My first group exercise class...at a Gym.

Wow. I never realized that I am uncoordinated…until today. I took my first gym group exercise class. I’ve done group exercise before, in the Army, but this was different. Group exercise in the Army usually consists of group runs, push ups, sit ups, various forms of torture completed with an M16 in hand or the use of your own body weight for resistance. I’ve always endured these, and even, in a sadistic way, enjoyed them. They were usually creative. Once I had to do 100 squat thrusts, yelling “You’re my dog, Drill Sergeant!” after each one squat thrust, when the said Drill Sergeant overheard me refer to him by his first name to someone else. So, it never dawned on me that I may have a problem with group exercise class.

The class was called Body Blast, and its description stated “Get the heart pumping using a variety of equipment, then wrap it up with weights and core strengthening activities.” What they fail to tell you is that the first 5 minutes is step aerobics. It was then that I realized that moving my feet and hands in a specified pattern, at the same time, while stepping up and down on a step, was really not my cup of tea and was going to be a challenge. It was ugly…REALLY ugly.

Everyone else were veterans of this class, they moved with such grace and synchronization as…well…a dance team. I felt very much like the newbie, but it was so bad, I couldn’t even be embarrassed. I just laughed my butt off…which did not help me with the coordination at all. Thank God it only lasted 5 minutes! We then moved on to squats and lunges. About 10 minutes into that, I was praying for the aerobics back!! Ouch. I am definitely going to be sore tomorrow.

Overall, this class was definitely worth it. It is mostly strength training and sculpting, which will be a nice addition to my cardio. I am hoping…eventually…I too will be able to master the step aerobics portion of this class. Then again…maybe I should practice a little at home before the next class. Maybe.

Can science & religion coexist?

Over the years I have struggled with my own spiritual beliefs. At one point I even asked my ex-husband, if he believed in God. If you know my him and his intolerance for proselytizing, you too would have been as shocked as I was to hear him say Yes. In my astonishment, I prodded him further. He said not only did he believe in God, but he KNEW God existed. I questioned him even further..."how do you KNOW that God exists?" Expecting a one hour "Jimmy Answer" based on a laundry lists of facts and historical examples, and the reiteration of his last point, he again surprised me. He opened his arms out in guesture, referencing all that surrounds us, and said "I don't know what s/he looks like, or what form it is in, but whatever created all this - is God".

This was the most simple explanation, yet made absolute sense to me, but I still have a hard time reconciling my own beliefs. I think that my struggle is rooted in two different reasons.

The first would be my own childhood, as a child I felt like my mom pushed religion down our throats. She felt responsible for our religious teachings, which I now understand, but I think the lessons would have been more constructive if she didn't follow a cult-like sect of the Catholic religion known as the "Bayside Movement". I think her 'selfless' giving of herself and any possessions we ever had to the church (and if you know how poor we were growing up, you would know it was very little), instead of using those resources to feed, clothe, and house her children, also turned me away from organized religion.

The second reason I think I have pushed away is the way I have seen people, especially public figures, lobbyists, politicians, and anyone else that wants to push their agenda in a specific direction without allowing open debate, have used religion as a debate ending exclamation mark.

As someone who is outspoken, but loves the opportunity to have a real exchange of differing ideas, I get so disappointed when religion is brought into the conversation to make a point. I mean, how do you argue with religion and not sound like an A-hole? I just feel like once religion is brought into the discussion, the discussion is ended because there is nowhere to go with it, without it becoming extremely personal.

This brings me to my question, can science and relgion coexist?

I guess I don't understand why people would want to deny Global Warming. What is the reasoning that Sarah Palin or Fox News feel so strongly against the possibility of Global Warming. Why is it so hard to believe that all of the polution we produce is hurting our environment? I don't understand why this is a political debate.

I try to look at it from what we DO know. We know as a fact that the Earth has its own atmosphere. Think of it as a plastic snow globe. Now, place a large rock in the snow globe, fill it half with water, then freeze it. Then we're going to place a heat lamp directly outside of it to reprsent the sun. Now, let's place some wood chips in there and burn them to represent fossil fuel. As they burn, the outside of the globe (the atmosphere) gets thin. The thinner the plastic globe gets, the more heat gets through the globe and the faster it warms up the ice and melts it. The more it the ice melts, the less surface of the rock is visible. It is a pretty easy and simple experiment to complete.

So my question is why global warming is being disputed? I have tried to google why it is being disputed and some of the articles say that Global Warming itself is not being disputed, but instead the rate of the warming is being disputed. Other articles I have read say that Global Warming is being disputed because of the ties with Global Warming being related to the consumption of oil and coal for energy use. The use of oil and coal for energy is a hot political debate, and maybe the side of the political spectrum that you fall on for that issue is the same side you fall on for Global Warming?

