Confessions of a Feminist Dromomaniac

Why Am I Bothering?

2009-03-08T19:55:00.000-07:00

...Seriously. I'll never update this. I'll probably never delete it, because I don't like deleting things. And no one actually reads it, either. I'm the worst internet citizen EVER. Find me on Facebook, it's the only thing I check.

wipe wipe wipe

2009-03-08T19:53:00.000-07:00

*BLOW*

Oh, look! Once the dust wears off, there's still a blog here! Wee!

2008-01-24T12:05:00.002-08:00

toothpastefordinner.com

I wish there had been a Circular Reasoning class at NAU. I would have ACED that shit.

open request to Sprint/Nextel

2008-01-16T09:59:00.000-08:00

Come on, people. I'm made of awesome, and can totally do that job in my sleep. Hire me already.

in a nut shell

2008-01-07T12:03:00.001-08:00

No, I still haven't died of botulism.
I didn't get the AZ Legislature job, largely I think because I'm not an AZ resident.
I graduated with a 3.5! Yes, I am now a Uni graduate.
I went to Guatemala with my family, and had an amazing trip.
Celebrated New Years at a bar, like you do.
Am now job hunting.
Am entirely too bored for my own good. How about some pictures?

i liiiiiiiiive

2007-10-15T11:05:00.000-07:00

No, I haven't died of botulism. It's my last semester of undergrad, and I'm a slacker, and don't update. On the bright side, though, I have a second interview for an internship with the Arizona State Legislature. I've been wishy-washy about whether or not I even want this job, but now that I've gotten a second interview, I'm going to be a little disappointed if I don't get it. Wish me luck!

Botulism

2007-08-03T12:35:00.000-07:00

Food-borne and wound botulism

[edit] Incubation

Classic symptoms of food-borne botulism usually occur between 12–36 hours after consuming the botulinum toxin. However, they can occur as early as 6 hours or as late as 10 days after.
Wound botulism has a longer incubation period, usually between 4–14 days.

Common symptoms of either form usually include dry mouth, difficulty swallowing, slurred speech, drooping eyelids, muscle weakness, double and/or blurred vision, vomiting, and sometimes diarrhea. These symptoms may progress to cause paralytic ileus with severe constipation, and eventually body paralysis. The respiratory muscles are affected as well, which may cause death due to respiratory failure. These are all symptoms of the muscle paralysis caused by the bacterial toxin.

In all cases illness is caused by the toxin made by C. botulinum, not by the bacterium itself. The pattern of damage occurs because the toxin affects nerves that are firing more often.^[3]

Treatment

The respiratory failure and paralysis that occur with severe botulism may require a patient to be on a breathing machine for weeks, plus intensive medical and nursing care. After several weeks, the paralysis slowly improves. If diagnosed early, foodborne and wound botulism can be treated by inducing passive immunity with a horse-derived antitoxin, which blocks the action of toxin circulating in the blood.^[4] This can prevent patients from worsening, but recovery still takes many weeks. Physicians may try to remove contaminated food still in the gut by inducing vomiting or by using enemas. Wounds should be treated, usually surgically, to remove the source of the toxin-producing bacteria. Good supportive care in a hospital is the mainstay of therapy for all forms of botulism.

Besides supportive care, infant botulism can be treated with human botulism immune globulin (BabyBIG), when available. Supply is extremely limited, but is available through the California Department of Health Services. This dramatically decreases the length of illness for most infants. Paradoxically, antibiotics (especially aminoglycosides or clindamycin) may cause dramatic acceleration of paralysis as the affected bacteria release toxin. Visual stimulation should be performed during the time the infant is paralyzed as well, in order to promote the normal development of visual pathways in the brain during this critical developmental period.

Furthermore each case of food-borne botulism is a potential public health emergency in that it is necessary to identify the source of the outbreak and ensure that all persons who have been exposed to the toxin have been identified, and that no contaminated food remains.

Complications

Botulism can result in death due to respiratory failure. However, in the past 50 years, the proportion of patients with botulism who die has fallen from about 50% to 8% due to improved supportive care. A patient with severe botulism may require a breathing machine as well as intensive medical and nursing care for several months. Patients who survive an episode of botulism poisoning may have fatigue and shortness of breath for years and long-term therapy may be needed to aid their recovery.

***

Why do I care about this enough to blog it, you may be asking? Cause the chili that I've been enjoying recently apparently has been recalled because some cans contain it. Woo! I might die!

In all honesty, I haven't died yet. But just in case, I love you all.

woo!

2007-07-24T18:53:00.000-07:00

Woo! Number One:

I'm becoming a superstar at driving stickshift.

Woo! Number Two:

I found Milka chocolate at Target today. Yes, the second best chocolate in the world. After Whitakers, of course...it made me happy.

an open letter

2007-06-25T09:20:00.000-07:00

Dear Isiah Washington:

Even if T.R. Knight is a publicity monger, he didn't MAKE you say "I never called T.R. a faggot" at the Emmys. That was all you. Way to show the world you are: A. a homophobic asshat and B. a sore loser because your stupid mouth got you fired. Now shut the goddamn hell up.

-Me

...can't believe it...

