tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73516252159462044992011-11-27T17:49:10.864-07:00OVER MY HEADMarie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.comBlogger3001100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-27116307671609286772010-12-29T10:43:00.004-07:002010-12-29T10:48:05.190-07:00

It was the fourth day after Christmas in the Year of Our Lord 1890. When the first torn and bleeding bodies were carried into the candlelit church, those who were conscious could see Christmas greenery hanging from the open rafters. Across the chancel front above the pulpit was strung a crudely lettered banner: PEACE ON EARTH, GOOD WILL TO MEN.-from Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-2824912381729535702010-12-24T10:02:00.003-07:002010-12-24T10:04:13.076-07:00

It was the night before Christmas. The house was very quiet. No creatures were stirring in the house. There weren't even any mice stirring. The stockings had been hung carefully by the chimney. The children hoped that Saint Nicholas would come and fill them. The children were in their beds. Their beds were in the room next to ours. Mamma and I were in our beds. Mamma wore a kerchief. I had my cap

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-69203398658644606302010-12-02T21:32:00.010-07:002010-12-02T21:43:55.791-07:00

You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour. Now you must go back and tell the people that this is the Hour. And there are things to be considered...Where are you living?What are you doing?What are your relationships?Are you in right relation?Where is your water?Know your garden.It is time to speak your Truth.Create your community.Be good to each other.And do not look outside

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-47746127074563738052010-12-01T15:07:00.001-07:002010-12-01T15:26:44.957-07:00

The Art of DisappearingWhen they say, "Don't I know you?"Say "no".When they invite you to the partyRemember what parties are likeBefore answering.Someone telling you in a loud voiceThey once wrote a poem.Greasy sausage balls on a paper plate.Then reply.If they say we should get togetherSay "why?"It's not that you don't love them anymore.You're trying to remember somethingtoo important to

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-10696908083359195972009-11-26T18:32:00.006-07:002009-11-26T18:44:29.386-07:00

"For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead Tree near the River, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the Labour of the Fishing Hawk; and when that diligent Bird has at length taken a Fish, and is bearing it to his Nest

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-17585785395324796722009-11-16T14:10:00.010-07:002009-11-16T14:32:16.004-07:00

Sometimes a mortal feels in himself Nature-- not his Father but his Mother stirswithin him, and he becomes immortal with herimmortality. From time to time she claimskindredship with us, and some globulefrom her veins steals up into our own.I am the autumnal sun,With autumn gales my race is run;When will the hazel put forth its flowers,Or the grape ripen under my bowers?When will the harvest or

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-61400929406752585442009-10-11T12:04:00.002-06:002009-10-11T12:07:00.814-06:00

Pioneers! O Pioneers!By Walt Whitman1819-1892Come my tan-faced children,Follow well in order, get your weapons ready,Have you your pistols? have you your sharp-edged axes?Pioneers! O pioneers!For we cannot tarry here,We must march my darlings, we must bear the brunt of danger,We the youthful sinewy races, all the rest on us depend,Pioneers! O pioneers!O you youths, Western youths,So impatient,

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-60331376545321458192009-10-02T15:39:00.002-06:002009-10-02T15:58:16.625-06:00

Despite the efforts of Oprah and the Obamas, it didn't take the International Olympic Committee long to eliminate Chicago from the competition to host the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. Expected to be one of the final two candidates, the city was ousted in the first round. I'm sure this intends a complex message to reach feeble

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-32127449233579555962009-08-26T14:50:00.003-06:002009-10-06T19:11:42.669-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-39834872958928489862009-08-19T23:51:00.003-06:002009-08-19T23:56:28.876-06:00

I Hate to Bother YouBy EDUARDO GALEANO I’d like to share with you some questions–some flies that keep buzzing in my head.Is justice right side up?Has world justice been frozen in an upside-down position? The shoe-thrower of Iraq, the man who hurled his shoes at Bush, was condemned to three years in prison. Doesn’t he deserve, instead, a medal?Who is the terrorist? The hurler of shoes or their

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-41782587493347207412009-08-12T17:55:00.000-06:002009-08-12T17:57:06.902-06:00

There is a spate of recent films spilling the beans about the corporate takeover of the global food economy. Many are available online or through Amazon and Netflix.Please watch some of these. Show your kids. Host a screening in your community. Donate a copy or two to the local library or public school system. Encourage teachers to show the films. Spread the word! Subvert the dominant food

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-66262014571626873982009-08-10T14:32:00.013-06:002009-08-12T18:03:43.907-06:00

