As the Semester Winds Down

I am finally almost done with this semester.

All that stands between me and freedom are two 4-5 page papers due tomorrow (which, at this page in my academic career, doesn't phase me . . . I haven't started either) and an Anth final on Wednesday.

Then I plan to relax . . . which for me involves books, coffee, and crocheting. Not generally all at the same time. Cannot wait.

I am also excited about the new movie Avatar coming out this week. Not only do the graphics look amazing, I was just at B&N flipping through one of those companion books and it looks like the alien species the humans are fighting against were actually thought out and given a realistic culture!

(Please excuse the giddy anthropology student.)

It also seems like it will have a good message--one that could be applied to issues like indigenous rights--so I will have to let y'all know what I think about it in a few days.

Current read? I haven't had a lot of time to read recently (those pesky exams!), so I've been plodding my way through Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. You may be familiar with Neil Gaiman--he wrote the book Stardust, which was turned into a movie of the same name.

I'm only about a third the way through the book, so it's a little early to discuss impressions, but I will hopefully be able to catch up on my reading soon. There is quite a pile beginning to form.

Anyway, I suppose I should do something productive with the rest of my afternoon/evening. Off to tackle Indian history in 8 to 10 pages!

Fanboys

Saw this a little while ago, but I haven't had enough time to blog about it.

(Note: The night before two final exams is the perfect time to do anything and everything not school related.)

This movie gets a pretty solid B. While the plot is lacking and it can be crude at times, this is compensated for by enough legit (fan) humor to come out okay.

Highlights? An epic battle against some Trekkies, calling "Chewie" instead of "shotgun," and cameos by Billy Dee Williams (Lando) and Carrie Fisher (Leia).

(Possibly a few more people I didn't notice.)

If you are a fan and know a decent bit about Star Wars, it is worth subjecting yourself to this movie. If not, you can skip it and still sleep quite well at night.

All Over the Place

I have been busier this past week than I think I have been in years.

But seriously.

You may or may not remember my fiasco about a year ago with the Study Abroad Office. Well, there's a class being offered next semester on francophone culture that includes a Spring Break trip to Paris (you know, the center of the universe . . . francophile Mecca) and Brussels. In applying for this trip, I have been forced to interact with them again. And, while they haven't really been any more pleasant this time around, at least I knew what to expect.

In addition to working on the 17 page application for that all week, I also finally gave up on finding my lost passport and went to apply for a new one. That involved two long and confusing forms, a birth certificate, another form of ID, and two separate fees.

Yay, government.

Furthermore, the clock is ticking on a million and a half papers due in the next week.

And my sinuses are trying to kill me.

Also, I've been doing some more thinking on post-undergraduate plans. However, as I have class in a few minutes, that will probably make it into a different post.

Busy, busy, busy.

Sock it to the Man

Two of my most recent crocheting projects:

Socks!

I've made one big one and one small one, now I just have to try to make a second one to match each.

We'll see how that goes.

At least the first one can become a stocking if I can't make a duplicate.

And if I can make a bunch of the smaller ones, I won't have to feel bad about the little Jamaican women sewing socks for Hanes in a Free Trade Zone.

Hippie power!

Phooones

Meet Batman, the new phone I got last week:


So named because of the black "armor" I purchased for him to prevent such incidents as the one that brought my previous phone, Barry, to his demise:


Poor, poor Barry.

He decided to go on a walk down the stairs.

. . . Without me.

Here's hoping that Batman has no such suicidal tendencies.

The Rest of the Twilight Saga

I actually finished the series a little while back, I've just been lazy with updating the blog.

(Good thing I didn't hop on the blogging-all-November bandwagon. I'd have fallen off long ago. And been trampled. Repeatedly.)

Anyway, I'll organize this book-by-book and give the best review I can of each given my memory.

First up . . . New Moon.


This one was better than the first--I felt--though it still left a lot to be desired. Meyer still likes to use repetitive dialogue and take her time with plot developments, but this one at least had a bit of cohesive plot to hold it together (unlike the first book).

Biggest problem? She needs to work on why things happen. Edward leaves at the beginning of the book for next to no reason at all, and while this is necessary to introduce the Jacob plot, it doesn't really make sense. After everything he put her through in the first book, he really thinks he can just walk out of her life?

To Meyer's credit, though, the Volturi are pretty cool.

Next . . . Eclipse.


Easily the best book of the series. Less time is wasted in useless dialogue as the competition between Edward and Jacob heats up. The plot--culmination of the previous two books--flows well and the characters almost become round.

A big battle always makes things more interesting, too. Though Meyer did keep the bulk of the fighting part out of the book . . . which I guess can be justified considering the book is marketed towards girls (I'm reminded of a certain conversation on gender plot preferences we once had after seeing Master and Commander in the theatre, Amy P-Shaw).

And finally . . . Breaking Dawn.


I think this book could have not existed without harming the series at all.

Meyer resolves the Jacob plot in a perfectly ridiculous way (that was utterly predictable . . . you knew what would happen the second she made up that imprinting trash). She also reveals that Bella (up to this point the most annoying and obnoxious heroine on record) actually has a cool power and then resolves the big battle before they actually begin to fight and she gets a chance to use it.

All in all, a completely melancholy ending that undoes everything Eclipse does for the series. This book should have been condensed into an epilogue instead of lengthened into a capitalistic bid for more royalties.