2007-06-05T22:53:00.000-07:00

since I got home almost a month ago, my dog Bear has been acting strangely. he hasn't been eating (v.v. peculiar for him) and just hasn't had any pep at all. when we got him 10 ten years ago (nearly, anyway, in August) the vet estimated he was about five years old. my brother and mom and i took him to the vet on Saturday, who ran labs, and determined yesterday that he had acute kidney disease. my sister took him back in this morning, in hopes they could flush his system out and get his kidneys healthy again, but when looking at it further, they realized his kidneys had pretty much shut down. they told us we could take him home, and it'd only be a matter of time...but my brother and i (who picked him out at the shelter originally) decided we didn't want him to suffer. at 5:15, after the hardest work day i've ever endured, the four of us were in the room with him when we put him down.

i can't believe he's gone.

three more amazing quotes about feminism

2007-04-22T18:59:00.000-07:00

“Women and people of color do not lack leaders. What we lack are structures that identify and support different forms of leadership.”

“Feminism is as much your movement as anyone else’s, and it’s up to you to prioritize what you value.”

“It’s far more effective and feminist to have five thousand people who each influence five others than to have five people each address five thousand individuals.”

-all quoted from Jennifer Baumgarder and Amy Richards, "Who's the Next Gloria? The Quest for the Third Wave Superleader"

in response to the Virgina Tech shootings, and all gun-related tradgies

2007-04-16T16:52:00.000-07:00

*fumes*

the 2nd amendment is BULLSHIT. there should be no right to bear arms. it may have been necessary in the 1770s, but these days it really, really isn't unless you're a police officer. and you know what...police in New Zealand don't even carry them. guns equal evil. end. stop. period. i won't budge on this. the day the second amendment is revoked will be a joyous day indeed.

Brilliance

2007-04-06T10:49:00.000-07:00

The following is a post by Sars, the amazing author of the website www.tomatonation.com.

Yes, You Are

feminism n (1895) 1 : the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes 2 : organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests — feminist n or adj — feministic adj

Above, the dictionary definition of feminism — the entire dictionary definition of feminism. It is quite straightforward and concise. If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist.

Yes, you are.

The definition of feminism does not ask for two forms of photo ID. It does not care what you look like. It does not care what color skin you have, or whether that skin is clear, or how much you weigh, or what you do with your hair. You can bite your nails, or you can get them done once a week. You can spend two hours on your makeup, or five minutes, or the time it takes to find a Chapstick without any lint sticking to it. You can rock a cord mini, or khakis, or a sari, and you can layer all three. The definition of feminism does not include a mandatory leg-hair check; wax on, wax off, whatever you want. If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist.

Yes, you are.

The definition of feminism does not mention a membership fee or a graduated tax or "…unless you got your phone turned off by mistake." Rockefellers, the homeless, bad credit, no credit, no problem. If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist.

Yes, you are.

The definition of feminism does not require a diploma or other proof of graduation. It is not reserved for those who teach women's studies classes, or to those who majored in women's studies, or to those who graduated from college, or to those who graduated from high school, or to those who graduated from Brownie to Girl Scout. It doesn't care if you went to Princeton or the school of hard knocks. You can have a PhD, or a GED, or a degree in mixology, or a library card, or all of the above, or none of the above. You don't have to write a twenty-page paper on Valerie Solanas's use of satire in The S.C.U.M. Manifesto, and if you do write it, you don't have to get better than a C-plus on it. You can really believe math is hard, or you can teach math. You don't have to take a test to get in. You don't have to speak English. If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist.

Yes, you are.

The definition of feminism is not an insurance policy; it doesn't exclude anyone based on age. It doesn't have a "you must be this tall to ride the ride" sign on it anywhere. It doesn't specify how you get from place to place, so whether you use or a walker or a stroller or a skateboard or a carpool, if you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist.

Yes, you are.

The definition of feminism does not tell you how to vote or what to think. You can vote Republican or Libertarian or Socialist or "I like that guy's hair." You can bag voting entirely. You can believe whatever you like about child-care subsidies, drafting women, fiscal accountability, Anita Hill, environmental law, property taxes, Ann Coulter, interventionist politics, soft money, gay marriage, tort reform, decriminalization of marijuana, gun control, affirmative action, and why that pothole at the end of the street still isn't fixed. You can exist wherever on the choice continuum you feel comfortable. You can feel ambivalent about Hillary Clinton. You can like the ERA in theory, but dread getting drafted in practice. The definition does not stipulate any of that. The definition does not stipulate anything at all, except itself. If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist.

Yes, you are.

The definition of feminism does not judge your lifestyle. You like girls, you like boys, doesn't matter. You eat meat, you don't eat meat, you don't eat meat or dairy, you don't eat fast food, doesn't matter. You can get married, and you can change your name or keep the one your parents gave you, doesn't matter. You can have kids, you can stay home with them or not, you can hate kids, doesn't matter. You can stay a virgin or you can boink everyone in sight, doesn't matter. It's not in the definition. If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist.

Yes, you are.

Yes. You are. You are a feminist. If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist. Period. It's more complicated than that — of course it is. And yet…it's exactly that simple. It has nothing to do with your sexual preference or your sense of humor or your fashion sense or your charitable donations, or what pronouns you use in official correspondence, or whether you think Andrea Dworkin is full of crap, or how often you read Bust or Ms. — or, actually, whether you've got a vagina. In the end, it's not about that. It is about political, economic, and social equality of the sexes, and it is about claiming that definition on its own terms, instead of qualifying it because you don't want anyone to think that you don't shave your pits. It is about saying that you are a feminist and just letting the statement sit there, instead of feeling a compulsion to modify it immediately with "but not, you know, that kind of feminist" because you don't want to come off all Angry Girl. It is about understanding that liking Oprah and Chanel doesn't make you a "bad" feminist — that only "liking" the wage gap makes you a "bad" feminist, because "bad" does not enter into the definition of feminism. It is about knowing that, if folks can't grab a dictionary and see for themselves that the entry for "feminism" doesn't say anything about hating men or chick flicks or any of that crap, it's their problem.

