Where Have You Been?

I've been living life, peeps.

Yeah, I've just been a tad busy...and tired, I won't lie, I had a crazy schedule this past week. Except I have assessed three things:

People need to follow the news more;
Basketball referees for high school basketball camps need to learn that there's a reason they're alone;
I love the Kinect.

Each shall be explained in full. Just because I understand what I'm saying,  it doesn't mean the rest of you do. Aren't I nice?

So, recently I've noticed that the news just keeps getting more and more morbid. You have a wildfire threatening Los Alamos Labratory, so there may be some sort of release of radioactive material. A similar situation is happening with the nuclear plants in Nebraska that are being flooded. Then there's Greece's economic debacle, which if you don't know about it, read up on it. Potentially, that situation could be a harbinger of things to come for the rest of us. Meanwhile, the U.S. Government is in denial about the debt ceiling. Seriously, people, Medicare and Medicaid were developed when the tax rate was higher. We have since dropped the tax rate, but it's like a phone bill. Why do we think we can afford a fancy smartphone with all sorts of features when you can realistically only afford a basic phone? Without a raise in taxes, we can't afford ourselves, spending cuts won't do jack diddly squat shit in the long run.

What are we concerned about? The Casey Anthony Trial. While it's definitely a tragic story, the world has bigger issues.

Please people, do yourself a favor, get caught up on the news. Now on to basketball referees.

Last weekend, there was a basketball camp taking place, and I happened to be working during it. I had absolutely no issues with the kids and their coaches, they were actually nice. But why do basketball officials seem to think they are God's gift? Let me give a few examples. While this basketball camp was going on upstairs, Alumni Weekend was taking place on the lower level of the HUB. The alumni wanted the kids to stay upstairs while they had the downstairs. I took this to be a reasonable deal. So, I set up signs to urge the officials to use the back entrance. While setting these signs up, I had one official try to enter anyway. When I asked him politely to use the back entrance, he asked me why he had to use the back way. I then explained the situation to him. His comment:

"They're just a bunch of old farts anyway, why should I care?"

It took everything in my power to not say "One day, you will be an old fart." But after some convincing, he went in the back way. Now, I had another gentleman who thought it was my job to tell him where his personal locker was. Yeah, we don't have those in the HUB. He didn't respond well to the idea of changing in front of other guys. Actually, when I think about that man, I feel my blood pressure rise. Seriously buddy, you're reffing a team sport. That means most likely you played the sport some point in your life. Most likely, you were shirtless at some point. Come on, just because you're over the hill doesn't mean that you're automatically entitled to a personal locker room. At least the refs were not as bad as the actual host team, who did not do what they promised and where quite unprofessional. But I won't even go there.

On a better note: Microsoft, I love your Kinect.

Yes, I got a Kinect. For all of you who think that I'm some sort of tool, I don't care. I've had it for less than 24 hours, and I'm in love. I was a child that played Dance Dance Revolution when I was younger. So, the Kinect was the toy from my childhood, adapted for the changed world. The best part? While definitely there are a lot of family games, there are enough "adult" games being developed with the Kinect in mind. Not only does it play games, it does video chat and can control the Xbox with audio commands. Take that, Nintendo, it does more than your Wii. So yeah, kids with a Xbox 360, get a Kinect. It's totally worth it. And don't worry, pictures will be coming soon. Muhahaha.

But yeah, that's what I've been up to. Next time, I promise to be more entertaining. Or more sane. Probably the latter.

Adventures in the North Country, Part 2

Last time, on Daily Travels Through Life:

I discussed my arrival back to the home abode. This episode, I go on an adventure to Berlin, NH with an old friend.

We all know what happens. We either go to college or move away from home, and eventually, we all get distant from our old friends, since everyone's doing their own thing. It happens. Still, it's always nice to catch up. For me, meeting up with Alicia was one of the best parts of this short homecoming.

Alicia and I met our freshman year of high school, when I was awkward and when she was in her goth phase. I remember it vividly. I sat in the front of the class, since I didn't know anyone else there. then there's this girl who walks in, and sits right behind me. Don't get me wrong, she was nice enough. But God did she scare the bejesus out of me then. It was during our sophomore and junior years that we got close, as our boyfriends at the time were brothers and we were the only video gaming females around. We had mostly guy friends. Where other girls were having sleepovers and talking about fashion, we were playing Soul Caliber 2 or DDR, and staying up until insane times of night. Needless to say, we were best friends.

