A few comments on my previous blog on this subject inspired me to write a new one. That blog was more about the problem--this one will focus on the solution.

Happy New Years everybody! Instead of getting shitfaced this year, I had one shot of whiskey at a Coyote Ugly-type bar with my relatives, and then went back to their house to play games...and I have to say, I actually had more fun then I usually do.

Dear President-Elect Obama,

As a little girl, the "Find Waldo" series was one of my favorites. The idea of a man that could be lost so many times - in so many places - and that he needed me to find him both fascinated and intrigued me. No visit to the doctor's office or the dentist's office was complete until I found him on every page of every book.

I have been volunteering on ProgressiveU for about a year and a half now, and have been a member well over 2 years. I started in the competition just like the rest of you, but stayed due to the great ideas I found here. I've made some wonderful friends over the past couple years on the site, many of whom I would like to remain friends with for life.

Every year during the holidays, my family makes a point of adopting an elderly person and a child. Even during those years when we struggled, we kept up that tradition because we knew that no matter how bad off we thought we were, there were others in worse circumstances.

I see a lot of people ask about the Christmas traditions we recognize in modern society. Generally, they're pretty sarcastic, in a way that implies they don't really know the origin, so it seems like an arbitrary and ridiculous thing to them. Generally, it's something along the lines of "how did the birth of Jesus turn into a fat man flying around, dropping down chimneys and giving kids toys?"

The short answer: it didn't.

Everybody is talking about how the United States of America are past their prime. The Empire is in decline. The military debacles of Iraq and Afghanistan have demonstrated that superior technology and tactical prowess count for little on the modern battlefield.