It is about knowing that a woman is the equal of a man in art, at work, and under the law, whether you say it out loud or not — but for God's sake start saying it out loud already. You are a feminist.

I am a feminist too. Look it up.

September 30, 2003

2007-03-25T20:18:00.001-07:00

2007-03-25T20:14:00.000-07:00

i wish someone would realize that "not friends anymore" means NO messenger chats. seriously? i'm so furious.

on the bright side, my spring break was wonderful. i love my best friend more than anyone in the world.

technoJOY!

2007-02-19T23:37:00.000-08:00

i love technology. in particular, skype. on a day when i see the spitting image of my friend Chang in java.com, i get a skype call from him and chat for a good long time! don't get me wrong, i still miss NZ like mad...but at least there's better ways to keep in touch these days!

Orlando Bloom on Extras

2007-02-18T15:21:00.000-08:00

a response to prude parents

2007-01-31T18:12:00.000-08:00

o, prude parents!

o, prude parents who don't want their children looking at naked pictures of celebrities online!

o, prude parents, why don't you watch what your ten-year old's do online if you don't want them looking at naked pictures?

o, prude parents, when will you learn that Daniel Radcliffe is NOT, in fact, Harry Potter?

o, prude parents, why must you bitch so?

o, prude parents, apparently Daniel Radcliffe is your son's hero!

o, prude parents, am i out of line?

o, prude parents, but shouldn't you let your children in on the knowledge that Daniel Radcliffe is NOT, in fact, Harry Potter?

o, prude parents, i know Harry Potter is popular!

o, prude parents, but why aren't you a contestant for your son's hero?

o, prude parents, Daniel Radcliffe will still be naked in Equiis despite you boycotting his films!

o, prude parents, if Daniel Radcliffe is your son's hero, they'll probably see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix just to spite you!

o, prude parents, ease off!

o, prude parents, Daniel Radcliffe is laughing at you so much right now!

o, prude parents, I will laugh too when the stink you caused will help Equiis ticket sales!

o, prude parents!

o, prude parents!

Denver Blizzard of 2006 pictures

2006-12-23T22:41:00.000-08:00

bwhahaha

2006-12-20T22:12:00.000-08:00

snow

2006-12-20T22:00:00.000-08:00

it's everywhere. get used to it.

how i LOVE little fishies, don't you?

2006-12-14T21:21:00.000-08:00

gor!

2006-12-05T22:15:00.000-08:00

People who need to get their acts together:

* The Colorado Avalanche offence. 42 shots on goal, ZERO goals. *headdesk*
* Some Avs fans. You don't boo your team, even at this shitty loss. You just DON'T.
* RTD. Why did I wait half an hour to GET a train from the Pepsi Centre? When there is a hockey game in town, and the most popular way to get away from said game is the LightRail, why is there ONE train waiting that has only two cars on it?
* People who ride the LightRail. Seriously, people. Getting on and off trains is not rocket science. There should be no reason why once we finally got on a train, we were sitting on it for another half an hour waiting for it to go, because the people getting on and off trains in front of us don't know their asses from holes in the ground.

People whose shit is down to a science:

* The Columbus Blue Jackets goalie. 42 saves and a shutout. You beat my team, sir, but at least you did it in style. Now, can we have you, and give back Theodore?

i love Xmas!

2006-11-27T10:14:00.000-08:00

though Thanksgiving is groovy for the gluttony of it all, xmas comes! and love! love love love...we've got most of our outside lights up, and as per usual, we are the best on the street. inside comes next, which means i get to put up my tree! yay! and my mother will despense in putting lights up on anything that will hold still long enough (which includes her children and our dogs).

anymore Xmas card requests? i'll screen comments again, i don't need your real name if you don't want to give it, just a name your mail carrier won't be confused by, and your address.

Taupo pics

2006-11-24T15:24:00.000-08:00

Wellington pictures

2006-11-24T15:18:00.000-08:00

2006-11-07T14:32:00.000-08:00

slept like crap, as i expected, but hopefully my tiredness will work to my advantage when i'm on the bus to Welly tonight, and maybe i'll sleep then. got up and showered at 7, went to the bakery and town to get groceries for tonight, and then went to the Uni library to return a book and then to the FIC to pick up my marked G@W report...i got an A- on it! how, i don't know, cause i don't think i really deserved it, but it's not like i'm going to dispute a good mark. took a few pictures around campus, and then finished getting everything in my room sorted...nothing's left in it! i'm definately on top of things, the only thing that is mildly annoying is that Jess was supposed to come this morning to get my clothes, and hasn't shown or texted to say whether she's still coming. but as we're going to Bridal Veil and Raglan at noon, i've given up on her, and am going to instead give them to Sam, the StudVille assistant manager, who said she'd drop them off at the Salvation Army on her way home. so ha, poo on Jess for not being on top of things.

but Welly tonight! i'm so excited to finally get down there!

my last night in Cellblock 6

2006-11-07T02:02:00.000-08:00

i toasted tonight with Nath and Hannah to my very last night in my StudVille room. a tiny part of me wants to chain myself to the bed so i won't have to leave. my room is no longer the room it became in my nine months here, because everything is off my walls, out of my closet and clear of the drawers. Talia will check me out tomorrow from my little room that i've come to love, and i'll take my name off it forever, likely never to set foot back in Cellblock 6. i wrote something under the desk and signed my name, but this time tomorrow, this will cease to be my room.

i really hope i can sleep tonight, because i have a huge day tomorrow. but sleeping in a room so lonely as this one will be difficult. wish me luck.