For shame, Stephenie Meyer.

So . . . the Twilight Saga in sum . . .

Better than I expected, though by the time the writing actually improves to a decent standard most readers have probably been lost.

In my opinion, most of the popularity of the series is a result of the concept of the books more than from any intrinsic value the story has itself. The familiar "forbidden love" theme is the only justification I can come up with for how a series of four mediocre books without adequate plot can become so popular.

I'm also a little concerned about the possible cultural trends either caused or highlighted by the popularity of Edward Cullen . . . the angsty, controlling vampire who everyone seems to feel is perfect.

Maybe they were reading a different edition than I picked up.

In Brian's Gradebook the Twilight books receive a grade of C-. Not quite good, but decent enough not to fail.

And now for something completely different . . .


I could easily spend lots of time in this room. Greenhouse living could be fun.

Happy Guy Fawkes Day!

Pretty much every year since V for Vendetta came out, I have attended some sort of observance on the fifth of November--usually just a movie night with eggs-in-a-basket.


I love that movie.

Most of all, I love the quotes from that movie.

"More than 400 years ago, a great citizen tried to embed the fifth of November forever in our memory. His hope was to remind the world that fairness, justice, and freedom are more than words, they are perspectives." -V

Something A Little Less Serious

So . . . I've never been a huge fan of industrial design, but I think this would make an incredibly awesome art studio kinda room.


Additionally, this bedroom could easily make me the happiest man alive.

Both photos from Apartment Therapy (AKA my new favorite way to waste time on the web).

Planning to Plan for the Future . . . Tomorrow

So I'm about to graduate in a few months and I haven't given a whole lot of thought about what I will do until recently.

Presently, I'm tossing around the idea of continuing school (the horror!) and getting an MFA in Creative Writing.

Talk about random, right?

The problem is looking into everything is kinda overwhelming.

I mean, I think I can write decently well . . . but everyone wants a 20-30 page sample and I just don't have anything that long that I've done since, you know, high school.

Also, three references. Once again, having taken no classes in English beyond Gen-Eds since high school, there aren't really any people who can attest to my ability to write creatively from a professional standpoint.

So, basically, I'm stuck. I don't know if I should take a break and beef up my resume before applying to a good school, try to patch together an application to a middle-of-the-road school now, or just give up this foolishness entirely.

Bah, growing up is such a pain.

Apartment Therapy

I just found this site.

I am on page eight and thoroughly enjoying myself.

After a huge ANTH midterm today, I think I deserve it.

(Also, the blog is in need of a serious overhaul . . . suggestions?)

Copenhagen

So there was an article on Copenhagen in the most recent issue of National Geographic Traveler, and it really made me want to visit.


Or, you know, move.

I'm an eighth Danish . . . maybe I can get in easy?

I haven't been on a decent trip in way too long.

Siddhartha

I was feeling guilty after reading a Star Wars book and Twilight right in a row, so I read a classic to make myself feel better about my literary prowess.


Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is the tale of a contemporary of the Buddha in India who is struggling with the meaning of life. He leaves home, meets the Buddha, becomes a rich merchant, and ultimately, finding happiness in none of these things, discovers his purpose as a ferryman on the bank of a river.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

However, if you think about reading it, you may want to find an annotated edition--I was familiar with some of the Hindu/Buddhist terminology from my Ancient India course, but had I not been enrolled in that class I may have been a little lost.

[Edit]

So I've spent most of my break stressing and psyching myself out about my 10-page Roman History midterm that is due Friday.

But in two hours at the library I have been able to churn out a solid 3 1/2 pages with an outline and a good idea of what the rest of the paper needs to look like.

Why do we always do that?

If I hadn't wasted so much time worrying I could probably be done with this paper right now and able to be outside enjoying this wonderful day.

Human beings are such silly creatures.

Twilight

Yep . . . I read it.

And, honestly, I have to admit that it was not as bad as I expected.

Note: I did not say "good;" I said "not as bad as I expected."

Were I a girl in my teen years I think I would have loved it. However, being a guy in my early twenties, I may not have been quite so able to relate to it.

The copy I read was 498 pages and probably could have stood to lose about a hundred of those pages and been better. Meyer wasted a lot of time with dramatic looks and repeating--almost verbatim--how attractive this Edward fellow is. If I had to read a description of how he made Bella's heart miss a beat one more time, I was going to go insane.

She also waited until about page 400 to realize, "Crap, I don't have a plot!" and had to add one in by introducing characters who had not been so much as foreshadowed previously in the book.

All that said--taking into account the millions of errors and poor writing--I, err, kinda want to read the next one.

I want to figure out how she did that.

Then I can write a horrendous book and have millions of teenage girls go crazy, becoming a multi-bajillionaire.

Oh, one more thing . . .

This Edward Cullen guy? Really?

I don't see what's so attractive about an angry, bossy vampire with horrible mood swings.

Clue me in?

The Future of Countries

So I don't know how interesting anyone else would find this, but I watched it last night and I think the guy knows what he's talking about.

It's a talk given by a guy about the future of countries and borders in places like the Middle East and East Asia.

Worth watching if you've got the time.

Death Star

Pardon me while I am a complete nerd for a moment.

I just finished this book:

And, while it kinda annoys me that they keep going back and adding new books into the middle of the timeline, I really liked this one.