Now during my senior year we started getting distant, but that was due to the decision to begin homeschooling (sue me, my high school refused to give me Senior English). However, since I stayed in the area for a few extra years, she and I got close again when we ended up working in the same movie theater. What can I say, we had a knack for always bumping into each other. Eventually, I did go to college, and it led to the point that we're at now.

Alicia and I fooling around at breakfast

We were able to get in contact before I came up for the weekend, and we decided that we would meet for breakfast. So after the initial hugs and greeting, we made our way to The Waterwheel, which if you ever find yourself in Jefferson when it's open, EAT THERE. It is delicious breakfast food to the max, and it's pretty cheap too.

Anyhow, she and I chatted, and just were doing the whole catching up thing. While it's still very obvious that we have developed some distance, we still share many of the same interests that we held before, and we were still able to hold conversations as we used to. However, one can only sit and eat for so long, so we decided to go to Berlin, and check out a new little store that had popped up.

A little note on Berlin, NH: once upon a time, before I was alive, Berlin was one of the busiest places in the state. It even used to beat out North Conway for shopping. After the paper mills closed however, the town really started to suffer. While it still shows signs of socioeconomic distress, it appears to be making a small, but sure rebound. Since one mill is due to reopen, people seem to be more keen on reinvesting in the town, which would be a nice change, I won't lie. Back to the story:

Alicia really wanted to show me a little store that had opened, called SaVoir Flare. When you walk inside, it's reminiscent of a living room, but not a regular living room that belongs to a family. This place has all sorts of funky merchandise inside, from Japanese posters, to purses made out of soda tabs, to cigars, to coffee, to books, jewelry...you name it, the store pretty much has it. If you find yourself in Berlin, it's definitely a great place to go and check out. The staff is incredibly nice, and you won't regret it.

Front of SaVoir Flare

After talking to the owner's mother for a good bit, we decided to head down the street to a place called Middle Earth. Yeah, I know. It exists!

See? Pretty sign made in the Hobbit Style..

 Middle Earth has some other random gifts inside, from ceramics to jewelry...ok, so in essence it's like Savoir Flare, but it is definitely targeted to more traditional audiences. The proprietor there used to be a state representative, and we ended up talking to him for probably a good hour about politics. This was quite interesting, considering what part of the store we were standing in at the time (let's put it this way...It's sectioned off from the rest of the store away from children). He was a wicked nice guy, I hope to run into him again at some point. Also, he had some really cute dogs, which also makes the store an experience. Just needed to put that out there.

I'm bad, I forget their names...But they are adorable!

Eventually, Alicia and I continued on our merry way, and for a while, we just drove and chatted through the back roads of the North Country. It was very evident to see that things had changed massively for both of us. Yet, we are still definitely friends. For that, I'm grateful, since so many of my old friends and I have gotten distant. At the end of the day, we returned to Lancaster, and we parted. Yet I know that we'll definitely stay in touch.

However, that was not the end of the day. The day ended with my mom and I watching "Mega Piranha" and "Moby Dick" of the SciFi Channel...That tells you the quality of those movies right then and there. However, there was quite a funny analysis of that version of Moby Dick, all while drinking moscato. Yep, we're classy.

By the way, if you don't know the story of Moby Dick, read it. Not because it's good. It just makes you look good. You can get it for the Kindle or Nook for free. Hell, you don't even need a Kindle. You can just download it to your computer. Seriously. Just read Moby Dick to impress people. And to read, reading's good for you. C'mon, you can't complain about free stuff. Anyhow...Where were we?

I went back to Plymouth the next day, but not after my mom gave me so much food that I didn't know what to do with it at first. Not just regular food...but food that's still growing. yep, my mom gave me plants. I don't mind. If I play my cards right, I'll be able to eat a lot cheaper by the end of the summer. So, pray that my lettuce, tomatoes, kale and herbs survive.

But those were my adventures in the North Country, which in many ways I wished continued on for longer. Tomorrow, I shall return to posting about current events...such as how the helicopter parents have disappeared. Or how I chopped off my hair. You'll find out. Eventually.

Adventures in the North Country, Part 1

As promised, I will write about my weekend at home, as it is so priceless and quintessentially eccentric, it needs to be written about. So, you're gonna read about my first night at home.

So, Friday began with work during the morning shift in the HUB. And I was acting severely ADD. Seriously, I went from the topic of puppies to cats to chickens to current events so fast, my supervisors commented on it. They're usually very accepting, and they found it funny (at least I hope they did), but when they comment on it...you know it's a bad case of ADD.

