Bloggproblem

Imellanåt får jag lite dåligt samvete över att jag periodvis inte på något sätt prioriterar bloggen. Dumheter! Som om en dum blogg skulle styra mig? Okej, jag förstår att de som tjänar pengar på bloggarna skulle skriva en miljard gånger om dagen, meningslösa skräpsaker, men jag, Hannah, som alltid endast skriver vettigheter (vi vet både du och jag att det var en lögn) har råd att ta långa pauser.
   Jag har för övrigt hittat en jättetuff blogg som alla borde följa:http://sanslos.wordpress.com. Hon ritar sådär coolt och fyndigt. Åh, vad töntig jag är som gör reklam för folk jag inte känner. Som att köpa platspåsar på affärer med affärsloggan (oftast jätteful) på. Skittöntigt.

Nu tänker jag göra chokladpudding och tipsa om BodyHorror, som är asbra. Om man gillar sån musik, vilket ingen gör.

 

P.S: Jag, köpa hund? Näh. De pengarna kan jag lägga på London istället.

Phenomenal Woman

Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman

Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
‘Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Old Skool Time~!

Caught up with Sangeetha after some years.. It’s always great to catch up with old friends. Those faded memories got relived. We remember how ‘creative’ we were at 14! Before we know, more than 10 years has past us.. I’m glad the playground is still there. Though a little embarrassing, we really should go back there again one day!!

 

The desserts at Marmalade Pantry never fails to cheer me up! Great desserts are the best way to end off a stressful work day.. And the great companionship is just like cherry toppings atop the world’s best dessert~!

 

Mm mm mmm!

Let me tell you why my girlfriend is awesome. Yesterday (I think) I made a comment about how I wanted wings. Actually, I’ve been talking about wings for a while now. We were talking earlier and I had mentioned that I was hungry but didn’t bring any lunch but should be able to get through alright on some random granola bars I had hidden in my backpack (I later found hot and spicy cheezits in James. And peanut m&ms.) I went out to James, laid down the back seats, and tried to get comfortable so I could start catching up on some of the reading for my Crime and Society class. Soon after this I get a text from Laura asking where I am and she says she has something for me. Awesome right? Well, you just wait. Next thing I know, a babe is opening up my driver-side door and handing me a bag with BW3 Boneless wings in it! I know! I ate them, loved them, and will probably even dream about them tonight. Thanks baby.

What makes it even more awesome? She has B-Dub’s phone in her phone; that’s bad a.

New York: 2 Indicted for conspiring to supply guns, ammo to Hizbollah

By Joel Zand at FindLaw

Patrick Nayyar, a man living in Queens, New York allegedly as an illegal immigrant, and Conrad Stanisclaus Mulholland, were charged in a federal indictment with conspiring to supply guns, ammunition, bulletproof vests, night vision goggles, and vehicles to the Hezbollah a/k/a Hizbollah , the Shi’ite Iranian-backed U.S.-designated terrorist group based in Lebanon.

According to U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, a confidential informant for the FBI told Nayyar and Mulholland that he was working for Hizbollah. In a series of meetings the two defendants allegedly agreed to sell him guns, ammunition, vehicles, bulletproof vests, and night vision goggles for the terrorist group, all in violation of federal law that outlaws providing material support to designated terrorist groups.

You can read Patrick Nayyar and Conrad Stanisclaus Mulholland’s charges of conspiring to supply the Hezbollah a/k/a Hizbollah terrorist group with weapons and related materials here: link

Nayyar was apprehended at his Queens residence, and also allegedly faces immigration charges for remaining in the country illegally.

As of this morning, the U.S. Attorney’s office stated that the 43-year-old Mulholland “has not been arrested.”  Janice Oh, press spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney declined to comment on Mulholland, a defendant whom FindLaw research has indicted was reportedly a U.K. resident of London.

Oh would only confirm that Mulholland “is still at large.”

Read it all via Patrick Nayyar, Conrad Mulholland Indicted on U.S. Terror Charges – Terrorism – CourtSide.

stylish

I’m feeling stylish xD
It’s just the jacket… it gives me a new imagae. My dad said I looked Japanese when he came home. I was like… wow xD
Usually its Korean. but now it’s a mix. lol~

Today consisted of lots of talking and interacting. I was surprised.
More people talked to me today. And I got to spin a wheel! lol!
Honda insight… pretty cool. I like the prius better actually… xD

So hopefully… I can keep explanding my wardrobe the way that it’ll make me look cool? lol!
I dunno. I was the nerd so loonnnggg! I wanna have a new image.
I tihnk I do too! Apparently I’m not THE nice girl. But am a nice girl. But… lol~

Today was chill though. No geo. Rawr. I miss it.
Dozed off in math. Dangit. I need to start doodling again cause my mind can’t just work on one thing. like… if I’m listening to the lecture I need to be doing something with my eyes and hand. Then I won’t fall asleep,

And I lost a sock in my work out bag!!! Rawr. I think Hunny bunny took it out >.< Since I leave it on the ground. xD
So I couldn’t work out. Instead I went home and ate cookies with milk. I know.. smart xD

I think there was the costune constest today. I think it was in the ampitheter which is why I didn’t see it! dang. I should read fliers more often. Anyways, if I wore Clannad I think it would’ve been cool. Oh well~

<3

–Kimiko–

Incalzire inainte de weekend

28-30 octombrie: Festivalul International de Literatura, la MTR. Voi merge in prima seara, sunt curioasa sa-l vad si aud pe Peixoto, vreau sa ascult limba portugheza live. Poate-mi cumpar si cartea aparuta la Polirom (de unde astept o noua livrare de carti – nu m-am putut abtine, prea trecuse mult timp de la ultima). Plus ca se pare ca anul acesta va fi si mai interesant decat prima editie de anul trecut a Festivalului. Pe langa lectura, comentarii si cocktail, vom avea parte si de teatru (Te iubesc! Te iubesc?). Am auzit de bine despre piesa si chiar sunt curioasa cum e. Si celelalte seri au adaugiri non-literare foarte interesante, asa ca nu ezitati sa consultati programul editiei. In afara de cei cativa dragi cu care am zis deja ca ma vad acolo – Jen, Ionuca, Dragos C. si LiaLia (poate), mai vine cineva cunoscut? Totul incepe la ora 18.00, in fiecare seara. Sa faceti cu mana macar.

M-as fi dus si vineri la Festival, ma interesau atat subiectul, cat si invitatii, insa am aflat ca la ICR se face retrospectiva TIMISHORT, incepand cu 18.30. Inceput frumos de weekend, nu?

Great Satan taxpayers fund $64.5M West Bank infrastructure projects

Expect more terrorist memorials and computer centers named after Islamic terrorists who kill Americans and our allies – as American taxpayers continue to send billions to our enemies. Obama has even asked Congress to allow U.S. ‘aid’ money to go directly to a terrorist Hamas ‘unity government’. 

ReliefWeb Arrabeh, Northern West Bank – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Palestinian Authority celebrated the completion of 5 rehabilitated roads, 4 new schools, and a water project in the Northern West Bank at an event held in Arrabeh in the Jenin Governorate on Thursday. The event, held under the auspices of Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, was attended by Minister of Public Works and Housing Mohammad Shtayeh, Minister of Planning Ali Jirbawi, U.S. Consul General Daniel Rubinstein, USAID Mission Director Howard Sumka, Governor of Jenin Kaddoura Mousa, Deputy Education Minister Mohammad Abu Zeid, and Deputy Head of the Palestinian Water Authority Khalil Ghabeesh, as well as municipal and community representatives. The new projects inaugurated in the Northern West Bank were designed and built in coordination with the Palestinian Authority and funded through USAID’s Infrastructure Needs Program, with a total cost of $31.8 million. This amount was part of the $64.5 million spent through the Infrastructure Needs Program to improve infrastructure in throughout the entire West Bank in 2009.

In 2010, USAID will invest another $153 million through the Infrastructure Needs Program for additional infrastructure development throughout the West Bank. The program will focus particularly on the construction of main and internal roads, creating connectivity between various Governorates. The program will also create new water supply projects which are expected to benefit nearly 1.4 million Palestinians.

USAID’s $300 million Infrastructure Needs Program was launched in October 2008 in cooperation with the Palestinian Authority to build Palestinian infrastructure and improve the economic conditions and well-being of Palestinian people.

Since 1994, USAID has provided more $2.9 billion in U.S. economic assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza via projects designed to reduce poverty, improve health and education, build infrastructure, create jobs, and promote democracy and good governance.

Camera research indicates a direct correlation between increased aid to Palestine and increased homicides:

A Ramble

Though I’m always reluctant to say the words “I am an artist” or “I am a photographer” out loud, I’ve secretly thought them…maybe in subconscious hopes that it will begin to sound less pretentious to my own ears. Through teaching both of these subjects, it’s hard to not put my own skill or creative tendencies in context of what I am teaching (both in photography and art appreciation) my students. This was especially true last week as we dove into Impressionism in art appreciation and I poured through one of my favorite sources Art: A New History (Paul Johnson).

