Saturday, November 29, 2008

Truly Black Friday

This year, my first Thanksgiving in North Dakota, I briefly considered driving all the way to Bismarck (two hours from here) to shop some of the incredible deals I imagined stores having due to the horrible state of our economy. Luckily, I came to my senses and realized that I could get the same deals, be much more comfortable, and save time and gas by shopping online!

It was heaven. While others were out braving the cold and crowds, I sat comfortably in my pajamas checking off almost everyone on my list. Most places now allow you to order gift cards online and almost everywhere offered free shipping. I'm not really sure why you want to even leave the house on the Friday after Thanksgiving - not now that I know how beautifully simple shopping can be.

The reason why this Friday was truly black is this story: Trampled Walmart Employee

That's right, someone died just so that a couple hundred people could get their hands on the latest video game, toy, or electronic gift. I can't express how disgusting this is. We should be able to enjoy capitalism in an orderly fashion. In addition to these shoppers being prosecuted for what they've done, this man and the incident should be remembered in a way that prevents more insanely unnecessary deaths. My idea? Close all the stores on Black Friday next year and declare it "Fiber-Optic Friday". At least then it wouldn't have to be so black.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Movies in Beach

Over the past week and a half that I've been in North Dakota, the two most exciting things I've done have been in Beach, ND - the Bijou Showhouse to be exact. Click on that link and you'll get a tour of exactly what you'd see if you were there, in all its small-town glory.

The Bijou Showhouse is the closest theater to Medora, ND. I blogged about it last year, but as a recap, here's what you need to know. It plays one movie per weekend with Friday, Saturday, and Sunday showings only. The owner is a nice guy by the name of Emmanuel who is a Beach transplant - sent there by a spiritual adviser to start a new life. If you go to a movie there, you may as well stop for dinner at La Playa Mexican Restaurant, where it's ok to show up 30 minutes before the movie starts because you'll finish your food and be ready to enter the theater with the rest of Beach at exactly 7:30pm. That's right, there is absolutely no need to get there until the show is suppose to start because there are so few people in line and Emmanuel will wait to start the show until the main group has taken their seats. If you want something to eat during the show - no problem! For $5 you can get three boxes of candy and two cans of soda. Regular tickets are still only $6.

We went to see the Cohen Brother's Burn After Reading and Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist for the last two weekends. Last Sunday, we had a bit of a panic attack when La Playa was closed for dinner. There's really not much else in town, so we tried the Dairy Queen - only ice cream. So we drove back out to the highway and checked out the restaurant attached to the Flying J - Country Market. It turned out to be a very viable option - actually, who am I kidding - they had the best fried chicken I'd ever had. Mmm, mmm!

So, if you're wondering what we do in ND besides watch repeated episodes of Arrested Development. Rest assured that we keep ourselves busy enjoying the squishy, magenta chairs and comfy atmosphere of the Bijou Showhouse.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Curry Turns Back and Life In Camp

Today Show video on what life is like in camp:
Kili Camp

HOWEVER, don't get the wrong impression. NBC spent a lot of money on their team because a precious few camps have private bathrooms with seats and dining tents with tables. See my Kilimanjaro post to understand what it's really like in a Kili Camp.

Also, it appears that Ann will not make it to the top. I don't blame her - this hike is not a cake walk: Turning Back at 16,000 Feet

They missed a pretty spectacular glacier at the top, but I think their mission to bring footage of the melting Equatorial Glaciers was accomplished. Congratulations!

Monday, November 17, 2008

More on Kili

I just watched another clip of Ann Curry climbing Kilimanjaro. This is a fun clip for Nathan and I since the first part of her route - The Western Breach - is exactly the same as the Machame Route, which we took. Watch this clip to see the first three camps we were at - Machame, Shira, and Barranco Camps:

Reliving our hike with Ann Curry

Sunday, November 16, 2008

North Dakota & Jambo Bwana

I'm back in North Dakota and am looking forward to seeing the new Cohan Brothers movie at the retro Bijou Showhouse in Beach, ND tonight. It's good to be back. We're in the same apartment as last year, but some things around town have changed. Most notably the white and pink houses that used to be next to the Cowboy Cafe and across the street from it are gone. The Rough Rider hotel is starting to build its addition and needed more space for that and a new parking lot across the street. I wish it were open right now so I could have an exquisite steak and some delicious lava cake. For that, I'll have to wait until late April.

Today Nathan's Grandpa told us that Ann Curry from the Today show is climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro. From the website, it looks like she's at Machame Camp right now - the first camp we stayed at, which means she may be climbing the same route we did. I heard it would take eight days - much longer than the normal 6 days. The great thing is that they'll be reporting on the majestic Kilimanjaro Glaciers, which may disappear by the year 2020. I hope they're not planning to spend an extra day at the top because I don't think a crew used to the nice conditions of Studio 1A will be able to make it through a night of far below freezing temps. Anyway, good luck to them!

Today Show Kili Hike

In the background, you can just faintly hear the porters singing the Jambo song - a hilarious song they sing to tourists all over Tanzania & Kenya. Here's what it is - just replace "Kenya" with "Tanzania" or "Kilimanjaro" and you'll be hearing the same thing we did all over the place. Click on "Jambo" to hear the song:

Jambo Song

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

It's a beautiful day

All I have to say is that I'm so proud of our country right now and that "hope is a good thing, maybe the best thing"...and my hope has been renewed.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Campaign Reform

After just seeing three ads in a row of spatting between Norm Coleman, the current MN Senator, and Al Frankin, his Democratic opponent, I couldn't help but think about all the money they're wasting on proving that both of them act like they're still in middle school.

It's not only these two, but take a look at how much money all of our candidates waste - travel, flyers (most of which probably aren't recycled), ads, meetings, etc. Now, I love democracy, but I think there's a much better way we could do this.

Here's a really wild idea - instead of spending your campaign contributions on attack ads, why don't you donate your money to charities that mirror your beliefs. For example, if one of your campaign focal points is conservation, why not contribute to the World Wildlife Foundation. If you're for lower housing cost for low-income families, donate to Habitat for Humanity. Then, go brag about where you're donating on YouTube - FOR FREE!!

How much better would the world be if candidates could agree to do this? Not only would we be given a reprise from childish attack ads, but charities that actually need the money would be funded.

You're probably saying - no - this would never work, people need to feel like they're getting to know their candidate and that's only done through personal contact. Well, I'm not saying all their money needs to go to charity, just a percentage of it. The rest could be used for anything else EXCEPT advertisements. They'll get enough free media attention and chances to explain themselves online - we don't need them interrupting us during commercial breaks and in our mailboxes too.

This campaign has been ridiculous and I'm ashamed by the way our Senator and his opponent have been acting. I wish I could make them both go to their rooms without dinner to think about what they've done.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Bag Lady

If anyone has been thinking about switching to canvas bags from plastic, but hasn't run across any bags yet, check out this site:Green Bag Lady

There's even a pattern for you to make your own!

Another plus to switching to canvas is that they fit more items and are easier to carry inside since you can carry them on your shoulder - fewer trips back and forth to the car.

Happy Bagging!