After the Mardi Gras parade

Some highlights of the Gov and Web 2.0 conference

Don't worry, I won't bore you with the notes from the conference. Unless you're interested? Anyone? I could talk for hours about social media and the government. These are exciting times to be a federal web worker.

Usually, government conference refreshments mean a few stale cookies, two carafes of coffee, and one pint of half-and-half to be split among 50 people. (I promise, this is not hyperbole.) But Obama has mandated that government agencies become transparent, participatory, and collaborative, something they are not known for being, in the first one hundred days of his administration. The government is neither adroit nor agile, as well, so this is cause for dozens of seminars and conferences, and the competition for our attention is fierce.

Hence the chocolate-passionfruit crème brûlée with spun-sugar dome at lunch:



After the conference, my friend and colleague Spleeness and I caught the metro home with the two guys we picked up:



It was snowy and windy, but we had our love to keep us warm.

The zombies have claimed two more victims

Braaaaaaains. BRAAAAAAIIINNNSSSS!!

Hanging with the beach cousins

Liam, Jacki and Nikki (Heather's partner Amy's nieces), Thea. Thea and
Jacki are only two months apart.

Amy Quinn for Asbury Park City Council

Visit her website for more info!

Sickie

Liam has had a bad cough the past few days. Watching him struggle to breathe has been unnerving, and it makes me wonder if he does indeed have asthma, as his doctor suggested the last time we saw her. He hasn't had a serious episode since last year, though, so I thought her suggestion to keep him on the nebulizer every day in winter was too extreme. Clearly I need to do more research on the subject.

Thea's first chapter book

Last night we finished reading Thea's first chapter book to her, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She seemed to enjoy it a lot, but perhaps not as much as Todd and I did. We're both big fans of kids books like the Oz stories and the Chronicles of Narnia. Storytime has the potential to become a lot more fun!

Every night at dinner

The dogs love the boy. He drops as much as he eats.

Freedom to Marry Week: Why you shouldn't use the term "gay marriage"

Today is the first day of Freedom to Marry Week 2009. This year, the marriage equality folks are asking people to start a conversation with three people about why gay rights matter.

The three of you who read my blog are all intelligent, introspective, gorgeous people who most likely already support equality. So, instead of preaching to the choir, here's something useful to know about why we should say "marriage equality" instead of "gay marriage":

The term "gay marriage" implies that same-sex couples are asking for rights or privileges that married couples do not have, or for something lesser or different. What gay people are seeking is the legal and equal freedom to marry the person they love and care for, just as non-gay Americans do. The Constitution's guarantee of equal protection and the right to marry belongs to us all.

Good to know!

Red velvet cupcakes

Pretty, and yet, meh.

At the Chinese New Year parade