 

Impressionism is usually known to have not been widely accepted in its beginnings (although I’ve read some opinions that that has been exaggerated). That changed over time…but at what cost? Johnson said:

 

“But as always with artistic successes, there were drawbacks. One was a certain loss of individuality. Art is essentially a personal response to the visual world, and an artist should always be wary of belonging to a coterie. Of the artists commonly classified as Impressionists, it was those who were emphatically not impressionistic but realists who kept their individuality–Degas and Mary Cassatt, Toulouse-Lautrec and Caillebotte.”

 

What’s my point? With my “photographer’s mind” I immediately thought of my own art form. With the widespread ability (Travesty? No, I kid.) to easily obtain a camera comes a loss of individuality. In certain genres of photography especially, there’s an alarming amount of repetition. Not to say I haven’t been guilty of it too, but with the internet, its like a brushfire of…bad ideas? Or one good idea copied relentlessly until it is so deteriorated as to lose its value. Using tracing paper well over an original does not make me an artist. I’m not so worried about labels/perceptions as I am over my continuation of growth. At the same time–shouting I’M DIFFERENT! from the rooftops won’t accomplish anything either.  So it’s no good to be different for the sake of being different.

 

But I ask myself, at the risk of sounding ego-centric, what do I have to say and how can I say it best?

Anaemia, exhaustion or... caffeine withdrawal?

I tried to go to the gym today.  I say tried because it was a poor excuse for a workout.  I managed about 5 minutes on the treadmill and 5 minutes on the cross trainer, when I should be doing 10 minutes and 20 minutes respectively.  It was quite pathetic.  Even the weights felt harder than usual.  I stomped home feeling fat and useless. 

I know I’m always tired, but I’ve been feeling extra tired for about a week – since I gave blood.  So could the tiredness be because they took too much?  It’s always difficult for me to give blood for some reason, then never get more than half a pint and then have to put the blood pressure cuff on extra high to get more blood.  So maybe I don’t have enough blood?  Or am I anaemic?  The test at the blood bank said my iron was normal. 

Of course I could still be under the influence of the new medication.  I saw the doctor (now on my 6th doctor, and the only one I liked was the locum, the others are all rubbish) on Friday and they said with such a large dose it can take 6-8 weeks before the side effects wear off and I notice any difference.  So I could still be wiped out from that. 

On the way home from the gym I got a headache.  A familiar headache.  Uhoh.  I realised that I didn’t have any caffeine today.  So, with my caffeine headache I stomped home and wondered, could lack of caffeine leave me feeling so tired and useless that I couldn’t even do 50% of my usual workout?  I’ve had a week off the gym and running, but that’s not enough to make me that unfit, surely?

Or, I do have enough blood, but I don’t eat enough protein to replace the lost blood, because you need protein to grow new blood don’t you?  (Showing my ignorance here – I never listened in biology class.)  Well, just in case I came home and had some extra protein in the form of a tin of beans in my ’Nigella Express‘ minestrone (yum yum) and then half a bowl of Special K with milk (because milk has protein); the cat ate the other half when I recklessly abandoned my bowl. 

All possible causes, all equally annoying.  I texted Houseboy and he said not to beat myself up and that as long as I managed 6 minutes on each tomorrow then it would be ok.  I guess he’s right.  I am still living with ridiculously high expectations of myself.  Boo hiss!

Watching Ray Mears and wondering if he’s married… is that wrong?

Our Next Adventure

 

 

 

 

The countdown is on.

Our next adventure is exactly 4 weeks away. Excitement, apprehension, and anticipation for what is to come overwhelm me. I know, beyond a shadow of doubt, the sights and sounds I will see in 4 weeks will leave me in awe of God’s immensity, his handiwork, and my smallness in lieu of it all.

And I can’t wait.

In a few short weeks, we will find ourselves hiking the South Kaibab, Grandview, and Tonto East trails in the Grand Canyon. Day one consists of hiking all the way down into the belly of the canyon from the south rim. The next two days we will hike along the belly of the Canyon and spend each night overlooking the Colorado River. Our final day we will ascend back up to the south rim.  The four day hike is a total of 28 miles.

I have already read that scorpion stings are fairly common and to say I was less than thrilled about this news is the understatement of the year. I am NOT a fan of creepy crawly things. However, I am hopeful that the beauty of the Canyon will overshadow any disdain I have for God’s less appealing creatures.

I would like to ask for your prayers for safe travel and safety as we hike. I can’t wait to share the tales of our adventure with you all when we return.

All beautiful pictures were taken by Ian Parker. Be sure to go check out his amazing photos.

Welcome to the Business of Writing

To celebrate the eighth day of the Daughter Am I blog tour, I am treating myself to a guest here on Bertram’s Blog. That means one less post I have to write. Oh, joy! While Claire Collins is guesting here, I will be at her blog talking about How Best to Procrastinate. When you get a moment, please visit Claire’s Blog and join in the fun 

Claire Collins  is the author of Images of Betrayal and Fate and Destiny, both published by Second Wind Publishing. Claire says:

Welcome to the Business of Writing! 

Wait! Don’t go anywhere. I’m not going to take your favorite hobby and turn it into work. Or maybe I am . . . 

It depends on what you want to do with your writing. Are you writing as an outlet? Do you write to relieve stress? Maybe you keep a personal journal and write to document your life. Perhaps you write to shut up the voices in your head that scream until you tell their story. Some of you may already be highly successful authors or journalists. 

No matter why you write, or where you are in your writing, at some point, you may want to adjust your mindset to look at writing as a business. When that first royalty check rolls in, you will be self-employed as a sole proprietor. To help you think of your writing as a business, I suggest you develop a mission statement for your writing. 

A mission statement is defined as: a formal short written statement of the purpose of a company or organization. The mission statement should guide the actions of the organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a sense of direction, and guide decision-making. It provides “the framework or context within which the company’s strategies are formulated.” 

That’s pretty stiff. Simply put, a mission statement is a summary of how the company will conduct business and the purpose of the business. 

Create a mission statement for yourself as an author, for your works of writing, or for your type of writing. If you aren’t an author or writer, create a personal mission statement. I give you permission to use your creative ingenuity to draft your mission statement. 

I’ll even create one for myself to give you an idea. Oh, and don’t forget: Have fun! 

Claire Collins: author – Mission Statement 

“It is my mission as an author to weave tales that draw readers down an interesting path with twists and turns. I will entertain, educate, and create emotion with my words.” 

Stop by Second Wind Publishing for a free ebook sampler or two. One sampler includes the  first chapters of all Second Wind’s romances, the other sampler includes the first chapters of all Second Wind’s mystery, adventure, maitstream novels. The first chapter of A Spark of Heavenly, More Deaths Than One, and Daughter Am I are in the Mystery Sampler. The first chapter of Images of Betrayal and Fate and Destiny are in the Romance Sampler.

Derby Memories

Going to see “Whip It” last night was really exciting for me because it brought back a lot of memories of when I was on the Space Coast Slashers back in 2007. I had so much fun skating with those girls, and I fully plan to join again when I move back to Florida this summer. Here are a few pictures:

This was taken by Florida Today at our first bout in Jacksonville. That's me: Diablo Picasso, number 1-8-7

About to kick some ass

This was one of our jammers: Holly Hacksaw

Sweet fishnet burn.

The Space Coast Slashers

Those truly were better times. I miss those girls!

In the end.

When to the Study in Australia Open House today, to view the courses offered by the various universities.

Seemed promising until we starting asking about the courses which I wanted.

They were either merged with another or totally removed.

So, in the end..

I didn’t apply for anything.

Suddenly I realized that I didn’t really want to study in Australia.

HA.

Better late than never.

catching up

i know, i know… it’s been too long. i’m sorry. i have been so busy and stressed lately. i haven’t been able to post. i also haven’t been checking on you guys the way i like to. and i’m really sorry. hopefully i didn’t miss too much. i will get better and prioritizing. i can’t let others nonsense affect my thang. anywayyysss…. on with the show

cinnamon raisin swirl PB and blackberry jam sammie. on extra fiber whole wheat

colorful salad, antelope pepperoni stick, grapefruit

greek yogurt, blueberries,almond butter, and a lethal amount of cinnamon

minestrone couscous over a bed of chopped broccoli

today’s TOTALS

not sure why this banner i a different shape, lol. sooooo… is everyone excited for halloween? i freakin love halloween. i didn’t get a chance to do a sweet costume so i’m just going with the classic kitty cat. DH got picked up for another show so we will probably be in ashland, oregon. i can’t wait to take david trick or treating. he is being optimus prime, from transformers. on the topic of dressing up…. i have finished a couple more masks:

wadda you think? oh and a couple other pix i wanted to share….. me and the lil guy made zucchini cakes for his school potluck.

that was fun. so i just got home from grocery shopping, got some sweet loot i’m sure you’ll see soon. then i did a quickie workout and now i’m thinking about bed. i have a horrible kink in my back aaahhhh!!!!!

i bought tempeh for the first time today. anyone know a bada$$ way to make it?