Another To-Do List

2006-11-06T03:58:00.000-08:00

oh, yes, and i'm getting freakishly overwhelmed with all the shit i have to do before i can turn in my key, have Talia inspect my room, and (hopefully) get my bond back from Student Village. thus far, this includes all of the following:

1. Book Wellington hostel.
2. Call Maori Village in Rotorua, and book bus there (and then to Taupo, and then back to Hamilton).
3. Finish packing room (all clothes, knicknacks, papers, books, etc. must be in a box or suitcase to be taken to Annie's, where I'll be stashing my stuff while I travel).
4. Have Talia check me out, and return my key.
5. Give clothes I no longer want to Jess, or to the Salvation Army.
6. Send a box home of books, papers and some filler clothes.
7. Go to the Bridal Veil falls with the Van Gang (my last van trip in NZ!)
8. Go to the grocery store and bakery to buy food for Wednesday night dinner.
9. Cook meal for Wednesday night for me, Nath, Hannah, Paulien, Steve, Seval, Chang, Mima, Matt and Talia (and possibly Mima and Chang's flatmate Sabina).
10. Leave StudVille (for the last time) by 9:30 to catch my bus to Welly.

after that, I swear I'm on top of things.

the 21st partay

2006-11-03T20:06:00.000-08:00

well well well. last night. well well.

my downfall was probably the fact that straight away, i was stressed out. Annie, Nath, Seval and I went to the bar early to decorate, and as per usual, Annie was a mess. she forgot her wallet with her money for the tab, her DVD of family pictures, her book for people to sign, pretty much everything she was supposed to bring, and so was panicking trying to get people to bring all of that. i put my money on the tab and paid for the platters and gave them the cakes i baked for the two of us, and started blowing up balloons, which were popping nearly as fast as we tied them because, well, it's a bar, and there's tiny traces of broken glass on the floor. then my computer (which i had a panic about because i didn't think i needed to bring it to display our powerpoint--luckily i left my door open and Hannah grabbed it) didn't accept the output feed for the pulldown screen. we ended up just setting it on a table with Annie's book and my little poster we had people sign, with a sign on it to not have any drinks around it. nothing got spilled, thank god, my Lullabelle soldiers on.

people started arriving, though, and the party got in full swing, and after a tequila shot and a beer, i loosened up and had a fantastic night. it went by so quickly, all of a sudden they brought out the platters and cakes, our friends sung, and people started speeches.

anyone who knows me knows how much i talk; i never shut up when i'm wasted, apparently.

and i get really loud (louder than normal, which is impressive), because i was definately loosing my voice by the end of the night.

and i get really lovey. i professed my undying love to about a dozen people.

by the time Nath and Hannah made me go home, i was totally wasted and in the state i wrote the last entry in. by my count i had three tequila shots (though Seval swears it was four), though i have no idea how much beer i had. i had six before the bar, i bought two (i think), and Matt and Zoe and possibly someone else bought me one each. since i was running around so much talking with everyone, i kept losing track of my drinks, so i definately started grabbing any that tasted like Speights and may have been mine. yeah.

but i did not throw up! i definately did wake up still drunk, but sobered up after an hour or so. i'm not feeling too hungover, just groggy and i'm pretty sure i'll sleep really well tonight.

oh, how i HEART eddie izzard!

2006-10-24T04:46:00.000-07:00

so this is more or less how i'll be occupying my time now i'm done with school...

papers, bumper guards and cherry beer, oh my!

2006-10-22T03:17:00.000-07:00

today was fairly productive. i'm pretty sure both my final papers will be done and ready to hand in by this time tomorrow, should i stay focused. i shall prevail! i'm going to go over both word count limits, but i don't care, so long as i get them in by 4:30 Tuesday afternoon.

this evening has been divine. Nath cooked dinner for me, Hannah and Paulien, which was delicious, and a bit of a surprise for me since i didn't realize i was joining them until Nath had lopped food on a plate and called me to the table. and during dinner we had such funny conversations, all of them totally irrelavent to anyone else, but so much fun at the time, and sidesplittingly funny. i love those times, it's such an intimate memory that only you will ever truly understand why it was so great.

after dinner, Chang came by and told us that my darling face Mima was going through a rough patch the last couple of days, so me and him took her into town and went bowling at SkyCity! we played two games, and the first I got a whopping score of 8...so Mima went and requested the bumper guards to ensure no more gutter balls for any of us! the next game I got my highest score ever, 119, but the granduer is a little lessened when you have child-provention appartuses up. hehe, it was still an absolute blast and a half.

after my epic game, we went to Le Dome for Hoegaarten (white beer) and Kriek (cherry beer, and the love of my life...it tastes like Sangria with hops, it's divine) and just had a good chat. I love Chang and Mima soooo much! they may be two of my favourite people in the world. and i love my girls, too, so damn much! i want to remember these times as the wonderful times that are fleeting and sweet, and not be sad about them in the coming few months.

we'll see how that turns out.

tattooed freaky freak! as foamy would say...

