Beans.

Well, I finally have some beans to spill.

After 4 years of trying to get on the design team for my favorite website they.....

picked me. :D

I'm really excited...I just have always felt weird about tooting my own horn. Although tooting comes naturally with beans.

So I hear. At home. From my husband. And then I make him go outside.

Congrats to all the other gals who made it...I'm so thrilled to be on the team with them! What's especially nice about the team this year is many of the gals have been trying along with me the last four years. I feel like we're the "Little Team that Could." (I think I can I think I can.)

If you run your train into the mountain enough times, you're sure to make a tunnel, right?

And for the gals who wanted so much to be on the team but didn't get the call...I've been right there and it stinks. I think I actually had a little hissy fit the first year. (SO embarrassed about that....) Know that you're all important to the community and that I'm sending big fat woman cyber hugs your way, k?

Onward and upward!

Pessimism in the Dark Knight, Optimism in the Olympics, and the Upcoming Elections. AKA Deep Thoughts 101

Dh and I saw the Dark Knight on Saturday. All in all it was a fast-paced, well-done film. The performances were good, though I thought Christian Bale was underused. Plus I hated the gruff voice thing he does when he's in costume.

And I left the movie feeling like crap.

You've got Gotham City which seems to be the cesspool of the universe. Scattered amidst the thugs and mobsters you have a mere handful of people who are trying to make things better.

Enter Batman. He's got money. He's got toys. He's got MISSILES! And he's pretty much got NO support. Most of the cops are crooked. The people are intimidated. So, he's got an uphill battle, to say the least.

Enter the Symbol Of Hope, aka Harvey Dent. For a while it looks like he's the man who can galvanize the forces of good, or at least let them think there's a light at the end of the tunnel.

Well, without giving too much away, let's just say that hope isn't a Welcome Thing in Gotham.

The message of this movie seems to be that no matter who you are or how good your intentions, you can be corrupted. That it's possible, if not probable, that we will face a future where evil is so prevalent, so pervasive, that the forces of good are unable to bring forth the winds of change.

Here's a movie that made millions and millions of dollars, not all of which can be justified by morbid curiosity over Heath Ledger's death. A movie that got near universal approval and reviews. A movie that seems to shout, "Mankind sucks!"

A movie with a message that seems to resonate deeply with the disaffected populace.

I'd feel worse about all if this...if it wasn't for the unexpected success of something with the exact opposite message: The 2008 Summer Olympics.

All discussion about China and human rights aside, there's something hopeful about the way that the Olympics this year seem to have captured our optimistic side.

I don't think you can chalk it all up to Michael Phelps and his Amazing Medal Collection. I don't think there was anything extraordinary about the way NBC covered the Olympics either.

I just think people wanted to feel good about something. To see and feel excellence. Unity. Sacrifice. Kindness. Persistence. Hope.

Which brings me to the current election.

Sometimes I feel like I'm living in Gotham City. I feel like no one can fix the things that are wrong with our country. That no matter who gets elected, we will have the same problems, the same concerns, and the same fears. I feel like hope is audacious...that promises that are made during elections are hot air and hope and trust built on such promises are as fragile as a soap bubble.

But I still hope.

I hope to see the the strength we saw in the Olympians. The desire for excellence. The completion of the task despite the odds. The unity of the spectators that defied boundaries and cultures.

I hope for a better tomorrow.

Against all odds, I hope.

Optimistic or sadistic?

So I decided to try for the CX DT. Again.

Maybe the FOURTH time's the charm. ;)

These are some layouts done with some of the pics from the 24th of July. I need to quickly do a layout for Josh...I think he's feeling left out.

***************

I read Breaking Dawn. I still think Jacob is hotter than Edward. In my mind, anyway. I hope the Twilight movie is good.

**************

School starts in a couple of weeks. It's the last year of elementary for Josh...wow! Where did the time go? Sadie will be in kindergarten...and I'm all torn up. I will really miss seeing her little face in the halls of the preschool and enjoying her quick hugs or watching her make new friends. Bree will be a sophmore! and will be taking DRIVER'S ED!

*aside* So...I didn't want Bree's first time behind the wheel to be in Driver's Ed...because, how embarrasing, right?

Well, my daughter....my SMART, BRIGHT, INTELLIGENT daughter...is a total spaz behind the wheel. She's been bugging me to let her go get her learner's permit. I don't have a problem with that...as soon as she demonstrates that she knows enough to pass the test. I don't want to wait in the lines at the DMV for nothin'.

So, anyway, I pull into a large, deserted church parking lot, put the car in park, and tell her to slide over.

The chick FREAKS out.

"Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh...I'm gonna crash the car, Mom!"

I believe her since she doesn't know to push the brake as we creep closer to a fence.

Here's me: "Brake, Breanna. Push the brake. The brake. Push. the. brake. THE BRAKE!"

Bree: "You're freaking me OUT, mom!"

She hits the brake and I almost hit the dash. Apparently she can't get the hang of driving with one foot, so she's got one on the gas when she hits the brake.

After a minute we get the steering thing down. It's good as long as we don't put on any gas. So we're doing figure 8's at..oh, 3 m.p.h.

She starts to give it a little more gas and there's giggling and freaking and hands MOVING OFF the STEERING WHEEL. She's learning to stop...but still is using both feet.

I let her drive...at 3 m.p.h....down two empty streets to our house. As we head down one street, we see it's blocked by a big dump truck.

WHoo hooo! Three point turn! Score!

I have to help take the wheel, because...it''s a THREE POINT TURN.

That's got to be, like, 3rd time behind the wheel material or something.

Anyway, we make it home. I think I was remarkable calm and unjudgemental, Bree swears that I was nervous and that's what made her all...loopy.

Yeah. This year's gonna be...fun.

TTFN!