random thoughts and musings for september 8th

- it's "cold" today. and by "cold" i mean 70 degrees. is summer over?
- madrid is a breath of fresh air. eight days into my stay here, and i'd venture to say i'm more than satisfied with my decision to leave zaragoza.
- i'm getting sick of reading about all the anti-muslim behavior in the united states. when did freedom of religion become restricted to anything but islam?
- i'm really sickened by the planned koran burning by a florida pastor. two questions. number one, what is the desired outcome of this publicity stunt? muslims around the world, seeing their holy book burned and mocked, suddenly have a mass epiphany and come to jesus? number two: if the goal is to convert muslims, how is this in any way an appealing and convincing plea to convert to christianity? (by the way, islam isn't the only religion with crazies. radical islamists are to islam as the KKK is to christianity.)
- the reds are still in first place? they're bound to implode, right? or is that just years of my dad's skepticism of cincinnati sports performing well seeping in?
- venus williams is a class act. i said it.
- i live with an argentine, met a colombian, have venezuelan and argentine neighbors, ate at an ecuadorian restaurant today and am meeting up with an american tonight. where, again, are all the spaniards?
- meghan mccain cried when her father chose sarah palin as his running mate. now we're all crying because she won't go away.
- i finished "a confederacy of dunces" over two weeks ago, and i still can't get it out of my head. great, great book.
- i'm debating on taking the GRE this fall. if i want to go to grad school next fall, i've got to get moving ...
- speaking of grad school: masters in international social work or masters in international studies (policy, politics, development, economics, etc)?
- read an article in the new york times magazine today about why it's taking 20 year-olds longer to grow up. the following passage sums up my life in a nutshell: "The 20s are a black box, and there is a lot of churning in there. One-third of people in their 20s move to a new residence every year. Forty percent move back home with their parents at least once. They go through an average of seven jobs in their 20s, more job changes than in any other stretch." - Robin Marantz Henig
- my spanish grammar skills have a long way to go. while i certainly don't lack vocabulary, my grammar needs vast improvement.