2006-10-17T02:49:00.000-07:00

i'm done with psychology of women! just put the finishing touches on my journal, and am going to turn it in tomorrow when i go to K-block to talk with Carolyn about my Researching Gender paper. i only have two more New Zealand assignments left before i'm done with school. and today was officially the one month mark of my time left in New Zealand. one month from right now I'll be somewhere over the Pacific Ocean, on my flight home. i can't believe how fast it's gone. it's been so much faster than i ever imagined it would go.

well, this is where i explain the picture attached to this entry...it's, obviously, my new tattoo. the tragedy, apparently, in waiting so long between tattoos is you forget how much they hurt. this one definately was mighty unpleasant, but very worth it. i love that i'm going to take a little piece of Kiwana home with me! this is, for those perhaps unfamiliar, a NZ silver fern, only obviously done in black as you can't really do silver ink for tattoos, nor do i think you'd want to. it's pretty much the official emblem of NZ, and i think it turned out fabulously. i'll have to wear my hair up a lot while it heals, but it's nothing i haven't dealt with before.

Happy Early 21st Birthday to me!

tenative schedule for the 16-24 October, 2006

2006-10-14T19:13:00.000-07:00

Monday: Will write Psychology journal, and submit it. Hurrah, done with Psych! Will also hopefully meet with Carolyn about my paper for my Researching Gender class.

Tuesday: Tattoo day! Booked in at Famous Dave's at two o'clock! It's going to be so great.

Wednesday: Hash out some of my paper for Gender at Work. Like seriously, start writing!

Thursday: Will definately have talked to Carolyn by then, and will hash more through that paper.

Friday: Annie and Hannah will hopefully still have a car, and there's been discussion of going to Raglan for the day. Woo!

Saturday: Gender at Work paper.

Sunday: Researching Gender paper. Oh, and Happy 21st, Zac Hanson!

Monday: NZ Labour Day! But no time for bbqs or beer that day, will undoubtedly be writing last minute citations and conclusions for my papers!!!

Tuesday: Due day! Ahhhhhh! But then I'm done with an amazing year of schooling in NZ. My birthday party and traveling then awaits! How glorious it will all be!

have to earn a degree, after all, yes?

2006-10-07T04:14:00.000-07:00

i signed up for CJ360, Women, Crime and Justice as an online class from December 18-January 12th. figure it'll give me a head start on getting myself back in line for school at home. plus, it's a class I'm supposed to take for my major, and it might cross reference for my minor as well. we shall see. might just mean a bit less pressure on my graduation deadline.

no more Thursdays!

2006-10-04T21:20:00.000-07:00

i just completed my last Hellish Thursday! no more 9-5 Thursdays for this girl! of course, i'm not even close to in the clear...i have two tests next week, a journal, a 2000 word report and a 4000 word report to get through before school is over and out of my hair. but i am OH-SO happy to not have any more Hellish Thursdays! for a while, anyway...

Annie and my 21st, Kiwi style

2006-09-20T04:46:00.000-07:00

it's a treasured Kiwi tradition to throw a big shindig for a 21st, in much the way you do at home despite the difference in drinking age. Annie and I decided (her 21st being 1 november) to throw a double one, that would also act as our leaving party (but please, God, don't remind me that i have to go...) and today, after calling 'round to bars and clubs, we booked a space at the Handle Bar on 3 November for our party! there's no hiring fee, but we will put a tab on the bar and get a couple food platters for our nearest and dearest! it's going to be so much fun!

in other news, our weekend trip to Steve's house in the Coromandel was a blast. the weather wasn't as ideal as it was the last time we were there, but it was definately still a good time. Hannah and I boogeyboarded out on the ocean, and went farther out than we were comfortable with thanks to no inward tide and an awesome wind the other way, so it was a forty five minute swim back to the beach. but what'll you do? i'd LOVE it if i could go back up there before i go home, but there probably won't be time. planning trips to Taupo, Rotorua and Wellington in the weeks after i finish classes and before i fly home.

only 3 more weeks of classes! i can't freaking believe it!

wahoo!

2006-09-10T04:55:00.000-07:00

i got two marks back this week. ahem:

for my midterm Chinese exam: B
for my Psychology book review of Cunt: A+!

i'm v.v.v. excited about that last one, as i have the right to be. i think i did pretty well on the exam for my Gender at Work class i took on Thursday, but we'll see sometime this week, I'd imagine.

i still don't have access to my marks from last semester, however. i emailed my NAU advisor, but NAU won't recieve anything from Waikato until the end of the year. so i think I'll have to go to the departments if i want to know before November. but I think i'm in good shape for this semester, so far anyway!

annnd, break is over...

2006-09-03T05:04:00.000-07:00

so i accomplished most of the things this break i needed to. i haven't studied much for my G@W test, but i have looked at the questions, and it shouldn't be too big a deal. my Chinese test is way more important. and i didn't do my psychology journal, because i just couldn't be bothered. oh well. i did, however, decide to not persue a trip of any sorts after my time in NZ is over...i'd rather spend the money i'd need for that on getting a rental space with Annie for a collaborative 21st party. plus then i'll be able to go home and have a few days of chill time, then look for a job to start around Thanksgiving, if people are hiring. you'd think they would be, wouldn't you? we'll have to see.

on a way more awesome note, i drove my mate Matt's Suzuki scooter today for a couple minutes. holy. cow. so. freaking. fun. i want a scooter. no, seriously, Mommy, i don't need a car. a scooter is it. it's such power betwixt my legs, bwhaha.

