UN--to be or not to be isolationist

i walked into my office this morning listening to my boss go off about how the UN should be abolished and the current area should be converted into condos...my argument was that despite the lack of accomplishments, it's the only entity that allows for 191 + countries to get together and have a dialogue...

there's always that argument that the US is the dominant figure in the world and we shouldnt have to engage in such dialogue...while i agree that the US is a dominant figure, i think we need to learn from our foreign counterparts...i learned this especially on of course...my travels...

in europe i have visited the following countries: england, spain, france, switzerland, austria, the czech republic and italy....all of these countries had their time as a superpower and now are part of the european union where there's a fine line between the economic and cultural boundaries....the one thing i think americans can take away from these countries in the european union is to take some time and smell the flowers....the amount of cafes and open gardens in these countries just amazed me...and people do not work as much as americans do. yes we are a superpower because the amount of work we produce, but we do not know how to relax... how many of us leave work and go straight to a cafe and read a book or meet a friend? most of the time, we're running home or running to the next church meeting event/service and we forget that it's okay to just take about an hour out of our day to slow down...we can put down our blackberries, iphones, and other technologies that are supposed to keep us in touch but in fact create a reality where we are really far removed from the face to face contact.

while we are the current superpower, we do not want exhaustion be the reason for our downfall...we can work hard but at the same time IT'S OKAY TO RELAX...

enjoy watching the spectle for the next week with the UN General Assembly where figures like Gaddafi, who gave a very bizarre speech, are entertained in the great nation and the best city on this earth :)

traveling don'ts

okay so something quick about san antonio before i go into this...

san antonio...don't go in the summer, it's mad hot...however try going when the weather is nice and be sure to take the small boat tour around...i didnt stay long enough to try each restaurant (im sure if i did, i would be 500 lbs).

now to the point of this post...some traveling don'ts...and this came from my last two trips ive been on...first i went to florida for a weekend and then i went to minneapolis, mn for a wedding.

1- don't pack everything...honestly this was a huge mistake going to florida and i could have saved the $30 roundtrip to check in my bag...pack what you need an maybe one extra outfit...i learned this for minnesota and it made life easier.

2- here is where it gets interesting: when your instinct tells you something is wrong, something is wrong...

i was in minneapolis, mn the weekend of sept 11th to celebrate my friend nate's wedding...we've been friends since we were neighbors our freshman year of college at GW...so it was important to fly out to his wedding...the first night we were there, the bride and groom decided to meet all of the out of towners at a hotel bar/restaurant on the second floor of the grand hotel in minneapolis. we were basically the only group there (just to show you how happenin downton minny is at night)...i had placed my purse in front of me on a small couch and subsuquently others did, because hey, 'it was in our sight'...

some random guy came into our circle and he leaned into my purse (may i note my purse didnt have a zipper)...and he grabbed my wrislet (although i didnt exactly see it come out of the purse) i felt something wrong...then he saw how irritated i was...i grabbed my purse and started looking through it (it was large)...i didnt want to accuse him right then and there because i didnt discover that it was gone as of yet and i didnt want him to think i was racist. as i discovered it wasn't there...he was already gone...

so my friend alison's boyfriend, anthony, ran with me into the street to find this criminal while alison reported this to the front desk. apparently they were no help as they refused to call police...the valet staff outside helped me run after the guy about 2 blocks where we lost him and we immediately called 911...

the minneapolis pd came...and they went around the block. anthony found the criminal two blocks down but he himself was in danger of getting mugged so he backed off but got the license plate and make of the car. anthony came running back to the hotel where i was giving my statement to the minneapolis pd, who refused to go in pursuit...fat women police officers who are lazy shouldnt really be police officers...she didnt take my statement but the other police officer who couldnt keep up with me talking about 90mph while i was cancelling all my credit cards...

i sat in the street on a chair in disbelief of what had just happened and cancelling everything...i had to compose myself to get back into the hotel where the party was still happening. i got my purse and went back to my own hotel...marriott city center..which by the way their lobby is on the 5th floor, i guess for security reasons...

i learned a couple of things from my experience...

1- always carry extra cash with you separate from your wallet
2- do not put all credit cards in your wallet...
3- get a zipper purse...it's harder for someone poke in there...
4- when traveling, carry a copy separate from your wallet of any gov't issued ID or if abroad...carry a copy of your passport...

this experience definetely shook me up, however at the same time it opened my eyes into all the wrongs...be more vigilant..and you can be robbed in places where you think it's safe!