Literally fifteen minutes after I got out of work, my Mom was at my apartment and ready to pick me up.
(sidenote: I don't have a license, and I don't have a car just yet. The only reason I want one is to get to the friggin supermarket and to be less reliant on people, otherwise I'd just use a bike or something. Now, if I were in a more populated state, there would be mass transit to rely on. This asset to infrastructure is obviously frowned upon in certain states...but this is a topic for another time.)

I won't lie, I was super happy to see my Mom. I hadn't seen her since May, but I really hadn't had much time to spend with her then. So, the ability to spend time with her was something I had looked forward to. After a quick grabbing of clothes and what not, we headed back to bumfuck NH (sorry for the language folks...but it really is in the boonies..).

The girls enjoying the sun...and wondering what the hell I was doing there

Ok, I knew my animals would miss me, but I swear to God, I didn't expect them to respond to me so happily. At least for the most part. Hell, even the chickens seemed to recognize me. Then again, those animals are far more intelligent than people give them credit for. They're not going to take over the world, but they're gonna be the gremlins of whatever new world order established after the Apocalypse. Yet, these little demons were the first animals to greet me when I returned home...since they needed to be fed and Francois had escaped from the pen (sue me, I gave my female chicken a french guy's name). So I got to re-bond with a few of the animals, such as Snuffy, who is the only suriving chicken from our first batch of chicks, to Eduardo, who seems to think her job in life is to be guardian of all eggs laid. This can be entertaining to look at, since she is by far the smallest bird we have.

Eduardo

Washing fresh eggs

 So, after collecting 45 eggs from the afternoon egg collection, my mom and I finally went inside. We were greeted by my two dogs, Buddy and Mischa. They knew someone was outside, but didn't know who. Once they figured it out, all hell on Earth broke loose, but it's that sort of hell on Earth that is acceptable. Like going to an open bar at a wedding and getting drunk.
(Another sidenote: hate to say it, but there are no pictures of the dogs, as of yet. They weren't cooperating with me this trip home)
While the dogs were happy to see me, so were two of my three cats, Pantaloons and Widget. I'm putting this out there right now, I did not name them. Well, I named Widget, but I named her Niobe, not Widget. That cat probably is bipolar from the amount of names that she has, but I digress.

Pantaloons being Pantaloons

Pantaloons, or Panty for short, is probably one of the most relaxed cats around. Unless you piss her off. But most of the time, she's just relaxing around the dogs, enjoying the activity going on around the house. Widget meanwhile, after initially being pissed at me, was quite lovable after she got over her abandonment issues (she's Siamese, she's going to be a bit neurotic).

While this all seems quite normal, I finally greeted Puffy the one-eyed Chicken and Hudson the Angora Rabbit. They live inside my house in the same room, and are actually rather close. Puffy lives inside with us because when she was smaller, she was denied food by the much larger chickens and was picked on viciously. My Mom took pity on her, and we all nursed this chicken into a large, happy and healthy bird. However, due to the fact that she has spent her time around people, she much prefers to spend her time inside, and in fact prefers the company of people to that of other chickens. Hudson the rabbit is kept inside, due to the fact that he is an angora rabbit, since his fur is worth a good amount of money, and keeping him outside compromises the quality of his hair. For those of you who do not know, angora rabbits are sheared like sheep, since they grow very soft and fluffy hair that spinners and other textile artists love. While Hudson is an angora rabbit purchased for a business use, he is still a part of the family, and actually gets along quite well with Puffy.

Hudson

Puffy. She has no eye on the other side of her head, hence why her head's cocked in an odd angle

 Eventually, my mom and I were able to relax and watch some TV, which for us happened to be CNN. While I may be politically active, my Mom is quite opinionated, and is one of those people who yells at politicians on the TV, perhaps hoping that they may hear her. While I know it doesn't help, I know it's one of my Mom's traits, and I love her for it, even when it gets her into hot water.

Mom's upset with Michelle Bachmann

So, after watching the news for a bit and spending time with the family, I was able to get some sleep. Not on my own bed, mind you. I slept with my dogs. I mean, I don't get to cuddle with them often. Besides, Buddy is an extremely comfortable pillow (yeah...I fell asleep on my dog. Go ahead and judge). But definitely, it was a good day, all in all.

So...that's all I got for tonight everyone. Tune in next time, same bat time, same bat channel!

I Have Returned! Sort of...

Be prepared world, I'm back.

However, so much has happened over the past few days, I'm trying to think of a good place to start. Since so much has happened, the entries for this week will be split up and related to my adventures at home, as well as the remainder of the weekend. Trust me, it would be like reading War and Peace if it was all one entry. No one wants that.

