An interesting case study

Here is a news report of a Nebraska man who is being charged for having sex with a 13 year old girl. The catch? They're married. The families were pretty supportive of their marriage since he had gotten her pregnant, but the state gvt doesn't agree. Your thoughts?

Random Collection from the Last Week

Yes, I am a little late in updating...mostly because I've been swamped at work. I even came in on Sunday to get things done...nooooo! Khan! Ok, but seriously, I've been a busy kid- crazy. I've been going down to DC about once a week for hearings/briefings and I did get to see my sister last week. She was her usually "plucky" self. Josh was there although I didnt' really talk to him much since I had only a small amount of time in which to see my sister. Another staff member was there and he was really excited to see me. I seriously haven't talked to him in five years and yet he was as happy to see me as anyone probably could be. It turns out he drove to camp from AZ and he's flying out of BWI and then coming back...or something. Anyway, I think the point was that he'll be in Baltimore sometime in August and when he is, he'd like to give me a call. Ok. Normally my more negative side would say that he was excited to see me cuz he wanted a place to stay in Baltimore, but I don't think he knew where I lived until after we started talking...so now I'm at a loss.
I get to see Nikhil this weekend...I'm pretty excited to hear all about his time in the "big city." If he doesn't have at least one story about the "crazy" ppl I'll be disappointed.
In other news, I'm moving apartments in less than 2 weeks...and Chris will be here! I'm super-excited because then I can buy the rest of my furniture (and a mattress!) and because then I can escape the dog who lives in the apartment next door. I have a vague recollection that I was awake very early this morning because it was barking which would explain why I'm so tired now, but it's hard to be sure...my brain is fuzzy.
Oh, speaking of Chris, Tye might be driving out with him. That'd be super-nice because Chris wouldn't have to drive out alone, I could show Tye the cool military ships out here, and Tye could help bring in Chris' stuff so I don't have to carry as much. ;)
There were other things I needed to relate to you guys, but now that I'm actually in front of the computer, I'm at a loss...so I'll have to get back to you.

Oh, and Avian Flu is coming...be prepared.

My bra set off the metal detector ...

As you may or may not know, I'm doing a lot of legislative things at my job and thus end up having to go to DC for hearings. The first time I got to hang out with Liz and have supper with Kennon and aformentioned Liz. Tuesday I had to go down again, and I set off the metal detector on my way into the building. They did the little waving metal wand thing and it was pretty obvious that my bra was the culprit...lucky for me they didn't seem to care. And, the other person from my office who came to the hearing with me didn't seem to notice since he was too busy taking change out of his pocket. Whew. That could have been a fun converstaion. After the hearing (which was entertaining at times, though probably not to anyone but me so I'll spare you the "transcript"), it was time for lunch (that I can claim on my expense report...hooray!). I convinced him that was should go to Jaleo because it's probably my favorite restaurant in DC. It is a Spanish Tapas place and there are some dishes I absolutely love...AND they make awesome Sangria. Anyway, I decided to try something new and ordered shark. Maybe even Kennon would like it because it was breaded and deep-fried. ;) It was...interesting. As you may remember, I am terrified of sharks (even in pools) and I could always say that at least I've never eaten them so they wouldn't want to eat me. Alas, this is no longer the case, but since I avoid the water, perhaps this will never be an issue.
I just learned I'm heading down to DC for a hearing on the 19th (at 2pm, thank goodness, those early morning ones are a PAIN when you have to commute from Baltimore). The interesting thing about this is that now I will def. be in DC on the day that my sister (at Science Camp in WV) will be (for their DC "field-trip"). I would really like to see her, but I'm a little bit nervous too since one of the counselors was someone I had one of those "almost" relationships with. I was supposed to meet him for dinner in the UK a couple summers ago, but backed out (Kennon may remember this). He's the one who sent me the schedule for where they'd be in DC on the 19th. Felicia said that someone had thought they couldn't have vistors in DC, but he says that all alums are invited to come hang out. I guess I'll end up trying to meet them since I will be in the city, but seriously I'm not sure why I get so nervous at the thought of seeing him again. Bleh. Stick me in a social isolation box, I'm not good at this. ;)

Some things I forgot...

I found this super-cool article about how Ebola works...it's not very long and there is a nice picture. ;)

London gets the 2012 Olympics...I'm not sure how I feel about this. It's better than Paris or Moscow...but I think I was kinda hoping for NY. Of course, maybe this is just a good excuse for me to go to London again.

In other news, my job is working out well. There is plenty of "policy" for me to work on and I went to a hearing last week. Let me tell you...there were a couple parts that were hilarious. I won't put the details here, but suffice it to say, drug companies were embarrassed and I giggled on the inside. ;) I finally got paid, but since nothing ever works out quite right lately, they sent the check to South Dakota. Shesh.

I went to the post office this morning and it's actually the first time I've done so since I've been in Baltimore. I went to the big one near my med school campus (even though it isn't super-close to where I live now) and let me tell you...it was the nicest Post Office I'd ever seen. There was even a Snack Bar inside...and MANY Stamp Machines. Seriously, this must be where ALL the cool kids hang out...there is room for hundreds of them! I look forward to seeing you all there. ;)
Why did I go to the post office? Well, I'm glad you asked, I actually needed to send 2 packages. One was to my sister who is at the Science Camp I went to after I graduated from HS. It's a different sort of camp than one might expect since it's actually quite physical. You do a lot of running, biking, hiking, mt climbing, etc. and it turns out, my sister doesn't really do those things...so she doesn't own any tennis shoes. So, I sent her mine since they're broken in and super comfy. To one of my other sisters I sent a bunch of minis and some paints. Yeah...I know...super-geeky...but she's very artsy and I bet she'd be good at it.

In other geek news, I FINALLY tracked down some Sith M&Ms. The colors are really neat...but since I've never been a huge dark chocolate fan, I was not surprised to learn that I do in fact prefer the milk chocolate ones better.

And finally, Happy 4th of July and all that. Given my fear of loud noises, I'm sure you're not suprised to learn that it isn't my favorite holiday. I am close enough to the Inner Harbor that I could've seen the fireworks. However, I chose to stay inside and watch NY's on tv (how's that for irony Nikhil). I could still hear the explosions from outside, but luckily the building muted them enough to be "non-frightening."

Angelina is Adopting an Ethiopian Girl

The complete article can be found here. I don't really have any "analysis" of this "issue" but I do like it when people adopt and babies are soooo cute. ;)

Wow

Sandra Day O'Connor is retiring. That is all.

We can no longer "Blame Canada"

As it turns out, the USDA confirmed what was suspected...the cow was not an import. It was native to the US and did have mad cow disease. Normally I think I'd post more of a reaction...but I'm still kinda sad about it. It's a big deal, and the g'vt is still saying "everything is fine here, how are you?" Bleh.