2006-08-20T23:07:00.000-07:00

Well can't you see that it's just raining
there ain't no need to go outside...
But Baby, You hardly even notice
when I try to show you
this song is meant to keep ya
from doing what you're supposed to
waking up too early
Maybe we can sleep in
make you banana pancakes
pretend like it's the weekend now

And we can pretend it all the time, yeah
Can't you see that it's just raining
there ain't no need to go outside

they freaking got me.

2006-08-17T16:48:00.000-07:00

at some point, i knew my flatmates would prank me back. so i've been hyper vigilant in the shower, in my room, etc.

however, apparently i left my keys in the door last night (which one, i don't really remember), and erlend and hannah snagged them and put them in the money jar, filled it with water and froze it.

a pretty good one, i admit. but they're gonna pay.

aaaaaaaaand...break!

2006-08-16T20:26:00.000-07:00

waikato uni's midsemester break has fallen for this lucky exchange student. while TECHNICALLY a "spring break", i've got lots of shit to do. a-hem.

1. Finish reading Cunt and write a book review for it by next Wednesday (the due date WAS friday, but I asked for and got an extension)
2. Revise and seriously study Chinese (have test Monday 4 September)
3. Study for a Gender @ Work test (Thursday 7 September)
4. Conduct research for Researching Gender project
5. Meet with my group member for our G@W project (twice)
6. Catch up on Psych Journal (remember my kudos to myself when I was on top of that? yeah, that went to hell)

plus at some point during the break, nath, annie and hannah and i are planning a three day trip to Whakatane/White Island in the Bay of Plenty.

so i need to be muchos productivo these next weeks, people!

they'll never be able to separate Jekyll from Hyde...

2006-08-14T05:24:00.000-07:00

a local production company is putting on Jekyll and Hyde, a show my brother got me hooked on a few years back...tickets are going for 20-45 dollars, and i won't have to drive to bloody Arvada to see it!!! i think i've convinced one, if not two of my flatmates to go, so hurrah!

also, we placed fourth in the Don's QuizNite quiz tonight. not bad. but the bar manager, who knows us well by now, agreed to give us a bar tab if you plant flyers for some sort of Don's compition thingy...heh, easy beer!

tidiness! couples! traveling! oh my!

2006-08-12T23:19:00.000-07:00

we did a massive flat cleaning since, apparently, we no longer recieve the services of a house-keeper...it looks way nicer than if she'd done it anyway, so there. i even cleaned my room, and took pictures...i'll put them up soon, once i get some good shots of my flatties "living" in our tidy, tidy flat!!!

paulien and steve are on their way to bona fide coupledom, which is incredibly cute. it's a little strange that steve's appeared to get over Kristin so quick, but they never really were a "couple". anyway, it's cute and i'm happy for them. as for me, nothing has looked promising...the stupid boy from michigan from last semester spoiled me for guys anyway. so piss it.

study break is coming up soon! i think a trip to White Island, off the coast of Whakatane in the Bay of Plenty is in the works...other than that, not much else...since I don't have finals, i'm going to plan my trip to Taupo for late October, then down to Wellington. steve's talking a Coromandel trip again in September, and then a van trip to the Bay of Islands (north north North Island) before Annie and I fly home...shit...not thinking about that. this semester is racing along so damn quick!!! eeeeee!

prank war

2006-08-08T05:17:00.000-07:00

a prank war was called in the flat recently. okay, i totally instigated it. so far, i have:

startled hannah more times than i can count.
thrown cold water on hannah while she was in the shower (erlend did the same thing right after).
changed all the entries in hannah's facebook profile.
put a plastic weta in hannah's bed (unfortunately, she didn't find it before i fessed up).
put the weta in paulien's shoe.
stolen about six pair of erlend's underwear (he hasn't asked about them yet).
stolen nathalie's pillow.

so i may be in for comeupance. but it's been a good run, and i'm coming up with new ideas as i write this.

heh. i feel so deliciously evil.

NZ Official Picture SlideShow

2006-08-04T22:25:00.000-07:00

| View | Add Favorite

chinese and psychology

2006-07-25T19:47:00.000-07:00

last night, Hannah and I went for a Chinese dinner with a friend of hers whose birthday it was...apparently, this was a "traditional" Chinese meal...not at all like the horror stories I've heard, those obviously, once I get to China, i'll really know. but i have it on pretty good authority of the guy from China who set it up that it was closer to the real deal than most things, obviously. my friend from slovakia, Lizzie, is making my jealous with her pics from China...she's in Beijing studying. i am definately up for a trip there sometime soon. i have to admit, though, i miss the White Paper boxes of Chinese Wonder that are the American norm. sniff. and Chipotle.

on the school front, i'm acutally keeping myself in good standing for my Psych of Women class. go me! now if I can just apply myself that much for Chinese...think i can get extra credit for the meal last night? anyone? anyone?

i love Wednesdays...they're the best and easiest day of my week. i'm now done, and can gear myself up for the crap day that is thursday. at least then my week is over!!!

much better tonight.