Yeah, That's all I got. I'll see you kids bright and early tomorrow!

News Flash: I'm going home!

Yeah, the title says it all. And sorry for such a small post, but trust me, it will be worth it.

I finally have a time slot in my life where I can go home and see my family and pets, even if it's just for a day and a half. But I'm mostly excited about the pets.

By the way, I love my mother to death, I need to put that out there. (Imagine if I did not put that little disclaimer there. This would probably be the first blog post she would ever read. Seriously though, I love my mom.)

Even more so, I get to sit back and enjoy the craziness that is my house. I may not be able to blog for a day or two, but here's a preview of what's to come:

A cat who spends time with a chicken and a rabbit;
Two dogs that sleep on the couch with shedding hair that sticks to you like a baby koala;
The two other cats who are just special, including the one and only Widget;
My mom and I bonding over horrible SciFi Channel movies (and no, I'm not calling it SyFy. That name change was just moronic.), as well as CNN;
Bonding with the chickens who will be feeding me by laying eggs;
Getting fresh food from the garden ;
Potentially spending time with my friends from high school, might talk about that;

You get the gist.And God knows what else will happen.

And don't you all worry, there will be pictures. How can I talk about insanity without the proof of its existence? Especially the chicken-cat-rabbit relationship, that's just quality craziness.

And you know what? I'm totally looking forward to it.

Be Prepared, America. Things are about to get hairy. No pun intended.

Warning: Entry Written By A Sleep Deprived Individual. Read At Your Own Risk.

Ok, I'm gonna be a little self-indulgent here. This is an entry borne out of pure exhaustion. I'm thinking it has to do with the helicopter parents.

But they're gone for the time being. So, tonight, I'm trying to relax, and blogging to you about it. While I do that, I'm gonna check my Twitter feed and see what sort of news came out of the world. Meanwhile, I am eating pizza, listening to my Jack Johnson radio station on Pandora, and re-thinking the events of the day.

First off, while at times my job's stressful nature at this time of year make me wonder why the hell I signed up for it, I know that it's alright. Not only do I have awesome co-workers who talk about waging an office war. We get free food!

I mean, who doesn't love coffee cake? Alright, I understand that there are people who just hate certain foods, but still, it coffee cake. Really, it's a baked good that just happens to be delicious with coffee. What's to hate about that?

After leaving work, I read a bit of a book, and then pretty much fell asleep. When I woke up, I had the dire urge to play my Xbox. There's just one problem: It's at my boyfriend's. Yes, I play video games. One can have a 3.60 cumulative GPA and still know how to own noobs in Halo. It's called time management. I think the urge has something to do with having pent up aggression towards certain groups of people. I mean, you can kill things in video games. There's something oddly cathartic about that. But alas, no dice. I mean, I could play my roommate's PS3. Except that his game selection sucks. I mean seriously, all he plays is FIFA 2011. No offense to soccer, but really? C'mon, the roommate's not even European.

So what's a girl to do? She blogs about it, and hopes to be mildly entertaining in the process. Meanwhile, she checks her Facebook, and tries to think of ways to write down what's going through her head. It's not going well.

Seriously, if you can't tell that my mind is not working right tonight people, you are all blind. I just talked in the third-person. That's not mentally sound. I don't even know if I wrote 'third-person' correctly. I mean, look back at what you just read. Is that the correct spelling? Let me know.

While I write this, Game Seven of the Stanley Cup is on TV. While I'm rooting for the Bruins, I'm not watching it, since I actually have control of the TV in my apartment for once in my life. And the TV's off. Yet I want to play video games. I know, it's ironic. Accept it into your heart without question, and no one gets hurt.

I'm sorry tonight's entry is somewhat insane. No, not somewhat. It is insane. I think I need to go to bed early tonight. Or find an Xbox. Or reinstate my World of Warcraft account.

Oh god, has it really come to that?

MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Ok, I'm good now.

The Epiphanies of Summer

 Warning: Existential post. Read at your own risk.

Many great things have happened over the past few days, though many would not look at it as such.

I was able to get away from my life for 24 hours and enjoy a cup of coffee while watching the sun rise over a river. I was able to laugh with friends. Hell, I got to play with fire, how awesome is that?

Now, some people wouldn't think that that's anything super special. Many people do those things everyday, what makes it so special?

They're special because they will never happen again.

