29 December 2006

Where have I been?

In places other than Austin. Which means my addiction to all things internet has been hit hard. I didn't check my email for days. DAYS. This is a big deal for me, as I'm one of those people that assumes anything important will be communicated to me through email...rather than the more practical phone call.

Christmas time was good. I've noticed that with each passing year this holiday means less and less to me. I'm no longer religious, so going to church on Christmas Eve made me feel a bit uncomfortable. I'll always sing the carols and remember how it felt to be a kid, but I guess I'm finally becoming an adult. Which makes me a little sad.

I just noticed that we've seen two Nutrisystem commercials in one commercial break. Is this a subtle hint to those who've eaten too much over the holidays?

21 December 2006

Caveman

It's time I come clean about something. I'm in love with the caveman from the Geico commercials.

I'm not sure if Jared knows about this, but he shouldn't worry. There's no chance of me meeting this caveman, and even if I did I don't think I'm his type.

There's just something about his tone of voice, his constant frustration, his obvious intelligence that intrigues me. See this to understand what I mean.

Don't worry, I'm still in love with the boyfriend. I wonder if he has any cavewoman crushes...

Clarification

I should clarify that I am not the person who wears sweatpants to work. That would be someone who gets paid a lot more than me.

Got that, Casey?

20 December 2006

Office Talk

While I love our office machines (I've gotten one or two to work by spouting nice words of encouragement), I think their main purpose in life is to jam in some way. With that, I present:

What I imagine our office machines and gadgets would say to us if they could talk:

The copy machine: "Imagine this: you're resting in your nice cool area, saving energy and whatnot. It's a peaceful day, one lacking in urgent work. Then, suddenly, some woman in sweatpants (sweatpants!)comes in needing a copy. She pokes you on the head, gives you a work order, and crosses her arms impatiently. While you're warming up from your nap, she even has the gall to complain about how long she's having to wait. You finally wake and complete the request. You don't even get a 'thanks' as she rips the paper away from you. Welcome to my life. Say thanks next time, or I just might jam."

The fax machine: "Listen people, pages down. I can't tell you how many times the other fax machines and I laugh at you because you can't read the sign and your faxes come out blank. You're all idiots. I might as well jam."

The shredder: "You again? Why do you make so many damn copies if all you're gonna do is shove 'em down my throat? Oh and by the way, the next time you roll your eyes when my bag is full, you're getting a jam."

The three hole puncher: "Of course I'm giving you hanging chads--those little pieces of paper that frustrate you to no end. Have you seen how many paper holes I've got under here? Try cleaning me out a bit, graduate students! You obviously prefer me to the three hole punch feature on the copy machine. One would think you'd care more for me, the one who allows you to store your precious information in a notebook. The one who only wants to see you happy. Watch out, because I'm thinking of creative ways to jam."

The toaster: "For The Love Of God Someone Clean Me Out Once In A While! I wish I could jam. That'd show 'em."

Certain mailboxes: "Can't...Hold...Any...More...Mail. Must...Be...Checked...Soon. Will...Jam...Fingers...Of...Workers."

The computers: "Are we really at a place of work? Why aren't we being used for anything other than blogs, email, and Minesweeper? When did I sink so low? Let's jam a process. They should know better than to be on MySpace at work. Now they're going to pay for it."

Letting others do the work for me

You should read this. Because it's better than anything I'll ever write.

I'm tired and would rather be at home, sleeping the morning away. I realize that all I'm doing today is sitting around for 8 hours...and I'm getting paid for it. But there was something about that bed this morning. So nice.

19 December 2006

Hello again

I haven't written in a while. I was out of good internet contact during the weekend, and last night when I got home it was all I could do to stay awake long enough to find something on the Discovery channel to pass out to. (I'd had a bit to drink...)

I find that when my life is changing (or just plain happening), my urge to write about it subsides. Maybe I'm more of an introspective writer, one that feels the need to explain what's going on inside of me more than record what's going on around me. Or maybe I just get lazy sometimes.

I want to rearrange my room, but I feel as if I should wait just a little longer. Doesn't feng shui tell me that I shouldn't have the foot of my bed facing the door? Well it is. And I'm tired a lot. Maybe that's why...

Any tips?

By the by, Feng Shui is also a really good Gnarls Barkley song. Sorry for the lack of links, but I'm lazy.

13 December 2006

OK

I don't consider myself to be a silly person most of the time. At least not the kind of silly that gets offended if people don't notice I've done something different with myself. I usually just think, "Oh, I'm sure they've changed something at some point that I haven't noticed, so I shouldn't get angry at them so quickly."

But damnit people. I cut my hair. Not just trimmed, cut. Three inches. And guess what! My hair's much shorter in the front than it was yesterday! Can you guess why? Because I got bangs!! Admittedly not the five-year-old bangs of my youth, but angled bangs! Bangs that make me look cool! Goodness!

Ok, now that I'm over my tantrum, I can move on to something much more important. The miracle on Guadalupe St. It happened last night. It had seemed that the traffic lights and cars were against us all evening, and it didn't look like the drive down Guadalupe was going to be any different. (FYI, in Austin we say "Guadaloop." Some try to fight this, but they'll never win.) We sat at a light around 15th street (this is my estimation...we weren't paying that much attention), both hungry and ready to get to our destination. The light turned green. The next light turned green. We could see the lights turning green two, three intersections away, all in time to let us pass through. Around 6th we both started to believe. This was it. This was going to be it. We saw the light at Cesar Chavez turn as we were barely exiting the 3rd street intersection. I crossed my fingers and held my breath. Two more intersections and we would be on the bridge. Traffic had built up around us, threatening to ruin our perfect run. Through the 2nd street intersection, we were both thinking that the Cesar Chavez light would never stay green. Never.

But It Did!! And we made it!! A perfect run down Guadalupe!! It cut our traveling time in half. In half, people! The lights in Austin are notorious for being frustrating beyond belief, but for one magical night, we won. We hit EVERY GREEN LIGHT for 15 BLOCKS. Dreams can come true.

11 December 2006

I am woman, therefore I have cramps

Currently at home right now. That's right, in the middle of the morning. I decided that I wouldn't ignore my lady cramps this month. And anyway, it only makes them worse to try and deal with them at work, ya know? I'd rather just curl up in my bed and curse that I am woman.

I sometimes wish women could choose when they're going to start their periods. I remember when my friends were all shaving their legs and I felt so left out. My mom, being the extremely smart woman that she is, told me that once I shaved, I couldn't go back. The hair just keeps growing, and you have to keep shaving. How right she was. (I realize that some women decide to just let the hair grow, but I really like the way my legs feel after I shave. Yeah, I'm addicted)

So if we can put off that grown-up activity until we're ready, why oh why can't we wait until, say, we're ready to have kids to start our periods? Maybe we could activate it by using a tampon or pad for the first time. Of course, we'd know that we couldn't go back, but hey, that's life, right?

I recently told Jared that I was going to start my period soon (so watch out), and he jokingly said something like, "Again? Didn't you just have it?" I told him he summed up the feelings I experience every. single. month.

08 December 2006

HA!




I love this.

HA!



I love this.

06 December 2006

Tarot and the Opossum


You are The Hierophant


Divine Wisdom. Manifestation. Explanation. Teaching.


All things relating to education, patience, help from superiors.The Hierophant is often considered to be a Guardian Angel.


The Hierophant's purpose is to bring the spiritual down to Earth. Where the High Priestess between her two pillars deals with realms beyond this Earth, the Hierophant (or High Priest) deals with worldly problems. He is well suited to do this because he strives to create harmony and peace in the midst of a crisis. The Hierophant's only problem is that he can be stubborn and hidebound. At his best, he is wise and soothing, at his worst, he is an unbending traditionalist.


What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.



Got that from Sarcastic Fringehead. I love surveys, what can I say?

There's this strange noise coming from outside that I can't quite identify. It almost sounds like someone in the apartment parking lot next door is opening and closing their doors over and over again. Or maybe someone's moving things around in a truck bed. But occasionally it sounds like it's right outside, in our driveway. As I'm the only one home right now, I'm a little curious. I've been outside a few times, and I finally decided this last time to take all of the cds out of my car. Because if there is someone trying to break into my car or my house, you'd better believe I'm not giving up those cds without a fight.

There it is again!!

Just went outside again with the boyfriend on the phone, and between the two of us a conclusion has been made. We've got a critter under the house. I kicked the side of the house (to try and state my dominance I guess) and I haven't really heard anything since. Maybe it's moved on? I DO NOT want to hear that noise again tonight.

Oh, there it went again. Damnit.

It's a possum!! What ugly little creatures! I'm all for animals and nature, but damn. Those things are creepy looking. Especially when you only see a pointy nose and a single paw sticking out of a vent on the side of your house.

At least I know what it is. I think he's stuck though. I'd like to go loosen that vent for him, but I really don't want to get near him. Or risk scaring him back under the house. This could turn out to be an interesting night.

