Ewwwww, creepy

I was going through the regional wires at work Saturday, when I came across a story about a baby who had died in Des Moines. I skimmed over it quickly, it seemed like the typical baby-death case, nothing too noteworthy for a Sioux Falls newspaper.

But then I noticed it mentioned that one of the people who was arrested (not necessarily in relation to the baby dying, but because he had failed to register as a sex offender) is a Drake graduate who is 26 years old. I realized that meant there's a good chance I might know this person, so I looked at the name again – Matthew Elliott.

I remembered a guy in my first-year seminar (and who therefore probably lived on my floor in GK) who went by the name Matt, and I was pretty certain his last name was Elliott. But I would have to find a mugshot to be sure. A quick Google search turned up this.

Yep, that's the guy I remember. He never really set off any sex offender alarm bells in my head – though most of the guys who show up on "To Catch a Predator" seem fairly harmless as well, until you find out what they've been sending pictures of their genitals to 13-year-old girls.

Colleen's Wedding!!

Ummm, this is mostly for Colleen's benefit, but I got my dress for the wedding today (thanks, UPS, for working on a holiday.) It's very cute and much better than the dress I mistakenly tried on at David's Bridal.

But it did seem a little loose in the chest area (a frequent problem for me, unfortunately) but I can't tell for sure, maybe that's how it's supposed to be?

In the picture, it looks fine though. I don't know, maybe I'm overanalyzing it. I just automatically assume that the top is fitting too loosely because that happens so often. Maybe I'll try it with a super-duper padded bra and see if that seems better.

New Hampshire sucks

Hillary Clinton's candidacy really bugs the crap out of me ... but not for the same reasons it bugs the crap out of most people. I don't dislike Hillary per se, and if she had a different last name, I'd probably be more excited about the possibility of a woman in office – hell, I might even be supporting her.

But the fact is, she's running on her name. And after eight years of George W. Bush, who also ran on his name, I think we've had enough of that crap. Do we really need the exact same administration that we had eight years ago?? Because that's what it would be, the same group of people running the show. And I don't think Bill did a bad job, but seriously, can we get someone new in there? Do we have to keep recycling the same damn families in there year after year?

It's very frustrating to me. I'm now rooting hard for Obama (I like Edwards, too, but Obama looks to have the best chance of bringing the Clintons down). I can't give his campaign any money because of my job and its "unbiased" requirement. But if I could, I definitely would.

I will be very disillusioned with the entire political process if I have to choose between Hillary and John McCain this November. FYI, my vote would probably go to McCain, but I wouldn't be excited about it.

I love my home state!!

Because I now live in South Dakota, my vote for pretty much everything (except the now-annual effort to enact an abortion ban – yes, it's happening again) doesn't count. When it comes to primary voting, we're last in the nation – just like we are when it comes to teacher pay!!

So I have to live vicariously through my homeland of Iowa. All along, I was not convinced that Hillary Clinton's nomination was inevitable, or that she really had a good shot of winning in Iowa. My reason for the belief was this – not a single person I knew or had ever talked to in Iowa likes her. Sure, it's anecdotal, but you'd think if she were the be all and end all of the Democratic Party, I would've personally known at least someone who likes her in Iowa.

Basically, I was hoping for anyone but Hillary. Why? I just don't see why we need to alternate Bush, Clinton, Bush, Clinton for 25 years. And I don't see why being married to the ex-president means you deserve to be president, too. We need some frickin' change in Washington!! Get over the past, people.

But, you never know how these things are going to go, so I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best as we watched the returns start to come in last night.

And, I'm proud to say, the people of Iowa came through for me. Go Obama!!!