Death bat and independence

So it's been an interesting week or so. I went down to VA to hang with Chris and Brittany and others. It is always a nice, fun, drama free time with those fabulous peeps. 

This terrifying pic above is from the Museum of Natural History in DC. They have a ton of stuffed animals.... literally... animals that have been killed and stuffed. There is also a ton of dinosaur bones, fossils, gems, etc. It's basically awesome. I heart dinosaurs and fossils... I totally should have been an archeologist/paleontologist like I planned when I was 8. 

Unlike most people, I think bats are really cute, even if they are being slightly gross like the one above. 

So if anyone ever wants to be showered with gifts, find a friend who has been overseas in the desert with the military. When they return they have a ton of money and haven't spent any in months so they are ready and willing to shower their loved ones with presents. It's a beautiful show of generosity to people who have already given so much. It only seems fitting to thank our boys (and girls) overseas on July 4th, the day we commemorate our independence. 

On another note, I think that since we have been our own nation for several hundred years, we can not be so snarky to the British. I was recently talking to a woman from the UK who was visiting our nation during the 4th of July. She said that while everyone was so friendly and kind before our holiday of independence, during our July 4th celebration, everyone had stood far off and basically shunned her and her family because they were from the country that had been oppressing us hundreds of years ago. 

While I'm very happy that we gained our independence from Britain, I think that we cannot possibly hold the British people accountable for the actions of their leadership 300 years ago. The UK doesn't even have the same system of government as it did then! America is so diverse now, full of peoples and religions from all over the world--Independence Day should commemorate our dedication to freedom and liberty and tolerance, not a self-righteous vendetta against old bullies, who are now our allies, might I add. So as the budweiser adds say, this one is for you, Chris, for being awesome and dedicated and fabulous! Cheers!