The other issue I have seen is a religious division. Bare with me while I try to decipher the articles I have read on this, and please correct me if I am misinterprating them. Those that deny Global Warming based on Religious beliefs, do so because it places Humans in a position of power over the Earth and the destruction of it, whereas many religions believe that only God has that power.

So, my question comes up again. Can religion and science coexist? Why can't God have the ultimate power because God placed us here on this Earth and gave us Free Will. Then allowed us to run with it, whether we caused our own destruction or not, is ultimately up to us and our Will.



I'd love to hear others opinions on this subject!

Twilight: The Book versus The Movie

The book:
An amazing love story between Edward and Bella. The feeling was slow, drawn out, you were able to feel every part of the character. The words spoken between Bella and Edward were slow, thoughtful, and not rushed. You could feel the electricity between the characters.

The movie:
Felt like a low budget, Made For TV movie. The characters were rushed, the speech was forced, disconnected, and surfaced. You could never break through the surface of the characters. It was like a narrated story where you say, this happened, then this, and then this. I understand they were trying to fit a 498 page book into 2 hours, but some scenes could have been skipped in order to allow more time for the development of the lead characters. There was no need for 4 to 5 scenes of the Tracker clan to show that they were dangerous. There could have been a short 40 second montage and then a premonition through Alice's eyes. The movie overplayed Bella's relationship with her father and mother, and underplayed her relationship with Edward. The backstory could have been told in narration through her emails to her mother (very similiar to how the director of the New Moon did this with Bella's emails to Alice), the way it was in the Twilight book.

Overall, for those two people out there who have not read the book or seen the movie yet, I advise watching the movie first, then reading the book. Otherwise, you will be highly disappointed. :-(

New Moon Review

Over the past year, I have heard about the Twilight books, and the movies. To be completely honest, a book or movie about vampires never really interested me. I have very specific interests in books and movies, and even more so, very specific genres that I don't like. I hate sci-fi, scary, or unreal genres. However, I thought about maybe reading the books, just because EVERYONE was talking about them, and I wanted to know what the big deal was about.

I never did get around to reading them, which is why when I was asked if I wanted to see the movie New Moon, I was slightly hesitant. I decided to go though, despite my presumptions that I wouldn't like the movie. I decided to go because of the company. I REALLY enjoy hanging out with the ladies, and even if it is to watch something I will not like, I wanted to go just to be in such wonderful people's presence. ...And the fact that Taylor Lautner's hot body would be posted 40 foot screen, didn't hurt matters any either. ;-)

Before the movie, us girls went to get mani-pedi's. I admitted to my Mrs. Robinson crush on Taylor Lautner and how that was a main motivation to see the movie.

When we got to the theatre, we had to wait in line, even though we already had tickets. Everyone was excited, you could feel the movie cult excitement, and it was contagious.

When I finally got to my seat, the theatre was packed. You could feel the excitement. I decided that feeling the excitement and hanging out with the girls would make this worth while, even if I ended up not liking the movie. I also must note that I believe there were less than 10 guys in the whole theatre! LOL.

After seeing the movie, I HIGHLY recommend it. I recommend it, not only for those TwiHard fans, but for everyone. This movie has everything you need for the perfect movie.

For people like me, who are not into vampires and werewolves, this is a Love Story first and foremost. The fact that the people are Vampires and Werewolves is just a side item to the story. The real story is the love triangle between Edward, Bella, and Jacob.

Another thing I must note is that this story is impecably written! The story takes you on the roller coaster that any good story does. You feel the characters. You feel their saddness, happiness, love, and even more so...their LUST.

In the movie, Bella is torn between the undying love she has for Edward, and her undying friendship love for Jacob. Both Edward and Jacob are madly in love with Bella. Edward must leave Bella and never see her again to protect her for from being killed. As long as his arch nemesis knows his depth of love for Bella, Bella's life is in danger. After a complete heart break, Bella spends time with Jacob in order to heal. Jacob lives near Bella and has apparently been in love with her for years. His love only grows more intense as he spends time with her. While Bella loves Jacob too, she loves Edward even more, and lives and breaths to hold onto Edward's memory.

Throughout the movie, you feel Jacob's desire, and anyone that is Team Jacob gets aggravated at the tease that Bella is. I don't want to reveal who gets the girl in the end because the polarization of the two teams is part of the fun of the movie.

One thing I was extremely surprised about, is the amount of humor in this movie, both written into the script, and the humor experienced by watching and reflecting on the audience. There is a point in the movie where the character Jacob (Taylor Lautner) first takes off his shirt. At the very second that he reveals his abs, the WHOLE theatre gasps in excitement and admiration. (Including myself...hehehe) At this point, my group of girls dies laughing at the response of the audience (including me, at myself!). LOL.

I cannot tell you how great of a movie this is. You do not have to read the books or see the previous movie to see New Moon, but just enjoy it for the story that it is within itself. With that said, I have to admit that I do now want to read the books, and see the other movie.

