The Misadventure Files

Some Days You Shouldn't get out of Bed

2011-05-19T21:59:00.000-04:00

I could be feeling a little over sensitive and over thinking this. Maybe I just really need to stop reading the comments on webpages where religion is a subject.

Someone wrote a book. This book is called How we know what reality is or something to that effect. Its about the wonders of the universe and how amazing science is. As far as I know. But the comments. All of them were about converting people who believe in God and how foolish those who believe are. I honestly don't give a fuck what anyone believes. Are you a good person? Do you hurt people? These are all I really care about. That's not true. "Do you respect people who's opinion is not your own?" should be on the list too.

And the people who jump down these idiots thoughts are just as idiotic, only in the oposite direction. Extremism in any form is terrible. It doesn't matter if your god is Science or Jesus. If you see a sunrise and explain it as the turn of the earth or Eos, it doesn't matter. You should respect what someone else believes. It makes the world a richer place. People aren't killed in the name of God anymore really. Those who do participate in religious based killing are not only stupid, but also would find any excuse, be it skin color, political affiliation, or language. People are really good at finding the things that divide them. Not so good at recognizing the similarities. Look at Islam and Judaism. Both trace their religion back to abraham. Both have a set of dietary rules that are quite similar. Both think Jerusalem is a holy city. Both fucking worship the same god. So why are they wishing death upon each other? How the other prays. Land. Blind hatred. Who the fuck knows. If they actually knew then they could resolve the issue and peace would reign in the middle east.

Then you add in self-righteous atheists. They add a lovely sheen of venom to the discussion. You don't believe in god. Fine. Just be nice to those of us who aren't as evolved as you.

Maybe it's because of the people I hang out with lately, who are by and large atheist and strongly opinionated on the subject that I'm getting over sensitive. But I also wonder if people who hold this opinion that all people who believe in a higher power are back woods hicks because the people they've met who are vocal about their believes are back woods hicks. Those that aren't aren't.

That's what this country needs. A moderate, sane, evolution believing Christian (or Jew or Muslim Maybe all three!) to promote positive images of the religious to the evangelical atheists. I just don't know anyone who could do it. None of them really give a damn what others believe.

2011-05-05T18:21:00.001-04:00

Who would want to be a princess?
You can't cuss (at least in public). Can't have a fight with your prince. Can't go out looking anything less than fabulous. Can't put on an ounce if weight (lest you want baby rumors to abound). Can't vacation anywhere you want. Can't make a move without speculation.
You will never have real privacy (though who does in this day and age?). Never know who you can really trust (until it's too late). Never get to have a career. Never do something outrageous or spontaneous.
You always have to be proper and polite and keep your real opinions and thoughts to your self.
So who's jealous of Kate Middleton. Me.

Lactose intolerance!

2010-12-29T01:34:00.001-05:00

Not that I am, but there is a lot of cheese in this country. But there is a scene in French Kiss where Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline are walking through a town somewhere in the south of France on their way from Paris to Nice where Meg is going on about how beautiful it is. Aix kind of reminds me of that.
Yesterday, we followed the footsteps of Cezanne, almost literally. We walked up from Aix, where he lived, to his studio, then on to the hill top over looking the river valley and mountain, San Victoire, that he painted 87 seven times. I think that he may have gotten it right. Although I think he really just wanted an excuse to hang out on looking at the mountain. It was beautiful.
After that, we just hung around, walking around and shopping. I accidentally flirted with a French guy. We did visit this tiny museum of natural history. Aix has a French botanist who was working on the evolution of plants the same time as Darwin was working on animals. He actually wrote to Darwin to discuss his ideas. They had his letters.
Today, we take a train to Paris.

Lesser Miracles

2010-12-28T02:16:00.001-05:00

Air travel is comedian fodder, but would like to take a moment to praise the fact that air lift works, and it only takes 7 or so hours to get across the ocean. According to a trivia thing on the flight, early trips between New York and Paris took over 16 hours
There, enough sucking up to the plane. Just land on time and safely.

Location:37000 feet above Le Merche

Jet lag

2010-12-28T02:15:00.003-05:00

So day one of this excursion was a little weird. In my mind, it started on Sunday and ended several, something like 42, hours later. I got on the plane and never fell asleep, so Sunday and Monday fused together.
The trip over was only eventful at Charles de gall. Tip: If you ever have to go through deGalle, take All your electronics out, expect a pat down, unless you are wearing literally no metal, and give yourself at least two hours if changing planes. Or just go to Orly.
Aix is lovely. After crashing for an hour, I wandered around with my sister, who lives here, and my family. I don't think I've ever wandered around a city this, for lack of a better word, European before I've been to London, Bath, Dublin, and some tiny towns in Ireland, but none of them had the maze of streets that all seem like back alleys. This city is truly from a time before there were cars, even Romans slept here for the hot springs. One if the main roads, the cormier beau, is only two lanes. Along it, the trees are beautifully decorated with lights and there us a Christmas market with little stands selling everything from candy and meat to jewelry and vases. I loved the wooden toys.
There are a couple of weird things. The outer city is not pretty and everywhere you see evidence of why curb your dog laws in the us are important. There are more dogs than children here. I've even seen a dog in the hotel.
Speking of hotels, my view.

Pretty. Today we're doing some more wandering and following the steps of Cezanne.

Location:Aix-en-Provance

And we're off!

2010-12-28T02:15:00.001-05:00

We're on our way! My stomach is in knots, either from nervousness or excitement I can't tell, but so far, so good. It's begun snowing a little, actually picking up since I first noticed this morning after mass, but hopefully nothing will come of it til later. Or at least the airport won't be hit hard. Eee! Here we go!

Location:On the highway to the airport

Bring me back something French!

2010-12-24T09:26:00.001-05:00

So! Sunday I leave for France, baring any snow. I'm kind of expecting a delay, but nothing too serious. This us why I'm backing two books and my iPod charger.
But first, I have to get through Christmas. and by get through I mean eat like a locust and give everyone there awesome presents. I'm almost finished my last one. I'm excited about a book I got my dad, Abe Lincoln: vampire hunter, because I think it's interesting, but my dad isn't really into the gruesome. But he is a huge civil war and Lincoln buff.
Oh well, well see what happens.

Merry Christmas!

Aargh.

2010-12-13T08:04:00.001-05:00

Finals week. I have two papers. 40+ pages. I've been trying for a week to write, but nothing. Why do I do this to myself?
If I make it out of this degree alive, it will be the last one, for an extraordinarily long time, if not for ever.

I'm just living for the 21st now.

But then! It's Christmas and I'm leaving the country. It will be awesome.

Location:5th ring of hell

Gentlemen, let's broaden our minds!

2010-05-11T21:52:00.000-04:00

I'm Done graduate school! The classes at least. For this semester. Oy.

Lately I've been trying to keep my head simply above water, what with the job (patooie!) and school and my aggressive urge to simply not do anything. And the Orioles suck. And I'm broke. And Castle is not with Becket. And Bitch bitch bitch. Complain complain complain.