I’m sure you’ve seen the Sweet Surprise commercials. There are several to target different consumer groups, but all involve a person #1 expressing hesitation at the offer of a high fructose corn syrup-laden “treat” and a smug HFCS-pusher asking sneeringly, “Oh yeah? Well, what’s so bad about HFCS?”In the ads, person #1 hems and haws and has trouble articulating a satisfactory reply. HFCS person

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-60902629037220686182009-08-05T22:35:00.004-06:002009-08-09T20:30:52.360-06:00

There are periods in the life of human society when revolution becomes an imperative necessity, when it proclaims itself as inevitable. New ideas germinate everywhere, seeking to force their way into the light, to find an application in life. These ideas are opposed by the inertia of those whose interest it is to maintain the old order; they suffocate in the stifling atmosphere of prejudice and

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-7052627699509044002009-08-04T19:53:00.035-06:002009-08-06T08:44:40.601-06:00

"It was about ten o'clock and we were keeping very quiet and hugging close to the bank, when I happened to look up to the moon-lit sky and saw the plumed head of an Indian peeping over the bank. Instead of hurrying ahead and alarming the men in a quiet way, I instantly aimed my gun at his head and fired.The report rang out sharp and loud on the night air, and was immediately followed by an Indian

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-35372245586320940572009-07-21T09:13:00.004-06:002009-07-21T09:16:41.264-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-3325524314068951112009-07-10T14:41:00.002-06:002009-07-10T14:44:28.868-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-55121698185436525572009-07-08T22:44:00.006-06:002009-07-08T23:00:42.003-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-46462499718306508042009-05-09T23:50:00.000-06:002009-07-07T23:57:21.765-06:00

I mentioned in my last post that I'd had a visceral negative reaction to Sedona -- undeniably one of the most beautiful places on earth -- which surprised and dismayed me. I had a vague sense that I was offended by the opulence and pseudo-spiritualism of the place, but that didn't completely explain my snarky attitude which, I've come to understand, usually masks a deeper response to perceived

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-35269211573761166302009-05-08T23:43:00.003-06:002009-11-16T22:42:03.303-07:00

I'd envisioned myself hiking alone in Sedona for three magical days, vortexed into a frenzied energy, taken by wizened hippies to a hillside lair for impromptu meditation. Instead, in spite of the brazenly gorgeous Sedona landscape, I felt the whole place to be a pseudo-spiritual, wildly affluent, corporate-run and supremely phony tourist trap. I was dismayed to feel this way about such a

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-41752962138997165232009-05-01T09:16:00.000-06:002009-05-01T09:18:13.213-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-15956920076044746402009-04-28T12:32:00.005-06:002009-04-28T12:50:44.911-06:00

Do you have an uneasy sense that someone's trying to pull the wool over your eyes? Does the hullabaloo over a looming swine flu pandemic seem a bit overblown? The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised the pandemic alert level (a 6-point scale) to 4 and is considering moving it to 5 today, with only 7 confirmed deaths worldwide! Keep in mind that seasonal flu kills 40,000 every year in the US

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-12305965840434370292009-04-15T21:18:00.001-06:002009-04-27T21:54:12.377-06:00

Lara in CMJH's Kids on Broadway. Sweets!

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-13035878446874394292009-04-07T21:06:00.001-06:002009-04-27T21:14:20.493-06:00

During the kids’ Snow Break last week, we chanced to visit the Denver Art Museum’s Psychedelic Experience exhibit. Dozens of groovy rock posters from the late sixties, mostly advertising shows at San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium, were on display, occasionally retro-enhanced by black light. More interesting to the kids, however, was an adjoining exhibit where ancient artifacts were displayed in

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-79643351518202511582009-04-06T20:59:00.001-06:002009-04-27T21:04:51.696-06:00

Literary theorist and legal scholar, Stanley Fish, weighs in on the report of the “committee of faculty peers” that found Ward Churchill guilty of academic misconduct. “The verdict did not surprise me because I had read the committee’s report and found it less an indictment of Churchill than an example of a perfectly ordinary squabble about research methods and the handling of evidence.”“The

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-66761839191726798662009-04-03T20:54:00.000-06:002009-04-27T20:57:36.326-06:00

A few interesting things about the Ward Churchill jury came to light today (a sigh of relief from Pirate Ballerina!). The jury thought -- right up until the judge gave them their instructions -- they were to determine whether Ward Churchill was guilty of academic misconduct. When they realized they needed only to decide only whether the 9/11 essay was a substantial motivating factor in his

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-22561921513375765262009-04-03T20:46:00.000-06:002009-04-27T20:53:35.822-06:00

Tim DeChristopher, a University of Utah disobedient civilian, was interviewed on Democracy Now! today. Amy Goodman asked him what relevance Edward Abbey had to his move to disrupt the bidding process for oil and gas leases in Utah's red rock country.His answer:I think that the most powerful relevance of Edward Abbey to what I did was his statement and really his expression of the idea that

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-65229623297368087322009-04-01T08:35:00.001-06:002009-04-27T20:40:12.184-06:00

Closing arguments will be heard this morning in the Ward Churchill trial and then the case goes to the (very young and earnest) jury.Winston Churchill said “history is written by the victors” which has been a central thesis in much of Ward Churchill’s work. It’s scrumptiously ironic that when Ward Churchill wins his case against CU, he’ll become a contributor to the “Master Narrative” he so

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-53740274429429138742009-03-02T20:22:00.000-07:002009-04-27T20:33:09.365-06:00

This weekend the kids and I watched Charlie Chaplin’s brilliant 1940 movie The Great Dictator. The film was released before the United States’ entry into World War II when our country was still at peace with Nazi Germany. Charlie Chaplin was an outspoken critic of Nazism and fascism while most Americans were either ignorant of or complacent about European goings-on. The Great Dictator is

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-11928165042685067302009-02-22T20:17:00.001-07:002009-04-27T20:22:01.944-06:00

I posted some photos from yesterday’s Carnivale parade in Manitou on Not My Tribe’s Facebook page. Very colorful! Go see!

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-2946824598242863612009-02-16T20:12:00.000-07:002009-04-27T20:15:40.489-06:00

Eric and I had fun in Costa Rica playing with a rainbow in the hills outside Santa Elena. We traveled down a narrow bumpy road until the bright double rainbow appeared to end in the backyard of the only house in sight. An inspiring illusion to be sure, but still only an illusion. Rainbows are like that, aren’t they? Manipulable to a point; there, but not, depending on your vantage point; seen by

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-53192221950318982172009-02-16T10:25:00.002-07:002009-02-16T10:28:48.209-07:00

Military customers in Colorado Springs were angered by a picture of Barack Obama on a sign outside the Pete Field Commissary announcing a Presidents' Day store closure. Disgruntled and bewildered shoppers complained that the holiday was to be a celebration of George Washington and Abe Lincoln, not THAT ONE. The Defense Commissary Agency removed Obama's picture but were unable to change the fact

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-38677679215798973912009-02-14T13:46:00.005-07:002009-02-14T21:15:27.350-07:00

I found this rock in Costa Rica, wet with seawater and the color of red jade, on a miles-long stretch of sand. A heart-shaped message, escaped from the somber rainforest, presented to me - I think - by Cupid himself.

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-24808992756385694592009-02-13T10:36:00.009-07:002009-02-13T14:54:32.238-07:00

This video makes me teary-eyed every time I see it. We Americans are taught that we're strong and independent, so very grown up, but in reality many of us are isolated not only from each other, but from ourselves and our need for human connection and physical touch. There's no strength in that really.When I was in Argentina last year, it was clear that they're not physically uptight like we are.

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-21358529829933063582009-02-13T00:33:00.009-07:002009-02-13T00:55:04.189-07:00

The kids and I are big fans of Playmobil toys. We have bins and bins of Playmobil: people, furnishings, clothing and accessories, plants, animals, and a variety of dwellings and vehicles. We have the Victorian doll house set up on the fireplace hearth, where it has been for more than a decade and still draws the attention of at least one child every day. Even the teenagers manage to make

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-25293690952058842582009-02-13T00:25:00.004-07:002009-11-16T22:37:23.977-07:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-58258368302142648772009-02-10T23:57:00.002-07:002009-02-11T00:01:25.475-07:00

It was one of the greatest heists in history. The scene? London, 1660. The perpetrator? England’s King Charles the II. The loot? All the gold he could con out of the country’s goldsmiths, bankers and businessmen. The tool? A tally stick.Tally sticks were a brilliant invention. But they were also insidious, as they formed the foundation for the fiat currency systems we still have today. One where

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-8572741103120880092009-02-08T22:25:00.004-07:002009-02-08T22:28:28.464-07:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-89435777040954025892009-02-07T14:37:00.002-07:002009-02-07T14:43:23.998-07:00

Starting at around 1 a.m. last night, loud Hazmat firetrucks with lights a-flashin’ went up and down my quiet street — not a through street to anywhere — for several hours. At times they were followed by fully-outfitted firefighters on foot. I sat on a chair in the front hallway to avoid being startled awake by the urgent knocking I expected, a dire portent of an immediate evacuation, something I

