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Now that everything has relatively calmed down, a photoshop done by someone more talented than I --
 It's been an interesting past couple of days. Hopefully it's all calmed down by now -- while I do have to expressly thank Fr. Sibley for the increased attention to my site lately. I've had record numbers of visitors in the last 3 days due to the link from A Saintly Salmagundi.
Incidentially, I had to look up the definition of Salmagundi -- here's the first definition listed for it: "A salad of chopped meat, anchovies, eggs, and onions, often arranged in rows on lettuce and served with vinegar and oil." There's some irony in that, I'm sure.
Granted, most of the attention I received was under the pretense of my words being "whining," resembling a Cookie Monster (?!), blasphemous, "in a snit," and not to mention judgemental and uncharitable. Go figure!
Thanks to Ed, who brought new light to the situation, in many ways.
But enough of this. Tonight's Hallowe'en! I've got big big plans.
EDIT: Hello Saintly Salad fans, who have clicked over here due to his "uncharity" link. First of all, "uncharity" is an interesting (and slightly archaic) word to choose in describing the poster. IT'S A JOKE. Let's get a little more lighthearted in here.
But since you're here, let's make the best of it. Fr. Sibley linked to a comment referring to the Revolve bible I'm examining. Here's my proposal and here's the description of it on a Christian bookstore webpage.
So what's your perspective on this venture? Is it a good thing to give the Bible a makeover, reformatting it as a teen fashion magazine? I'm curious to know.
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I HATE driving in the snow.
(thank you, that is all)
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Variations on the Word Love
This is a word we use to plug
holes with. It's the right size for those warm
blanks in speech, for those red heart-
shaped vacancies on the page that look nothing
like real hearts. Add lace
and you can sell
it. We insert it also in the one empty
space on the printed form
that comes with no instructions. There are whole
magazines with not much in them
but the word love, you can
rub it all over your body and you
can cook with it too. How do we know
it isn't what goes on at the cool
debaucheries of slugs under damp
pieces of cardboard? As for the weed-
seedlings nosing their tough snouts up
among the lettuces, they shout it.
Love! Love! sing the soldiers, raising
their glittering knives in salute.
Then there's the two
of us. This word
is far too short for us, it has only
four letters, too sparse
to fill those deep bare
vacuums between the stars
that press on us with their deafness.
It's not love we don't wish
to fall into, but that fear.
this word is not enough but it will
have to do. It's a single
vowel in this metallic
silence, a mouth that says
O again and again in wonder
and pain, a breath, a finger
grip on a cliffside. You can
hold on or let go.
-Margaret Atwood
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In addition to being labeled "whiny" by someone I don't even know -- today I had an opportunity to be labeled something else. In this case, it was actually a positive experience.
It happened this afternoon in my grad rhetorical criticism class. One of the students who is just now learning about rhetoric was talking about the concept of ethos. Ethos is the aspect of rhetoric concerned with the character of the speaker. It involves a study of rhetors' good will, good judgement, and good character inherent within their messages.
She was struggling with trying to define how important of a role ethos plays in perceiving messages. She then remembered going to the teaching orientation session I spoke at in early September. She said out of all the profs and student teachers who shared that day, I had the most ethos. She said after hearing me speak, she was reassured and felt like she could actually be a Teaching Assistant.
She must have gone on about my speaking presence and speech content for about 5 minutes. She said I looked confident and sounded articulate. It was really a nice surprise have someone compliment me like that.
It's moments like these (while few and far between) that reassure me I'm in the right place at the right time in my life.
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Blog Wars, part deux. (and here you thought you had it bad!)
I love the smell of controversy on a Wednesday. It would seem that I've frustrated a Fr. Bryce Sibley.
Here's the history of it all. He posted this lovely tirade/analysis against a Valtrex commercial. Segments: The basic gist of it was this - there was this woman who had herpes (presumably from whoring around) and wanted to keep on with her life, so takes this medicine to keep living her lifestyle. [...] So the basic message is - Valtrex helps you go back to your harlot lifestyle even though you have genital herpes which should really be making you reconsider the things you did to get this disease.
Growing up in the Church (or my two years of Bible college) I must have missed the passage in the Gospels where Jesus accuses women of "whoring around."
Academy Girl referenced his page in her comments to my post.
I went over, read his post and responded. Here's what I said: These women have good points. [several women objected to his assumption of how women obtain herpes] Words are like stones -- just be careful that you've got your aim right before you start throwing them around. Otherwise you may end up hurting people you don't intend.
Matthew 7:1-3 -- "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?"
I thought that was the end of it. I stated my opinion, wasn't really inflammatory (despite wanting to be), and thought that was the end of the story.
Apparently not.
Here's what his post this morning reads:
Some of you have been wondering what is with pictures of the behind-kicking tough guys being apparently randomly posted on my blog over the past few days. It has been my attempt to establish equilibrium or balance out the chi or whatever you call it on my blog as a result of all the whining going on over my Valtrex advertisement comments - whining even going on in other blogs (read the post, and then read the comments). I am usually one to let discussions in the comments area rage without interfering, but the constant harping by certain individuals on this topic and their inability to see what I was really trying to say began to really get on my nerves. I tried banning them, but they have various IP addresses, so they keep coming back. I am going to stick by my policy and not get into any long discussion or interfere, but I will make a brief retort here.
ARGH.
So lots of people are apparently coming over here to see what the "whining blog" has to say.
Here's my retort, I'm posting it here -- because I have a feeling it'll be deleted over there:
Please don't flatter yourself to think your "righteous" post below (re: Valtrex) inspired my post you've linked to. It didn't. Someone who regularly reads your site merely pointed me the way to your page in her comments.
I'm not sure if the "anonymous" snipes below are directed toward me. I'm not exactly sure what gave the idea I'm afraid to sign my name to my thoughts, because I am not. Nor am I interested in starting any type of debate (be it religious or otherwise), especially in this forum.
I was just curious to read a good Christian perspective on "whoring around." Encountering it reinforces for me what I already know.
I'm reminded of my favorite Mark Twain quote: If Jesus were here today, there is one thing he wouldn't be -- a Christian."
Becky Bennetch.
There. Enough said.
Things like this do make Wednesdays a little more interesting, I will have to admit!
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The Rocky Horror Light Show
I've got my costume all lined up for Friday. I'm going to be one of the Time Warp-ers -- except with lime green hair. I'm also dressing a guy in drag -- many pictures will ensue, so be afraid.
Very afraid.
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Here I thought my site would be considered way more evil:
(via you exist here)
UPDATE (thanks to Matt's keen eye): I'm now certifiably 36% evil, 64% good. That's more a little more like it.
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Tonight I watched two movies that completely reinforce for me why I feel the way I do about certain issues.
  After dropping a friend tonight at her martial arts practice, I made a last minute decision and decided to check out a movie at the local art-house theater. The Magdalene Sisters was playing and I wanted to catch it before it left. Plus, I just wanted an opportunity to be by myself and absorb something other than the world of stresses that surround me.
So after grabbing another Elderflower Pressé drink, I settled myself for a movie that I've long wanted to see -- but knew beforehand that I would get upset over the message it sent.
For a quick recap of the film, here's a bit from Ebert's review of it: Here is a movie about barbaric practices against women, who were locked up without trial and sentenced to forced, unpaid labor for such crimes as flirting with boys, becoming pregnant out of wedlock, or being raped. These inhuman punishments did not take place in Afghanistan under the Taliban, but in Ireland under the Sisters of Mercy. And they are not ancient history. The Magdalene Laundries flourished through the 1970s and processed some 30,000 victims; the last were closed in 1996.
This movie is upsetting, on many levels. I spent most of the film just seething, literally, at what I was seeing portrayed on the screen. It is unbelieveable to consider the actions of the "religious" in their attempts to "save the souls" of these young girls. What makes it even worse is that this film is based on the actual accounts of women who survived the Magdalene laundries.
Anyway, I am glad I went by myself to see this film. I think that I absorb movies better when I'm not being self-conscious about the person sitting next to me, or partaking in the obligatory conversation that usually follows the viewing of a film.
The other movie I watched tonight was If These Walls Could Talk, the story of three women, in three different time periods, with three different life situations, who each contemplate having an abortion. It's respectively set in 1952, 1974, and 1996. I rented and watched this with my roommate. This was also a difficult movie to watch, for reasons other than the ones of The Magdalene Sisters.
After watching these movies tonight, I can see the reasons why I'm such a feminist and against most forms of organized religion.
The feminist instincts I have are a part of a personal ideology that I don't think I could ever break. In my rhet. crit. class this last week, the prof encouraged us to try to see artifacts and other forms of rhetoric outside these types of ideological mindsets. I know that she had a good point in telling us the problems and limitations of such belief structures -- but I'm not sure I could ever totally break off the way I feel about certain issues.
The actions and events that happened to the women in these films were just WRONG -- yes, they were fictionalized accounts, but they were also based on true stories. Stories that occurred not just 20 years ago, but are representative of many things that still occur today.
Whenever I see movies like this or I read books about similiar situations -- I get so fired up inside. I want to just shake the world and get people to see the faults in their own ideologies.
I'm convinced that it's easy to be accusative and patronizing of someone in a situation that you've never experienced. To look at someone who's gay and accuse them of making a "choice" about their sexual orientation and then shake your head at them, condemming them to hell -- that's easy to do, especially when you've never had a homosexual friend in your life. It's easy to hold up signs that deter women from going to get an abortion when you've never been in a situation where that was one of the only options available. It's especially easy to condescend and look down on people who don't hold the exact strain of faith you hold -- until you look outside and realize that the Divine is all around you (and you just never took the time to notice).
I'm all fired up and it's 1AM and I should be winding down for bed.
I've got more to say, but I think now is the time to brood.
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Fox News Threatened to Sue The Simpsons Over a Parody Segment
During an interview broadcast today on NPR's Fresh Air, Simpsons creator Matt Groening revealed that the Fox News Network had threatened to sue The Simpsons over a parody of the right-leaning news channel. The highly sensitive news organization, which is headed by Roger Ailes, made headlines this summer with an ill-starred lawsuit against humorist Al Franken's book, Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them. The Fox suit was thrown out in court and only succeeded in making Franken's book a bestseller. According to Groening, the Simpsons team refused to cut out the segment, which Groening told Fresh Air he "really liked," figuring that Rupert Murdoch wouldn't allow the Fox News cable network to sue the Fox Broadcast Network, which carries The Simpsons. The Fox News Network did back down on its threat, although it has told The Simpsons creators that in the future, cartoon series will not be allowed to include a "news crawl" along the bottom of the screen, which might "confuse the viewers."
I actually remember this episode!
Here's the transcript of the (hilariously) offending Fox News Ticker:
... Pointless news crawls up 37 percent ... Do Democrats cause cancer? Find out at FOXNEWS.COM ... Rupert Murdoch: Terrific Dancer ... Dow down 5000 points ... Study: 92 percent of Democrats are gay ... JFK Posthumously joins Republican Party ... Oil slicks found to keep seals young, supple ...
Ticker during ending credits:
... Ashcroft declares breast of chicken sandwich "Obscene" ... Hillary Clinton Embarrasses self, nation ... Bible says Jesus favored capital-gains cut ... Only dorks watch CNN ... Jimmy Carter: Old, wrinkly, useless ... Brad Pitt + Albert Einstein = Dick Cheney ...
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I just finished my second in-depth skimming and tagging of Revolve.
I've found some pretty scary stuff. Segments:
Statistic: Didya Know? African American teens are 40% more likely to have had sex than Caucasian teens.
WHAT?! Why is this stat necessary when I'm supposedly reading Luke 14? Revolve is FULL of these type of statistics -- and there's not a place in the entire Bible where they list where they have found these stats. I'd like to know the purpose behind including this particular statistic.
Guys Speak Out: Q. Do you prefer to hang out with girls or guys? A. Guys. Girls can be so needy -- constantly asking how they look. Guys like to hang out and have fun.
Q. What do you think about the way girls dress? A. They should dress conservatively -- they tend to be too revealing.
For all of these "Guys Speak Out" segments, there's not a name or age attached to the saying. Most of them are laughable to even think a guy would say the things the editors are attributing to them. The only guy I've heard use the words "conservative" and "dress" and "girl" in a sentence would be my dad.
Top Ten Great Christian Books: Hmmm, funny how EACH of the top 10 is published by Revolve's publisher, Thomas Nelson. There's also a Top 10 Great Christian CD list -- it'll take a little more digging, but I'm willing to bet that list is somehow related to Thomas Nelson as well!
Top Ten Ways to Be a Revolve Girl: Here's a scary list for you. #1. Revolve girls don't call guys. #3. Revolve girls have good posture. #4. Revolve girls are not argumentative. #6. Revolve girls know their bodies are temples of God. #9. Revolve girls don't kiss and tell.
I checked, and this book was published in 2003, not in 1803 as the values of it portray.
Blab: Questions and Answers: Q. Why do you think guys should call girls or whatever? I don't understand that; you mean you think men should pursue women? A. Get a grip on the truth. Guys love a challenge. They love the chase. The game. When a girl asks a guy out, he likes it. It strokes his ego. But he will get bored! And when that happens ... next! So guys need to step up and be the man; you need to be the woman.
Yikes, I can't even start reacting to that.
(For one thing, find me an American teenager who correctly knows how to use a semicolon, and then maybe I'll believe that a teen posed this question. From the papers I've marked so far, I can vouch that most first-year Canadian university students can't punctuate correctly.)
Another Blab: Q & A: Hey, I have friends who are into Wicca. I know a lot about witchcraft, but I don't know how to start a convo with people who are happy with that religion. I need an example of something one might say. Could you please help me out? I don't want them to go to hell because I didn't try to help them. A. If you want something to say, just tell them how you feel. Say, "You know my religion and you seem cool with it. However, I can't say I agree with your choice. I just want you to know that I'll be praying for you."
Oh yeah, that'll go over super-well with someone not of your faith. Patronizing is always key in witnessing your faith.
One more Blab: Q & A: Q. My best friend, who is a Christian, just came out to me on the phone last night! I guess he has kind of been confused about his sexuality for a while, but I honestly thought he was going to get over it. He didn't and last night he came out to me. I had no idea what to say or what to do. A. Wow, that's really tough. The Bible clearly says that homosexuality is wrong, so you should share with him that you're concerned because he claims to know Christ and yet is living in disobedience to God. Approach your friend with humility, becuase you are also a sinner. It hurts, but God has put you in this friend's life for a purpose. Love him, but don't back down from what you believe. Don't let him give you any details about any relationships or anything like that -- tell him you really don't want to talk about that because you know it's against God. Be honest with him, but humble in your approach. And continue to pray that he'll come around.
"I honestly thought he was going to get over it?!" Last time I checked, homosexuality wasn't a choice for people to make. Why would someone purposefully choose to become a member of a group that is continually discriminated against?! And again, the advice given here involves elements of patronizing.
I'm finding the more I read and dig into the messages that this "Bible" is putting out, the angrier I become. A little girl somewhere could be reading this and taking its backward thinking to heart -- breeding feelings of intolerance, not only to women, but to people who don't necessarily fit a WASP profile or traditional sexuality.
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Guess what Keanu's band's name is?
????
I don't know if I should be flattered or appalled.
...but I at least want a teeshirt!
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Angelina's new movie is out, Beyond Borders. Figures that the movie screens would start lighting up with films I'd like to see around this time of the year.
The running list:
Beyond Borders -- it didn't get such a great review, but I've got to support my grrrl!
The Magdalene Sisters
Sofia Coppola's newest, Lost in Translation. There's just something about watching Bill Murray in a romantic comedy I just adore.
Mystic River
In the dollar theater:
Gigli -- Just for its pure camp value.
American Wedding
Whale Rider -- yes, seeing it again.
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El Guapo, superhero
of all cats
By the way, in case you're clueless in what the hell Jeff is saying over in the Tag-board, go here for an especially disturbing website. Be sure you listen to its very-catchy theme song.
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So far the list of things I *should* be doing is being outvoted by the much more fun things that I probably *shouldn't*.
Just from this week alone, I've got a couple of examples:
Optimistic Goal: Buy the soundtrack to the Rocky Horror Picture Show in order to brush up on the tunes before next Friday.
Realistically: Instead, bought more clothes from AE and a completely different CD (Rushmore soundtrack). But to be fair, none of the 5 CD places in town had RHPS -- forcing me (of course) to plan B (which was successful).
Optimistic Goal: Dilligently work on my paper proposal that is due on October 29th.
Realistically: Managed to convince prof to extend due date a week -- thus prolonging my procrastination abilities. I have yet to really start it.
Optimistic Goal: Get a good jump on newest batch of essays turned in last Wednesday.
Realistically: Ha. It's much more fun to go out on a Friday night, who are you kidding?!
For the weekend -- Optimistic Goal: Get over half of my papers marked, preliminary research done on my proposal and some middle-English transcriptions done -- 'specially considering Mike is coming up in a WEEK!
Realistically: .... well, I'll keep you posted.
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I love listening to authors read their own works. Yann Martel tonight was inspiring!
After hearing him speak, I wanted to rush home and finish up the Life of Pi. So I went out to a pub and drank beer, instead. I must be becoming more Canadian than I think!
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This afternoon I bought the best poster to hang in my bathroom:
Is your washroom breeding Bolsheviks?
Try wiping your hands six days a week on harsh, cheap paper towels or awkward, unsanitary roller towels -- and maybe you, too, would grumble.
Towel service is just one of those small, but important courtesies -- such as proper air and lighting -- that help build up the goodwill of your employees.....
Now THERE'S some rhetoric for ya. This ad appeared in magazines in the late 1930's.
A California History Social Science Project has piles and piles of these older advertisements to dig through. Just the distraction I need from the piles of work that await me!
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So apparently I'm a bit naive in showing my driver's license(s) below. I didn't think the number is that big of a deal, considering my GA license is now defunct and nothing (in terms of bank accounts or credit cards) is tied to my Saskatchewan license. But I blurred the numbers out -- thanks to everyone that showed concern (both here and in email). Problem solved.
The bigger problem I have is that I'm an idealist at heart.
I usually don't think that bad stuff will happen to me. So I guess that makes me a bit of an idealist with a shot of naiveté.
Ironically, the other day I was actually talking to someone about this very issue. In addition to being labeled an idealist, I've also been called cynical. I think I'm referred to as that because I tend to question things before swallowing them whole. I know, it's an odd combination -- idealist + cynic.
But the more I think about it, the more I think that if you are cynical it is because you are also a bit idealist. If you didn't care about someone trying to deceive you or manipulate you, you'd just be apathetic. It's because you have ideals that you are bothered and become cynical.
I'm not sure I'm making sense -- which is usually a good indication I should stop.
Tomorrow night the Man Booker prize winning author Yann Martel has an opening reception & reading at the library in town. He's the writer in residence this winter. This is really a huge honor for Saskatoon -- especially since Martel has made it very big recently with his book The Life of Pi. I'm really looking forward to seeing him read in person -- I just need to find a poor soul who cares enough about it to go with me! I'm not going to drag anyone to see him read -- especially when I'm really excited about the opportunity.
From the library's website:
In a recent interview from Vancouver with Library News, Martel referred to Saskatoon as “the adventure of a lifetime” and claims he’s ready for whatever Saskatoon has to offer.
“I like winter. Even if it’s a really harsh winter, I’m ready for it,” said Martel, boasting proudly that the front seat of his car already has heated seats. “You have to turn winter into a friend and so I’m going to go cross-country skiing, walk a lot and learn to curl. I’m really excited about learning to curl.”
Martel had identified Saskatoon as a city on his “ must-live-in” list for a number of years now and as a result, said he was ecstatic when his application for the Writer in Residence posting was accepted.
“For years now, I have wanted to experience a place that would be strange to me, like India was, like Iran was, yet that I could call my own. Being the Writer in Residence at Saskatoon Public Library will provide me with this opportunity. It’s part of my country, but a part I’ve never seen. So mine, but alien; here, but away; the inner abroad,” said Martel. The famed author has relatives in Saskatoon, but had never visited the prairie city until this summer.
Of course the cynic in me wants to see how "inner abroad" he'll feel in the -40 windchills! Regardless, I'm still very excited he's here!
P.S. Looks like M. Night Shyamalan will be directing the movie adaptation of the novel -- to be released in 2005!
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Finally got that Saskatchewan license. I think I look a little older in it than I do in my GA one (taken this summer -- I swear I look about 12 in that one). It's a bit strange to be carrying a Canadian driver's license in my wallet. At least now I won't have to tell my life story to the clerk, every time I get carded ("You're from Georgia? What are you doing here?!"). Now I can just look forward to explaining where the hell Saskatchewan is to the clerks back home in Georgia.
Tonight was fun -- I was out in a quest to find the Rocky Horror Picture Show soundtrack, in order to brush up on my tunes for Halloween's midnight showing. Of course, I couldn't find it. I did however find a dvd copy of Strictly Ballroom for 7 bucks. And I caved and actually bought the Rocky Horror dvd as well.
While I was out looking for the soundtrack, I found a bumpersticker I just loved. Here it tis:
Very funny! I just laughed and laughed when I saw it and for some reason it made me miss my mom. I really think she'd appreciate its humor and shock value (though probably wouldn't want it on my car). The other day I was talking to my little brother and he actually thanked me for "paving the way" with my parents, in doing all the crazy things I've done in the last couple of years (like moving 2500+ miles away to another country). You see, it makes it easier for him to get away with things -- well at least he seems to think so, anyway.
Tonight I also watched the film 28 Days Later. Even though it was fairly gory and creepy (I HATE zombies of any sort!), I really enjoyed several moments of its cinematography. Yeah, I know it sounds really strange to compliment a horror movie for the composition of its shots, but there were scenes of the film that were quite breathtaking. They cleared out many parts of downtown London and Manchester in order to shoot several scenes -- and just watching the character react to the utter loneliness of an empty city was pretty amazing. I'd definitely recommend it -- and be sure to watch the extra endings on the dvd!
Well it's late and tomorrow is my busiest day of the week.
ttfn.
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Lately all the songs I've been loving the most have no accessible lyrics. This week it's Alexandra Slate's song off the Tomb Raider II soundtrack -- Bad Girl. To listen to it and see the very cute Alexandra, click here.
There's a club in Saskatoon named especially for people like me:
Yes, it is very interesting (and ironic?) that both "odd fellows" and "Rebekahs" are welcomed in the same collective space. Apparently it's right down the street from his house. Maybe I should stop by and check it out.
Turns out there's actually a website for this organization, The Independent Order of Odd Fellows (or if you prefer its catchy acronym, IOOF). From the site:
To Improve and Elevate the Character of Man: In 17th century England, it was odd to find people organized for the purpose of giving aid to those in need and of pursuing projects for the benefit of all mankind. Those who belonged to such an organization were called "Odd Fellows". Odd Fellows are also known as "The Three Link Fraternity" which stands for Friendship, Love and Truth.
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows was founded on the North American Continent in Baltimore, Maryland, on April 26, 1819 when Thomas Wildey and four members of the Order from England instituted Washington Lodge No. 1. This lodge received its charter from Manchester Unity of Odd Fellows in England.
Odd Fellowship became the 1st national fraternity to include both men and women when it adopted the beautiful Rebekah Degree on September 20, 1851. This degree is based on the teachings found in the Holy Bible, and was written by the Honorable Schuyler Colfax who was Vice President of the United States during the period 1868-1873. Odd Fellows and Rebekahs were also the first fraternal organization to establish homes for our senior members and for orphaned children.
Here's a little more about the "Rebekah degree."
The concept of helping people sounds good, but it still smacks a little too heavily of patriarchal religions for me.
So I don't think I'd fit in very well, after all. Maybe I should start up my own organization of odd fellows. Anyone interested?
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A post of recent Revelations by the definitive non-apostle:
- My blog is listed as one of the top blogs of Saskatchewan on BlogsCanada. Go figure -- then again, the competition isn't what you'd exactly call fierce, either.
- What is with running (or wannabe) politicians and their campaign signs? Driving home tonight I drove by slews of them on the side of the road. I'm sorry, but seeing people polluting the prairies with cheesy signs only incites me to NOT vote/support them. (ok, technically I can't vote in these elections, but I can still bemoan all the signs everywhere) Why must they put 10 signs IN A ROW on the side of the road? Are they afraid I missed their name the first 9 times I drove past? Argh.
- I won't start in on how I feel about Canadian politics. Let's just say that I'm just happy that back home I can vote for a particular person, and not have to vote for the party he or she represents.
- My weekend was very busy. Friday night I saw a band (Po Girl at Lydia's -- a funky eclectic fiddle/cello/clarinet/guitar/harmonica-esque sound. Very fun.), Saturday night I watched a baby get dunked (ok, "baptized") and then went to a birthday party, and then tonight I went to a dinner party at a friend's. Looking back on my last week I'm beginning to realize I need to stop having such a swell social life and actually start buckling down with schoolwork. But I'll worry about that tomorrow.
- Speaking of dinner tonight, it was my 4th turkey dinner in a month. Good thing I like turkey!
- This weekend when I wasn't "out," I worked on home stuff. I cleaned out my closet -- which was no small feat, believe me. I now have almost 3 garbage bags full of clothes to give away. I'm planning on taking them down to the women's shelter later this week. Most of the clothes in the bag are way too big for me now. It was almost kind of sad to get rid of some of them -- everything from my old overalls to my black symphony dress. But then again, it's much nicer to be smaller than the sizes listed on those articles of clothing. The old me used to wear clothes that covered me like a sack -- nowadays I'd much rather wear clothes that do the opposite!
- Not only have I changed size-wise in the last 2ish years (something that I will never stop bragging about -- or being astonished over), but I've also radically changed in personality and outlook. I was actually pondering this in the smoke-infested bar on Friday night. Two years ago, I would have never stepped foot in a place like that to hang out with friends and listen to amazing music. Yet there I was, happily drinking my beer and dancing along to the tunes. But beyond my social activities, I'm proud of where I'm at in many area of my life -- it's a long way away from where I was.
- It took some creative energy to figure out where to put all of my newly-bought secondhand books. All three of my bookcases are looking like this. I figure that I need to either stop buying books or invest in another bookshelf. Knowing me, it'll probably be the latter.
- I'm developing a sixth sense at detecting negative energy in people. There's someone in my life right now that I used to admire in many ways, but now I can see through their negativity. Simultaneously I feel both sorry for them while also wanting to avoid them whenever possible. I just don't need any of that in my life right now. It's complicated.
- In more superficial news, I'm totally loving the Kill Bill soundtrack. So far my favorites include "Battle without Honor or Humanity" by Tomoyasu Hotei (from the scene with Oren-Ishi walking in with her cronies) and the Japanese ballad "The Flower of Carnage" by Meiko Kaji (which also serves as the PERFECT metaphor for The Bride, in my opinion). Actually, I love the whole CD -- which probably explains why it's been on repeat in my stereo for the past week.
- Well, it's already midnight, and I've got to plan an amazing lesson tomorrow, in order to help my first-years develop legible (and hopefully coherent) papers by Wednesday. For that I'll need all the sleep I can get.
EDIT: By the way, I forgot to mention that Jeff is trying to get a picture of him skydiving printed on a Jones soda bottle. It's a cool picture, so take 20 seconds and go vote for it. And Jeff, whenever it does get printed on bottles, you'll owe me a Green Apple Soda.
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From my fourth-grade fan club:
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Hi Rebekah
I am pleased to inform you that your application to the InterD program has
been approved. Congratulations.
As we discussed, since you are transferring from another program, your time
in program will start from the time that you first enrolled in CGSR (Sept
2002, I believe).
To process your application, we need a letter from the Department of English
indicating that they are aware of your transfer. Would you like to request
this letter, or should we?
The committee found your research area to be very interesting and thought
your research has some important connections to the literature on pop
culture, and to the literature on advertising (e.g., commodification).
If you would like further details on authors or articles in these areas, let
me know and I will contact the committee members.
Once again, congratulations and welcome to the InterD program.
Chair, InterD Committee
Score one for me versus bureaucracy! I'm off to celebrate. Well, truth be told, I was going out anyway tonight. But now I can say it's to celebrate getting accepted into the program!
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One such time I left town and on my way back, at a point where the land was high and I could see the sea to my left and down the road a long ways, I suddenly felt I was in heaven. The spot was in fact no different from when I had passed it not long before, but my way of seeing had changed.
The feeling, a paradoxical mix of pulsing energy and profound peace, was intense and blissful. Whereas before the road, the sea, the trees, the air, the sun all spoke differently to me, now they spoke one language of unity. Tree took account of the road, which was aware of air, which was mindful of sea, which shared things with sun.
Every element lived in harmonious relation with its neighbor, and all was kith and kin. I knelt a mortal; I rose an immortal. I felt like the centre of a small circle coinciding with the centre of a much larger one. Atman met Allah. (The Life of Pi by Yann Martel)
I love it when books have passages like these that'll make you get outta bed and mark them down, before you've had a chance to forget them.
This passage rang especially true for me because I've had similar types of experiences. It's amazing how much the world around you will speak -- but only when you change your perspective and stop long enough to listen.
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It's official. I'm now classified as a Saskatchewan driver (but please don't hold that against me!). Picture for license has been shot and tags placed on car. Hopefully now I won't get any more queer looks from drivers noticing my GA plates.
Only problem is now I'm classified as a "probationary" driver. I'm on probation until May 2005 -- until SGI gets my driving record from GA. This means I need to call down to the GA DMV tomorrow and get them to fax up a copy of my drivers record. After SGI gets that, I'll be off of probation and will save 8% on my car insurance. In other words, only a couple more hoops to jump through before this is all behind me.
Today was the annual Canadian Federation of University Women booksale. I really look forward to these every year. The US counterpart to the CFUW is the AAUW (American Association of University Women). Both are great organizations that fund educational programs/scholarships for women. I was a member of it in the States, and I gave my name to the ladies today. I might volunteer later this weekend for helping out the book sale. I always end up being the youngest member in the these organizations.
At the sale today, all the books there were 75 cents, unless otherwise marked. I walked out of there with 20 dollars worth. I know, I don't *need* any more books -- nor do I have the room necessarily to fit them in my little space. Ah well. I'm not even going to think about how much a pain it'll be to move these back to the States!
My booty from the book sale:
- Language in Thought and Action by S.I. Hayakawa. On the rhetoric must-have book list.
- The Medium is the Massage: An Inventory of Effects by Marshall McLuhan (Canadian!) and Quentin Fiore. I've already got Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man -- and this particular book looks to be a funky postmodern take on the previous book.
- The Feminine Face of God: The Unfolding of the Sacred in Women by Sherry Ruth Anderson. At this rate, I'm never going to be through my self-imposed Spirituality reading list.
- A Nation of Sheep by William J. Lederer. He also wrote The Ugly American -- and with the current state of politics in the US, I think he's dead on in his intial assertion (unfortunately).
- Courting Saskatchewan: A Celebration of Winter Feasts, Summer Loves, & Rising Brookies by David Carpenter. This looks like a collection of short stories all about living in Saskatchewan. It'll be nice for my collection, especially after I move away from here.
- Anatomy of Criticism by Northrop Frye. This is without a doubt on the rhetoric book list.
- Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. Would you believe I've never read the book or seen the film? Both will be remedied soon.
- The Diviners by Margaret Laurence. Laurence is rapidly becoming my favorite Canadian author.
- Who Put the Butter in Butterfly?: ...And Other Investigations into our Illogical Language by David Feldman. Yet another book to read about word etymology. English geek fun!
- Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. What kind of Southern grrrl would I be without this in my library? I got a really nice hardback of it for 3 bucks!
- Words Fail Us: Good English and Other Lost Causes by Bob Blackburn. This is supposedly a book concerning an "informed layman's lament on linguistic anarchy." It's mostly about Canadian English and the strains of mass media on language today -- looks good.
- Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier. This was one of my favorite books growing up, and it was only a buck for a hardcover. Score.
- Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman. It's about essay writing and book loving -- two afflictions I'm *well* acquainted with (obviously).
I'm going to have to buy another bookcase at this point.
EDIT: I forgot to mention I also bought a vintage Smurfs coloring book!
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My eyes are starting to cross from reading too much rhetorical criticism. Here's some links I meant to put up a couple days ago:
Emma Thompson joins Prisoner of Azkaban cast. She'll be playing Professor Trelawny, the goofy divination teacher at Hogwarts. I also read that Gary Oldman will be playing Sirius Black. I can't wait for the movie to come out, it's my favorite book in the series so far.
From the scary-Protestant-Fundamentalist department: Pat Robertson calls for State Department to be "gutted" (whatever that means). Last week he called for it to be nuked. Um, why is this guy still on the air? I know that in America we value free speech, but sometimes I think it shouldn't apply to idiots like this.
Here's another dose of karma for you: Limbaugh a drug addict. First he's outed as a racist, now he's addicted to painkillers -- interesting how it all comes around -- within a week!
And here's an op-ed piece that offers some advice for the drugged ditto-head. While he examines his issues in seclusion over the next month or so, he might also ponder the social injustices of the drug war. Wealthy and well-connected junkies like Mr. Limbaugh get treatment and prayers; poor and obscure junkies get prison and scorn. Even a dittohead should be able to understand why that is wrong. (via Idle Type)
Sequel to 16 Candles in the Works: 32 Candles. Can't WAIT for this one. It'll have updates on Farmer Ted and Long Duk Dong, amongst others. Hopefully Molly Ringwald will join the cast. It's not like she's busy doing anything, anyway.
Ted Rall's latest op-ed: Anatomy of a Lie. Let's just hope that Bush's approval rating will keep plummeting. Especially considering he's already netted 84 million from his duped supporters.
Zero-hour simultaneous release of The Matrix Revolutions. Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures will unveil THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS, the final explosive chapter in the blockbuster MATRIX trilogy, at the exact same moment in time in every major city around the world on November 5. This unprecedented distribution scenario will make the highly anticipated film available to fans simultaneously at 6 a.m. in Los Angeles, 9 a.m. in New York, 2 p.m. in London, 5 p.m. in Moscow, 11 p.m. in Tokyo and at corresponding times in over 50 additional countries worldwide.
Pretty neat. Time to get back to reading.
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The power of not-so-positive thinking:
Good morning -- you've got snow!
Oh boy.
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Sometimes it really stinks being a broke college student. Granted, I did go out and played the good consumer this weekend, but now I'm trying to book my ticket home for Christmas. I'm looking at the $600 price tag (and that's US, not CAD unfortunately) -- and I'm feeling the shooting pains start in my wallet.
600 bucks shouldn't be viewed as that much money -- but for me, it really is. Sigh. I just want to get home and see my family and Mike. Thanksgiving with surrogate families are nice, but it just doesn't replace the real thing. I just miss home.
It's starting to get colder here -- and part of me is really dreading the approaching winter. I didn't do so well this last Winter, adjusting to the weather and life up here. I'm hoping now that I have a better foundation of friends and other forms of support that I'll fare better than last year.
Tomorrow I'm going to get my SGI license plates and driver's license. This means I'll have to say goodbye to my Peace Frog license plate in the front of my car. (or the "masturbating frog" as a friend of mine once referred to it)
This also means that I'll be getting a Saskatchewan driver's license -- no more Georgia grrrl. I think this is good on several levels -- not only do I alleviate a whole bunch of bureaucratic problems by doing this (between the GA DMV and SGI) but now I can get rid of my 12-year-old looking picture and not have to explain my life story to the cashier, every time I get carded (which is *quite* often -- I even got carded this weekend seeing Kill Bill). When I get my Saskatchewan license I'll put the two pictures up side by side, so you can see for yourself.
Brrr, it's cold in my room. Time to bury myself under covers.
ttfn.
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