I do actually have an awesome job sometimes. Today, this kid, as she was charging up the tower said, "Don't worry, honey, I'll do it for you!" She kept calling me Honey or Sweetheart, which, coming from a Six-year-old, is pretty damn sweet. As she came back down, she said, "I killed the monster for you!" She is exactly what I want my daughter to be like someday.

Oh! and I learned how to do a cable-knit stich. Sometimes it's the little things.

Why shouldn’t you talk shop? It’s what interests you most, isn’t it?

2010-03-14T09:54:00.000-04:00

I love when kids at the Museum are cute.
Occasionally I'll meet a little kid who launches himself at the slide while the older kids cower in fear because it's so dark. Sometimes one of those kids figures out a way to over come their fear and try it just once, and then the parents can't pull them off.
The other day, I met a little girl who wanted very badly to go down but saw just how dark it was and couldn't do it. I saw her maybe 15 minutes later and she enthusiastically told me how she had finally gone down the slide and how much fun it was and how this place was so fabulous. Ok, she didn't use the word "fabulous" but that was the jist. She had a lot to say.
That same day I met a little boy who couldn't have been older than 3 who I had to hold back so he didn't run into anyone. By his 3rd trip, he was a pro at waiting his turn, although he was never patient.

Roger, don't quit your day job.

2009-10-23T18:03:00.000-04:00

So I am the awesomest intern ever!
In case you were not aware (and based on my rate of updating, you are probably not)I am interning for the O'Malley campaign. Love him or hate him, I'm working toward his reelection, so please don't hate me.
Anyway, one of my jobs is to prepare call sheets for the Governor to call various well moneyed individuals and ask them for help raising money for the campaign. One of the individuals that i was checking up on (you really can find all sorts of info on people on the web)was not turning up. So I Googled his company, Erickson Retirement, and noticed that a news item on the company had popped up. When I read the item, I turned to my boss, Lisa, and said, "We have a problem." (or something to that effect) The problem was that the company had just (according the the time stamp on the article) flied for Bankruptcy. In reality they had filed two days before, but still.
Ok, It's not terribly exciting, But it would have been terribly embarrassing for the Governor to call up this guy and ask him to help out with an event, when the guy may have just lost his job.
So i feel bad for the guy, but I'm proud of myself. I think I give myself a cookie.

Ma, flooding New Jersey is not going to solve anything.

2009-10-12T07:30:00.007-04:00

This weekend I went down to the beach for one final weekend before the summer really and truly came to an end. I seem to be going down to the eastern shore a lot these days. I went to Smith Island last week. Let me tell you, if you want a truly great crab cake, go to smith Island and ignore to first restaurant. Do not be lured in by its shiny clean exterior and the fact that everyone else is going there, no. You want Ruck's, which is around the corner. Do not be frightened off by the fact that it looks like it is being held up by tape and a prayer. Or that you might catch something. It only looks that way. When you walk in, do not be off put by the mountains of stuff that for sale as well. It is, by they way, also an antique store. Instead, focus on the fact that it smells DELICIOUS.

Order the $8 crab cake sandwich that is made from crab that, only earlier that morning, had been swimming in the bay. And enjoy, slowly.

While i was on smith Island, there were a bunch of geriatric photography students, with serious and intimidating photography equipment. I was jealous. I only had my little point and shoot, but I love it anyway.

But this weekend, I went down to Ocean city, staying on the mainland (more or less, OC is on a barrier island)
This weekend, was all about water (or as I pronounce it Wood-er).

Saturday started out pleasant enough. My mother and I were watching something or other on TV, waiting for my sister to show up, when we heard sounds of distress. Across the lawn, something was going on, and my mother went across to find out what was going on. As she disappeared into the apartment, I grabbed my shoes and followed suit. What had happened was the apartment had flooded. Seriously flooded. the pip to the main switch had ruptured, so all the water for the apartment was now on the floor and spilling out onto the porch. For the rest of the morning, we got all of the stuff in her apartment out and on to the lawn and ultimately on to our porch because it was going to rain. I'd never seen wall to wall carpeting float before. The woman who lived there was a third grade teacher, a abut a year older than me, and had lived there for a month. How my mother found this out while emptying an apartment I'll never know. So that was fun.
Saturday afternoon we went kayaking in a cypress swamp.

Holy crap, Batman!

2009-05-06T12:33:00.002-04:00

So I apparently haven't posted this year. Which is interesting, because, while my life has been fairly routine, I have done some interesting things. Like I went to Shamrockfest, which was fun, if wet (note to self: next year more people, less rain), I've hung out with various fabulous people several times, I bought a lovely new computer, and that's about it. As for the routine, that shall be ending soon, as this week is the last week of classes. And I will then be working on papers, and leaving the state for family vacation time. I don't think I will ever be too old to go on vacation with my family for the simple reason that they can afford to go to places that I can't. If i was paying, we would be visiting... Baltimore and DC and staying in my car. But I'm not and we aren't and life is good. While i've been busy with school i've also be back to work at NPM. And I might be moving out soon, if I can get all my ducks in a row. Know anyone who needs a place in Catonsville? I have one roommate, but I might need a second.
And now I should probably work on my paper on comparing American Comedy propaganda to Russian comedy propaganda.
The fun, it never ends.

I believe... Even though it's silly, I believe

2008-12-11T14:12:00.002-05:00

Classes have largely stopped and my papers are nearly done. Ok, well the Due dates are nearly here. In fact, my last class is tonight.All that leaves now is Christmas! Yay!
Today my mother, who seems hellbent on distracting me at all costs showed me this website. Who doesn't want to see when Santa will get here?

Here is the video from "last year."

I am redefining weird on an hourly basis.

2008-12-03T09:58:00.003-05:00

I'm trying to avoid writing a paper on Confucianism and it's political influences on Imperial China. So I analyzed my blog using Typealyzer.

I cam up with...
ISTP - The Mechanics
The independent and problem-solving type. They are especially attuned to the demands of the moment are masters of responding to challenges that arise spontaneously. They generally prefer to think things out for themselves and often avoid inter-personal conflicts.

The Mechanics enjoy working together with other independent and highly skilled people and often like seek fun and action both in their work and personal life. They enjoy adventure and risk such as in driving race cars or working as policemen and firefighters.

...yeah. School ends on Dec 15. I'm looking forward to it.

Let my armies be the trees and the birds in the sky

2008-11-17T14:39:00.001-05:00

I've been playing around on Aviary, and this is one thing that I have come up with so far.

Nazis. I hate these guys.