Yes, you can have these sorts of moments with everyone, or anyone. But what makes them special? The food? The laughter? The smells? While all of that helps, we remember who we were with, and who helped to make something memorable. For instance, I will always remember going to Boston with my cousins when I was eight years old. We all had a great time, and even now, we laugh about some of the shenanigans that took place, like how the fire alarm went off in a restaurant and how half of us were in the restroom trying to zip up our pants as kids.

What makes these memories even more valuable is when they cannot be made anymore. Last fall, my cousin was hit by a car and was killed. While I was not as close to her as I would have liked, I will always remember her sense of humor and her wonderful smile. More so, I will always cherish our childhood memories.

Tonight, I sat with friends around a fire pit while we talked and roasted marshmallows. While probably one of the most simplistic of activities, I took in the sights and sounds the best I could in the dim light. I'm actually transferring to another college, and I feel that I will not see many of my friends again after this summer. In fact, many of my friends have already left, since they've graduated from college and entered the real world. Yes, I know there's Facebook, but it's not the same as seeing your friends and having lunch with them. People do become distant. people do lose contact, even with the use of social networking tools. And people do change. I know how I've changed. My friends and I will become more distant with time, it's inevitable. But, I will delay the inevitable the best I can. I will value every moment and lock it away in my memory. Nothing can take those away.

Our memories are what keeps us together. For example, I may not remain close with my one roommate years down the road. But, I will always remember our bonding sessions, whether it was exchanging tales around a fire pit or watching Shark Week on the Discovery Channel, or even being the guy who I thought looked ten years old and not twenty. We will always have the memories. The same applies to all of my friends and family who have made a difference in my life...including the one night a former roommate and I were yelling at Animal Planet because we didn't want the baby owls to die. But I digress.

I guess my word of wisdom for the night is value every moment you have with your friends. Value every day that you can enjoy the sunrise and not worry about some trivial task. Value your friends and family. And never take it for granted. Because you'll never get that time back. And one day, you won't be able to enjoy what you truly love.

Sorry everyone, I went off on a tangent. But, in the same vein of thought, I'm off to enjoy another great gift in life: Sleep.

Ode to the Helicopter Parent (College Edition)

As I am currently assisting with a new student orientation at a university, I just happened to see a trend that is quite disconcerting. Whereas in the past an eighteen or nineteen year old made some of their own decisions, many more parents seem to be taking control of their young student's life.

For instance, I received a phone call the other day from a concerned parent in regards to their student. The parent was asking a lot of questions about what their child would need to bring. But once I explained that the student would be housed with another student of the same gender, the parent immediately had a conniption fit. The dialog went something like this:
Parent: "My child can't room with another student! They haven't met before!"
Me: "Well, yes, but it's actually a good way for your student to meet some new friends before coming back in the fall."
Parent: "But my child has allergies and has to bring air purifiers with them!"
Me: That shouldn't be a problem, and if so, I know Residential Life will be more than willing to help your student find someone else to room with."
Parent:"What if they're unsavory kids? You know, like potheads?"
Me: "Um, I think if your student is roomed with a 'pothead,' they can request another room change. And that would be an unfortunate case of events.
Parent: "But what if they like the pothead? I can't have that happen!"

I kid you not, this conversation happened.

I understand that a parent is going to want to protect their child, particularly when their child is about to live off on their own. But a parent shouldn't make life decisions for their teen entering the real world. Their children are able to go off to Iraq and Afghanistan as soldiers, and many of their peers have done such things. However, if they are able to influence their lives so strongly, then parents should have been able to affect the realm of fashion and stopped the droopy pants look. I mean seriously, I don't need to see your kid's boxers.

What's more concerning to me is the fact that many of these kids are accepting of their parents' iron grip on their lives. I have witnessed many students asking their parents for their personal student information. I have had many parents sign their students up for an orientation session. Many of these students do not understand that one day, they will not be able to ask their parents for help, particularly in the real world. And many parents, out of acts of love, are potentially setting their children up for a much harsher entry into the real world.

I'll be honest, I had a lot of help from my parents. But I also had a lot more expected of me. I did have chores, and I did help out with the family business. Also, I didn't have a set allowance, I worked for my Mom's business, and I got spending money that way. I cooked my own dinner when I was 15, I was able to learn an important life skill: time management. But my independence wasn't earned overnight. I was slowly weaned into it, and now, I can safely say that I am self-sufficient.

My fear for these students is that they will learn independence haphazardly, and will not learn as much compared to if they had slowly received it. I guess this is what I'm asking of both parties:

Kids, I'm happy you respect your parents and that you have great relationships with them. But you also have to voice your own opinion. Yes, there's a risk Mom and Dad won't like it, but guess what? It's your life. You don't want them to tell you what classes your taking, or what major you're supposed to be. Live your life how you want to live it. Just be logical about it.

Mom and Dad, I totally understand that you don't want your kids to fail. I understand that you want to protect them. You want them to grow up to be successful, meaningful members of society. But the only way your children can grow is if they have experienced some sort of failure before going to school on their own. And no, I'm not saying that being rejected at the prom counts. They can only succeed if they have felt some sort of failure before. If they go into college expecting the best but receiving the worst, it will be worse than what many of them can bear. It's not a good leg to start out on.

Kids, ask your parents for more freedom beofre you come to school. And Parents, it's ok to be afraid. But you were once in their age, and you were able to raise them. Trust me. If given the right tools at the right time, they'll be successful.

And don't worry Mom and Dad. If you let go, they'll always come home. Not just for the hugs, but for the free laundry.

Politics, National Security and the Internet (or how people in public life and government are idiots)

While watching news over the past few days, I just noticed a trend involving politics and the internet. Rep. Weiner (whose name I find to be rather unfortunate) and his involvment with photos of his bulging pants and sending it to women through his Twitter account. You have Sarah Palin's release of e-mails from the time she was governor of Alaska, which can either help her or hurt her, based on the public's reaction to some of them. Then, you have the leaks published on Wikileaks, which while now falling apart, had the ability to completely destroy or damage relationships between countries, all by putting sensitive information on a website. Meanwhile, the governments affected are doing damage control and wonder to themselves how it got on the website.

Which brings up what all of this makes me think of. These people (or entities) have been in contact with political information that can affect people's lives in some form or another. And they all have affected their  lives, or the lives of others, by what sort of actions they have taken. For instance:

In the case of Palin, her attempts to try to keep her emails private shows that she's somewhat uncomfortable with whatever is in them. For someone involved with American politics, and for someone who had a reality show, or whatever we want to call that, wanting to hid your emails from your public life beforehand makes no sense. Also, when some of the email released show an attempt to discredit a rival through their connections to another person (referring to Frank Murkowski and Bill Allen), you run the risk of looking like a dirty politician, at least in the eyes of some within the political arena, particularly if the rival in question was already defeated.

When many diplomatic wires came out on Wikileaks, I personally myself was a bit horrified. Yes, I'm all about the freedom of information and whistle blowing, especially if the violation of human rights are involved. I'm also a realist. When two countries are talking about peace talks behind closed doors and information gets out that can personally piss off the other side, that has a risk of not just jeopardizing the talks, but the citizens of those countries. However, I have one question for all of the government officials who didn't push for the encryption their messages, as well as those involved with the security of sensitive documents. What the Hell is wrong with you? How come you did not think about someone wanting to steal the information, particularly hackers or pissed off individuals who have had their rights violated? Come on, you're all not that dumb.

And Weiner... Oh Weiner. You are a moron. Did you not learn how Twitter can make and break people? I mean, seriously. You do not send pictures of your junk to women over Twitter. Come on, Twitter has helped to spark revolutions overseas. You should know its power. Or, for that matter, you don't send that to women over respectable sites. That's what porn sites are for. Besides, did you learn nothing from Mark Foley, a former Republican counterpart from Florida? That shit stays on the internet, no matter how hard you try to get rid of it. And let's face it. You have political enemies who will jump on this like a trampoline. You sir, are your own undoing.

I guess what shocked me the most about the government officials and former politicians is that they think their technological incompetence is excusable. Well, it's not as if the Internet was created yesterday, so we all know the risks associated with using it. More importantly, just because someone's a public official, it doesn't mean they get special rights to the internet. If Weiner posted his junk on the web, well then guess what? It's out there for the world to see. It seems to me that if someone comes to a position of power, they themselves feel entitled to special rights, due to their authority.  And in the case of Wikileaks, it shows public officials the risk of not protecting their information more securely. As said previously, once it's out there on the internet, it's out there. I pay taxes, and since the majority of them go to defense spending, I want to know if we have non-military hackers as part of the defense budget. They can compromise the government's information, they're also the ones who can protect it. Yet, I'm also aware of the fact that this protection can only reach to an extent. The jurisdiction of a government does not have the same boundaries in the technological realm as they do in the real world. The government become become like the rest of us, susceptible to the same benefits and risks.

I know that there are risks to using the internet. I'm just surprised that people in powerful positions don't seem to know them.

They can at least be classy about how this stuff is discovered. At least the John Edwards scandal was caught by the National Enquirer.

