Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Rantastic!

Strap yourself in and hold on...

It's...

a SupeRant!

-I hate that I can't stop procrastinating.
-I hate that this week is going to be hell at work.
-I hate that I don't have my own car.
-I hate that I won't get to see Marie until Friday (or maybe not even until Saturday).
-I hate that I've got absolutely nothing to cover for this major story for Journalism, and even if I did, I really don't know how to go about covering it.
-I hate that I never have enough money.
-I hate that I have no idea what I'm going to do when I get back from Africa (assuming I still go).
-I hate that I have to write so many papers soon.
-I HATE being sick.

-I love Marie so much.
-I love my friends from OverFlow.
-I love Queen. Seriously, I don't know if there's ever been a better rock band.
-I love my iPod.
-I love the way Donald Miller writes.
-I love going to /Film and reading all the latest movie news.
-I love leading Hupomone.
-I love that Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová won the Oscar for Best Song.


So basically, to quote Ellen DeGeneres, "My life is perfect, even when it's not."

Thanks to everyone who makes my life bearable. Really, you have no idea how much you mean to me.

Monday, February 25, 2008

This one goes out to the one I love

So it's been awhile since I've updated. I know you're all just DYING to hear what's going on in my life. Ha!

But yeah, things are going quite well. I'm hoping that with a little more effort, I can keep my GPA the same for this semester. It'll take some more work on my part, but I hope I can stay committed.

I finished applying for scholarships today. Some of it was a big waste of time because even my "recommended" scholarships including criteria like "attending the College of Business Administration," but hopefully I'll get a lot more money than I did this year. I really want Mallory to focus on applying, because I really want us both to take more of the burden off our grandparents and parents.

We didn't have Journalism lab today (praise the Lord), but we still had a stupid assignment. Man, I really hope my idea for covering a speech or meeting goes over well. I really don't want to do this project, but hopefully I'll be able to cover something I want.

Going back to this weekend: Friday night was a blast. It was just one of those great nights where you don't really know what's going to happen, but it all just turns out great. Seriously, I could not have a better group of friends here. You guys are amazing.

Saturday was semi-important. The whole family went and voted in the primaries. I felt so independent, going against the grain and voting Democrat. I didn't really mean to vote against Kay Bailey Hutchison, but she'll probably be re-elected anyways.

It was also great to hear missionary Jeremy Pittman speak on Sunday. He's a personal hero of mine, especially after hearing what happened to him last year. Afterwards, I stayed chatting with Derek as usual, but this time we missed the ENTIRE FREAKING SERVICE because we were busy yammering away, but what a great time. We ran the whole gamut, from politics to movies to religion, with the Craziest Man Alive (I'm using this apt nickname because I don't wish to use the guy's real name, and I also don't know his name for sure; but rest assured, he's insane) interjecting his opinions about all of these things.

Sunday night's Oscar telecast, while the lowest-rated in history, was probably the best ceremony ever. Really, Jon Stewart was a class act and there were some real surprises. I got all but two of the major nominees correct.

Boy, do I miss Marie. Luckily, I'll get to see her either Friday or Saturday so it's very soon. And I'll get to see her the weekend after that, and then the following Thursday we're leaving for Austin!!! It sounds like some other people may be tagging along (just for the trip down there), but I'm ok with it if she is! I'm so excited, you have no idea.

Tonight's Bible study was really interesting. Lots of heated (never out-of-control) discussion about if a person is habitually sinning without remorse, is he really a Christian? It's a tough topic to tackle, but hopefully I'll be able to continue to give biblical insight in the coming weeks.

Well, that's all for now.

Good night, and good luck.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

On your machine I slur a plea for you to come home

Like every Tuesday and Thursday, I find Music Appreciation to be way too long and Human Sexuality to be way too short. Luckily, I'm doing well in both. I got B's on all my tests from last week (pending my grade on my Gerontology exam, which I'll find out tomorrow), so things are going well. Need to do a bit better, but it looks like I won't have to kill myself for the rest of the semester, which is good.

I really hope Marie can come home this weekend. It's our anniversary and I miss her so much. I really want to see her at least once before our trip to Austin. She's so amazing and I'm so lucky to have her. I know I don't deserve her at all. I'm so blessed.

Work was good for once today. I felt like I had just enough to do. Not too much, not too little, but just right. I hope that this trend continues.

Sometimes I wonder just how ignorant people can be. Yet again the maniacs of the Westboro Baptist Church are protesting innocents' funerals. This time it's the poor victims of the Northern Illinois University tragedy. What's really sad though is it seems we're powerless to stop these cowards. They're definitely covered by the First Amendment, and we have to keep the First Amendment if we're to remain a free country. I just wish we could silence these goons. It's so terrible and they're perverting the Christian faith just like terrorists pervert the name of Islam. We need to unite to stop these monsters.

And speaking of ignorance, I wish people would just wake up and realize that America can't afford four more years of the status quo. We can't afford to have a leader who's beholden to special interests and lobbyists. We can't afford to have a leader who will keep us in Iraq. We can't have a leader who's going to talk a good game about immigration and health care. We need someone who will actually deliver change, instead of use it as a buzzword. And the only candidate who offers that is Barack Obama. He's the only one who can unite the country and get Washington to actually start working again. (Feel free to comment on this section.)

Well, I'm off to shower and start writing my ridiculous outline for Spanish. How stupid is this? I have to have a detailed outline or transcript for a Spanish presentation on Friday, but my actual presentation isn't until April. Ugh.

I can't believe class schedules are out for Fall 2008 already. I can't even register until April, but I do have a rough schedule already. And I hope I can take this Mythic Rhetoric of the American Superhero class, but it's only on Wednesday nights. We'll see. Everything else will be required stuff for me (Spanish, Journalism, Science, etc.) so it'll be nice to do something fun.

Well, that's all for now.

Good night, and good luck.

Monday, February 18, 2008

Wedded bliss?

So Holly and Bill's wedding was pretty great, and I loved when Chance caught the garter and turned to his new stepdad and asked, "What's it for?"

And it was so wonderful to see Gran and Grandad and Mitch. Alas, tensions were high because they were there. To quote the great poets War, "Why can't we be friends?" Seriously, everything escalates when family's around, which is not at all how it should be.

Boy, I tell ya, it wasn't fun to get up at 6:30 to ride with Jimmy back to school. Apparently, my dad doesn't like taking me. I can't blame him, but I hope this doesn't happen every time I come home.

And is there are more useless holiday than Presidents' Day (OK, besides Columbus Day)? Seriously, all the stuff we need (like the post office, bank, and courthouses for passports) are closed at the most inconvenient time. So I'm hoping to get my passport on Friday.

Finally, is it weak to miss Marie this much? It's only been a little over 2 weeks, but I miss her like crazy and I really hope she gets to come home this weekend, because I don't know how much longer I can go! (Obviously, I won't break up with her. But I feel like I'm gonna lose it if I can't see her and hold her soon.)

SONG OF THE DAY:
Mates of State's "Goods (All in Your Head)"


Well, that's all for now.

Good night, and good luck.

Friday, February 15, 2008

Not quite the same

And so, for the second time ever, I've had a meaningful Valentine's Day. And yet, it doesn't quite feel like it should, because she's not by my side. I don't love her any less; on the contrary, I love her more and more. I just wish she could've been here for this day that's so important to so many others, and is finally important to us.

Anyways, my sexuality test was much harder than I predicted, but just like my gerontology exam, I think I did well enough.

About an hour after I got back from work, I was looking in my pocket for my keys, and I found another set: the keys to one of the cars at work. Whoops! So I gotta go back first thing in the morning and turn 'em in. I can't believe I still had 'em!

Saw Y Tu Mamá También tonight at the Union, along with, oh, a dozen other people, and I must I'm impressed. Alfonso Cuarón can do absolutely any genre: this (an erotic dramedy), a children's movie (A Little Princess), bleak future sci-fi (Children of Men), ballsy literary adaptation (Great Expectations), and Harry Potter (The Prisoner of Azkaban). I can't wait to see what he does next.

Did you hear Jane Fonda said the c-word on The Today Show? Yikes!

Last item: Gotta love John Hodgman's "The 5 Habits of Highly Explosive People" on The Daily Show...
1. Make your resume a resu-ME!
2. Make the interview an interv-YOU!
3. Always dress for the job you want.
4. Be creative.*
5. Accept rejection.
It used to be all you needed was a hatred for America and your own car...

*I don't think this is the right #4, but I'll post the link to the video later.

That's all for now.

Good night, and good luck.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Rough

Gotta admit it was a pretty rough day today.

I found out that I owe $200 by March 9 for a deposit on my Africa mission trip, and if I don't get enough donations by then and I'll have to pay for it myself, which puts my Spring Break trip to Austin in serious jeopardy. And of course, me getting upset about did nothing to solve the problem. Only trusting in God (which is what I should've done from the beginning) will get me through this.

(Marie also helped. A lot.)

Speaking of the love of my life, it's looking less and less likely that she will be able to accompany me to my cousin's wedding this weekend. This is the first time I've realized how much it really sucks to not have a vehicle. I really want her to be there this weekend and I miss her so much. And if I don't see her this weekend, it might be quite awhile before I get to see her. And if I can't go to Austin, it'd be even longer. Thus, you see my cause for getting upset.

But I'm much better now. I just can't figure it out on my own, so I have to let Someone who can do it for me. I give up, and it's the best thing I could've done.

Anyways, my gerontology exam went pretty well today, but it was a little harder than I expected. We watched Harry and Tonto, which reminded me of Little Miss Sunshine, only not quite as clever. But that Art Carney sure deserved his Oscar.

I also had to go to a concert night for Music Appreciation. It was pretty good, but I feel very uncultured because classical still isn't my "thing."

Anyways, I just watched The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, both with writers back and still as funny as ever.

So I'll be headed to bed soon, because I've got a huge test in Sexuality tomorrow and I don't really know what to study because there's just so much. I hope I do well.

That's all for now.

Good night, and good luck.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Attention! Pay attention!

Yesterday:
So last night's Bible study went very well, even without a real plan. It's nice to have such a close-knit group where people open up.

Today:
Man, 6:45 came mighty early today. Actually, I was fine until I got to Sexuality and I had real trouble staying awake. But it was definitely worth it for free IHOP pancakes though. What is it about them that makes them so great? They're pretty much perfect every time you order them.

My Music Appreciation test went pretty well. There were a few questions here or there I was uncertain about, but I can't tell you the last time I got 100% on a quiz or test. And man, I really wish Rite of Spring was playing somewhere. That Stravinsky's a BAMF. Unfortunately, though, I'll have to settle for seeing Strauss tomorrow for my required concert. Ugh. Someone text me to remind me I have to go to the ATM.

So I went to the Health Center today at my mother's behest to get another flu shot since flu season is still in full swing, but they weren't giving them out anymore. And the weirdest thing happened: I got all indignant (not extremely rude or anything) at the nurse, even though I didn't think I needed another shot in the first place. Mother's influence or latent anger over something else? Maybe a little of both...

Yeah, it turns out the Board of Regents has decided to raise our tuition. Oh great. Just what we need. Hey, Board, just because something's easy doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. And the editorial in the Daily was exactly right: You guys barely publicized your meeting about this. You send us multiple alerts when there's a grassfire or a highway closing, but how about some forewarning about getting priced out of our own school. And the paper alleges that our President Dr. Bataille got both a raise and bonus last year, while we're in the midst of a salary freeze for faculty, which makes things even more suspicious. All I gotta say is, if we're bending over for you, you guys better give us some better parking because of this.

And speaking of the newspaper, some boring grad student's ranting about how McCain and/or Huckabee are/is the only hope for America was pretty ridiculous. True, Hillary and Ron Paul are terrible choices for the reasons he listed, but when it came to Obama, he couldn't really come up with anything, other than being Kennedy-esque, and then talking about how many problems Kennedy had. And also that he's not a "centrist," which I guess makes all his supporters superliberals. Geez.

Oh, great. Quia's due tonight. Ick. I hate that online workbook with the fire of 10,000 suns.

Finally, it appears I may have been wrong before...
I initially dissed the Foo Fighters' Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, and My Chemical Romance's Black Parade, but upon multiple listens in Bryan's Isuzu, they're actually pretty darn good. I'd upgrade the Foos to 3.5 out of 5 stars, and MCR to 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Man, just listen to that intro...


That's all for now.

Good night, and good luck.

Monday, February 11, 2008

First things first

So at the behest of Marie and Alex, I've started a personal blog. So we'll see how it goes. Let me know if you think my life is boring, because I happen to think it is.

Last night:
I really can't tell you how awesome late night Whataburger discussions are. I got to tell the story of how Marie and I met, which always makes me happy. And then Haley, Bryan, and I just sat in her car for what seemed like two (not nearly long enough) hours, listening to the Once soundtrack, quoting comedians, and discussing why Bryan is actually a jerk. Haha. Seriously, it was utterly fantastic. I think Haley might be a Nazi. A Nazi you say? To quote Walter in The Big Lebowski: "She was threatening castration! Are we gonna split hairs here?"

Today:
It seems I forgot to set my alarm this morning. Luckily, I woke up right at 8am. But, fool that I am, I thought I could sleep just 10 more minutes and be just fine. Well, when I did actually wake up, it was 9:15, the room was still dark, and Dave was still fast asleep across the room. Whoops! I threw on some clothes and rushed to my first class, News Writing. But I got all the way to the GAB to discover a locked door. D'oh! We were supposed to be in the library today! So I strolled in only 35 minutes late to class. Luckily, our AP style quiz was postponed until Wednesday, so I didn't miss anything major.

Well, Bible study's tonight and I hope it goes well and we have more people than we did last week. Not that last week's group was bad, but still, some more people would be great. So I've got to go. And change this music. If I listen to anymore Savage Garden, I may have to turn in my man card.