Ideas

Hi guys! I am thankful to all of your support, but elvenmagec and I need some ideas. Please comment using the comment layout under my signature. We need to add new features to our sites, so please feel free to comment as many ideas as you wish. I am thankful to all your support, and I will put all of these GREAT ideas into a poll in about a week. Thnx for the support!
~elvenmagic

Comment Layout:

Name: (Your AQW Username)

Email: (Your email)

Site: (Your site/blog. You may leave this slot BLANK)

Text Box: (This slot must contain your AQW username, your idea(s), and your character level.)

SEMA Anyone?...

So, anyone heading to the 2009 SEMA show this year? I’m actually pretty excited about going this year because it’ll be a first for me. I tried going last year but I think I turned in my credentials too late and I missed out. I also really want to go to Vegas too because I haven’t gone in a hot minute and I always love hanging out over there. As with all the event coverage that’s done here, you know that I’m gonna have comprehensive coverage of the show as well as all the happenings that occur outside. I know alot of people and homies that are going so I’m sure we’ll be out and about on the strip. I usually like going around this time every year because the weather is also a lot nicer than it usually is out there. There’s no Scion party this year apparently and in year’s past, it’s been one of the premier spots to go to during the trip to SEMA. Not really sure what we’re gonna be doing now but it’s no big deal. I haven’t done too much drinking since that time I randomly woke up naked in the shower about 5 years ago. Ah yeah, that was an interesting night….I think. Anyways, I’m still working on some stuff for HT as well as stuff for the site.

For those of you that have purchased shirts from me within the past month or so, you will be receiving emails shortly because I actually ran out of shirts so a lot of you will either want the refund or can stick around and wait for the new shirts to roll in when I find the time to go out and get more printed. I’m pretty excited about the new design that’s coming because the last shirts didn’t come out exactly the way I wanted. Hopefully this time will come out much better with new colors and what not. Stickers are going out this week as well so if you haven’t received those, make sure to stand by your mailbox everyday for 2 hours until you receive them…

Sooo….Vegas, be there. Gonna be good times and fun had by all.

Gonna have host “The Chronicles SEMA Party”…Make sure to RSVP in advance for this mind bottling event…yes mind-bottling. We’re gonna pop bottles and make it rain at the 3rd Daytona USA arcade machine inside Circus Circus. Yeah the 3rd one, not the second one, that’s the one that has the yellowing screen that’s caused by the heat from being between the other two. 3rd one is mint. If there happens to be a kid there playing already, just look for the back-up party at the SNK Arcade machine that has Fatal Fury Special, Metal Slug, and Baseball Stars 2….If you see the one with King of Fighters 96, leave that one alone, that’s the Criss Angel SEMA Party. We can’t go to that one cuz that fool don’t like me. Ever since that one thing with the thing that I did to the other thing…yeah, I don’t know…I need sleep. Later.

It's All Good.

“The affair of the Muslim is always good.” Sh. Hamza Yusuf

We should realize that everything we are sent is from Allah ta’ala and therefore is good. In our limited perception we might see something as being bad or evil, but in reality since this is what Allah ta’ala has destined there is good in it and in reality, this is what is best for us. The struggles and trials in our life, even though it might be tough to recognize at the moment in which they occur, are best for us at that very moment of our lives. It is ultimately our response in these moments and situations that will have the greatest impact and effect on us in both this life and the next. (May Allah ta’ala always make us of those who have patience and forbearance in the face of trials and wisdom to deal with them in the best of ways. Ameen.)

On the flip side of seeing every trial as being only from Allah ‘azza wa jal, we should also know that every act of obedience is a blessing and only from Allah ta’ala. When we do good, we should not become puffed up and proud with our actions but should thank Allah ta’ala for allowing us to complete such an ‘ibadah or good deed. We should thank Him for allowing us to recognize the good in that deed, for granting us the yearning and motivation to perform the act, and for the ability to put our thoughts and yearnings into action. (And I know I missed so many blessings in between. Allah ta’ala states in the Qur’an that we are not able to enumerate the blessings He bestows on us. For every seemingly small gift or blessing we are given, there are layers upon layers of blessings hidden within it.) May Allah ta’ala make us grateful to Him and increase us in our obedience and our desire to be close to Him ta’ala. Ameen.

It is stated that a person is constantly in one of four states and they are…
1) An act of obedience, and the correct response is shukr (gratitude, thanks)
2) An act of disobedience, and the correct response is tawba
3) A blessing is being sent down upon them, and the correct response is shukr and praises to Him.
4) A struggle/trial is being inflicted upon them, and the correct response is patience, forbearance, and resolve.

“Do not say: ‘O Allah, I have worries.’ Say: ‘O worries, I have Allah.’”

May Allah ta’ala forgive me for anything incorrect.

If anyone notices something incorrect, please do leave a comment. I write these only as a reminder to myself first.

LIST!

1. I really should be studying right now. Like, really. I have three exams tomorrow (one in every class), none of which I’m all that prepared for. However, I’m staying true to form and procrastinating like no one else can.

2. Speaking of procrastinating, I spent a fascinating three hours last night looking at the Bob Jones University website. (I was supposed to be writing a 4-page paper that was due today.) All I can say is, I’m glad I was always a normal homeschooler and was not forced to attend a school like that. I would be the most rebellious student there. No? Check out the “student expectations.” Um, this is college. Aren’t we supposed to be adults?

3. Today is the most gorgeous day ever, all of my friends are sitting outside…and I have to be inside studying. UGH.

4. I might be going camping this weekend. I’m pretty excited. It should definitely be an interesting experience. (Think: me, two of my best girl friends, my best guy friend [yes, that one], one of my other good guy friends, and this nice-but-odd guy who likes me; a tent, s’mores, and lots of outdoorsy-ness. Yes, interesting.)

5. Have I ever mentioned how much I hate statistics?

6. I have my schedule figured out for next semester! I think, at least. Marriage & Family, Social Psychology, Sociology, Ethics, Benevolence, and MY LAST SEMESTER OF SPANISH!!! (I’m trying to make up for the horrible boringness of this semester with the two especially interesting psych classes. I’m excited.)

7. To everyone who keeps asking: I am not going to the Sadie Hawkins. I don’t ask guys out, and I don’t support that particular club. Thanks.

Enough of the listing. Back to work!

Mzungus kiss, Africans eat each other

What is up with Africans and kissing? How come watching fellow Africans kiss on TV gives me such an uncomfortable feeling. Is it because we grew up with scenes of white people kissing or that Africans have a rough way of kissing (a friend said it looks rough and raw because we have big lips) …mmm, i dont know about that but it sure is raw in a thats-too-much-i-don’t-really-want-to-see kinda way.

Seriously, mzungus on TV have a way of kissing that’s soft and easy to watch compared to their African counterparts. Watch all the African movies whether Nollywood, Riverwood or Bongowood and you’ll see. Maybe the kiss directing in white films is choreographed differently perhaps for aesthetics, if that’s possible, and our brothers and sisters in African movies are left to ’eat’ out each others lips.

I don’t know, but every time i watch a kissing scene in an african movie, i’m amazed at how hungry we go at each other, even when the kiss is slow and soft, we always manage to look like we are crazily chewing out each other. maybe its time script writers and film directors began to show as many kissing scenes on our tv’s as possible. that way, we can get used to our way of kissing.

What thinketh you.

You know who itis

GeeKeiy 

pioneer

this is so random and probably totally useless, but can’t help but feel like some people are so lucky to be at an advantage. To have parents who are both world renown doctors and graduated/working at the university of your dreams. To see your dad in a magazine, or see your mom being honored at a function. To have the connections and resources at your fingertips. don’t know why, sometimes this doesn’t even come to mind, but other times it’s so blatant. maybe the kids of these parents who pioneered greatness have it tough too. it’s a completely different world. maybe a different level. And only the kids of these successful parents can be together, get married, and add on to this lifestyle. sounds kinda ridiculous, but makes sense.

meanwhile, with no expectations before me or ahead, i wonder if it’s better to have one set direction or not know where to go. to feel pressure in knowing i must dedicate to my career, or be relieved that the choice is up to me. no shadow. But the shade sure is nice.

the grass is always greener right?

~

Who has not waked to list the busy sounds of summer's morning ?

Foto: Viktor Vauthier Jeg redigerer bilder, leser, hører på musikk, synger litt og spiser. Alt jeg liker best. Der jeg liker meg best. Ja, jeg er fremdeles i sengen, og har vært her siden jeg våknet med et rødhårdet dyr ved min side. Noen er visst glad i meg likevel:) Selvom h odet dunker, kroppen sover og sjela mi forlengs har forlatt kroppen, så er alt i alt  livet fint. Veldig fint.

