Bye Bye 2009!

Seems like this year has just been a serious struggle. Moving, lay-offs, and just stress in general are how I'll be remembering 2009. So, good riddance 2009!! I'm ready for a new year and a fresh start.

Here's to 2010!!! I don't usually do New Year's Resolutions so I won't call them resolutions there are few things I'd like to work on in the new year.

• The obligatory get back in shape resolution. I've been telling myself for years now that I'm gonna lose 15 pounds but just never get around to it. I've spent most of my 20's making excuses and it's time to stop and just do it. 
• Spend more time with friends. Now that I'm back in Atlanta I can spend more time with my friends and I'm really looking forward to it. Missed y'all! :o)
• Repair broken relationships. I've got a few that are in need of some work. I am guilty if thinking sometimes that people will be around and that there is always time to do it later. 
• Become really good at my job. This new job is intriguing everyday and I have so much to learn that I feel like I can't soak it up fast enough!

There it is. Lots to do in the new year!! I hope everyone has a safe and happy new year!

Thank You Nissan

I happen to be one of those people that don't care much for driving a dirty car unless I've just driven it up a muddy mountian, in which case, dirty = trophy. Call it vanity or mild OCD, whatever. If you're one of those people who couldn't care less if their car is clean, no judgement here, just don't be surprised to see "My Owner HATES Me" or "If You Think I'm Dirty, You Should See My Owner" scrawled in the months old dirt accumulation on your back window. Also, if you drive a really nice car (ie. Lexus, BMW, Mercedes, Etc.) please keep them clean. I hate to see cars like that so unappreciated. You can afford it, wash it, or just give it to me.

My poor truck is probably the dirtiest it's EVER been. The poor thing has been negelected for months due to my work schedule/commute in Florida and the fact that I just couldn't talk the mosquitos into working with my car washing schedule. Selfish little bastards.

So today my crimson baby got a much needed, long overdue bath to clean off the 700+ miles of Florida/Georgia/Tennessee road grime. It's at this time I'd like to tell Florida residents along I-75 that they are welcome. I have removed nearly two-thirds of their lovebug population. They now reside on my front grille.

Now let's talk about this front grille. For those of you not familar with the Nissan X-terra, it rocks. I love my truck but I have found the one huge weakness in it's design...the front grille.  Car manufacturers have it easy as far as marketing goes. Their products roll down the road everyday for all the world to see. It would stand to reason then that aside from making these cars reliable and safe they might also want to make them easy to clean as well? Can't have dirty advertsing riding down the road now, can we? Well, I think that this little detail was sorely missed by the Nissan engineers. Here's the problem people: MY WHOLE FRONT GRILLE IS PLASTIC. And not just any plastic...a soft textured plastic. I swear it attracts bugs from neighboring counties as I fly down the highway and they ALL find their final resting place super glued to my grille. Cleaning them off is nothing short of a total body workout with a tire brush as my workout weapon of choice. And don't even get me started on the road tar that stains it.

Maybe in the future these car engineers can design a car with the owner in mind. Yeah, yeah we all love the extra leg room you manage to find, the thoughtfully placed 'Oh shit" handles, the erogonomic floor mats, the nice cup holders for our massively oversized soft drinks, and the dome lights that welcome us but can they please design a front grille that is easy to clean? How about something non-porus and smooth? Please?

After nearly an hour and a half, an hour of which was spent on the front, my truck is clean. It's so pretty! And I am really friggin' tired. I'm gonna go lie down now.

The Rankest Compound of Villainous Smell That Ever Offended Nostril

Haylee this one is for you.
(And William Shakespeare for providing the wonderfully appropriate title for this entry)


It's Saturday night. What to do? Sit on our butts at home and drink cheap wine? See a movie? Drink cheap wine IN the movie? Meh. Let's do something different. The small problem with "different" is that we are in a fairly rural area of Florida, which is severely lacking in "different". Upon the suggestion of Captain Gordon we decided that we were going to try a bar called The Grove. So off we went.


The Grove wasn't bad at all. Despite the DJ blasting Girls Just Wanna Have Fun as we walked in the music wasn't half bad. The people watching was amazing. There were the two 40 something dudes at the bar being not-so-subtle about checking out the ladies, the cougar who danced like a wannabe stripper minus the pole & rhythm and the drunk girl who thought everyone couldn't take their eyes off her and her amazing dance moves.


After people watching for an hour Tara convinced me that we should dance. I was a little apprehensive about the dancing but then figured "What the hell?" and off we went as soon as a danceable song came on. So there we are dancing when all of a sudden we are hit. It was like a sneak attack. Like walking into a brick wall.....


THE STENCH.


People, I have never in my life smelled something that rank while in a public place. There is an unwashed body smell and then there was this, this SMELL. Now watching everyone on the dance floor react to it was pretty funny. At first it just seemed that people were jokingly making up new dance moves that involved waving their hands in front of their faces, holding their noses or smelling each other. But then IT didn't go away so the next logical step is to try to figure out where the hell it was coming from. My first suspect was an older lady in a red tank but after purposely walking by her I determined that she was not the smelly one. The DJ started playing some really lame songs so naturally the dance floor cleared out and the smell slowly dissipated.


Good song = dancing is back on. Guess what? IT is back. This time the dance floor parted like Moses parting the Red Sea. The only person left on the floor was a rather large woman chuggin' red wine and gettin' down with her barefooted(yes, barefooted, in a bar) self. I mean really, if they could bottle that mess they could use it as a bio-weapon. Release that nastiness and the enemy will shoot himself to end the misery.


So eventually we couldn't take our own dry heaving so we left. On the way home we invented a new game called "She Smells Worse Than ____________". We came up with some pretty funky stuff and we both decided that this woman did, in fact, smell worse. I'll spare you your own dry heaving and not share the items we came up with.


The night was not a total loss. Lots of laughing, a drink or three and a good story to tell. Good times.

Informative Boredom

So, I'm a little bored at work and since most of the interesting websites are blocked I sit and read the news all day. Daily, I'm reminded that this country is being run by a bunch of outrageously out-of-touch individuals who don't know their ass from their elbow. Just some examples I've run across in the last week or so:

• The "success" of the Cash for Clunkers Program. If you define 'success' by popularity then yes, it was very successful. Free money is ALWAYS makes programs like this enormously popular. Has anyone noticed that several states are pulling out of the program like a teenage boy whose condom just broke? Yep, and it's because they AREN'T GETTING PAID. And some of these dealerships are speculating as to whether or not they will EVER get paid. No money, processing delays, equipment failures and eventual premature shutdown = MASSIVE Fail. Plus there is the damage disposing of the junk cars is causing...which leads me to the next little black dot.


• The save-the-world-or-die push for "Green" electric vehicles. I'm presenting this one by asking two questions. These cars don't use gas, they have batteries charged by electricity, right? Here comes the million dollar question: "Where does this electricity come from? The answer: Our already overly taxed, CARBON-based energy grid. People are eating this crap sundae with a spoon and it makes me laugh. But seriously, there are many reports of major cities having an energy crisis if too many of these little green machines get on the road.

• Pole Dancing Dolls. Are you serious? I cannot think of one person I know, no matter how liberal, that would buy one for their little girl. Well, maybe they would when they come with the accessory pack complete with hooker boots, tramp stamp stickers, a variety of thongs and a CD of"Now That's What I Call Music - 45(Strip Club Classics)". I already think we have a bit of a problem with adult culture permeating into youth culture and this sure doesn't help. I used to think that I'd like to have my future children be boys so as to avoid this kinda crap altogether but then I had an epiphany..."what if my boy brings home one of these skanktastic little ladies?" Lord help me...

• I'm hoping to one day convince Chris that private education is the way to go and I'd like to thank the Public School Systems of America for giving me plenty of ammo. First, it was the backpack thing from a previous blog and the latest pea brained idea is to ban kids from touching each other in an effort to curb the swine flu. Clearly, these people have never had even a rudimentary Microbiology class. I can guarantee you that anything that is community property: toys, bathrooms, doorknobs, drinking fountains, etc are practically TOXIC, not a hug or a high five. The Swine Flu is not airborne so hand washing is still the best defense. Teach the kids to wash their grubby little hands and keep their hands out of their eyes, nose & mouth. All these kids are being taught is how to react to benign situations with hysterics. You'd think the swine flu was causing people to become zombies and walk around spewing virus laden body fluids everywhere in an effort to bring the human race to the dark side.

• And in Federal Legislation news the Consumer Product Safety Commission is coming after your garage sale. It is now illegal to sell any product that has been recalled. So, now instead of buyer beware, it's seller beware. Once again, the Fed is desperately trying to save you from your stupid self. I personally am not a garage sale shopper but I will do the occasional fly-by at the Goodwill and I have to say that there are products there that common sense tells me not to buy. On the list are things like cribs, children's toys that appear older than me or have paint on them, shoes and kitchen appliances. I will buy books and clothes but the rest they can keep. Some things are just better brand new. Now the CPSC says that they aren't sending out task forces to shut down your little neighborhood garage sale(I mean, manpower is an issue) but I suspect that before long you will be needing a Garage Sale Permit, which will only be granted with an inventory of items to be sold. You think I'm joking....these government hacks are shutting down little kids lemonade stands because they didn't have the proper permits and business licenses.

Wha?

I don't have children and at this point most of my friend's kids are not in school yet so this bit I heard today caught me completely off guard. When I think of all those years in school there was one item that was with me from the time I walked out of the house to the time I got home. One Item. Shouldn't be too hard.....

My Backpack.

At my job they do a yearly drive to acquire backpacks for the children in our program. Development just ran into a problem...some Florida counties have banned the use of backpacks. Yes, little kids can't bring backpacks to school. For me this is comically asinine. So, of course I immediately Googled this foolishness and sure enough it's pretty widespread, which I fully expected because dumb ideas in the education field seem to spread like the swine flu....wait, bad example. :o) You know what I mean, stupidity is probably the most contagious virus out there.

Under the guise of 'keeping the kids safe" from the rare demented child gun smuggler, and drug dealers backpacks are no longer welcome in the hallways.

Most of you reading are probably close to my age, right? Do you remember how BIG and HEAVY those freakin books were? I know I made frequent trips to my locker because there was no way I was getting a full days worth in that bag and of course there was than cute boy a few lockers down but he just made the trips worth it. I cannot imagine being without that bag. My high school was humongous and with 10 mins between classes and a tardy policy in full effect. I'd have never made it. My happy ass would have been a borderline juvenile delinquent with all my detention hours. And what about these poor high school girls? Purses are also banned so I guess they get to carry their tampons, in full view, to the bathroom.

Can anyone come up with something evil that a backpack can conceal that a binder, pocket, shoe(yes a kid hid a gun in a shoe) etc cannot. yeah, me neither. Bottom line is that if a kid, or anyone else for that matter, wants to do something bad they WILL FIND A WAY.

One of these days the "Nanny State" needs to realize that you can't stop every single bad thing from happening.

You wouldn't go to work without your bag or briefcase or go on vacation with out the essential suitcase....

For Memorial Day

I recently had a discussion with someone that started out on the topic of torture. Over the course of this discussion this woman was specifically attacking the American soldiers who engaged in the torture of detainees at Gitmo. The debate on whether or not "waterboarding" can be defined as torture aside, I tried to explain to this woman that if she felt that strongly about the issue that she should not make our soldiers the only targets of her distain. Some of the things I've seen and read on torture in other parts of the world make Gitmo and it's treatment of prisoners seem like a day at the Four Seasons.
*It should also be noted that this same woman has written that she would love to be a cagefighter(but she doesn't want to hurt anyone or mess up her face). To this I say that hypocrisy, like violence ad vanity, are human conditions that we have yet to evolve beyond.

War is ugly, but necessary, business. In being naive to how the world really operates this woman is spreading ignorant hate for our soldiers who make the ultimate sacrifice for all of us. I also asked this woman if she would condone using torture to obtain information that would directly result in the safety of her family. Her response what that she wouldn't condone the torture of any human under any circumstances. I don't believe this for a millisecond. I hardly doubt that this woman, a mother, would allow something horrible to happen to her child because of her convictions. That is completely asinine.

My feeling on the subject is that while we can all get on a soapbox and say violence is bad and never solves anything, the reality is that it DOES. This is a harsh reality but it is what it is. Dominance over evil is the only was to survive and you don't dominate by sitting down and having a chat.

I'm not advocating violence. There are many forms of violence out there that should be condemned and harshly at that. But I do think it's perfectly acceptable to defend freedoms and a way of life.

The following is an excerpt from a novel by Terry Goodkind and I want to share it because it's fantastic...

We do not fight for land. We are loyal to an ideal-an ideal of liberty wherever man lives. We do not guard territory, bleed for a piece of dirt. We don't fight because we love violence. We fight for our freedom as individuals to live our own lives, to pursue our own survival, our own happiness.

Your unconditional rejection of violence makes you smugly think of yourselves as noble, as enlightened, but in reality it is nothing less than abject moral capitulation to evil. Unconditional rejection of self defense, because you think it's a supposed surrender to violence, leaves you no resort but begging for mercy or offering appeasement.

Evil grants no mercy, and to attempt to appease it is nothing more than a piecemeal surrender to it. Surrender to evil is slavery at best, death at worst. thus your unconditional rejection of violence is really nothing more than embracing death as preferable to life.

You will achieve what you embrace.

The right, the absolute necessity, of vengeance against anyone who initiates force against you is fundamental to survival. The morality of a people's self-defense is in it's defense of each individual's right to life. It's an intolerance to violence made real by an unwavering willingness to crush any who would launch violence against you. The unconditional determination to destroy any who would initiate force against you is an exaltation of the value of life. Refusing to surrender your life to any thug or tyrant who lays claim to it is in fact embracing life itself.

If you are unwilling to defend your right to your own lives, then you are merely like mice trying to argue with owls. You think their ways are wrong. They think you are dinner.

If, hoping to appease it, you willingly compromise with unrepentant evil, you only allow such evil to sink it's fangs into you; from that day on its venom will course through your veins until it finally kills you.

Compromising with murderers grants them moral equivalence where none can rightly exist. moral equivalence says that you are no better than they; therefore their belief-that they should be able to torture, rape, or murder you-is just as morally valid as your view-that you have the right to live free of their violence. Moral compromise rejects the concept of right and wrong. It says that everyone is equal, all desires are equally valid, all action is equally valid, so everyone should compromise to get along.

Where could you compromise with those who torture, rape and murder people? In the number of days a week you will be tortured? In the number of men to be allowed to rape your loved ones? In how many of your family are to be murdered?

No moral equivalence exists in that situation, nor can it exist, so there can be no compromise, only suicide.

To even suggest compromise can exist with such men is to sanction murder.

Many teach that saying someone is evil is prejudiced thinking. it's a way of belittling someone already in pain for some reason. Such people must be embraced and taught to shed their fears of their fellow man and then they will not strike out in violent ways.

They are dangerous to everyone because they embrace evil with their teachings. In so doing, in trying to be kind, to be unselfish, in trying to be nonjudgmental, you allow evil to become far more powerful than it otherwise would. you refuse to see evil, and so you welcome it among you. You allow it to exist. you give it power over you. You are a people who have welcomed death and refused to denounce it.

You are an empire naked to the shadow of evil.

These people think of themselves as enlightened, as above violence. They are not enlightened; they are merely slaves awaiting a master, victims awaiting killers.


To all those past, present and future who serve, fight, kill out of necessity, witness horrible atrocities and put themselves in harm's way in the name of Freedom, words just aren't enough. Thank You.

The Land of Palm Trees and Freaky Little Lizards

Hey Hey!!! Guess what? I made it to 30. Today is my birthday. Seems like a good reason for a new blog, right?

I've been in Florida for three weeks today and I have some observations to share:

1. The weather is fabulous. Well, that's by my newbie standard anyway. Ask a local and they will immediately shoot you the stink eye and bust out with a rain dance. Ok, so the rain dance part doesn't really happen....

2. Old people can be totally infuriating when they are [making an attempt at] operating motor vehicles. Then they wander into the grocery store without a shirt on and you can't be mad anymore because you don't really know if he meant to do that and is just daring someone to say something to a spunky old man or if he just forgot because he's older. I'm going to go with the first option because the second one makes me want to take him home with me.

3. PJ pants and your BF's/hookup's green and orange basketball jersey are not the proper attire for fetching lunch.  It screams "walk of shame" which was preceded by "Bitch, go get me some lunch NOW". Not a good look for anyone....especially at noon.

4. Florida is inhabited by these little tiny lizards. AND THEY FREAK ME OUT. 

5. These Floridans are determined drinkers. And I love 'em for it. Picture this: Busy two lane highway, it's hotter than Hades...dude(in a Gators hat) riding down the side of the road on his rusty bike with nothing but the case of Natty Light he has purchased on a Tuesday. He's got no car but he's got his Natty. Awesome. 

Then there are the BOGO drink specials at every restaurant in town until 7pm. Who doesn't love that?

6. Dolphins in the Gulf. Amazing. The wildlife around here is amazing in general. 

As you can see Floridians are keeping me just as entertained as my fellow students at UA did. 

Adjustments

Home Sweet Home...for now.

And the stress-filled move to Florida is complete.  And when I say stressful, I mean stressful people. First there was the ridiculous packing. Honestly, packing felt like we were breaking up or something....some stuff was going with me, some with Chris, and the rest in storage. It was like packing for 3 different moves. Then trying to get my mattress and box spring on top of my truck was probably one of the most trying things we've done...ever. Sounds ridiculous but we were both so frustrated with the whole thing I'm pretty sure that mattress set was about 5 rapid heartbeats from getting a new home in the dumpster. It was at that point I busted into tears, which I never do. I had some raging separation anxiety going on and on top of that I was worried about driving 9+ hours with this mattress set on my car. But after a (thankfully) uneventful drive Ramsey and I are here and are finally unpacked and settled in. Tara and her family have made it very easy to get settled in and have also gone above and beyond to help me get my job search going. I am very grateful for all their help! 

So all in all things are good. Now if I could just find a job.....I have an interview next week. Keep your fingers crossed!!

Our New Addition!

On Wednesday we brought home new addition. He is an 8 week old Peek-a-poo weighing in at a massive 2.6 lbs. We have named him Ramsey. He is SO much fun. His favorite game is tug-o-war which is quite possibly the funniest thing I have ever seen. He will grab his toy and lay down flat and let us pull him around.  

Me Against the Universe v 2.0

I don't know why I bother making declarations of what I will and won't do; the forces that be nearly always put me in my place. A post or two ago I flatly stated that I wouldn't live in an apartment again. 

Guess What?

We are looking at apartments. Apparently, the owner of houses do not like to rent to people who have only had their job for a week and need a 6 month lease. The only good news in this scenario is that we will be saving about $300 bucks a month.

I have learned though that the next time I need my shower drain unclogged I'm going to tell them there is a beanstalk growing out of it. :o)

Update

All right y'all...it's official. Chris has a job with Zoe's Kitchen. :o) Yay! It's been quite the roller coaster but now we have some direction! He will start training at the end of this month and then he will work in one of the Birmingham stores for awhile. Since we are about 60 miles from his new job our rumored move isn't going to take us as far away as we thought but we are going to move closer to Birmingham and get outta this apartment. (Yipeeeeee!)

So now the hunt is on for a job for me as well. 

SO, my 30th birthday is coming up quickly....anyone have any suggestions on what I should do?

Oh yeah...Zoe's Kitchen is expanding to the Atlanta area..check it out. 

Question of the Day...

How many things can you name that you do everyday that you do not pay taxes on?

Short list, huh?

Random Thoughts

It's been a bit but things are pretty much in a holding pattern at the moment so there isn't much to report. So here are some random bits while I wait for laundry to finish.

• I made the Dean's List for Fall 2008. Go me...



• I don't watch the Bachelor but I don't understand what the hell everyone is so pissy about? Dude can't decide what he wants. Why does this surprise everyone??


• If anyone wants to take a road trip to Tuscaloosa we are F-in bored and would LOVE for ANYONE to come visit.


• Regardless of where we end up moving our apartment dwelling days are OVER. Between the noise, the fresh new dings on the doors of my truck and the fact that I must need a court order to get maintenance to unclog my shower drain, I'm DONE. We will rent a house until we end up somewhere permanent and can buy one.


• Why are all these little girls going missing? Freaks me out...I hope they all come home safe.
  
• I didn't see anything in the news about that disgusting Octo-mom today. Hallelujah!
• Apparently change=debt
• Rhianna is a dumbass for taking Chris Brown back. Way to be a role model for your female fans. I seriously don't care if she has a temper and hit him first. That is a lame excuse from a small man.
• I love the mom on Little People Big World. She's not afriad to go all "Mama Bear" on someone for her kids. She may be only 4 feet tall but I wouldn't mess with her!

Well, the dryer is beeping at me and it's late so I'm done for now. Ta-Ta!!!

Stages of Democracy

I put this on my Facebook page a month or two back but after reading today (Thanks Tara!) that attempts to change the Constitution are underway I decided to repost.

---

Stages of Democracy - Please Read/Share

I've been looking for this for weeks and I finally found it. I think I received it originally in an email so I don't know if the references to actual people are accurate, but regardless of who said all this they might have hit it right on the nose. The part that reminded me to find it again was that part about changing our inalienable rights and freedoms. Obama has stated that he thinks the Constitution has major flaws in that it does not provide for redistribution of wealth. You can google "Obama and constitution" if you don't believe me. When you keep digging you can also find him back in 2001 saying much the same and a little more. Now that we clearly have a voting public that is willing to place someone like him in office, what is to stop him from changing our most important document to suit "the times", i.e. his agenda.

If you didn't know here is all that is needed to amend the constitution.

Amending the Constitution is a two-part process: amendments must be proposed and then they must be ratified. Amendments can be proposed one of two ways. The only way that has been used to date is through a two-thirds majority vote in both houses of Congress.

Regardless of how the amendment is proposed, the amendment must be approved by three-fourths of states, a process called ratification. Depending on the amendment, this requires either the state legislatures or special state conventions to approve the amendment by simple majority vote. Amendments generally go to state legislatures to be ratified, only the Twenty-first Amendment called for special state conventions.

Take a look at Congress and the number of states that went to Obama, there ain't gonna be much resistance.

This, right here, is the reason to be aware of current events in our own country as well as those going on around the world. The world is changing right before our eyes and some of us just don't care enough to pay attention. We have become totally apathetic and expect the government to provide for us. So, if you are a friend of mine, conservative or liberal, please read this and think it over.



__________________________________________________________________________________________

"About the time our original 13 states adopted their new constitution, in 1787, Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh, had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years prior:

"A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship."

"The average age of the worlds greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

1. From bondage to spiritual faith;
2. From spiritual faith to great courage;
3. From courage to liberty;
4. From liberty to abundance;
5. From abundance to complacency;
6. From complacency to apathy;
7. From apathy to dependence;
8. From dependence back into bondage "

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota... believes the United States is now somewhere between the "complacency and apathy" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy, with some 40 percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase."
-------------------------------------------------
IF that really is so - then the only stage left is #8 - From dependence back into bondage. What might that look like I wonder? Possibly the welfare state becoming openly socialist and increasingly totalitarian - possibly even a dictatorship? One thing is for sure - our civil liberties will become extinct in the name of "the public good" or "safety."
You know, the Founding Fathers saw this coming and cemented our inalienble human rights in the constitution so that all future laws and govt. actions had to keep these in the center of their thinking and rulings. But social progressives constantly want to redefine these rights and the constitution so that it can be "applied" to modern situations. In the end, all that does is make it easy for some dictator(s) to "redefine" our rights and the constitution so that they can "legally" take them away (so much for inalienable). Pretty scary!
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Ps. This blurb uses both the term "Democracy" and "Republic". By popular convention we refer to ourselves, incorrectly, as a Democracy. While the terms are closely related there is a difference. In a democracy the issues are decided by the people directly. In a republic, which we truly are, the issues are decided by representatives chosen by the people. Just wanted to clear that up. It's really my only gripe with the blurb above. :o) But republic or democracy we still have the same stages......

Even Brain Farts Stink

Today's post is going to be admittedly lame. I'm sorry.

Last night I went to bed a little later than usual and once I got comfortable I started thinking of what I had to do the next day.

Class. Nutrition at 9, Statistics at 11. Wednesday.....date? 11th. OMG, I HAVE A TEST TOMORROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How in the hell did I forget I had a test? I blame the government. No, really. It's there fault all I've been doing this week is reading about their stupid spenderific "stimulus" bill.

I spent my morning NOT in Nutrition like I should have been and holed up at the library cramming for a Statistics test that was not what I expected. I don't think I did very well despite feeling good about it when I left the library.

Keep your fingers crossed that my grade isn't so horrible I can't recover.

Peace, love, and doritos

A Quick Post

I read the UA student newspaper everyday as a source of entertainment. Most of it is totally lame but I usually flip to the opinions section for my dose of stupid. First of all, whether the writer is conservative or liberal I can almost always find some fact they are using to back up their argument that isn't true. So much for teaching responsible journalism. It's a good thing I was taught that just because it's in print doesn't mean it's true. It just scares me how many people DO believe everything they read, especially when the student body of UA is exposed to the swill that gets printed in that newspaper. 

I'm just getting around to reading Friday's paper today and my second favorite feature, "Your View", provides todays blog material. In this feature several students are asked a question about a hot topic pertaining to either football or world events. 

This weeks question is:

What do you think of the controversy surrounding some of Obama's nominees?

Here are the answers they decided to print (I'm saving the best for last):

• "I believe their tax evasions taints their own character more than Obama's."
   - James Webb, a freshman majoring in Nursing {not too bad}
  
• "I think he will do the best he can to take care of the issue at hand."
  -Grant Ballard, a senior majoring in apparel and textiles {pretty ambiguous answer}
  
• "I think every politician makes promises that he can't keep in the end. He said he would hire lobbyists during the campaign.
  -Jamie Tarleton, majoring in Physics {Did he hear the question?}

And the final answer....wait for it......

"I think he should change the law so they won't be in trouble."
-Emily McGee, a senior majoring in apparel 

{No bracketed comments from me necessary, I hope.}

Now regardless of what side of the political spectrum you happen to be on you have to agree that this might be the stupidest sentence EVER uttered in human communication. Yes Emily, let's just change the rules mid-game so the people who think they are above paying their taxes can run this country along side the President. 

Holy Mother of GOD......

Proof I'm Not Out of My Mind

So, I was at Publix again. I was looking for a 2 liter of Sprite. Of course it was difficult to find. This time I decided to get some proof. Can some one explain to me how, outside of the aforementioned mentally defective lab rat in product placement at Publix Headquarters, do these things end up on an aisle?

When it rains......

I was hoping that I wouldn't have to write any "woe is me" blogs anytime soon but I'll be damned if life hasn't thrown us some curve balls over the last week.

#1. That job I wasn't a fan of is no longer a problem. As far as I know, I was a victim of 'last in, first out'. Although...I felt like I'd been voted off the island and I wasn't even aware there was a vote. Maybe someone read my blog and got their panties in a twist. Wouldn't be the first time my mouth got me in trouble!

#2. Attack of the cyclops. Last week my right eye had that annoying feeling of getting a stye. Imagine my surprise when I woke up on Saturday with my eye nearly swollen shut. Really?? Is this karma paying me back for making fun of the girl that spontaneously barfed on herself in class last week? I hate that karma bitch but I digress.....

With no improvement on Sunday I decided to go to the ER. Just for the record I went to the ER because I hate the "doc in the box" and this is my EYE. I wanted someone to take my disfiguration seriously. Here's what happened: Doc walked in. doc said you have a stye. doc walked out. Nurse came back with an Rx. We left. My eye is still F-ed up and it's Monday. 

Just call me Quasimodo.

#3. 'Last in, First Out' is our new motto( I wonder what else we can apply that to?). Chris got let go today. See, I tried to tell you that the universe is out to induce insanity.  He's OK though...he was less of a fan of his job than I was of mine. Now he has a great opportunity to do what he really wants to do. I'll keep you posted. ;o)

Never Underestimate the Power of Stupid People in Large Groups

For most of you that know me it's not secret that I am not an Obama fan. I did watch the inauguration yesterday because I was interested in what he had to say as our new Commander-in-Chief. His speech was mediocre, in my opinion, it was not comparable to a JFK or a Reagan as the media would lead everyone to believe. 

Was yesterday a historic day? Yes, absolutely but I feel like we have really missed the boat on this one and have really not accomplished much of anything, which is a shame. The Presidential race is about choosing a leader for our country that the majority(or the electoral college) believes will best lead us in domestic and international affairs. This years race was nothing of the sort. Voters came out in record numbers to vote but the ONLY issue was RACE. An alarming majority of those that voted were utterly clueless on any of the issues, as seen time and time again in clips of people being interviewed. They were asked what they thought of "Obama's running mate, Sarah Palin" and if they agreed with Obama's "Pro-life" stance. The answers would be nothing short of comical if they weren't so frightening. 

If you're curious, here's a link. 

These are the people that just selected our new President. They voted for him because he's black and only because he's black and some of them were honest enough to come right out and say so.  They thought it would make them feel good to have a Black man running this country. Now for the rest of the people that voted for him...some people are educated on the issues and did vote for him based on their own convictions and to those people I applaud you, but I also feel like there is a contingent of non-black Americans who voted for Obama because it absolved them of being a racist. On the flip side of that I feel like a finger could easily be pointed in my direction because I did not vote for him so therefore I must hate black people.

Sadly, I think this election will make race more of an issue in day to day life than it ever has.

Back to this boat we missed...Obama was elected because of the "entitlement crowd" fueled by celebrities and the media, we turned our highest office into an idolatrous mess. Blind worship of a man we really don't know that much about who has virtually NO experience. Awesome...this should be fun.

Our boat will have arrived when we can elect someone for their qualifications and platform alone without regard for race or gender or what other prejudices may come up. Then and ONLY then will we have conquered racism in this country. But maybe we had to get through this first one in order for that to happen...time will tell.

And remember:

"Fifty-five million people voted against Obama, so I don't know where the notion got started that 80% of the country is excited about him and can't wait for him to be President." -Rush Limbaugh

Now on to more trivial matters. To all the people who were CRYING during his speech...unless you are over the age of 60 and have experienced REAL racism, dry it up. Harsh? Yes, but dammit, your life is cake. Have you lived in fear of the KKK and being lynched or tried to walk across a bridge in Selma, Alabama only to be greeted by a cloud of tear gas and batons? Did you ever have to use separate facilities or live through the integration of schools? The answer is NO. You've grown up in a world of Affirmative Action. Where jobs and places in Universities are held for you because you are a minority. You are allowed to underachieve and still succeed. Please spare me from the "I cry for my ancestors" BS. Your ancestors also fought in every war this country has engaged in since the Civil War, where are your tears for them? Funny how that works.

It may seem like I really can't stand Obama but I want to make something clear to everyone who may come across this entry: I do not hate Obama, hate is a very strong word with implications I won't even entertain. Now, having said that, I do not like his policies and I believe that is my right, as it is my right say so. I do not think he's a monster and he's not going to single handedly destroy this country, although it may look very different and the end of 4 (or 8) years. I think that Obama believes his heart is in the right place, however misguided I might believe that to be. I also think that, politics aside, he's a good guy, he loves his wife and his girls and that is something to be respected.

I've written this post over several days and I realize it doesn't flow well, but oh well. I have a Stat quiz I should be studying for right now so revision is not really an option. So here I go on another tangent that occurred to me yesterday in regards to people of mixed race. Has anyone else noticed how many people of mixed race declare themselves to be Black, completely denouncing the other half of their heritage? Normallly, I would just say whatever and not really give it much thought but it made me think of a good friend's little girl, who is half black and half white. My friend is white and the black father is...'not involved'. In fact he last saw her when she was about 6 months old and stopped supporting her financially shortly after. It's been up to my friend to raise her daughter. She has great support from her family for which she is grateful. 

Now let's take a look at people like Obama, Halle Berry and Alicia Keys. Obama was mostly raised by his white grandparents and the best he could say about them is that they are "typical white people". Halle Berry and Alicia Keys were both raised by their single white mothers after their black fathers became 'not involved'. It blows me away that not one of these people have expressed any pride in their white heritage after their mothers struggled to raise them alone, yet they seem to identify totally with the heritage of these men that left them. I am genuinely curious as to why this happens. I'm not saying that they should declare themselves white but just maybe to acknowledge it. I know my friend struggles with how to raise her daughter to be proud of her heritage on both sides since her father can't be bothered so I'm just wondering how the people I've mentioned came to decide they were black and only black. Was the black community more accepting? Was it more convenient to be black in Hollywood? I just don't know and I suppose each one's situation is different. I'd welcome any comments anyone has on this topic. Cate, if you happen to read this I'd be especially interested in your input since you've done such a great job of exposing your girls to their own cultures as well as others. 

On that note...I'm off to study some statistics. Yay.

What is a Triangle without an Angle?

I've gotta hand it to my Statistics professor...he's an original. And I mean that in the best way. He is also a teacher who "gets it". He has no delusions about the subject he teaches. It's boring, confusing and we couldn't care less. He knows this and does his best to make it easier and lighten the mood. To start class off we have what he calls a "Check In" where he asks a random question and we go around the room and answer it. Today's question was: What's your biggest pet peeve?

Now I need to backtrack a little. Last week when school started I was having a conversation with a girl I had a class with last semester. It was just small talk and totally of no consequence but picture this....

You are standing there having a convo with someone, when someone you don't know walks up. 

Nothing crazy yet, right?

Well, in a normal world the person you are acquainted with would introduce you to the newcomer. Welcome to MY world. Conversation with me ended. This girl turned her back to me and started talking to this new girl. Turned her back IN MID SENTENCE. I don't have caps big enough for the 'WTF?' that applies to the level of rudeness I'd just encountered. 

Back to this morning. Pet Peeves. My girl is in this class so I chose to mention the "convo triangle dismemberment" as my pet peeve with a glance in her direction. I don't know if it hit home or not but and opportunity like that is rare. Now that I feel better about being totally snubbed I must also mention someone else's peeve from class. This chick has some cajones and I want to be her new best friend. Her peeve was...Uggs, tights and shorts! Ha Ha!! I laughed out loud which only further pissed off the chick sitting in front of me who happened to be wearing the ensemble. Guess she thinks she doesn't look totally stupid. 

All in all, class wasn't a total waste today. 

Update on the Sweet Tea Search

Since the previous post we have made it a mission to find the Milo's Sweet Tea at Publix. We went in for a couple of things for dinner on New Years Day and decided we weren't leaving with out some Milo's. We searched high and low and then we found it. 

Right next to the Potato Salad. 

Why didn't I think of that?