Basically, it goes back and gives insight into the lives of "regular people" (bartender, TIE pilot, construction supervisor, medic, etc.) who were aboard the first Death Star. You know, to prove that a battle station that huge can't possibly be full of evil, conniving maniacs bent on galactic domination.

At least not completely.

My only complaint comes from a stylistic viewpoint. All of the characters that the authors get you to invest in actually are able to escape the Death Star before it blows. I mean, I actually liked the characters and didn't especially want them to die . . . but I think the book would have made a much better point if they had.

Oh well, still a pretty good read.

And now for something completely different . . .

Look! Stripes!

PC Police

Whew.

What a day.

In Oral Comm we are giving informative speeches and this one girl . . .

Grr, this one girl . . .

I have no idea what the purpose of her speech was supposed to be, but her first point was that the Mexican-American War was Mexico's fault (Umm, no . . .). Her second was that "Spanish people" and "Mexicans" (by which she meant alternately Hispanics or Latinos) were illegal immigrants of whom 80% have a criminal record. Her third? We should hire more ESL teachers because "Mexicans" are too lazy or incapable to learn the English language on their own.

I coulda smacked her clear to Mexico.

Anyway . . .

I finished my blanket last night. May post a pic later if I feel more in the mood. Right now I'm too exhausted from being outraged at the she-bigot to do anything productive.

Been treating myself to a Star Wars novel recently. It's relaxing.

Haven't seen any good movies recently. Or any at all, really.

Dinner plans?

Leftovers will be crafted into a Mediterranean-themed casserole. There may or may not be a picture later depending on how I feel.

Ciao!

A (Sorta) Southern Classic

This was breakfast Saturday:


Scrambled eggs with homemade biscuits and (veggie) gravy!

While vegetable gravy may not be as great as the regular stuff, I've found that vegetable bouillon with milk and flour gets a pretty similar result that is probably (slightly) better for you.

My weekend was spent at a variety of events centered around Marvin's birthday . . . chief amongst which was a surprise party that I actually managed to organize and pull off without him figuring it out.

It was a resounding success for which I spent 5 hours in the kitchen making food from scratch. Unfortunately, it was all gone before I could get a picture of the table.

I guess that's a good thing, right?

Bella

I watched this film for the first time over a year ago and loved it . . . then forgot about it until a few weeks ago when I was able to pick it up for a couple bucks at a going-out-of-business sale at a Blockbuster around the corner.

It is an amazing film.

The two main characters--a soccer star turned chef and a pregnant waitress--bring out the best in each other in a film that explores many different aspects of our society and what it means to be human.

And it has a really good message, too.

Watch this movie (with a box of Kleenex).

Crochet-volution

Oooh, shiny picture.

These are my first few projects since I took up crocheting a few weeks ago. The brown one in the center--affectionately named Primo--was the first . . . as you can probably tell by the fact that he gets wide and skinny, wide and skinny, before finally reaching a constant width near the other end.

Yeah, I had some trouble figuring out when to end my rows.

Don't judge me.

I was doing much better by the time I reached the second one (on the left), which was completed for Marvin. His width only varies a little bit in a couple places.

By the time I made my third (right), which was made from luxuuurious Alpaca wool, I pretty much had it down to a science. My fourth scarf, also in the gray Alpaca, could not be pictured because it was gifted to my friend Lan for procuring the Dalai Lama tickets.

Now, with a closet full of scarves, I am moving on to bigger and better things.

Like what, you might ask?

A wool blanket!

Mixed Bag

So yesterday I was lucky enough to hear a talk on "The Missing Peace" that this man gave downtown.


Yup, I got to see the Dalai Lama! :D

Unfortunately, when I came home I saw that I had missed a few calls from my dad. I called him back and he gave me some pretty bad news.

My dog, Amber, had died.

So, despite all the events of the day, I suppose yesterday works out to being pretty . . . average?


I'll miss you, Furface. RIP

District 9

Yesterday (Or was it Saturday? I don't remember . . .) I went to see District 9 with Marvin. I had heard particularly mixed reviews, so I wasn't really sure what to think going into it.

I am happy to say that I was presently surprised--the movie was pretty good.

Sure, there was a lot of cursing. Sure, some gore. However, over all, the movie was pretty well-made.

One of the criticisms I had heard was that it lacked a plot--this had me worried since that is a major sticking point for me. I don't know what that person was smoking, because I only found one major hole and was pretty impressed with the amount of social commentary they were able to cram into a sci-fi flick.

Good job, Pete.

[I need to come up with some sort of system to rank books, movies, etc. so that these posts are a little more organized. "Stars" or "thumbs up" seem a little cliché. . . any suggestions?]

Embroidery's Final Frontier

So . . . I was poking around on Lexie's blog and found a link to this one, where I saw:


Which made me quite happy, because, if you read this post, you remember that I just bought a slew of embroidery supplies. I also love space.

Consequently, inspiration to combine the two was most welcome.

(In case you noticed, I wanted to see how many links I could fit into this post.)

Eleven Minutes

So, have you ever read something and known that it had an effect on you, just been unable to pinpoint the exact place or nature of the change?

That's how this book by Paulo Coelho made me feel:


I can't say that I loved it, but it wasn't bad, by any means. I just know that it made me feel . . . weird.

