This is from about 10 years ago:



And this is from 2 weeks ago:

I know it's only in my head, but on the ride in to work today everything seemed a little better. A little brighter. A bit more hopeful.

I can't help but wonder what Hunter would be thinking and writing today, and I am sad that he isn't around to be a witness to this election as he was for so many past elections. His uncanny insight in to the hearts and minds of politicians is sorely missed.

I really have no words for how I feel right now. Simply amazing.

Some of you may have seen the 7-11 Obama/McCain coffee cups.



Basically, each cup purchased is scanned and results tallied on their website - 7-Election.

2 weeks ago, 2 states were tied 50/50, 2 were red and the rest were blue.. Today, 2 are still tied 50/50, but all other states are blue. Now, some may think that the 7-11 cup poll is completely irrelevant, but the last 2 elections, the 7-11 poll was frighteningly accurate.

I don't want to be to hopeful, but I think this is going to be a Nixon-like victory (though I'm not sure how he pulled it off). Just about everything is going Obama's way except for that small fraction of degenerate morons who think black skin precludes someone from being president and that Proposition 8 is actually a good thing. Those folks are just plain hopeless.

Ever since the 2004 Democratic National Convention speech Barack gave, I've been saying, "That guy is going to be president some day". My hope and dream is that come November 4, that will be a reality.

This is probably one of the nerdiest things I have ever done, but it actually turned out even better than I was hoping...

So I'm definitely getting the hang of it a bit better. I rode all the way down to Seal Beach to visit my mom yesterday which was my longest ride yet. I've also been using the freeway to get to work. It's really great going 90-95 in the carpool lane for once :) It gets a little hairy when it's really windy but I think that's the case with anything that small and light on the freeway.

There is something so exhilarating about getting on the freeway, ducking down and leaning forward and there's just nothing between you, the wind, and the ground. It feels like being strapped to the front of a rocket or something :)

So today I was running a bit late and had to stop at my PO Box so I thought, what the hell, I'll try out the highway.

I got up to 95 on the 405 South. Talk about a rush! Wowsers. I probably won't try that again in the near future (highway, yes, 95, not so much) but it was definitely excitement to the max!

My jacket and helmet both arrived today. I got a matte black helmet to match the bike (I was borrowing a friend's the past few days).

First day riding to work:



More to come!

Yep, three posts right in a row after months of nothing!

Elizabeth and I are in a running group to train for the LA Marathon. As some of you know, she already did it last year and this year, she's suckered me into doing it as well. Today we ran 23 miles! One of the greatest things about doing this training for the first time is that every time we up the mileage, it's my furthest distance ever. Tomorrow I probably won't be able to walk, but man, what a sense of accomplishment that comes from running that distance.

So I've been 99% sure that I'll be voting for Obama in the primary. His victory speech in Iowa is a good reason why and pretty much sealed the deal. If you have not seen it, check it out : Obama's Victory Speech. It feels great to listen to a politician and actually feel proud to be an American and to feel hopeful for America. I can't remember the last time I listened to a politician and didn't want to just knock him/her in the teeth! Anyway, please watch the video if you haven't, and if you have. Watch it again! It's inspiring!! And spread the word about Obama. We need him in the White House.

I know I haven't posted in awhile and I've been meaning to post an update about what's been going on, so I will soon, but for now...

I was watching Inside the Actor's Studio when Natalie Portman was on and she made a comment about heaven that probably sums up what is wrong with organized religion better than anything I've ever heard. She said:

"I don't know whether it exists or not and I think it's a bad concept to have because when you want to do good things in order to get into heaven then every good thing you do becomes a selfish act and I hate that. I think it creates bad pattern in your mind. I like to do good things not as a means to get into heaven but for the sake of doing it themselves."

So last night we had our annual elections for board members of our HOA. And in a surprise turn of events, I won in a landslide! And by landslide I mean I got 9 out of 12 votes. So as of today I'm the President. Mr. President or President James is best, but I'll answer to President Will if you must. Maybe Barack will let me run with him on his ticket, I'd Veep for that guy any day. I'd settle for an Obama/Clark ticket though.

For anyone interested, here is a (belated) photo of our wedding cake:



In other news, we've been vegan for almost 4 months now. This is the first Thanksgiving in my life I did not eat turkey... crazy! It did look good though (we were at my sister's and despite our insistence that she just cook whatever and we'd eat what we could, she made special food for us, but there was also the usual fare).

If you care about the United States, please vote today.

And if you REALLY care, vote Democratic.

Nope, just gone vegan. I know, I just totally blew your mind. Will, the meatasaurus turning vegan? That's right. We decided last weekend to go vegan. For lots of reasons. Treatment of animals, health of ourselves...I thought it would be a nightmare to transition, but so far it's been surprisingly easy. We had a couple of meat substitutes, all of which I enjoyed. There is a "California Vegan" restaurant nearby and I had Pad Thai with soy chicken that tasted exactly like the Pad Thai I used to get. To make the transition easier we decided to actually finish the stuff we already had otherwise not only did we help kill the animals but then we would be wasting that death, so we're finishing our milk, not throwing away our shoes with leather, etc, but going forward we won't be buying anything like that. Shouldn't be too hard because we already eat a lot of veggies and things. The hardest things for me will be my Omaha Steaks and cheese, but I'm pretty sure I can deal. I've also lost about 5 pounds this first week and I'm pretty sure cutting out meat and dairy had something to do with that.

We decided to redecorate the living room this weekend. We got pretty far, but didn't quite finish. Photos and details behind the link.

Planted my California natives this weekend.

More full front yard update