04 December 2006

Ahh...

...to get out. To get out of the house, out of your own head for a little while. To have to wait for a friend to show up, which pits you alone against the world at a coffee house. To have to sit with nothing to read, no one to call, nothing to do but wait and look around you.

As promised, my friend has put me into a much better mood. I found out that I'm not the only person in the world who sometimes feels like a hermit. There are others that need to have friends who will poke and prod them to get out and enjoy. I've also been challenged to have an adventure in my life, which I hope will actually happen. I wonder what my adventure will be. A friend invited me to go on a hiking trip, and I'm actually pretty psyched about the possibility of that happening. Will a trip turn into the adventure I'll always remember? Or will it be something involving a relationship of some sort? What's going to jump start the life in me?

I've been addicted to Interpol lately. I just got Turn on the Bright Lights (yes, I know I'm behind with my music--that's what happens when you live paycheck to paycheck), and it's all I want to hear. I love those purchases that seem to be destined for certain times in your life.

Usually I find that if I'm trying to find something or figure something out I do better to just let go of it. I don't necessarily put it somewhere else, I just loosen my grip. And then somehow the solution comes. Maybe I should just loosen the grip on my life...keep my finger on the pulse just in case...but relaxing and enjoying things sounds kind of nice right now.

What a day

Well, I should know by now that when I tell a few people, "I don't do much at my job" my job's gonna suck the next day. Not so much suck as become very busy. Well wait, yeah, it sucked.

Basically it was an instance of a higher-up not knowing just how much work they wanted me to do in a matter of hours. Turning one pile of papers into four piles of papers makes for an eight hour day spent at the copy machine.

I also had my first lunch time aerobics class today. I think it gave me the energy I needed to barrel through some of those copies, but it did not make my stomach happy. I had to wait to eat an hour later than usual, and one just shouldn't do that to her body. Especially mine. My stomach knows when it's time to eat, and when I try to trick it it ends up in a horrible mood. So I did too.

Apologies for this rant. It's just been one of those days when nothing terrible has really happened but I'm ready to throw the towel in anyway. Know what I mean? Exhausting.

I'll be having coffee (or beer, oh the decisions) tonight with an old friend who always leaves me happy, so I'm sure my head will hit the pillow smiling tonight. I hope yours does the same.

01 December 2006

movie

We're getting ready to go see For Your Consideration, so this will be a short entry.

The day trip to San Marcos was successful, as the boyfriend found an apartment. It's pretty hip, and the complex is called The Metropolitan. Yeah.

I've noticed that I've become a very easy drunk, so if anyone's planning on taking advantage of me, this time of my life is probably your best chance. Unless I'm in the drinking zone, which does happen occasionally. Then I can hang with the best of 'em.

I'm not sure where that paragraph came from. Could be the Shiner talking...

30 November 2006

Drinking on the job

I just had a Bailey's Chocolate candy. Chocolate and Bailey's. At work. Occasionally I love this place.

29 November 2006

Let's shake hands

Here's a story my friends told me I should blog about:

Last week I had my lady exam. You know the one I'm talking about. The visit to the doctor that I like to call "my favorite time of year."

The nurse did her thing and then left me to change into the *always* sleek check-up gown. It only took me about a minute. I then spent another five or seven minutes waiting for my doctor to come in. I was surrounded by paper. My paper gown which I desperately tried to keep closed in the back, the paper table cover which I desperately tried to NOT let my cheeks touch (I know it gets changed after every patient, but still), the papers on the walls telling me that I desperately needed to get help for skin cancer, osteoporosis, birth control, migraines, prostate cancer, and back pain. However many times you do this, it NEVER gets any easier.

So after what seemed like an eternity, my doctor finally walks in. Now, I should take a moment to describe my doctor. She's a mother of two (their pictures are in her patient room), always wears pants that are way too short, and is VERY matter-of-fact in her approach.

So like I was saying, she walks in. I expected her to say hello, ask how I was, things like that. Instead, after she's barely said hello, she REACHES OUT HER HAND FOR ME TO SHAKE. This is a woman who has been inside of me twice (now three times), a woman who has inserted cold metal things into me and swabbed my innards. Forgive me if I'm a bit taken aback by the formality of the hand shake that was about to proceed. I wanted to say, "Lady, you've seen parts of me I'LL never see. I think we're a little past shaking hands."

But instead, I took her hand and gave it a VERY lame shake. It's hard to muster up a good hand shake when you're only wearing paper, you know?

Words

I may sound like a HUGE snob, but is it really that difficult to remember the difference between you're and your? You can't say something like, "Hope your having a great day!" It Doesn't Work!! I occasionally make the mistake in an email, but I'm such a bitch about it that I try my hardest to catch it before it makes it out there to the world.

OH! Same with it's and its!! Can you say "it is"? Then use the apostrophe!

Ugh. Maybe I should stop reading Facebook and Myspace messages written by idiotic COLLEGE STUDENTS who don't know the difference.

Whew!

Can you tell I'm reading Eats, Shoots & Leaves right now?

28 November 2006

Whew!

All of a sudden, I got a yearning to clean tonight. It could be that the floor was DIRTY. The floor always seems dirty, but I'm rather sensitive to dirt on the floor when I'm walking barefoot. And sticky stuff. And food crumbs. We all end up dropping things on the floor, but they don't always get cleaned up. And there are two girls who live in this house (soon to be three), and we shed hair. So the floor just got disgusting. Dis-gus-ting. It's now swept and Swiffered.

Then I noticed that the side of the sink we use for draining dishes had a funny smell. After I pulled out the now bone dry dishes, I had to clean the sink. Because it was, of course, dirty.

Then I decided to FINALLY try to get rid of two of the three boxes that have prevented me from getting to my bookcase since we moved in. A full trash bag later (one of those boxes had candles I'll just never burn again), and I've gotten my room down to only ONE box that needs to be emptied. Maybe I'll be through with that one when it's time for us to move out.

Talking to my roommates tonight, I almost slipped into my wondrous depression again. One roommate is leaving for a job with Iowa State, and he's busy getting ready to take his team to a bowl game and get things together to move out. My other roommate has a lot of finals and labs coming up. I'm sitting there not having anything to contribute to the conversation, and the first roommate says to me, "You're lucky you don't have anything, right?" For a moment, I didn't know what to say. I wanted to look at the floor and think about how he was right and how lame I feel. Then I decided, you know what? I do have things I'm doing. Like studying for the GRE (which I then brought up in the conversation). And dammit, the house has to be cleaned by someone.

I do miss the stress of school sometimes though.

Did I just say that??

Thievery

I stole this from Momma Loves, a fellow NaBloPoMo writer. I'll write more later, but for now, here's this. (I love surveys, by the way.)

1. 3 Things that scare me: Drowning, Spiders, the Astros when they wait until the last few innings to score

2. 3 People who make me laugh: Demetri Martin, Zach Galifianakis, and The Boyfriend

3. 3 Things I love: A tasty meal, crossword puzzles, beards

4. 3 Things I hate: The Redskins (they don't even get a link), strong smells, having to work

5. 3 Things I don’t understand: Timid drivers, the universe, any math

6. 3 Things on my desk: Today's crossword puzzle, my cell phone, a bowl of mixed paint (green and black). Yeah, I work for the state.

7. 3 Things I’m doing right now: Filling out this wonderful meme, smelling paint, thinking about this weekend

8. 3 Things I want to do before I die: Travel A LOT, live in London, learn how to kick ass at riding a bike

9. 3 Things I can do: Mail merge in Word, put Ikea things together, sleep with damp hair

10. 3 Things I can’t do: Tread water, pop my neck, buy things I want

11. 3 Things I think you should listen to: Other languages, your mother (that's a good answer, Momma Loves mentioned that one), Whiskeytown

12. 3 Things you should never listen to: Bill O'Reilly (he doesn't get a link either), George W. Bush, today's country music (Nashville Pop, yuck)

13.3 things I would like to learn: To tread water, library science, how to produce an album

14. 3 Favorite foods: Chinese, Italian, Junk

15. 3 Beverages I drink regularly: Water, Coke, Milk

16. 3 Shows I watched as a kid: Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, Sesame Street, Bugs Bunny

17. 3 People I’m tagging (to do this meme): Rebecca, Marci, Casey

27 November 2006

Oh man.

I'm sure most have seen this video before, but you really should take a look at it again. Especially if you like cavemen and you need a laugh.

Happiness

This is what we all need

26 November 2006

Sunday Nights

These nights are usually pretty hard for me, as I've either left the boyfriend to come back to Austin or he's left to go back to Huntsville. For a few days (this weekend was extra nice), I get to know what it feels like to have someone hold me, someone to laugh with, someone who I can be incredibly dorky with. During the week we talk every night, but it's nowhere near the same.

I know I should just be thankful that I've got someone in my life, but long distance relationships have a way of making that thought frustrating. I'm tired of having to be content with seeing him every weekend (yeah, we're one of the lucky long distance couples). I'm very ready for him to be closer. Which he will be. In a little over a month. Will our relationship change? Probably. Will it be a hard adjustment? Doubtful. We have a great sense of humor that's going to work well against either one of us getting tired of the other.

What I really wanted to say with this post is that I love the boyfriend, and I can't wait to have him nearer. Then I won't see Sunday nights as such terrible things.

25 November 2006

Where's my inspiration?

Nowhere near. So in lieu of a proper post, I give you Monty Python.

24 November 2006

The day after

I'm sitting in the cafe at Hastings right now, waiting for the boyfriend to get off of work (25 more minutes...can I make this blog last that long?). A jerk just walked in with a Starbucks cup in hand. Hastings makes a better mocha than Starbucks, hands down. Plus it's a few cents cheaper. Pinch your pennies!

I went shopping today with my mom. It was definitely a crowded day, but not quite as bad as I thought it'd be. Could have been that everyone in College Station had travelled to Austin for the Lone Star Showdown (aka Longhorns vs. Aggies), or it could have been that everyone had finished their shopping by the time we got there. We didn't arrive to our first store until after 9, serious shoppers that we are. I didn't do as great as I wanted, but such is the life of someone who lives from paycheck to paycheck.

Does anyone else find it odd that there is a TV show on ESPN and several magazines dedicated to Fantasy Football? Look, I realize that fantasy football is a big deal with some people (many people, apparently), but it just doesn't strike me as something that I'd want to spend my time and money on. What ever happened to good old fashioned betting? Why can't people just stick with the secret office pool and call it a day? Maybe I just don't want to take the time to understand all of the intricacies involved with it.

I can't BELIEVE the Aggies beat the Longhorns.

23 November 2006

Remembering

Oh no. It happened again. At the beginning of this month I completely forgot to post an entry. I mean, I thought about it a lot that day, but nothing happened. Granted, internet access was spotty there, but geez, right? Well, I have no excuse for yesterday. I came to my parent's house last night. My parents who have wireless internet. My parents who listened to me talk about my blog (well, my mom). I even uttered the words, "I need to remember to post an entry tonight." But I also couldn't wait to go to bed. Friday nights (or in this case, Wednesday nights) are usually nights that I crash into bed. It could actually be any night; all I need is to know that it's the end of the work week for me, and I'm racing for my pillow as soon as I get home.

Anyway, the sad fact is that I forgot to post. And since I use blogger, I have no idea how to cheat and date this for the 22nd. And why would I? I'd lose a whole paragraph of my entry (see above)!

Lately it seems I've had a hard time remembering things. I found out today that I've forgotten to pay my Lerner (or New York and Company, whichever) credit card bill for TWO MONTHS. How does one forget to pay a bill for TWO MONTHS? I've come up with an explanation. The last time I paid, I thought to myself that I should just pay the whole thing off. It was only around $50 at the time, but it was a tight month (aren't they all?). So I ultimately decided to just pay $25 and finish it off the next month. The next month came and went. As did the one after that (this one). I am flabbergasted. I just can't believe that I didn't even think about checking it.

My mother, the person I love with all my heart, seemed to be afraid that this would reflect badly on my credit rating. And she's probably right. But to be completely honest, I just can't make myself care too much about that. I realize that having an excellent credit rating can make life a LOT easier for you down the road, especially when you want to buy a house or a new car or what have you. But my credit rating was really good before this, and I just don't think one little slip up will cost me anything big later in life. Plus, I'm so sick of the thought that we're constantly working for something that's so abstract--money. We might as well be using Monopoly money, because there isn't enough gold in the world to make all currency worth anything.

I digress.

As I was lying in bed around 6:30 this morning (damn you internal clock!) remembering that I'd forgotten to write a post yesterday, I thought this entire entry out. I somehow came to a conclusion that talked about how I didn't really like child actors. It stemmed from saying that I was constantly searching for a perfect haircut, which is a universal search for women, I believe. I don't know how I got to that, but I really believe it, so I'm putting it in. Then I thought about Project Greenlight and how when the hopeful writers were pitching their movie they kept saying that it had a universal theme. And then I started thinking about how that whole project didn't last as long as it could have, mainly because the movies weren't that great. The first one (if I remember correctly) had child actors. And, as stated above, I really don't like them. They don't yet know how to act, so they always end up looking like someone's whispering in their ear, "Ok, now look sad. Oh! Now you're surprised!" There are exceptions of course. Haley Joel Osment was adorable ( look at him now!!), and that Dakota Fanning is cute enough to eat with a spoon. She's good, too.

And that's how the post ended in my thoughts. And then I went to sleep. So even though I've missed a day, I hope I've provided enough to make up for it.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

21 November 2006

Score one for a Baptist minister

Now, if you know me, you know I've grown less and less religious as I've grown older. I'm not sure what exactly started my departure from the church, but I'm pretty sure it had something to do with me not agreeing with something being taught. Once my personal belief system starting conflicting with that of the church's, I just didn't want to be a hypocrite and continue attending services. At this time, my beliefs have wandered so far away from religion's or the church's, that you'll not find me around either until my mother makes me go.

That being said, I just read this article called "When Religion Loses its Credibility." Now don't get up in arms if you're religious; this is not at all an attack on religion. It's rather a statement on the narrow minds that today's churches are littered with. It's written by a Baptist minister, and it concerns the erroneous belief by most (I said most! not all!) church goers that homosexuality is a choice and should be punished.

*A side note: I have a few friends who attend church regularly and are not the type to want to wipe homosexuality off the face of the earth. So I am by no means assuming that every religious person is a jackass. I'm glad I have religious friends; otherwise my opinion on religion and the church might be lost forever. I'm also glad I have homosexual friends, because those are the coolest fools you'll ever meet.*

Since I don't read the Bible regularly and never really did, I'm just going on faith (ha! get it?) that this Baptist minister knows what he's talking about when he quotes from it. I respect him for gathering up the courage and balls (I mean really, he's a Baptist minister talking about how homosexuality should be accepted! because it's predetermined!) to write this article. I only wish that this was required reading in all churches that preach against homosexual relationships.

I see that churches provide a family and support system, and I see that they can do more good deeds for this world than people could do alone, separate. But if religion wants to keep its numbers from dwindling, I think people are going to have to start realizing that nothing should be taken literally. That's the easy way out, and it's caused a lot of pain and suffering for so many. I feel that people should use religion as a guide, and should use the church as a charitable being. Neither should decide who gets blessed and goes to heaven and who doesn't. I may not remember much from my church days, but isn't that supposed to be God's decision?

20 November 2006

Rebuilding Year

In the process of trying to figure out what I'm doing with my life, I've decided to take the GRE in the hopes of one day getting into graduate school. At this point, I've got an idea of what program I'd like to enter, but that's so far ahead in the future that I just can't lay any bets on it right now.

When I began studying for the GRE, I had high hopes. I figured that it couldn't be too terribly hard; surely I haven't lost ALL of the knowledge I'll need to at least take a good crack at even just the practice exams. Of course, I was wrong.

The verbal section wasn't too bad, and I know exactly what I need to work on to get better (antonyms, root words). I thought the quantitative section wouldn't give me too much trouble, because in school I'd done pretty well in math once I learned all of the formulas. Little did I know that I would have to basically re-learn everything. That means I'm starting from the ground up. And if there's one thing my brain doesn't handle well, it's having to scrap all previous beliefs (the belief that this wasn't going to be too hard) and begin anew. I'm stubborn that way, and I don't like the idea of having to admit that right now any junior high student could probably give me a good run for my money on the quantitative section of the graduate entry exam. How sad.

I realize this will eventually become easier for me, and I'll look back at this time of the studying as a necessary means to an end. I mean, it sure wouldn't mean much if I didn't have to work for it, right?

I've always felt that things came relatively easy to me but that I was still only mediocre in everything I did in life. Most people have at least one thing that they can excel at, but I've always been average or a little above in my pursuits. I'm hoping to find something other than making copies that I can kick ass at.

19 November 2006

Rambling from a couch

I've recently had to begin to come to terms with the fact that I don't have that many people in my life. I have a good number of friends, sure, but I'm really not the type that randomly calls people to hang out or has people calling me to hang out (at least not as often as people call my boyfriend). My boyfriend and I are two separate people when it comes to that. He has a lot of different friends who will call him just wanting to grab a drink. I have a few close friends that I plan to hang out with, but it doesn't usually happen spontaneously.

Part of this could be chalked up to the fact that I have moved to a new city and had to make some new friends, while he is getting ready to move and is still surrounded by people he's known for a long time. But to be fair, I'm just not the type to have a huge group of people that I hang out with. I've had moments in my life when that was the case, but I would always end up clinging to a best friend or a boyfriend and alienate everyone else. This is basically why my senior year of college was a rebuilding year of sorts. It was my first college year alone, single, and I had to realize that I'd previously based all social activities on my ex-boyfriend. I had one friend that stood by me (sorry I don't call much anymore, Kevin). I slowly made new friends and became social again, and eventually met my current boyfriend and was introduced to his circle.

And then I moved. I knew a few people in Austin and was living with my cousin, but everyone already had their groups formed and I was going to have to find my own. I have met new people and have definitely found a very small (for now) niche in this town. But I still find myself sitting alone on the couch most nights. And really, I can't blame anyone but myself. I either forget to call people just to say hey, or I just don't find myself wanting to do something at the end of the eight hour day. I'm not sure how exactly to remedy this, or if it's even something that needs to be remedied. Is it necessarily a bad thing that I'm a bit of a loner at this stage of my life? I don't always want it to be this way, because I do enjoy seeing my current group of friends (both in Austin and Huntsville) and I always feel good after hanging out with people. But it's difficult for me to initiate social activities with others.

Having a small group of people surrounding you isn't a bad thing. But at some point I've got to remember to reach out to everyone so that my small group doesn't turn into just me.

And my god, the Cowboys beat the Colts. Romo, you crazy kid, you pulled off the best upset of the year.

18 November 2006

Saturday

The parent visit went well, surprisingly. Don't get me wrong, I love my parents. But we were planning to try and move our satellite dish to a more productive spot, and when my dad gets into his projects he sometimes gets into a project mood. I know all about it, because a)I grew up with the man and b)I inherited it from him. But today went very smoothly, and now our beloved satellite is working again. The first thing I did was turn on Comedy Central. And lo and behold, The Royal Tenenbaums was on. Nothing else would do.

Right now Jared and I are sitting here mindlessly watching Zoolander. And while I enjoy this movie, I really don't think this is what we should be doing on a Saturday night. So now I'll try to find something to do in a city full of things to do. Wish me luck.

17 November 2006

Network TV

I've started writing two different posts, but can't seem to find a subject I want to expound on. I'm currently waiting for Jared to arrive, and hopefully I soon I will be in a restaurant somewhere waiting for food to arrive.

Since our satellite dish was blown down by strong winds the other day, there's not much to distract me in the way of television. We have the rabbit ears, and that's it. It gets us the necessary network tv, but geez, have you watched network tv lately? This has got to be some of the worst entertainment I've seen. The Biggest Loser? Deal or No Deal? I do admit to certain tv shows. Namely Gilmore Girls and House. And I was happy that I got to catch 30 Rock and some of The Office last night. I would have never watched those if our satellite dish had been working. But my god. Howie Mandel is creeping me out.

I've got to go take my curlers out.

Whaaa??

Just read that the Pentagon used to list homosexuality along with mental retardation and personality disorders. And people wonder why this country is going to hell.

Here are links (for previous entry), as promised:

Toy Joy
Theremin
The Octopus Project
Trigger Happy TV

16 November 2006

Quick! Post!

I'll be getting this in just under the wire. I got a wild hair up my butt tonight and decided to clean. Maybe it's because Jared (formally known only as "the boyfriend") is coming up, and I haven't seen him in two weeks. Maybe (and this is a little more likely) it's because my parents are coming over this weekend. They rarely show up in Austin, so this is an occasion to clean.

We might be getting an addition to our little family soon. It will be fluffy, with four legs and a tail. Keep your fingers crossed.

My clock says 11:53 PM. Gotta hurry.

We passed Toy Joy tonight (I'll provide the link later, must write!) and outside of their new vegan cafe was a sight to be seen. A band of three members wearing masks (one was a dog mask!) was playing in the parking lot. The dog masked guy was playing a theremin (I promise another link later), which made me the happiest girl in the land. I've grown a little obsessive with the theremin after seeing The Octopus Project live (seriously, it's coming). And I have a weakness for humans dressed up as animals. This is the main reason I LOVED the series Trigger Happy TV. Anyway, this sight is something I wouldn't have seen living in the previous cities I've inhabited, so it was basically just another reason to say that I truly love Austin.

11:58!! Publish!

15 November 2006

Cough

That's all I've been doing. Coughing. And yawning. So I think this will be a very short entry tonight. Here's a picture of the boyfriend and I. His name is Jared. I'm on the right.


14 November 2006

I knew it!

My health has been getting progressively worse with each passing day. Today was the worst by far, with the sneezing and the coughing, the runny nose and the imploding head. I finally took control (as well as you can take control of your health) and checked the weather for central Texas. A COLD FRONT!! As in, a real cold front. Temperatures will be getting down to the upper thirties tomorrow night. I know, I'm excited too! Mainly because this means my allergies have just been warning me that some major shit is coming, and they'll go back to being only mildly annoying in a day or two.

This also means I can pull out my winter music. I have a lot of cds, but really only listen to about half with any consistency. Of those, some seem to show up more during certain seasons. For example, The Arcade Fire is a winter band for me. Mainly because I finally bought their cd just as the weather turned cold last year. I wrapped presents to it. Good times.

I also have music that seems to be my "the seasons are changing" music. I've been listening to Whiskeytown and Wilco a lot lately. Almost exclusively. I (rather embarrasingly) didn't know much about either before I met the boyfriend. After a month of dating, I moved to Austin. A few weeks later, he went to Mexico for a month. He ended up leaving me some of his books and cds that he thought I'd like. Some of those were Whiskeytown and Wilco cds. I think I fell completely in love with him when I listened to them. While I listen to both pretty regularly, these two bands sure can accompany a change in the weather. If you've never listened to either, I suggest you grab them now while the weather's changing (assuming you're in Texas too).

I'll help get you started. Pneumonia will change your life. (Maybe. Or you'll just really enjoy a cd. Either way, it's good.)

13 November 2006

Borat

*Disclaimer: This post contains generalizations for the purpose of making an argument. I don't think all persons living in the US (particularly the midwest) have the same opinions. After all, I am a liberal Texan.*

Just went to a blog that I semi-regularly read, Mighty Girl, and read a post she had about Borat. She basically disliked it, and I assumed a lot of people would. I don't necessarily object to her opinion, because there are some parts in the movie where he, Borat, could be seen as being mean to others. But I don't think it's what defines the movie. There were also some comments from readers who thought that by watching and laughing at this movie, we were all part of the joke. Again, I don't think that's the point of the movie.

Here is my grand overview of the opinion I formed after watching this movie. I know you are all waiting with bated breath.

I don't think Sacha Baron Cohen went into the making of this movie with any malice intended. I think he used (admittedly) easy targets for his jokes, but the reason these people are easy targets is because they have made themselves just that. The frat boys, the Secession Drive dwellers, the people at the rodeo who actually clapped when their President was called a warlord premiere, they are they type of people who, in my opinion, need to be laughed at. Mainly because their ideas are so archaic by today's standards that they are out of step with the rest of the forward-thinking world. They don't want to accept homosexuals, liberals, or those of a different race. I'm all for marching to your own drum and being true to yourself, but when your beliefs end up killing others, you might want to take a step back and wonder why everyone's looking at you funny.

By laughing at this movie, I acknowledged sadly that these people represent the voting majority in our country. (Actually, we did just replace a lot of Republicans with Democrats...maybe the country saw this movie and finally realized how appalling we all look to others...) I don't think that by laughing at this movie I've managed to include myself on the losing end of the joke. I feel that those who believe that's the case are just trying to make those of us who enjoyed the movie feel bad or stupid for doing so. It won't work. Mr. Cohen wasn't making fun of me for thinking slavery should still be around, or believing that the Iraq war is what's best for this country or this world. He wasn't making fun of me because I don't believe those things.

I'm tempted to say that this movie is getting too much attention for what it's worth, but I know that'd be wrong. This movie needs to drum up all of this talking and love and hatred. By making this movie, Mr. Cohen has forced everyone to look at themselves and others with a more careful eye. And I think that's exactly what this country needs, me included.

So in the end, I'll always like this movie. It's not a masterpiece, but it is more important than some would like to admit. It's easy to write it off as rude, stupid humor, but you're not giving it a fair shot if you do that.

And anyway, I'd be interested to see how many Borat haters watch reality TV every week. You can't tell me that some of those programs don't subject some people to ridicule.

If people have differing opinions and want to let me know about them, I'm all for 'em. After all, I'd be a hypocrite not to listen to them after this post.

12 November 2006

I am woman

Well, I watched movies and cried again today. But this time, it was Rudy. I'd seen it a long time ago, probably while I was lying with my bean bag in my parent's living room. So today when I started watching it, it was like I was seeing it for the first time. All I remembered was that it was a tear jerker or heart warmer or anything else you say about inspirational true story sports movies. And it sure was all of those things. It jerked several tears from my very willing eyes. Ahh, football.

My friend Marci is going to be a football player. And I mean a real football player. She's not playing touch football, but serious "I'm going to take your head off" football. I'm buying season tickets.

This weekend wasn't extremely productive, but I did get the front and back yards weed whacked. I would say that I mowed them, but our mower is not a great one, our front yard is really too small to mow, and the back yard has a lot of potentially lethal rocks tucked away. So the weed whacker got a good workout today. As did my arms. I really don't have a lot of arm strength, and for hours afterwards, I couldn't lift them without a lot of motivation and momentum. And the only reason I'm typing right now is because I had a beer and three Ibuprofen. The pain is numbed for now. And the yards look great, which makes my Sunday complete.

11 November 2006

Hormones

God help me. I'm watching The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. And I'm crying. Why oh why do we have hormones that force us to watch chick flicks and shed tears?

OH MY GOD. CAN'T STOP TEARING UP.

I should have left it on Inside the NFL.

Movie

I should have read the book before I saw the movie. Running with Scissors was the last movie I needed to watch tonight. A bit more depressing than I thought it'd be.

Always read the book. Always.

10 November 2006

My own personal date

I'm usually driving to Huntsville or waiting for the boyfriend to arrive on Friday nights. But tonight is a bit different. We've got a girl's night planned for tomorrow, so the boyfriend isn't showing up this weekend. Almost everyone I know has got things to do, and even if some people don't, I've been a bit anti-social lately. I should remedy that, but it's hard when half of your life is in a different city and you're still fairly new to this one. But I digress.

Since I've got a lot of time to myself tonight, I think I'm going to treat myself to a movie. I'm trying to decide what to see. I've narrowed it down to Babel, The Queen, or Running with Scissors. If I'm feeling like I want to be enlightened in some way, I'll see Babel. Or The Queen. If I'm feeling quirky, it'll be Running with Scissors. I'm not sure what movie I'm more likely to see with someone else. I'll probably end up at Running with Scissors. I'm sure you're riveted by all of this.

It's been a while since I've seen a movie by myself. I think the last time was when I saw Thank You for Smoking. The first movie I ever saw on my own was Ladder 49. It was a big step for me. I was newly single, trying to remind myself that I could do things on my own, and, well, it had Joaquin Phoenix in it. (By the way, if you're not following the links, I highly recommend clicking on that one.) I'd always been nervous about seeing a movie alone, and the first time was tough. But after a few tries, I think I've got it down pretty good.

I think I'll go with Running with Scissors. I need to laugh. Has anyone else seen their first movie alone yet?

09 November 2006

Harry and the Hendersons

I'm sitting in my living room having a drink with Casey when I discover that Harry and the Hendersons was actually on TV. An HBO channel I think. How this movie brings back memories. I wore the tape out when I was young, and watching it tonight I could still remember how I felt every time I watched the mom put a bandage on Harry's wound; or when Harry imitated a police siren to get through the traffic. Does anyone else remember this movie? I must buy it. It made me feel like a kid again.

As I was watching it tonight, I started to wonder about Harry. How did they do that? It had to be a real person under there, but was he really that tall or was it trick photography? While I was looking up the movie on IMDb, I clicked on the actor's name, Kevin Peter Hall. Turns out he was really that tall; 7'2". He was an African-American actor who was in the Predator movies, among other things. His bio states that his face is only seen at the end of Predator, a movie in which he plays the Predator and a helicopter pilot. Apparently he died in 1991 after getting a tainted blood transfusion after a car accident. He ended up with AIDS.

While I never followed this man's career, I feel a certain sense of loss in learning that he died so many years ago of something so tragic. Even tonight watching that movie from so long ago made me feel like a kid again; somehow made me feel OK. Comforted. And now that I know the man who played Harry is dead, I feel like my grown up world has somehow forced its way into my childhood. Reality has reminded me that I can't ignore it. Just makes me sad.


Anyway, I highly recommend this movie. It's not great, but if there's still some kind of child left inside of you, you might appreciate it.

08 November 2006

So......

Rumsfeld is gone. Why did this take so long? Oh yeah, our President's got blinders on.

Walking home, I ended up behind a student finishing his cigarette. The downwind was blowing the smoke in my face, and immediately I hated it. I'm not going to say that people shouldn't smoke at all, and I'm not going to try to tell smokers when and where they should smoke. I don't understand the allure, but that doesn't matter right now.

The second I'm around smoke, my head or chest tells me what it thinks. It's worse when I'm walking rather briskly, breathing a little faster and harder than usual. I don't have asthma, but my allergies frequently make it a little more difficult for me to breathe at the same level that most others do from day to day. (I realize that asthmatics have it a lot worse, so don't get angry with me) And once that smoke gets in there, you can forget it. It just doesn't feel good.

I guess I just wish I could either a) breathe much better than I can so that smoke doesn't bother me so much, or b) figure out how to navigate the wind successfully every time I'm around a cigarette.

So anyway, I should tell you how much I love the commercial on the TV right now for Senokot. "Naturally Gentle, Gentle Naturally." It's a laxative. The commercial contained: a man giving a woman flowers he picked, a deer running, a basketful of puppies, a little boy petting a kitten, etc. Does this make you want to go to the bathroom? Or at least take Senokot if you can't? Tell me someone, because all I can do is laugh.

07 November 2006

Thoughts thought whilst walking home and sitting on my porch

If I had a cell phone that had all kinds of capabilities, I'd never use anything else to do anything else. I'd take pictures, download music, get scores (god help me if I ever have one during baseball season), play awesome games, chat, and cuddle with it at night. I'm already one of these people who can't STAND to be anywhere without my cell phone.


My iPod loves me, despite its many scratches and drops. I know this because it randomly played three (count 'em, THREE) Elliott Smith songs in a row. It knows me so well.


A mosquito is, once again, going to prevent me from staying outside on my very nice porch. The little fucker.


I'm not sure if we're supposed to keep the grass short on the other side of the fence (the area between our fence and the sidewalk). I only wonder because it's starting to look like shit.


I told my boyfriend to write down everything he loves about me before this weekend, because I might (MIGHT) take all of my PMS aggression out on him. He'll need a list to reference when I'm crying for no apparent reason and blaming it on him. ("Wait, why do I put up with this every month?") After a year and a half of dating, should he be used to this by now? I sure as hell hope so. And I hope he takes my advice, because I'm already feeling physical pain. Emotional distress shall soon follow. It's a good thing the girls are going to get me drunk this weekend.


I'm going to miss him when the girls get me drunk this weekend.


We need a pet.

06 November 2006

Beck



I'm sure this will be taken off of You Tube by the time people try to watch it, but I thought I'd try to post it anyway. It's a video of Beck's performance on SNL two weekends ago. It's pretty good, but I'd have to argue that it sounds like Beck stole his catchy little riff from The Unicorns. That little guitar bit is contained in their song "Child Star" near the end. If you have the cd, listen. You'll hear it. It's a tiny bit different, but it's close enough for me to think "I've heard that before. That's not his."

Beck, I think you're good, but Canadians beat you to that melody.

A post full of hearts

I sometimes wonder how I ended up dating the person I'm with. He's one of those great people who I thought would never be interested in someone like me. Not that I'm a totally lame person or anything; he was an English major and I was a bored Theatre major. We had an English class together that focused on the rise of drama in America, and the English major (of course) had much more interesting comments to make than the Theatre major. So I just naturally assumed he'd think I was some kind of flake and that'd be that. Apparently he didnt.

He's a writer; much better than most of the junk that's published these days, light years better than I could ever be. I, though, am probably a better Googler than he could ever dream of being. (These are of the same caliber, of course.) He likes a room to be freezing at night. I like a room to be just cool enough to use more than one blanket. He doesn't watch any sports. I watch football, baseball, some basketball, and The Lonestar Rollergirls. (To be fair, he likes the Rollergirls too.)

My point is that he and are probably quite different if you were to write us down on paper. But we've got the essentials: we like the same music, the same movies (mostly), the same politics, the same jokes. We grew up with similar parents, beliefs, and activities. It's just amazing to me that someone I initially thought would be so different than me is the one person I feel is most like me. Just thought I'd share that.

In other news, has anyone else seen the 5 Hour Energy commercial? It first shows people falling asleep at work (one's even a doctor--how secure I feel!). Then, after they drink the 5 Hour Energy drink, they're BAM! Back in action. It even shows this one man walking down a cubicle hallway mysteriously upper cutting the air with his fist. I mean really, have you ever felt so energized you've just HAD to throw a punch? This is excluding the boxers out there. We know how you roll.

If you don't watch the Colbert Report, allow me to tell you what he did tonight, the bastard. He has a balloon drop planned for tomorrow night after the midterms. Of course, all of the balloons are red. So if people want to see a fabulous balloon drop, they have to vote Republican. To drive the point home, he had two very cute children come out and say to the camera, to America, "Vote Republican!" Yeah, it was cute.

I'm about to post this at 11:20 PM by my computer clock. Hopefully Blogger won't screw me over and show it as a 12:01 entry again.

I swear

that my computer clock said 11:59 when I hit "Publish Post." Damn you Blogger clock. Damn you.

I have failed

I gotta say, I'm not surprised. I knew it would be hard to post when I was in Huntsville, since there are not very many opportunities to get a good internet connection there.

Does anybody else hate that Rascal Flatts cover of "Life is a Highway"? I know I do.

Does anybody else LOVE the LeBron James commercial on ESPN where he's trying to fix the copy machine? I know I do.

I've got 3 minutes until the end of Sunday, so I'd better make this quick.

My Cowboys lost, my Bearkats won, and I got to take my boyfriend out to see Borat this weekend. All in all, not a bad few days. I hope you had a good one too. See you tomorrow.

03 November 2006

Since I said it...

Since I said the cat video wouldn't be my only post today, I have to write another one. But this one will again be short and sweet, as I have 10 minutes until the end of this VERY long work week.

It's the boyfriend's birthday today, and tomorrow I'm taking him to see Borat. I'm rather excited, and I think I'll like Sacha Baron Cohen a lot more after this. In fact, I already do. I appreciated Da Ali G Show, but I never really hooked on to it. I'll have to post a short review...although I wonder if everyone else who sees the movie will post a short review.

Now for the sweet part: I send you my cuddles. Have a good Friday evening!




Seriously, look at the Karate Cat again.

AGH!!

I've fallen in love with this video! You will too! I've watched it a dozen times already!



This will not be my only post today. But probably my best.

02 November 2006

By the way...

This is what I'm doing.

Return to Sender

I got this flyer in the mail today that has a silhouetted picture on the front of an adult holding a child's hand, while the child is holding an American flag. It also says "On Nov 7th Your Vote Will..."

On the back it says at the top "Decide Whose Values Guide Texas." It then has a checklist of issues and says yes or no for whether the Democrats and Republicans support these issues.

"Parental Notification for a minor daughter's abortion"
"The Defense of Marriage Act, defining marriage between a man and a woman"
"Laci Peterson Law, which protects pregnant women from violence"
"A ban on burning the American flag"
"Judges who will strictly interpret the Constitution"

Of course, the Democrats say "NO" to all of these issues while the Republicans say "YES."

I have a lot to say about this, but I feel like I should just wait until tomorrow, when I'll vote early.

At the bottom of the back, it says "The Choice is Clear."
I promptly turned the flyer back over, crossed my name and address out, and wrote, "Return to Sender. I'm a Democrat."*

*To be honest, I'm not sure what I am...I just know I'm not a Republican, and I'd rather see a monkey as governor than Rick Perry. And I'd rather see a Band-Aid as President rather than George.

Oh No!

I've already failed! I didn't post yesterday!

Oh well, I'll post two entries today. This one will be short and sweet, as I am at work and actually have (*shock*) work to do.

Now for the sweet part: You look gorgeous in that top.

31 October 2006

All you need is Willie Nelson

Do you like Willie Nelson? Do you like Ryan Adams and the Cardinals? If so, we can be friends and listen to Songbird together. And we will enjoy ourselves.

I was Agnetha Faltskog for Halloween, and my cousin was Anni-Frid Lyngstad. In short, we were the wonderful women from ABBA. I had fun with this on Saturday night, but I think I had even more fun at work today. My boss fashioned a microphone for me using a screwdriver, a stress ball, and cardstock. I painted it black and sprinkled gold glitter on it. It just sat there for most of the Halloween party we had in our office; that is, until one of the professors came in. He was attempting to vote on best costume, and when my boss told him who I was, his face lit up and he declared that he loved ABBA. And he wasn't kidding. Apparently he saw Mamma Mia!, the ABBA musical, three times. And he knew all the words. AND, we ended up singing some of Ferdinand together, which ended up being filmed with the office camera. If I can, I'll try to share that with my dear readers.

I don't think I need to tell you how awesome it was to sing ABBA with a professor who tends to keep to himself and who can be a tad intimidating. No longer. He loves ABBA.

I tried to sign up to write a blog every day in November, but I have a feeling I might fail at this. I don't know if it will bother me much when it happens (the failure, that is), but right now I really, really want to make sure I write a blog entry every day. Wish me luck.

27 October 2006

What I Do At Work



Here's a spooky picture (taken with nightvision):




And it's sort of blurry, but here's my Dragonsauraus:



I can't help but feel lucky to have this job sometimes.

Friday morning cartoon!



You can find more of Bill Sargent's cartoons here.

Early voting is still happening, and will be until Nov. 3. If for no other reason, get Perry out of office so the poor kids of Texas don't have to take a TAKS test as if their life depended on it.

I should really write more, since interesting things happen throughout the week but I forget them all by the time I decide to blog. Oh well.

If you're in Austin and you know where I live, come by tomorrow night. There will be ABBA. That's all you need to know.

18 October 2006

Flossing

I usually use Oral-B Satin Floss, because it really does slide through my teeth like satin. And that's important, as I don't have very big gaps between my teeth. They are instead rather close together. Last night I realized that I hadn't flossed in a while, since the boyfriend (who flosses every night no matter where he is) had used the last of my Satin wonderfulness. So I borrowed, nay, stole some regular Mint Waxed floss from my cousin/roommate. I think it was Johnson's, but I can't be sure.

I hadn't realized how spoiled I'd gotten with my Satin. While using Oral-B's floss, I could vaguely remember my dentist always telling me that if floss got stuck between your teeth, don't yank--slide it out. That's mad!, I thought. My floss doesn't get stuck between my teeth!, I thought.

The regular waxed floss reacts badly when it touches water and teeth. It does not slide between my teeth; rather, it jerks up to my gums, moves a millimeter back and forth, then gets stuck on the way out. And I mean STUCK. It got so bad a couple of times that I had to freak out, calm down, remember what the dentist said, then find creative ways to manuever it out from between my teeth. Because there was no sliding. The wax acted like a glue rather than a lubricant. My teeth are still a little sensitive today, especially the ones that I got close to pulling out while trying to dislodge the demon floss.

Listen to me people. Buy the Satin floss. Your life will change. But you'll never be able to use another floss again.

13 October 2006

Back at home

I'm sitting at home in my dad's reclining chair watching news anchors talk about the Navy's 231st birthday. My plans for this weekend changed a few days ago, and I thought I'd just be sitting around alone at home tonight. But I'm at home home now, the house I grew up in, due mainly to a slideshow emailed to me by my mother that contained pictures of my youngest niece and nephew. How can one not come home after seeing adorable family like that?

My mom and I played a stirring game of jacks tonight, which she won of course. Last weekend we had a quick challenge, and she beat me pretty handily. Tonight I gave her a run for her money, but of course she remains "the champ" (her term).

In case anyone has a hard time recalling what jacks look like,



Now we're watching If Looks Could Kill. Richard Grieco. Enough said. Well, not enough. This movie also stars the Sheriff of Rottingham.

10 October 2006

What I Did At Work Today

Stole this picture from Party City's website:





Scanned this picture of my Driver's License:




And put the two together. Because of copyright reasons (and also because it's already on the door to our office) I can't show you the end product. But trust me, it's good.

02 October 2006

Kinky, ACL, & Baseball (American traditions)

Kinky Friedman is a candidate I'm supporting. I know the people who take the time to read this aren't all Kinky fans. So if you're not, the next paragraph might just be scanning material.

First off, Kinky will be at UT this Wednesday. He will be in the Texas Union Ballroom beginning at 11. I'm going to take an early lunch, but I doubt I'll make it in time to be able to see the man. Hopefully they'll have their sound system blaring so those of us who are short and in the back will be able to hear him. It's officially 11-1, so if you have the time, please make it out there to hear him.

Second, I got an email from the boyfriend tonight that stated this:

"We are less than a week away from the only televised debates of this gubernatorial election. That's right: the only chance you are going to get to see the people vying to lead Texas for the next four years going head-to-head will be this Friday night, before the UT-OU football game.

Democracy! The debate's going to be an hour long, without commercials, and will run from 7pm-8pm (central time). In addition to the statewide cable channel TXCN, the following stations will run the debate:

In Dallas WFAA
In Houston KHOU
In San Antonio KENS-TV
In Austin KVUE-TV"

Even if you're not a Kinky believer, I think this debate is worth your time. Come on guys, this state just isn't getting it done anymore (the country's not doing so hot lately either). Please do something...vote.

I've finally uploaded my very lame collection of ACL pictures to Flickr. I forget that I have my camera when I'm having a good time. My Cowboys pictures are still coming...

My 'Stros aren't in the running anymore. So I'm giving my allegiance to (gasp, sigh, hanging of head) the St. Louis Cardinals. If anyone SHOULD win, it should be them. I'm not taking into account the recent slip and slide they had, mind you. But this is a good, solid team. They only thing that could hurt them (and probably will) is their lack of good pitchers. Let's hope Pujols, Edmonds, Carpenter, and the boys can pull them through. Good luck guys. This is the one time I'll be rooting for you.

29 September 2006

Picture Essay




This is how I feel when people talk about how bad SHSU is going to lose this weekend.


On a completely unrelated note, I saw a shirt today that said on the back, "Mom. Dad. I'm Gaelic."

A hippopotumus is just a really cool opotumus.

I've come to the conclusion that I probably shouldn't read my blog. Every time I do, I wonder why I write it. I used to do that with my diaries too. Like I need to impress myself with my diary.

Last night I watched some YouTube of Mitch Hedberg. I'd never really seen him or heard his stuff, but a lot of my friends love him and I now see why. Maybe you recognized his joke in the title line.

I've grown to have a love/hate relationship with this time of year. Here's why:

The weather is beautiful. I still break a sweat walking to and from work, but it's not the kind that soaks through my shirt and makes me feel like I've just been to the sauna. The wind is blowing cool air for a change, and even the squirrels and birds seem to be more chipper. Plus, it's just a matter of time until I get to dress up in my Fall/Winter wardrobe. I probably shouldn't call it a wardrobe so much as "the few sweaters and long sleeved shirts I own," but it also includes my awesome collection of coats and jackets. Which I won't need until...well, I probably won't need any extra layers in Austin. Bummer.

But this time of year also means that almost all of the people around me are in school. Which means they have homework and exams. Which means they can't just up and go to a Shostakovich recital with me. I'm not really complaining--I have something taking up my evenings these next few months as well. But it is sad to not have those carefree nights anymore.

I think a friend of mine is angry with me, but as she's not returning my phone calls, I can't be sure. Stinks.

21 September 2006

I think a cold's comin'




Really, I think I might be getting sick.

I want to upload my ACL pictures on Flickr, but I'm not at home right now (The horror! I'm at work!), so those will have to wait.

There's some office drama going on right now, but thankfully I'm not involved in any way. I'm just a spectator. With ring-side seats.

The Science of Sleep is coming out tomorrow. The boyfriend doesn't know it yet, but he's going to go with me to that movie. I don't think he's going to mind. I also want to see Jet Li's "final martial arts epic" Fearless, but I have a feeling that's one I'll have to see on my own. By the by, has anyone heard why this is his "final martial arts epic?" I'm desperate to know. I dig the Jet Li.

The comic at the beginning of the post was just too good not to share.

14 September 2006

Just go here

Bush v Bush

America, the treehouse

Just read a New York Times article about the debate of the army's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. To refresh, the Armed Forces won't allow openly gay men and women to enlist. They will, however, allow high school dropouts and some convicted criminals. Am I missing something here? There are homosexuals trying to get into the Army, Isn'trying! And they're being turned away for the alternative--someone who most likely doesn't have the same drive or ambition.

The claim is that allowing openly gay individuals will cut into morale and 'cohesion.' One supporter of the ban says that "people should not have to expose themselves to other persons who are sexually attracted to them." I'm sorry, but when were straight men and women not sexually attracted to the opposite sex? Aren't they all in "conditions of forced intimacy"? If straight men and women can learn to keep their hands off each other, I think gay men and women can learn to do the same.

I also find it odd that a country that seems to support equal opportunity employment, punishing discrimination to the point where a person who makes a derogatory joke is ostrasized, is having trouble with discrimination in a field of work that arguably needs all the people it can get. And it has citizens volunteering, citizens it's turning away because of a sexual preference.

Some people would tell me that if I hate things here (in America) so much I should just go somewhere else. But this isn't a treehouse in a backyard. It seems like a lot of people think of this country as such--a treehouse with a sign that says "No foreigners, gays, or critics allowed." Hey Bush administration, if you don't have those, you don't have a damn country to run into the ground. Remember that.

Sorry for politics again. I'll be out cavorting with the masses the next three days. Whoo! I know you care, so I'll tell you who I'll probably be seeing (bolds are ones I'm dying for):

The Dears
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
deadboy & the Elephantmen
Wolf Parade
Gnarls Barkley
Okkervil River
Cat Power & the Memphis Rhythm Band
Thievery Corporation
Ray Lamontagne
Van Morrison (let's hope he plays some old songs)
Murder by Death
Ben Kweller
TV on the Radio
The Shins
Calexico

Aimee Mann
What Made Milwaukee Famous
String Cheese Incident
Kings of Leon
Iron and Wine
Willie Nelson

Kathleen Edwards
Jose Gonzalez
Buckwheat Zydeco
The New Pornographers
Son Volt
The Flaming Lips
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers


YAY!

11 September 2006

ACL mothas!

I'm posting this entry mainly for my friend Marci who can't seem to remember that I'll be rocking my booty off this week at the festival whose babies I'd like to have. I realize that sentence went a little far, but I don't care. I'm psyched.

Austin City Limits is this weekend, and I will be there. Every day. Until my limbs can no longer move and my ears can no longer hear. I will probably be blowing weird things out of my nose for a week afterwards, if the last two years are any indication. Again, too far. Sorry.

Please go here if you are interested (or want to tell me which bands to see for you): ACL Festival.

I realize this was full entry was full of gloating. To make sure I don't seem like I'm totally self-centered, I'll give you this as well, courtesy of Cute Overload:

08 September 2006

Work & Play

Today we were finally able to drop students that did not meet a requirement of a particular class. There were only 4 total spots freed out of 5 sections. 4 spots. Over this last week and a half, we've had more than 4 people come in and call wanting to know if there were open seats. Now we wait and see if those people have given up on their quests or if they will persevere after all. Wish them luck.

Walking into work yesterday morning, I passed a group of four men who looked a lot like contractors. As I approached, I heard one say "Excuse me for what I'm about to say, but those guys are assholes." I heard 'assholes' the moment I passed. There was a beat, then three other men said things like "That's what I've heard" and "Well, I'm sure you know what you're talking about." There's nothing extraordinary about this story, but I love (LOVE) that awkward moment after someone says something like "those guys are assholes" when everyone else is trying to figure out how they should react. Even when I'm in the same predicament and I feel incredibly nervous, I still get a rush. It's when the listeners of the group are actually communicating through ESP. "What should we say? Who should speak first? Is he just saying this out of spite or does he know what he's talking about?"

Yesterday afternoon I went to my old work building. It was odd, especially the difference in how I felt walking in there. I didn't feel like there was a chance of me tearing my hair out at the thought of stepping onto the elevator.

UT plays Ohio State tomorrow. I don't care who you are or where you graduated from, I think it's almost impossible to live in Austin and not care even the tiniest bit about football season when it rolls around. Even if all you are concerned with is the lack of parking or the influx of outsiders, you're still engaged in this mammoth thing most of us call heaven. I don't have any tickets to games, but I do have a TV and a few bars within walking distance. I'm still a Bearkat at heart, but I can't help but root for the hometown boys.

01 September 2006

Political Fridays

OoooK. I admit I'm not a political scientist major, and I truly am not the most informed person in the world. Most of the time I don't care very much about politics, but lately (with the high temperatures all over the world, the war that was 'won' but is still taking lives, the continued terrorist threats...) I've been thinking more and more about our government, it's reputation, and it's personal history.

Heading through my daily dose of blogs, I came across the following video on Blurbomat. The video was a reaction to this speech by Donald Rumsfeld.



Assuming you've skimmed the speech and watched the video: I looked up the term fascism just to better inform myself of it's true definition. I find that since it's more of an abstract description, it's hard to pin down the true meaning.

I looked at Wikipedia:
"Fascism is also typified by totalitarian attempts to impose state control over all aspects of life: political, social, cultural, and economic. The fascist state regulates and controls (as opposed to nationalizing) the means of production. Fascism exalts the nation, state, or race as superior to the individuals, institutions, or groups composing it. Fascism uses explicit populist rhetoric; calls for a heroic mass effort to restore past greatness; and demands loyalty to a single leader, often to the point of a cult of personality."

Dictionary.com:
"1.(sometimes initial capital letter) a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power, forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism, regimenting all industry, commerce, etc., and emphasizing an aggressive nationalism and often racism.
2.(sometimes initial capital letter) the philosophy, principles, or methods of fascism.
3.(initial capital letter) a fascist movement, esp. the one established by Mussolini in Italy 1922–43."

Remember.org:
"Fascists particularly loathed the social theories of the French Revolution and its slogan: "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity."

*** Liberty from oppressive government intervention in the daily lives of its citizens, from illicit searches and seizures, from enforced religious values, from intimidation and arrest for dissenters; and liberty to cast a vote in a system in which the majority ruled but the minority retained certain inalienable rights.

*** Equality in the sense of civic equality, egalitarianism, the notion that while people differ, they all should stand equal in the eyes of the law.

*** Fraternity in the sense of the brotherhood of mankind. That all women and men, the old and the young, the infirm and the healthy, the rich and the poor, share a spark of humanity that must be cherished on a level above that of the law, and that binds us all together in a manner that continuously re-affirms and celebrates life.

This is what fascism as an ideology was reacting against_and its support came primarily from desperate people anxious and angry over their perception that their social and economic position was sinking and frustrated with the constant risk of chaos, uncertainty and inefficiency implicit in a modern democracy based on these principles. Fascism is the antithesis of democracy. We fought a war against it not half a century ago; millions perished as victims of fascism and champions of liberty."


I know that's a lot to read; apologies. But taking from those three places (I'm at work, so I can't do a true library search), I've pretty much figured out what facism is. I guess the statement "fascism is the antithesis of democracy" speaks loudest.

I understand that our current administration believes that fascism is what we are fighting when we're fighting the 'War on Terror.' But I find it increasingly hard to believe that the current administration doesn't see that they themselves are giving off the aura of "forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism." God forbid a newspaper or magazine criticize the government's job; of course that means they (the newspaper) don't have the nation's best interest in mind. "Liberty from oppressive government intervention in the daily lives of its citizens, from illicit searches and seizures, from enforced religious values, from intimidation and arrest for dissenters." By all means, Government, please tap whatever you'd like, and make sure you keep those crazy homosexuals from marrying--they can't be serious anyway, since the Bible says it's wrong.

I have several people in my life who are conservatives, and that's great. An all liberal government can be just as harmful as a our current conservatively biased one. I think the answer is to get some moderates in power--at least they're used to hearing both sides of a story before making a decision. I know I'm not the first to say any of this, so I know you may feel like you've heard it all before. But since I usually keep my mouth shut about these things, I thought I could snag a little air time.

You can probably tell that I'm not politically minded, but is that such a bad thing? I only speak up every once in a while; I'm more concerned with whether or not my Astros or Cowboys are winning.

I decided to post all of this mainly because Keith Obermann's speech moved me--even when I had my 'work' face on.

I promise my next post will be more entertaining.

29 August 2006

Hilarious

So I went to my very first Dallas Cowboys game this weekend, and I have some pictures, but for now I just want to send you here: Star Trek sings Knights of the Round Table.

I promise it's worth your while.

Oh what the heck, here's one picture from this weekend.

22 August 2006

My city


My city
Originally uploaded by ihearttheastros.
I got this lucky shot tonight.



We walked to campus for some exercise, and decided to go to the capital too. Unfortunately I forgot my camera.

If you live in Austin, be sure you visit this city once in a while. Remember why you moved here (or have stayed here) in the first place. It's pretty amazing.

21 August 2006

Casey bartends


Casey bartends
Originally uploaded by ihearttheastros.
Just found this. Casey majored in bartending for the ladies.

16 August 2006

No Joke

This is a true story. I finished my lunch today and opened one of my drawers to put my extra napkins away. I discovered that I had some bite size chocolate treats left from the Office Depot thingy about a month ago(that's another story altogether), so I decided to eat them before they got too old. These treats consisted of a)tiny bite-sized Snickers, b)tiny bite-sized 3 Musketeers, and c)small Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate.

I kid you not, after eating those I am in a much better mood. I'm not depressed about my job; I'm seriously thinking of applying for some classes (something I've been putting off for a while); I'm excited about the prospect of cooler weather in a few months (tell me I'm crazy now). Chocolate is amazing.

Now let's just hope I don't want to kill someone when I inevitably come down from my small chocolate high.

15 August 2006

NYT

I have a rant. Here it is:

I found this New York Times article through Gawker in which the author (Stuart Elliott) writes about his surprising discoveries when he traveled outside of New York: On the Road, an Ad Landscape That Is Increasingly Familiar

Call me...whatever you want to call me, but I couldn't stand it. I'm tired of being stereotyped by the New York media. We don't all ride horses or farm in the rest of the country. Goodness! This was the email that I wrote to the editor:

"NYT,

I realize that it's a slim chance this email will be read, and I also realize that it won't matter to many at the New York Times what some random Texan thinks about your articles. I am only writing this to make myself feel a little better; like I've at least tried to right some kind of wrong today.

Stuart Elliott's article, "On the Road, an Ad Landscape That is Increasingly Familiar," has to be the funniest thing I've read today. Is it really true that people in New York don't realize that the rest of the country is living with the same things they are? Yes, we drink overpriced coffee; yes, we pay too much for gas; yes, we actually have the amazing internet--not just in our homes (egads!), but also in our hotels. Motels, even. Is it any surprise that a national chain such as Starbucks or Cingular would make their services available to those of us in the middle of the country? Doesn't "national chain" mean that it will be in places other than New York?

Wait, maybe I should just feel sorry for you guys. Visiting New York, we were hard pressed to find Lone Star or Shiner, two of the best reasons to live in Texas. You don't have HEB or Central Market, great grocery stores with low prices and high quality. You have to have Blue Bell ice cream shipped to you, when we can just walk to the nearest convenience store to find pure ecstasy in gallon form.

I find that we as Americans in general tend to be naive and think we're incredibly special, and some New Yorkers (some, mind you) tend to live in a bubble. While I love Austin, I realize that others might not be able to stand the heat (100 degrees is a norm, guys) or might not find Alamo Drafthouse (voted Best Theater in America by Entertainment Weekly) that exciting. And while in my previous paragraph I listed things you don't have in NY, I certainly wouldn't be surprised to see a presence of any of those items in your stores or streets. Maybe that's because I realize there's a world outside of my city limits."

Is that too....ranty? I don't know. I read over it a few times and edited a lot, and I don't really care if it's published. I just wanted to make sure I did something about the way I was feeling as a result of that article.

Whew!

Rant, cease.

14 August 2006

Useless Information

My friend Marci has forced me to do this. Not against my will, mind you, but still...

Four jobs I have had in my life:

1. Convenience store (Citgo)
2. Blinn Junior College Theater student worker
3. Tour Guide, SHSU
4. Administrative Assistant, UT

Four Movies I would watch over and over.

1. The Princess Bride
2. Shakespeare in Love
3. Spaceballs
4. Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade

Four Places I have lived

1. Burton, TX
2. Huntsville, TX
3. North Austin, TX
4. Central Austin, TX

Four TV shows I love to watch

1. House
2. Gilmore Girls
3. Project Runway
4. Right now, Sports Night

Four places I’ve been on vacation

1. Germany
2. Cozumel
3. California
4. London

Web sites I visit daily

1. Page 2
2. Dooce
3. Email sites
4. Myspace (hangs head in shame)

Four of my favorite foods

1. Chocolate anything
2. Lime & Black Pepper chips
3. Tuna sandwiches
4. Trudy's queso

Four places I’d rather be right now

1. Bed
2. Beach
3. London
4. Somewhere where I make more money

Four friends I think will respond

1. Casey?
2. Rebecca?
3. Random reader?
4. Stalker?

Have at it, kids!

11 August 2006

Adorably sweet




If you are allergic to cuteness, I don't think we can be friends.

Or we can, but you'll have to watch videos like this with me when we hang out, so get used to it.

Sports Night



If you love (or even like) sports and/or TV, you owe it to yourself to watch this show. I saw it for a while when it was new on ABC, and then I religiously watched the reruns on Comedy Central at midnight. Now I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy the DVD.

If you're cynical as a means of existence (like the boyfriend can be sometimes), you might find the show a little cheesy at times. You might think the stories are a little trite, or predictable. But I still maintain that as long as predictable stories are well told and well acted, they'll always be worth your while. Always. Transamerica was pretty predictable, but it was still a good movie. (Coincidentally, same female star.)

Do yourself a favor and rent this show. Or add it to your Netflix queue. If you hate it, I'm sorry. If you love it, let's discuss.

09 August 2006

YES




My friend Marci showed me this video. I am forever in debt to her wisdom and loving kindness for showing me the greatest thing I've ever seen.

Hottest coolest time in Texas

I've had some kind of life lately. What's that all about? I'm supposed to not do anything productive in my day to day existence and then write about insightful thoughts I have. Oh well.

I went to Schlitterbahn recently and had a grand ole time doing so. My cousin pointed out during our visit that people our age were floating the river rather than coming into the park to ride rides. While I see the allure in that (no kids, no lines, no overpriced admission), I still really like the smell of sunscreen and the anticipation of going to a water park. I still enjoy the thrill of finally getting to sit in your tube after waiting 15-45 minutes and be shot around a water ride for 5 minutes (if that). I still want to ride the tram from park to park and remember the days when I didn't care what I looked like in a bathing suit. (Although according to my cousin the backs of my thighs looked better than some high school kid's in front of us. Ahh, how wonderful women are.)

I guess our next adventure will be floating the river, even though I'm not a good swimmer at all (I'm one of the freaks who never learned to tread water as a child). At the end of the day, tired and thirsty, the idea of just floating with a cooler full of beer within arms reach was tempting. But I'm glad we took the time to make what could be one of our last trips to a childhood favorite without our own children in tow. I recommend it. Recapture your youth people. And do it on the Whitewater Rapids tube ride.