2006-07-23T04:06:00.000-07:00

went to waingaro hot pools with studville...yeah, not the best i've been to, but it was free, so what'll you do?

saw nath and annie's australia video they made, and watched the Wedding Singer with nath, annie and paulien. it's been a great night, perfect to make up for yesterday. i do really love my new flatties, and though it certainly won't be the same, i'm glad i have the emotions out and dealt with. you'd think of all people to repress emotion, me, a freaking psychologist's daughter would not be one of them. eh, what'll you do?

i feel better now, and that's what matters presently. goodnight, all.

no longer in denial

2006-07-22T01:48:00.000-07:00

it only took me two weeks after the last person to leave new zealand (mateja) left to realize that they aren't coming back. A Semester is over, and i won't be going to kristina and hannah's for grey's anatomy, i won't see martin and romain at breakfast, i won't travel with erin, kristin and ina again, and mateja will no longer be there to wish me sweet dreams at night.

i wish i didn't hold this back for so long. i think it may hurt even more now. i hate having to say goodbye. i miss them so much now.

dude, that's just LAME-AS

2006-07-16T15:31:00.000-07:00

merriam webster online charges to look up words now. lame-as! i am ver ver unimpressed.

and the space cadet award goes to...

2006-07-16T15:24:00.000-07:00

...me. so what the hell else is new?

i got up early for my 9am tutorial, and instead of hopping into my gym clothes to go to class in and then the gym afterwards, i got in the shower and didn't realize my mistake until i had shampoo in my hair. and my new shampoo smells good, so screw rinsing it and going to the gym anyway...i might go tonight, if i can convince myself to.

i was also the ONLY person in the tutorial. it was nice having one-on-one time with chinese, but i think i'll just bite the bullet and go to the thursday one, adding one more class to my already hectic thursday load. oh well. fridays off will be that much more well deserved.

i freaking hate snakes...

2006-07-14T05:23:00.000-07:00

...and I'm REALLY disturbed how many news story i'm seeing about people finding them in places like cars and airplanes.

new zealand, however, is a snake-free zone. haha. i KNEW there was a reason i love this country so damn much. any country that's completely snakeless is utopia in my book. oh, wait. new zealand IS utopia.

Waikato is (hopefully) going to offer a Masters degree in Women and Gender Studies starting next year. if they work it out, i'm SO coming back here once i finish my BA! i don't care what loans i have to take out to get back here, if the program is offered, I'M THERE!

Semester B pictures

2006-07-13T21:35:00.000-07:00

Wilson

2006-07-10T21:45:00.000-07:00

Annie and Nath brought me back from Australia a liter bottle of Bailey's (sweet-as!) and a wee little wombat. hee. He's to be known as Wilson.

start of B Semester

2006-07-10T16:45:00.000-07:00

so officially everyone from last semester who was meant to go home has gone. it's sad, but it hasn't really sunk in, so i save the right to post a blubbering post of sadness when it does. oddly, annie is not leaving...she's staying at least through the next semester! yay! she and nath got back from australia last night. my flat is full again!

Semester B 6B Flatmates:
-me
-Nath
-Paulien (Holland)
-Hannah (England)
-Erlend (Norway)
-Maik (Germany)
-Seval (Turkey)

so we're a pretty diverse group again. i've been hanging around a lot with Paulien, Erlend and Hannah. we went to a comedy show last night at the Don. yay for the Don, as always contributing to my delinquency with cheap beer.

classes started yesterday, and i have my first Women's Studies class today in NZ! i'm so excited!!!

and i'll try to update a little more frequently.

.

2006-06-27T15:23:00.000-07:00

the fire alarm went off in my building at 5:30 in the morning yesterday. i was tres unamusant.

but one of my new flatmates has moved in! her name is Paulien, and she's Dutch. she actually studies at the university in the town Nath is from of all small worlds. she's incredibly sweet. i feel kind of bad for leaving for Aux for the next few days, but perhaps another one of our flatmates will move in soon.

and I spent last night at Ina and Chang's flat. i taught Chang how to make friiiied chick'n, which he did a MARVELOUS job with. good on you, Chang. and i saw Ina's movie i was an extra in=FANTASTIC. i'm so proud of you, Ina-bina!

i am the party goddess

2006-06-23T06:11:00.000-07:00

i threw a surprise birthday party for chang tonight. ina and mima bought me all the groceries and decorations that i asked for, and then i spent the day cooking and cleaning for the night. the surprise was pulled off perfectly, actually, and the party was a blast...we played a drinking game called "three kings" and people fiddled around with my music to put together party music, and all the food i made got eaten, save for a few pieces of cake.

most importantly, though, chang had a wonderful surprise and it made him and ina happy, which makes me happy. so it was a fantastic night, despite the millions of dishes i have to do, and all the cleaning that must take place tomorrow. oh well, it was totally worth it.

i said goodbye to kimbrough tonight, and tomorrow night will be the first night i ever have completly alone in the flat, as annie and nath are heading to australia, mateja is in the south island, the boys have moved out, lena will be moving out, and sascha is leaving for summer school at a little school called HARVARD. it's so surreal that the semester is done now. i really can't believe it.

edit on the grade front

2006-06-21T18:24:00.000-07:00

the B i reported on my Chinese test was only the grade for my 10% Oral Final. i got an A- on my Written Final, worth 35% of my grade. oh, how i RULE.

A Semester is almost over...so close i can taste it....

assignments, finals and what-not

2006-06-20T20:47:00.000-07:00

bounced thru my History final, so yay no more NZ History! i feel pretty good about it.

so thinking about my future again (and the far future to boot), i'm pretty sure i'll be able to graduate from NAU totally on time...just means i'm gonna have to load up my schedule with at least two 18 credit semesters and a 16 credit sememster (and that's if my Philosophy class transfers...if not, i'll have two 18s and a 19). 'course i could always take a winter or summer online class, but if i'm taking 18 or 19 credit hours in a sememster, i'll likely be pretty damned burnt out by the time winter or summer breaks come 'round.

buh-dum bum.

i also finally picked up all my assignments from the end of the sememster. i got a B- on my Philosophy quiz, a B on my Chinese final exam and a B+ on my History term paper. woo woo.

only 8%? and I'm already 20?