You Belong ♥

Ultimately, I’m looking for someone I can talk to about anything and everything, who I don’t have to filter myself around, someone I can cry in front of or tell my biggest fears or most embarrassing secrets, someone who I know isn’t judging me, and who, in return, will open up to me. There’s plenty that goes on in my head that I don’t share with even my closest friends; as revealing as I may be about my sex life, I’m actually fairly private about quite a bit. It’s rare to find someone I can truly let go with, but that’s what I want in the future: someone who lets me be me.

Nail Color - Femme Fatale

I haven’t been going to Sakura Nail Spa for a month. Why? Because I been spending too much money over the past yr and realize I really need to stop spending so much and save up. So instead of going to Sakura Spa to get my nails done or get Calgel, I’ve been painting them myself. I went to my collection of nail polish and realize there were colors that I brought and never used. This was one of them.

It is from WetnWild Crystalic Collection, Femme Fatale. A rich, hot and bright pink color. At the moment, it’s my favorite.

What do u guys think of the color?

Sales aren't just for christmas...

EA is holding a sale (at the time of posting) wherein 10 games have been reduced to only a fiver. These are all electronic downloads, so you’ll need a decent internet connection to get them, but the range of games is amazing, including RA3 (which I reviewed here), CNC3, Mass Effect, Mirror’s Edge, Burnout Paradise and a few more, so I crumbled and bought CNC3, Mass Effect and Burnout, all of which I wouldn’t have bought if the sale wasn’t on, and love them all. Reviews may come soon.
So, go out, buy some cheap games, and have some fun.

Photo Hunt . . . Anything Goes

This week’s Photo Hunt theme is anything goes, so I’ve chosen this photograph I took of the gnarly rocks of the ruins of Tantallon Castle  during our summer trip to Scotland.  The castle was built on the rugged cliff tops facing the North Sea  not far from Edinburgh and is truly spectacular even to this day!

It seems appropriate what with Halloween almost here that I share this recent news story with you.  I hadn’t read this at the time of our trip otherwise I probably would not have let my older boys explore the castle on their own!!

Christian Has Become Such A Relative Term

Christianity has become such a relative term, that many people today claim to be Christians, but where is the fruit of such proclamation.

So many say they are believers, but why do their lives reflect their own selfish desires, and such worldly behaviors.

Being a Christian is far more then some sacred word, or some standard beliefs.

It’s not a religion, though it is classified as one, it is not. Christianity is a relationship, it is ongoing, it is not dead, and it does not bring out spiritual death, but brings about spiritual life.

Why then do so many people call themselves Christians? People assume if they go to church, pray, read a verse, or a chapter a night, do all the things Christians are supposed to do, they are Christians, but there is more to it then that.

People act as if Christianity is almost something you can wear, put on or take off.

That is not so, the bible says thou shall not take the name of God in vain.

Everyone assumes this means you are not suppose to curse God’s name which is true, but this is only half of it.

The real truth to not taking His name in vain means in saying and declaring to everyone you’re a Christian, but yet your life does not reflect Christ, or bear the spiritual fruit of truly being Christ-like.

Anyone can declare it, anyone can appear so, even believe it, but there is more to being a Christian then saying so, looking like one, or believing it.

You must live it, experience it each and every day. You must have that 1 on 1 relationship with Christ, that spiritual rebirth and spiritual renewal that comes only from a daily relationship with Him.

The bible says even the demons believe and tremble, does that make them Christians, or make them saved? No, the bible also says that even satan can appear as an angel of light, does that make him a Christian or saved, most certainly not. So you see taking the name of God in vain goes much deeper then a few curse words.

There is a verse that says they shall have an appearance of godliness but denying the real power there of, sounds like taking (wearing) the name of God in vain doesn’t it.

They seem good, they look good, they sound good, they must therefore be real right, nope wrong again.

Don’t be deceived people, God is not mocked, if we say we are Christians, Christ will be evident in our lives, in how we live, talk, walk, think, act, our lives will bear witness to the truth. For example take me, I wasn’t raised in a Christian home, I didn’t know Jesus at an early age, but a few times growing up I was introduced to church.

I believed what they said, but did that make me a Christian, no. I even prayed sometimes, and read the bible, didn’t that mean I was a Christian, no.

To others I may appeared so, sounded so, but I wasn’t. My life hadn’t changed in any drastic way, I may have been going to church, praying, and reading the bible, but I was still living the same way as before.

Sure I believed, but that wasn’t enough, a person has to do more then believe, they must confess, and they must experience that relationship with Christ, and live it out every day of their lives.

I thought then I was a Christian, I thought hey I believe, I go to church, read my bible, pray, I’m a good guy most of the time, surely I must be a Christian, I was wrong.

There are so many people out there deceived, and I was one of them, had I died, I probably would have missed out on eternity with God.

I probably would have heard those words depart from me I never knew you, and I probably would have replied sure you did, I went to church, I prayed, I read my bible, I was good to others. Then He would have said depart I never knew you, and I would ask why.

I am sure He would then say because believing isn’t enough, playing the part isn’t enough; just because you play an actor in a play or movie doesn’t make you that actual person. It’s more then that, you never had a real relationship with me, you didn’t seek me out daily, you didn’t lay down your life, you kept on living it the way you desired, thought best, instead of trusting it to me.

You continued living in your own ways, worldly desires, and behaviors, if you were mine, the world would not be in you, because you would not be of the world.

You’re life would have reflected the truth, my love, my grace, it would have followed my example, but it didn’t therefore depart I don’t know you.

Those are words no one ever wants to hear, but it can and will happen to some.

People we must carefully examine ourselves, if we are truly Christians, followers of Christ, our lives will reflect Him, inside, and out.

We will seek His ways and not our own, seek His will and not our own selfish will, we will seek to please Him and not ourselves.

We will have a real and genuine relationship with Him daily, were we walk and talk with Him, were we learn, and grow. We will experience His love, grace, blessings, and yes even sometimes His chastisement.

We will have times of intimate prayer were we talk to Him and listen, times of refreshing, and renewal.

We will experience the comfort of His Holy Spirit, and the peace which only He can bring.

We will grow in His word; we will stand out and not draw back, blend in, hide, or be ashamed.

We will not be of this world, nor this world of us, our lives won’t reflect the world’s ways, ideas, behaviors, we won’t be easily persuaded, or pressured to believe lies, because we will have the truth and know the truth, because He is the truth.

Our hearts will not condemn us, because therefore is no condemnation to those in Christ, we will know without a doubt we are His and He is ours.

You see being a Christian goes much deeper then some fancy word, or something people think they can just so easily put on and that’s it.

It’s a life changing experience that continues everyday of your life from that first moment to the very moment we see Him in glory.

Please know the truth, for the truth is what shall sit you free.

Seek it, cling to it, study it, never let it go, because the truth will always lead you closer to Jesus, and closer to being more like Christ, a real Christian.

–Dustin, Bcuz Of Jesus

Stolze Schweiz

Vor einiger Zeit habe ich mir ja ‘Der Graf von Monte Christo’ angesehen. Geniales Musical, aber leider gab es keine Original Cast CD zu kaufen sondern nur eine Englische Version des ganzen. Habs mir natürlich trotzdem gekauft.

Dann fand ich heute DIE Neuigkeit im Netz: Eine Original St. Galler Cast CD kommt ende Oktober in den Verkauf! Woooohu! … das war aber ein Deutscher CD-Versand. Nun ja, gehen wir halt schnell weiter, und klappern die Schweizer Verteiler an… und gucken halt noch etwas genauer… nichts.

Und wieder einmal frage ich mich, wieso haben die Deutschen selbst dann die besseren Musical CDs im Angebot, wenn die Uraufführungen in der Schweiz waren? Willkommen Logik, lange nicht mehr gesehen!

NYC Jihad Suspect Contacted by Al Qaeda's Afghan Head (video)

NEW YORK — The airport shuttle driver accused of plotting a bombing in New York had contacts with Al Qaeda that went nearly all the way to the top, to an Usama bin Laden confidant believed to be the terrorist group’s leader in Afghanistan, U.S. intelligence officials told The Associated Press.

Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, an Egyptian reputed to be one of the founders of the terrorist network, used a middleman to contact Afghan immigrant Najibullah Zazi as the 24-year-old man hatched a plot to use homemade backpack bombs, perhaps on the city’s mass transit system, the two intelligence officials said.

Intelligence officials declined to discuss the nature of the contact or whether al-Yazid contacted Zazi to offer simple encouragement or help with the bombing plot prosecutors say Zazi was pursuing.

Al-Yazid’s contact with Zazi indicates that Al Qaeda leadership took an intense interest in what U.S. officials have called one of the most serious terrorism threats crafted on U.S. soil since the 9/11 attacks.

“Zazi working with the Al Qaeda core is exceptionally alarming,” said Daniel Bynam of the Brookings Institution’s Saban Center. “The Al Qaeda core is capable of far more effective terrorist attacks than jihadist terrorists acting on their own, and coordination with the core also enables bin Laden to choose the timing to maximize the benefit to his organization.”

