You're never there when it counts....

....We all get the feeling. You add weight to my life. I know that I shouldn't consider you a burden, but sometimes i do. You are there, always there, but not when it counts. Being there for no reason doesn't really make me appreciate you. I have invested money and time in you. Time getting to know your ins and outs. How you operate. How i need to take care of you. I know what you could potentially bring to my life, i just haven't seen it and i doubt if i will. I have had these relationships in the past, and i know how it will end. And i knew that before this even got started, but i couldn't resist. I gave into my temptation hoping that i would be wrong. I'm not so sure right now.



I have been carrying around my new Leatherman Wave with me for two weeks, every day, on my hip. So far i have cut the tape of a cardboard box to break it down for trash and cut a sheet of plastic with it (even though it wasn't needed because there was already an exacto knife open and ready to use, instead i went through the process of taking it out of its case and opening it and figuring out which one was the knife). I will not have it when i need it....thats how it works. Leatherman's and Swiss Army knives come cursed. There is a demon in charge of making sure they are never actually present in an emergency. I'll be sure to let you know if i conquer this bladed demon.

It was fun while it lasted......

When you tell someone that you live on an island, they are instantly filled with jealousy that you live in paradise. What most people fail to realize is the price that must be paid to live in a such a place. We give up the convenience of having choices when it is time to shop. We give up the convenience of knowing that when we need something, it is readily available. But mostly, you give up the security of knowing that you will always have at least a majority of your close friends near by. People are constantly coming and going from here. Some stay for one season, some for a few. But eventually we will all leave. I consider myself fortunate to have been able to spend the time i did with these friends. I am thankful that I was close enough to a group of people that i am sad to see them go. We say our goodbyes reassuring each other that we will be reunited one day, if only for a weekend of memories in someone's new home in the states. We are not only giving reassurance to each other, but to ourselves, fighting off that feeling of this may actually be the last time we cross paths. I truly hope that I am wrong and that we can all one day be reunited if just for a few days wherever it may be, but if not, I am happy to have had good enough friends to be saddened by their departure. So thank you to my friends of the last two years. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your life, and thank you for always giving more than you took.


Tyler "Dallas" Clark: With Tyler i could always count on him to know what movie i was referring to with the vaguest of references. He loved his cat like a parent loves a child, and it hurt him if anyone spoke badly of Baby (AKA Babers). What i didn't like about Tyler was that he never followed through with Hot Dogs and Dreams, he never made a sign, he never promoted it farther than with me. But if you do ever get there Tyler, rest assured, I'll have one of each, please.

Jamie Zanelotti: I never grossed Jamie out. Even when she said she was, deep down i know she wasn't. What i liked about Jamie was her ability to see that i was right when i explained it was ok that i put a boogar on her. She always knew why what i said was funny. What i don't like about Jamie is that she can pick up the guitar and play and sing on key, it makes me feel self conscious about even owninShe may have pretended to be grossed out, butg one myself.

Mary Laurel Burt: She always made me smile. What i like about Mary Laurel is that when i showed up, i always got a warm welcoming, she never turned me away. I was always given a smile, and i know she had to give them to everyone who came up to order breakfast, but mine always came with 40% off. What i didn't like about Mary Laurel is that she made me feel so insufficient when it came to my Ipod because she always had so much better music than me, i still feel the sting....


Megan Foley: Oh Megan. I always had someone to eat with. I am grateful for the time we had on our own here the last few months. It was nice to have someone that i could count on. What i like about Megan is that she never once judged me. That doesn't mean that she liked everything i did or said or the cleanliness of my house , but not once did i ever feel judged. She went out of her way to do small things to let you know she cared. I also like how easy it is to convince her its time for icecream. What i don't like about Megan is that I was always worried that my place would be to dirty for her, even if i thought it looked pretty good. I got over it.

There are certainly others, and there will be more to come. I only hope that when i leave, i've left as much of an impact on others as these few friends have left on me. Thats not to say that everyone is gone, I am still lucky to have these guys. Whats better than owning a boat? Having friends who own one.

Huck-

-abee (not -leberry Finn)

My first introduction to Mike Huckabee, Arkansas Governor running for the GOP nomination, was a commercial via YouTube that is to start airing in Iowa




This sparked my curiosity so i searched further on YouTube and came across his answer to an evolution question during a Republican Debate



I like how he handled himself and I like his answer. I am curious as to what his weaknesses are, where he struggles in his faith. I don't doubt that he is genuine, but genuine people can still mess things up. David was genuine and he slept with another mans wife, and then had the man killed.

I wonder what the real story is on ethical complaints against him. I'm not sure how closely i will follow things. I don't get a vote anyway.

Reign Over Me

This is the best movie i have seen in a really long time. College roommates run into each other. Adam Sandler's character lost his family in the 9/11 crash and it has left him a wreck for the last five years. His old roommate becomes his only friend. Adam Sandler was great and I was reminded why I am such a fan of his. This movie gives a good perspective on how everyone deals with things differently and we can't force anyone to cope the way we would cope or in the time it would take us. Everyone goes their own route in such matters.

Jena 6

Two of the Jena 6 attackers handed out an award at the 2007 BET Hip Hop Awards
I wouldn't touch most of this with a 40 ft poll. Well, i would have at one point in my life but not now. So racist white kids put nooses in a tree, absolutely uncalled for. A fight starts eventually and 6 black kids, now known as the "Jena 6" beat one of the white kids unconscious. Also absolutely uncalled for. People from miles around come to support the 6 because they feel they are being treated unfairly in the court system. These kids received a lot of support and prayers from people.

Obviously those who want the kids locked up for life are upset about their appearance at the awards show, but this is about those who stood up for them and protested for them and marched for them. I couldn't find anything on the BET blog, its huge, about this stuff but two of the posts mentioned in the article are very fair in my opinion.

1. Another wrote on the blog, titled "What's wrong with this picture?" featuring a picture of Jones and Purvis on the red carpet, "... this is what I was protesting for! So that later you could show up at the BET awards and style and profile?"

2. "They can find somebody else to march for them (be)cause I will not be there the next time, and whoever invited them to this should be slapped," one person wrote on the BET blog. "(You're) not setting a good example for the justice that everyone is fighting for. You look like the thugs they said the Jena 6 are. Thanks for making us look stupid!"

Its a sue for all!!!

Cop Sues Victim

I don't think this is right. If for some reason this were to be upheld and the officer compensated, then anytime a cop gets hurt while attending to a victim, any injuries they may incidentally recieve in the process would potentially be made liable to the victims.

ex: An armed robber breaks into a home through an unlocked door. Cops show up, one gets shot in the arm in the process. Well if they hadn't of left the door unlocked then the cop would have never gotten shot in the arm, and he can sue them for this.

According to the cops personell file, she is great at what she does. It is a shame that she was injured on the job. The insurance company should compensate her, because that is what they are for. I don't think sueing the family is the way to go.

What will we do for profit?

This is an interesting article. Several years ago all of America was enthralled by William Hung. Luckily for him, he was able to at least make a buck off it selling CD's. But how much money does it take to realize the only reason you have it, is because people are laughing at you? The weeks leading up to an American Idol new season are full of commercials showing clips of people who are awful. That's why people watch the first rounds. They don't care who will be good, that will all come later, after we have heard the horrible and laughed at them. We are effectively watching bullying and saying that it is ok because that person put themselves there voluntarily. We market their rejection and people are getting rich off of it and we don't seem to care. We all know that there are pre-stages of audition where some are sent away and others are let through. The worst of the worst are let through solely to cause a scene or make us laugh which drives up ratings. I laughed hard every time though. Hopefully i won't anymore. What am i going to tell my kid when i know that they can't really sing, but all they want in life is to audition? Life is hard enough as it is without having yourself humiliated for profit. I feel pretty bad about it.

Edwards, John

Taken from the .National Review Online.

"Edwards: 'Pretty Soon We’re Not Going to Have a Young African-American Male Population in America.'

Asked about what he could do about "inner-city kids partaking in violence" at the MTV/MySpace Forum yesterday, Democratic candidate John Edwards offered an apocalyptic prediction for young black males:

“We cannot build enough prisons to solve this problem. And the idea that we can keep incarcerating and keep incarcerating — pretty soon we’re not going to have a young African-American male population in America. They’re all going to be in prison or dead. One of the two.”