Part of the appeal of this story is the love and desire that these characters have for each other. I think this resonates in girls because it is the love and desire that we all want to feel. I highly recommend everyone to see New Moon. The guys will love it for the action and the girls will love it for the love story.

Turkey Marinade

Ingredients:
• 1 stick butter, cut into pieces, room temperature
• 1 can of Orange juice concentrate thawed
• 6 cloves of garlic chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons of Rosemary
• 8 lemons juiced (save de-juice lemon to stuff inside turkey!)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon pepper

Preparation:
Chop Thyme, Rosemary, & Garlic. Cut Lemons in half and juice, making sure to remove the seeds. Stuff the Turkey with the Lemons after they’ve been squeezed. Combine everything except butter in a bowl and mix thoroughly. Rub turkey with butter, then place some of the butter cut into slices inside Turkey. Cut slices into Turkey with knife to allow marinade to get inside turkey. Pour marinade over turkey, placing pieces of the garlic inside the cut slices and marinade overnight.

Position oven rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 325°F.

Roast turkey until golden, basting occasionally with pan drippings, about 2 hours. Cover entire turkey loosely with heavy-duty foil and roast until meat thermometer inserted into innermost part of thigh registers 180°F or until juices run clear when thickest part of thigh is pierced with skewer, basting occasionally with pan juices, about 1 1/2 hours longer. Transfer turkey to platter. Tent turkey with foil and let stand to set.

Time to End Don't Ask, Don't Tell

The majority of the people that still care about maintaining the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy are conservatives that have never served in the military. Currently, “three-quarters of Americans support allowing gays to serve in the military, whether they "tell" or not” (ABCNews). Those that have actually served in the military, especially in a combat zone, know that a person’s sexuality is one of the furthest things from their mind. So, why are we still keeping a policy that only a minority of the population supports?

We have now seen that a Soldier’s sexual orientation does not determine the kind of Soldier that he will be. We have seen exemplary service from them. One example is SGT Darren Manzella, who served a in a deployment in 2005, then served his 15-month deployment with his unit knowing he was gay. It only became a problem when he agreed to be interviewed by the Service Members Legal Defense Network for a story on those affected by the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy. Over the next seven months, Manzella returned from deployment, spent time with family, testified on Capital Hill regarding Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. He was even given orders to go to his next duty station, Fort Drum. Only a week after receiving his orders, he was called into his Commanders office and told he was being discharged from the Army under the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy.

SGT Manzella was a Combat proven Soldier. With his discharge, the Army lost all of the money that they spent training him, and even more valuable, they lost his experience. I just don’t see how we can continue to uphold Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell when we have seen that the Soldier and their Unit have no problem with serving side by side. As one former Soldier told me “it is much preferred by anyone, who has actually served, to serve with a competent, reliable person who you know is going to look out for you, regardless of sexual orientation”.

As a former Soldier myself, who has served with gays and lesbians, I have found it no different than serving with anyone else. I even served with two women in my Unit who had been in a relationship and lived together for years. The kept their military life professional. I found going to the field with them, living in barracks, or even, oh, dare I say it, showering in the same common showers, as no different as any other Soldier I served beside.

Another example is Lt. Col. Victor Fehrenbach, who has honorable served 18 years as an Officer in the Air Force. “Fehrenbach’s experience as an instructor-level weapons systems officer included time in both the F-15E Strike Eagle and the EF-111 Raven. Missions took him over Baghdad during the 2003 invasion, above Afghanistan in 2002 and into the Balkans for Operation Allied Force in 1999. He has 2,180 flying hours, nine Air Medals — one for heroism — and five Air Force Commendation Medals” (Air Force Times), yet he is now being discharged after a civilian acquaintance identified him as gay to military officials. The amount of money spent training Lt. Col Fehrenbach, along with his invaluable experience and heroics, is a great loss to the Air Force.

In a time when we are still fighting two wars, and our military being stretched so thin, I find it appalling that the military is willing to give up such valuable Soldiers and experience for the discriminating views of such a small minority. It is time to finally put an end Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

Lowfat Mocha Coffee

Ingredients:
3/4 cup of regular black coffee
1/2 cup of nonfat milk
1 packet of splenda
1/2 tbsp of sugar free chocolate syrup
1 serving of Reddi Whip (100 grams)

Directions:
While coffee is brewing, add one package of splenda, 1/2 tbs of chocolate syrup, and 1/2 cup of milk into a coffee cup and stir. Heat in microwave on high for 1 minute, remove and fill to the top of the cup with coffee. Top off with Reddi Whip.

Nutritional Info:
Servings Per Recipe: 1
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 148.4
Total Fat: 0.2 g
Cholesterol: 18.5 mg
Sodium: 151.7 mg
Total Carbs: 33.2 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.4 g
Protein: 7.4 g