Al-Yazid, 53, also known as Abu Saeed al-Masri and Sheikh Said, is a well-known Al Qaeda figure who initially disagreed with bin Laden’s 9/11 plot, according to the 9/11 Commission Report. Al-Yazid was known at the time of the attack as head of Al Qaeda’s finance committee.

He proclaimed in a June interview with Al-Jazeera television that Al Qaeda would use nuclear weapons in its fight against the United States. [CS: see video below the fold]

A member of Eygpt’s radical Islamist movement, al-Yazid took part in the 1981 assassination of President Anwar Sadat, according to “In the Graveyard of Empires,” a book by counterterrorism expert Seth G. Jones. He spent three years in prison, where he joined Ayman al-Zawahiri’s Egyptian Islamic Jihad, Jones wrote. al-Zawahiri is considered Al Qaeda’s No. 2 leader, behind Usama bin Laden.

Al-Yazid left Eygpt for Afghanistan in 1988 and later moved to Sudan in 1991 with bin Laden, serving as his accountant. Al-Yazid returned to Afghanistan in 1996 and became a confidant of bin Laden and a member of its Shura Council, according to Jones.

In 2007, al-Yazid took over Al Qaeda operations in Afghanistan.

He was reported killed last year in clashes with Pakistani forces near the Afghan border in August 2008 but re-emerged to the surprise of counterterrorism officials.

Terrorism experts say al-Yazid’s contact with Zazi in the foiled New York City bombing plot underscores the seriousness of the threat.

“I think that it would suggest the Zazi was taken seriously by Al Qaeda, and that they wanted him to feel encouraged and supported,” said Charles S. Faddis, who headed the weapons of mass destruction unit at the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center until he retired in May 2008.

“It may also have meant that they were attempting to determine to what extent he represented an opportunity to do something inside the United States,” Faddis said, who also ran operations against Al Qaeda. “For instance, they may have been trying to figure out if they were looking only at an individual or at someone who represented a larger group of jihadists.”

via FOXNews.com.

Watch parts of the interview with al-Yazid who among other things says if the Americans leave Muslim lands, give back prisoners, drop support of Israel, etc. – then al Qaeda might offer the U.S. a 10-year truce. Then they will invite the U.S. to become Muslim or pay the jizya tax. If the U.S. refuses then the jihad continues. Peace Muslim-style.

al-Yazid also says al-Qaeda supports the mujahideen of Hamas and they are of the same ideology. Read the full transcript from NEFA here.

It flashed on him that, the situation must indeed be desperate .. ;

I love the way I feel lately (: It feels as if I havn’t had a brutaly horrible day in a while..Actually, I’ve been having good days ever since I broke up w/ S .. Wether it’s a coincidence or not, I don’t know. But, I’m so damn proud to be having good days!

I’m so damn proud of getting up in the morning, of going to university, going to work, having a social life, doing my homework, being as close to mentaly stable as I can be!

I got a call today from my specialist about Psych-ed. Basicly, it’s Anorexia group therapy. I’ve been on the list for a few months now&the call came today. I start on the 26th, and I believe the program is 6weeks long. I’m not necessarily exited for this. If anything, I’m scared. I’m scared of being the “fat” anorexic of the bunch.. you now what I mean? Ugh, maybe you don’t, but I know what I mean lol. Speaking of Ana, last time I weighed myself was about 2weeks ago.. I’ve been ranting about being 124lbs ever since then.. Well, I happen to randomly weigh myself yesterday&I’m at 119.4lbs (still at 5″7 duh) .. So, oh, I don’ t know what to think about it..

It’s in the back of my head ofcourse. The ways I could loose weight.. the ways I could get away with it.. the games.. the tricks.. the lies. the illusions.. I’m trying to ignore it. Doing my best here people..

Tomorrow, I’m going on another date w/ L (: We honestly get along so great.. It’s such a change tho.. But, we get on great. Tomorrow, we’re going to Value Village (cool kids here) to buy our formal wear for the party Saturday (I’ll explina this in a bit), then she’s taking me out to Subway&after that I’m taking her out to see that new documentary that’ sin theaters right now that everyone says is just great (I forget the name obviously, help people). Should be a great time

So, the party. My auntie’s having a house party on Saturday, &the theme is “feel good about yourself” (lol, typical of her, but adorable :p ) Anyways, it’s dress to the nines sorta thing. It’ll be fun. She was okay w/ me inviting a few of my friends, so A&T&L&A are coming, it’ll be a great time, I’m sure (:

Anywaysboys&girls, it’s close to 1am &I got 4hrs of sleep last night&was at school&work all day&have to be up at 5am tomo morning.. therefor, Goodnights and keep on smiling

PS: I’ve realized that I havn’t given a visual update on myself in a while.. There for, instead of postin gsome random pictures, I’ll be selfish&post one or two of me hah,

Love, Amandah.

This! Is! THE PROMISED LAND!

Any article that mentions Moses, Moby Dick, and 300 is well worth a look.  The skinny being:

Twentieth Century Fox will develop a retelling of the story of Moses, from his near death as an infant to his adoption into the Egyptian royal family, his defiance of the Pharaoh and deliverance of the Hebrews from enslavement…in a post-apocalyptic wasteland

Ok, I added that post-apocalyptic bit.  Though the truth isn’t any more ridiculous.

The article also mentions that the same scripwriters attached to this Moses project also worked on a  Moby Dick that “was pitched as a “300″-like reimagining of the Melville story as a visually stunning action piece, and the story of Moses is conceived similarly.”

I didn’t add anything to that quote by the way.  Sometimes Hollywood makes me question my sanity….and not in the good way.

Original article here.

Some People..

George Carlin

“Well I know, some people don’t like you to to talk about those things. I know that

Some people don’t like you to mention certain things.

Some people don’t want you to say this, some people don’t want you to say that.

Some people think if you mention some things they might happen

……..Some people are really fucking stupid!”

-George Carlin,(May 12 1937-June 22 2008) Greatest comedian of all time.

I’m sure hes down there, yelling at us.

What Was ABC Thinking?

Being from Sugar Land, Texas, I was utterly baffled last month when I saw that former Republican Majority Leader Tom DeLay was going to be one of the contestants on ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars”. His office was literally right down the road from my neighborhood, and it was a great stain on our city when it was found out that he was being investigated for money laundering in 2005. It was assumed then that any chance he had of a political, much less a public, life was pretty much out of the question.

It is anyone’s guess why ABC chose him to be one of the sixteen contestants on their hit television series. Every other contestant this season is either an accomplished athlete, a decently respected actor or actress, or a popular musician. If one were to play the Sesame Street game “One of These is not Like the Other,” they would point out DeLay in a heartbeat. They definitely did not choose him for his esteemed political career, or the fact that he was one of the main people responsible for Texas’ redistricting fiasco several years ago. It has to have been his smile, the guy has got a great set of teeth.

Thankfully, injury forced him to leave the show, but not before he left us with this number that will forever go down in history as one of the weirdest on “Dancing with the Stars.” The way he shakes it is enough to make anyone embarrassed.

Happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving!

`Just a quick note to wish a Happy Canadian Thanksgiving to friends and family near and far. It’s a beautiful autumn weekend here; the sun is shining and the trees are blazing with colour.  Although we’re a very small crowd in Arnprior this year, there’s a big turkey roasting in the oven, and the house smells divine.

We’re thinking of of the Lafaves, of all the friends and neighbours in Carmel, and of the extended families on both sides.  Love to all from the Arnprior chapter of this motley crew.

Jane and Rich, we’re can’t wait to see you next week, and I’m hoping that Steve Drury is going to give me a tutorial on the finer points of table dancing.

xo

Lisa

:)

Today is a HAPPY day!!!!!!!!

I’m into the thumbs up sign! (Y)

Why isn’t there such an icon in my phone!

Skipped music lessons today, have to attend it for the next two weeks.

In preparation for my theory exam on 31st Oct!

I was on the  phone for the whole afternoon discussing chemistry questions.

At least I understand a number of it now!

I CAN’T WAIT TO INDULGE ON TUNA SANDWICHES AFTER MY EXAM. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOO!

Random web surfing during class leads to awesome figures

I got bored in my operating systems class today. So, in order to curb my boredom, I found myself window shopping for new figures. I thought I’d share some of the figures that caught my eye:

1) Kamen Rider Stronger Charge Up and Tackle

I had to leave my seat for a sec to get my class hard drive to do my lab, and I absentmindedly left this open on my desktop. My reward was a very puzzled “What’s this…? Is this… Power Rangers?” My instructor was indeed weirded out by this a bit. I proudly proclaimed, “Not Power Rangers. That is Kamen Rider Stronger and his sidekick Tackle,” to which my instructor (upon learning that I collect figures) would go on to share that he is a big fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender, to his wife’s ridicule. For the record, this instructor was cool even before this revelation, but he certainly gets brownie points.