E-Trade Babies, Duckies, Kitties, Hot Dogs and Power Outages

If the title of this blog post doesn't warn you about the erratic nature of this blog, then you're on your own. This will mostly cover the events of the last 24 hours of my life, and I promise, it will be eventful.

It starts out during my work shift at the Hartman Union Building, or the HUB for short. First off, the HUB is awesome, not just because it's a great work environment with great people, but there are regular visits from cute babies on a normal basis. Yesterday, Linda's son Finn was brought in.

This is where I go on a slight selling of this kid: He has some of the best facial expressions ever, and he is fascinated by computer screens and whatever is on them. I mean, the kid looks like an E-Trade baby..

Hey E-Trade. Make good choices in life. Look at this face, don't you see baby advertising greatness in it? Trust me, you will not be disappointed with him.                         

                                      

Just saying, you'll be missing out on this kid and his wonderful facial expressions...Just saying.

After spending quality time with the little guy, I got out of work and prepared to meet up with Robby, the significant other, who I don't see as much as I would wish. And by getting ready I spent time on Facebook. God that's such a time killer. Which will not be so readily available later on.

Anyhow, he lives a few miles away on a river that feeds into a lake, and while I was happy to be seeing him, I was much more excited about the fact that I was going to see the new baby ducklings that had been hanging around his house. Yes, I have a soft spot for baby animals. Robby knows that when there are baby animals around my priorities shift, and he's completely fine with it. Deal with it. 

So, when we get to his house, all hell on earth breaks loose, weather wise. Robby had to go save his chairs as they were thrown into the river and there was flying debris everywhere. I'll be quite honest, it was quite scary, and reminded me of storms that I had experienced in the Mid-West as a kid. Robby got inside safe and sound, but I then noticed a lone duck sitting out in the open in his yard. I'll be honest, I yelled at the duck to go find shelter. But I shortly thereafter realized why she wasn't moving.

                                            

They were hiding in the hostas nearby, but they all of a sudden came out and were trying to get closer to their  mom. So there I am, freaking out because there are flying branches and sticks coming from every direction, and I'm afraid that the ducklings will get hurt. Eventually their mother herded them over towards a sturdy adirondack chair, but of course I would continue to freak out until the storm had passed. At times I do wonder how the hell Robby can deal with me and my fatal flaws, such as love for baby animals, or when I have bitchy moments.

Eventually, the storm did calm down and pass, and out from under a bed came Carl, Robby's roommate.             

                               

Yes, Carl is a cat. But he's awesome, chunky and adorable. He's also a great cathartic snuggle machine when I get stressed over homework. Even though Carl is not necessarily my cat (and if my cats knew about Carl, they'd kill me), I feel like he's one of my furry friends from back home. However, Carl was not in the mood for much snuggling and petting yesterday. He saw potential dinner options sitting outside the window, so that continued to take his focus for the remainder of the evening.

So, with the ducklings all safe and the cat entertained, Robby and I made dinner, which was originally supposed to be a cookout/picnic, but the weather kind of killed that avenue of cooking. But, it was still quite delicious guilty food.

While it may appear that these are just hot dogs, they're really delicious hot dogs with the chili and  mozzarella cheese nestled underneath the tubers of pork. I mean, while it is simple, it's still delicious, and more so, I was quite content to sit there and enjoy a simple yet good meal with Robby. While watching ducklings through the window.

Eventually I did need to go back to my apartment, and was hoping to blog about this day last night. However, due to the storms that came through earlier in the day, the town had lost power. Which meant no Facebook and no blogging. So, without any internet access and with my computer battery dying, I decided to read by candlelight, with the sideshow of watching my roommate trying to find something entertaining to do, as he will die like a vampire in the sun if he doesn't have internet access. I mean, it was entertaining. It was just a little sad to know that people are that dependent upon electronics, particularly my generation and our dependence on the internet. I know that I am quite dependent, particularly with Facebook and email. However, if someone threw me onto a deserted island for two months with no cell service and internet, I couldn't be happier. People lived without internet and electricity before. Besides, unless there's a war going on or unless you're from California, you know the power's coming back on. Just try to be resourceful and patient, people.

So, yesterday was a day filled with excitement, terror, cuteness, humor and happiness. This almost sounds like a 1960s Disney movie. Or the Land Before Time. Except this is real life, and many times its simple joys are overlooked. Of course, I'm just happy there are no Sharp Tooths floating around. Unless they're babies, then they may be cute. But I digress.

I leave you with one last factoid for the day: What do you do when you have an electronically dependent human being in your life who happens to love Apple products and can't cope with power outages? Make them read a book. They don't like books, you say? Give them something by Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert. That will distract them for a while.