2008-11-09T19:12:00.004-05:00

I'm so angry right now. My 80 year old aunt, who I always tough was a little too thought on her daughters but still respected and liked, said this evening that we have four years of Nazism to look forward to, comparing Obama and the Democratic party to Hitler and his followers.
I didn't call her on it. What would I have said? She doesn't respect any opinions that dissent from her own. She voted for McCain because he was Pro-Life, never mind that he doesn't actually believe it. Or that if he had won, he would have been little more than a puppet for the Neo-conservative agenda. Or that Obama actually had a platform with a plan to help women that decided against abortion, something that McCain lacked.
I don't have a problem with honest to goodness Conservatism. People have a right to their opinion and I also think that both sides need the other to rein them in. I also think that conservatism has its merits, I just don't happen to agree with them at all. I'm just not conservative minded. But what irks me is Neo-conservatism and its Scare tactics, using fear to control and motivate people and to divided them against one another in the name of patriotism. It's not just bad, it's truly small minded and to use these tactics is cruel and hateful.
I know that there are people who dislike the two party system, and perhaps we do need a third or Fourth party. But so far we do have just the two parties, and it works well when we agree to listen to each other instead of insist that our party is right and the other are traitors. That gets us no were. Or it gives us the last eight years.
Since it is all we have we need to work together. Not resort to name calling.
But it does give me a certain amount of satisfaction to lambaste a woman who will never find me on the Internet. It may not be the most grown up thing to do. But neither is comparing Obama to Hitler.
I feel better now.

Spitting distance? How vivid!

2008-11-09T12:59:00.002-05:00

Did someone just cure Aids?
I read this article on my rss feeder and it just seemed so surreal. A German doctor has apparently cured AIDS. Let me say that again. There may be a cure for HIV. That disease that kills hundreds, thousands, of people all over the world everyday may have a cure now.

Why is this not bigger news?!? I mean, yay Obama and all that, but AIDS. Dude's not even in office yet and already theirs a cure for AIDS. What's next, he's going to fix the Global Economy? Ok, that's a joke. Especially since the cure was admiistered 2 years ago, which is why it's being reported now. It seems to be working.
I had heard about a vaccine, but that is still in the research stage.

This is just so cool.

Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

2008-11-08T13:15:00.003-05:00

I thought this was cool. I may not remember the Civil rights movement, and may not get the full impact of this history in the making, but I can try.

My name is Barack Obama, and I am the president.

2008-11-05T00:50:00.001-05:00

see Barack Obama pictures

Just a curse. Have a nice day.

2008-11-02T21:06:00.004-05:00

Dear God,
I'm ready for this election to be over. But if you feel the need to kill me in the near future, please let me at least first cast my ballot and cancel out the "person" who ripped my Obama bumper sticker in half and felt the need to key my car while I was in class. If possible I would like to see Obama win. On the other hand, if he's going to lose, I would rather not know.
Thanks bunches,
Gina

PS. If I do have to go, can you also take out the person or people responsible for defacing the "Eastern Shore For Obama" signs. Especially the one who put the Sickle and Hammer on them. I mean, come on, the Socialist Candidate and his supporters are a bit miffed that he's being called a socialist when he's clearly not a socialist. And I also did not see one McCain sign defaced. And I was looking. So, really, it's only fair.

Thank you for the Grand Canyon, and good luck with the Apocalypse.

2008-10-15T12:53:00.002-04:00

Ah, the knee jerk reaction.
I just read an article that says that there is a movement in DC to try and start mining 5 miles outside of the grand canyon for uranium. Specifically it is talking about how McCain supports Bush's plan and that "The Bureau of Land Management has published a proposed rule which rejects the House Natural Resources Emergency House Resolution enacted in June that bans uranium mining and exploration near the Grand Canyon National Park."
But it is ok. This can not possibly pass while Bush is still in Office.

Any one want to take a quick road trip out to the Grand Canyon this January?

The older generation are leading this country to galloping ruin!

2008-09-29T12:31:00.002-04:00

I'm shocked, Appalled, and horrified.
And I wish i was joking.
I just read a story about a group of children being gassed with what seems like Mace because they were Muslim. If this had happened in any other country, it would have received International press and there would be a serious search going on to find out who did this. Or if it had been Christian children in a Muslim country, or any country for that matter it would be international news. But instead it barely makes the local news.
What the fuck?
Yesterday, I went to the Baltimore Book fair and hear the author of How does it feel to be the problem?. Just hearing parts of the stories he's recounted in his book was amazing. I'm horrified at some of the knee jerk reactions that occurred and continue to occur in this country against this one group of people. It's not like they are the only ones with fundamentalists. It's not like there aren't Christian fundamentalists who wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone who didn't agree with them. Fortunately I don't have any examples.
But why isn't this being covered?

What we've got here is failure to communicate

2008-09-22T00:11:00.002-04:00

So...
Grad school is kicking my butt.
I feel like I'm always playing catch up and that everyone else gets it. I think I'm just out of practice. But I have this fear that I'm not supposed to be doing this.
But I think that the week that I manage to get all of my reading done and significant portion of my paper done, everything will magically fall into place. Everything will be fine.
Since I just got a flash back to college, I think it will.
Thank you, dear void, for listening to my rant.
And if you get a change to see Burn After Reading, and are huge Cohen Brothers fan, then by all means go. If you are not a big fan, or just really liked O brother where art thou, Run for the proverbial hills. That is all.
Good night.

I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!

2008-08-06T06:33:00.003-04:00

I think I accidentally sold my soul to Google.
I realized yesterday that I rarely leave a Google Owned website anymore. I blog on Blogger, Read News on Google News and Reader, Check my mail on Gmail. So Thank God for Facebook!
On the Other hand, I am well informed.
Like, I know that American is planning on putting wireless on their airplanes by the middle of next year, Steve Jobs apologized for Screwing up the release of Mobile Me, and that the Still President is in S Korea.
My grasp of World events is more detailed and broader than that, but Google has made me late for work.

Yes, politics is the cause of the world's problems.

2008-07-26T06:47:00.002-04:00

This is a bit sensationalistic, but I am also a bit insulted. I was listening to the radio when I heard an interview with Cindy McCain. And it was light fluff, about how she and her son race cars and stuff like that. Then she was asked about John commuting back and forth to Phoenix on the weekends and how they thought that was more natural environment to raise children than DC. That is what she said that has me a bit putout. DC is not a natural place to raise children.
I'm sorry, but I have friends, quiet a few in fact, who were raised in and around DC. I was raised within an hour's drive, within a half hour if you drive fast enough. Was it the East Coast sensibility she dislikes or the fact that most of my friends turned out to be liberal?
I admit, this is a bit ridiculous to have a problem with. I'm sure she meant...Phoenix is her home and it's where she was more comfortable. But there are significantly better ways to put that.

That was the Pope? That old fella living in the art gallery?