And no, Tackle is NOT a Rider. Sorry, Kyoji… XD

2) MMS DX TDK Batman SONAR Mode

This amazingly realistic sculpt of the Caped Crusader as portrayed by Christian Fail in The Dark Knight just got even more realistic. How is that possible without cloning Mr. Temper Tantrum and selling the clones dressed in full Batarmor? The Parallel Eyeball Rolling System (PERS), that’s how. This new posing mechanic is pure genius and will definitely set Hot Toys products apart from everything else on the market. What is the PERS? It allows you to pose the figure’s eyeballs. You don’t believe me? Then prepare to be epiclly creeped the f* out:

Now, couple that with the fact that this Batman also includes a second head and extra chins for different facial expressions (the classic “I’m Batman and I’m pissed” and a generic all-round Batman scowl to go with the SONAR Mode white-eyed head) and you get a rather definitive, must own Batman collectible. Period.

I want.

Urban decay and abandonment

I’ve always enjoyed photography that captures the theme of urban decay and abandonment. Something to do with the massive concrete structures, once built with such ambition and promise, now lying unkempt and uninhabited.

24 Tales of Ghost Towns and Abandoned Cities

Various Trips to Titan Silos in California and Colorado

Five modern abandoned cities

To some extent even the photos from urban exploration adventures expose some of the same unseen facets of modern cities. Although some of those expeditions are a bit extreme they do serve as a reminder that there is a huge amount of infrastructure, but active and abandoned, required to support a city and industry.

British Airways - US - Bombay $40 ticket error

So last Saturday at 8 pm a buddy of mine gave me a call, and told me that all BA tickets to India are available for $40 + tax = ~$500. My immediate reaction was “WHAAAT! No way!!”. After a quick search of kayak.com, this is what I saw. It was like striking a pot of gold.

Following this, I got a barrage of phone calls telling me to stop thinking and just book. Apparently news had spread amongst the entire Indian student community across all the universities in the US. Last I heard, the news was wildfire in USC, SDSU, GTech, IUB, SUNY-Buffalo, Lamar University, BU.

Take a moment and try to imagine this. Every university boasts a 100+ community of Indian students. I am sure that no student will think twice to book these tickets. No company can sustain such a loss at such ridiculous prices.

So, even when I was booking my tickets, I was sure that a couple of days later I will get a ‘cancellation’ email from BA or Orbitz. So I wasn’t too elated or jumping around and making plans in India. After selecting the prices, I was redirected to Orbitz.com, where I could ‘buy’ the tickets at the quoted price. However, every time one buys a ticket from these secondary sites, the price awaits confirmation from the parent airline.

But I went ahead and booked. $486. LAX – BOM. BA – Emirates. Haha. It was one of the most “WTF! This is ridiculous!” moments.

By night after a bit of researching I was pretty sure that my tickets would not go through. Because BA.com had updated their prices by 7PM ET and orbitz was unable to do so. So, in effect the airline would reject the prices and the entire episode will be over.

Surely enough, I got a cancellation email the very next day. I laughed

What astonishes me, is that people are mooping over their cancellation till date. One week later. A few of them are considering taking BA.com to court. How does that make sense? If BA.com charged you 15,000 for a 1500 ticket, would you be pleased about it? Wouldnt you do everything in your power to fix the error? maybe call up customer service and cuss at them for an hour, till you got you refund back, and also a compensation for ‘mental harrassment?’

People should seriously learn to let go. I am sure, when everyone was booking, everyone was expecting a cancellation. Here is where ethics come into play.

To read more about the fiasco, and BA.com’s reply, click here

What one should read is the comments page. And how cheap can people get over the whole issue. Bunch of them have gotten together and are filing a lawsuit. Yeesh!

To all those who disagree with what I said, Happy crying!

First Impressions: Kobato and The Book of Bantorra

I had a slight delay in watching these, and only got around to watching them today.

First up, the new CLAMP series.

Kobato

This turned out both similar and completely apart from what I originally expected, actually. In actual fact, the first episode has her passing tests to obtain the bottle to store the scarred hearts for the beginning of her quest. And yes, Kobato herself is ridiculously (almost sickeningly) innocent, matching her character design. She crosses into the naive, in fact. The key here, however, is that Ioryogi states that ‘this is the human world’ at the start, implying that she herself is not human, despite her looks. The immediate thought is something fairy like since she doesn’t immediately strike one as being imposing enough to be angelic. Ghost is also a possibility, I’d imagine.

Anyhow, her misadventures in this episode include intrepreting that parks are for tramps (not playing), opening a bag of trash for the crows to swarm her, not realising that she’s being hit on by jocks and accepting their offer to go with them (fortunately saved by Ioryogi’s flamethrower and intervention of her future crush), throwing a ball with a curved trajectory that somehow spins 270 degrees and destroys a noodle stand, making a cursed natto with chocolate, milk and other travesties (but somehow, it works, through some miraculous luck), then finally showing off her only good trait: her beautiful singing voice, which brings an audience to her, starts up musical accompaniment, and sends a crying baby to sleep.

Well, despite being a klutz, a twit and disturbingly cute, I’d imagine she’s the kind of character everyone either loves (those who love cute things) or hates (those who bleed from the ears at cute things). I think my earlier assumption of Tohru Honda mk. II isn’t far off the mark, in fact. Heck, this is going to be a show about helping people and suchlike, so yeah, its closer and closer.

Anyway, caps:
To me, the real star of the show is Ioryogi, though. I mean, who doesn’t want a cynical bastard blue dog plush that has the ability to shoot flames from its mouth?

Gosh, its another girl who used Intelligence as her dumpstat.

Chocolate and fermented soybean cheese? Sure, why not?

GAAAHHHH! Its SOOO Moe, I’m gonna die.

And so, the real mission begins.

Book of Bantorra

This took a rather bizarre and unexpected turn from what I previously thought. The main guy is indeed assigned to kill the worlds most powerful librarian, as initially thought. However, what was unexpected is that he himself is the weapon. He is also possessed by the spirit of an ancient Witch (who claims to love him) after touching a fragment from her book. See, a big part of the Evil Organisation TM’ s thing in this series seems to be the creation of human bombs, which they lovingly refer to as Meat. Standing against them is an organisation of armed librarians, whom are strong and powerful protectors of humanity. These librarians are respected because, in this setting, a person turns into a (stone?) book when they die, and are shelved in Bantorra.

Nevertheless, despite my initial enthusiasm for this series, I’m actually a little wary about it at the moment, since the first episode somehow felt disjointed to me, as if they were trying to cover too much ground at once, and I’m a little confused about what the hell is actually going on, something which doesn’t enamour me to shows. Nevertheless, its still got some time to clear up its act, but if I’m still confused down or shouting ‘wtf?’ too often (a bit like Asura Cryin) by like episode 3, then I’ll probably drop it.

Some caps:
I thought this set the tone for the importance of the books quite nicely, though, if Mr. Vanity here is that obsessed.

As I say, the books seem to be made of stone, which is kinda odd, though I guess they’d be eternally lasting, unlike paper books.

British library special forces, anyone? (since St. Georges cross is in the background!)

He’s actually standing on his floating chakrams here, by the way.

Anyway, more soon. See ya then.

Beautiful Light

Usually the pictures on this blog are taken with a Canon 5D with lenses that are capable of razor-thin depth of field. The sharpness of the shots and the great transmission of color and the appealing use of contrast through editing makes for what people call “nice pictures.”

But today’s picture is a shot taken with a 2MP Camera on my LG Voyager with no editing at all. Light is everything.

I just really like this picture because of the beautiful natural afternoon light. It was truly awesome walking back through campus and seeing this light peering through, almost like it was trying to get my attention without being too blatant. It’s hard to explain. It was just right.

I still think I have my pictures...

I haven’t been this sad since I dropped the external terabyte harddrive at the airport.

Yesterday, someone came into our office and stole 3 macbooks, 3 iphones, 2 wallets and a backback filled with a camera, kindle and mp3 player. My 32gb iphone and macbook is in that list.

The iphone, eh, whatevers. I can email my friends to get their contact information and can purchase a new phone. What hurts the most is that most of the pictures I’ve taken during my trips and events in 2009 are gone. Seafare in Seattle, Vancouver, B.C, Palm Springs, Eve & Isaiah’s wedding, all my food porn – gone. I can’t relive those moments. And with my shitty memory, I have nothing to look back on to remember those days. I’d pay a lot of money to get those photos back, but what are the odds of me being able to get my macbook back with all the original data still there?

It makes me wonder what causes people to steal from others. Earn a living for yourself you piece of shit. Perhaps I shouldn’t only blame the specific person for his actions, but for his parents as well for bringing such a lowlife into the world and also not raising the child to be someone worthy. Why have a kid if you can’t put the effort into raising him well.

I still keep thinking my pictures are on my new laptop under madeleine >> maDdz >> piCtures.  I should’ve learned my lesson the first time around when I dropped the terabyte at SFO, but I didn’t get hit hard enough and didn’t back up all my memories on smugmug. I pay a yearly service for it and I’m barely utilizing it. Stupid, stupid me. I can’t control how many rotten people are in the world, but I can do better when it comes to storing my photos and important documents.

