This weekend has kind of sucked. I have been cleaning non-stop and am looking forward to a break. Good thing is I'm making some cash. $$ Don't like to write too much about work, cause I think I need to respect people's privacy. It would be interesting though if I didn't.

A while back I wrote about how I was asked to take on some responsibility. Didn't get into details then, but here they are...

Was asked to be Young Men's Division leader for a new district in the Soka Gakkai (Buddhist Org.) After careful thought, and typical Gemini fickleness, I decided to accept the position. The entire organization in the Buffalo Area has been reorganized. All of the old districts were dissolved. This brings about both excitement and the challenge of letting go of familiar routines and comfort. My old district was amazing. In Buffalo we get tons of youth that come and go. Lots of students, who like many, decide to leave or need to leave after graduating. Since I joined the organization like 4 years ago or so, I have seen so many people come and go. Lots of Japanese youth who attend UB, but also members from China, Korea, India, Italy and one from the Sudan. It is certainly a diverse community and I'm always so happy to have such a wide range of people supporting one another and working towards the same goal.

My new district is called the Peace Bridge Group (As we are close to the Peace Bridge). Funny thing about me being the Young Men's District leader is that I am the only young man in the district! As an organization we are growing and this will definitely change. The reason for the redistricting is to make smaller groups allowing for better support of the members. We are currently working on getting a new community center to accommodate the growth.

Gotta say that I have grown quite fond of Buffalo. Sure I hate the weather most of the time, but the people here are amazing. Buffalo can once again be a thriving city. It took me a long time to come to this realization. When I got here in 2000 I didn't like it. No friends, lots of poverty, crime and a rapidly decreasing population. I would like to stay, but that all depends.

My mother wants me to move to Florida. I could live with my sister and teach, as Florida only requires that you be tested for certification. Supposedly, I can make a whopping $35,000 a year starting out. With my student debt I need to make at least this much to live. I don't really want to live in the Sun Shine state. It would be wonderful to live close to my mother, sister, Aunt, Uncle and Niece. Yet I hate suburbs, I hate the redneck mentality and I can't stand Walgreens on every corner and the monotonous track housing. Florida is facing environmental disaster much faster than we are (hard to believe). They are sucking dry their ground water, which is causing houses to sink. Meanwhile they are pouring tons of toxins into the earth mostly for pest control. Hurricanes and rising waters are only part of the problem.

This is getting excessively windy so that is all.

I'm happy with the outcome of the election. Record numbers voted in this midterm elction, in particular, young people. Sure not a lot will be done in the next two years, but at least the brakes will be applied to stop what I consider a country gone out of control. The people elected are not far left. They are a teeny bit left if not center.

What I think needs to be done in the next two years are investigations. I'm certain that there is more to be revealed besides sex scandals. Bush has always advocated accountability and that is exactly what we need. Impeachment will not occur at this time, but there is more to know about this secretive regime. I'm disgusted with the information we already have about the Bush administration, yet this isn't enough. More will be uncovered over time.

Whether or not we had great options for this election, the people are pleading for change. They asked for it from the only available alternative in our system.

Goodbye Rumsfeld. You are a disgrace to this country.

It was nice to read everyone's thoughts regarding the election. Thanks for sharing.

I found this site seems interesting because they list polling instances by state and county. I was able to look at Niagara county but not Erie which had 42 instances in 2004. It kept saying invalid state every time I did a search under Erie.

I don't want any problems with voting. That would really piss me off. I heard on the news that it is possible that certain precincts aren't prepared for the election. Something about not paying some of their contracts until last minute. Not too sure the details so don't quote me. I tried searching for a news story but couldn't find one. I'm so glad we aren't voting on some stupid computer. Who could really trust something like that? Unless of course it left a paper trail...which as you know, they don't. d:coffee led me to votergate which you can watch online. I never saw it, but I knew before that this stuff was going on. Still it was freaking scary. Would you really want your vote cast on something so insecure?

What will tomorrow bring?

Today was crazy and I'm tired. (e:jenks) I would be happy if you took the fish. Are you sure you have enough room? The plant is big and the fish are pigs.

(e:museumchick) still want to get together for Bengal Pause but not sure when.

My other ram died today so I have decided to give my fish tank away. My friend has some goldfish that need a bigger tank so she is going to get it. I do have three sunburst platys and a dwarf frog that need a home. If anyone is interested you can have them. They all have to go together and be in an appropriate environment. They also come with an amazing java fern. Good hearty plants can be hard to come by. Let me know soon if you are interested.

The Bishop accepted an offer for the house. Not sure what this means, although I'm fairly certain I have a couple of months still. They said he is an architect and is using the downstairs for an office. I guess I have to wait and see. Hopefully he will contact us asap and let us know what his intentions are. That is all.