2008-04-19T15:46:00.006-04:00

On Thursday I went to see the Pope, with 30,000 of my closest friends. It was insane how many people where there. But that is to be expected.
I managed to get a ticket through a member of NPM, where I work. Tom Stayle (I think that's how his name is spelled) was in charge of the music for the mass. So the people in the office, my mom and me where sitting with the choir, right behind the multi-cultural choir, so we could hear the music great, which was pretty great.
The mass it's self was pretty standard. Which was what the planners were going for.
Pope came in, there was a mass, pope left. Not that I was underwhelmed or anything. Far from it. I like him better now.
But the most notable event of the day came after the mass on the way back to the Metro.
Some "Christians" decided that it would be fun to protest. I've heard of this shit happening, but I've never actually seen it. I'm not sure what they were hoping to achieve, but I'm sure they failed massively. Especially with all the people they were protesting forming their own sort of counter protest with singing and arguing. Imagine a river of people singing psalms in English and Spanish. Kinda hard to hear people yelling at you over that.
But I'm sure I made a couple of priests laugh. When they where yelling at us that the Catholic Church preached fornication, I responded, "We are!?! Yes!" I figure the best way to ignore bull headed stupidity is to laugh at it and move on. Especially when they are so sure they're right, they aren't going to listen to you.
But the pope was nice.

Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary.

2008-04-13T00:09:00.005-04:00

Today I went to the Walters for a exhibit on maps. All kinds of maps. Some really old maps, from the crusades, from Ancient China, Rome, maps that where used to explain that the earth was indeed round. There were several interesting ones. I liked one that was used as directions for how to get to Palestine on a pilgrimage in the middle ages. But it was not written for those who were actually going. Instead it was written for those on a meditative pilgrimage, to imagine the way there, or something like that. There was another map that showed how the earth was created by the rainbow snake, if you are from Australian native. Then there was an incredibly detailed painting of a dutch city. There was so much detail that you could see the shadows of passing clouds. On the wall past that was the second aerial photograph ever taken. the first, sadly, has been lost to the ash and dust of time.
But what i really liked was the companion exhibit. The Walters worked with Johns Hopkins and NASA to get a selection of pictures taken from the Hubble. Some where pictures i've seen before, but they still amaze me. One (above)was a picture taken of deep space where nearly every point of light is not a star but a galaxy. If you look at it, you can see all these different kinds, most of them swirling, but some of them more irregulars, simply because were seeing them as they form. They're so far away that it's more like looking back at the beginning of time or the universe. Ok, maybe not that dramatic, but close.
So today I also got into the Grad school of my choice. Kinda. I have been excepted to the program and recommended for acceptance to the Grad school, so it's not official, just pretty much guaranteed. Provided that I didn't lie on my application, which I didn't.
So yay for me. Next September I (hopefully) shall be attending UMBC's Public History Program, emphasizing museum studies. It's odd knowing what I shall be doing for the next year or two.
Next Thursday, I also know what I'll be doing. I'm going to see the pope. He's visiting DC and NY and I get to go the mass at the Nationals stadium. It should be interesting.

As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again.

2008-03-25T21:42:00.003-04:00

It always amazes me when I realize that the world is doing things while I'm being a sloth. It shouldn't, but it does.
Lately, I've been working for a company in far away Silver Spring. It's an hour away, no matter what form of transportation you take. But it has some nice perks, like the highest salary I have received thus far in my short life, and lately there has not been a lack of excitement. There have been three interesting events that have jostled my tidy (more or less) Little world. One was watching a car get trapped by the gates at the Garage where I park. I don't know what it was about, but it was amusing. Another is talking with one of my co-workers about an alleged scam being run by the Virgina DMV. Lowell, the co-worker, received a letter from a collection agency stating that they had an outstanding ticket for him from 2001 for a traffic Cam in DC for a car that he had never owned registered in VA, where he has never lived, to a set of Plates that VA says don't exist in their records. He called the DC office, who directed him to get a letter on official letter head stating this. Va says that will be $8, please. Yes, It's a measly $8, but whatever. He's pissed.
The most exciting thing came today. Apparently a worker in the other office on the same floor was fired on Thursday, we got off early, so we didn't see or hear the fireworks, but apparently she threatened to kill everyone. And on Friday and Monday, while our offices where closed, there was a private security guard out side the office door. Today, when we got back to work, there was one only inside the front door. And our office has been gossiping about this, because we have nothing better to do and we are slightly worried that she will decide to kill us too. The reason that we are at all worried is gossip from the other office saying that this woman is possibly truly unstable.
But I'm not worried.
Much.

Holy smokes my friends! I'm so pleased you're not dead!

2008-02-13T12:20:00.008-05:00

So, lately with the primary's going on, I've been thinking of movies that are politically oriented. And here are my top ten. Really, they're the only movies I could think of that I've seen that have to do with politics, or presidents, but I like them.

Top Ten Political Movies:

Mr. Smith goes to Washington- Like I could leave it off
Dave- What would YOU do if you had the presidents power for about 3 months?
All the Presidents Men -strictly not about politics, but it is about what Nixon
The American President- Like the West Wing, Only a romance.
Man of the year -this is what would happen if Stewart or Colbert really ran
The Great Dictator- Mistaken Identity, Politics and a Globe! What could be Better?
Amazing Grace- William Wilberforce is my hero
Wag the Dog- The importance of spin, mass media, and not believing any of it
1776- I would have loved to hear the pitch for this. "Its a political musical..."
V for Vendetta- a warning?

Holy Smokes! The Indiana Jones teaser is out! I'm excited!!

And if this movie sucks, I'm putting a hit out on someone.

I want to see what love looks like when it's triumphant. I haven't had a good laugh in a week.

2008-01-29T17:06:00.001-05:00

I seem to have once again fallen off the face of the earth. So sorry.
But since the most exciting thing that has happened in recent months is death (my cat, Heath Leadger, various others), I'm not going to comment. Instead I am going to share the meaning of my name, which i think is pretty spot on, if I do say so myself.

What Gina Means

You are deeply philosophical and thoughtful. You tend to analyze every aspect of your life.

You are intuitive, brilliant, and quite introverted. You value your time alone.

Often times, you are grumpy with other people. You don't appreciate them trying to interfere in your affairs.

You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing.

You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long.

You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start.

You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people.

You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts.

You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.

You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive.

You have the classic "Type A" personality.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!

2007-12-15T11:34:00.000-05:00

Oi to the world
When last we met, I had just been wiped out of Halloween Candy and had recently started my job as a receptionist at Seton Keough.
Not much has changed, Except the season. Now there are candles in my windows and a dead tree in my living room. Isn't Christmas FANTASTIC!
I am still at the school. They like me so much they are keeping me till January 25th. More money for me! The down side of all this working is that nothing interesting is happening. No drama outside of School. Inside school there is LOTS of it. This week alone saw a child's mother attempt Suicide, I talked with Child Protective Services (from Two states!) four different times, a Fire alarm when off causing an evacuation, I was called irresponsible and accused of losing a child detention slip causing more detention for her (by said child, I might add), and to cap of the week our Maintainence head honcho cut off part of his finger.
Only one more week until break.

Nobody puts Baby in a corner.

2007-11-26T21:03:00.000-05:00

So, I thought that this was cool. I mean, always question vigilante justice, but in this case, I would say it was diffinatly called for.

I want to be alone.