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-45510185808405658082009-02-07T09:53:00.007-07:002009-02-07T10:05:10.201-07:00

Nine state legislatures this week introduced bills intended to reclaim state sovereignty as protected by the ninth and tenth amendments to the Constitution. In case you’ve forgotten, these are the amendments proclaiming all power to the people excepting those powers specifically granted to the Federal Government which, you’ll recall, are quite limited both in number and scope.The bills call for

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-73234219850482263312009-02-06T20:06:00.008-07:002009-02-06T23:31:49.589-07:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-63214600870102952672009-01-22T16:05:00.018-07:002009-07-08T00:35:35.945-06:00

The whining and hang-wringing about the "credit crunch" is getting on my nerves. It was this supposed crisis that led to the $700 billion bailout and we're told every day that it must be solved quickly, no matter the cost, or we're toast. But why? How many of us are actively seeking credit right now? Surely the developers and retailers want us to have lots and lots of it so we can keep

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-8858524837109937142009-01-14T14:56:00.011-07:002009-01-14T18:45:55.957-07:00

Edward Abbey presaged America’s current path to tyranny forty years ago and predicted that the end of American democracy would be coincident with the destruction of the wilderness.What’s the connection between democracy and wilderness? Personal liberty is a fleeting commodity, according to Abbey, and history has shown that governments invariably move toward totalitarianism. When faced with

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-67956810544992138542009-01-13T12:09:00.004-07:002009-01-14T00:23:43.455-07:00

"We are preoccupied with time. If we could learn to love space as deeply as we are now obsessed with time, we might discover a new meaning in the phrase to live like men." ~Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-21185621300824851772009-01-12T10:25:00.005-07:002009-01-12T10:36:26.960-07:00

It's already twelve days into the new year and I'm just getting around to making some resolutions. Actually, I made some resolutions awhile ago but I'm only now getting to the Resolution Implementation phase which doesn't bode well for my poor dear resolutions.One big resolution for 2009? Write more. And I will later today, or maybe tomorrow. Hopefully before 2010. Dang.

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-89195306853751066422008-12-22T13:47:00.009-07:002008-12-22T16:42:47.199-07:00

A highlight of the Christmas season every year is gathering my big family together under one roof -- my children, my parents, five siblings and their spouses, and twelve (thirteen by year's end!) nieces and nephews. Everyone is married now, save me and the kids, but I can recall many a holiday when new boy- or girlfriends were part of the celebration.Tales of our past houseguests poke edgewise

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-72581598661864740932008-12-20T17:31:00.005-07:002008-12-20T17:39:19.620-07:00

Red BULL contains: caffeine, ginseng and guarana (all legal stimulants) sugars, artificial sweeteners, taurine (an amino acid said to lower blood pressure).Red BULL promises: increased energy, better concentration, sharper cognitive performance, greater endurance, higher metabolism, faster reaction time.Red BULL delivers: increased heart rate, heightened blood pressure, anxiety, jitters,

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-61523150304625323282008-12-13T11:44:00.010-07:002008-12-13T17:14:26.363-07:00

Consumerism allows people to create the illusion of giving without having to sacrifice anything personal. Buying loads of useless or unneeded crap, wrapping it up in mountains of toxic paper and ribbon, presenting it, often by mail, to recipients we rarely see seems a requirement for anyone who isn’t Scrooge.Let's try something new. Give presence this holiday season. Give time and attention,

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-520172346305919232008-12-09T13:47:00.004-07:002008-12-10T00:53:37.838-07:00

In the mid-fifties the newly-public Ford Motor Company sought a name for its soon-to- be-released experimental car, known in its design stage as the E-car. After in-house marketers came up with 300-odd names which were felt to be embarrassing in their pedestrianism, the company approached Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Marianne Moore, an icon of the popular culture, known as much for her wild

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-4470298727408236552008-12-06T17:05:00.002-07:002008-12-06T17:08:33.917-07:00

Oh, squiggly line in my eye fluid, I see you there, lurking on the periphery of my vision. But when I try to look at you, you scurry away. Are you shy, squiggly line? Why only when I ignore you do you return to the center of my eye? Oh, squiggly line, it's all right. You are forgiven.-Stewie from Family Guy

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-3524066275438900632008-12-05T10:49:00.002-07:002008-12-05T11:07:14.789-07:00

I'm compelled by admiration to link to Eric's post on our shared blog Not My Tribe. As a mother of girls in the thick of an Edward-the-dreamy-vampire lovefest, I felt particular pain upon reading his take on the Twilight phenomenon. I'm going to read the book this weekend, desperately seeking leeway to temper his indictment of those of us who've allowed our daughters to enter the seedy genre of '

