Warble for Lilac-Time by Walt Whitman

Warble me now for joy of lilac-time, (returning in reminiscence,)
Sort me O tongue and lips for Nature's sake, souvenirs of earliest summer,
Gather the welcome signs, (as children with pebbles or stringing shells,)
Put in April and May, the hylas croaking in the ponds, the elastic air,
Bees, butterflies, the sparrow with its simple notes,
Blue-bird and darting swallow, nor forget the high-hole flashing his
golden wings,
The tranquil sunny haze, the clinging smoke, the vapor,
Shimmer of waters with fish in them, the cerulean above,
All that is jocund and sparkling, the brooks running,
The maple woods, the crisp February days and the sugar-making,
The robin where he hops, bright-eyed, brown-breasted,
With musical clear call at sunrise, and again at sunset,
Or flitting among the trees of the apple-orchard, building the nest
of his mate,
The melted snow of March, the willow sending forth its yellow-green sprouts,
For spring-time is here! the summer is here! and what is this in it
and from it?
Thou, soul, unloosen'd--the restlessness after I know not what;
Come, let us lag here no longer, let us be up and away!
O if one could but fly like a bird!
O to escape, to sail forth as in a ship!
To glide with thee O soul, o'er all, in all, as a ship o'er the waters;
Gathering these hints, the preludes, the blue sky, the grass, the
morning drops of dew,
The lilac-scent, the bushes with dark green heart-shaped leaves,
Wood-violets, the little delicate pale blossoms called innocence,
Samples and sorts not for themselves alone, but for their atmosphere,
To grace the bush I love--to sing with the birds,
A warble for joy of returning in reminiscence.

Are you watching this? Cause you need to be

What you need to know about Cap and Trade

Though I don't stray into the political too often I thought this topic was a nice one to chime in on.

Yesterday, after work, I was reading the Congressional Quarterly, a daily (M-F) congressional paper and I came across these two articles talking about the consensus on both sides of the aisle pertaining to the Cap and Trade system; about how much it will cost taxpayers. In addition, they mentioned concerns on both sides regarding the funding for such programs as new energy development, zero or low carb-emissions, and renewable energies. Essentially, how are we going to pay for the President's proposals?

I've made a few highlights of my own. Think about some of these things.

Prime Minister Obama

Here is an exceprt I read yesterday in the National Review.

"...Most Americans don't yet grasp the scale of the Obama project. The naysayers complain, Oh, it's another Jimmy Carter, or It's the New Deal, or It's LBJ Great Society applied to health care. You should be so lucky. Forget these parochial nickel'n'dime comparisons. It's all those multiplied a gazillionfold nuclearized--or Europeanized, which is less dramatic but ultimately more lethal."

Do you realize what kind of national debt we are getting ourselves into. Did you know that at the beginning of the Nixon era the U.S. debted somewhere in the vicinity of $300 Billion. In one month, President Obama has effectively increased the debt by 46% to $1.7 Trillion, while all of the presidents since Nixon have only managed to increase the debt $700 Billion in total; Obama does it in a month.

Read this from Congressman Issa: Issa Suspends Earmark Requests

The Weekend and Capitol Updates

Got through an 11 hour shift that left me with nearly $200. Though the night was extremely long and tough, it was great when it was all over and the sleep was well appreciated, though not enough.

This week in the Capitol we have Omnibus Bill votes, more appropriations, the beginning of Stem Cell Research, and more spending.

Thanks.

New Things

Tomorrow I have an interview with a congressional office for a position of Legislative Correspondent/Systems Administrator. Wish me luck!


Last night, David and I went to this bar called Granville Moore's. it is a Belgian Pub specializing in only Belgian beer as well as Moules, aka Mussels. They had beer there that was amazing, probably the best thing I have ever tasted out of a bottle. Expensive. But I think everyone should go there for at least one just for the experience.

New Books:
The Twilight Saga
The Fall of the House of Bush

Running.

Due to unknown causes, I have a severe necessity to move quickly, therefore, I am entering into two races.

1. GW Parkwat Classic (10 miler)
2. U.S. Army 10 Miler
3. More to come later.

To answer your question (mom).

Alexander Pope to Martha Blount

"...That heart must have abundance of flames, which is at once warmed by wine and you: wine awakens and expressed the lurking passions of the mind, as varnish does the colours that are sunk in a picture, and brings them out all in their natural glowings."

Alban Berg to Helene Nahowski (Thursday - Spring 1909)

"...and when I press it to my face, I can almost feel the sweet warm breath from your mouth. The violets you picked for me yesterday, which nearly withered in my buttonhole, are now blooming anew, and smell soft and fresh...they have become appendages of your presence."

I know you are supposed to post a blog the first day you create a blog...therefore.

Work + today = long and boring.

Yesterday, though, I went for a run, really the first run I have been on in a long time; so I went 8.2 miles in 25 degree weather, it was fantastic and beautiful. I ran through the Capitol, touched the Washington Monument, then ran up the Lincoln Memorial steps, stopped for a moment to ponder the ginormas Lincoln sitting in front of me, then returned home. The computer program I used to track the distance said that I burned nearly 2000 calories due to the speed at which I ran.

Current Books
James Joyce: Ulysses
Nikolai Gogol: Collected Tales
Jay, Madison, Hamilton: The Federalist Papers

Recent Purchases
Baron A. A. Delvig: Northern Flowers, 1825-1832: Literary Almanac of the Pushkin Pleiad
Curry Lapsau Soup
Dunkin Donuts Coffee