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Back in the Deep North
My lack of blogging has been due to fighting a cold, running around school getting things straightened out, and rearranging my room.
Let me sum up:
-- The trip from Fargo to Saskatoon was long but fairly uneventful. We ate lunch in Bismarck at a nifty cafe called Space Aliens Grill & Bar. It was oddly reminiscent of the Pizza Planet offa Toy Story.
-- The border crossing was probably the easiest time I've entered Canada. I think it was probably due to the fact that I was the most prepared I've ever been, entering the country. I had a typed itemized list of the funds I had available for this year, along with the written letters and printouts to show proof. I handed all of that, along with our passports and Mike's ticket outta here to the agent, and within 2 minutes we were across. We didn't even have to get out of the car. I was very happy -- especially considering my history with Customs agents in the past.
-- Thursday and Friday were taken up with the Fall University Teaching and Learning Institute seminars. Yes, I volunteered to go to these, and I think I was one of maybe 5 grad students in attendance. Most everyone there was faculty. Being the geek that I am, I actually enjoyed myself! Since I'd like to be on University faculty myself one day, I figured I could use some extra pointers.
-- Speaking of which, I've been asked to be a speaker for the tutorial leaders' Orientation on Wednesday. My 20-25 minute talk is supposed to be about "Coordinating lectures and tutorials and encouraging class discussion." My supervisor from last year recommended me to speak -- I was very surprised, and yes, psyched about the opportunity! I've learned so much from my own experiences, my teaching class last term, and now these seminars that I know I'll have a lot to say. Plus, being the rabid rhetorician that I am, I welcome the opportunity to persuade. I'll let y'all know how it pans out.
-- Hopefully I'll be feeling better by then. I've been fighting this chest cold for the last week. So in addition to sounding like a misplaced Southern grrrl in the Arctic, now I've got a little Barry White in me as well. A very odd combination indeed.
-- I've spoken with my thesis supervisor and we're now gearing up to submit my still-very-much-a-proposal thesis proposal. I'm still focusing on film adaptations, but rather than focusing on novels (which already has quite a scholarly following), I'm going to look at dramatic plays that have been translated onto the screen. Some preliminary choices are: Rosencrantz & Guilderstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard, 'night, Mother by Marsha Norman, Sleuth by Anthony Shaffer, The Gin Game by DL Coburn amongst others.... Hey, if anyone has any other great ideas of plays that have been made into movies, lemme know! (Natalie I know you must know of some!)
-- I'm registered for fall classes this term! I'm taking two courses: Rhetorical Criticism and Dramatic Theory and Criticism. So if in the next four months I'm more critical than normal, you'll know the reasons why.
-- I've now got a desk in my room! This is no small accomplishment, considering the size of my room probally equals that of a cell in Alcatrez. After much swearing, measuring, and rearranging -- I've finally got a place where I can muse... away from roommates, noise, and whatever other distractions get in the way. This is good, especially considering that my laptop is now a pseudo-desktop.
-- Other than that, not much else is going on. Mike's flight leaves S'toon on Monday, at the ungodly hour of 6AM. Tomorrow we're going to play outside as much as possible -- it's gorgeous out! Great for picnics by the river, a trek to the Saskatoon Zoo, or just walking outside enjoying the almost-fall air.
Yep, the Nyquil is kicking in. Have a great Labor day everyone! (I almost typed "Labour" just then -- maybe Canada really IS getting to me!)
ttfn. |
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I'm sick. And very overwhelmed with school/packing/life issues right now to post anything intelligible.
So until then, enjoy this:
No roommates around this weekend, doo-dah, doo-dah.
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Home!
Post more later -- I haveta be at school tomorrow at 8:30AM. (ugh)
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Currently in Fargo, ND and I'm already missing humidity. Brrr. I guess that's to be expected after spending months in a semi-tropical environment.
I guess this'll put us back in Saskatoon tomorrow night sometime.
I had a couple heart-stoppers tonight: first of all, I got a certified letter back at my Savannah address. I have no clue on what this possibly can be -- but having an overactive imagination has got me thinking of all sorts of negative things. Mike won't be able to get it for me until next week, so I'll keep y'all posted. (and now I'll try not to think about it)
The other thing that scared me was an email from the English department head, subject title "Tutorial Leader position." Once again, the glass-is-half-empty aspect of me automatically assumed it was a letter informing me of losing my funding. It wasn't. He just asked me if I'd mind switching my tutorial meeting from the ungodly time of 8:30AM to 2:30PM. I had NO problems with that.
Anyway, I should sleep so I'll be fresh and chipper for Customs tomorrow morning. (ugh)
Next stop, Saskatchewan!
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Miles traveled: 1345
Miles to go: 1245
Currently in Janesville, Wisconsin. Tomorrow's plan is to get to Bismarck (around 700 miles) and then on Wednesday trek back to Saskatoon.
I'm pretty tired right now, and there's Steel Magnolias on HBO. It's already making me miss the South, though I'm excited (and ready) to be going back home.
 Road trip tidbits for the day:
-- This morning when driving outta Memphis, a morning radio show actually had a contest where you had to call in and guess the amount of change in the deejay's pocket. Apparently they do this every morning (and I though Saskatoon stations were lame!)
-- The further North we get, the less billboards advertise Jesus and the cleaner/nicer the rest stops become.
Of course, some rest stops are operated by evil conglomerate mega-organizations disguised as other institutions. (my mom will know what I'm talking about!)
-- I'm finished my Wicked book. The ending was a let-down, though I'm not disappointed I read it. I won't be able to watch the movie the same way again.
-- In the very ritzy suburban Germantown (outside of Memphis), there's a Citgo gas station where you can pump gas and then order a fresh California roll. Somehow that doesn't sound too appetizing.
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Me and 'Chelle in Memphis
I'm in Memphis right now, after driving 11 or so hours yesterday to get up here. We're gleefully mooching off the Ellis's brand-new household -- and today's their 18th wedding anniversary, so Happy Anniversary youse two!
I've also had the chance to check out the soon-to-be-home of Ringo Starr, who lives just down their street -- very cool.
So far, so good -- no real problems with the car, besides the fact we still have around 1800 miles left in our trek. (ugh)
Tonight it's dinner at PF Changs and then heading out at the crack o' dawn tomorrow.
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(map not to scale, but pretty darn close)
We're leaving first thing in the morning. First stop, Memphis, Tennessee and a quick visit with the Ellis's. From there it's due North through Illinois, West through Michigan, Minnesota, and North Dakota -- then North up to Saskatchewan!
MapQuest says the mileage should be right around 2300/2400 miles. I'll keep track and see how close (or way off) we get.
Blogging may be sparse, considering my laptop now requires an external monitor in order to operate adequately. I've got my camera though -- expect lots of pictures of the sunflower fields in North Dakota!
Here's wishing no more car troubles...
t.t.f.n.
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Wow, I'm almost a week late in wishing myself a happy first blogoversary.
My first entry was August 16, 2002. This blog was born mainly out of boredom on a late Friday night. I wasn't expecting much to come from it -- I barely knew what html stood for, much less how to use it.
grrrl meets world: My year in review.
Slight obsessions with online quizzes
Angry protest letters against bureaucracy (better known as miserly loan servicing companies) and against religious extremism
The death of a friend and my dad losing his job, days apart. That was a hard month.
Surging from feelings of academic anxiety to "shock and awe" after grading (and failing) my first batch of essays.
Concerts, a new apartment, & meeting amazing new friends.
Sitting down and figuring out 100 things to write about me
Witnessing SEASONS! Fall, Winter (along with bouts of falling on my ass), and Spring. (I'm fairly accustomed to Summer!)
Not to mention SURVIVING -40 WINDCHILLS!
Saying goodbye to my childhood home (still not used to that feeling) and admitting a few things
Kicking ass doing that teaching thing
Moving from supporting the war to observing war protests to being angry at being lied to to becoming vehemently opposed to the current Administration.
Evolving from being misplaced in Saskatchewan to feeling "changed" to finally feeling at home up North.
Not to mention a summer full of Road trips, jury duty, summer camp, the Pepsi 400 & some quality family time.
Not a bad year, if I do say so myself.
Thanks for being a part of it with me. 
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Due to "not-having-a-car-itis" and an overall sense of dread at the prospect of sitting around and blankly staring at a pool for 6 hours, I'm not going in to work this afternoon. I was only scheduled for a couple hours, and it has slowed down SO much that I'm not really necessary staff at this point.
So instead, I'm taking it easy. I'll probably read and clean up my haphazard packing gone awry. I'll try to squeeze another trip into the gym, too.
Say it ain't so, Gene: Depp frontrunner to play lead in Willy Wonka remake. Not only has Hollywood "ran out of ideas," but now they're taking on a remake of a cult classic. Granted, Tim Burton is directing, but it still can't bode too well. And noone, not even the incredibly hot Johnny Depp, can replace Gene Wilder and Willy Wonka. (well, maybe Walken could -- now that I think of it)
Ten Commandments in Courthouse No More. The Alabama judge Roy Moore is a little extremist and looking for some free press, methinks. While the 10 Commandments are important to Judeo-Christian standards, I don't think that they belong in a building operated by the state. I mean, he installed this monument in the courthouse in the middle of the night.
Tomorrow's National Slacker Day in Britain.
Straight Eye for the Queer Shows. Four straight guys review the influx of gay reality TV shows. The concept sounds amusing by itself.
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Ah, California.
Thanks to this report from the Daily Show, I now know all about the newest syphilis-prevention program going on in that fine state -- The Healthy Penis. 
You know, there's just something about that smiling organ that makes you want to really avoid catching his nemesis Phil the Sore. The report by Comedy Central really is hilarious. I think the funniest part of the report is that this campaign is for real.
Now here's a bit of trivia I bet you didn't know: At one point in the late 70's/early 80's, Savannah was the gonorrhea capital of the world. Don't ask me how they figured that statistic out.
In other non-STD-related news, I bought a new book tonight to read. I'm beginning to think that this reading thing is becoming an obsession with me. I did set myself up for it, willing myself into Barnes and Noble tonight.
 The book du jour is Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire. No, this has absolutely nothing to do with my project (but I don't care!).
It's a retelling of The Wizard of Oz, told from the perspective of the Wicked Witch. I'm SO in the mood for a fairy tale right now, plus I really liked the premise. (plus it's illustrated!)
Maguire has also written a book from the perspective of one of Cinderella's stepsisters (entitled, Confessions of an Evil Stepsister). I always tend to root for the bad grrrls in fairy tales, anyway. (not being a very "princess"-like character, myself)
Which reminds me, I need to go start reading. G'night, y'all. Hopefully this time tomorrow I'll have a functioning car again.
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Google hit o' the day: "diary of a mad grrrl."
This morning I worked at the Fitness Center in the babysitting room, watching -- well, babies. One mom was a TRIP. Talk about overprotectiveness. She doesn't want her child to see any images of the TV until he's at least two -- she's afraid it'll stunt his development. Now I can somewhat understand that, seeing as so many parents nowadays use TV as a babysitting tool.
But it was WILD how crazy she was about germs. She insists that no one kisses him (not even herself, her husband or her mom), because she's afraid he'll get germs. If people want to touch her kid, she makes them touch him on his feet. She went on and on about his toys, how if they fall on the floor for even a second, she's whisking them away to be washed and sanitized. She said that she always scrubs herself before touching him and rarely lets anyone else near him.
Poor kid. Not even his mom will kiss him?
That lady is going to wear herself out before he's a year old. Now I know that I'll be overprotective of my kid (to a certain extent), but that is just ridiculous. I don't know what she'll do when he's old enough to go to school. People like that annoy me, but I'm really more upset about how her kid will ultimately turn out.
Anyway, I did the babysitting thing for a couple hours and then went over to the pool to play pseudo-lifeguard yet again (cue superhero music). This feat consists of me occasionally sitting on top of the waterslide and saying "Go" incessantly. Oh the lengths a broke college student (with a BRAND NEW transmission) will go to in order to earn a buck.
Since I've done so much ranting on my personal life for so long, I figured some distractions are long in order:
-- Design your own hell: a la Dante style, complete with 9 levels of torture. Now there's something that'll brighten your day. (easy enough for me, considering I ranked on the eighth level on a quiz a couple of months ago)
-- Heh. Am I Governor or Not?. Rank the candidates, via cheesy Internet-popularity game style. The first entry I got was a very scary picture of a shirtless Wilford Brimley. *shudder* So far Truimph the Insult Comic Dog is leading the polls.
-- While we're on that subject, here's a funny little flash cartoon, campaigning for Arnold and paid for by the "people who really, really don't like Gray Davis." Ahhnold's campaign promises are complete with lines from his movies. Too funny, and made me waiting forever to download it on dialup actually worthwhile. Lots of distractions on this site.
-- From the "yikes" news department: Fair operator killed when hair catches on roller coaster. Reason #451 of why I don't go to fairs. That and the carnies. They have small hands and smell of cabbage!
-- More evidence of my government at work, in Iraq. US Deploys 'Zsa Zsa Saddam' Campaign.
Excerpt: TIKRIT, Iraq -- He has been portrayed as a monster, a murderer, and a genocidal dictator.
Now U.S. troops are giving us a whole new vision of Saddam Hussein -- a blonde-haired movie goddess with rouged lips and a low-cut blouse.
"Zsa Zsa Saddam" is one of a series spoof images of the ousted Iraqi dictator that are due to be posted on walls and billboards around his former stronghold of Tikrit by troops of the 4th Infantry Division's 1st Battalion 22nd Armoured Regiment.
I guess we've gone from the bombing-them-back-to-the-Stone-Age approach to the ever popular third grade teasing method. Not that I'm sticking up for the deposed bastard, but how can these pictures of an Arabic man done up as Billy Idol, Elvis, Rita Hayworth, and Zsa Zsa Gabor be good for American & Arabic relations? Sheesh.
--  I added myself today. Even though I'm technically not Canadian, living in Canada qualifies me. And surviving the Saskatchewan winter gives me a gold star.
-- Finally, the Lord's Prayer in Ebonics.
"Yo, Big Daddy upstairs,
You be chillin
So be yo hood
You be sayin' it, I be doin' it
In this here hood and yo's
Gimme some eats
And cut me some slack, Blood
Sos I be doin' it to dem dat diss me
Don't be pushing me into no jive
Ang keep dem crips away
Cause you always be da man, G
Straight up.
Aa-men.
Amen.
p.s. Happy 22nd Bday to my struggling actor/screenwriter brother, Andy. Remember, I still want that million dollar cut after I edit your first script!
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Yeah, so I overreacted. Slightly.
Here's the scenario: I wake up, find out that the car is going to cost at least 1600 dollars to fix, and it won't be ready for pickup until at least Wednesday.
Problem is, Mike's ticket is booked for Saturday morning at 6AM from Saskatoon.
There was NO WAY we coulda made it from here to there in two and a half days. Not unless we drove nearly non-stop, and that's not very likely. 'Sides, that's all I need, to show up at the Canada border all frazzled and bloodshot. No way.
So then Mike called up the travel agency to see about moving his ticket back a week. They told us it would cost at least 1600 dollars. No kidding.
At this point we're looking at $3000 of costs that are not budgeted for, in addition to traveling costs.
Thus my very upset post this morning at 10:15.
Since then, things have relatively worked themselves out. Mike's parents will help us cover the transmission woes, at least until I can pay them back after starting my teaching gig up north. We called the airline and told them our sob story and they only charged us $25 to move his ticket to September 1st.
He's working all this week, and somehow I managed to get myself almost a full week at my old job (playing pseudo-lifeguard again).
But man, talk about timing. This whole car thing is just unbelievable. I guess it could have been worse. It could have happened en route to Canada -- just imagine how THAT blog entry woulda read.
I just finished mowing Mike's parents grass and doing some lawn work. Maybe that'll put at least a 50 dollar dent in what I now owe them. Sigh.
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My transmission is fucked. ($1600 worth)
And now so am I. |
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Car woes.
Yes, the day before we're supposed to leave it looks like my car is experiencing transmission troubles. The timing of this all is just unbelievable.
About a month and a half ago, on the way to work my car started to vibrate -- it felt like I was running over rumble strips. It was odd, but it was early in the morning, so I thought it was a fluke thing. I did tell Mike about it, but it didn't act up again until
LAST NIGHT.
We were driving in the parking lot of Target when it started that weird vibrating feeling again. It also had a hard time shifting from first to second gear and vibrated when you stopped.
Mike thought it just needed a good tune-up, so he and his dad spent most of the afternoon changing the oil, sparkplugs, wires, coolant, etc. He spent about 160 bucks, fixing it up. We thought that might have solved the problem.
Then tonight, on my way to pick up the sushi for supper, the car started acting up AGAIN. At this point my heart is in my stomach and the serious stressing out is beginning.
I got home, piled Mike and his dad back in the car, and we drove around for another 20 minutes to figure out what's going on.
The weird thing is that the shifting problem and vibrations only happen occasionally. It's not a consistent problem. We checked the transmission fluid -- and it was still red and not burney smelling. The coolant Mike changed didn't indicate anything was wrong, either.
So I don't know. At this point it could be as simple as a messed-up sensor or as worse as a busted transmission. If it is the latter, this will seriously screw up my plans for school this fall. I have enough saved up right now to help pay for travel expenses and my tuition bill -- NOT enough for major car woes.
What to do when your car turns into a lemon? Why, make fudge brownies. At least that's what I did.
Tomorrow morning we're calling a transmission guy and begging him to squeeze us in to look at my car.
Sigh.
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Happy Birthday Suzy.
  My sister, I love my sister, she’s the best.
She’s cooler than any other girl that I have ever met.
She had the greatest band, she had the greatest guy.
She’s good at everything and doesn’t even try.
She’s got a wall around her nobody can climb.
She lets her ladder down for those who really shine.
I tried to scale it, but to me she’s blind.
So I lit a firecracker, went off in my eye.
I miss my sister. I miss my sister.
I miss my sister. I really miss her.
("My Sister" by Juliana Hatfield)
I was digging around some pictures today, while packing, and I remembered this song. (it was on the Reality Bites soundtrack, which is even better than the movie itself)
I miss you, Suz! 
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Can you believe I've gone through 25 years of life and have never sat through the end of Rosemary's Baby? I usually only catch the first part of the film and turn it off before it's over. It came on AMC a little while ago and I sat through the last hour of it. Very disappointing. I guess I was expecting more from it, especially since it's considered a "classic."
Positive: Mia Farrow is just sickening cute as a pregnant lady. Negatives: 1. Tons o' misinformation regarding witchcraft. They basically make it satanism, and a very conservative-Protestant vision of it at that. 2. The ending of it stinks. I coulda thought of a better plot-twist at the end. I suppose the way it ends is supposed to be creepy, I just thought it lame.
Isn't there a sequel to Rosemary's Baby, anyway?
Leave it to my car to figure out the exact moment to start acting up. Tonight on the way back from Hilton Head it started vibrating and acting funny when the accelerator was pushed. Not good.
So tomorrow looks like it's tune-up-the-car-day-so-it-doesn't-fall-apart-on-the-way day. Looks like we're going to haveta haul ass back to Canada after all.
Tomorrow we're also taking Mike's parents out to lunch. I'm fairly anxious about that -- mainly because we've hardly talked all summer and they still haven't seen my latest body mod yet. With our very different schedules and my fairly long work days and both of our tendencies to hole ourselves on the opposite sides of the house -- not much "breaking down walls" has gone on these last few months. (yes I am good at rationalizing)
Not to mention all the packing of my books and clothes.
I'm stressing. I really hope my car isn't screwed this close to me needing to leave.
But on a semi-bright side, I bought some school clothes for this next year at one of my favorite places on Earth, Old Navy. Guess who brought home a pair of jeans that are a size smaller than she's used to? It's me! It's me!
I'll dwell on that happy note as I try to get some sleep tonight.
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From what I remember in the past, isn't the mayor of Toronto an ass? No, that isn't a rhetorical question. I really am curious, mainly because of what I saw him say in a news conference today, regarding the power outages.
He basically stated something to the effect of "when does the United States ever accept responsibility." Yeah, there's some truth to that -- but am I ever dreading having to listen to the flux of these type of statements again. While I may disagree with some of what my country is doing right now, it's still hard to swallow when you continue to hear people badmouth it over and over (along with stereotypical views).
Anyway, this whole power outage fiasco has done a great job to show how vulnerable we can be -- especially when there's only two grids that control the whole nation's power. Turns out that Savannah is hooked up to the grid that caused so many in the Northeast to blackout. Crazy.
It looks like I'll be saying "Au Revoir" to Savannah either Sunday or Monday. I still have yet to finish packing, plan my route, and fit in other Savannah-ish things I want to do before I leave. If anyone wants anything from down South, now's the time to speak up. I've already got some orders for barbecue sauce and grits.
I've been in Savannah for so long I'm almost nervous about heading back.
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Still no clue on who's responsible for the blackout mess.
The largest power blackout in American history prompted new calls Friday for overhauling the nation's electricity system as investigators said they believe the power disruptions began in northern Ohio.
"That's where the information is starting to point," Ellen Vancko, a spokeswoman for the North American Electric Reliability Council, said in an interview. "It looks like that's where the collapse started."
But even the focus on Ohio brought immediate skepticism.
The chairman of the Ohio Public Utilities Commission (news - web sites), Alan Schriber, called it "speculation at best" and said industry experts he contacted Friday continued to focus attention on Canada and upstate New York.
I think we all know who's really responsible.
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Ooooh. Yet another geek test.
I am 29.78304% - Total Geek (More than only a geek, but not yet a major geek. Give me a couple more years to work on that one.)
Things that denote my geekiness:
- I have attended public academic lectures on my own
- taken notes in more than one color
- corrected a professor in class
- written a letter to the editor (twice)
- in show choir (three years in high school)
- gone to a movie dressed up like one of the characters (Fellowship -- I was an elf.)
- snorted while laughing
- I routinely watch MST3K
- (the movies section really killed me, geek-rating wise)
- I listen to NPR
- I have altered registry files
- I know that the answer is 42
- My profession requires a certain level of geekiness
And that's only a few of the answers that applied to me. |
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'Tis a good thing it's still a full moon out, lotsa people up East without power tonight. Still doesn't stop the politicians from playing pass the blame game. Whose fault is it? Canadian officials say it stems from a power plant in the States, and of course we're pointing the finger up north.
All I know is that I missed my Daily Show. Grrr. Hilary Rodham Clinton was supposed to be on too. And also a news story bit about Americans moving up to Canada. Damn.
I know, I'm superficial. Did anyone else hear of reports of serious looting going on in Ottawa? NYC is eeriely calm, at least it looks that way from the screen.
Many apologies for my early morning tirade. I'm still brooding over things, but I promise to be a little more upbeat.
I'm going home soon! I'm halfway looking forward to it -- well, okay, a good three-fourths looking forward to returning. It's been good being back in the States, but I'm ready to be back in the University. Plus I'm just dying for some Canadian beer.
Here's some really scary news. The President now has his very own action figure. Yipes. He's all rigged up in a fighter pilot's uniform, just like when he phonily declared the end of combat in Iraq, months ago.
Forget Jack Kerouac, Bush definitely would make a better bobble-head.
Starting a new book tonight, Fear of Flying by Erica Jong. This is my "fun" book that I'll read before I sleep. I'm also trudging through Rhetoric and Human Consciousness: A History by Craig R. Smith (for those rare times when I'm feeling academic).
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It's 2:00 in the morning and I feel like my head could explode right now, due to being totally overwhelmed by the amounts of injustice in the world.
I just finished All She Wanted. I knew what I was getting myself into, once I started reading this book. I'd seen the movie. The first chapter of the book describes in detail the horrible crimes committed. Yet reading through the pages I set myself up for its devastating conclusion.
And now, despite the fact I consider myself anti-death penalty, I'm angry and feel somewhat justified that one of the bastards that did this deed will die as punishment.
I'm angry that someone who had identity issues had to die a brutal death just because some drunk hicks were pissed off.
I'm angry that after she was brutally raped and assaulted the police didn't arrest the bastards and questioned the validity of her accusation.
I'm angry that two other people died along with Brandon Teena that night, yet have been forgotten or overshadowed in the sensationalism of the case.
I just can't stop thinking about how unfair the whole situation was.
Which leads me to think of all the other injustices going on in the world right now. I don't think that these would upset me so much if I didn't hold some naive idealism within me still.
I'm angry that self-righteous bigots, masking themselves as "righteous Christians," proclaim that they alone can assign (and legislate!) who can marry. This really really bothers me. Growing up my entire life I was taught that homosexuality was an "abomination" and a "sin." It wasn't until I had my first lesbian friend that I truly learned about homosexuality, and how ignorant and close-minded these views were. I think it's really easy to point at someone and accuse -- especially when you don't take the time to hear about life from their perspective. Next time you hear someone derailing against homosexual partnerships, ask them how many homosexual friends they have. My guess would be none.
Marriage as "sacred" only between a man and a woman -- that's unacceptable to me. And if my government has the nerve to try to legislate that -- then you can bet I won't be assigning myself to that role any time soon.
And speaking of religious injustices, I'm really screwed up in that area I'm finding. I have such a hard time dealing with the fact that truly horrible men and complacent women screwed over many people that I love. And no, I'm not only referring to how they fired my dad. There are so many instances of hypocrisy and outright lies that my weblog space isn't long enough to list them. What gets me the angriest are those people who KNOW these types of activities occur and look the other way. I don't understand how or why this organization continues to be successful -- which only adds to my views of injustices.
And I know that that whole experience has forever impacted me toward my view of organized religion. Here's an analogy for you -- I feel like I've taken the red pill (via The Matrix). Now that I know how much of how organized religions work, I can't go back to plugging myself into the hypocrisy. Sometimes I wish that there was a way I could take a blue pill and forget everything I've gone through. But being a preacher's daughter won't ever allow me to do that.
I can't even get into the injustices that my government is condoning. I found out tonight that a freshman in the English department at Armstrong was another casualty in Iraq. He was 19.
It's enough to make me want to pick up and move to another country. Oh wait, I'll be in Canada in less than a week now.
Sometimes I just feel so overwhelmed. Tonight is definitely one of those times.
I'll probably delete this after I wake up. |
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In terms of my academic life, I think that I can count on one hand the number of people who have seriously impacted me.
I just got back from having dinner with one of these select few. She was my film prof at Armstrong, plus she was on my Honors project committee. She's an amazing woman, with several books and articles under her belt -- in addition to having a terrific spunk that's always getting her into trouble (something else I find admirable!).
She took me out to a local Greek restaurant and we talked for two hours about everything ranging from my upcoming project to politics to life in Canada vs. life in the States.
It's meetings like these that really charge up my academic batteries, as lame as that sounds. After talking with someone that I admire and then realizing that I'm actually working toward a similar academic goal, I gain more confidence in the direction my life is going. Instead of feeling that all-too-common graduate student insecurity, I get a shot of confidence that I'm actually on the right track.
She gave me lots of good ideas to pursue in my project. Because so much work has been dedicated to novels and film adaptation, she suggested that I look into a field that hasn't had so much research. A couple ideas we both brainstormed include plays vs. film adaptation or true events that have been translated onto the screen. Both are aspects of adaptation I'm open to, and either could give me a little more of an edge in comparison to a field where much has been already done.
I'm nearly finished the book that the film Boys Don't Cry was based upon. The book (which is based on a true story) is VERY different than the screen translation. Granted, I haven't seen the movie in a couple years, but from what I remember, the book is presenting a very different image of the protagonist, Brandon Teena. I still think it's an amazing film to watch, while I did have difficulty with a few of the scenes. Hilary Swank more than deserved her Oscar, that's for sure.
Anyway, I'm feeling very good right now. I'm all psyched up to start school again and immerse myself with all sorts of "academic-y" things. I've already gotten a couple of the books I ordered in the mail for my Rhetorical Criticism class and I'm fighting the urge not to go ahead and dive headfirst into them.
Sometimes it just feels good to be a self-proclaimed geek.
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Happy full moon.
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Nothing like a high-intensity kickboxing class to take out all your computer-virus frustrations in. Yes, I know it's my own fault for not downloading the patch for this security loophole a month ago. But to be fair, I haven't been using my laptop/now desktop for months now. I've been mooching off Mike's sweet new Dell instead.
But the virus/worm/whatever seems to be gone now. I felt very computer-geek, cleaning out my registry and finding the places that the fix-it from Symantec missed.
It's been weird having these two days off from work. I sleep later, get up with nothing too pressing to do, and end up reading for most of the day. I like it, though I'm sorta welcoming the next three days of me playing pseudo-lifeguard at the pool.
This afternoon, after wrestling the worm for an hour or so, I finally sat down and watched the film Cider House Rules. My memories of the film up to that point were fairly negative, but I enjoyed the book so much that I wanted to give the movie another shot (despite the fact that Tobey McGuire is in its lead role).
I had mixed emotions when watching it. I really think I connected to the characters of the book, and this made it difficult when I watched how they translated on-screen. I think that McGuire, Theron, and Caine are great in their roles -- though I wish that more of the book was included in their film characters' constructions.
I don't like how the film reduces (and consequently demeans) the role of Candy (Theron). Yeah, she's indecisive of what she really wants -- but the book gives you time to explore the reasons why she's like that. In the film she just comes off as a user. As I watched it, I wanted to defend her for the people who haven't read the book.
Over all, I liked the film. I'm not sure how I could use it in my upcoming (looming) project, and I think I should probably give myself some academic distance before I even consider it.
In other news: my advisor back home has forwarded me a conference she wants us all to try to attend next year. It's the annual conference of the Southern States Communication Association in Tampa this April. How fun would it be for me to show a bunch of Canadians the South?
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Welcome -- You've got a virus!
Along with a whole buncha people. Ugh.
So last night I was playing on my new desktop system -- okay, maybe it's not so "new," it's more like my laptop now turned into desktop. It's going to cost me almost as much to buy a NEW laptop as it will to fix the teeny-tiny backlight bulb that blew out on my unit. Ugh. It still works perfectly fine, I just have to plug it into an external monitor in order to see anything.
But anyway, I was playing on my computer when I got an odd "remote procedure call" box pop up on the screen. It gave me a minute countdown and then shut down my computer. Very odd, and considering it was late at night, I didn't have the time or energy to try to fix.
It kept doing it this morning. Finally the computer whiz that I am went to Symantec and downloaded the fix. Ran the fix and am now downloading the Windows security patch.
So all's well that ends well. The moral of this story: Listen to Mike when he tells me to download the Windows updates and run my virus scanner more.
EDIT: As I was finishing up this post, the RPC box popped up yet AGAIN on me, shutting me down when I only had 4% left on my Windows download. This really pissed me off, 'specially since I'm on crappy dial-up and it takes forever to download anything, anyways.
At first I didn't mind fixing and nipping this worm in the bud. Now it's personal. I'm making this worm my bitch.
I disabled my System Restore, manually searched and found (and nixed) an msblast.exe file that the fix-it program missed, downloaded the latest virus definitions and then finished the Microsoft update.
Gah! The perils of technology.
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More free books for me to devour (or: oy, do I have alot to read in the next couple weeks):
The Rhetorical Tradition: Readings from Classical Times to the Present editors Patricia Bizzell and Bruce Herzberg
Readings in Rhetorical Criticism editor Carl Burgchardt
Literacy and the Survival of Humanism by Richard A. Lanham
Logic and Contemporary Rhetoric: The Use of Reason in Everyday Life by Howard Kahane
Rhetoric and Human Consciousness: A History by Craig R. Smith
Wooo. Speaking of which, I should probably log off here and do some reading before hitting the gym.
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"When I was a little girl the heads of my paper dolls came off, and it was a long time before I discovered that my own head would not fall off if I bent my neck. I used to walk around holding it very stiff because I thought a strong wind or a heavy push would snap my neck. Nel was the one who told me the truth. But she was wrong. I did not hold my head stiff enough when I met him and so I lost it just like the dolls."
Sula, Toni Morrison |
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Talk about dog days of summer...
You know, I'm really going to miss the muggy nights of the South. Sometimes I just love going out in the middle of the night and just smelling the warm summer air.
Mmmm.
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Uh-oh.
Earlier this afternoon I was all excited because I was finally going to go get my nose pierced. Yes, I've wanted to have it done for a while now, but have been delaying it because I didn't think it would go over too well at work.
I psyched myself up for it, and drove down the street to a shop I've been eyeing all summer. I even sat down with the form to fill out, still readying myself.
'Cept now I'm not sure I'm going to go through with it after all.
The (very) pierced guy who would be performing this feat sat me down and explained that I'd have to wear a hoop in my nose for up to 6-8 weeks -- or at the very minimum, two. The piercing is done with a needle, and the ring is needed while the nose heals.
I don't wanna wear a ring. I just want a cute little nose stud, one that isn't all that noticeable, but cute when it is seen.
I knew I couldn't go to my job this last week of work with a nose-ring, so at the very least I won't be able to get this thing done until Saturday.
But the question now is, do I want to wear that damn ring in my nose for the two weeks until I can get the stud put in?
I don't know. I probably should just drop the whole idea, but part of me still really wants to get it done.
Any advice? (Mom, no you don't count!) 
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I don't know what is more odd -- actually finding boba tea in Savannah OR seeing my dad out in City Market on a Saturday night. Tonight both were accomplished after going out to Sharon's wedding.
Once again, every time I ran across an old family friend or someone from my past, they'd always compliment my hair. That was nice, though I still wonder what people musta though of me (& my hair) before, to have them react the (astonished?) way that they did.
The reception was at a very classy hall in downtown Savannah. Very nice food, amazing ambiance, and fairly decent dance music. Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight" played and later on my brother twirled me around in my favorite swing dance move, the pretzel. Very fun.
I only had to pass out hugs and fake smiles to a couple of people this time around, making it much better than the wedding I attended earlier this summer. I was a little more strategic in avoiding certain people this time around.
That's one thing I sorta hate about being Southern -- I hate how I have to be so smiling and accommodating with people that I really can't stand. Part of me wishes I could really lay it out on what I REALLY think of them -- but even if I am thinking it, you couldn't tell by my smile or returning hug. No, it's not just overt phoniness, but rather me being a good Southern grrrl. (okay, with just a tad bit of rationalization thrown in)
Tomorrow morning I'm supposed to get up early and meet my parents at the Waffle House for (you guessed it) WAFFLES! Yum.
I guess I should probably try to squeeze some sleep in before then.
I made another one of my infamous CD mixes for my mom. I have fairly varied tastes, even if I do say so. Here's what made Collection #3:
- Inner Smile by Texas
- Send Me on my Way by Rusted Root
- No Such Thing by John Mayer
- Beautiful by Joydrop
- Bad Reputation by Joan Jett
- Let's Do It by Joan Jett & Paul Westerburg
- Iwoya by Angelique Kidjo & Dave Matthews
- Wombo Lombo by Angelique Kidjo
- Darshan by B21
- Independence Day by Mel C
- Me & Julio by Paul Simon
- Bye Bye by JoDee Messina
- Heads Carolina, Tails California by JoDee Messina
- Lil' Jack Slade by Dixie Chicks
- We Danced Anyway by Deana Carter
- Jesse by Joshua Kadison
- Walking in Memphis by Bruce Hornsby
- Father & Daughter by Paul Simon
- Travelin' Soldier by Dixie Chicks
ttfn. |
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Family time.
Me & the "little" brother (he looks so contorted because I tickled him right before we were shot)
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Me & the folks
This is what happens when your little brother tries to take the camera away from you.
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