One of many reading lists (Africa Edition)

Reading is something that I have thoroughly enjoyed throughout my life since I was a small child. That is, until high school and college started demanding that I read certain things. I don't know if it's my personality to resist something just because someone orders me to do something or not, but that tends to happen when someone orders me to read. Since I just finished my sophomore year hear at good ole' college, I've decided to start reading for fun again, since it's been a while. But, I go in phases about certain subjects, particularly with anything pertaining to history. I started off my summer reading with three books that are based on the colonization of Africa.

The first one I read was King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam Hochschild. This book explains how the desires of King Leopold of Belgium drove him to use explorers and claims of philanthropy to go and colonize the Congo. Yet in the process, the Belgian effort decimated and dismembered the Congolese tribes, both figuratively and literally. This is a great book for learning about some of the origins for the Scramble for Africa, and while the material is a bit rough to read at times, it does read like a novel, which is a feat for a history book.

The second one I read was Scribbling the Cat: Travels with an African Soldier by Alexandra Fuller. Somewhat different from King Leopold, the book is about how the author befriends a former Rhodesian soldier, who is only referred to as K, and how they traveled to from Zambia to Mozambique to learn more about the war he took part in during the 1970s. As both of them are white Africans, it gives an interesting insight not normally acknowledged by the western world. What makes this memoir interesting is how throughout the book, you see the flaws that everyone has, and in ways, it shows their humanity, or in some cases, their inhumanity. Another good tool used by the author was how she used a lot of Shona and Afrikaans slang throughout it, and it definitely immerses the reader even more so into the story. While at times I felt that some of the story was embellished to make for a better read, all and all it was a very good book that I couldn't put down.

The third book I read was Blood River: The Terrifying Journey Through The World's Most Dangerous Country by Tim Butcher. The author goes to the Congo to retrace the steps of Henry Morton Stanley and his expedition to reach the end of the Congo River. As Butcher is actually a journalist, he does a lot of interviews throughout the book with locals, which definitely can be seen as striking to those of us who live in the western world. Yet many are heart wrenching, such as the favor asked by one man, Oggi, on one of the legs of Butcher's journey. What starts out as an attempt to follow an explorer's steps turns into a story showing how Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness still exists, and those who live there are plunged into the darkness themselves. While definitely a heavy read, it is very much worth it, if just for the way it makes one count their blessings.


I want to make it clear that none of these readings are for the faint of heart. Nevertheless, this should be required reading for those who want to understand Africa and its issues in a different light. While not as flashy and as popular as similar subject matter, such as the Holocaust, it is just as important. And it should not, and cannot, be ignored.

Initiation by fire...or doughnuts

 I had an epiphany. These happen on occasion, but last night, much more clearly than normal.

So, I was tossing around trying to fall asleep last night. I had a lot on my mind. Which is quite normal for me. I really have an active mind, to where people may think that I am severely ADD.

I tend to have varied opinions on different things throughout the span of a day. This can range from what I think about the local coffee joint, to political happenings, to the news that people ignore. However, many people do not realize how strong my opinions actually are, as I tend to be a relatively quiet individual in person, and reserve my opinion as to not cause problems with people and at times says things in ways that can seem abrasive. What can I say? I avoid conflict, which is ironic for a former rugby player.

This tends to lead to issues, as biting one's tongue can make someone lose their mind rather quickly, and in rare cases, appearing to be catty. Yet, I also do not want to seem like a total bitch when I say the popular local coffee place's coffee is sub-par, or if I think Americans need a swift kick in ass in regards to our mindset towards the rest of the world. So, how did I decide to put my opinions out there, for the world to react to?

Well, a blog of course. Might be a bit cliche, and I run the risk of sounding like some tween who's obsessed with Justin Bieber or Johnny Depp, but lucky for you, I hate that stuff, and I'm willing to risk going on a rant about Uganda's attempt to ban homosexuality.

 From day to day, the posting will mostly range, between my opinions of local shops around me, to events I went to, to political happenings, to some new books I've been reading, to potentially places I have visited that I think people should go and experience.  I'll try to keep this blog as sane as possible, but I can't guarantee anything. I mean, just look at the title of this post, I'm a spaz.  However, I know there will be poor souls who will find this blog and either be horrified, or highly entertained. My main goal, besides appeasing my ADD, is to have a blog that can be quintessentially undefinable, just as how life has many ups and downs.

Enjoy the ride, kids. And no, we're not turning this car around.