Nightingale

Ooooh... I'm jealous! Which river?

LOL! On the first day of school, I used to have to talk to my teachers and explain that on occasion I will come to school with bruises and black eyes, and no, it wasn't my parents' fault. It was just being involved in a contact sport. Most of them believed me, and the ones that didn't figured it out when they asked me how I'd gotten that black eye, and I just laughed and said "I blocked a punch with my face."

I usually end up dating people who are older. Edited to add: It isn't age, in particular, though. It's maturity that's the major factor.

I am bored out of my mind! All of a sudden, school is over, I have free time (for all of a week before summer school starts), and I have no idea what to do with it!

I know how you feel. I could use a getaway at this point (finals finally over for the semester). My most interesting road trip was driving through Ireland. I got to learn how to drive a stick shift. In the middle of downtown dublin. In rush hour. Driving on the wrong side of the road. The other drivers were pretty patient with me, though. =) My friend and I couldn't stop laughing. The details of the trip are on my website, but driving in Ireland is most definitely an adventure.

I was actually referring to defense, not offense.

If you just join ROTC, you don't have any obligation til year 3. If you join ROTC and take a scholarship, your obligation starts earlier.

It's absolutely the time to take money away from the government. However, it really depends on what the money is taken from. If it's taken from wasteful, ineffective programs, then it's just less money for the government to waste. If it's taken from essential defense funds, that's not so good.

LOL. I'd be too busy reading all the fine print of the mortgage to even think about the type of pen I was signing with.

I've been to arches and canyonlands, and some of those formations are pretty fragile. I understand why they don't want people climbing them... they could ruin the formation for everyone.

Key West. Tons of things to do, very romantic, and plenty of places to relax and do nothing at all. You can find rooms there for under $250, especially if you pay cash at one of the B&Bs. I've been wishing I was back there since the day I left.

I've honestly lost count.

Sensa. I love my sensa pen. It was the only thing that got me through a week with no computer at law school. I had to do so much writing that week! The sensa is really cool, because the ink is pressurized, so you can write at any angle.

LOL. At my first real job, I had to ask someone how to use the typewriter. I'd never seen one before.

There's no excuse for a lack of prenatal care. Heck, planned parenthood will provide it for free to low income women.

I think recruiting someone with autism is a bad idea. The recruiter made a bad decision and recruited someone with a condition that specifically excludes them. The recruiter should be in lots of trouble. However, I'm not terribly worried about the kid, because any problems that will be major issues (sound sensitivity, communications difficulties) will likely be a major issue in basic training as well. Chances are, if he is not capable of being in the military, they'll find out in basic, if not before.

Doesn't the KJV say something about killing witches? Oh... wait a second. That's a mistranslation, isn't it? The English translation of the Tanakh by a Rabbinical committee of translators renders Ex 22:17 as "Do not tolerate a sorceress." The commentary in the British version notes that this interpretation of the passage calls for giving no credence to claims to witchcraft, since such claims are delusional. Somehow, I'd give more credence to a translation from Hebrew to English that was created by a bunch of Rabbinical scholars, whose business it is to know hebrew, rather than King James' translator, whose main concern had to be keeping the king happy rather than providing an accurate translation of the hebrew text. edited for typo

Dang... If I were you, I'd invest in a really good radar detector (I like the Valentine 1). Warns you over a mile away, usually giving you plenty of time to slow down.

I got out of a ticket in a really weird way... I'd just gotten a new celtic/folk album in the mail that I'd been waiting for forever, and I was listening to it. The musician, Heather Alexander (who is pretty much responsible for me getting into skydiving, but you'll have to read my logbook on my website for that story), isn't well known, but has quite a cult following. So, I'm driving along listening to my new CD when I see those blue and red flashing lights. I rolled the window down, but for some reason didn't turn the music off. The cop comes up to the window and says "License and registra -- Is that Heather's new album?!" We chatted for a few minutes about Heather (she was in town playing the following night and the cop was annoyed that he was stuck working and couldn't go), and then he told me to have a nice day, and added "by the way, slow down!"

Yep. I'm a trekkie. Funny thing is... I didn't actually name any of the critters. My ex-bf named my cats, and clownburner named the chinchillas.

hehe. I had friends where the dog was Woofer, the bird was Tweeter, and the cat was Midrange.

Nice that you've got neighbors that aren't Farmer McNasty. I know some DZs have major neighbor problems. =)

My kitties are Anakin (skywaker) and Indiana (jones). Indy is also known as fuzz-butt, or the cat with very little brain, while Anakin is aka Ani, Ani-cat,and Ani-brat. The chinchillas are Tribble and Guinness. Tribble is a light grey and guinness is pitch black, just like the beer she's named after. Tribble, of course, is named after the star-trek critter that is fuzzy and squeaks, just like a chinchilla. The fish is just...Fish.

Sure. We've even got some scientific evidence that the plagues of Egypt may have been caused by a volcanic erruption. The bible speaks of some things that may have actually happened, but it may or may not be accurate about why those things happened. It also speaks of things that, in light of scientific evidence, could not possibly have happened. I think the biggest issue I have with the bible, especially KJV, is that we're reading a translation, and a translation, by definition, is the opinion of the translator. They make their best guess as to what the text actually says. For example, how would you translate the word "shalom"? It means so much more than just "peace", which is how it's often translated. The word "aloha" is another example. It means far more than just "hello". In Spanish, the word "meja" means far more than just "my daughter". In English, how would you explain the word "love" to someone who doesn't speak the language? Do you talk about the affection between adults, the care for a parent for their child? It's one word with so many meanings. Writing a translation isn't just about substituting English words and grammar. There has to be a conscious decision about which words to select, and often it comes down to a matter of opinion. Looking at the bible specifically, the Vulgate translation in 2 Corinthians, chapter 3, verse 14, the line is translated as "their senses were made dull." Whereas the NRSV translation translates that same line as "their minds were hardened." They were both looking at the same Koine Greek text, but the meanings are vastly different. The first translation implies that the senses of the people in question were diminished to the point where they could not understand, while the second translation implies that, while they were capable of understanding, they refused to do so. As for much of the old testament: Scholars claim its origins in the oral tradition of the hebrew people. However, many Israeli archaeologists now look at much of the old testament as story rather than history, as it blatantly contradicts modern archaeological (and paleontological) findings. With regards to the accuracy of the stories themselves, have you ever played a game of telephone?

If you're on campus, campus police can usually pop the lock for you. I would highly suggest investing in AAA roadside assistance, though. AAA will even make you a credit card type key for free for emergencies that you can keep in your wallet. That thing's saved my butt a couple of times.