finished the next two books in the crown of stars series by kate elliott. it continues to be an interesting series, although the third book was tough to get through. its still a good series to read but sometimes there's just WAY too many characters to keep track of!
also...the cover for prince of dogs is priceless!
this is just one of the MANY reasons why we should all be worried about the election in november. the credibility of our government diminishes more and more each day. connecticut is one of the more "upstanding" states and even we are suffering from voter fraud. i fear it is much, much worse in other areas.
i float in between apathy and disgust these days. i'm tired of this election already. i'm disheartened by all the candidates. and i'm seriously considering moving to canada, no matter who wins in november.
i downloaded mariah carey's new album E=MC2 (sorry, can't figure out how to do the "squared" function here) two days ago. i'm def recommending this album to all you mariah carey lovers. if you liked her last album then you will like this one. it's the same style of pop, r&b, and hip-hop all mixed together. she's got some great power ballads and a lot of groovin songs as well.
here are my picks for the best songs on the album! (keep in mind though that she does not have ONE bad song on this album - all of them are good! not a lot of artists can get away with producing an album without at least one bad song but mariah pulled it off!)
...so there you have it - now go and support mimi!!!
these clips are priceless!!!!
this article pretty much sums up by feelings on the olympics. although i think what china has done to the tibetans is horrible and atrocious (not to mention the many people who are locked up in jail over there for merely speaking their minds)...i don't think that the athletes should suffer because of china's human rights abuse. the article talks about how these men still have a sense of disappointment that they never got to compete in the 1980 olympics in moscow, due to the boycott that year. many of these athletes have been training for years...some of them have been training for most of their lives to be able to compete in the olympics. they don't deserve to have their dreams knocked aside just because the olympic committee made a mistake to have the olympics held in beijing.
this situation sucks for two reasons...
(1) it's not the chinese fault that their government is so corrupt and harmful. china is one of the oldest civilizations on this planet. they have a rich history and a interesting culture that SHOULD be recognized. the chinese people are good people and they deserve to have their heritage honored by hosting the olympics. but of course, they're government has to go and ruin everything for their own people AND the rest of the world.
(2) why would the olympic committee choose to have the olympics in such a controversial area? countries literally fight for a chance to host the olympics and there were plenty of other candidates to choose from. i don't think the olympic committee is some evil mastermind behind this...but i do think that they did not fully think about what it actual means to hold such a worldwide event in china.
in some ways, i am glad that this olympics controversy is happening because it DOES draw attention to human rights abuse and now the whole world is focused on china and what they are going to do about it. perhaps this will lead to some great changes to be made that actually help these people. i still think its fucked up if the athletes don't compete but hopefully some good can come out of this international scandal.
i didn't get a chance to catch the country music awards last night since i don't have cable anymore but luckily i caught some of the performances online today.
here's a clip of miley and billy ray cyrus singing ready, set, don't go. i have never heard the song before - it is a sweet song for a father and daughter to sing together. even though you *know* i adore miley, i really think she needs more voice lessons or something cause she is straining in this performance. i don't know if she's just not used to singing country live or maybe she isn't used to singing this particular song live but she seems to really be struggling. there are def some nice moments in the song but it could have been better.
in contrast, here is carrie underwood singing another father/daughter song, all american girl. now THIS is how you sing country! i love carrie's twang and this song is just so sweet. she looks adorable and it was def a great way to end the show! (i'm also digging her sparkling microphone too!)
here's keith urban (my mom's favorite "stupid boy") and brooks & dunn opening the show up properly with raise the barn! thats some mean harmonica playing!
and finally, here's leann rimes performing nothing better to do (props to felipe for introducing me to this song!). leann was def one of the better performers of the night. i haven't always been a fan of hers but i gotta give her respect when its due. she's got one of the best country voices out there and i think she is just starting to come into her own. i predict even greater things from her in the future.
i'm *so* happy that the office is finally back on the air! i have to wait to watch the episode online since i missed it last night but i'm so looking forward to it! to tide me over, i just watched these great clips from angela martin's myspace with steve carell and john krasinski talking about pregnancy stuff with her (she's currently pregnant but they have been hiding the pregnancy on the show). they are all so adorable!!! i seriously fall more in love with john every time i see him!