2007-10-31T20:35:00.000-04:00

Kay, So in my last post I mentioned that I had a job at Seton Keogh. Well I got the location right, Just not the description. I'm the receptionist. The gatekeeper if you will. I answer the phones and let people in the building. The power! The Chances to Screw up! So far so good though. There are a couple of people that I know I transfered to the wrong place, but not too many. Maybe 5 or six. A day.
Speaking of Screw ups, Today is Halloween. Yay! It's a great holiday. Lots of candy and little kids, a lethal combination. This Halloween, I'm spending Halloween home alone. My parents are on a trip celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary and my sibling are of course out at school. So decorations and more importantly candy provisions are up to me. Great! I would now like you, dear reader, to take note of the time of this blog. I am out of candy. I bought 4 Bags of candy. I had no idea that there were that many little kids in this neighborhood. I had a sneaking suspicion, but the last four years have changed the area to mostly young childless couples and middle-age childless couples to young families. So I was unprepared. Next year... I hope to not be living here, But i will still be better prepared.
Anyway, Happy Halloween!

We haven't located us yet.

2007-10-20T12:03:00.000-04:00

So Last night I was going to go to see a play and go visit Fencers at the Fence-a-thon. Instead, I went to see Darjeeling Limited with my brother and parents and did not go see the Fencers. Not seeing people sucked, but the movie did not. The only other movie I have ever seen by Wes Anderson was Life Aquatic, which i really didn't like, but this was really cute. The story is interesting and i liked the characters by the end, despite the fact that i wasn't really rooting for them in the beginning. I actually was more inclined to dislike them at the beginning. The thing with this movie is it's not funny. There are moments when it makes you chuckle, but it is amusing. I had happened to see the short film that is supposed to be a prequel to it earlier in the week so I had a little more background than my family, but they still enjoyed it. So go see it.

EDIT: I wrote this a while ago, I just never posted it. So here it is.

They Call me MR. Tibbs!

2007-10-19T14:09:00.000-04:00

So My insanity has come to an end and I am employed, I think. I'm 85-90% sure that the job is mine. I have a meeting on Tuesday that is either an interview or orientation. But since the job starts on the 26th I think they are kind of done looking. By the way, this is a teaching Job. I'm going to a long term sub for a teacher who is having surgery on the 26th and I'm going to work for the next 4 to 6 weeks after that. Which means I will be employed around, but not actually have to work on, Thanksgiving. Yay! I'm working at Seton Keogh High School, where my Aunt teaches Religion and my Cousin is a junior. And I have no idea what I'm Teaching, though I think the subject is religion. We'll see.

In Space, No one can hear you scream

2007-10-16T16:50:00.000-04:00

Same goes for Suburbia.

Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me want to buy school supplies.

2007-10-12T15:00:00.000-04:00

Do you ever get the feeling that the universe is trying to tell you something, and for once you actually think you may be getting the message? All week I've been told, by various people and for various reasons that if you want something, I mean really want it, then you will get it if you are also willing to fight for it. Kind of a "well, Duh" moment. I just think it's an odd coincidence to hear it from about four different places that have no connection what so ever to each other in the span of two days.
Now i just have to figure out whether the Universe would take time out of it's busy schedule to talk to me personally.
Yeah, I don't think so.
Anyway, It's finally autumn, probably my favorite time of year. It's getting chilly, the holidays are coming starting with Halloween then right down the slippery slope stopping at New Years. The only problem is that once New Year's is over there is not an interesting thing until March at the earliest. Maybe it will snow this year. The funny thing is that my mom is terribly practical and saying that the chill in the air will only bring ice and snow, making it difficult, even dangerous, to drive. My mom is so much fun.
On one final note, to chocolate lovers everywhere, I share this thought: It's not your fault!

I Feel the need, The need for speed

2007-10-05T11:47:00.000-04:00

Washington drivers are the worst drivers I have ever had the misfortune to come across. I never thought that i would live to see the day where I would actually appreciate the insanity that is 695, but i do. Here and now. Holy crap, I was driving in Bethesda, to get gas, and I pulled onto a little side street with three way traffic light. The other two lanes of traffic were stopped. And the drivers in these lanes (they were not behind me, and my decision to go or not go did not affect them) began honking their horns at me to go already. The kicker is that the light was STILL RED! ARGH!
Another time, a truck must have been trying to get in my lane, and I was driving the same speed as him, so I was not getting out of his way (mind you, I didn't notice any turn signal, but that does not necessarily mean that there was none. Anyway, the Truck driver decided to slow down, pull behind me, pass me on the right, and then pull in front of me. At least he didn't cut me off too close.
Washington is so much more pleasant if you are on the metro.
Now you may ask, what the hell I was doing in the 52 state. I was at a job interview with a company I will never work for. And I am ok with that. Actually the job was in Tyson's Corner, Virgina (the 10th State). But really, that is neither here nor there.
Today I have another interview with an advertising company. Maybe it will go better.

I won't think about that now. I'll think about that tomorrow.

2007-09-19T10:33:00.000-04:00

When did the Greatest Generation become so great?
Ok, follow me here, because you are about to get a glimpse of how my mind works. And it's not pretty.
The other day I was scanning in pictures of railroad bridges, specifically the bridges around Harper's Ferry and the Thompson Viaduct (i think). These pictures stretched back to when the bridges where opened, some of which was before the Civil war and one of which was shortly after the Confederates blew the previous bridge up. Anyway, early pictures of these bridges are pretty, idyllic even. There were children playing on the banks of the river, trees growing, the town was pretty, everything you would imaging the good old days would be. Then I found one picture taken of the same bridge in the late 40's, early 50's. It spoke a few more than 1000 words. The bridge admittedly was old, but the trees where gone, the river icky looking, and there was an industrial construct in the frame. No more happy children, happy trees, or happy fish. Admittedly the train is a vehicle of industry, and maybe the trees were all elm or some other tree that has died out because of disease or human interference. And the radio tower looking thing was probably very important for keeping trains on time and not heading for each other. But I couldn't help thinking, "Wow, they really fucked up this."
Which made me wonder, what else did this group of people who were supposed to be this Great generation screw up? And who gave them that title anyway?
According to Wikipedia, you can blame that on Tom Brokaw. And the reason that he said that they where the Greatest Generation was because they fought WWII, the Korean War and because they build up industry. Umm, then can we blame Global warming on them?
What I'm really thinking about is how each generation thinks that they are going to fix, that they are going to learn from the mistakes of their elders, or that they simply are smarter than the previous generation and that they should all just fuck off.
But instead, no one learns, makes mistakes (some of them arguably worse than the previous generations mistakes) and it all becomes just a little bit of history repeating.
So what do we, The "Millennials," do? I don't have a clue.

Just don't screw with my idyllic scenery.

E.T. phone home.