Long Week Ahead

As usual school was great. It felt whole lot better for me this semester as i have 11 friends from the previous semester in the same class as me now! It was nice to see them again though. I knew i would be seeing them after, somehow. But that doesn’t mean i’m not thinking of you, cause you know deep in my heart, i will always love you i can see someone grinning like hantu already. hahaha

first day already late, but it’s whole lot better compared to last year. i skipped the first 3 days of school last sem know!

The E Bus

La semana pasada no estubo tan interesante, hubo algunos detalles pero pues algunos de ellos ta saben que no son mencionables haha recuerden, este blog es Parent Guided… lo cual significa, cuidado, tus papas lo van a leer! hahaha no se crean jefes en fin, la semana no esutbo muy intensa, estubo estudiando por 4 dias para mi examen de Advertising en el que creo que me sacare una B lo cual no esta mal peor pues ya nopodre tener un semestre de puras As hahaha.

En fin, el fin pasado.. CRAZY SHIT! decidimos ir a la 6a por el cumpleanios de Diego el espaniol… al cual no encontramos en toda la 6a.. resulta que quiensabe en donde se festejo jajaja en fin me fui con lily la de veracruz a la sexta y por primera vez tome el E Bus…. de ida tranki, me fui platikando con unas chavas del paso que se ivan burlando de mi porke me estaba riendo de su conversacion con otros weyes…. pero bueno… el cmaion estaba semi vacio… llegue a la sexte encontre a lily y nada no encontramos a diego pero me tope con mi amiga aimee a la k no conocia y que finalmente conoci jajaja peor bueno la neta la noche estubo 0 interesante, solo tenia 2 dolares y fue medio denigrante hahaha

Lo divertido, bueno.. no d hecho fue mega kagante.. fue le regreso a mi depa… nuevamente tome el E Bus puesto que era la unica forma de regresar… y pues eran las 2:30 de la maniana cuando lo tomamos… pinche cosa asfixiante, eramos como 70 weyes en ese cmaion, la mitad de ellos mega borrachos i gritando mamada y media…. horrible… espero no tener que vivir esa experiencia de nuevo… aunque estoy segur que tendre que vivrla otra vez en algun momento…

La otra Lily me hizo una sesion de fotos… me siento todo un modelazo haha estan bien chidas, nomas de lo ke ella haaprendido en su clase yo he aprendido un chigno de fotografia, esta bien cool ese pedo, luego subo esas fotillos al fb

NO FUI AL ACL!!! WAAA yo queria ir y no habia dinero.. algun dia ire a un austin city limits.. la ciudad estaba ATESTADA de gente, el trafico era horrible por todos lados pero dicen que se puso buenisimo.. estube estudiando asi k ni chance de ir a ziler park a sentarme afuera a escuchar la musica

aaa si.. ya pague mi renta! hahahaha

luego vuelvo a updatear

saludos gente, paz, nos vemos el viernes LITERAL!

AFFectationsAFFectationsAFFectationsASSignmentsASSignmentsASSignments (:

Ma Journée Typique

Pour commencer ma fastidieuse journée, je me réveille à 7h 00, mais je me couche dans mon lit pendant cinq minutes avant que je me lève. Puis je me brosse les dents, je me lave le visage et je me brosse les cheveux. Je descends et je mange mon petit déjeuner délicieuse, pendant quinze minutes. Je m’habille, je prends mon sac à dos, puis j’attends pour ma sœur aînée, Kim. À 14h 30 je prends le bus scolaire à domicile parce que je vis assez loin de Notre Dame. Quand je rentre, je mange un petit repas, puis je commence à faire mes devoirs. À 18h 00 je mange un repas avec ma famille, puis je vais sur l’ordinateur pendant une heure. Je me lave à 21h 00. À 22h 00, je lis pendant une demie heure. Je me couche à 22h 30, mais je m’endors à 23h 00. C’est la fin de ma journée idéale typique.

L’histoire d’Anne Nguyen

Salut! Mon nom est indiqué au-dessus, je viens récemment d’avoir 14 ans, mais j’ai tendance à pense comme un de 30 ans. J’aime les paysages urbains en milieu urbain, parce que j’avais l’habitude de vivre à Toronto avant que mes parents fait leurs bagages dans une banlieue ennuyant. J’adore la ville beaucoup – c’est indescriptible comment on peut être sur l’avenue Spadina et se sentent à domicile. Espérons que par le temps je suis aller à l’université, je serai capable d’être uni avec le vie avait auparavant. J’adore aussi voyager vers d’autres lieux et connaît ce que les autres cultures ont à offrir. Mis à part les instructions, je déteste quand les gens me disent quoi faire. Vraiment, ce n’est pas la peine parce que je deviens vraiment en colère et ont tendance à les gronder pour me dire quoi faire ou croire, pour rester dans mes bonnes grâces et ne commande moi autour.

Anyways… (:

It was my birthday on the 25th of September. I celbrated it at Mandarin :O Yomyomyom. Wanna see an embarrassing photo of me? Okay. CLICKME(: I know. You’re probably like, “It’s not even embarrassing.” I know it isn’t. What’s embarrassing in that photo is that little girl stuffing her face in the background. Hahaha. Here’s another photo showing what my friend, sister and I did. Yum. Leizl’s a crazy cat lady (:

How was your week?
Good. Mine too. GUESS WHAT? Another dress down day this coming tuesday (Haha, cumming) We just had one like 10 days ago.  I was watching hercules with my english class on friday (: Meg is the MASTEROFSEDUCTION. She’s funny.. HEY! It’s sunny! I’ve been waiting for a sunny day! So that I could take some pictures at the park for my photoshop cloning skills (: But I’m so lazy… I wonder when another sunny day will come. I hope by then, I won’t be so lazy and bleh.

Oh well. I’m going to eat some chicken now.
+ Kim got braces! I would show you a picture of how funny she looks, but I don’t have one and if I did and uploaded it, she would brutally murder me. BYE!

- Anne Nguyen (:

La forza della Banda!

QuattroIdeeAllOrizzonte è fiera di presentarvi una nuova iniziativa: Si tratta del nostro gruppo musicale! D’ora in poi troverete sul nostro blog le canzoni da noi eseguite e potrete scaricarle a soli 2.99€ l’una. Il genere è pop rock e fidatevi che merita. Domani sarà disponibile un piccolo sample di 30secondi gratuito per le prime due ora, poi costerà 0.50 centesime per le successive tre ore e poi 3.45€ per il resto della giornata. Lasciate però che prima di tutto vi presenti la nostra banda:

Alla chitarra, Niccolò Bossini:

Alla batteria, Micheal Urbano:

Al basso, si fa per dire, Keaveah Rastegar:

Alle tastiere, Josè Fiorilli:

Alla chitarra… Uhm.. Non ricordo… Capitan Fede Poggipollini:

Li conoscete no?!

-Lo-

Who needs a man to be happy?

When you have wonderful friends, an amazing family, a fantastic career ahead and lots to look forward too.

Being happy does not mean that everything is absolutely perfect, it just means you that you have been able to look beyond the imperfections of life and smile through the odds.

My friend, there is still the rain, the rainbows, the stars, poetry, chocolates, laughter, tears of joy, dreams, love and happiness.

idea for ICC

I am a libertarian, so i believe in personal responsibility for your actions.  i don’t believe the government, or anyone in “authority” should step in and make regulations to “protect us from ourselves.”   if iwant to drive 125 mph down the highway not wearing a seatbelt, i should be allowed to.  

that said, i think ICC should realize some of us do indeed have problems, and they should take some responsibility.

there needs to be some kind of limit on how many blitz games you can play in one 24 hour period. 

ICC is a chess enabler, and if they are gonna be peddling the heroin/crack/meth that is blitz chess, they should at least help mitigate some of the damages. 

i have a problem, i admit it.  i lost a whole day playing blitz.  i started at 9 in the morning, next thing i know, it was 4 fucking pm in the afternoon, i had a headache, i was hungry, i was still unwashed in my pajamas.  i played over 100 blitz games in 7  hours.  god help me.  i was like a heroin addict, neglecting basic human functions like eating and personal hygene for the fleeting thrill of a mate.  it’s just like heroin, only i don’t think i can get aids or hepatitus from a shared computer. 

so if ICC had some kind of “20 blitz game in a 24 hour limit,”  i think this would be helpful.  i can’t stop myself, perhaps i need someone to stop me for me.  and since blitz is bad for your chess, they would be doing the entire chess world a service, saving kids and adults from ruining thier chess and blitzing thier life away.

Seeker

Don't they look stunning?

It is raining outside. Looks all grey and I am on my bed warmly tucked inside at three in the afternoon. I have two assignments to work on but honestly I don’t seem to be inclined in that direction. I have however been downloading stuff from the internet to help me work on them. Really hope I get the psyche to do them. I really do.