Hyperbole much? Despite popular misperception and those who find it a convenient talking point to illustrate inescapable racism, there are more young African-American men in college than in prison. In 2005, according to the Census Bureau, there were 864,000 black men in college. According to Justice Department statistics, there were 802,000 in federal and state prisons and jails; between the ages of 18 and 24, however, black men in college outnumber those incarcerated by 4 to 1."

My Thoughts:
John Edwards has taken a specific question about black youths in inner city's and turned it into a problem with all the black youth in America. He may very well have had a logical point following his statement, but the quicktime wouldn't work on my computer for me to see it from the MTV link above. Either way, he makes way to broad of a generalization. Sounds like someone has been listening to Hannity.

**I have been informed that the statement made by Edwards was taken way out of context. Like i said, i couldn't watch the interview for whatever reason and probably never would have posted. It happens.

Ye Old Ships

This is Breath. Breath was built by Peter Muilenberg in the late 70's-early 80's on St. John. Its a cool boat with lots of history. It has been across the Atlantic several times and through many storms and up rivers in Africa. It has lots of history and Peter has written a book telling stories of of his travels. A group of us went out on breath last week. It was cool to see a boat that was traditionally rigged and very salty.

Trust for Public Lands

Today I met Gary and John from Trust for Public Lands. They negotiate the purchase of land held by private entities and then give the land in some way to the public. This is done by giving it to National Parks, public land for cities, and other non-profit organizations whose work it is to protect the land for people. The have recently put under contract the 415 acres that makes up Estate Maho Bay. Their next project is to try and save Maho Bay Campgrounds. The lease on our land runs out in January of 2012, and the lease will not be renewed per the landowners. TPL wants to put this property under contract to preserve it as an Eco-Resort. This is great news. They have saved some 2.2 million acres from development. Hopefully they can add the 13.8 acres we are on to that.

My front porch

Here it goes, an attempt at something new. Welcome to my world. For the last 5 months I have lived and worked at Maho Bay. It is an Eco-Resort on St. John. I will continue to live and work here for at least the next year and a half. We are currently in the middle of hurricane season. So far, so good (as far as St. John goes). This is my front porch. I intend to share more of my life in the months to come which means pictures, stories, complaining, and my views.

Tropical Depression 8

Well, Invest whatever number it was never did anything. It was like a bottle rocket that turns out to be a dud. Well, Invest 91 is more like a roman candle. We thought it was a dud, then 7 hours later you find out it is actually a depression. It could end up being Ingrid or Jerry. There is something in the gulf that could get named before this one. I've learned that in a place like this, job security can depend on weather, what a crock. (click on the title to visit the tracking website to play along at home)

Invest 98

No, its not a late 90's slogan for Wachovia Securities. You better believe most people in the Caribbean know what it is........

http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/tracking/at200798_model.html

I hope voting rights isn't a requirement for a FEMA trailor.

Katrina Hangover

With one Hurricane Season out of the way (06-07 season) and one underway right now, things like this are more relevant to me. This is mainly because i live on an island where there is no fleeing north. This NYTimes article is about whats going on in the aftermath of Katrina. Specifically with people living in FEMA trailer parks and not being able to find work. Gene Torti and his friends are building houses in the Gulf area for Katrina victims. There are no doubt others out there doing the same thing. Churches are still involved financially and service trips to clean or build. So there are people still working on this. I can't believe New Orleans is bringing people in from South America to do work instead of bringing their own people back.

(I foresee my blog taking more of this approach for a while as opposed to what i used to do)

Phileas Fogg

He traveled the world in 80 days, at least through the pages of Jules Verne's book. He didn't soak anything in while stopping along the way. He pretty much just went from place to place, and it took him 80 days. That was considered fast back then (late 1800's).

Today 80 days would be slow. You can easily travel the world in 80 days and take in the sights. And that is what i want to do. Who do i know in the world? Where can i stay on the couch of a friend? Can i hit Australia in this journey? How much is all of this going to cost?

Only one of those questions can be answered at the moment: How much is all of this going to cost? Answer: A lot.

The way i figure it, i have roughly 8 months to figure it all out before i leave this fall. tick tock