2007-09-14T08:10:00.000-04:00

Well, if today is Friday, then it has been a week since I slept in my own bed. And the next time I will do so will be on Sunday.
What I have been up to is spending time wit various members of my family. I spent Saturday helping my cousin with his Eagle Scout project and then spent Saturday Evening to Tuesday morning with my Grandmother. My grandfather is currently in Salisbury with my uncle on a business trip. Yes, Salisbury, England. So my grandmother and I hung out and watched movies. My grandparents recently got cable so my grandmother can indulge in watching her two favorite channels, Turner Classic Movies and the Food Network. Until now, the only time that she got to see these wonderful channels was when she visited Florida in the winter. She said that now she has no reason to visit.
My grandfather made the reservations any way.
And now I am at the beach. Why? Why not. The excuse was that we needed to wait for the electrician. Who came and went and told us that our dehumidifier needed to be replaced and did you want to turn on your water heater?
And tonight I'm going up to Villanova to visit my brother for Family Weekend.
And I have an idea, but I will tell you about it later...

I can't tell you that. It's classified

2007-09-07T21:11:00.001-04:00

Is it a good sign when you are apply for a job in Shipping and receiving with a company you know next to nothing about and one of the questions is what grade of Government Security clearance you have?
Kinda worries me a bit. So if I disappear, now you know where I went. Or rather, what happened to me.
This morning i was going through pictures I've taken in the last three years. Some of them where quite fabulous. I get the feeling that I should invest in a high resolution Scanner. Especially if I will continue to insist on taking pictures with my analog camera. A lot of the pictures where from Australia, which is kind of heart breaking. I took all these pictures, trying so hard to take more than the average tourist photos. I mean when is the next time I'll get to go to Australia? But instead of being displayed they're stuck in photo albums no one looks at or still in the development folder. Poo. I admit I may have delusions of grandeur, but I do know that I'm not the next Ansel Adams or Cindy Sherman.
The only solution is to grow up, buy a house and cover the walls.

Naa.

La-dee-da, la-dee-da

2007-09-02T21:59:00.000-04:00

Well, its Labor Day Weekend, the traditional time for people to go back to school. And for the first time in... about 18 years, I am not among the students headed away from freedom and back to the classrooms. In someways, I'm really glad. No papers. No real deadlines. No last minuet panic attacks and getting work done just in time.
Well, really the only thing I miss about being in school is hanging out with people. So, Haha, suckers still in school. You enjoy your easy access to a multitude of friends, and I will enjoy my regular sleep schedule.
This weekend also marked my triumphant return to the Gill Family Tradition of my Uncle Jacks Crab Feast. I missed in the last four years because of school. It's an annual Tooie/Gill/Tilghman Family reunion. It's usually fun/amusing. I get to catch up on the latest of family gossip and hang out with my Cousin Catlin, who this year caught me up on High School gossip. The most interesting piece was that one of the people i know from high school is getting a divorce. And that sums up my weekend.

Snap out of it!

2007-08-29T18:09:00.000-04:00

I love the Orioles. I do. And I mean the Baseball team, not the bird (which I have never actually seen, thanks to over development and global warming). And they are a good team, except when they play baseball. Let me explain. They have the skills and ability to play well. They have shown that time and time again. If I recall correctly they shut out the Yankees 12-0. Not bad. Then last week, They lose 30-3. To the Texas Rangers. The highest score in modern baseball history which goes back to 1900. It was a ridiculous game. I mean it was hysterical in its own pathetic way. I was at the game, cheering for the Rangers along with everyone else. Right after the Rangers finally scored their 30th run, My brother's room mate texted him with the fact that the previously held record was 29. Last night they lost after they gave up 11 runs in the eighth inning, making it there seventh lose in a row. In the same game they also had six, Count 'em SIX, Home runs. And they STILL lost. Why can't they play as a team?
It's a good thing I don't live and die by the Orioles.

After all, tomorrow is another day!

2007-08-16T09:00:00.000-04:00

Have you ever heard of the 12 Girl Band? They're from Shanghai, and they are an orchestra of Chinese instruments. But they don't just play traditional music. They also play classical like Mozart or Nessun Dorma from Turendot, Jazz like Georgia on My Mind or Take Five, and Pop like My Heart Will Go On. It's pretty wild. The reason that I have them on my mind is that my aunt (who is a music teacher) gave me the bands new DVD and CD for my birthday. I like it, but I'm alone on that front. Oh well, I'll listen to it in my car, when no one is with me.
Speaking of my family, my sister has come down with Mono. Perfect timing to screw up the beginning of college for her. That's right, she is supposed to start at Hood in a week. She is planning on starting classes like the regular student, just move in a little later. By then she will have had it for almost two weeks. I don't know if she will be any better or not, but hopefully she will have figured out how to cope with it.
As for me, Life is going to start changing next week. Both my brother and sister will be moving out to college, and I'll be left here. For all of college's drawbacks (papers, homework, tests, classes in general) I wish I could go back. Maybe that's just because I haven't yet actually made any steps forward. I did hear about a job working for the NSA in there museum (YES! the NSA has a museum!). I would be cataloging and organizing all the recently declassified material from WWI and II. I'm going to call them up and find out how outrageously under qualified I am. But I'm going to keep my finger's crossed. Hey, there's always Medieval Times (Must enjoy wearing tights! It honestly says that on their job stuff)

Here's Johnny!

2007-08-01T15:11:00.000-04:00

Shesh, I really ought to update more. To updated only once a month just looks like carelessness. But oh well. Better infrequently than never.
Have you noticed lately how these past few days have been terrible for the International film community. Two famous Directors and an actor died, each from a different country in Europe. Is it just the time of the year?
Lately I've been hanging out at the B&O Railroad Museum on Mondays. I'm scanning in old negatives that are decomposing and need desperately to be placed in freezer storage. Most are simply early acetate, which dissolves into vinegar and brittle plastic. It's not deadly, just smelly. But some of the negatives are actually Nitrate emulsion, which is highly volatile and degrades easily and toxicly. So if I'm not careful, I could poison myself. And people say museum work is dull and quiet.
The actual subjects of the negatives is not terribly exciting. The most exciting part is the question: Why did the B&O Railroad have pictures of cows, chickens and sheep? I guess the Railroad was involved in more that just trains.
But, Hey, Guess what?!? Last week I was Dog/Cat/House sitting for my Uncle Bill. During that time, I got a lot of reading done. The most significant of these books was some little obscure book that NO ONE has hear of called Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I liked it. And I'm bursting to talk to people about it. But since there are people out that who still need to read it and don't want me to ruin any piece of it (my brother and Mother), I won't talk about it.

Harry Potter Mania: Will it end soon?

