October 29, 2003
Fall Fest
Idiots are running rampant around campus. Morons dressed in ridiculous costumes, chalk messages written on the sidewalks and other things, and photos of people doing unusual things can be seen everywhere. This can only mean one thing.
Fall Fest is back.
From my own floor's decision concerning a queen ("Save the cows! Vote for chicken!") to 41's horrible idea for their queen ("Erin in Wonderland"), my general disdain for this joke of an event (the climax of which is a banquet that costs $10 to attend) has greatly increased since last year. 4B's tradition concerning bodyguards around their king and queen and the decision of Quad 1 to nominate Ashley Ross (no relation that I know of, but I now see "ROSS" everywhere I look) aren't helping my opinion of the week.
Some people say Fall Fest just breaks the monotony of the last half of the semester, and I have to admit that is true. Even if you don't participate you still get a slight change of scenery. However, I still think the whole thing is a waste of time.
Two other things:
1. If you are reading this, you should either vote for Ardith for Fall Fest Queen or write-in "The Chicken" (or Chikin) to win.
2. Happy 18th Birthday Katy!
October 28, 2003
Physics Fun
This is how I spent my time in University Physics II today:
"Sitting here in UPII for what feels like the fourth straight hour, I am convinced that Dr. Ball has learned how to slow down time. These past ten minutes have felt like an hour. He's talking about stuff we learned in Circuits, except he's doing it in physics-speak. You know what I'm talking about, right? He takes extremely easy concepts and makes them into horribly disfigured bastards of theories. Since I have been doing fairly well in Circuits I'm hoping I will do really well on this next test and increase my grade in this class.
From looking at my watch, it would appear that I have discovered the reverse of Dr. Ball's time-crawling curse. Another ten minutes have gove by since I took out my spiral notebook and started rambling on paper. I probably could have written much more if I would stop pretending to pay attention."
Right after I had written "attention," Dr. Ball said we could leave early. I was almost disappointed because I had to stop writing. Well, maybe next time I'll start writing earlier.
Would this same method make Differential Equations interesting? It's worth a shot.
October 25, 2003
Movie Stuff
There have been several "almost-posts" on this thing before this one. I have had great ideas for beautiful and awe-inspiring works of blogging literature, but I did not come and write them out and they quickly left my memory. I will continure to mourn the loss of these masterpieces, but for now I must move on with my life.
[written on October 11, 2003 about Kill Bill: Vol. 1]
"A lot of people will hate this movie. The reasons will be obvious once you see it."
Well, my roommate has finally seen the movie. He hates it. For reasons that are obvious if you have seen the movie. He has claimed to respect how the plot was done and how the movie was written. Apparently, he despises everything else about it.
I, however, still enjoy the movie. I also know that I am not the only person who enjoyed it. Is the movie one of the greatest I've seen? Absolutely not. Would I watch this movie with or recommend this movie to just anyone? Not a chance in hell. Would I watch it whenever I wanted to be entertained for a couple of hours and have a few good laughs? Yes. I don't care what anybody else thinks about it. To me, Kill Bill is a fun movie to watch.
I am also now the proud owner of a widescreen version of 28 Days Later. If you have not seen this movie yet and you enjoy watching horror movies, go and watch this movie now. It is fantastic example of how horror movies are supposed to be made.
October 20, 2003
And I Quote...
"You haven't really lived...until you go downstairs for a fresh box of ballpoint pens and find a jar of formaldehyde with an owl-eye in it sitting on top of the Xerox machine. Man, that wakes you up."
--Matt Babicki
From a Buick 8 by Stephen King
October 19, 2003
Lack of Willpower
I have no willpower.
This weekend I was sucked into a realm so addictive that I lost track of time on multiple occasions and woke with thoughts of it on my mind. I started playing the game on which I based a screen name. This is the same game I refused to bring with me to college because I was afraid I would spend too much time with it.
That's right. This weekend I started playing The Sims, again.
I hadn't really played this game for quite some time. I knew that my sister and her friends had practically taken over all of the neighborhoods when I left for college, and I realized that sacrificing the game would help me keep peace with her and free some time up for myself to do other things when I was home.
Knowing this, I started up the game, went through and deleted all of the saved information in all eight neighborhoods, and started playing again. I kept playing. I want to keep playing, but I need to do homework.
I need more willpower.
October 17, 2003
October 14, 2003
Bones and Research
Oh, the joys of playing with human bones! They're just great. The femur is my favorite. It looks just like a club. I wish I had a femur bone that I could keep. Any volunteers? Anyone?
The only downside to studying bones is the freaking huge test that I have to take over them. It is absolutely hideous. I have to know the bones, the joints, the grooves, the crests, the holes, and the jutting ends of most of the bones. All of that crap almost quadruples the amount of memorization. I would be complaining a lot more if I didn't find it interesting.
I've also got a research paper for which I need to find a topic. Basically, I can pick anything relating to C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Owen Barfield, or Charles Williams. This is so huge a field I don't even know where to begin looking. Any suggestions? Anyone? (No Freud, please. I don't want to go near that subject for this paper.)
Other than homework and tests I really don't have anything to rant about or discuss. I am ready for fall break to arrive.
October 11, 2003
Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Today, I am updating my blog via my home computer. I'm currently eating two succulent pieces of chicken fried steak and I will eventually eat at least two bowls of Blue Bell's Hot Fudge Sundae ice cream. All of this food is accompanied by a nice cold can of Dr. Pepper, of course.
Now that I have got that out of the way, allow me to give you my opinion of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill: Vol. 1. This isn't nearly as easy as it sounds because it is, after all, a Quentin Tarantino movie.
Kill Bill: Vol. 1 is like a martial arts parody which takes itself way too seriously and still manages to be a brilliant work of art. The plot is rather simple. Uma Thurman, the un-named "blood-stained bride," is seeking vengeance for the murders of her husband, her unborn child, a reverend, the reverend's wife, a organ player, and four other people who aren't important enough to describe (Relatives? Friends? We aren't told.). She gets this vengeance by working her way up a list of five people who were her former "co-workers."
We aren't told much about any of the characters, however. The most background info in this movie was supplied through a long animation sequence which told the story of Lucy Liu's character. The music in the movie was weird, but it fit perfectly with the style of the movie. The acting is superb and is part of the reason I compare it to a "serious" parody. There is a large amount of blood, but there is not that much gore. Naturally, the "Vol. 1" ends with a cliffhanger.
A lot of people will hate this movie. The reasons will be obvious once you see it. (Yes, you will see this movie. Stop wasting your breath arguing. You will see this movie.) I loved the movie and would like to see it again.
October 10, 2003
Quiz
Well, since practically everyone else seems to be taking this quiz, here are my results:
October 09, 2003
Sinfest
Why yes, this is how I feel about nature.
I've discovered that Sinfest is an awesome comic strip. Unless, of course, you are easily offended and think that religion (read: Christianity) shouldn't be mocked. There is more there, however, than just jokes about religious nuts and God. The comic above is one example. There are others. However, there are also a lot of lewd comics.
To summarize, if you are a person who can take a joke that has something lewd in it, Sinfest is an awesome comic. If not, I'd advise not going there.
October 08, 2003
Life and Death
My grandparents drove to Longview today in order to take me out to eat. I had the pleasure of eating a twelve ounce steak and a great baked potato.
As always when my grandparents come up here, I was told all about things that have been happening at home. Most of it was the same old crap that I'm sure every family encounters. Gossip, speculations, negative opinions, and all that other good stuff. However, I'm not writing right now because of any of that boring information.
The reason I am writing is because they told me that my high school is raising money for a memorial to all of the kids who were killed in some way or another in the last few years. From what they said the memorial will be for the eight kids who died in the past four or five years. While I am sure that number is normal for a large number of schools, it isn't for mine. The town has 525 people in it. There are approximately 120-130 students that make up the junior high-high school buildings. When one of those students is taken away, the entire school is affected. Even the people who didn't know the kid personally would know enough about him/her to be affected by his/her death.
This re-realization (I had known how many kids have died, I've just never really thought about it) caused me to think of the number of LeTourneau students that have died since I started here. So far there has been a memorial service chapel at the beginning of every semester. I have known only one of the students who has passed away since I've been here, but I know people who knew almost all of them.
I guess the point of this whole thing is to ask if these statistics are normal. They seem wrong to me. This few people should not be experiencing this much death. I know that I feel like I've dealt with enough death in my life to last for a while. My grandfather, the only great-grandmother that I knew, my sister, and a cousin have all died in a span of five years. I have also had three people I was friends with and two other people I knew die within the same time frame. I'm tired of dealing with death.
October 07, 2003
Question
Ok, I have a question. Maybe you guys can help.
As most of you know, my sister was killed in April. I no longer have a problem discussing it with people, although I still do not enjoy talking at length about it. This is important for you to know because it may help explain my confusion.
Today in Inklings the professor asked the class if anyone had any siblings. Almost everyone in the class raised their hand to say they did. I started to raise my hand, but then I thought, "Wait a second, I had a sister, but now she is deceased," and sort of left my hand half-raised with a look of confusion on my face. A second later everyone put their hands back down and the class moved on with the professor. I put the confusion out of my mind and followed along with the discussion.
The question about whether or not someone has any siblings has never been a problem for me to ask or (until April) answer. I've never thought about asking that to someone who had a sibling who passed away, and I'm sure that possibility doesn't occur in the minds of most people.
So, how do I answer this question now? In a normal conversation (i.e., I am talking with someone who simply doesn't know), I would probably answer, "I used to have a sister, but she is deceased." (Or something along those lines.) However, if I'm not in a conversation where I can answer the person asking directly, what do I do? It feels wrong to say that I do have a sibling but so does saying that I don't have one. Since I did have a sister I can relate to the experience the speaker may be trying to relate, and I am also fairly certain that they wouldn't need to know that personal information. Saying that my sister is dead would probably also distract them from their main point. I understand this.
The only problem is it feels wrong to simply imply "Yes, I have a sibling," nod, and continue with whatever we were conversing. It feels as if I am disrespecting my memory of her by not saying anything.
October 03, 2003
News
Once again, here are a few pieces of news that have caught my eye. Enjoy.
Wouldn't you just love working for these people?
Help! My television is on fire!
The IgNobel Awards.
And here is a web comic from which I would like a large number of people to learn:
October 01, 2003
Damn Nazis
Would you be offended if a high school band waved a Nazi flag and played a song from Germany during a high school performance about World War II?
I know that I am. They should fire that Nazi band conductor and he should be charged with treason. That would set an example. In fact, let's just re-write history so that the Nazis never existed. It's the only way that we can truly move on from the horrors they committed.
Why don't we also only teach our children about all of the great things that America has done? They don't need to know any of the not-as-good things. Let's teach that slavery never existed and that the government was nice to Native Americans. We are most definitely the best country that has ever existed and we will always be the best country in existence. Hail America! Hail America!
[/sarcasm]
Yes, I understand that it was a big day for the Jewish people. Yes, I understand that the Nazis did slaughter millions of Jews. But it is a freaking historical production you morons! You can't do a historical productions about World War II and omit the Nazis!
Yes, I agree that the Nazis did horrible things. Yes, I think that people are stupid and that they overreacted about history.