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-89531582516411413712008-12-05T10:14:00.010-07:002008-12-05T10:48:09.392-07:00

If only everyone could feel the powerOf harmony like you! But no, for thenThe world could not exist; no one would wantTo spend time taking care of life’s low needs;All would be given over to free art.We are but few, we chosen, happy idlersWho look disdainfully at petty usefulnessAnd form a priesthood serving only beauty.Isn’t that so? But now I feel unwell. . . .-Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, moments

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-56760190841644107582008-12-02T11:16:00.005-07:002008-12-02T11:21:52.387-07:00

""I am full of holy joy and free booze," said Cobbler. I feel moved to sing. It is very wrong to resist an impulse to sing; to hold back a natural evacuation of joy is as injurious as to hold back any other natural issue. It makes a man spiritually costive, and plugs him up with hard, caked, thwarted merriment. This, in the course of time, poisons his whole system and is likely to turn him into

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-44593938548526788582008-11-24T12:48:00.011-07:002008-11-24T14:37:36.495-07:00

"I'm going to learn Spanish!"I've said this so many times that no one listens to me anymore. Whenever I proclaim my renewed intention to become fluent in Spanish, my kids roll their eyes and mock me for my lack of initiative, knowing that it will never happen. At least I think they're deriding me but, since they talk about me in their secret language -- Spanish -- I'm never sure whether I should

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-53379829874933864202008-11-21T10:47:00.014-07:002008-11-21T17:32:52.837-07:00

Souvenirs from my mini-vacation in Breckenridge:1. Why I Write by George Orwell2. Poet Sharon Olds' letter to Laura Bush 3. The Weather Underground, co-founded by Bill Ayers

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-64454588899358509952008-11-20T10:52:00.006-07:002008-11-20T11:00:37.872-07:00

a swirling eddyfrothy seaweed eyes emergedisembodied head

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-49113169691885303172008-11-19T11:08:00.009-07:002008-11-19T19:49:19.892-07:00

Political language -- and with variations this is true of all political parties, from Conservatives to Anarchists -- is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind. One cannot change this all in a moment, but one can at least change one's own habits, and from time to time one can even. . .cocoon for long periods of time, away

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-1580892635520334942008-11-05T12:47:00.000-07:002008-11-05T12:48:12.009-07:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-73972720133693012542008-10-03T10:38:00.002-06:002008-10-03T10:43:52.998-06:00

The Denver Police Union is selling this t-shirt to raise funds and gloat about their brutish behavior at the DNC. The front of the shirt bears the R-68 logo encased in a circle/slash. The police claim that the t-shirt was made after the convention as a funny joke, but at an R-68 meeting I attended last week founder Glenn Spagnuolo claimed that he saw the shirts prior to the start of the

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-49409711800602746632008-10-01T11:05:00.016-06:002008-10-01T11:34:53.759-06:00

McCain staffers know they can't get Sarah Palin up to snuff for the vice presidential debate in a mere two days. But they can put a few eggs in her basket by offering some very sage, very sexist, fashion advice. Let's give 'em some good ol' Alaskan crude. . . .

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-50929343760571435492008-09-30T21:46:00.014-06:002008-10-01T09:33:48.163-06:00

Do you remember the Grossinator? It was a handheld device designed to hurl childish insults at bystanders. Part of the fun was creating vulgar statements using four buttons, each of which had several sentence fragments associated with it.Button #1 - You're like/It's time for/Let's all make/How about/I just love/I'm gonna make/There's nothing like Button #2 - a big/a long/a revolting/

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-26587026304550003812008-09-26T14:20:00.005-06:002008-09-26T17:37:28.290-06:00

It's so niceto wake up in the morning all aloneand not have to tell somebody you love themwhen you don't love them any more.--Richard Brautigan

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-10697536147915179862008-09-26T01:00:00.005-06:002008-09-26T01:16:10.663-06:00

as though it were a revelation. You say "I DON'T love you," as opposed to "I don't LOVE you." You make it sound like daisy petals sealed our fate.Of course you don't love me, didn't love me. And I don't love you back. Finally we're in the light with everyone who knew all along.-----

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-28196236539667595532008-09-25T21:44:00.003-06:002008-09-25T23:30:48.890-06:00

Excerpt from "My Gal" by George Saunders, one of my favorite funny but twisted authors. "Explaining how she felt when John McCain offered her the Vice-Presidential spot, my Vice-Presidential candidate, Governor Sarah Palin, said something very profound: “I answered him ‘Yes’ because I have the confidence in that readiness and knowing that you can’t blink, you have to be wired in a way of being so

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-40837715439562574512008-09-23T14:10:00.004-06:002008-09-23T18:06:58.346-06:00

From the Army Times:Beginning Oct. 1 for 12 months, the 1st BCT will be under the day-to-day control of U.S. Army North, the Army service component of Northern Command, as an on-call federal response force for natural or manmade emergencies and disasters, including terrorist attacks.IT STARTS NEXT WEEK...this new mission marks the first time an active unit has been given a dedicated assignment to

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-37986832196393843602008-09-19T08:23:00.002-06:002008-09-19T08:25:39.649-06:00

In the woods too, a man casts off his years, as the snake his slough, and at what period soever of life, is always a child. In the woods, is perpetual youth. Within these plantations of God, a decorum and sanctity reign, a perennial festival is dressed, and the guest sees not how he should tire of them in a thousand years. In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-21501556962688960012008-09-10T17:36:00.004-06:002008-09-10T17:41:49.853-06:00

Cheyenne Mountain State Park has everything a state park should have: 1600 acres of open space with more than 20 miles of hiking and biking trails, picnic areas (including a group picnic pavilion), camping sites (both RV-compatible and hike-in tent spots), a lovely visitors center, flora, fauna, and a whole lot of America the Beautiful. I went there the other day expecting to see plenty of

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-85571566113922347352008-09-06T08:42:00.012-06:002008-09-06T09:04:51.133-06:00

Most of the food in the American diet is approved by the FDA for irradiation and chemo treatments. Our fresh produce and meat are subjected to these invasive procedures 1) to kill microorganisms and other pathogens 2) to arrest or delay the ripening process 3) to act as a pesticide 4) to prevent spoilage or sprouting. Although they don't say it explicitly, irradiation also masks serious

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-74560826707450406232008-09-04T23:05:00.005-06:002008-09-04T23:11:33.057-06:00

Someone forgot to tell Cindy McCain that the fashion word on Sarah's big night was "populist." Cin's half-peeled banana outfit was examined by the couture analysts at Vanity Fair and the numbers look like this: Oscar de la Renta dress: $3,000 Chanel J12 White Ceramic Watch: $4,500 Three-carat diamond earrings: $280,000 Four-strand pearl necklace: $11,000–$25,000 Shoes, designer

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-13148468474290052492008-09-02T09:34:00.001-06:002008-09-02T09:36:05.728-06:00

Men who cheat on women should not be held responsible. Why? According to a new Swedish study, there is a direct relationship between a man's DNA and his aptitude for monogamy. Infidelity is a genetic likelihood for certain men!Two of every five men possess a gene variant that is linked to both marital discord and lack of emotional intimacy. Men with two copies of the variant have twice the risk

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-53107439947166322092008-09-01T23:09:00.005-06:002008-09-01T23:50:25.487-06:00

There have been some really astounding Gestapo tactics playing out in St. Paul today. Preemptive raids, mass arrests, suspension of habeas corpus, and police brutality to name a few.Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman was arrested and charged with obstruction of a legal process (ha) and two of her producers have felony riot charges pending. The three were manhandled by the police and sustained minor

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-44031709709139626352008-08-31T17:58:00.004-06:002008-08-31T18:05:29.459-06:00

Exactly who is John McCain pandering to by adding Sarah Palin to the ticket? Talk is that he's hoping to hook the evangelical crowd, but he's obviously missing a few key bits of information. Conservative Christians do not put their women in positions of authority over men. Ever. In my former church, women were not allowed to preach to the general congregation because this was seen as unbiblical,

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-77854596743105452982008-08-31T13:36:00.010-06:002008-08-31T13:59:02.334-06:00

You know how sometimes something you see, hear or smell calls to mind another something? Something close yet inaccessible. It's a bit like the feeling of deja vu, yet not exactly.Anyway, when I saw Sarah Palin for the first time yesterday, I had the sense that she reminded me of someone. For some reason, I kept thinking about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles but couldn't complete the mental

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-58413125665664074742008-08-28T19:58:00.002-06:002008-08-28T20:09:46.579-06:00

We were told that we risked arrest if we remained on the grass median. Armed with my pocket-sized Bill of Rights and my reading glasses, I donned my riot gear and stood my ground.

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-53464762597437135542008-08-28T01:35:00.009-06:002008-08-28T14:32:21.320-06:00

"Those who would give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."Benjamin Franklin

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-52125214590631797922008-08-27T01:26:00.003-06:002008-08-28T14:32:52.964-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-18360118905522003452008-08-26T21:09:00.010-06:002008-11-19T20:50:17.306-07:00

Anarchy: a theory that regards the absence of all direct or coercive government as a political ideal and that proposes the cooperative and voluntary association of individuals and groups as the principal mode of organized society.From the moment I saw them I knew what they were. Scattered around in small groups, surrounded by bicycles and backpacks, sharing food, tossing frisbees. Some were

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-17702174926141007442008-08-24T23:49:00.030-06:002008-08-28T23:42:06.664-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-74408231014951749012008-08-23T22:38:00.020-06:002008-08-28T14:33:41.503-06:00

I took the kids to Denver today for some pre-DNC activities orchestrated by RECREATE 68. There were self-defense trainings, Know Your Rights tutorials, drumming instruction and a whole ton of media -- local, national and international. There were also cops galore: on foot, on bicycle, on motorcycle, inside cars, outside cars, standing around in groups, staring, and acting generally creepy. Their

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-50445117729356830792008-08-22T18:59:00.004-06:002008-08-22T19:03:50.816-06:00

...it probably is.Jamaica's Usain Bolt won both the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints in world record time, something that hasn't been done in 32 years. The Jamaican women, led by Shelly-Ann Fraser, swept the 100-meter race. Today another Jamaican woman, Veronica Campbell-Brown won the 200 meter sprint. A single country winning gold in all four sprints hasn't happened since the USA did it in 1988.

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-38700205099875147812008-08-22T18:50:00.003-06:002008-08-22T18:56:58.750-06:00

Beware. This is going to be a rant.Today, I met with great misfortune. I watched MSNBC's unbelievably sub-par coverage of the Olympics. Jenna Wolfe, know-nothing sports commentator extraordinaire, was recounting her favorite moments of the Games. To her, the most poignant moment was American swimmer, Dara Torres, being wonderfully gracious in defeat. Torres didn't win, but the moment was

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-51454311530615631302008-08-19T10:41:00.003-06:002008-12-02T11:46:01.557-07:00

Lady, lady, I take you today. No ticket! No tourist! I'm standing in the town square reviewing my inventory of polite rejections when, lo and behold, my rogue intuition wrests its way to the forefront and I hear myself saying, "Okay, so where are we going?" An abnormally large Naxi woman emerges from the shadows and sizes me up. "You ride horse?" she asks rather skeptically. "Sure, I ride horse,

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-17246330233729341102008-08-19T10:36:00.003-06:002008-08-19T10:38:52.103-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-3609666385973876522008-08-16T10:39:00.000-06:002008-08-19T10:40:34.740-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-47048725562444008862008-08-14T10:44:00.002-06:002008-08-19T10:47:42.573-06:00

Could there be a more offensive marketing campaign than this one? McDonald’s has taken a revered Chinese symbol and turned it into a corporate billboard. Beijing 2008 brought to you by an American fast food chain.In the “open-24/7!” store in the Athlete’s Village, McDonald’s touts one or two “healthy” menu options buried deep beneath the grease-laden, e-Coli-infected, allegedly-edible garbage

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-74019781998718062352008-08-12T10:48:00.003-06:002008-08-19T11:28:04.665-06:00

Since I arrived in China I've made it my mission to avoid Westerners. Hitting the Beijing historical sites a week before the Games, then traveling by overnight train to Xi'an (three Chinese and me in a tiny cubicle with four bunks -- now that was fun), I've found myself immersed in a sea of Asian faces. An odd feeling, but not as odd as being surrounded by only Chinese voices. The Chinese are a

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-24764426083563655132008-08-10T10:51:00.001-06:002008-08-19T10:54:25.499-06:00

Eric once told me that he liked hanging around his artist friend, Patti Smithsonian, because she saw creative potential in nearly everything. He’d see a stack of old paper and head for the garbage can. She’d stop him. “Don’t throw that away! Let’s tear it into strips and make a papier-mâché hat!” That kind of thing.I’ve since experienced the same thing with my project-princess daughter. Packing

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-57792274760383372562008-08-07T10:55:00.002-06:002008-08-19T11:35:08.267-06:00

I've run myself ragged over the past five days trying to get a sense of China as she gears up for the Debutante Ball, and so far I have a pocket full of threads awaiting a tapestry. I must say, China is a country of great contrasts. A communist country with in-your-face capitalism everywhere. A landscape of unbelievable beauty made hazy by poisoned and polluted air. Oppressive heat and humidity

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-60926198401460341402008-08-04T05:08:00.002-06:002008-08-04T05:11:11.284-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-40215525391632071642008-07-31T20:03:00.003-06:002008-07-31T20:06:46.043-06:00

The Olympic Games are almost upon us. Which contests are you most looking forward to? I tend to like them all, even the events that aren't immediately understood as sport, like table tennis, rhythmic gymnastics and archery. One event that dates back to ancient Greece is the pentathlon. In its modern incarnation, athletes must excel at five separate sports: horse-jumping, fencing, shooting,

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-62045630378396452362008-07-29T19:17:00.013-06:002008-07-29T22:41:03.713-06:00

...and felt like an idiot. Why? I think polka dots are adorable. They are playful and happy and youthful which are traits I value. And the outfit I had on was classy and cute. So why did I feel anxious that someone might pop over unexpectedly and see my polka dots? I'm not sure, but I changed rather than further contemplate the issue.I think that maybe polka dots aren't me. Whatever that means.

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-21662481348846770852008-07-28T20:52:00.029-06:002008-07-28T22:00:37.855-06:00

By all accounts, Seinfeld was a ground-breaking comedy. Purporting to be a show about nothing, it was in reality a pretty big something. Unlike typical formulaic sitcoms, Seinfeld's main characters had no roots, vague identities and a conscious indifference to morals. They also lacked any semblance of couth, which was key to the show's success. Seinfeld was funny not because it was about nothing,

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-45653715093815607542008-07-27T17:53:00.013-06:002008-07-28T03:04:03.975-06:00

Tears are free falling this afternoon. Goose Gossage was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and it is about damn time.Goose grew up in Colorado Springs, graduated from my alma mater Wasson High School, and went on to play 22 seasons in the major leagues. His story is sweet and inspiring, a tale of hard work and unbridled optimism. It's also an indictment of the powers that be, many of whom

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-19479089870551480042008-07-27T10:46:00.003-06:002008-07-27T14:09:26.289-06:00

I’ve been revisiting old episodes of Sex and the City a lot lately. It’s a fun show for a girl to watch. New York City neighborhoods, ultra-chic fashions, Manolo Blahnik shoes, ever-changing hairstyles. And an endless stream of nameless but memorable lovers.The show becomes decidedly less fun when any of the girls ends up in a serious relationship. Can a long-term partnership ever compare

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-74731899445699022692008-07-26T22:17:00.003-06:002008-07-26T22:22:25.154-06:00

I remember when running came to Colorado Springs. Jim Fixx's The Complete Book of Running was published in the late seventies and preached running as the path to good health. The book spent 11 weeks at number one on the the bestsellers list and is credited for starting America's fitness revolution. I was part of that revolution. Not as a runner, but as a close observer. You see, I'm the sister

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-28540585033522517582008-07-25T18:07:00.022-06:002008-12-02T11:58:02.066-07:00

I got my visa last week, so the China trip is a go! I was a little worried about obtaining permission to visit because I own a cute Go Team Tibet scarf and mitten set, and I was sure the Chinese government would know about it and reject me out of hand. Thankfully the Olympic mantra, Amazing Awaits, has become my own.The holy-geez-it's-only-a-week-away planning has begun in earnest. As if time

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-18889128855459163012008-07-24T21:19:00.002-06:002008-07-25T21:26:40.294-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-85778220407218580622008-07-20T07:11:00.008-06:002008-07-20T07:58:00.527-06:00

It is the close of a busy and vexatious day — say half past five or six o’clock of a winter afternoon. I have had a cocktail or two, and am stretched out on a divan in front of a fire, smoking. At the edge of the divan, close enough for me to reach her with my hands, sits a woman not too young, but still good-looking and well dressed — above all, a woman with a soft, low-pitched, agreeable voice.

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-45565842339009829772008-07-18T22:27:00.012-06:002008-07-18T22:40:28.497-06:00

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-19299122479294872512008-07-18T13:29:00.007-06:002008-07-18T19:47:16.536-06:00

When I visited Southern California in the mid-eighties, I was bedazzled by my boyfriend's beachside neighborhood. Tiny stucco houses. Flowering vines crawling weatherworn trellises. Impossibly narrow streets. Sandy restaurants serving fish tacos. Cramped outdoor patios overlooking the ocean -- the vast inconceivable Pacific ocean. An exciting vista for a Colorado girl. As with all lovers'

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7351625215946204499.post-91442817280439328792008-07-14T17:21:00.005-06:002008-07-25T20:45:59.973-06:00

As one who doesn’t like to leave the house much, I am a big fan of the internet. In truth, I can hardly speak a negative word about it. The web has given us unfettered access to news and information, consumer goods, visions pleasing to the eye, sounds pleasing to the ear, easy communication one step removed. I can’t say I miss a single thing about the “good ol’ days.” Except waiting in line for

Marie Waldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07069597929673994123noreply@blogger.com0