So, a few weeks ago Dre was walking Moby, and a dog started following them home. The dog was drinking out of rain puddles and eating scraps of whatever off the sidewalk, and had matted fur; Dre brought him home and after feeding him we took him to the Weld County Humane Society.

He's on the WCHS website now, under the name "Albert." He's 1.5 years old, and supposedly a Australian Shepherd mix. He's very friendly, smart, and would make a great dog. We'd adopt him if we could. If you or anyone you know is looking to adopt a dog soon, I encourage you to check him out.

Weld County Humane Society: http://www.weldcountyhumane.org/adopt_a_pet.aspx

We went down to Springs this weekend for the Starlight Spectacular, a bike ride through Garden of the Gods that goes from midnight to 4am. It was great fun, and although I made it, I realized I really need to get fit again. There was an old Schwinn stationary bike on craigslist for $45, and I got it.

Other than that, work is going well. I got my CDL permit, and have been learning to drive the bus. It's not as bad as I expected. I still really like the residents, and the people I work with. I'm working at least 30 hours each week, which is good to save up for school. Speaking of which, I emailed UNC to inquire about the status of my application, and the Early Childhood SPED coordinator emailed me back and said I had been accepted. I contacted the licensure officer, and I'm signed up for all the right teacher prep courses. So, exciting.

I want to work with kids who might not have the same opportunities as their counterparts. I'm taking Spanish in the fall, and am going to seek out a student teaching position in a school that would provide that experience. I've been thinking a lot about adoption too lately, and I like the idea of having one baby, and adopting another, either through foster care or otherwise. Like I said, we're not planning on kids for awhile, but it's something to think about.

Dre and I have almost been married one year! We're thinking of taking a trip down to Texas for our one year anniversary; we have some airline vouchers we got as a wedding gift, and we might be able to arrange a condo by a beach. We'll also see his family, which will be cool. I just need to arrange time off work, we'll see.

So I found a blog template that looks like the cliff walk in Mangawhai Heads, where we ran the hostel in New Zealand. I have really been missing New Zealand recently, particularly the sea and living in a less urban locale. We've ruled out going back in the immediate future, as it would be too much of a sacrifice to leave family and friends behind, but maybe someday.

Another thing I've been thinking a lot about lately is adopting kids. Becoming a mommy is still a few years off, but adopting is something that Dre is in favor of. From what I've heard, adopting from the United States is difficult, and adopting from overseas is expensive. I have been warming up to the idea of adopting internationally, but there's still a part of me that wants to have the whole 9 months pregnancy-birth-infant bonding experience. Sometimes I ask myself why I wouldn't adopt, since there are so many kids/ babies who need a family, and we'd be doing a lot of good. I don't know how I feel about it all for sure, I guess I'll have to do more research and let it all sink in.

Dre sent me an article about Pete Peterson, a billionaire using his fortune to set up a charity. Check it out if you have a chance.

Stand Up

Stand Up- The Flobots

Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up, we shall not be moved
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

We still don't understand thunder and lightning
Flash back to when we didn't fund the dam
Didn't fund the dam levee? No wonder man
Now our whole damn city's torn asunder man
Under water but we still don't understand
We see hurricane spills overrun the land
Through gaps you couldn't fill with a 100 tons of sand
No we still don't understand
We've seen planes in the windows of buildings crumbled in
We've seen flames send the chills through London
And we've sent planes to kill them and some of them were children
But still we crumbling the building
Underfunded but we still don't understand
Under God but we kill like the son of Sam
But if you feel like I feel like about the son of man
We will overcome

So Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up we shall not be moved
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

I said Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
Except by a freedom fighter bleeding on a cross for you
We shall not be moved
Except by a system thats rotten through
Neglecting the victims and ordering the cops to shoot
High treason now we need to prosecute

So Stand up
We shall not be moved
And we won't fight a war for fossil fuel
Its times like this that you want to plot a coup
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
So Stand up
We shall not be moved
Unless were taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

I said Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up

Now shake, shake
A Polaroid dream
nightmare negatives develop on the screen
We sit back and wait for the government team
Criticize they but who the fuck are we
The people want peace but the leaders want war
Our neighbors don't speak, peek through the front door
House representatives preach "stay the course"
Time for a leap of faith
Once More

Put your hands up high if you haven't abandoned
Hope that the pen strokes stronger than the cannon
Balls to the wall, Nose to the grindstone
My interrogation techniques leave your mind blown
So Place your bets lets speak to the enemy
Don't let em pretend that we seek blood
And who's we anyways Kemo Sabe?
Mighty warlord wanna-be street thug
a threat for a threat leaves the whole world terrified
blow for blow never settles the score
word for word is time need clarify
We the people did not want war

So Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except By a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give then you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Unless were taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you

I said Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up