nobody told me about the side effects! (9-29-04)

I am not short because I am Asian! I am short because those 6 years of
gymnastics MADE ME SHORT!!!! I KNEW IT! Those aerials took away
inches from my life!
http://www.endo-society.org/pubrelations/pressReleases/archives/2004/exercise_athletes.cfm

[Thanks to Michelle E. for the article.]

++++++++++++++++++
I love the idea of getting your own bobblehead. Why should celebrities
have all of the fun. I think these would make great wedding gifts,
don't you?

http://www.whoopassenterprises.com/

++++++++++++++++++
I hate Wal-Mart.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/28/international/americas/28mexico.html?8hpib
Full article after the horoscopes.

++++++++++++++++++
This week's horoscopes are dedicated to:

Audrey
Mija
Michelle
Sandy
Bob and Russell
Saumya
(aka the usual suspects)

I am scared of my step class (9-23-04)

So, yesterday, I wore a red t-shirt and black pants. I didn't really
think anything of it until I got to work and looked at the full length
mirror (actually it's more like a mirror wall) and noticed I looked like
a greeter for a Chinese restaurant Do you want eggroll or soup? And I
wasn't the only one. Now, I should preface this by saying that red is
a lucky color in the Chinese culture. And I was wearing a red, red
t-shirt.

The UN General Assembly 59th session started on Monday, September 21,
2004 and it has wreaked traffic havoc in Midtown. There are cops on
every corner and yesterday, the same day I was dressed like a Mao youth,
the Falun Gong (a mind, body and spirit group that is being persecuted
in China - why? Well, I would tell you, but that would take more
minutes than I care to spare these days) were protesting in my work
neighborhood. They aren't allowed near the UN; but were allowed two blocks
around the UN. And the Falun Gong was EVERYWHERE. When I went out at
lunch, they just smiled at me and tried to hand me their information. But
after work, I think they were dismayed at the lack of interest so when
they saw me, Super Asian Girl in her red and black outfit. I think in
their heads they collectively thought - ASIAN GIRL, RED=CHINESE, GET
HER! Because on each block, a member of the Falun Gong was chasing after
me (chasing because the minute I would see one, I would hustle my way
out of her general direction), trying several different dialects of
Chinese, then Japanese and finally "Korean?!" At first, I thought it was
an anomaly. The first member of Falun Gong darted after me and the
faster I walked, the faster she walked. Finally I escaped her by quickly
crossing the street, but then there was another one. And I didn't think
that this one would chase me too, but she did. Luckily, I was close to
the subway and could escape.

It's not fun being chased by a person who strongly believes in mind,
body and spirit principles. They can be fierce. And they are quick
walkers.

UN General Assembly information
=========================
For those of you who are having back, arm, wrist and butt problems due
to sitting at a desk all day (like me!), here is a guide for better
sitting posture.

Reducing back pain while sitting in office chairs

=========================
This week's horoscopes go out to:
Saumya
Sandy
John, Doug and Annie
Ann, Dabney and Fiedler
Bob and Russell
Michelle E.
Fresh Direct
Martha A

Are you from my parallel world? (9-16-04)

I keep meaning to send you copies of the birthday cards (and 3-D
incarnation) that some of you have sent me for my birthday last month, but I
keep forgetting. So to all of you, I SWEAR it will be in next week's
email.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Carey Meyers has brought to my attention that September 19 is Talk Like
a Pirate Day. Two friends, while playing racquetball in 1995, started
Pirate Slang and wrote an email to Dave Barry of their anectodes. They
also proposed Talk Like a Pirate Day to Dave Barry and he, being the
consummate bearer of good news, brought it to the WORLD (OK, various
locations in the US).

So, you beauties and bilge rats, smartly pick up your hornpipe and your
flagon of grog and scream ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

http://www.talklikeapirate.com/about.html The history of the Day
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/columnists/dave_barry/4018055.htm?1c
original Talk Like a Pirate Day column
http://www.talklikeapirate.com/partykit.html Plan a Pirate Party kit

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I was on the phone last night with Cynthia Anderson and she let me know
about this Iowa town, that used to be called Fairfield, but parts of
the town changed their name to Vedic City [Vedic is a Sanskrit word
meaning "totality of knowledge."]. The story begins with Fairfield, an
agricultural town that lost a lot of businesses and the college. The town
and its people were economically depressed and needed to find new
businesses to build up their local economy. So, then come the yellow buses
bringing the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and his students to start the
Maharishi International University. The idea of the university started in
1955 when the Maharishi began teaching transcendental meditation (TM) in
India. (What is TM? http://www.mum.edu/cbe/tm.shtml ) The Beatles
went to the Maharishi and let's just say a star was born. So, in come all
of these people who want to meditate in the middle of farm country Iowa
and slowly the town folk begin to meditate too. Now, one-fourth of the
10,000 residents of Fairfield and Vedic City practice TM. They even
have a residential community where the houses are built to be in tune with
transcendental meditation tenets. People are retiring there. Even the
mayor practices TM.