So anyway, as you might have already guessed, I am an avid fan of Legend of the seeker. Kahlan Amnell, Richard Cypher and Zedd the wizard, yep the book is fascinating . Though I can’t remember the cast’s names…That’s just me, one thing that’s characteristic for me is googling the book that it’s based on. ‘Sword of truth’ by Terry Goodkind.  Reading the first one, Wizard’s first rule,found it on Wattpad, yeah for those bookaholics…I say, anyone know where I can download the books for free? Been looking for quite a long time.

Anyway having one of those solitary Saturday afternoons. I’ve been feeling sort of hemmed in of late, but that’s just me when I start to tire of people. That’s when my brain decided it needs ‘me time’. My two assignments just keep nagging at the back of my mind. One is occupational health- we are meant to write a report on health risks faced by workers at a certain factory we visited. The other is a Forensic Medicine and Toxicology report on death by hanging and drowning. I’ll get to it eventually inshallah…Eventually!

Anyway, I’m listening to Nick Lachey’s album ‘What’s left of me’. yeah, I love this album. My favourite songs are, ‘What’s left of me’, ‘I can’t hate you anymore’, ‘Run to me(playing right now!OOOOOh!)’, ‘You are not alone’ and ‘Did I ever tell you.

LIVE IN JOY, LIVE HAPPY, LIVE IN THIS SWEET SWEET PLACE

Four Seasons fill the measure of the year;

There are four seasons in the mind of man:

He has his lusty Spring, when fancy clear

Takes in all beauty with an easy span:

He has his Summer, when luxuriously

Spring’s honied cud of youthful thought he loves

To ruminate, and by such dreaming high

Is nearest unto heaven: quiet coves

His soul has in its Autumn, when his wings

He furleth close; contented so to look

On mists in idleness–to let fair things

Pass by unheeded as a threshold brook.

He has his Winter too of pale misfeature,

Or else he would forego his mortal nature.

“By John Keats”

——————– Life is fleeting but always so sweet, so so sweet,
Sometimes in haste we forget its taste, we run focused on nothing real.
Sometimes in working we forget its meaning, the results just one goal and then another none satisfying.
In drinking in excess, smoking the drug, the abuse of this body– we forget it is all there is. Yes, this body, none to swap.
This life, this body ours till death, no one  else has a place, nothing can interlope or alter the course.
Not for any other to trifle, Not for anyone to pluck
For this finite time, This course into which we have been thrust, Let us do our part, Remain happy, Stay Happy Whatever course, whatever price Never forgetting So soon it all ends, the joy you could have snatched, the sweetness, the breeze, the laughter, the fun Oh how sweet.
Waste of time silly for at some point it is straight into the ground or just plain ashes. Focus on joy, getting it and keeping your own. Keeping it all.
Staying Happy… Oh, what a sweet sweet life Sweet Sweet life of mine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I choose :D

I was going to post a blog asking everyone to help me to figure out whether or not wearing leopard print or zebra print is cool.  I personally love the animal print BUT to me, it is BEST to distribute it out evenly : P  Like, only one animal print piece per outfit.  So, an example is wearing a leopard t-shirt with jeans.  NOT LEOPARD T-SHIRT WITH LEOPARD JEANS!!!! Only one piece.  The same goes with camouflage.  Anyway, I was going to post a blog but then I realized… I like it and I shouldn’t let someone else tell me whether or not it’s cool : P AND if you’re offended by this blog… PLEASE DON’T BE! Like, I am sure you can make the double animal print outfit work but I personally believe it is too busy for my taste.  If you hate animal print, that’s cool!  You have the right to your own opinion : ]

BUT THE POINT IS…. don’t let me or anyone else tell you what to like.  BUT I really recommend that whole “1 animal print per outfit.”  SERIOUSLY!

I Want My MTV Back

bye bye bye

There have been millions of articles written about how MTV and VH1 have given up on playing music videos, which isn’t entirely true. If you wake up at the crack of dawn like I did this morning to go to the gym, they show a good chunk of videos for three hours and not all of them are new.  Before I had to leave, they even played Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)!! I was so excited I smiled as I ran up that 8.0 incline (and then promptly suffered a mild case of asthma).

everybody (backstreet’s back)

My enthusiasm for this video got me thinking though–not for the memories of the 90s, but rather for the memories of these videos.  I love everything about the videos cranked out by ‘NSYNC, Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears back in the day.  They were just so ridiculous and fun!  There was a formula to it.  There was a story, usually love was involved in some way with someone, and then they’d dance it out.

And boy, was there dancing.  I would watch these videos just for the choreographed parts and I would get chills each time.  As someone with little to no rhythm, it always boggles my mind how you can get 20 plus people to perform the same complicated moves at the same time to the same beat.  I loved it, and clearly, people still love it.  Some of these videos have over 10 million views on youtube and they aired on TV over 10 years ago.  They had to have done something right.

So, music producers/directors.  Please bring back music videos with choreographed dance numbers.  No, not gyrating hussies on shiny cars–those don’t count.  I want something like Britney in “Drive Me Crazy” or ‘NSYNC in “Bye Bye Bye”.

you drive me crazy

All for the best...

So, this isn’t a video I made, but I am really enjoying it. Both the song and the video. Beautiful stuff.

As with most of Thom’s stuff, it inspires a lot of my own thoughts. I guess that’s how you know he is a really good artist in that their work transcends the meaning they were trying to get across initially, and you take away something personal from it.

I posted this on Facebook after listening to this song a good 5-10 times-
___________________________________________________________________

All for the best…

The parallels between this semester and my senior year of high school are undeniably huge. Once more, I’ll be applying for schools. Again, I’ll be preparing to leave people behind. Once more, life will be uncertain, since I won’t know where I’m going until like spring of next year.

I’ve narrowed the choices down to four; I’ll be applying to four schools: UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UCSB, and SF State. Of these, the only one I really want to go to is UC Berkeley. Unfortunately, this is where more uncertainty comes in. You see, I haven’t been the best student in my 5 semesters at City College. My GPA is a lowly 3.157. For transfers, that’s pretty low. Ugh…

I am applying to Davis because, well, it feels like maybe we’re mean to be. I mean, look, it’s really the only place I know. Also, I know I could easily get in there from Sac City. It will also save me a lot of money, since I would most definitely live at home. I don’t care what some people may think. It’s all for the best. Nothing better than a home-cooked meal. Not paying for rent is pretty cool too. Yet, for some reason, I can’t get myself to really want to go there. I know it’s a good school. It’s just… there seems to be something holding me back from loving it.

UCSB is another place I’ll be applying to because I just want to see what happens. I don’t want to go to UC Santa Cruz, and UC San Diego is too far away, so this is my next most likely choice. As you see, I want to be close to the ocean. I guess it’s kind of a back-up school. It’s also kind of a way to give me an option if I don’t want to go to UCD. If I don’t get into Berkeley (which is a huge possibility) but the other schools, this will hopefully make things a bit more interesting, in that I’ll have to choose whether or not I want to stay home, move to the bay, or move south. I guess I just really want some drama.

SF State is up here too because it’s the ultimate back up school. I know I will get in here, if all else fails. Senior year, I got in there 2 weeks or so after I applied. It’s also a good school, and I’ve always wanted to live in the bay area. But you probably wont see me buying a SF State hoodie for awhile, or until it gets really cold.

All of this pondering makes me ponder, some more, whether I am putting too much weight on all of this selection of the right campus. Am I choosing these schools for the right reason? Will I choose the school I go to for the right reason? You see, I sure as hell didn’t want to go to Sac City at first. Of course, I was forced to go there because there wasn’t really another choice. Yet, I came around, and now I have fallen in love with this place. Seriously. It’s not just because the first person I met on the first day of school is the girl who eventually became my first girlfriend, no. It’s because of all of the people I met throughout the travels of my classes, mass transit commute, and just through other people. I didn’t think I would meet as many people as I did, especially going to a community college. Not to mention, I didn’t think I would meet as many people who would affect my life in the way they did.

Which brings me back to another one of my uncertainties. I don’t know if I am ready to leave just yet. I know it’s barely halfway through my 5th of 6 semesters at City College, and my opinion may change by that 6th semester. Yet, right now, I am so happy where I am at. I don’t care that I’ve stayed one year longer than people are “supposed” to stay at a community college. It’s called a “2 year school” but in reality, it seems like most people stay over the 2 year mark.

Yet, technically, after this semester as long as I pass all my classes, I’ll only have one more class to complete in order to transfer. It’s not even a math or science class. Just some sort of humanities class. For some reason that tells me I might be overstaying my welcome.

But I know it’s pretty much time for me to buck up and move on. It’s time to try new things, see new places, or in the case of going to UCD, finish school as fast as possible in order to move on again. The applications for SF State come out tomorrow, so once more, whether or not I want it to, it will begin. Once more, my life will be a series of blank boxes for me to check or fill out. I just hope it’s all for the best…