June 2005 Archives

I'm so jealous of people who can draw and paint. More jealous than I am of people who are amazing writers, which is weird, since I'm going into the field and am more of a verbal person than a visual person. I think it's because it's the one talent I've always wished I could have. I'd gladly trade whatever little writing talent I have if I could draw.

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Grocery shopping needs to be done. However, I do not feel like leaving the house. (We all know that I'll head out to the store when this 12-pack of Dr. Pepper runs out. Addict, what?)

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Woooooord!

"Still, today the U.S. stands #4 in the world in executions performed, behind China, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia—not sterling human rights company. While at least 108 nations (including Russia) have abolished the death penalty, the U.S. remains the only major Western democracy not to have followed suit."

There's only one word for that, and it's shameful.

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"But now I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as if it had an underlying meaning."
- Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco

That "100 Greatest Americans" thing is such crap. Dr. Phil and Laura Bush made the list, while Andy Warhol and William Faulkner didn't? *scoffs* I mean, I know it was done by popular vote and everything, but that doesn't make it any less sad.

And oh god, Oprah is doing Faulkner this summer.

I feel... dirty.

And she's not doing Absalom, Absalom!, which is his greatest novel ever written. Why would you do As I Lay Dying instead? (Not that that isn't also a great book, but in my opinion, there's not even a question which I'd pick first, and it isn't As I Lay Dying.) *shakes head* Absalom, Absalom! should be required reading for everyone, in my opinion.

Light in August is a great choice, though. That's the one that hooked me on Faulkner.

And let me take a moment now to snicker at commiserate with the large number of people who will attempt The Sound and the Fury and give it up in utter bafflement.

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So the Pride and Prejudice trailer... huh. I think I'm going to enjoy this movie as one might enjoy a Snickers bar as opposed to Olive Garden. It's pretty and I like the story, but the soul just isn't there. I feel sad saying that after seeing the trailer, since I was actually optimistic about this movie, but... eh. It's so ... not English. It's a period drama that seems to be set in France or something. And while Judi Dench is an awesome actress, she's no Catherine de Burgh. Also Matthew MacFadyen appears too much of a Byronic hero to be a credible Darcy. But then again, no one can quite compare to Colin Firth.

If you're in the mood to see a trailer for a spectacular movie that will be coming out in September, here is: the Serenity trailer.

Graduation is finally over. Overall, it was long and boring. The gym was hot and smelled like cabbage. Personally, I think I looked pretty ridiculous. Our school colors are royal blue and white. The guys wear royal blue graduation gowns and the girls wear white. I was pale enough to begin with. Then with that white sheet draped over me - boy did I really look like a ghost! Afterwards we had lunch at the Olive Garden and said our goodbyes to my sister, who was moving to Texas on the very same day.

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I was stationed to buss a baby shower today. A baby shower with an open bar. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Only at the country club, I imagine. I only worked four hours today though, so that was nice. It was great to be able to finally have dinner with my family. I had to miss the graduation party of a friend of mine though.

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I found a very interesting article today. It's rather out-dated, but it should still make your blood boil:
Rods from God
"Space capabilities in today’s world are no longer nice-to-have: they’ve become indispensable at the strategic, operational, as well as the tactical levels of war. … Space capabilities are integrated with and affect every link in the kill chain. … Given the absolute interdependence of air and space power, we cannot risk loss of space superiority."

One of the many blueprints of fascism that comes straight from the Project for a New American Century's "Rebuilding America's Defenses" paper.

What if we spent $4.8 billion to figure out how to better distribute food around the world, or how to reduce emissions from automobiles? Heck, what if we spent 1/100th of that amount on either of these things?

That's crazy talk. We can't have any of that in Bushworld.

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"Conquest is not in our principles. It is inconsistent with our government." - Thomas Jefferson