E-Harmony Says...

Here is my personality profile from E-harmony - A program that I am somewhat ashamed to say I have been using. Gloria's Personality Profile How accurate do you think it is? Every time I take one of those personality tests I get a different result.

There is also a section that says the type of person with which I am most compatible. There's no link available for it, so I'll give you a few highlights...

Based on your profile, you are most compatible with men who fit the following descriptions:

Humor: Your ideal mate is the kind of man who sometimes likes to entertain people. He occasionally enjoys telling jokes, making people laugh with things like wordplay, one-liners or satirical observations about friends and family. However, he doesn't feel the need to be a constant one-man show.

Romantic Passion: He will enjoy spending quality time together, but "overly romantic" is probably not a good description for him. Friends might describe him as the kind of person who thinks anniversaries and Valentine's Day are somewhat silly. He probably appreciate a partner who suggested he save the money he would have spent on romantic trinkets for something more useful.

Intellect: Your ideal mate is quick-witted and intelligent, without being over-intellectual or boring. He likes to think of himself as comfortably in the middle between people who think too much and others don't think at all. He will appreciate your cleverness and your keen mind, but he isn't an intellectual snob. He might have an interest in things like popular culture, football or sitcoms while also appreciating things like the occasional forayinto philosophy or the news articles about the latest scientific advances.

Spirituality: Your ideal mate is someone who is spiritual but not necessarily adhering to any particular system of beliefs. His faith affects his life, and he is probably looking for a woman who shares his beliefs. He's the kind of person who probably finds meaning in things like meditation, prayer or reading scripture, and believes these activities help make him a better person.

Family goals: Your ideal mate is someone who loves children and wants them to play a significant role in his life. He thinks family is important and is willing to commit his life to having children of his own. Friends say he is the kind of person who's comfortable around kids, who would get down on the floor to play with them when visiting someone's home. For this reason, children are probably drawn to him too.

Ok... being the good friends that you are, it's your responsibility to help me find him!

"Port-igate"

Thank you Steve for my very first comment! I’m warning you ahead of time – I can be verbose…

First off, my remarks from yesterday were in no way intended to bash the military. I have a cousin currently stationed in Iraq, an uncle who was a marine, and several friends who were, are, or will soon be enlisted. They know they have my love and respect.

The change of heart I was referring to was more related to my level of confidence in Bush and his administration. I felt good about voting for him in the last election because of his stance on certain moral and economic issues that were important for me and I was certain that if there were strengths that he was lacking, they would be compensated by the proven abilities of his cabinet, most notably, Powell and Ashcroft. It was disconcerting to say the least when they promptly resigned.

The liberal slant in the media (that has become more blatant since the last election) has played only a minor part in my waning confidence in the President. The bias has made mountains out of some molehills of course. But it has also brought to the public eye some issues that would not have otherwise been discussed. It’s probably true that if Clinton were in office, we wouldn’t have seen 24-hour coverage discussing exactly what went wrong with the war and Katrina, etc. But the administration can’t really fault them for that when they’re acting shady. It’s like yelling at a cop for not noticing other bad drivers when you’ve been pulled over for speeding – true, but not relevant at the moment.

One of my problems is that there are too many instances (direct from the horses’ mouths) where the government uses the words “didn’t realize”, “weren’t notified” or gives an outright denial (then confirmation). The port issue is the straw on the camel’s back for me.

A deal of this magnitude would take months if not years to go through. But the panel didn’t even use the entire 45 days allotted to review the sale. Grannies are being felt up at airports in search of bombs and we just learned about the domestic spying program, but this didn’t raise any red flags?! None?! And it if is the case that they didn’t know about it until now, why threaten to veto plans to stop or even delay the sale until due diligence is performed?

While its true that most of our ports are run by foreign companies, they weren't countries who sided with AQ in the past and have dubious relations with them now. While the UAE government has been helpful to us since 911, is it outside the realm of possibility that some people who would be employed by DP World would be less US-friendly than their bosses?

Unlike the airport where a potential terrorist has a face and there is some level of interaction with security personnel, we rely on agents to inspect tons and tons of cargo – tracked by technology which can, if someone is motivated, but tampered with. According to a homeland security official, port security agents can only reasonably inspect 5% of the cargo that comes in. I’ll give them 10% to account for a few good days… That’s not enough!!

Supporters of the deal like Bob Dole, Fox News and the Wall Street Journal have suggested that we let it go through to save face and foster harmony with the Arab world, but just monitor them extra carefully. Is that really much less insulting to Arabs? To me, that’s like a shop owner telling a black person, “we’ll let you N****r’s buy from our store, but we’re going to follow you every where to make sure you don’t steal anything”!

I hate the feeling that this is all about money and the potential for big businesses to earn more money, but I fear that is the case. What is the point of sending our boys and girls overseas to fight and possibly die to protect us, when we leave all of our doors open at home? I think it’s a slap in their face.

Sidebar 22 Feb 06

I have changed my opinion on at least 40% of what I wrote in my first post...

Most relevent is that I now think that GW Bush just might be an idiot. Who else would push for millions more to wage war on "terr" and then allow the United Arab Emirates to man our ports?

--Shut up Jen!--

Yes, I'm THAT kind of Christian...

...I can drop the f-bomb in one sentence and pray fervently to God in the next. Hell, I've even used the f word in my prayers.

...I love dirty jokes and the occasional dirty movie. I am a virgin, but not virginal.

...I loathe 90% of contemporary Christian music. I am almost convinced that sometime in the early 1900's God and Satan had a discussion (as in the book of Job) where God agreed to give every ounce of creative musical ability to the Devil and his minions.

...I consider television ministries to be in the same category as informercials. If I hear the words faith, covenant, anointing and blessing one more time... Just one more time....

...I am convinced that modern Christianity - particularly American pentecostalism - is less about the pursuit of God and more about achieving a spiritual orgasm.

...I'm still not sure that Christianity has it all right. The same zeal and fervor is found in other religious that are just as certain of the infallibility of their doctrines.

...With all due respect to SKR and her blog (which I think is necessary and important) I really don't care/see the big deal about gay marriage, or parenting. I would much rather see the millions upon millions of children in the world who are neglected or orphaned due to the AIDs pandemic or natural disasters being cared for by "Steve and Ramon" than rotting in an underfunded orphanage or left to fend for themselves on the street.

...I guess because of all the above and other reasons too numerous to recount, I am considered one of those Christians. To the secular world I am a joke and the church I am a hypocrite and perhaps even a heretic.

I can understand that. 10 years ago I would have looked down on someone like me, shaken my head in shame and then run to the nearest "sister" to "share a prayer request" too.

The essence of my thought is this... I know for certain that I cannot return to the legalistic (overused word), oppressive, perfectionistic, suffocating, fanatical Christian life that I used to lead. It was too painful and exhausting.

In contrast, despite the sometimes blatant hypocrisy that is evident now, I have been much happier and feel closer to God now than I ever have in my life.

In a New Testament chapter and verse that I've long forgotten, Paul says that, "all things are permissible, but not all things are profitable. Similarly, when I was in Bible school in what seems like an age ago, one of my professors gave me a bit of wisdom and direction that I for years dismissed as rubbish. He said that the Christian life is about "Loving God with all your heart and doing as you please". It scary to think that way because there's so much latitude there. But knowing my own inadequacies, that's all I can manage. As I posted earlier... I think God is responsible for the rest.

But looking back, isn't that how David lived - the beloved of God? In the end, THAT is the kind of Christian I want to be.