So descriptive, I know.

I promise to make an update about not-a-book soon. I actually have a food post on the way, the picture is just on Marvin's camera and I need to get it from him. Also, I finished my scarf. Maybe a picture of that will appear soon.

School? Blah. I need to decide what course I want to contract. Like, by tomorrow. After the experience last semester, I haven't been in a huge hurry to deal with the Honors office again.

Anyway, hope everyone is having a good week.

Ciao!

The Lovely Bones

I've apparently developed the habit of reading books shortly before they are made into movies.

Yeah, I need to nip that in the bud or I'll probably never be able to enjoy another movie for as long as I live.

Anyway, this was my latest literary victim:


The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold about to be released as a movie directed by Peter Jackson.

The entire story is told from the perspective of a 13-year-old victim of a vicious murder as she watches events unfold in the lives of those to whom she was close on Earth from heaven. It can be disturbing at times (consider the subject matter), so if you have an over-active imagination like me, I really don't advise reading a lot right before bed.

It is a really good read, however. I was able to tear through it in the spare time of 3 or so days. (Coulda finished sooner if I had tried.)

Now, though, I'm leery of seeing the movie because it probably can't live up to my expectations.

Has anyone else read this? I want to discuss the ending, but don't want to put any spoilers out here on the open 'net.

Up next? Probably a Paulo Coelho novel, but then the queue is empty.

Suggestions?

Because I needed more productive ways to waste time.

So Michael's--the ubiquitous arts and crafts store--is a very dangerous place.

Not dangerous in the typical Memphis sense, but dangerous in the go-in-there-on-a-whim-and-buy-half-their-merchandise kinda sense.

I went there yesterday and walked out with a big ball of yarn, a crochet hook, embroidery thread in a rainbow of colors, embroidery needles, one of those embroidery round things, and a box of 36 oil pastels.

(In case you were wondering, I saw this embroidery thing on TV and it looked neat--it's not your grandmother's pastime anymore.)

I am now 7-8 inches into a chocolate brown scarf. It ain't exceptionally pretty, but for my first piece, I don't think it's that bad.

I'll post pictures of projects as I get them done. :)

Banana-Granola Pancakes

So, I may not really have anything interesting to talk about, but I can sure discuss food!


These beauties are my banana-granola pancakes! Take your favorite pancake recipe and substitute particularly ripe bananas for eggs, one-for-one. I also use soy milk instead of regular, which technically makes these vegan. (Shh, don't tell!)

I make my own granola, but you can probably find some at a store that would work just as well, as long as the chunks aren't too big. Nobody wants to break a tooth on a pancake.

Though less healthy, I'm sure you could also replace the granola with chocolate chips and come up with some delicious pancakes. :)

Potassium and fiber from the bananas, protein from the soy milk and nuts (granola), and omega-3's from flaxseed (granola).

And so tasty, too!

The Time Traveler's Wife

(Second post in two days . . . whoo!)

So, I read this:


Then went to see this:


And, to repeat the worn cliché, the book was infinitely better than the movie.

The book--which excellently wove together the genres of romance and science fiction/fantasy--had been completely dumbed down for the movie. I understand that you need to make abridgments to fit 536 pages worth of information and character development into a two-hour time slot. But you don't really have to remove any element of surprise through heavy foreshadowing or completely change the personalities and appearances of all but the main characters.

Main characters . . . that brings me to my next point.

Which is my utter confusion at how this movie received a PG-13 rating.

There were no fewer than 5 shots of Eric Bana's butt. And I don't mean they flashed it up there for a second . . . I mean shots of his behind. They even showed Rachel McAdam's behind once or twice, along with a brief upper-body side shot.

PG-13? Really? Yay, American culture.

I guess I'm just a prude. Who likes movies with substantial plots.

Anyway . . . if you want a good read that will make you think and ultimately cry like a little girl, read The Time Traveler's Wife. If you prefer to have everything laid out for you--including the Bana-butt--watch the film.

Ramblings

I . . . am a bad blogger.

I really let this thing slide into disrepair . . . and the more I let it slide, the more I felt that I would need something really interesting to say when I started back up.

Stuff has been happening . . . I guess I just have blogger's block?

I did eventually get the scholarship stuff all worked out . . . after the process took about two weeks for each respective office it went through at the university. If I hated that school before, they've really compounded it. I feel sorry for the person that will call me someday asking me to donate to my alma mater . . . they are going to get an earful.

I moved into a townhouse! I promise to get pictures up once it is a little more moved in to. I really like the place and the location is amazing . . . but the best part is not getting woken up by those fire alarms every other night! :) (I heard there have already been two this semester.)

Hmm . . . also, school started. Most of my classes are crammed into Monday and Wednesday, which kinda makes me wanna die. I don't think it will be that bad, though. Class run-down:

The Roman World: A history course on, duh, Roman civilization. The material is interesting, but the prof has a really annoying voice. We'll just have to see how that goes.

Oral Communication: Blaaah. GenEd, whoopee! The teacher is nice, but I don't enjoy talking in front of crowds. I suppose that is something I need to get over before I conquer the world. That might involve a speech or two.

College Algebra: I probably should have tested out of this. Oh well, easy A. We hope. (Also, my professor sounds like Dolly Parton. No joke. Tweety little Tennessee voice.)

