HOPE again.

HOPE.

Something I have been largely without--in terms of my government, anyway,--for eight LONG years. And, my dear friends, eight years is a long time. As we've seen, a LOT of damage can be done in eight years time.

Even my home state of Indiana--a swing-state in this election--went with Obama. By a hair, but still. The Hoosier state has not gone blue since the '64 election. This is truly incredible.

When they called OHIO for Obama, I dialed my brother. Then I called my best friend, Carter--my dad--all my most important loved ones... We said stuff like, "I love you!" And, "Oh, my god, can you believe it?!...Seriously, can you effing believe this?!?..."
We still can't.

After that, I'll admit that I spent a good part of the evening letting loose the ol' waterworks. As I stated above--I did not anticipate this type of reaction. I mean, yes, I expected to feel happy--incredibly happy--if Obama won. But this, this feeling is just over the top. It feels as if we have somehow collectively arrived back to reality. I know that times ahead aren't going to be easy--what with the wars, the economy et all, but it really feels like there is a new consciousness today and that feels just beautiful.

My hope is that we are closer to a more equitable and generous culture now, one that inspires, one that encourages and engenders our BEST, most righteous selves, instead of pandering to those lowest common denominators--greed and fear. A culture that strives to embody its own ideals--not merely giving them lip service. I would like to think that we have arrived back at our default setting and I am ready for my country to be "of" me again--for it to live up to its promise.

I know we can.

It Won't Be Long Now...

Note to Self: Stop Being Such a Wuss!

It's not even that cold here yet and I have already been tempted--several times even--by the thermostat siren.
Cold seeps into my bones super readily, and by that I mean anything below the mid sixties and I'm bringing a sweater--just in case. Anyway, I am not, nor have I ever been a fan of the cold. I am also not a fan of paying exorbitant gas bills, of the skin and sinus parching, unnatural air that blows up from the basement, or of Global Warming.

So I try to be good and not turn on the heat until adding another blanket or pair of socks just won't cut it. We'll see how long I last.

"I May Not Have What It Takes To Be 'Presidential', Exactly,...

....But I can SORT OF spin the talking points--as long as I am not asked a direct question.
Oh! And I DID stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night!!"

Thanks to my friend, Nate, who made us all roll on the floor laughing (though we could have just as easily wept, I suppose,) at Ms. Palin's ridiculously scant qualifications.
I still can't believe it.

A Couple Things I Could Do Without

In the spirit of naming everyday sexism (internalized and otherwise), here are a couple things I could really just do without:

1. Weakening one's (often legitimate) critique(s) of Sarah Palin, by offering some gender-based slur or stereotype to "bring it home" with more zest or emphasis.
Yes, I GET IT, she sucks.
There is NO NEED to belittle all women in order to make your point.
Her SUCKING has zero to do with the fact that she has a vagina, and everything to do with the fact that she is an anti-woman, talking-head TV candidate who chanced into a role that she is (most likely) incapable of adequately filling. (Aren't we just finishing eight LONG years of this sort of thing? Can ANYBODY appear Presidential with the right make-up and spin machines behind them?!?!?) When November comes, MY GOD, I hope enough of us will have learned that lesson.

2. Not really sexism, but irritating nonetheless:
What's WITH you conservatives--a la Phyllis Schlafly--who've screeched "shut up and stay home" to women 'til your voices were hoarse, suddenly being cool with a woman at the helm?

Dude, where's the pyre for SP?!?
(You folks always seem to have one at the ready, after all.)

Seriously, Sarah is EVERYTHING you've despised and railed against for the entire duration of the womens' movement. But now that team McCain has a chance in hell, somehow it doesn't matter that she spits in the face of much that you hold so dear?!?

She IS the lipstick, McCain is the pig.

To me this stinks of desperation--to the fact that you'll do anything, ANYTHING to WIN.
Tut tut. I smell the blood of a hypocrite. Family Values? Right.

Via: Feministing

Charlie's Angels

This is what I'm going to be for Halloween.

Of course, you can't go as ONE of the angels, there is no "angel" in the singular. That would be odd--because then you'd just be a 70's looking chick, and that's just not very exciting. So Anna and Nico are bringing the other two back to life. (this was all Anna's idea in the first place) If done right, I think it will be really fun. I'm talking ridiculously exaggerated angel action--I'm talking MASSIVELY HUGE hair.
This is all contingent on finding the right wigs. They have to be real hair because I don't think you can heat-style the cheap synthetic ones--and I really think that the hair is about 80% of the costume.
And WOW! Wigs are FUN! If you've never put one on I highly recommend it! Somehow they allow the wearer to adopt a new personality. Do it and you'll see what I mean. It's liberating!