2007-07-16T14:00:00.000-04:00

I am increasingly apprehensive about the coming end of the Harry Potter series. I'm terribly afraid of who is going to die. Not IF someone is going to die, but who. There are only four people I want to survive: Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. If possible I want all the Weasley's, Hagrid, Lupin, Tonks, Neville and Luna to survive, but if they don't, it'll be OK. But, seriously, if the fabulous four go, I'm not sure that I could ever read these books again. I just put down the Sixth book, and I have no desire to read any of the other Potter books, except the last one. And the last time i put it down, I didn't read any of them for two years. Part of that was because of the whole finishing school thing, but I may have also lost my appetite. I don't really remember any more.
The real question is, why is this so important to me. It's just a silly book. The characters aren't real. Harry doesn't exist and has no bearing on my life what so ever. But I care. Rowling has created amazing characters in her books. My aunt had a similar experience when she read the Lord of the Rings. She said that she couldn't pick up another book for a year because they weren't her friends Sam and Frodo. Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately) for her she didn't have to wait for the ending, It was right there. Easy to access. And didn't need to be written. Now she is a librarian right in the middle of a Library that has been carried away, like the rest of us, by the whole series climax. Of course, she's happy to go along. She's going to be the first in her house to read the last book, probably starting the second she gets her hands on her copy. Now the question is, where do I get my hands on a copy?

Back in the realm of all things personal and Gina: I have gotten a gig volunteering at the B&O railroad museum. It's a chance to gain experience, and see what it is like to work in a museum with more than six employee's. It should be fun.

I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse.

2007-06-25T11:26:00.000-04:00

Let's see. What have I been doing lately...
Well Friday I went sailing. It was a beautiful evening. We, my family and I, saw random fireworks and what may have been a satellite. It was a tiny point of light moving quickly across the sky, so that is what I will have to assume it was.
And Sunday my father, brother and I went on a hike all over Patapsco State park. Another beautiful day. We saw some crazy people sliding down the dam. I should mention that at least one person a year dies at this dam, usually by drowning.
What else? Oh yes, Saturday. Saturday I bought a car. I now own a dark blue (onyx blue to the dealer) Nissan Versa.

Plastics.

2007-06-19T17:44:00.000-04:00

John recently pointed out in an e-mail that it has been over a month since the class of 2007 graduated from St. Mary's. Damn.
I haven't got much to show for a month of freedom, except a few unanswered job application and a rearranged room. But, based on no official survey, that seems to be common among people I know, at least the the few who didn't approach graduation with a job already. My main complaint is finding jobs that I am both qualified for and interested in. Unfortunately, these are few and far between. Most jobs that are more then secretarial in museums need a masters degree. Which means that I really Need to go to grad school. I was really hoping to make sure that this was the career path that I wanted before committing to 2 more years of expensive school. It will all be OK. It will work out. I've yet to really fall on my face by following my gut and flying by the seat of my pants. How's that for mixed metaphors?
In other news about my future, though not nearly as pressing, my mother has begun to lean on me to plan a party for my 22nd Birthday. I am not a big fan of parties. I like get togethers with my friends, but i rarely have good luck getting people together (with the exception of the four years of college when everyone was located within a mile radius). I'm not entirely sure what to do, since the date is, amazingly, fast approaching.
I'm looking forward to the day when SOMETHING in my life and future is sure. Though I doubt that day will ever come.

My To Do List

2007-05-26T15:36:00.000-04:00

I was reading Elvis Costello's list of things he wants to do before he dies. At first I thought it was a list of things that everyone should do before they die. And with my train of thoughts lately it made me want to write a list for myself. So here it is.
~Attend a Red Carpet World Premier.
~Travel to all the continents.
~See the Taj Mahal
~Direct my own movie
~celebrate Mardi Gras in New Orleans
~Have a gallery showing of my photos
~Go Base jumping
~Attend Burning Man
~See all 50 states
~Write a book
~See night sky in the Australian Outback when there isn't any moon at all, also known as a new moon.

That is all i have for right now. I figure that it's a good start.

You are alive. So live.

2007-05-25T16:13:00.000-04:00

You all are going to think I'm crazy.
I was sitting watching the new reality show about directing and I commented to my mother about how if I could have any job in the entire world, I would pick working on movies, not even caring about how I was involved, to just be involved in movies. And my mother then mother pointed out that it's not like I'm too old to start working on that dream now. It was an odd realization that I honestly could honestly do what ever I wanted.
So...I'm going to try. What I'm going to do or how I'm going to do it is still a mystery. But I don't really care. I'm still going to follow my original plan of finding a job and working toward a career in museums, cause I still want to try to work in museums. I think. I'm just going to add volunteering at the Creative Alliance in Baltimore and maybe take some classes in editing or something else along the lines of film making. I really have no idea where I'm going or what I'm doing. Which apparently very common among recent college graduates. The minority are the people with the plan and the goal that they end up sticking too. Really I just have two goals that I'm working towards now. We'll see where I end up.

Every beginning is weak

2007-05-17T23:05:00.000-04:00

So its been a little under a week since the Class of 2007 left the campus of St. Mary's College. And what have I done in that time?

Jack.

I spent the last few days down at the beach, hanging out, reading Pride and Prejudice, and watching movies. OK, I also up dated my resume. But that is a moot point, as my computer then ate my resume and has yet to spit it up. So it's convenient that my mother has scheduled rest of May for me and I have no time to actually go look for a job.
Tomorrow is my sister's last Gym Meet. For those who have never met anyone from Maryvale, Gym Meet is when every grade level gets together and march in patterns and shout songs that have lyrics changed to match the theme picked by the class. One theme was the Cicada's, the year of the Bug or two years ago. I have no idea what my sister's is the year. But I'm sure it is going to be playing up the fact that they are the class of 007. Or maybe just the '07. But it should be fun.
That's all for now. Hopefully I will soon have more going on. If not, I may just have to start posting my opinions. The horror.

How much are you going to get for a used Leviathan?

2007-05-13T23:28:00.000-04:00

Well, I managed to survive College, and the graduation ceremony. I only fell twice during the whole day. Once right before the ceremony and at lunch. Yeah, I'm Graceful.
I also managed to pack and move out in two hours. I was convinced that I was going to be late in checking out, but I checked out with 15 minuets to spare.
I funny thing happened on the way out the door. Janice and I have had a can of beer since freshman year. Janice found it in the bench at Monty during the Natty Boh Hunt, or rather, a couple of days after it. We didn't drink at that time and decided to just keep it. So during Check out I realized it was still sitting on top of the refrigerator, where it had been all year. I forget how it came up, but the RA checking me out asked about it, I told him, its story and that i was throwing it away. So he said he'd take it. The Can of Natty Boh is now in the hands of some random RA who said that he'd pass it on. Even if he doesn't really, I'll tell people he did. It's a good story.
Tomorrow I'm off to hang out with my brother at the beach, and from there continue my job search.

It's the end of the world as we know it...