Peoples and Cultures of the World: ANTH class with a prof I've had before, should be fun.

Anthropology of Religion: In the running for my favorite class. Of course, it's on Monday nights, so I've only been once so far. But still . . . a lot of fun.

Ancient India: History class that is competing against ANTH of Religion for my favorite. Really interesting and knowledgeable prof . . . he just thinks very highly of himself and it comes across.

So . . . yeah. That's what's been up here.

I'll do better updating this thing. Promise.

Julie & Julia

I went to see this film last night and can now emphatically recommend it.

Both leading ladies did an excellent job--especially Streep, whose impersonation was dead-on--but I have to admit I was a little disturbed by the extent of Julie's obsession with Julia. Ever so slightly creepy . . . though not weird enough to ruin the movie.

You will leave the movie hungry (for something more than popcorn) and itching to blog.

And visit Paris.


All in all, two thumbs up.

Brian Picks and Pickles a Peck of Peppers!

[Note: I actually did this almost three weeks ago, I've just been lazy with getting the pictures off my camera and onto the internet.]

So while I haven't been doing a good job of documenting the progress of my garden, I did think to grab my camera about halfway through the pickling process the other day. After picking a ridiculous amount of banana peppers in the yard, something had to be done, so I took over the kitchen for a day and created this assembly line:



When I first started, I had no idea that the pickling process would be so long and involved. It took me the better part of the entire day to process the peppers--from picking them in the garden in the morning to finally cramming them into the gigantic Mason jar in the late afternoon.

The whole thing left me feeling very domestic. In an 1895 kinda way.


The beginning of the line: the bucket that was full to overflowing when I began and the small jar where I saved the seeds. I figured that if I had to get them out of the peppers, I may as well save them and see if they could be planted next spring. Only time will tell.



Cutting board and bowl for sliced peppers! By the time I was done, the board was practically soaked full of banana pepper juice and the whole kitchen smelled rather strongly. Also, my hands. (In this picture you can also see the first of the eggplants in the background!)

The compost bucket for the unpickleable portions of the peppers. Also, the empty jar waiting to be filled.


The finished product! I packed the peppers into the jar with a vinegar and sugar mixture and sealed it up! They were supposed to be ready after two weeks (which passed this past Monday), but I haven't had occasion to eat any yet. I'll let y'all know how they are!

I'll also have to do another post on the scholarship issues (which were finally resolved . . . the day before yesterday) and yet another (or more) to cover the recent King family vacation to California and Arizona.

Oh, I'm so behind!

Update de vie III

I have really slacked off with this blog.

The plants are now huge and have provided several peppers and enough okra for a meal or two. I would post more pictures, but I am currently in Memphis . . . I will get on that when I get back to the Boro.

Other, more exciting, things have been happening, too!

Like losing my scholarships, for example.

At Memphis, there is a service hour requirement for many of the scholarships. However, if you are in the Honors Program, taking an honors course each semester fulfills that requirement. Unfortunately, last semester there were no honors courses that matched up with my schedule so I had to sign a contract with a professor for one of my regular courses--basically, I had to write a 15-page paper and he would contact the Honors Program to inform them that I had completed the "honors" work.

I wrote my paper.

He never contacted the Honors Program.

Who in turn never contacted the Scholarship Office, which then sent me a lovely little email informing me that my scholarships had been cancelled.

Haha.

In calling around to about every office at Memphis, I found out that there was no way to get the credit without the professor contacting the Honors Program and confirming that I received credit.

Nevermind that I made an A+ in the course. Or that I can show them a copy of the paper. They will only believe me with written confirmation from the professor.

A Russian professor who went home for the summer and is, quite literally, in Siberia. Indefinitely.

So I'm stuck in Scholarship Limbo. Yippee!

In other news, however, as of August 7th I will have an apartment! I went with Marvin to check the place out a couple days ago and we signed everything and put down the deposit. It's a really nice 2-bed, 1-bath townhouse with a kitchen! It is also situated right between Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, and Kroger.

God made this townhouse. For me.

It practically glows.

I was supposed to take pictures of the place, but my camera died. When I move in a few weeks from now I will be sure to post some pictures, though. I'm excited!

Hmm, I think that's about it. I've been in Memphis all week taking care of scholarship/townhouse stuff and leave tomorrow to go camping with a group of friends.

Guess that's about it.

Good times. :)

Plants: Week 2

Woo! Another week without anything more interesting going on in my life than literally watching plants grow!


The most obvious growth here is probably between the parsley and the basil. Oregano and lavender are also doing well, but the rosemary is droopy . . . and I don't really know what could be wrong. The windowbox is well-watered, drains easily, and receives full sun. Rosemary is supposed to be a hardy plant. My best guess is that the huge parsley next to it is choking it out some or obstructing sunlight. I trimmed the parsley back a lot, hopefully that will help.

. . . Anybody want some fresh parsley?


Okra! Eggplant! The eggplants are finicky, so they got mulched . . . it seems to have helped them a great deal.


Peppers! The two huge ones in the foreground are yellow bell peppers . . . we squished everyone else in to fit them on the end because they're my favorite bell pepper variety. Woo! These have all grown a lot, I just don't know if you can tell from the picture.


Succulents! I got a new one this past week . . . I was planning to pot him in one of my yellow espresso cups, but came to find out that they have gone missing. Best guess at this point is that they are in the attic, so hopefully I will get a chance to search up there soon. Also, I don't think you can tell in this picture, but some jerk of a bird took a few bites out of the one in the middle of the big pot. I don't think it tasted too good because there wasn't that much gone . . . but if this is going to keep happening, I guess I will have to transfer them inside somewhere. Grr.

But yeah . . . haven't really had anything else going on. I moved some furniture, cleaned up my room, and am finally mostly unpacked for the summer. Yippee! I've been in one of those moods where I want to do something but just can't work up the energy to actually do it. Know what I mean?

I don't know what the deal is.

Oh well!

Ciao.

Plants: Week 1

I haven't really been able to come up with much inspiration to write recently, so I'm going to try doing a photo-oriented post. In the past few days I've been running around town grabbing up some herbs and vegetables to add to the family garden. I'm going to try do take new pictures of the stuff weekly or biweekly so that we can watch them grow!

So, without further ado . . . plants!



This is a handy window box full of herbs that I will be able to take back to Memphis with me in the fall. Yay, seasoned food! From left to right: basil, rosemary, parsley, oregano, and lavender. The lavender is not for food. Supposedly, if you infuse lavender in your shampoo or conditioner or something it is good for sensitive scalps. I'm going to try that out.



This is an establishing shot of the family garden in which I was so graciously given two beds. You can't really make out too many of mom's flowers or anything, but I may try to get a few better shots soon. She has one that is really cool . . . it looks like it came from outer space. I have no idea what it is called.


Bed Number 1! To the left of the divide is a row of okra (OKRA, OKRA, OKRA!) and on the right there are eggplants. We've never done eggplant before, but thought it could be fun. The plants are white because Dad dusted them with a pesticide kinda thing.


Bed Number 2! This picture was taken from the opposite direction, because see those flowers in the background? I almost stepped into them and realized they were full of bees. Yikes! Anyway, this bed is completely full of peppers. In the foreground are six bell pepper plants (three on each side of the divide) and there are banana peppers (my favorite!) on the right and cayenne peppers on the left. A couple of the cayennes already have blooms! I'm pretty excited.


This is my dog, Amber. She is not a plant, just an attention whore. She was being pretty cute, so she got her picture taken, too.


This is a pot full of mint (spearmint on the left, peppermint on the right). Though you can see the basil peeking into the picture, this mint was not in the previous herb photo because I was only able to find it yesterday evening. You would think that all these little plant places across town would have mint--I mean, as herbs go, it's kinda a staple. But no. Honest to Buddha, I went to every place in town and no one had any. Finally I went out to Valley Growers with Dad yesterday and they actually had it. Never would have dreamed it would be so hard to find in a million years.


These I got today! I've always thought that the puffy little succulent-things were fun, so I got a few. We'll see how they do. They're cactus-y, so they don't need much water . . . so how hard can they be to kill? Only time will tell. . . . (Note: Please disregard the decorative birdhouse and the potted fern in the background. Those are Mom's.)

Anyway, those are my plants. Don't know if anyone else cares, but I was pretty excited to get everything and look forward to fresh produce and seasonings in the future.

Brian out!

Swine Flu . . . Panic!

So the University Health Center at the U of M posts monthly fliers over the urinals for guys to read while they're . . . you know.

I think this is a brilliant idea.

Today's flier had a section entitled "How to avoid the Swine Flu." Point 2 was "Stay 6' away." Point 3 was "Don't share saliva."

I don't think that is a brilliant idea.

First off, there should really be qualifying statements on both of those. "Stay six feet away" . . . from whom? From an infected person? From everyone? From pigs?

I'd really like to know. Their generalities could be panic-inducing.

And "Don't share saliva." It's spit, not Grey Poupon, and I'd really like more specifics. Don't share spit with . . . friends? Acquaintances? Pigs?

I feel that these are all viable questions.

Be, Don't Buy

I recently read in the quotes section of someone's Facebook that "Freedom is having options."

While I'm not exactly sure that's what the Founding Fathers had in mind, it is very reflective of our consumer-focused culture.

One of my professors made a point a few weeks back that how we as Americans identify ourselves in the post-WWII period has shifted from "I am what I do" to "I am what I buy." We no longer identify with other people who hold the same job as in previous generations, but rather with those who consume the same things--clothes, music, movies, etc.

We've traded in being for buying.

Prime example: Bohemianism. Formerly, one was a Bohemian, denoting an intrinsic disregard for current trends and an artistic flair for the dramatic.

Today, one buys Bohemian in the form of flowing skirts and floral prints. The fact that the oxymoronic term "Boho-chic" even exists probably has everyone who lived in Montmartre at the turn of the 20th century rolling over in their graves.

Basically--to sum it all up--everything in our culture has gotten a lot more superficial, from our concept of freedom to the way we relate to others.

Freedom isn't the right to choose without regulation, it's the right to be without oversight. In abandoning the latter for the former, we've traded in actual freedom for perceived freedom and reduced human beings from complex people to rational-acting, self-interested consumers.

(Unless, of course, you live in the underdeveloped world, in which case you haven't been reduced from a person to a consumer but rather from a person to "labor." That's another post.)

I refuse to be reduced. I refuse to be a consumer. I refuse to bow down at the altar of selfish materialism and ambition and instead I choose to be.

Thank you for your time.

Fact:

Sometimes, you just need to take a step back and breathe.

Unfortunately, the more you need it, the harder it is to remember that.

Deeeep breath . . .

Yay, surveys!

The rules are:

1. Respond and rework: answer the questions on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention, add one more question of your own.

2. Tag other un-tagged people.

What is your current obsession?
Umm . . . coffee? I dunno, I really haven't discovered anything recently that has just blown my socks off. Maybe a series of Baha'i podcasts I've been listening to every night before I sleep? I hate these kinda questions.

What are you wearing today?
An old RA t-shirt and a pair of jeans. I was wearing my favorite jeans earlier, but I bent over to pick up a penny on the way home from the library earlier today and they ripped right across my bottom. It's really a shame no one was there to laugh at me.

Do you nap a lot?
No, actually. You could probably count the number of times I've napped on one hand (excluding when I had mono, which doesn't count).

Why was today special?
I churned out a 6-page paper and printed all the resources I'll need for the next 10-pager I'll be doing tomorrow? My life rocks! . . . wanna trade?

What would you like to learn to do?
I went to a flamenco show the other night and it was amazing. I want to learn to dance/play the guitar like that. If you ever get a chance to see flamenco, go.

What's for dinner today?
My typical Med-themed food. Today I served myself bread with an olive oil/spices dipping sauce, followed by a chickpea salad.

What's the last thing you bought?
Groceries. Exciting, I know.

What are you listening to right now?
The rain fall outside . . . it's pretty relaxing.

What is your favorite weather?
If I have nothing to do: sunny and warm! If I have something to do: cold and dreary. That way I can focus without the birds and flowers teasing me out the window.

What is your favorite kitchen gadget?
Umm . . . right now I don't have a kitchen, but I guess I'd have to say the oven? I generally prefer to mix things (cookies, bread) by hand, so the only thing I really use that much is the oven. I miss baking bread.

What's your style?
Scruffy bohemian nouveau-Jesus I-don't-care.

What is your most challenging goal right now?
School? I always bite off more than I can really chew and wind up wanting to kill myself by the end of the semester. I also need to find employment for the summer so I can think about getting a car. Connections?

Say something about the person who tagged you:
She's the best prom date ever. I'd know, I went with her twice. :)

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
Paris. Or maybe Chile or Morocco. Spain? I like too many different places to answer this with any degree of certainty.

Favorite vacation spot?
My favorite "vacation" recently was to Spain, which I loved . . . but I always went to Florida with my family as a kid, and I really have nothing against that state.

Favorite meal of the day?
Lunch is usually the one I'm most hungry for, but that's eaten on campus, so maybe dinner? I usually enjoy whipping something up in the dorm.

Name a memory from childhood that sticks out in your mind:
I can remember the first adult I was mad at besides my parents. She got me in trouble for eating my cookie before the rest of my meal at church on Wednesday night. I hated her.

What celebrity would you like to punch in the face?
All of them. Paris Hilton or Britney Spears first.

What would you like to get rid of?
School?

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
A secluded beach somewhere with a book and a view.

Which language do you want to learn?
I've always wanted to learn Portuguese, but my Spanish and Arabic need brushing up. Yeah, that's right. Add French in there and I'm quatrilingual. Beat my resumé.

Which countries have you visited?
Mexico, Montenegro, Serbia, Spain, the South Bronx, and Memphis. Add in France and Italy if you're counting airport-only.

Which would you go back to?
Mexico, Spain, and the South Bronx. I'd also like to go to France and Italy for the "first time."

I tag Cara and Joseph . . . I think they are the only two who have not yet been tagged.

We're All 3D

Yesterday I got the chance to hang out with a friend who had previously been kinda a "flat character" in my life. We got the chance to talk for a while and I found out a little bit more of her story and how she reached the place she's at today.

It was an important reminder to me that there are no flat characters in life: we all change and we all have our stories.

Nothing profound in that, just something that I need reminded of from time to time.

Solo died.

The Sámi, Solo the Fish, and Other Things That Don't Belong

I don't really have much worthwhile to say, but it's either update this or work on a paper. We all know that the decision made between these two choices will always be the internet.

The next paper I have to work on, though, should be pretty interesting--it is for my anthropology course and will be on the Sámi people of northern Scandinavia. The Sámi are an indigenous group who have faced oppression in the past, not unlike the Native Americans here.

I have a personal interest in that topic because the Sámi provide me with a claim to ethnic diversity: my great-grandmother was a Sámi who immigrated to the United States with her family when she was a little girl. Hopefully this paper will provide some insight into my heritage beyond what I learned from my great aunt when I was little.

And now for something completely different:

One of my fish is really sick. My favorite one, Solo.

So, realizing that other more serious things have occurred in peoples' lives in recent days, if you happen to remember my fish tonight in your prayers, I would be very appreciative.

Also, to continue this very fragmentary post, I have finally gotten back into the practice of maintaining a prayer journal the past few days. This has been a great source of release and I have found it very refreshing. Hopefully I'll be able to keep it up.

Met with the advisor for my history major today. He was very helpful--unlike a certain other advisor with whom I have met recently--and really encouraging about next semester. I might end up with 21 hours, which is a little scary, but I'm hoping it won't end up being too bad.

. . . Yeah, so I think I've written on everything I possibly could. Guess I'll get to crackin' on that paper.

Ciao!

God has been singing

for a long, long

time.

God looked at Himself in a mirror

and the world was created.

What do you see when

you look back?

Cuteness Concentrate

So, after several posts of ranting negativity, I've decided something more up-beat is in order.

By following a link to a link to a link, I found these:

AKA, the cutest things ever.

. . . EVER.

I want to learn to make them. I will give them to my children. I will give them to your children.

I will devote myself to spreading happiness, love, cheer, and Star Wars to everyone around the globe.

Which one do you like best? I'm kinda leaning towards Yoda, myself.

A is for Advisors

[EDIT: I finally heard from my advisor shortly after finishing this post. He is redeemed.]

. . . who are supposed to advise.

Really.

I've sent my advisor emails 3 times in the past few weeks with the schedule I want for next semester. I've thought out everything I need to do to graduate on time. All he needs to do is sign on to his little computer and press a button saying okay.

Is that so hard?!


I've emailed. I've called. I've gone by his (empty) office.

If I don't get to register soon, I'll lose out on the classes I want to underclassmen. I'm really not a fan of this part of the semester. I have enough stress writing papers.

Grr.

In other news, I read an article earlier today that said 30% of the greenhouse gases emitted from Argentina come from flatulent cows.

I was going to turn that into propaganda for vegetarianism. Bean plants aren't flatulent. However, beans can cause flatulent humans, and I'm sure 6 billion of those wouldn't be great for the planet, either.

Oh well. I tried.

Isn't it Ironic?

I should be working on the rough draft of a 15-page paper that's due in my Soviet history course tomorrow, but I just can't focus. I'm hoping by writing a little bit about it on here that I can inspire myself to get through the last 7 or 8 pages I need to write by 9:40 tomorrow morning.

. . . I hope.

So what's the paper on?

The Influence of Mirza Sultan-Galiev on the Fate of Central Asia.

It sounds riveting, I know.

Mirza Sultan-Galiev (above) was a leading Bolshevik during the Russian Revolution and the highest-ranking Communist of Muslim Central Asian descent. This gave him a pretty unique perspective on events--which ultimately led to his downfall at the hands of Josef Stalin.

Sultan-Galiev wanted what was best for his people: a pan-Turkic semi-autonomous state within the Soviet Union that would cater to their interests and culture. He was a moderate and an idealist in a world of fanatics and pragmatists.

Fearful that Sultan-Galiev's idea would come to pass, Stalin accused him of colluding with terrorists (false charges) and had him removed from the party and sent to the labor camps. Furthermore, in his paranoia, Stalin committed to the opposite of what Sultan-Galiev had suggested: he divided Central Asia into the "-stans" with which we are familiar today, creating cultural and national divisions that had previously been abstract or non-existent.

So, in sum, because Sultan-Galiev was such a vocal advocate for the unification of his people, he is at least in part responsible for the reactionary policy of Josef Stalin that has insured--almost without a doubt--that a pan-Turkic republic will never exist.

Ergo the title.

Now wasn't that fun? Didn't you enjoy reading that?

Oh well, look at the bright side: even if you didn't, at least you now have a useless piece of Soviet trivia you can throw around to sound smart. :)

The Wall of Hate (and Stupidity)

In the center of campus, a wall has been on display for the past week; it is called "The Wall of Hate."

This wall is made of cinder blocks, each painted individually with a word someone has been called that made them feel discriminated against. Earlier today, the wall was torn down, symbolically representing the destruction of the barriers between people who are different.

Angels sang. Birds chirped. Rainbows appeared in the sky and unicorns danced through fields of daisies while everyone sat in a giant circle singing "Kumbaya."

Yeah.

But in addition to being corny, this wall achieved another, if unintentional, end: it trivialized the problems of real hate and discrimination.

Bricks inscribed with serious slurs like the N word, "Dirty Mexican," "Fag," or "Dyke" were on the wall right next to bricks with polka dot backgrounds and bubble letters reading "Dumb Cheerleader" or "Too Pretty." No joke.

I'm sure that last one hurt a lot.

Discrimination is a real problem for many people. People who have been discriminated against in this country for many years, facing much more difficult issues than being "too pretty."

And--while the intentions of the organizers were probably good--this event did nothing to help our society overcome those barriers and stereotypes . . . it only served to delegitimize them by placing serious problems side-by-side with silly, superficial ones.

Call me a cynic, but that wall only symbolized--if anything--a step backwards.

Le Sigh (Cough-Hack-Wheeze).

Sinuses. Are. The Devil.

Period.

I've been having trouble with these stupid things for almost a month now with hardly any relief. Medicine works for a time--5 days at most--and then poof! my mouth is the only useful orifice in my head.

And it's ruining my focus. I wrote 3-32 as today's date in my notes.

Grr.

Someday, I'm going to live somewhere with a dry, stable climate.


--Insert segue here.--


Has anyone heard much about that new sagging bill in the state's House? How can you make a law about something like that?

Besides, at least in Memphis, that's totally unenforceable. 2/3 of the city would be fined. Daily.

And police officers should have more important things to do. Like eat doughnuts.* Or catch drug traffickers and rapists.

This country is nuts. Revolution starts tomorrow.


*Blogger does not like my spelling of this word. Blogger can deal.