hey dude, let's start a band! we'll have violins, acoustic and electric, and a couple keyboards, and then the standard electric lead, back-up, and bass guitars, and drums of course. only, the drums will have like 20 symbols. we'll play christmas music! i mean, heavy metal! we'll play heavy metal christmas music! and have lights! and lasers! and fire!

thus was born the trans-siberian orchestra.

i went to their christmas show tonight. it was loud. and bright. i've been deafened by concerts before, but this was the first time i was also blinded. it was pretty awesome. and 80s-tastic.

the rest of christmas was awesome as well. i have about 3 1/2 new scarves. sweet.

july 16, 2005: it's official! of course last time, we only had to wait till june 20 or something... grr... anyhoo, i can't wait! it's the first item on my birthday list =D

for those of you who are not as big nerds as me, and who i haven't told already, i'm talking about harry potter 6. yay!

up for discussion: what will happen/what will we find out?

i say, hermione and ron will totally hook up.

badass title... shizzolated! (the shizzolator version of the most recent post)

i heart christmas." yeah, maybe that shiznit's consumerist 'n kinda ridiculous 'n bordering on sacrilegious, 'n maybe i'm not even izzall that religious myself, but that shiznit just makes me feel izzall warm 'n squishy inside n' shit. so there, know what I'm sayin'?

so today i went see da nutcracker wit my little bro (trob) 'n tha dude's brizzle (jswift) n' shit. that shiznit wuz better than i remembered =D problematic yes (racist, sexist, heteronormative, exotifying other cultures, classist, yo' ass name that shiznit." ..), but amazing 'n beautiful at da same time, know what I'm sayin'? i couldn't help but wonder why i never tried out be in that shiznit (in da boston ballet version." .. i wuz in a different one)." then i remembered i wuz too tall fo' any of da parts fo' da level i wuz in, know what I'm sayin'? i wuz probably not skinny 'nuff either, know what I'm sayin'? 'n of course, da one i did had way mo' choreography fo' da kids do, 'n wuz probably mo' fun (i wuz an angel, know what I'm sayin'? .. there wuz a fog machine 'n everything!) n' shit.

so after da show we gots thai food in da theater district, know what I'm sayin'? then we came crib." then i WON SETTLERS! i RULE! n' shit. .. at colonizing hexagonal cardboard islands, know what I'm sayin'?

=D

i heart christmas. yeah, maybe it's consumerist and kinda ridiculous and bordering on sacrilegious, and maybe i'm not even all that religious myself, but it just makes me feel all warm and squishy inside. so there.

so today i went to see the nutcracker with my little bro (trob) and his girlfriend (jswift). it was better than i remembered =D problematic yes (racist, sexist, heteronormative, exotifying other cultures, classist, you name it...), but amazing and beautiful at the same time. i couldn't help but wonder why i never tried out to be in it (in the boston ballet version... i was in a different one). then i remembered i was too tall for any of the parts for the level i was in. i was probably not skinny enough either. and of course, the one i did had way more choreography for the kids to do, and was probably more fun (i was an angel... there was a fog machine and everything!).

so after the show we got thai food in the theater district. then we came home. then i WON SETTLERS! i RULE! ... at colonizing hexagonal cardboard islands.

=D

my long-awaited return! or... well, i heard people wanted some procrastination during finals.

so today i'm writing from the exotic family room! that's right, my little bro is home and he brought his laptop. and his girlfriend. pretty cool girl, but quite unappreciative of the strong bad emails. shame, really. the laptop is sweet tho. rawk, rawk on! (oh btw, little bro, i used your laptop, hope ya don't mind =D)

so besides the harry potter, which everybody and their mother seems to be re-reading, i've been all kinds of busy. went to wes last weekend, and conquored the swing. but then rbrig's skates conquored my ankles. and since last saturday i've been schooled thrice in settlers. i guess i just suck at colonizing poor defenseless (aside from the bandit) islands.

the week since has been long. had a great yoga class on tuesday, but haven't been able to go back since, due to busy-ness. wednesday night was the bridge club christmas party, at which my dad and i got schooled as well. then on thursday night we went out to legal seafood for dinner. last night i saw 'the incredibles' with the sadownik. it was, as she says, *amazing.* afterward, we chatted at toys 'r' us for lack of a better place to go (or, any open place for that matter). hey, it was cold. she hadn't heard about the school exploding, so i gave her the third-hand version. and we discussed the ridiculousness that are bratz (some new doll, like barbie).

so today we made christmas cookies! krumkaker, or crumb cookies. they're like waffle cones, only way more fragile and buttery. so mom did the bit with the iron, and them passed them to me and the bro and his gf, and we rolled them into tubes before they cooled too much to be rollable. or shaped them into cups using two real cups. so, with burned fingers, we went out and got a chrismas tree. now everyone's gone out, leaving me alone with the computer and 'carnivale' on hbo (reruns).

You scored as Voltron. Take it back to the original morphing mechanical thingies. Voltron could so lay the smack down on those gay little Power Rangers. Voltron 58% Strawberry Shortcake 50% Shera 42% Thundercats 33% Transformers 25% Smurf 8% Heman 0% Which 1980's Cartoon Character are you? created with QuizFarm.com

in other news, i moved power tools today.

last night i dreamed about picking up litter, post-appocalypse. it was kind of like the decordova exhibit, "the architect's brother" by robert parkeharrison, in dream form.

i also dreamed about 'sex and the city,' but i don't remember what the plot developments were.

then i woke up to discover my away message had been stolen.

i've decided on the 10h-12th of december to visit wes. it's all before finals and shiznit. so, spread the word. and plan a party. or not, but i do hope to go out with all my favorite 05's! maybe i'll charge my camera this time... i'll def. charge my *new phone*! (ooooh... and yes, i'm still excited about it)

so tonight i'm finally getting my first-aid training for leap, now that i might not be working for them beyond 3 more weeks... oh well.

also, we're nearing the end of our trip in euroblog--check out our latest hiking-climbing-not dying expedition! and comment! oh comment here too. as KPd says, digital love, werd.

i wanna go back to wes before winter break. when's a good time?

so thanksgiving was fun. food- family- and friends-tastic. went to decordova again, with awill this time (friend from highschool... the wes email nickname version of course). decided to take a tour of the current exhibit, thinking "maybe we'll learn some cool stuff about the artist." no. it was an "interactive tour," meaning, "i don't have a fucking clue any more than you do about this stuff, so i'm gonna ask what you all think about it and under the guise of not putting ideas in anyone's heads about what these pictures mean i'll ask leading questions to get you to use words like 'surreal.'" so we left the tour and looked at the pretty pictures ourselves. the exhibit is this amazing post-apocolyptic photo-painting set of pictures based loosely on the little prince. all should come check it out. tomorrow awill and i will check out the new high school. it's fun doing all this stuff i don't think to do normally but bring other people to when they visit from out of town. ok, i go to decordova plenty on my own too. but it's more exciting to see how many of my friends i can get in for free by various means.

15 G's of awesome

i've told some about Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg. it's that lake somewhere in western massachusetts that, aside from having the longest place name in the country (45 letters, typically), is one of those lakes you know about growing up in the bay state. and everyone knows what the name means:

"you fish on your side of the lake, i'll fish on my side of the lake, and nobody fishes in the middle."

well, it doesn't actually mean that, but i'll tell my kids one day just like my dad told me. only i'll probably add a qualifier because i'm bad at dishonesty. not that my dad knew he was wrong or anything.

so today the New York Times has an article entirely devoted to Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg! (you say it basically how it's spelled) so i thought i should share it with all of you.

gadgets and doodads

so before the whole finger-slicing incident, i was thinking about a sort of ode to my office post. so here it is, plus other stuff.

so my automatic answer to "what do you do?" is "oh i work at an afterschool program, and then i help out at an office, and i do some subcontracted programming for my mom." i realized this isn't very descriptive and to some extent does a disservice to my office job. so:

ode to my office

so i work at wells research and design, which makes optical testing equipment. like to test cell phone camera lenses and stuff. my boss invents the stuff, so he's one of those cool scatterbrained inventor types. he also has a daughter at wes, but that's another story.

so at the office, there are wicked cool doodads all over the place. like irises (like the one in your eye, only mechanical). and tons of stuff whose use i could never begin to guess. sometimes i go in and unpack a box full of the kind of doodads the company sells, and then re-pack it into differently sized boxes. sometimes my boss and i take measurements using the equipment. there are razor blades all over the place, cuz my boss likes to use them to cut stuff. well, xacto knives come in handy to make some stuff i guess, and cut labels and stuff; the blades help in the opening boxes and cutting tape. and slicing fingers, as i'm sure you all know. they add a sense of adventure and badassocity to the office setting. sometimes i sweep floors and call "remove this number from you fax-spam list" numbers, which isn't the most fun part. but sometimes i get to wear cool uv-blocking safety goggles and glue stuff together with cool uv-reactive glue that is applied with a syringe. it's no ordinary office job.

christmas came early!

i mean, sort of... kindofnotreally...

i got a new cell phone! it came with a new number, because now it's on a family share plan. it's a 781 number (middle boston suburbs area), but that's a small price to pay to not have to pay for my own whole plan. email me for the new number. i mean, email anyway, if ya know me. anyhoo, i <3 my new phone! it's an LG-VX4600 flip phone. verizon. this means it has no camera, but it does have a huge color screen and way fancier ringtones than the old phone. also, it won't turn off randomly due to battery slippage. also it's way small. and i think it vibrates. and i can make calls from my own house! which is kind of in a dead zone. and it does that thing where the same person can have a few different numbers, so i don't have to designate something as "someone cell" and another one as "someone home." this may all be standard, but it's new to me, so i'm excited. so gimme a call! ... once you have my number. or at home if you have that number.

well it's a damn good thing i went to the naked school

i've done a couple of dumb things lately, so i figured i ought to share them with the world so we can all laugh at and learn from my mistakes...

lesson 1: don't wear a white built-in bra tank top to hot yoga.
fortunately, the whole idea is to focus on yourself, so i can only assume the other people there were not focusing on me. and hopefully the teacher didn't notice...?

lesson 2: don't cut duct tape with a straight razor against thin air (instead of, say, a cutting board or something).
so, at my office there are always razor blades lying around, being handy for opening boxes and... um... cutting tape, i guess. well, for cutting anything and everything, actually, even tho there are a couple pairs of scissors around too. but the razors are just so convenient... so, i was using one to cut little strips of duct tape before i peeled it away. until i noticed it was cutting through more than one layer of the tape, and i didn't need that many strips. so then i started peeling before cutting, and sure enough, same thing, only this time the second layer through which i cut was my finger. ouch. then there were no band-aids big enough (don't worry, that's only because the only band-aids there were were those tiny little ones for paper-cuts and nelly's cheek, not because the cut was massive), so i wrapped it in gauze and taped it up. made typing pretty difficult.

lesson 3: don't forget about voter fraud just because it's november 3rd.
air america radio keeps talking about ohio, and that recount nader's trying to get. indymedia.us is covering this too. but remember 2000's ohio? what was it called again? oh yeah--florida. and there are problems there this year, too. not that i ever really thought there wouldn't be. and as the article's author says, the chances of an actual change in the official election result are slim. i'll just have to find solace in the fact that kerry wouldn't have been that much different. well, john kerry wouldn't have. a certain other kerry would have been *amazing*, especially if she appointed me veep or something. i watch the west wing, i know how to run a country =D

dubya's a uniter!

he's at least uniting the left with the rest of the world, especially the Netherlands it seems. but, as the bbc noted, the divisions between the u.s. left and the right--whose picture page seems to be having the same trouble sorryeverybody was having a week or so ago (hey, maybe we're not as different as we think... at least when it comes to web hosting)--seems to only be growing. i guess we can't have everything...

lutefisk!

mars has lutefisk, too! proving that nordic culture is the best ever. werd, the vikings even discovered mars first! or, for some reason, some nasa scientist thought it was a good idea to name an extraterrestrial rock after jellified fish product. the latter is more plausible, but i can't tell which explanation is cooler...
anyhoo, go norway!

wow, everyone has papers to write huh...

i can tell by all the hits the blog's gotten today... so, to fulfill my duty as person-with-no-homework, i'll post something to keep y'alls occupied while you try to avoid doing your own work. it might be boring tho; i haven't felt so creative lately. and i haven't been up to much.

let's see... i did see i <3 huckabees again, and it was still just as good. go see it when you don't have work. also i saw polar express. that was with leap; i wouldn't go see it on my otherwise. turns out it kinda sucks. i mean, the kids enjoyed it, but it was pretty crappy at entertaining adults. none of those jokes that only grown-ups get like in shrek; just bad acting by a bunch of cartoon kids with adult voices. and almost every voice was tom hanks, and it was pretty obvious too. the book was way better, this time because they had to add crap to the movie because the book was too short. then there were the roller-coaster type scenes, which belong in imax movies but not regular ones.

so i've been updating eurotrip04 with exciting stories and such. go look! and comment! pictures are always fun...

ooh also--sick of dumb wespeaks? well here's some real news to keep ya amused.

hm... sorry... still not much exciting to tell i guess. maybe soon.

culture shock

so, i knew it would happen; i guess i should really be impressed that it took so long. i only have my hippie parents and their hippie friends to blame for that one.

everyone knows wesleyan is a bubble. you leave (the way i see it, the school put me into forced academic retirement when they gave me that diploma), and words like queer and privilege and hegemony and problematic either have completely different meanings or are no longer part of the lexicon. in some ways, i really feel like i'm in a different world than my coworkers.

so yesterday (friday) one of my fellow leap teachers is talking about her ex-girlfriend. granted, this is massachusetts, home of everything that's wrong with the moral fabric of this nation, so i shouldn't have been surprised. but this was like some sort of double culture shock because i was so used to living in this radical world i wasn't sure how far left the rest of the world was. (yes, that's kinda messed up, but... just keep reading) so, that was way cool in an oh, maybe i don't have to worry about being the crazy leftist at work, way. yay. not that i was that worried; leap teachers are cool.

so today we had this conference/day of workshops thing that almost everyone went to. there's this training hours requirement thing that it filled. the first workshop was about how kids make friends and how their friendships work. it was so-so. then was the keynote speaker. then 5 of us girls went to a workshop about women working with women, basically discussing how all that middle school-type backstabbing/competitiveness/bullshit still happens between grown-up women. which is true, tho we actually all agreed we don't do it at leap. but, still valuable stuff to talk about.

then we had lunch. yummy.

then i went to this workshop on character education through cooperative recreation (learning social skills through playing games). it was really cool, and interesting, and valuable. only, the guy blamed a lot of the problems in schools on teachers' unions. now, the conference was full of after-school program teachers, most of whom raised their hand when asked during the keynote address whether we make enough money. the owner of our program was there so none of us raised our hand, though we already all make more than minimum wage so we're probably doing better than most of them. so, here we are mostly making shit for money, and this presenter (who is a professional presenter/inventor/something, not a caregiver) is shitting all over unions. grr. also, dose of reality. not that tuesday/wednesday wasn't that already... but still. fuckin' reality, why you gotta be so crappy?

so then we went out for a drink! yay work socializing! i'd heard so much about it from KPd, it was nice to finally get in on that action. well, kinda; i still had to drive home, as did almost everyone else, and my coworkers aren't as big lushes... but i heard stories about parties in the past...

so, we got to talking about the election, and i was so relieved to hear all but one of the people there had voted for kerry. or not voted at all. of course, we're all registered in massachusetts, so not a big deal anyway. but, the one who hadn't voted was the very same who is queer, and claimed she would have voted for bush! i didn't get a chance to ask why cuz she was at the other end of the table. i'm really interested. because i don't understand how a person could think, "well, you don't think i deserve the same rights as straight people, but you're totally qualified to lead this country." she's still a great person, but... pwhat?

so, it turns out, sometimes the real world makes less sense than the crazy leftist/radical/PCU. or i'm too wesleyanified to understand the real world. sigh; i really gotta move to the wesghetto in nyc.

vote.

this post actually has very little to do with voting, and a lot to do with this past weekend. which rawked. hardcore.

friday: good ol' wesleyan, once again

as the VICTORY PARADE!!! was pushed back to saturday, when i definitely couldn't make it, i decided against skipping out on becca and instead, as originally planned, drove down to wes after work on friday. amoxicilin is god, so i felt better enough to go out for a bit. so we headed over to sweigle's house (not outhouse... oops). i learned to play speed scrabble, and even won once! almost twice... then everyone else i knew showed up too, and there was much rejoicing (yaaay).

so then i was all innocently chattin w/ becca and nathan, and some dude comes over (lookes vaguely dke-ish, but i make no actual assumptions. i'll call him sketchyguy) and initiates the following conversation:

sketchyguy: are you wearing a bra under that sweater?
me: yes.
sketchyguy: are you wearing a shirt under the sweater?
me: yes.
sketchyguy: are you single?
me [mostly lying after this point]: no.
sketchyguy: are you in love?
me: um.... what kind of question is that? no.
sketchyguy: well, be an adult and have an affair.
me [turning completely towards becca and nathan]: so anyways...

so, yes, very sketchy. KPd told me later i should have decked him. maybe if i hadn't limited myself to one drink (for the cheat!) i would have, but i must admit i'm pretty pacifist.

so then there was more schmoozing, and then i left to play settlers with dave and beth and desan. i lost hardcore.

saturday: the jerz

(does anyone else call it that? or did i make it up?)

so then i drove on down to jersey. at la casa de KPd, i chilled with the d's for a while, and then with them plus TMQ, and then KPd and KGd and TMQ and i went to the meadowlands, by way of mickey-d's (mmm... chicken and fries and soda...). so we chilled in the car eating in the parking lot, and then we got in line for the GREEN DAY CONCERT!!!

while in line, we got to see a bunch of kids (high school age, i think) become corporate tools ("everyone on this side shout verizon! and then you all shout samsung!") the line was long, but mostly populated by people in the front floor section, so we made it to the front of the rear floor section pretty easily. we waited around and read people's text messages to the crowd (kids these days...) and then we saw the first opening band, sugar... something or other. they sing that bouncing off the walls again song. the girls around us were really into it. they were decent. then more standing around, then new found glory, who were good but didn't play any songs i knew of theirs. then more waiting. then...

GREEN DAY!!!

[as the stage decorations are getting set up... there's an ok picture of it here, the first one]
me [noting the big red curtains and flags]: dude, it's like the fuckin' third reich up there!
KPd: that's... horrible
me: well i'm sure it's done ironically
[as the music starts and the flags start to rise]
KPd: dude you're totally right
green day: plays 'american idiot'

amazing. as were the rest of the songs. and billy joe (NOT billy joel. billy joe. armstrong. of green day.) is *amazing.* works the crowd like a master. ohmygod. so the whole show is awesome-tastic. and there are fireworks. and lots of lights. and confetti--TWICE! after the first confetti, i was thinking, 'i wish there was more confetti' AND THERE WAS! so, all in all, the show was amazing-tastically awesome.

another plus, the crowd was mostly high school students. well, there were pluses and minuses to this. but most importantly, it meant when they all moshed and crowd-surfed, they weren't big enough to hurt us too badly. i got hit in the head a few times, but luckily have no noticeable bruises. there were other battle scars to other people, but nothing major.

now, the downside of all these high school students being there was that it made all of us (even KGd, i think) feel old. this happened whenever green day played a slow song. y'know how the thing to do is light a lighter and wave it back and forth, and it looks all cool with little flames all over the stadium? so now i guess the thing to do (at least for the young'uns) is that, only with one's cell phone instead of a lighter. this was very disconcerting. flame, cool (if dangerous). glow sticks, fine (esp. b/c of the not dangerous part). cell phones, HELL NO! it was very weird and scary. that's what made us feel old. and way cooler than high school students (at least, i felt that way).

so all in all, amazing concert. then, we went to the diner. or, a diner. how... jersey. apparently. in any event, pretty cool. yay all-night diners. then, back to la casa d. and to bed.

Sunday: back on home

the sun was shining the day i drove out of jersey, and i made good fuckin' time.

after breakfast and leaving later than intended, i made it home in just about 3:45, including a break. i guess not driving in the city makes everything way faster. lack of traffic helps too. so i was home in time to chill w/ the little bro for a bit, and then out to dinner w/ the family before sending t-bot back to school.

then dad and i went to see team america: world police (america--FUCK YEAH!), which was pretty good. kind of amazingly funny to people on both sides of the political spectrum, it seemed.

so, i'm pretty sure i'll be goin' on down to the 19 fountain election shindig. someone'll have to tape the daily show for me... but what with everyone at wes, i bet there'll be plenty of joking and revelry. and hopefully kerry/edwards will win. and it sounds like a lot of people will be too drunk to notice/care by that point. not me, for once, but i bet other people. and then we'll go protest his policies too. but maybe he'll listen a little better. only a little.

so, in conclusion, vote.

cautious optimism

a reason to be hopeful

and us bostonians know all about being hopeful... but i mean, WOOOT! for once it paid off! and hopefull it will in the election too.

granted, the link (which at the time of posting predicts kerry having 271 electoral votes come november 2), may change by the time you read this. but zogby himself said on the daily show last night that kerry will win too. so, yay!... hopefully.

ok, off to get ready for another rad weekend.

speechless

so it finally happened. i can't be-fucking-lieve it. nor can i put into words how exciting it is. obviously i mean the sox winning the world series. so amazing. so so great. so so so exciting. (lol, anyone ever played that game 'ha'?)

anyhoo, so i watched at least part of all 4 games. somewhat anticlimactic, but i did have enough heart attacks during the alcs. after the sox lost their 3rd game, i started planning out this whole 'what it means to be a sox fan' thing about the constant disappointment and the always spectacular losses. it was the one thing i could look forward to when i was so sure they'd lose in the only way worse than last year (the end-of-game aaron boone home run)--a sweep by the yankees. i kept thinking of things to add, about expecting and kind of relishing the pain and disappointment. and then... they won. so, you all miss out on what i'm sure would have been a heartfelt, yet still sarcastic and hopefully amusing post. but, never hearing the chant '1918' again is worth it. for real, i don't even know what to say.

luckily, i didn't have to say anything. i had the excuse of having laryngitis since tuesday, and am just getting over it now. for once my horribly sore throat (it hurt worse than any sore throat i've ever had, and i've had a lot) was not strep. so after the culture came back negative i figured it was viral and i'd have to wait it out. then it started constricting my throat and it was only getting worse, so i saw the doctor again (ok the first time was just a throat culture with a nurse; she didn't even take my temperature! but any trip to the office feels like a much bigger deal now that i have no insurance) and she said it wasn't strep but it is bacterial, and even after the first dose i could feel the amoxicilin working. so, woot! i can kinda talk again! and i might even get to put in one day of work this week! so exciting...

i'm still going to the concert this weekend, don't get me wrong. and i'm stopping at wes on the way down, but will not be going crazy like a certain other visit to wes. i may stop for lunch on the way back up, but seeing as my favorite little bro is visiting this weekend i want to get home early enough to see him at least for a couple hours. if only i could go to the victory parade... who knew? oh plus, the parade was supposed to be tomorrow (friday) after a 4-game sweep, not saturday, but no they had to go change their plans... well, there will be more parades =D and maybe we'll get opening day tickets =D

um... thank you, jaye pahkre?

so apparently, this blog is a publicly traded commodity. now, being rather anti-capitalist myself, one might think this is a problem. actually, i think it's kinda cool. if... weird. i mean, it's only *virtual* money. but right now badass title's valuation is B$6,254.07. i think the B means not real money, but i wish it meant billion. especially if i got to see some of that cash. i mean, usually, company owners see some of the profit... then again, what do i know about the stock exchange? oh besides that one time rage against the machine shut it down for about 10 mins. with the help of michael moore while shooting a music video. now that really is badass.

* name changed to protect the touchy

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!(RLD SERIES)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FUCK YEAH!

This has been an amazing week. And I must say, being in the greater Boston area for a series is so much better than M-town. No offense, and I still can't wait to come down this weekend, but there's just something great about everyone at work wearing their caps, and talking about the games all the time, and getting to see the huge street party outside Fenway Pahk on the news for an hour after the game (until the Daily Show round 2... speaking of which, they had an amazing bit about the Sox and the "curse" on monday).

So everyone at work is exhausted, and I will be too. But it's well worth it.

So on Saturday Sadownik and Elach and I went to Open Studios in Boston, where all these artists living in Southie let you into their apartment/studios to see their work and talk about it and stuff. There was such amazing stuff. Wicked expensive, but amazing nonetheless. I wanted cheap replicas.

Also, WFNX had the following Top 5 at 9 last night (Tuesday night):

5. Coin-operated Boy by Dresden Dolls
4. Against All Odds by Postal Service
3. Underwear Goes Inside the Pants by Lazy Boy
2. Mr. Brightside by Killers
1. Tessie by Dropkick Murphys

This made me very very happy. Especially b/c it caught me offguard by being on the radio when I got in the car. CoB sounds so much better on a real stereo than on my dinky computer speaker. Even better live, but whatev.

So I can't wait to see y'alls down at Wes this weekend! It'll be a blast! From the past! Kinda... I'm checking out that street medic movie that I hear I have a starring role in... ok it's a walk-on, but still. I get to check out these squat courts while I'm at it so that's kinda exciting. After that, who knows? But I'd love to watch Game 1 on Saturday before el partay. Woot! See y'alls soon!

What to Bonnie Raitt, R.E.M., Bruce Springsteen, and Jurassic 5 have in common?

They're playing a concert on my computer right now!

It's the Act4Victory concert, live on the Internet. Pretty sweet.

So my mom just got back from her first of two weeks volunteering for the Kerry campaign in a swing state. She was in Sandusky, Ohio--home of Cedar Point Amusement Park!--and will go to Pittsburgh near the end of the month. So I'm wicked pumped, vicariously, about the election. Not that I won't be voting or anything, but I got jobs and couldn't go with her.

I forwarded her email to most of my readers (ooh! I have readers!), but today she told me the best, if also the saddest/scariest/worst, story yet.

So my mom met this woman in Ohio who had a Kerry sticker and a yellow ribbon magnet on her car. The woman told my mom that this time around, yellow ribbons are not automatically support for the President or for the war. Often the people sporting them are anti-war, but (also unlike the Vietnam era) support the troops and understand better the separation between soldiers and orders. The woman's husband is in the National Guard and currently is in Iraq, and both of them are strongly anti-Bush. Mom liked her new friend so much that she was telling some of the more powerful campaign staffers about her, and one of them thought she'd make an excellent panel member for Elizabeth Edwards's visit yesterday. So the woman was one of three panel members, and did an amazing job. She told the following story, though I'm sure in a completely different way:

Remember in Orwell's Homage to Catalonia, when the Communist/Socialist/Anarchist/Good-guy militia had so few weapons that they had nothing to train with and many first held a gun when they took it from the militia member they relieved? It was kind of funny, when I read it, imagining all those poor anti-fascists having nothing to learn at training besides how to march around and follow orders (well, sort of) from their comrades. Well, it's not so funny when it's one of the best-funded and supposedly best militaries in the world. The War Resisters League says that half of US tax dollars go to pay for past and present wars. One might think this would pay for, say, weapons and transportation, and of course combat pay for soldiers. Turns out, it's not enough, or it's going to the wrong places. Not only has combat pay been cut for National Guardspeople from $250/month to $100/month. The $250 was already too low. They only have health insurance while they're on active duty: come home, no medical coverage. When this woman's husband was training over in Indiana to go to Iraq, they had no weapons. They had no vehicles. They used sticks as guns, aiming them at targets/each other/whatever and only knowing whether or not they'd hit anything by their superiors telling them so. They marched around in groups of six pretending that they were in cars and mimed opening and closing the doors when they had to. Now, this is neither cute nor funny when it's still happening and when it's happening under a President who critiques his opponent for voting against body armor for the soldiers. As much as I disagree with the military-industrial complex and its high funding, I at least think the people who have to go fight should be as best prepared as possible. Fuck space-missile-defense bullshit. Give the soldiers the means to defend themselves.

Bush has to lose this November. I'm feeling a little more hopeful about it these days, what with the latest polls, but it's a scary scary world if Dubya gets a second term.

Of course, if a second term brings about the Revolution, I might reconsider =D

I'm giddy in love with...

(in no particular order, besides maybe chronological-free-form-stream-of-consciousness)
I <3 Huckabees It makes me want to learn about philosophy, and film, and watch The Big Lebowski again, and find more cool indie-ish cult-favorite films.
Jude Law So hot. And in 4 movies apparently coming out in 2004 that I haven't seen yet (and 2 I've seen and would see again)
Modest Mouse I mentioned them before, but have since bought their cd. It makes me want to learn more about good new music.
World/Inferno Friendship Society They make me want to rock out and write songs with no rhyme or reason to them.
Weekends The last two were awesome, as is this, as will be the next 3 at least.
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays Days I work at LEAP. Yay 5-year-olds, and teachers who sometimes act like them.
The Red Sox Yaaaay! This is *so* the year =D
You Especially if you comment on my blog.
Shameless blog-comment-seeking See above. And comment.

My cousin's baby!!!

Awake
Originally uploaded by ertzeid.

His name is Nikolai, and he's about a month old now.

I may soon have a picture that one of the kids at work drew for me, if I get my shit together to go take a digital photo of it... the kindergardeners are all so cute!

So, that's a my life... babies and small children... werd, I can't wait for homecoming!

Up the Midwest!

so i spent the weekend in richmond, indiana, visiting my little bro (heretofore "t-rob," to protect the innocent. or, the guilty, if one is talking about underage drinking on a dry campus. is heretofore really a word? i think i made it up...) at earlham college.

(for those i haven't told... earlham is a quaker school just over the border of indiana from the dayton, ohio area. it's small--1100--and actually has a peace and global studies (get with the program, wes!) their president is also named doug bennet, and they even call him douggie b, but he's on sabbatical and is way cooler than our douggie b. or at least, theirs is actually left-wing, anti-war, and speaks clearly. and pays attention to students. i think one douggie b might be the bizarro version of the other)

it all began with 2 flights to get to indianapolis. dad got a direct flight, but i ordered my ticket a week ago and they only had layover flights (long story, not me procrastinating i swear). so i got to go to the mall of philly airport! like the mall of america, except not big and lacking a log flume. so, actually, nothing like the mall of america. mostly pretty boring.

so i arrived at indianapolis late enough that what with dinner and all (all the fun of parents visiting the college student and taking them to dinner away from campus, without the eating campus food normally!) we were almost an hour late to this presentation/concert of country blues music. and it's a good friggin thing. the beginning was a 1 1/2 hour lecture about the music, which was interesting... for about 10 minutes. so, good thing we only caught the last half hour. but then, the guy and another guy (according to the first guy, who is an ethnomusicologist and somewhat of an expert on country blues, the second guy is the best harmonica player in the world) played some tunes. that part was pretty cool. especially the train song, which is a harmonica solo where it sounds like a train leaving the station. and it really does sound like that. so that part was cool. and the rest of the live music.

saturday, we went and met t-rob's profs. or, 3 of them. one called my little bro "the tall skinny kid" which threw us all off, cuz he wasn't always tall. we looked around at all the other departments' tables, and just seeing all the social science books made ma all nostalgic for college... till i remembered all those books i bought when i was in college, and never finished reading. maybe i'll read them now that i have some free time =D

then we went to SagaLunch, aka the fancy on-campus meal where they make the food better and put tablecloths on all the cafeteria tables (yes, they do it at other places than wesleyan). this did not make me nostalgic for college. but we did meet a pennsylvania nader-voter. while i do agree with a lot of nader's politics myself... she's polishing the silver on the titanic; it's all goin' down if bush wins again (10 points for whoever correctly identifies that quote!). but i didn't really get into a discussion with her, seeing as i didn't even know the woman. she was the only non-kerry supporter we met all weekend--and in a solid bush state no less! we also saw more "support the troops" yellow ribbon car-magnets than god. one had a "bring them home" heart underneath, which was cool in that at least there are magnets challenging the supporting troops/opposing wars binary, even if it all tends to oversimplify the issue. anyhoo, enough soapboxing for one blog...

so then we went bowling! somehow, even having grown up in the MA, both my parents kicked some serious big-ball bowling ass. i came into my stride by the end of the first game, and then developed a bit of a blister on my thumb and lost it again by midway thru the second game. but at least i can sympathize with derrick lowe =) so then i chilled w/ t-rob while the 'rents went off to some museum. it was pretty dorm-tastic. and generally college-tastic, in a hanging out, surfing the internet kind of way.

so after dinner, we went to this student concert of two percussion groups, a jazz group, and the gospel choior. the whole thing was rawk-tastically awesome. especially the ERP (earlham revolution propaghandists. or, more accurately, earlham rhythm project). THEY PLAYED BUCKETS!!! it was like what would happen if a bunch of real drummers did samba, and had a much more complicated piece, and no whistle, and wore funky black and red outfits and were on a stage instead of at a protest. not exactly sambahots (but, in all honesty, what is?), but amazing-tastic-rawkin' all the same =D

then we went back to the b&b and watched the snl version of the debates. but, i mean, i dunno what they thought was so funny... being president *is* hard work! but we're turning the corner! and working hard! seriously tho... i don't think "bush/cheney04: guys this is hard" will be a very successful campaign slogan... oh we did see real, honest-to-goodness campaign ads! wow! kerry's was totally better. bush's reminded me of hangman, and my mom of a powerpoint presentation (or, as *our* douggie b would say, "shit on a slide").

this morning we went to richmond's county's friends meeting. i actually really liked it. i thought about stuff, and a couple people spoke... i mean, typical meeting fare, only earlier than the ones here, but i guess i was just in need of some introspection. so on that note...

fight fight, inner light, kill, quakers, kill!
knock 'em down, beat 'em senseless!
do it 'till we reach consensus!

come on, you know i don't get *that* serious on this thing =)

to sum up, earlham=cool. and earlham=the wesleyan of the red state (oberlin already claimed the "wesleyan of the midwest" title... i mean, i say it can be the wesleyan of the swing state or something).

what's coming up:

so i'm almost positive this is my plan for the next few weekends (and by next few, i mean the end of october)... i'll go down for homecoming! and probably (hopefully!) crash at 19 fountain. there will be much revelry and some giving john stossel hell. the following weekend, i'll stop for a night at wes (maybe halloween party night, but maybe not) the night of the 29th, and hopefully stay with r-brig, and then the next day go to KPd's so we can go see green day that night. woot! then, to break up the drive, i might stop in m-town on the way back up on the 31st, for lunch or something. but maybe not, since i'll also go on nov. 2! for the election party, in full regalia (read: my sweet-as "november 2" t-shirt. oh yes, i'll be "that guy"). i'll get there not wicked early, as i get out of work at 6, but i'll get there. but then i'll have to not visit for a bit, for fear of becoming a truly sketchy alumni who keep showing up even tho she graduated and it's 2 hours away from her house. but anyone and everyone are welcome to visit me any time!

oh and also, bring it, anaheim! GO SOX!

woman would be proud

i gave my first eyewash today! i haven't actually been first-aid trained yet (hm, i meant to ask about that today), but at leap they had this cool thing that fits right over the eye and you stick some water in and the kid tilts their head back and it rinses out the whole area. so when this kindergardener got herself pepper-sprayed (and by pepper-sprayed i mean another kid threw some dirt in her eye) i helped her out while someone else tried to get the other kid to own up.

overall, leap is really fun. pretty laid back as always, and the k-2's are so cute! plus today i got a babysitting gig too (oh yeah, i got lots of networking). woot to under-the-table income.

tomorrow i start the other job, helping to organize an office. not in the cool organized labor way--that'd be difficult as i'll be the office's second employee, including the owner of the company. i'll just be helping to neaten up the cabinets.

then on friday i go to indiana to visit the little bro. at school. woot!

wesleyan, aragorn, oh and pirates of course

last week saw a slew of ex-35 home-birthdays, and one of them i was close enough to go celebrate! i went on down to m-town to have myself a time, and to see as many fellow wesers as possible in under 24 hours. so first we got to surprise elach with a party! which is always fun. there was cake and ice cream and lots of pink. and lots of catching up with some fellow '04-ers.

then it was on to gin and tectonics, which was attended by two other sketchy alumni (one of Team Sketchy Alumni fame), although one or both of them may actually also be grad students. floored ngold; due to the surprise nature of the b-day party i hadn't been able to tell many people i'd be around. but, turns out, it rawks to surprise people with my presence! or they were faking it and only pretended to be happy to see me... i'm hoping the first tho, cuz it rawked to see all of you! woot!

thursday, i went to the campus center lunch (ah, the good old days) and saw lots more peeps. and got a burrito, also like the good old days. course, i'd forgotten that the onions are damn strong, so it was extra spicy. after lunch, got to see the rest of the 19 fountain crew cuz bcod took a sick day. hope y'alls are feeling healthier! and that your simcities are prospering... or burning down in a robot invasion-volcano-earthquake-related disaster, depending on what you intended...

so then on friday, KPd came up! woot! after an insane busride that she'll probably post about herself, she arrived and we watched viva la bam and other crassness, before resting for weekend awesomeness! like...

going to the lord of the rings exhibit at the museum of science and entertainment (formerly, and officially, the museum of science)! there were costumes! and armor! and the one ring (actually kinda unimpressive)! and scale models! and... a place where kp and i got spliced into a shot so that she was hobbit-sized and i was wizard-sized, and vice versa! i'd have pictures, but they cost extra, so we just played for free. and... GANDALF'S SWORD! or, a replica that we got to hold, with gloves on.

sunday we saw the sadownik for lots of leftover kosher food (bagels and hallah and kugel--oh my! and yummy!) and catching up. and stories. kp and ss are the masters, after all.

so today, i started my job! well, kind of. i filled out all the paperwork and tax forms. tomorrow i start for real. oh, by the way, i got jobs! most of y'alls know already, but yeah. i'm working at lincoln extended-day activities program (aka LEAP. formerly lincoln everyday afterschool program, back when i was getting the acronym wrong) on tuesday wednesday friday. i'm helping out at an office in town on monday thursday; i start that one on thursday. woot to jobs! and to getting paid! which won't happen for a couple weeks cuz i just missed the pay cycle, but whatev. soon i'll be rollin' in it. and by rollin' in it, i mean i'm still not making enough to survive on my own. maybe nyc pays better...

yesterday i found out that the movie hero i am is...


!

... turns out having no work to put off doesn't prevent finding fun new online quizzes.

So, it's been a while... I've actually been mildly busy! But haven't thought of much to say about what I've been up to. Oh but I did find this out:

My Boobies' Names Are: Thelma and Louise

Get your own Boobie Names

So that's exciting. My boobs are badass. I just hope they don't drive me off a cliff... but armed robbery might be ok.

Saw the new school again today. It had more stuff going on, and the auditorium is really nice, but parts of it made me sneeze hardcore. Oh and the boys' locker room smells bad already (I figured, probably the only time I'd be allowed in was on the tour), and not in the paint-y way the rest of the school smells a little funny.

Tomorrow I go to get my eyes dilated--the doctor puts drops in so they can look real close at the retinae--so I'll be blind all day, even with my glasses on, but I do get funky dark sunglasses. Maybe when I go to Wes I'll wear them ironically. Feel free to call the home number and chat, as I'll not be able to read or watch tv or anything else visual for a while.

I've gotten mildly obsessed with a lot of new music: Modest Mouse (yeah yeah, I'm too late to be that hip for liking them, but when did I ever have cutting-edge music taste?), The Killerz (like i said... not cutting-edge. but it's damn catchy), The Streets, Green Day. I need money, so I can get cd's. I don't think this can wait till xmas. Oh I also hope to move out of my parents' house. But the apartment will need a soundtrack =D

You heard it here first

Ok, perhaps not, but as I just read a Safire article that reeked of Karl Rove, I decided I had to do something. You should have heard it from, say, the New York Times or CBS first, but as far as I know they're not up on their typewriter technology. If you did, well, sorry, you heard it here also.

One can easily find, with a Google search of "proportional spacing typewriter" that--lo and behold!--the first match is the IBM Archive from 1941, listing as one of the major events in the company's history of that year was the invention of the Proportionally Spaced Typewriter. So instead of all the fonts looking like Courier, whose l's and i's take up just as much space as its W's and M's, and which therefore is the preferred method of making one's high school papers look longer. I wonder if back in the 60's, by which time proportional spacing was rather common on typewriters, at least the richer kids could make their papers look all fancy by using the typeface that looked more like most printed books rather than those monospaced typewriters. I really wonder if profs who have been working that long adjusted their page-number requirements with the new technology, or if us poor computer users really have to do more writing than our forefathers.

Also, on the superscript/subscript claim (that superscript and subscript were also impossible), that's also complete bullshit. Everyone who actually used typewriters at school and at their jobs knew that in order to make superscript and subscript, all they had to do was turn that wheel thingy on the side a little up or down, and turn it back when they were done writing the "th" after the "4" or whatever.

Anarchy in the UK!

New photos at Europe's Blog! This time, of London. And a little Dublin.

Tom's Petition

Sign the petition to renew the assault weapons ban! Not only is it a good thing to do, but you also get to see yourself added to the animation, six-degrees-of-Kevin-Bacon style.

IKEA-tastic

Not a day went by this weekend--and by weekend I mean Friday and Saturday--in which I didn't drive/ride at least 3 hours round trip for some adventure or another.
Friday: Going South
So I needed some shelves on which to put the stuff that's currently covering my bedroom floor (ooh, check out that grammar... I didn't go to college for nothing!). My mom needed the same, only for the mudroom instead of the bedroom. So the two of us trekked down to sunny New Haven on Friday. We started out with lunch (yeah yeah, eating is supposed to come last... but it was lunch time by the time we arrived! We're such rebels...). Their Swedish meatballs really are pretty amazing. The lingonberry juice, not so much--a little too sweet. Anyhoo, then we went on our merry way, this time following the nice arrows on the floor. First we found Becca! who was there with her housemates getting some stuff for their senior house. Then we found some great shelves called IVAR and had figured out all the pieces to get and were ordering them from downstairs, when the guy who was helping us discovered they were out of the shelf part. So we had to find other, less perfect stuff. But it was also even less money, so... woot! Then we continued down to the catacombs of the accessories area, where one inevitably finds tons of stuff that one absolutely needs, even if one did not need that set of placemats before entering the store. We also got some coffee and chocolate to take home... or to eat on the way.
As we were in CT already, we stopped in M-town to see whomever I knew was there. So we had ice cream with Elach, saw RC and BSom's house and then also Becca's house. And SWeigle's, but she wasn't home so I couldn't say hi. Then, after way too much time there (at least if you ask my mom... I would have been fine staying for the semester myself) we headed home for the best part of an IKEA trip... PUTTING TOGETHER THE FURNITURE! ... well, I don't have room on my floor for a bookshelf (bit of a catch-22 there... oops), but we assembled the mudroom shelves. And we saw the Daily Show, which finally covered the protests... twice! Way to go, Lewis Black. And... whoever else.
Saturday: Going North
On Saturday, I got up wicked early (as we say in the MA... and in the NH, where the day's trip would take me) to join my dad and a couple other grown-ups to hike up Mt. Monadnock. But that's not all. At the top, there was a dance performance! Right there on the rocks! It looked like this:

Pretty amazing. They did Native American Sign Language within the dances too, of poems and stuff. The hike was long and tiring, but the dance was wicked cool. Then everyone else went swimming, and I went wading, in the frigid water across the street from the trail head. Then we got massive ice cream cones at Kimball Farm, and came back for take-out Chinese food. A tiring day, but pretty adventure-tastic.

mood | enraged

this post feels more like livejournal-type fare, instead of the usual sarcasm and quips and randomness...

I should be in bed, but I don't think I can sleep before getting this out of my system.
Compared to friends of mine, I had a rather uneventful trip to the RNC. There was a little intenseness, but mostly it was fun. I even got a peaceful political activist button! (or 8-ish...) I got home all pleased, if tired. Once again we'd fought the good fight--except for the fighting part. Then I started hearing about my friends stuck behind bars for as long as 36 or so hours, and in the chemical-burning pens no less. Then I read about the cops' new pre-emptive (in the Bush-ish, really-meaning-preventive sense of the word) arrest tactics, and how they ignored 3 court orders to let over 400 people go, as per habeas corpus. Then I watched the actual RNC speeches (and the Daily Show coverage of course; awesometastic as always). Then I saw the latest polls. And read more news. And saw more pictures. And heard more speeches.

It's too much. The neo-cons want to fuck over every one of us just to make a couple extra billion, only to keep it locked in some non-taxable offshore bank account. They want to legislate our bodies and our marriages and our "morals." Then they go and brag about protecting American freedoms, and about empowering doctors and patients to make their own medical decisions. I mean, you probably know the million other shitty ideas to come out of Bush's mouth (by way of Cheney's brain of course).

And now we can't even scream about it, let alone actually being heard and/or televised. We all at least heard about those orange censors the NYPD unfurled around anyone preparing to express opposing views to those vocalized in the MSG (and I don't mean the people who got carried out on national television). Our president is scary when entrusted with as much power as he has. Hell, the cops are scary and the worst they have is a chemical weapon or two. What is terrifying is that so many people have been duped by him and the Republicans. I keep wondering, what country should I move to if Dubya wins again?, and I'm kidding a little less each time.

Some hopefulness I guess comes from The Boston Globe and Paul Krugman. But they're mostly preaching to the choir. Oh also, I heard a guy on NPR today (a caller) who said he was from New Hampshire, and that the purple heart band-aids and Zell's speech made him decide to vote for Kerry. So, at least maybe the Republicans could have shot themselves in the foot.

But, I mean, fuck. What are we supposed to do? I'm sick of waiting for November and hoping for the best. I'm too afraid and angry and frustrated to do that.

As for now, I'm too tired to write more. If there was anything else I meant to say, I forgot it. So I'll leave you with...


Bush, in the faces of soldiers who have died in the Iraq war.

just couldn't stay away...

so, just in case anyone but rc is gonna be around and not packing/unpacking/whatever, i'll briefly be at wes tomorrow on my mom's and my way to/from the NEW HAVEN IKEA! (very exciting)... if ya want to hang out or grab lunch or something, drop an email or call the cell.

And by weekend, I mean six days...

So I made it home safe and all from that crazy RNC, glad to say I lived to tell about it. And that I didn't get arrested. I'd like to thank my overpreparedness for that. So here goes...

Thursday
I headed down on Thursday, not to go to any actions but to go to this Wes networking event. Well, it turned out to be an "ivy league social," which is a fancy way of saying an elitist party at a bar. It was lots of people from other schools with jobs chatting and knowing each other, and a bunch of unemployed Wes04 people who got the CRC email, who had gone hoping to find jobs. Oops.

Friday
Hung out in the NJ with KP and RC. It was pretty initials-tastic. Went to the Home Depot and got drumsticks. Had amazing bbq and homemade pasta sauce dinner. The carbo-loading started early.

Saturday
Saw Andrea! It had been 3 years... so that was exciting. We went to Central Park, which was surprising like the HIll in May. Then headed over to student rally dealie and sat around in hot sticky for a bit. Went back to bsom's and made another carbo-tastic dinner in preparation for the next day's musical blow-striking.

Sunday Sunday Sunday
UFPJ march! Started at Wes meet-up, which consisted of those coming from bsom's apt, TMQ and VJR, and two Sabahots alums. Went over to the youth/student staging area, or whatever, and began drumming and such. Some other youths had a bullhorn and some pretty cool chants and stuff. So then we did the usual SAMBAHOTS deal, only with far fewer drummers than usual. But we did have a real agogo thanks to Snorr. Then we picnic-ed in the park, activist style. Meaning... not much, except we had the drums with us still, and there were tons of other activists there too. Then we had bsom's famous tofu--woot!--and then some blue and some beer. Well, technically it was all beer, but the blue was flavored like blue hawaiian. Oh and this cool kid came who i'd only known by reputation as he's from santa cruz.

Monday
March for Our Lives. Unpermitted, but fairly free of incident. Then this kid got dragged to an arrest wagon right in front of us. I mean, he walked, but also was forcibly removed from the march by cops. It wasn't so much a march, actually, as a walk down the middle of the street next to some friendly New York's Finest. Ok that's a lie. It was a march, but it was flanked by a solid single-file line of the po-po. We even saw a police critical mass, but it was far less massive, and they didn't all get arrested. On three separate occasions throughout the weekend. At the end it got dicey when we found ourselves in a pen full of people somewhat angry that the march had been broken in half by moped cops. So we played some frisbee, and then left just as some riot-geared police entered the pen. I don't think many people were arrested, but we were glad to be gone by then. Dinner, chillness, bed.

Tuesday Tuesday Tuesday
aka a31.
Not wanting to join the other 1100 arrested, we opted to go to the Code Pink Fox News Shut Up-athon. Peaceful Protestor buttons in hand (or, in bag), we went over to Fox News HQ and yelled at them to "Shut the Fox Up." Pretty cool. I didn't realize at the time, but apparently Medea Benjamin got arrested. The important thing is, KP BSom and I didn't get arrested. And we got to tell Fox to shut up, which was fun.
Then I went home, and today I've been checking the stories and hearing about my friends getting arrested. I'd love updates, if people know anything... email or call.

Here's to some wonderful blow-striking, even if it didn't reach the point of state-smashing, as the pink anarchists from north carolina might have liked. and plenty of other people =)

The First Amendment is the Only Permit We Need

Contrary to popular (or maybe not that popular, depending who was online when and such... I've lost track...) belief, I will be in NYC for the RNC this weekend. Woot! Because the Kerry Campaign is too cool for me, apparently. Hey, that rhymes...

Anyhoo, here's my schedule, or as much as I know:
Thursday arrive in NYC and schmooze with alums from Wes, and also some from such far away places as Yale. Should be networking-tastic, or at least have good food. I'll be in the NJ with the KP
Friday um... not sure... but maybe see a friend from high school. I should really call her...
Saturday move to BSom's; general state-smashing and strike-blowing.
Sunday try not to get too badly pepper-sprayed or tear-gassed... take in a Broadway action?
Monday ...? whatever everyone else is doing I guess...
Tuesday check out the scene; maybe take pictures; come on back up to the MA.

So what are everyone else's plans? I can't wait to see yas! For now, I gotsta pack...

New photos

Tons of new photos at the photo blog! Check it out... and comment! =)

Left-wing Utopia--YES!

Forget friendster.

The latest thing is NationStates.

Join. And then move to my region. It's called Wesleyan. And the password is the nickname of our oh-so-attentive president (no spaces... email if your spelling doesn't seem to agree with mine).

Woot.

When in doubt, try intimidation...

First of all, WTF!?! We really need those UN observers for this election (as if we didn't 4 years ago...) It really is a cleptocracy; it makes me want to scream. I'll get my chance soon enough... The Herbert article also made my mom consider going down to the RNC, so that's cool.

Saw the new high school today. It was huge and barren and boring. It has potential, I guess, but it's no longer the funky unique "different kind of place" (as the school has always boasted of itself) that the old building was. I guess all good things must end...

Since Sunday night I've made myself a new skirt (by hand, mostly) out of an old pair of jeans, and completely repaired my falling-apart cargoes (by machine) by sewing on 6 patches. Tomorrow I'm going to the fabric store! I mean, in absence of job, I still feel compelled to produce something. Or I'm just bored.

Gearing up for the RNC, besides just getting angrier at the neo-cons. Got some goggles, and secured some masks for under bandanas. The hope is, the more prepared I am, the less I'll need anything I bring...

Wow, if I'm not already, this post might definitely put me on some FBI list... I hope y'alls are happy...

noticings

keep a sharp eye...

and, did anyone else notice that the olympic torch looks like a giant joint?

Ooh, democracy in action

So my parents threw this little letter-writing shindig, where people came over and signed, personalized, and addressed letters to single low-income unregestered-to-vote mothers in swing states (who knows how Mainstreet Moms Opposing Bush got that list), telling them to vote for Kerry and including all the forms needed to register to vote. It was supposed to be this one mother to another dealie--just don't tell the recipients I'm not actually a mother (the fathers attending got to fold, stamp, and seal). Fox25 wanted to do a story on it; their phone call to one of the other organizers went something like this:

F25: Hi, is there a Bush-bashers meeting tonight?
Organizer's son: No clue. Here's my mom...
F25: Is there a meeting tonight?
O: I'm sure there are many meetings tonight all over the country.
F25: Are you having a meeting tonight?
O: Yes.
F25: ... So... There's no story?
O: There's no story.
*click*
I guess some kinds of media attention only hurt the cause...

But there were great opportunities for networking! (Oooh... networking...) I was sitting next to a fellow Wes Alum ('94) all evening who almost overnight got super-involved with the Kerry campaign, so then Steve (family friend) starts talking me up, and so she and I exchange emails (I never said I did the networking... but I'm getting better at it, I swear!). So, yeah, exciting.

So there was lots of democracy happening. It made me go all tingly. Or all the writing made my hand go a little tingly... but still. There was definite tingling. (Who knew politics could sound so dirty...)

Also today I signed up for Monster.com. This job thing is moving right along, I'm totally turning the corner. And I worked for a couple hours on my EuroTrip '04 photo site, only to not be able to publish it. I really have to call HelpDesk about that... If they took my webspace away just because I graduated, I'll be pissed... So photos will take a little more time, but are on their way I swear.

i suck at applying for jobs

but i did apply for two today!
unfortunately, the resume i sent had my wes address and phone. so, unless they email me...
i did win settlers of catan tho! so, my settling-cardboard-island skills are still sharp.
and... um... i still have health insurance it turns out, for another month and a half. so i get to see every doctor one last time! woot to new glasses and contacts!
oh and i got an idea for a skirt i want to make, if i can find the right fabric. that's kind of a big if, as it also depends on me going to a store and all. we'll see.
oniondreams is doing fantastically, so y'alls should check it out... and we love comments there too... at least, i do, i guess i can't speak for my partners in crime.

remind me never to go ice climbing in the andes

one might think there's a lot to catch up on since my last post.
one would be mistaken.
helped drive my grandparents to york, maine on sunday. if i ever can't walk without a walker but refuse to use one anyway, somebody please smack me.
anyhoo, that evening went to dinner with the same crowd from the wedding, minus a few i guess. and dinner was a tur-duck-en! i don't think it was deep fried, but it was tasty. there was also much wine and champagne, and a half-assed (in a fun way) game of taboo.
yesterday... well, i meant to do stuff, but didn't. besides trade friendster testimonials and join thefacebook (like an elitist, but also faster, version of friendster). it was a pretty dork-tastic evening.
oh but i did play around on the guitar for the first time in ages.
today i biked over to the pond and went swimming, then cooked tofu for dinner. it was pretty wes-tastic, only in lincoln instead of middletown. and this pond doesn't have leeches.
also, we watched Touching the Void this dramatization/documentary about a couple of guys who almost died while ice climbing in peru. really good, and really intense. i recommend.

... and we contra-dance in the blue states

After a somewhat draining week, the first half of the weekend (at least as long as "weekend" only means saturday and sunday) has been pretty fun. Went to a family friend's wedding reception at the town farm, complete with country-western, square, and contra dancing. So there was much eating, and wine, and dancing. And rejoicing (yaaay). And then after 2 cups of wine the bartender tried carding me... maybe only 21-year-olds get to have 3 drinks. Good thing I am one.

Anyhoo, I always love some good dancing, so now my feet are covered with barn dirt. Any night that ends with dirty feet is a success.

not good enough for the "links" section

but worth checking out... maybe it'll get better...

George's blog

L.L. Cool J=old school
Samuel L. Jackson=badass
Colin Farrell=hot
Olivier Martinez=hotter
L.L. Cool J + Samuel L. Jackson + Colin Farrell + Olivier Martinez = S.W.A.T.

50 years may be enough, but one weekend isn't

Werd, anyone wanna come visit me next? Like the end of winter break, for those who were there, only in summer. This time there are such attractions as the pond, the trampoline, and cooling breezes (I can't say honestly that they are cool, but cooling... if that makes any sense...). Oh and hiking. I dunno, whatev... comment or email. You could even call (ooh... how novel)...

Anyhoo, that's about it... gonna try to learn how to actually post things onto my .web.wesleyan space, and hopefully put pictures up there soon. Might try to learn fancy stuff like javascript too, we'll see...

Oh and on the getting over Nomar being traded front... at least now my Red Sox t-shirt is vintage... =)

a taste of things to come...

I hear a picture is worth a thousand words... since I don't have the time to tell about all my adventures travelling, I'll instead soon be posting all my photos from the trip somewhere on the Internet. Keep a sharp eye...

If I didn't know better I'd say he was throwing double-intenuendres my way...

... it's enough to make any woman heteronausic.
It's been a day full of heat-beating, and an evening of laughs (like NBC always advertises but fails to deliver)
So I actually started looking for a job (woo Idealist!), and got my mom watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer, so as far as productiveness today was totally successful.
Then it was hot. So we went to the pond (no, not a hip unknown town swimming hole... this one has a membership fee. But I still love it. Yeah, I'm a spoiled brat). According to my little bro, the 82-dergee water was "frigid."
Then The Daily Show rocked, as evidenced by the following aim conversation:
ae... (1:11:01 AM): i laughed my ass off
ae... (1:11:09 AM): and the interview was amazing
rLc... (1:11:11 AM): the interview was amazing
rLc... (1:11:14 AM): lol
ae... (1:11:15 AM): lol
ae... (1:11:18 AM): jinx!
rLc... (1:11:19 AM): jinx...
ae... (1:11:22 AM): well
ae... (1:11:23 AM): fuck
The interview really was amazing. Jon Stewart gave the guy the shovel to just keep digging himself a bigger and bigger hole... I mean, who would ever think Kerry is further left than Ted Kennedy anyway? Even better, I thought, was the interview with the Florida guy who claimed to be homonausic (in case anyone was wondering where this installment's opening comes from... it's a direct Samantha Bee quote. I may be clever, but I'm not that clever).
Now The Princess Bride is on, which is always a good thing. So, all in all, a good day. Woot.

'you can't say nuclear, that really scares me...'

Things that rock (in nearly chronological order):

• Edwards's speech
  
• Kerry's speech
  
• The Daily Show
  
• seeing the gang again--woot!
  
• burritos
  
• my new t-shirt that says nothing but "November 2" (thanks beth!)
  
• the critical mass-ers (critical massholes?), especially those wicked tall bikes
  
• Coney Island!
  
• funnel cakes
  
• the beach
  
• JibJab
  
• Ben's b-day bash!
  
• alliteration
  
• cheap diner food
  
• the chill as spot by the red lighthouse

things that suck (in no particular order)

• This
  
• hot, sticky, muggy, windless city air
  
• seeing such a rawktastic weekend end

call the doctor...

... i have dnc fever.
it all started yesterday (monday... as it'll probably be after midnight by the time anyone reads this... hell it might not even technically be posted before then), when i heard that bill clinton would be the big speaker on the night's agenda at the convention. plus of course, with all the talk about closing roads and hellish traffic, i had to see what all the fuss was about. so at 7pm est, my mom and i hunkered down to watch the coverage. we tried pbs; we tried abc; we tried... oh wait, those were the only networks covering it at 7. pbs and abc had stories about traffic and protestors. and they showed the main speeches. then at 8, abc stopped covering it at all--i guess reruns of dumb gender-role comedies was more important. we decided to try our luck with cable...
it paid off! cnn also had nothing, but then a light shone from above, and we discovered........... c-span! woot! they were showing the whole thing, it was as if we were there! woot!
so al gore spoke, and it was better than any of his campaign speeches. it got me all fired up, like i was ready to walk right out the door, get in my car, and drive to cambridge to go get a drink with ben to celebrate his 21t birthday.
so that's what i did. and the thirsty scholar, in cambridge (or somerville?) has murphy's, guinness, smithwick's, and boddington's, all draught! and coverage of the sox winning 12-5! what more could a person want! so i missed the rest of the speeches.
so today, i got up to go to the take back america event with my mom. we got there at noon, two hours early, and the line was already around the block on account of everyone wanting to see michael moore and whatnot. so after two hours, about 500 media peeps get in instead of us. so we get to go to the patio out back and see everyone after they speak inside, which was an ok compromise but i'm not going back tomorrow. so howard dean was first, and was energetic and stuff. then a bunch of people who were ok, and then a couple more people who were good (like Dem. candidate for mass governor reich, who quipped that one shouldn't listen to the Rep. line about average income and average tax cut becasue the average height of himself (reich, a very short man) and shaq is 6/1"). maybe ya had to be there. anyhoo, finally at 5:15 michael moore comes on and speaks for about half an hour about how horrible bush, cheney, fox 'news' channel, and others are, and is also great. i'm pretty ready to take back america, that's for damn sure. or at least to...
get chinese food! so we did that on the way home, and then sat down to watch bill o'reilly host michael moore, and then add his own spin on moore's responses and questions (good luck finding more than the transcript of the interview... and watch out, the site really slowed down my computer). then it was more of the convention, but less exciting. except for barack obama. can i vote for him for prez? please?
so then i watched the daily show. and now i'm blogging. woot to the 21st century.

now i've gone and done it...

I went and joined friendster. Sorry to those others who signed the pact, but... well Beth broke it already anyway. So, add me as your friend (whoever i could find probably already got an email or whatever)! And give me a job in NYC, as that's why I joined in the first place. And I'd been drinking.

oh and while i'm posting

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BSOM!

Attempt #1

... at making Irish Coffee a complete failure (although my parents enjoyed the Irish-American Coffee I pieced together)
Lessons:
-Rye whiskey should only be used when one prefers a nasty rye taste in the throat to that lovely numb-tongue feeling of the real thing
-Have heavy, somewhat whipped (?) cream handy beforehand
-Make the coffee strong

numbah five

Hm... been a while I see... yes...
Back only two days from Ireland, and already sick/afraid of US politics.
Not five minutes after exiting the airplane at JFK, we passed by US Immigration (which we got to skip, having done it in Shannon Airport on the way home), and were snapped sharply back into the gun-toting near police state that is the United States. Customs was nowhere near as bad as I worried, however.
So the next day (also known as Friday, or yesterday), I went to see Farenheit 9/11 with my mom (also known as... Mom). Now, it was great and all, but I already didn't like Bush and the film only made me depressed about it. Very powerful tho, and cool that so many Independents are seeing it--and then planning on voting for Kerry.
So then today I climbed Wachusett Mountain with my dad, wearing shorts for the first time in about six weeks (woo humidity! or... kinda... not... but woo summer weather!).
That's all for now (guess I'm a little rusty) but keep an eye this week for such excitement as Making My First Irish Coffee and Seeing Howard Dean and Michael Moore at Take Back America (also known as Dean for America version 2.0... I think).

pajamas and wine

not much new to report (hey, was i really gonna get a job for 2 weeks? and my parents unfortunately don't want a pond), but the page has been getting stale...
so i saw the big disaster flick with my mom yesterday. quite predictable, but i didn't go to be surprised. fun nonetheless. plus somewhat activisty--moviegoers used to be afraid of nuclear war, now they're afraid of global warming. now maybe we'll start to see mostly meaningless non-pollution legislation as well. still can't wait for harry potter 3 to come out =), but till then hbo will have to do, and my trashy mtv-published mystery novel.
also celebrated my little bro's b-day, when i finally got to give him settlers of catan, which meant i finally got to play again =D woo capitalism! well, it's fun at least...
so then tonight i was all settled to write this, in my p-j's with my glass of wine from dinner, when my dad's bridge group shows up and needs another player. i figured, how classy, threw on some pants and joined in. my dad and i (aka team 2) made a fine showing, totaling a final score of -30 (green banana). i mean, we didn't come in *last*...

when in massachusetts...

so i went to my first state-licensed gay wedding today. it was also my first quaker wedding, kind of a double-whammy. i have yet to be unamazed by how cool friends ceremonies are.
so we had regular silent meeting, which consists of sitting in the meeting room, silently, unless one is moved to speak, starting at 10am Sunday morning. the friends do this until the clerk (a rotating position) is moved to end the meeting, which miraculously always happens right around 11am. then we all say hello and go have some refreshments. during refreshments i talked to a wicked cool guy about a friend of his who is on death row, whom he had met while participating in anti-capital punishment activism.
at 11:30, the wedding ceremony began between Shelli and Carol DuBois, who have been married for over 17 years but now have all legal perks. the wedding was like silent meeting, in that we all sat in the room and people spoke when moved to do so, but many more people spoke--mostly words of encouragement and other statements about the couple. then when the brides were moved to (friends are all about being moved to do things... probably not the favorite religion of writing teachers), they stood and spoke their vows, and for another 45 minutes the popcorn meeting (when people keep standing and speaking with little time in between statements) continued, until the speaking slowed and the clerk again was moved to end the ceremony. then all 80 or so people at the ceremony lined up to sign the marriage certificate--a large piece of parchment with gorgeous calligraphy--as witnesses. then we got to eat.
the other guests were all very nice, although many had to leave early to attend other weddings. two other couples attending had had their own official weddings the previous weekend. 'tis the season i guess. if only i owned a catering company in provincetown...

Alum: Week 1

Well, it's happened. I just had to go and graduate. I've joined two important social groups at once: "Alumni" and "Real People." I guess you could add to that "college grad who has gone home to live with one's parents," but hopefully that's less permanent.
So far being an alum is a lot like being a student home on summer vacation, except for all of that graduation-related stuff--not that a red cap and gown isn't the height of fashion these days, but...
Real-world-avoidance-tactic (RWAT) #1: Go to the beach
Spent a week on the beach with some friends, enjoying the indoor pool and hot tub mostly (you'd think the weather could have warmed up more, seeing as we all just graduated and all). Woot, super-fun. We also watched a lot of Law & Order.
RWAT #2: Throw a party
Got back from the beach just in time for the party my parents threw me up at home. Hey, I might as well milk this graduation thing for all it's worth before Mom and Dad start charging rent.
So a bunch of family friends showed up to mostly ask about my future plans, which so far consist of bumming around for a couple weeks and then going to Europe (see RWAT X). I told them about the trip. Then I told them about my lack of plans following the trip. It got old rather fast. To make it interesting, I switched the order in which I mentioned the countries we're going to.
RWAT #3: Go to a high school reunion
So they're knocking down my high school because they just built a new one next to it. Also because it's falling apart, apparently. So my old history teacher put together a "Great Gathering" of everyone who ever graduated from the place. Highlights included seeing a bunch of people I'd never met because they graduated in the 70's, and tours of the new school. The tours of the new school were cancelled due to lack of some permit (I'd have worn a hard-hat and gone anyway, but I guess public schools can't afford to get sued), so there was basically lots of wandering around the old building and seeing lots of 70's alums.
Unfortunately, the only sweatshirt I had in my car was for the high school's wrestling team. "What's this? This is the shirt you're wearing? You're wearing the shirt of the high school who's reunion you're going to. Don't be that guy."
RWAT X: Run away!
So my future plans now consist of a trip to Europe, starting in two weeks, with a couple friends. Because so many people have asked...
Two college classmates and I are spending all the money we have saved to go to Oslo, London, and Ireland. We're staying with my uncle and aunt in Oslo, and bringing some cool gifts to my pregnant cousin. We're going anywhere and everywhere in Ireland. It'll be wicked fun. We'll be broke, unemployed, and mooching off of our parents upon return. But hey, it's the last time before retirement that we'll have some cash saved and 6 weeks free, so we figured, 'what the hell?' (Okay it was more like 'hells yeah.' It's Europe, after all).

badass test post

welcome to my blog. this is that test post i have the compulsion to write. if i don't write it, i think i might explode or something. i dunno, i'm new to this whole blogging thing. anyways, here it is, my blog about the real world, as in life after college. woot.