What's happening - Dec. 21

• Happy winter solstice to one and all - I think it's important to note the turning of the seasons, regardless of your religious or spiritual persuasion. I won't get all airy-fairy, but anyone who has lived close to the land knows that the seasons are important and meaningful - even if the first day of winter seems like it should have been a loooong time ago. In any case, the days will slowly begin to lengthen, and I and many others will start to find it slightly easier to haul our motionless carcasses out of bed as the sun starts setting its alarm clock earlier. Speed the day!
• Read a wonderful article by political commentator Arianna Huffington. She's asking all of the questions that American politicians should have been asking long since regarding the war in Iraq - where has the money been going, what is the plan to get out of the country, why aren't the soldiers as well-equipped as possible, and what is being done to bring the conflict to a close? You don't have to be a liberal to find the article thought-provoking (although I suspect it helps! ;). For a rightist look at the world, read Peggy Noonan. Politically, I often disagree with her stance, but God! She's a hell of a writer, and I read her columns for clarity. I also read and enjoyed her memoir - What I Saw at the Revolution: A Political Life in the Reagan Era.
• Roger Ebert lists his top movies of 2004. Sadly, I've missed most of them. It's hard to squeeze in much movie watching when you're addicted to reality television!