This all shows me that people everywhere can open up their minds,
broaden their scope and get a little weird during the process.

Here's some links about the university:

http://www.mum.edu/ Maharishi University of Management
http://www.npr.org/features/feature.php?wfId=3875438 NPR item re: the
Maharishi and the small Iowa town where it all began

Then there are the opponents of transcendental meditation:

http://unstress4less.org/
http://www.suggestibility.org/index.htm
http://www.watchman.org/na/outoftm.htm
http://unstress4less.org/transcendental_meditation-religion.htm

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
This week's horoscopes go out to:
Saumya
Bob and Russell
Lamont, my ass kicking step instructor
Steven and Alex
Sandy
Ann and Dabney
Michelle E. (L'shanah tovah)
Good luck to the triathletes, Carey and Lynda!

I don't want to wait for our lives to be over... (9-8-04)

You gotta love Florida - even though there are hurricanes and extreme
humidity, the state of Florida is so stupid that they let me sign up for
an absentee ballot for the General Elections this November. Of course,
it does help that I never changed my FL driver's license over to NY. I
thought it might come in handy some day. Also, renewing a FL driver's
license is so easy! All you have to do is sign a piece of paper, send
in a check for $4 and get your license renewed. Amazing state, FL.

Of course, I have to now wait and see if I get my paperwork in time,
but I would bet that I do. Last time I did an absentee ballot out of FL
(in college), the state of FL sent me a punch card ballot with a steel
pin to punch out my selections. A steel pin, I tell you.

**********************************
I unfortunately have nothing else to contribute this week. The rain
has sapped my energy and my will to babble. You will just have to fill
in the blanks yourself this week.

**********************************
Last week's email about people riding bikes while walking their dogs
brought about a philosophy question for you to ponder:

Franibee from AZ: If you walk a dog when you are riding a bike, aren't
you actually driving the dog? Just an observation. PS-Bikes are why
God invented the skort :) I highly recommend it.

Also re: last week's email:

Lori from LA, CA: hey - how did I make it into the dedication section?
or do you know another Lori???! [Yes, I do know another Lori - NOT]

**********************************
This week's horoscopes go out to:

> ANN AND DABNEY ARE BACK! YAY!
> Saumya, for a wonderful cooking lesson and dinner
> Ann, Ennio and Camila, for being wonderful dinner companions (and for
getting me my financial reports!!! Thanks, Ann!)
> Mark, for buying that large umbrella (what's the Scottish word for
umbrella?) during the rainstorm of Star Wars: Episode I
> Carey, Steven and Jennifer, for a wonderful day at Brighton Beach and
at Chez Kane and Meyers

Ay, yi, yi, yiiiiiii! (9/1/04)

I have some general advice for people who ride bikes:

Ladies or Fashion-forward men: don't wear a skirt while riding a bike.
It's a dangerous act to commit. First, you are showing off your
panties to the world (of course, some may find that to be a bonus); second,
you could get your skirt caught in the spokes of the wheel; and third,
if you are wearing a straight skirt, well, unless you hike it up (see
#1), you will have problems getting down.

Also, please do not walk your dog while riding a bike. That is just an
accident waiting to happen.

++++++++++++++++++
Web site of interest:

http://www.tvtome.com/

I don't know who has the time to do this, but obviously there are tens
of hundreds of people who are willing to sacrifice a lot of things to
get the information on line. God Speed, TV Tome, God Speed.

++++++++++++++++++
I subscribe to the Best Bets section of New York magazine's web site,
nymetro.com. Every day, the writer brings a new item or items of
interest to purchase. Most of the time, they are things like cute shoes or a
new purse. However, every once in a while, a gem like the yarmulkebra
is posted. So, hurry down and get your Jewish and goy (you never
know)/shiksa friends.

http://www.yarmulkebra.com/collection.html

++++++++++++++++++
This week's horoscopes go out to:

>> Alex, Carey, Jennifer and Steven
>> Kim
>> Lori
>> Jen B., Holly, Lynn, Audrey, Danielle, Jen P, Russell, Bob, Ann,
Dabney, Michelle E.