2007-05-12T02:48:00.000-04:00

When I really don't want to do anything, I'll pretty much do anything else. Right now, I don't want to pack or go to sleep. It means that Not only will i have to wake up in the morning, but i will also have to graduate. And leave my friends and the family that I have here.
I have never felt so strongly this feeling like there is nothing out there. I remember being daunting in freshman year that i was finally in college. And that after this i would have no idea where i was going. At the time I put off worrying about it until after college. Well, here it is. and while i have a much sturdier idea of where i want to end up and how to get there, that doesn't mean that i have any fucking clue where i am going. And I don't have any more time left to consider my options.
Well, in seven hours, I graduate from college. I don't have a stellar academic record. But I'm graduating none the less. I haven't broken down in tears yet. I don't expect that i will break down tomorrow, Unless something big happens. And graduating doesn't count.
I'm graduating tomorrow.
No, I'm graduating today.
I don't think i realize what that means. Only today i was thinking, I want to do something or other on campus, but i can't. I'll do it tomorrow or later. But there is no tomorrow or later. This is it. I will never sleep on this campus as a student, with my own room and stuff camped out. I no longer have a claim on a room or a seat in a classroom or anything else here. I rememeber havening a feeling in freshman year that i had chosen badly and should not have come here. But that didn't last long. I remember Ranwa and Karina really wanted to transfer. But they didn't. I know I'm rambling, but it's 3 am, I'm leaving college forever today, So it's allowed.
Most of my stuff is gone now.

Things to do before Graduation

2007-05-01T14:01:00.000-04:00

Academic
-Finish Web Page
-Post about cultural events
-Edit Analysis paper
-Take Analysis Exam
-Go to Self Defense meeting

Personal
~Get everyones' email/personal info
~Steal Janice's yearbook Idea
~Apply for jobs (I know, I know, don't lecture me, I'm worrying enough)
~Go Frisbee golfing AT LEAST ONCE!
~Go sailing once more

I think that's it. I'm really hoping it is.

Confucius Says, Shit happens.

2007-04-19T20:09:00.000-04:00

Well I have one week left of college. No, really. Next Thursday I'm finished. Done. That's all she wrote.
And I am screwed.
I'm procrastinating on working on my SMP as we speak. Or as I write. Whatever.
Life goes on.
I do have one thing on the forefront of my mind, but I don't think I'm going to talk about it here. Its been done to death and no one needs my two cents.
...on the other hand... I can't decide if over saturation of information helps or hinders. But enough of that.
I have a brilliant idea for a website, of coarse with help from the other members of my digital art class. It is virtual monopoly for Ocean City. I am ever so excited.

Momma Always said Life is like a Box of Chocolates...

2007-03-04T02:13:00.000-05:00

...you Never know What you're going to get.

I've been thinking a lot lately.
I've been thinking about graduating and how I'm going to miss people. And How I'm surprised to find i realize I won't miss others.
But what has really caught my attention as of late is how there is such amazing amounts of pain in the world. And I really want to make it all go away. Not away from my sight, really and truly gone, never to come back. I know people need pain and suffering to become better people or some bullshit like that. But There is WAY too much in this world. I read a blog written by a woman in Iraq. Recently she wrote about how women are being raped in Iraq by the police force we are supposed to be training to make the country safer. And the government we propped up there is trying to cover it up and hide it. I don't know what to do. People who are more realistic (read: Pessimistic) than me would say there is nothing one tiny little person can do in this huge mess. I disagree. There are hundreds of stories of people who single handily made a difference.
Unfortunately for me, I am most definitely one of those people. Doesn't mean I can't try. But I see so much Pain and such a huge mess every where I Look. I see friends who are in pain and I see behind them the whole planet is on fire. I don't know where to start.
But tonight i was thinking about a couple of friends, and some of the shit that is going on. And I was thinking how some writer was describing writing as a slow process. Every little bit counts. I wish I could remember who it was but she was describing her brother writing a paper on birds and how her father said he just had to do it bird by bird. He was complain about how it was such a monumental task and he didn't know where to start. He just had to go bird by bird. That got me to think why not apply that to much larger problems. Start small. I can't fix Iraq or any one today. But I can hold my friends in my arms when they need me to. I can start here, now, in every little way I can think. I won't make the whole world a better place. I'm not that naive. I can't stop a country from being raped by my home country, let alone a single person far away. But that doesn't mean that I don't care, or that I don't want to do something about it. I'll just have to start small. Work my way up.
Work Bird by Bird.

Come in, Come in! We Won't bite...

2007-02-19T15:30:00.000-05:00

... until we know you better.

So Last weekend, I saw the new bond film. Not bad. I can't say that it's my favorite bond movie or movie in general. It dragged a little, especially around the poker part. The film makers were trying to build up suspense around... a poker game. They tried. They tried hard. And they almost succeeded. But almost wasn't good enough.

This Weekend was Pursuit of Happyness. This movie was good. It is a movie that you have to see once or twice a year and then anytime that you feel like you can't do something or the world is out to get you and a mean and horrible place. And it got the message "you can do anything you put your mind to, regardless of how bad things look" without being terribly preachy. So two Thumbs up.

Also this weekend, of more important note, Janice Came Down! YAY! She came and hung out and it was good.

And it was pointed out to me that I didn't get in before Midnight any night this weekend. Let me Explain. Friday I saw a comedian who was amusing and vague forgettable, except that he sold tee shirts that had one of his punch lines on it. The punch line was "you Look fat when you cry." Lovely. Then LQ 22, Jess, Dan, Cathy and I all went and hung out in Jeremy's office until something like 1:30. And I Stole Jess from Dan. Mwahaha!
Janice was there too, but she had to go to bed. Cause when you graduate from college you become 10 years older. It's sad really. She was so young...once.

Saturday was interesting. I got in at 5 in the morning. I blame the Wii. This is an addictive machine. That and the Cards that Oscar gave Josh. Also, I have crazy and amazing friends.
And Sunday I was "productive." I found the Site report for The Gallows Green. Commonly know as Campus Center.

And the Oscars. They happened. Helen Mirren and Martin Scorsese won. And that makes me happy. But I don't care. I didn't watch and Didn't really care about any of the films made this year.

And now I really have to go to bed.

Here's lookin' at you, kid

2007-02-17T10:52:00.000-05:00

This week has been ridiculous.
Starting on Valentine's Day, Jess showed up to tell me that Dan had become violently sick the night before. He was so bad that he was sent to the hospital, and would not be available for dinner that evening. He's ok now, but this meant that Jess was single on Valentine's day, though not the way I had jokingly planned. I had joked the weekend before that she should break up with Dan for the day and come hang out with me and we would revel in our singleness. Well we still hung out, and had Indian food and that was nice, but I still feel bad about the circumstances.
The other thing that was strange about Wednesday is that I kept forgetting the date and what day it was. When I was signing into work, I had to sit and think what the date was. Clearly, Valentine's Day has lost all meaning for me.
Oh well.
But Friday, that sucked.
I wanted to go to the comedian, the movie, fencing movie night, or drive people to Medieval Times, I had an over abundance of choices. What did I do?
I talked about my SMP all night with one of my advisers. Till 11 o'clock PM. And while it was good that i did this, it made me focus a little bit more, and there was good Thai food, still would have rather done one of the other things on the list. Let's hope tonight is better.

New home

2007-02-14T16:18:00.000-05:00

I'm just testing this blog out at the moment. If your looking for excitement...Don't look here. Not yet anyway. You might try here if you are terrible hard up on excitement. But I make no promises.