June 10, 2006
Lightbulbs
Today PJ and I went to Costco. We try to only go every couple months as everytime we go we spend way too much money. It is also insanely busy at the San Francisco location, so the less time you spend there, the better. But, today we went to Costco and came home with new energy efficient lightbulbs! We are very excited. Later as we were shopping for more items, an older Chinese woman stopped us and pointed to our lightbulbs and asked us in broken english how much they cost. It was so great to talk to her about the lightbulbs--everyone is buying the energy efficient lightbulbs! FYI--for a pack of 8 60 watt lightbulbs, it cost us $7.19. A pack of 4 100 watt lightbulbs is only $3.99. PJ has already risked his life to change the lightbulbs in our kitchen which are hard to reach with 10 foot ceilings. We are excited to try out our new lightbulbs tonight :)
Posted by Leah at 03:47 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
June 06, 2006
Get out there and vote!
Did you get a I Voted sticker today? I didn't and am frankly a little bummed about it. But, I sent my absentee ballot in last week. For those of you interested in the California elections today, check out the preliminary results at the San Francisco Chronicle. For those of you who didn't vote---not naming any names of persons who may or may not live with me--you can register to vote at: League of Women Voters of California or at: California Secretary of State.
I know, I should have probably have posted this earlier to help remind people to make the polls, but since my readership is a slightly less than the San Francisco Chronicle, I think it will be OK. But, please, please, please make sure you are registered to vote for the November 2006 election.
Posted by Leah at 09:02 PM | TrackBack
June 05, 2006
Inconvenient
This past weekend PJ and I went to see An Inconvenient Truth with our friends (you know who you are). You can check out the official website at www.climatecrisis.net.
What does the word "inconvenient" mean?
The following is the entry from Merriam Webster's online dictionary.
Entry Word: inconvenient
Function: adjective
Text: 1) causing difficulty, discomfort, or annoyance; i.e. the unexpected visitors showed up at an inconvenient time 2) hard or impossible to get to or get at; i.e. for some reason, they placed the dishes in an inconvenient cabinet
Synonyms: awkward, discommoding, disobliging, incommoding
Related Words: bothersome, burdensome, onerous, troublesome; annoying, exasperating, irritating
Near Antonyms: acceptable, bearable, tolerable; advantageous, desirable, good, helpful
Antonyms: convenient
It seems to me that the meaning of the word inconvenient is subjective in some regards. What is convenient for me may be inconvenient for you and vice versa. So, how do you determine if something is convenient or inconvenient for you? Is there an internal set of criteria? Does it just depend on how you feel that day?
PJ hates crowded buses. PJ has to transfer downtown and take yet another MUNI to get to work, so his frustration with MUNI is easy to understand. If you have lived in San Francisco, you know that taking the MUNI downtown is a necessity as the parking is near impossible and will cost you a fortune. So, everyday we trudge to our bus stop and take the local MUNI downtown to work.
Today was a classic example of the our daily commute. We were packed in like sardines and the bus driver kept stopping at all the stops to let people abroad through the back doors. I love looking at other driver's expressions as they look over and notice how crowded our bus is as they nonchalantly drive downtown in the morning. I can almost read their minds as they shake their heads--poor bastards. This morning, however, as PJ grumbled about the mass of humanity on our bus, I just smiled, leaned over and whispered in his ear, "it's inconvenient". My comment at least made him laugh.
We loved the movie and recommend it highly to anyone interested--and even those who aren't interested! We are ashamed to admit that we still don't have the energy efficient lightbulbs. They are now on our shopping list. We also bought a TerraPass. But, that's another article.
Posted by Leah at 08:26 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
March 25, 2006
Headlines
Today I was reading the NY Times online. Most days, you find the headlines filled with war, violence, dispair, and corruption. However, today, I found a headline that grabbed my attention for its humanity. Dose of Tenacity Wears Down a Horrific Disease is about former U.S. President Jimmy Carter's foundation, The Carter Center , which has led a campaign for over 20 years to help fight against a disease called Guinea worm. It is a fascinating article. It reminds me how the most basic things I take for granted, like clean water, are truly a luxury. I am very encouraged to see how Jimmy Carter has advocated for humanitarian causes and used his name to promote issues such as fighting diseases that are curable in his post-presidential years. I hope our other U.S. presidents follow Carter's example.
Posted by Leah at 10:19 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
February 21, 2006
Bush Veto?
For anyone out there who missed today's biggest headline, here it is: Bush Would Veto Any Bill Halting Dubai Port Deal. Bush's foreign policy and economic policy seem to be in tension. For the past few years, I have heard Bush repeat that we are fightin' 'em over there so that we don't have to fight 'em over here. Whoever 'em is, I still haven't figured out. Yet, I think that the business men from the United Arab Emirates may not feel welcome when they arrive and are subject to the Department of Homeland Security's Special Registration requirement. Free trade, come one, come all, but sir, could you first let us take your fingerprints?
Posted by Leah at 10:13 PM | TrackBack
Bush playing the ol' switch-a-roo
Funds restored to energy lab before Bush visit taken from CNN
On the eve of a presidential visit to a renewable energy lab in Colorado, the Department of Energy said it has transferred $5 million to the operation, which had funding cut and employees laid off this month due to budget shortfalls.
May I also suggest that the $15 million that Bush promised in his state of the union for renewable resources is a drop in the huge bucket of billions this administration gives to the oil companies in subsidies.
Dude, no one is buying it.
Posted by PJ at 05:13 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
September 22, 2005
O'Reilly's hate-filled rant
O'Reilly wished that hurricane had flooded U.N. building. - Then refused to apologize for it.
Compassionate conservatives?
Perhaps it's worth your time to tell one of the people responsible for allowing this sort of garbage to be projected across radio (Shane Coppola) to wake up. We know O'Reilly won't.
Posted by PJ at 05:31 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Do Republican Congressmen Care About the Truth?
No.
Unfortunately, the two of the greatest disasters in this nation's history will not be fully investigated. Sadly, this is due to Congressional blocking by the Republican majority.
The people want an independent commission to investigate what happened in the wake of Katrina. The people are once again the victims of political games and fear of what such an investigation just may reveal.
Sad.
Posted by PJ at 04:58 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack