Friday, October 10, 2008

Channeling My Agression Through Top 5 Lists.

     I'm having a pretty bad day today.  I'm tired, and I don't feel so hot.  Here's my version of whining.


Top 5 Things I Hate When People Do:

1. When someone's quoting someone else and they give that person a really bitchy voice.  No one talks like that, and yet here we all are; believing that's how they sounded when they said it.
2.  When anyone over the age of fourteen rides their bike on the sidewalk.  I don't know what the age limit is to ride in the road, but it's super dangerous to ride on the sidewalk.  If you're riding your bike in the road and some cager yells at you to "Get on the sidewalk!", trust that you have just as much a right to be there as they do, and they're probably the same people that get all mad when they walk out of a store front and some cyclist whizzes past them on the sidewalk.  Ride in the road.  WITH the flow of traffic.  Wear a helmet.  Don't talk on a cell phone at the same time.
3.  Seeing people who shouldn't smoke, smoke.  I get that no one should smoke, but I don't really care what most other folks do.  I'm limiting this to pregnant women (mostly), kids, my friends, and my dad (also, mostly).
4. I don't know why it is, but I think it's really mean and weird when people eat lamb.  Like, it's weirder than veal somehow.
5.  Wear Fur.

Top 5 Things I DON'T Miss About Vermont:

1. The lighted S.D. Ireland truck.
2. The tight rope guy.
3. That the city doesn't clear the bikepath in the winter.
4.  Crust punks.
5. Public transit theatrics.  One time, this lady was yelling at some rando guy sitting a few rows back from her about how she knows that he's the one who assaulted her.  Then she starting crying and lay down on the floor of the bus and everyone had to walk over her to de-board.  It's sad that she's crazy, sure.  But, come on.  I've got things to do.

Top 5 Words Or Phrases That Make Me Shudder:

Two of these words I can't even type because I don't want to contribute to anyone possibly thinking them or saying them out loud.  (Although, if you know me, you're already thinking them, and perhaps whispering them to yourself and smiling slightly at how disgusted with you I'd be if I could here you.)  These are not obvious racist or prejudice words.  Those words shouldn't be on a list. They should just not exist at all. These first two words are just stupid frat guy words that creep me right the eff out.

3. Sh*t show
4.
     . . . . Yeah, that's about it.


Top 5 Movies/Television Roles That The Respective Actor Should Have Quit After Playing So That The World May Remember Them At There Absolute Best:

1. Val Kilmer as Chris Knight in Real Genius
2. Christian Slater as Clarence Whoorly in True Romance
3.  Will Ferrell as Frank "The Tank" Ricard in Old School (Maybe Elf, too.)
4. Here comes some contraversy: John Cusack as Lane Meyer in Better Off Dead
5.  Johnny Depp as Officer Tom Hanson in 21 Jump Street

Top 5 Songs / Artists That Make Me Wish I Were Not A Hearing person:

1. Life Is A Highway by whoever that guy is that sings Life Is A Highway
2. Nirvana
3. Lenny Kravitz
4.The Sex Pistols
5. There was this band that played about 5 or 10 years ago in my hometown and I don't remember much about them except that they were called Flowers In The Attic, one of the guys in the band was named Lucas or Luca, and they came perilously close to turning me off of music for the remained of my life.

     I can't do anymore.  I know you guys are probably pretty bummed because there's little that's more interesting than reading some narcisisstic, petulant crap.  But, I have to focus and get some stuff done.  I don't know that I've worked through any real aggression today, but tomorrow's a new day!  Filled with endless possibilities for becoming even more irritated.

     Huzzah!


4:29pm Edit: This helps:

Posted by at 15:34:46 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Monday, October 06, 2008

Sans Politics.

     I turned twenty-eight today.  I don't know if any of you have ever done that before, but yikes!  It is not a good time.  I remember being only like, fourteen- or fifteen-years-old and finding out that the guy who owned the cool punker record shop downtown was thirty-five.  He was rad, so being thirty couldn't be that bad.  Right?  Well, anyway, I hope thirty doesn't suck because twenty-eight sucks huge. 

     So, I've begun my Christmas knitting.  I should write up a schedule.

Projects 1, 2, &3:  Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, & Fridays
Projects 4 & 5:   Tuesdays
Project 6 & 7:  Saturdays & Sundays

     Project 6 is halfway done.  Project 1 is done, 2 is half done.  Projects 4 and 5 require additional materials.  As does project 7.  And, if all of these projects are done by December 1st, there will be three more projects that I'll need to complete in the first two weeks of December.

     After Christmas, and before Melanie's little one is born, I will be knitting for me, and me alone.  And maybe Chad.  After that, I'm considering a hiatus. 

     Also, this is the kind of blog I write when I'm trying to avoid writing about how disappointed I am that I have almost nothing to show for turning twenty-eight. 


    
Posted by at 18:32:16 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Dear Governor Palin,

    When a word ends in -ing, the G is not silent.  Please stop talking like Goofy because you think that's how the American people speak to each other and you're milking the "I'm one of you" angle.  You're not one of us.  You're campaigning to be the next Vice President of the United States of America.  Please stop acting as though we're a country of hillbillies.

     Unless that's your actual dialect . . .

     Also, it'd be great if you could actually answer some of the questions that were asked of you.  Ms. Ifill probably put a lot of thought and energy into those questions, and you kind of wasted hers and everyone else's time by making up your own questions to answer, and your answers were just more of your "aw, chucks" nonsense.  Avoiding an answer doesn't make you a maverick.  It just makes you dodgey.

     I was going to post the text message transcript between Sara and I, but it's so littered with curse words, it'd be the textual equivalent of one of those episodes of Flavor of Love where the girls have a little too much Sutter Home and fight about who's the fakest.  Just know that everytime the word "maverick" was muttered, Sara died a little inside. 

     Sometimes republicans have said, "Well, she must be doing something right to get all of you democrats so worked up!"  Really?  When someone is so vile and unjust that it makes your chest tighten and your stomache turn, that's doing something right? 

     Also, you can't mention repeatedly how your candidate is the only one with any experience, and also make a speech where you take a dig at Joe Biden because you've "been hearin' about his senate speeches since you were in the second grade!". (Sorry about the lame video. It was the only one I could find.)

     This is all so lame.  You got all caught up with the idea of being the VP, and some of your friends were probably all like, "Oh, yeah! You Should totally run!  You're just like us!"  So, you went with it.  But, instead of bowing out when faced with the really tough stuff like, Katie freakin' Couric, you decided to run with it because the American people need a voice and it might as well be yours. 

      I do have to know, though, was I right when I bet with Sara that you have those fake balls hanging from the trailer hitch on your pick-up truck? 

     Be honest.  I'm right, right?


    
Posted by at 23:57:43 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Monday, September 29, 2008

Two debates for the price of one.

Sara and I were texting during the first presidential debate:

K - you watching?
S- yeah.  if i hear mccain call himself a maverick one more time i'm going to barf in kier's elmo slipper.
K - he's got bush's same smug chuckle.  makes me want to kick a baby.
S - i thought the same thing. it's awful.
K - and . . . is he blinking back a stroke?
S - he is blinking per syllable.
K - that would be an amazing drinking game.
S - no one could last ten minutes.  the iran stuff goes over my head.
K - so does it the iraquis!  zing!
K - is this thing on?
S - i'm getting a headache.

John McCain - "What Senator Obama doesn't seem to understand that if without precondition you sit down across the table from someone who has called Israel a 'stinking corpse', and wants to destroy that country and wipe it off . . . "

K - speaking of stinking corpses.
S - have you seen his teeth?  i've seen mummies that look fresher.

John McCain - "THis is dangerous.  This isn't just naive; it's dangerous."

S - what about the naivte of his VP when he kicks the bucket?
K- sara! she's a pitbull!!!
S - on some blog someone called her caribou barbie.
K - HA!

Jim Leher - "On October 2nd, next Thursday, also at 9:oo pm eastern, the two vice presidential candidates will debate at Washington University . . ."

K- we'll resume on the 2nd.
S - I'm going to cover the couch with a tarp that night to protect it from my brain matter.


Posted by at 11:39:03 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Friday, September 26, 2008

A Rainy-Day-And-I-Feel-Like-Garbage Over-Exposed Picture Blog


Parking space at work.


Tree at North & North Union

From the train.


89 in Vermont.



Posted by at 11:16:16 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Another one of these.

     If it's all right with you guys, I'm going to write another Beverly v. Burlington post.  I hope it's cool with you.  But, I mostly hope it's cool with Chad.  He's worried I'm going to leave again, and I am, too.  
     I don't want to be somewhere he's not.  I moved here mainly so he wouldn't have to drive back and forth during the winter, but also because I always just want to be near him.  We've been together for just about three years, and I still cannot get enough of him.  It's just that, it's a beautiful, brisk late-summer day today, and nothing feels right.  

     Chad's at work, and I haven't gotten out of my pajamas yet.  I've swept the back porch, and put some laundry away.  But, that's where my plans end because I'm in Beverly and there's no one to meet downtown for coffee.  I don't have friends that I can visit at work, or who have kids I can take to the library, or who are heading out to Red Rocks for a hike, and would I like to come along?  I don't know anyone who's trying kayaking, or crochet, or a new cafe for the first time in Beverly.  I don't know anyone in Beverly.

          I miss my friends and my family so much it makes me shake, but I know that when I'm in Burlington and Chad's back in Beverly, I miss him that much.  It's definitely a weird thing. 

     I do appreciate the people I have met and gotten to know here, but it's hard for me to be comfortable enough to make any real friends when I feel so incredibly out of place.  My friend Max and I were talking about how different people are outside of Burlington (he's in Austin), and he mentioned that Vermonters, or more specifically, our group of friends, communicate differently.  I'm not sure how true that is, but i do feel it on some level.  It's like everyone's super polite, but no one get me.  I'm kind of always having to explain myself.

     But, we're here because they don't make enough movies in Vermont to make a life, and I would never ask that Chad change his career just because I'm homesick.  He's amazing at what he does, and in time he'll be really successful.  Maybe then we can move back.  It's just the day-to-day that is so hard for me.  I can't believe we've already been here for almost two years.  Looking back, it seems like it's gone by so fast.  But, then I remember all the things we've missed being here, and I remember the crying, and all the really hard days.  

     That's when it feels like I'm never going home. 

     
Posted by at 13:06:12 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Raindrops on roses.



I'm considering starting a whole exhibit of photographs featuring the things I see stuck in the ocean floor on my way to work.  I'm thinking this is a good jumping off point.

Posted by at 17:20:26 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Monday, September 15, 2008

There's a partisan in my pants and everyone's . . . well, you get the idea.

     I've been thinking a lot about Sarah Palin lately, because, you know, I have a pulse.  It's one thing to be an NRA member, or to want to teach creationism in public schools, or even to strongly oppose homosexuality by both belonging to a church with programs designed to "reform" gay folks, AND supporting an Alaskan constitutional amendment denying same-sex couples state health benefits.  Lots of mean-spirited people think all that stuff is okay.  But, to support an act stating that the victims of rape should be charged the cost of an impending investigation? 

    If this is accurate, I believe the victim's insurance would be charged.  But what if there isn't an insurance company to cover the cost?  I don't have insurance.  Does the cost go to me?  What if the victim is a thirteen-year-old kid?  What if the assailant is a relative of hers? What if it results in a pregnancy?  According to Old Lady Palin, that little girl's going to be a mom.

     I'm sure Sarah's done some good.  Although, short of some road and bikepath improvements, I'm finding very little that could be considered "good".  And, I'm sure Joe Biden's record isn't entirely flawless, but really.  This lady is straight coo-coo-bananas.

     www.issues2000.org



    

    
Posted by at 23:28:29 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Oh, the commas . . .

     I just woke up and I'm freezing because, according to weather.com, it's currently 46-degrees.  I cannot tell you how happy that makes me. 

     I know I've mentioned before how much I love autumn.  Everybody does.  It'd be perfect if it weren't so short, and didn't come with such an awful parting gift.  But, I have to be honest, winter is really kind of starting to grow on me, thus making autumn that much better.

     The first winter we were here, it snowed once, lightly, and just rained the rest of the time.  Perfect.  And last winter I was in Burlington.  Again, perfect.  I haven't had a bad winter in quite a while.  I'm cool with cold and snow, but I'll never enjoy winter sports, and I'll never stop worrying about everyone I've ever met's safety on icy roads.  And you can't make me.  But, as far as I'm concerned, winter can have it's seven months. 

    We cool.


    
Posted by at 08:40:08 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

H2Oh, man . . .

Sure enough, it rained for most of the first day of my parent's visit.  We still hit up the arcade, though, because you can't keep a Notte from a pinball machine.



And, apparently, you can't keep a warm-blooded mammal from this thing:



What is it with this game!?!?!

Anyway, even though it was rainy, we had fun. And Sunday was warm, and sunny, and dry, so it wasn't a total wash (hey-oh!).  On Sunday, we met up for breakfast, then headed to Nahant to play on the beach.  Hurricane Hanna provided some really decent waves, and there was quite a few surfers making the most of that.  We found a little tiny jellyfish, so we scooped it up into a shell and took a picture of it.



We're pretty sure it was a jellyfish anyway, and not someone's gross goober.

After the beach, my parents headed home, and The Boy and I spent the rest of our time off at our respective computers, becoming more and more addicted to POGO Scrabble (Chad), and Dance Monkey, Dance! (yours truly).  That friggin' monkey . . .

Here is a list of the podcasts that I subscribe to, because I think it's important that, if we're going to continue with our relationship, you know everything about me.  Also, I'm self-centered.

Ask A Ninja
Craft Mentality
Flight of The Concords
Grammar Girl's Quick And Dirty Tips For Better Writing
Hawaii Surf Session Report
Killer Wave
Living Green: Effortless Ecology For Everyday People
The Moth
NPR: Car Talk
NPR: Fresh Air
NPR: Wait, Wait . . . Don't Tell Me
The Rifftrax Blog
Shark Week 2008
SModcast Quickstop Entertainment
The Soup
This American Life
Vegan-A-Go-Go
VH1 Best Week Ever

I know.  I have a problem.

Posted by at 11:25:32 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |