I'm supposed to be writing my part of a group report right now, but I'm not. Instead I'm telling myself that I should be writing blog entries more often, so that when I go back and read this thing in a few years to see what a ridiculous person I am I'll actually have something to read. At the moment, I have too many things in my head and none I'd feel comfortable disclosing. I'll save proper writing for when my brain is a little less chaotic. Instead, a One-Word-Answer meme I got from here:
Where is your mobile phone? Bedroom Where is your significant other? Filming Your hair colour? Blah Your mother? Overworking Your father? Lost Your favourite thing? Dessert Your dream last night? Hazy Your dream goal? Happiness The room you're in? Quiet Your hobby? Sleep Your fear? Driving Where do you want to be in 6 years? Earning Where were you last night? Busy What you're not? Decisive One of your wish-list items? Painting Where you grew up? Chaos The last thing you did? Sneeze What are you wearing? Dress Your TV? Off Your pets? Snoozing Your computer? Unreliable Your mood? Comtemplative Missing someone? Always Your car? Unlikely Something you're not wearing? Socks Favourite shop? Many Your summer? Hot Love someone? Always Your favourite colour? Blue When is the last time you laughed? Yesterday When is the last time you cried? Saturday
Since last night at 11 pm, I have been feeling RELIEF. And Florida is a Blue State now, which makes me so happy and proud. I should have gotten up and danced and yelled and just rejoiced like a fool, but apparently I'm not that kind of person anymore. I guess I'm ecstatic, but holding it in.
I hated very much the continued references to MLK, hope to God they are not at all prophetic, but would not be surprised considering the sentiments expressed by crowds at McCain/Palin rallies during the last few months. The man needs to be put in a bullet proof bubble.
I'm listening to this rather short mix, as I have been most of the day. While doing that I've been improving my vocabulary at freerice.com and window shopping here. ("MO BETTER Phatty Meat Burger" indeed.)
I watched the movie this music video comes from (200 Pounds Beauty) on the plane on the way to Korea and liked it very much. Then I kept hearing the song in stores while I was there. (: I want to go back.
Somewhat related: whenever I hear the Wii menu music I'm reminded of Colin's apartment in Korea. The smell and everything. It's very strange, but not in a bad way.
Ah, the beginning of another semester. I was all worried about how I'd do last semester and it was all for nothing. I got 3 A's and 2 B's. This semester I'm taking only 3 classes and things are not going well so far. I can turn it around though.
I have no idea what I've been doing with my time. Days just kind of disappear on me. Today, however, I know exactly what happened to the hours: I was online all day. The links that follow are the ones that made me happy.
1)My Grandma in CA is named Margaret, and giraffes are her favorite animals. This one's for her.
2)I am not a big fan of birds, but this guy is awesome.
3)The song Hey Ya is a bit depressing for me, but how could I resist a Ukelele Orchestra version of it? (+ Bret from Flight of the Conchords is in the orchestra. <3 )
I'm back in Tallahassee. I'm taking 5 classes at TCC, 3 of which are math-based. (Yes, I can say "asking for a nervous breakdown," thank you very much.) So far, so good. I will probably be spending a lot of time in the math lab. Once this semester is over I should be able to go back to FSU. *fingers crossed*
My apartment is... ok. It's closer to a bus stop than my previous apartment had been. Colin's apartment is in the complex right next to mine, so that's nice. A big plus is that I have no roommates... unless you count the dog.
I was worried how little Jack would adjust to the move, but he doesn't seem to care at all. He had been behaving fabulously the first few days, but now that he's settled, he's back to barking at everyone who happens to be around when we're out walking. I need to do something about this. Also, this morning the maintenance guy came by... while he was standing outside the door, Jack was ok with him, but as soon as he crossed the threshold my sweet little mutt went BERSERK. O_O All I need is for him to bite somebody. (Cesar Milan, where are you?)
Another little problem I have right now is money. I'm waiting for financial aid monies to be disbursed. After that happens I can breathe. Having only $40 for the next three weeks is a bit disconcerting, but shouldn't really be a problem.
Meanwhile, Rose is due any day now. I can't wait to meet the baby!
Alright... I should stop procrastinating. I have homework to do.
3 weeks since I've posted, eh? Well, I guess it's been a fairly eventful 3 weeks.
Colin got back from Korea. Yay! He came by and watched some of the Live Earth concert with me. Later that day Uncle Mike and his crew came over to stay the night. Next day Colin and I saw Transformers with his parents. I was skeptical going in, but I liked it. I got a message from Bobbi on MySpace that she and her kiddies were in town so I gave her a call. It turned out Joe was driving down from port in Cape Canaveral so we all met for lunch at Tony Romas, Colin too. So I got to meet little Alice and Ben finally, and Colin got to meet Bobbi and Joe. They're all adorable. The first thing Alice said to me was "I got to ride the Teacups with Alice and Mad Hatter!" (: They had all just been to Disney World. After lunch, Joe took the kids and Bobbi's sister back home and Bobbi went with Colin and I to Sunset Place. I miss Bobbi. The Saturday after that Joe's parents had a big barbeque/ party at the clubhouse where they live and a whole lot of people were there. I got to give Jason the panda he requested from my trip to Asia. I think he was happy with it, despite it being just a cell phone charm. After the party, Colin picked me up and we went to see Eagle vs. Shark... odd little movie, but watchable enough.
A few days after that Colin and I drove up to Gainsville to visit Kerry, which was nice, and to Tallahassee for Colin to find an apartment. His parents went in their own car and brought their dog along, which was cute. Colin got an apartment very quickly, and I finally got things straightened out with TCC. :cue fanfare: I am now registered for classes. The previous problem with Financial Aid has mysteriously reappeared though so I will be calling tomorrow to sort that out (again). Then I'll have some money and I can get an apartment. I know just the one I want... even though it's pretty expensive. Anyway, after Colin's parents headed back home, Colin and I stayed with (enormously pregnant) Rose and her fiancee for a night. Despite being really tired, we went to a barbeque at Uncle Mike's girlfriend's house for dinner. I'm pretty sure a good time was had by all. Next day we went to Monica's place for lunch with Rose and Aunt Terry. That was nice too. They are so cute. We left directly from Monica's to Disney World. (!!) A lot has changed there since I was a kid, but I was glad to see they reopened the Carousel of Progress, even if it is different. I was not particularly fond of the changes made to Pirates of the Caribbean, but it grew on me after the second go- around. Anyway, we were there for three days and visited all the parks. I had lots of fun and I hope I didn't ruin it for Colin with my limping around. (The first night of hurting feet I blamed on my shoes, but the rest of the time my right foot hurt because something in it popped. Still dunno what did it or what exactly popped, but it's still slightly swollen and a funny faded-bruise color on one side. It's the one that got rolled on by a car years ago though, so that might explain something. It doesn't hurt so much now though so I'm not worried.)
While I was off riding around Florida with Colin, my copy of the last Harry Potter arrived at home. Adrian read it first and now I'm working on it. (: Haven't gotten enthralled with it as I did with the previous six, but I blame that on having many other things to be preoccupied with at the moment. I'm going to go eat something and then read for the rest of the day, I think.
I've been all excited about this for a month and now realize that I haven't really said a thing to anyone about it. Concert + environmental activism = YES! It will be on TV, but since the Miami Science Museum will be screening it in the planetarium and having little demonstrations all day, I'd LOVE to go to that. The London lineup looks amazing. New York's is ok. Rip Slyme in Kyoto is pretty cool. (Lineup/ schedule info is here.)
That is all. Now back to your regularly scheduled blog reading. (:
Haven't had it in me to write anything about my travels. (Well, I did write something and didn't like it so I deleted it.) This past month has been stressful and depressing so I don't feel like chronicling much of anything. Really the worst of it has been this week.
What it comes down to is that I need to get out of here and every step I've taken to do so has been met with some kind of problem. I've done all I can to be proactive and deal with whatever problem arises without bothering (i.e. talking to) anyone else about any of it, and for the most part I've just been a bit frustrated and avoided getting too down about anything. The only person I've confided my frustrations to is Colin, and he seems to think I've done my best and any complaint I've voiced is understandable. So I feel pretty ok about how I've dealt. I'm sure he'd tell me if I were being an idiot or over-dramatic or whatever. Thank God for Colin.
Right now my whole problem lies with the stupidity of one woman, and that woman isn't me. It being Saturday, there's nothing I can do about this latest problem for two more days. Two days of little sleep and probably lots of grouch. Doesn't help that my mother can't speak to me without putting me down. I need no further reminder of what a loser I am and to what degree, but Mom seems to think otherwise, so I'm going to stay holed up in my room, for the good of everyone in the house. I don't have it in me, in my frustrated and sleep-deprived state, to shrug off or be civil through another unsubtle passive-aggressive assault. I've talked to Mom before about how she speaks to me and she doesn't think she says anything amiss. I talked to my brother about it and he says it's not just me, he's noticed it too. She still has no clue that she's being passive-aggressive and has the idea that if she is, then she's perfectly justified in being so and therefore has no reason to change or apologize for it. She's always been a little bit like that but it's been worse since she hit her 40s. Ah, mid-life. Fun for everyone.
Hi there! I am still alive. (: I was just in another hemisphere for awhile.
I got back from my 68 day visit to Asia on Sunday (May 6) at Ridiculously Late O'clock, a.k.a. Almost Monday. What a harrowing 20+ hours... But I'm here in one piece (which is more than can be said for my luggage *sigh*) and that's what's important. I have also learned a few things. For example, I now know that I never want to go to LAX for any reason ever again, that KFC in Korea is evil, and that my immune system hates me.
I don't really know where to begin writing about the whole trip. I went lots of places and saw so many things and had some weird little experiences... There were so many things I wish I had taken pictures of... mostly the engrish signs. Everyone knows how much I love engrish. One of my personal favorite examples is the "On Your Face Style" store, in Seohyeon, I believe. (Any guesses as to what they might be selling? Yes? No? Well, it's an eyewear boutique. Makes sense now, doesn't it? Would also make sense if they sold cosmetics.) Second to that would be the sign for a small mall we passed on the way to Namdaemun. It had a name that I don't remember, but under the name were the words "Ubiquitous Mall". If you have any clue what that might mean, please explain it to me. I did get a picture of a sign in Tokyo, though, for a store called Pink Wood. And it wasn't a sex shop.
Wow. I'm tired like no one's business, even though it's only 2:30 pm here. Dunno if it's because I'm still jet-lagged or if it's the cold/allergy/god-knows-what thing which I'm guessing I caught on one of the planes. The worst of it seems to be over, thank goodness. It resembled an ear/sinus/throat infection at first. (My voice is still all croaky.) Anyway, I'll write about Asia either later tonight, after I've napped, or tomorrow.
I've been slowly working on stuff to sell on etsy. It's been slow because I've been feeling pretty awful lately. At any rate, a few things have been knitted and/or sewn. Now I need to get decent pictures of them. I'll probably have to borrow Mom's camera for that. Meanwhile there are some not so good pictures on my flickr thingy of 3 of my finished products.
Oh, and a picture of the cupcakes I made today. Only made a dozen since I only have 2, 6 cup pans. I was feeling pretty yucky (even baking wasn't enjoyable) and since I couldn't find the right size cake pan, I poured the rest of the batter into a foil-lined loaf pan instead of waiting to do another batch of a dozen cupcakes. Hooray for foil! No scrubbing of bakeware necessary! Hooray for boxed cake mix and pre-fab frosting! Ah, the lazy baker's best friends. Also, I love those little star sprinkles. (:
Mom hasn't said for certain yet whether she is or isn't, but she might be heading back to Atlanta to take care of Aunt Kitsy again for awhile. Since Dad and Adrian are going to Puerto Rico for Christmas and New Year's, if Mom goes to Atlanta it'll be just me and the pets here for the holidays. So that'll be... different. Mom has been saying she wants to ignore Christmas this year, so maybe she actually will. If she leaves, I'll decorate the house myself. :p I'm not a Christmas Curmudgeon yet! I might make a button wreath, even though Mom's comment about it was "what a waste of vintage buttons."
I really like theblackapple's Christmas tree... particularly her unusual topper. :) The gifts look very nice too. I love seeing other people's decorations.
There were other things I've been thinking of writing, but now I'm all tired and crampy and gross and stuff. Tomorrow maybe.
As of 5:19 am Sunday morning, I am 25 years old. Feels about the same as 24, but somehow sadder. Started out kinda badly, since the neighbors were having a loud party Saturday night that lasted into the wee hours of the morning, preventing any kind of sleep from happening. Same damn people I called the cops on last year. Also, I forgot the pot pie I ate for dinner had cream in it, so yeah... angry, angry tummy. I did have a very good day, however, after I got some sleep. Mom and I went to Fujiya for a very late lunch/ early dinner. MMMMMMM... Honey-miso dressing on crisp salad, teriyaki fish, vegetable tempura, sashimi... *drool* My appetite has been nearly non-existent the past week, but I managed to eat almost everything. Then we went shopping because that's what Mom and I do when we're not home. Seemed like everything was on sale too. Didn't pay more than $10 for anything, not even at Macy's. Yay! And after shopping we went to the supermarket and picked up a cake, and some ice cream stuff. Any day that ends with chocolate cake is good. (:
And I was able to be out and about for multiple hours! I did feel bad by the time we got home, but I'm not counting that. So I guess I can get a job again as long as it's only about 4 or 5 hours/day and I can sit for at least 30 to 45 minutes at some point during that time. 'Tis the season for part time jobs?
I know it's silly but my new pajamas make me smile. I want to wear them all the time. (:
Thanksgiving this year was a relaxed affair... more like a regular dinner that took far too long to prepare. No extended family and no Dad. It was nice just being Mom, Adrian and I because we cooked, we ate, we sort of cleaned up and that was it. No big to do with 16 other people in the house. No dressing up only to spill turkey juice on oneself after ten minutes of even being dressed up because somebody bumped your elbow while they were serving the thing next to you... We did miss the family a little and lots of the usual foods which they bring and we don't know how to make. There were a few new foods so that was nice. One of my new offerings was sweet potato casserole, which is apparently too sweet for anyone but me to eat. And another was Colin's Mom's Sickly-sweet Salad, which Mom and I love and Adrian refused to try.
In other news, I'll be making little stuffed animal thingies and other assorted stuffs with the intention of putting them on etsy. I like what I have so far... I hope other people do. I really hope I can price things so that I make some money, but don't feel like I'm charging too much. I've been looking at what other folks are charging for similar items and I'm a little scared. :/ Shipping for the holidays will be... interesting. It's probably a little too late for that, but we'll see.
And now I have cloth to iron and patterns to transfer and SO MUCH hand-sewing to do.
I also have Japan stuff to print out so I can organize and plan things properly. And papers to get sorted to update the passport. And... well, lots of things.
This is taken from an email I got from democrats.com on Sunday:
"...media reports pour in documenting all kinds of incompetence and fraud (collected by BradBlog.com)
-a yellow button on the back of the Sequoia voting machine used in 16 states and Washington, D.C. that lets voters cast as many votes as they want. -Venezuelan nationals at polling places "fixing" Sequoia machines (Chicago) -vote-flipping on touch screens (Florida, South Carolina, Texas) -voting machines not adjusted for daylight savings time that will shut down an hour before voting ends (Cleveland) -candidates' names chopped short (Virginia, Texas) -electronic voting cards disappearing (Memphis) -Republicans paying lawyers to harass voters without photo ID's (Pennsylvania)
...
As of Saturday, pre-election polls predict Democratic gains of 18-45 seats in the House and 3-6 seats in the Senate, with some of these polls extremely close.
Incredibly, Republicans plan to scream "election fraud" if these pre-election polls prove true. As we all know, Republicans have run the country since they stole the 2000 election. And they only made voting worse by appointing corrupt election administrators like Katherine Harris and Ken Blackwell, and by bribing counties to buy fraud-prone electronic systems through HAVA. Yet these same Republicans plan to scream "election fraud" when they get clobbered on Tuesday to challenge legitimate Democratic victories in key races. That makes it essential to study pre-election polls to rebut Republican charges.
...
Karl Rove has been bragging for weeks about his "72-hour program" to swing the elections, which predict a Democratic takeover of Congress.
Now we know what it is: a dirty trick campaign using robocalls.
The calls are made to Democrats and swing voters at all times of day or night to make them angry. And they pretend to be from the Democrat ("Hello, I'm calling with information about Lois Murphy"). If you hang up, they call back 7-8 times, and each time you hear the Democrat's name, to get you angry at him or her. If you stay on, you get to hear a scathing attack on the Democrat.
Karl Rove's whole career has been devoted to dirty tricks. In 2002, his dirty trick was to force Congress to vote shortly before Election Day for the Iraq War based on two months of White House lies about WMD's and Al Qaeda ties. That dirty trick has cost the lives of 2,834 brave young Americans (16 so far in November), $2 trillion in debt to our children and grandchildren, and unleashed massive bloodshed in Iraq.
It's too late for legal action or even newspaper stories. If you receive one of these calls, write down the time and candidate and call every radio and TV show you can and urge everyone listening to vote against the disgusting Republican dirty tricksters. And forward this email to everyone you know so they aren't fooled by Karl Rove's dirty trick.
Let's make this Karl Rove's LAST campaign by voting ALL Republicans out of office."
*shrug* Take that info however you wish. Obviously, it's very partisan... which doesn't keep it from probably being true. (I haven't bothered with all the links which were in the above quote. They're easy enough to find if you go to the sites that are mentioned.)
I can vote in Tallahassee, which does me no good being in Homestead. *sigh* The paperwork; the mailing. (I think I mentioned that before.) I will be able to vote here for the Presidential election though; by which time I might very well be back in Tallahassee. *grumble*
I have done my best to pass on my info to Mom, who is voting today and doesn't pay much attention to current events. (For example: she had no idea who Karl Rove is until I explained it to her last night. *eye roll*) Not that it really matters here in Florida. I mean... Katharine Harris is running for Senate. It's such a joke, yet it is really happening.
Actually, that last sentence pretty much sums up my feelings about the last 6 years.
The smear campaigning that's been going on here is completely disgusting. In 3 hours of TV watching I saw 6 Republican propaganda commercials (blatant mud-slinging) and only 1 commercial for a Democrat defending himself. That's how Florida TV stations are... and it also probably has to do with how much more money Republican candidates have for commercials versus grassroots Democrats/etcetera here. *sigh* As far as robocalls go, I don't ever answer the house line, so I wouldn't know... I don't answer my cell phone very often either, come to that.
Anyway, I thought this was appropriate for today:
You Are 55% American
Most times you are proud to be an American. Though sometimes the good ole US of A makes you cringe. Still, you know there's no place better suited to be your home. You love your freedom and no one's going to take it away from you!
"Sometimes the good ole US of A makes you cringe." That's an understatement.
One of the things that made me cringe? The phrase "Freedom Fries."
You Belong in Paris
You enjoy all that life has to offer, and you can appreciate the fine tastes and sites of Paris. You're the perfect person to wander the streets of Paris aimlessly, enjoying architecture and a crepe.
Went to the doctor yesterday and it seems the new pills are working well now. Yay! Side effects were no fun, but for the most part they're gone now. Yay to that too! I've been having chest pains, but it turns out they're not related; it's my lungs instead. Inflammation of the pleura. So I did get Dad's flu thing, but not in the same way he did. I just have to wait it out. Anyway, I'm glad I'm almost semi-normal.
After the doctor visit, Dad and I went to see The Prestige. Good movie. Impressive cast. Good performances all around.
Yes, I ended up hanging out with my Dad yesterday. As Dad outings go it was pretty decent. Mom is in Atlanta for a couple more weeks with Aunt Kitsy, so Dad and I are doing what Mom and I would usually be doing. Oh yeah. I didn't post about that... Kitsy has cervical cancer. She's been ill enough that she couldn't really take care of herself so Mom went to take care of her. Mom will be back Nov. 5. Hopefully Aunt Kitsy will be ok enough by then (meaning she won't need chemo) and it'll be ok for her to be on her own again. Fingers crossed.
What have I been up to... I've drawn more sort-of patterns for appliques which I have yet to cut out and sew. I baked pumpkin bread a couple days ago. It's so sweet it's more like cake really. So yummy. Adrian even bought whipped cream to put on it. Unfortunately it's still so humid in the house, and the pumpkin makes it so moist, that the bread is all soggy unless it's toasted. I keep expecting to find it moldy already. Adrian and I (mostly I) have been eating so much of it that there's only 1/4 left. Way back on Sept. 28, I baked a Lemon cake to celebrate Colin's Birthday. Just because he's not here doesn't mean I shouldn't celebrate. Besides, it was an excuse for eating cake. I would not be me if I passed that up. I'm considering the same thing for Mom's Birthday on Wednesday. I wonder if she and Kitsy will do something or if they'll forget? I'll have to call and remind them.
Other than baking and not- sewing, I've been either playing video games, puttering around online, or (horror of horrors) watching TV. Thank goodness for MASH and Star Trek: TNG reruns, downloaded Poirot, and Project Runway. And I'm in love with Ugly Betty... which means it will be canceled any day now.
While I was flipping channels at some ridiculous hour the other day, I came across this music video. I immediately searched youtube so I could share the craziness with Colin. I've had that tab open ever since. Damn catchy song!
And sirenz' post here actually made me laugh because I had just watched Enemy of the State (which filled me with glee to see on TV) and thought "That could happen now..." But yeah, I am also disturbed and infuriated by this new attempt by the neo-Fascists to throw out more of our rights/ ignore the Constitution.
So I was looking up info on renewal of my Venzuelan passport, just in case I could stay in Korea longer with it than with my US one (which I just found out I can't anyway), and I came across this article from November 2003.
"Already facing allegations that Muslim extremists have obtained Venezuelan identity documents, President Hugo Chávez has put the country's passport agency in the hands of two radicals -- one a supporter of Saddam Hussein.
Hugo Cabezas and Tareck el Aissami were appointed last month as director and deputy director of the Identification and Immigration Directorate, in charge of border controls and issuing passports and national ID cards. The agency also works with electoral authorities on voter registration."
Hmm... something very wrong there. Bush Admin. is so keen to be at war with anybody who could possibly be harboring terrorists and freeing people who haven't indicated that they want freeing, why not Venezuela? "Take threats before they fully materialize, Ken"? There's certainly enough reason, using Iraq as the precedent.
Our government is such a bad, bad joke. In other countries, like Venezuela, everyone is well aware of the corruption so the government makes no attempts to hide it. But here it's lies upon lies upon lies to shield and confuse the ignorant into complacency. They need to just come out with it. The corruption runs deep enough now. It's not like they'll be held accountable or anything...
In more personal news, I am getting worse with the blood pressure going all over the place. It gets too high instead now. I turned all pink yesterday and I was all hot and my head felt full (of blood). Mom keeps saying "I dunno, kid... somebody put you together wrong," whenever I start feeling bad. So I've asked the logical question, the answer to which was no, she doesn't suggest a factory recall.
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nebulablue's journal
hopeful
nostalgic
excited, but very nervous
cynical and other things
okay
restless
bllllaaaarrrgggh