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Pickwick12
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Name: Amy Country: United States State: Florida Metro: Fort Myers Gender: Female
Interests: baseball, literature, British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, writing, punk music, law, politics Expertise: writing, talking, editing Occupation: Student Industry: Education/Research
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Member Since:
11/29/2004
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| Dinner with the President|
I didn't write this...I got it as a forward. I would love to credit the author, but I don't know who it is. Also, if you are the author, I will be happy to take this down if you'd prefer.
"Dinner with Obama"
Once upon a time, I was invited to the White House for a private dinner with the President. I am a respected businessman, with a factory that produces memory chips for computers and portable electronics. There was some talk that my industry was being scrutinized by the administration, but I paid it no mind. I live in a free country. There's nothing that the government can do to me if I've broken no laws. My wealth was earned honestly, and an invitation to dinner with an American President is an honor.
I checked my coat, was greeted by the Chief of Staff, and joined the President in a yellow dining room. We sat across from each other at a table draped in white linen. The Great Seal was embossed on the china. Uniformed staff served our dinner. The meal was served, and I was startled when my=2 0waiter suddenly reached out, plucked a dinner roll off my plate, and began nibbling it as he walked back to the kitchen.
"Sorry about that," said the President. "Andrew is very hungry."
"I don't appreciate..." I began, but as I looked into the calm brown eyes across from me, I felt immediately guilty and petty.. It was just a dinner roll. "Of course," I concluded, and reached for my glass. Before I could, however, another waiter reached forward, took the glass away and swallowed the wine in a single gulp..
"And his brother Eric is very thirsty." said the President..
I didn't say anything. The President is testing my compassion, I thought. I will play along. I don't want to seem unkind. My plate was whisked away before I had tasted a bite.
"Eric's children are also quite hungry."
With a lurch, I crashed to the floor. My chair had been pulled out from under me. I stood, brushing myself off angrily, and watched as it was carried from the room.
"And their grandmother can't stand for long."
I excused myself, smiling outwardly, but inside feeling like a fool. Obviously I had been invited to the White House to be sport for some game. I reached for my coat, to find that it had been taken. I turned back to the President.
"Their grandfather doesn't like the cold."
I wanted to shout - that was my coat! But again, I looked at the placid smiling face of my host and decided I was being a poor sport. I spread my hands helplessly and chuckled. Then I felt my hip pocket and realized my wallet was gone. I excused myself and walked to a phone on an elegant side table. I learned shortly that my credit cards had been maxed out, my bank accounts emptied, my retirement and equity portfolios had vanished, and my wife had been thrown out of our home. Apparently, the waiters and their families were moving in. The President hadn't moved or spoken as I learned all this, but finally I lowered the phone into its cradle and turned to face him.
"Andrew's whole family has made bad financial decisions. They haven't planned for retirement, and they need a house. They recently defaulted on a subprime mortgage. I told them they could have your home. They need it more than you do."
My hands were shaking. I felt faint. I stumbled back to the table and knelt on the floor. The President cheerfully cut his meat, ate his steak and drank his wine.
I lowered my eyes and stared at the small grey circles on the tablecloth that were water drops.
"By the way," He added, "I have just signed an Executive Order nationalizing your factories. I'm firing you as head20of your business. I'll be operating the firm now for the benefit of all mankind. There's a whole bunch of Erics and Andrews out there and they can't come to you for jobs groveling like beggars."
I looked up. The President dropped his spoon into the empty ramekin which had been his creme brulee. He drained the last drops of his wine.
As the table was cleared, he lit a cigarette and leaned back in his chair. He stared at me. I clung to the edge of the table as if were a ledge and I were a man hanging over an abyss. I thought of the years behind me, of the life I had lived. The life I had earned with a lifetime of work, risk and struggle. Why was I punished? How had I allowed it to be taken? What game had I played and lost? I looked across the table and noticed with some surprise that there was no game board between us. What had I done wrong?
As if answering the unspoken thought, the President suddenly cocked his head, locked his empty eyes to mine, and bared a million teeth, chuckling wryly as he folded his hands.
"You should have stopped me at the dinner roll," he said.
Wake up America!
IN GOD WE TRUST
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| Emergency PrayerPlease pray for a friend I met through Xanga. He is very depressed and suicidal.
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| Korean BeautyI have learned, recently more than ever before, that beauty is in the eye of the (cultural) beholder.
Some things I have learned about Korean standards of beauty:
-I thought America was obsessed with weight, but Korea is far more. For a girl, weighing above 110 pounds will apparently get you judged as fat by a large number of people. Men are hyper about their weight too.
-Small faces. For some reason, it's considered beautiful to have a tiny face there. No idea where that comes from.
-Pointy chin/v-shaped face. This is the going shape at the moment.
-Paleness. I saw someone say about a famous Korean actress that she was so pale she could almost pass as Caucasian. I think this was meant as a compliment.
-Glasses. Glasses are very, very cool in Korea, and celebrities purposely wear them in photographs.
-Cute/Aegyo. Dressing like a little girl (for girls) and in bright candy colors (for guys) is considered a desirable look.
-Double eyelids. This surgery is an extremely common graduation present for Korean teens.
-Mickey Mouse. A very famous Korean celebrity wore Mickey Mouse boardshorts on a televised program yesterday. This is not uncommon.
These are just a few of the cultural standards that I have noticed that stand out to me. I am not trying to malign or judge. If any Koreans feel that I have misrepresented your culture, please let me know and I will edit. I think the differences in beauty standards across cultures are extremely interesting. I'm glad that through all times and places, God looks at the heart.
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| Spiritual Gifts"The gifts of the spirit will never be manifested under the government of fear. They're manifested under the government of faith."
----Tim Enloe
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| CoincidenceI live in a county with a population of almost 600,000 people.
Four years ago, I took Spanish I at Edison State College. There were 20 people or so in the class. One of my classmates that I got to know a little bit was a man I estimated to be in his late 30s or early 40s. I think I found out then that he was an attorney as well as a Christian, and that he also taught classes at the college.
Soon after that, I was working for Kelly Services, the international temp agency, and for one or two days they placed me at Florida Rural Legal Services to answer the telephone. That same man was working there at the time.
Today I had jury duty at the county courthouse and was eventually rejected after being questioned in the courtroom. The rub? The judge for the particular trial that I was randomly assigned to was the same guy from my class and the agency.
I do not live in a small town, and there are many attorneys here. There is no higher purpose to this post; I just thought it was bizarre.
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