2006-06-11T18:45:00.000-07:00

create your own visited countries map
or vertaling Duits Nederlands

huh. that intimidates me. i have a lot of work to do, apparently. too much grey there for my taste.

oh, by the way, i got the padded envelope right after i talked to you bums. thanks for the stuff! damn nz post, though...grrr....Haaaaaaate.

if The Plague returns, i'll be MOST put out.

2006-06-11T09:01:00.000-07:00

on a less funny note, my throat hurts. the last time it hurt like this, i got sick. Haaaaaate. i will be MOST unimpressed if i get sick. only naturally, i'm out of Airborne, and my damn package has yet to arrive with new Airborne in it. Haaaaate.

hup hup Holland!!

2006-06-11T08:25:00.000-07:00

because i have a flatmate who cares infinanitily more about soccer than practicallity, we woke up annie's boyfriend so we could watch the Holland vs. Serbia-Montenegro FIFA game at one am. heh, Holland won, too, which gives us a reason why we're up this late dressed in orange, and wearing hats with gigatic soccer balls on them. heh, again, i say.

blast...

2006-06-05T06:44:00.000-07:00

me and ina, me immitating her famous "crazy face"

ina's film was robbed!

for the 48-hour film festival, hundreds of teams around nz made short films within a 48 hour time frame. that's it, two days, and one second is too late to submit a film after the deadline. my daaaahling ina-bina made a GREAT film under crazy stress. i'm so proud of her for getting it in, and following the rules so well, which one of them was that a mirror had to be a notable prop. 'course some films copped out on this by having the "guy-looking-pensive-in-the-mirror" or a car mirror as their prop...

ina's group had the mirror tell the story, practically, as a real class way of showing a really well-shot "sex" scene. and the quotes are cause they had clothes on, which ina specifically points out everytime. i guess you might have to see it to get what i mean, but it was cool.

the winner of the "best use of prop" at the hamilton finals? a group who broke a mirror when the main character slips on a skateboard, sending it hurtling into the mirror.

l-a-m-e. and i swear i'm not just being defensive. that should have gone to ina's group. arg.

nevertheless, it was fun watching all the films. and i got free beer and snackies. score! ina walked away happy, so that was all that mattered.

i'm going to miss her.

today

2006-06-01T04:21:00.000-07:00

so i'm officially done with chinese 101! yay! took my last test today, and i'm pretty confident i passed, but i have no clue as to an actual guess, and honestly, i won't even guess. we'll see when i get my marks in a few weeks.

i went to the optomotrist and within five minutes of me sitting down, she told me my eyes hated my contacts and they were drying out because of them. ironically, i'd changed contacts right before i got down here to a more breathable kind. but climate changes and all that make for no goodness for my poor little eyes, which usually look so bloodshot i've been asked on more than one occasion if i've been smoking weed. so she's got me on drops and we're going to trial some of the newest kinds on the market. is it weird that i think my eye doctor is this cool?

anyway, i went to the StudVille mid-winter dinner, which was pretty uneventful, save for the end when poor nathalie broke down crying, thinking about everyone leaving, plus news that she didn't get an interview for a job she REALLY wanted. it's going to be an emotional next few weeks. i can't believe it's just going to be the two of us soon...

lastly, i went to a performance of "The Laramie Project" that the theatre studies department put on. i was suitably impressed. okay, i was put off by how the ones who attempted american accents did southern ones, when they should have been speaking in my own rocky mountain non-accent, but they did a good job of it.

do i have no soul for crying during the performance during the vigil scene, but not with nathalie? after all, i love my friends here. i just haven't been able to cry for them yet. i know i will, though.

ow ow, my eyes!

2006-05-28T03:38:00.000-07:00

my eyes are definately getting worse. i don't know why, since i just got new glasses and contacts in february. it's v.v.v. annoying.

i'm going to the eye doctor nathalie went to this week. she says that i can get most of it covered thru uni insurance, and if my eyes are worse, like i'm 90% positive they are, i'll see if they can just replace the lenses in my glasses, since i love the frames. hopefully NZ has transistions technology.

end rant, and back to homework.

VIVA DA VINCI!

2006-05-25T18:57:00.000-07:00

went to see The Da Vinci Code last night with nathalie, and it was definately worth the 14.50 i paid to get in. stooopid blockbuster pricing. but yes, worth it. as per usual with movies made from books i covet, there are things i would have done differently had i been behind the camera calling the shots, but that's the bit of my brother in me. poor nath, though, english isn't her first language as i usually forget cause she speaks so well and only reads and writes in english, but there was a lot of terms and such in it that she didn't understand...so i explained a LOT of things to her during and after.

"i think i need to see it with dutch subtitles. or english ones would have helped."

course, she was one of the 12 people on the planet who hasn't read the book, so she's going to warehouse after her class to buy it. which, yay, after she's done, i can read it! *dances* then hopefully it'll come to campus movies, where i can pay 6 dollars to see it. *dances again*

it's nice doing things with nath, since soon it's just gonna be us. *sad face*

we did find out where our new flatmates are going to be from, or four of the five anyway. there will be another guy from germany, and then three girls from england, norway and turkey. norwegians are taking over my life.

i heart them, tho. so yay. i just hope these ones are on par the boys and mateja and annie and kristina and our crazy germans.

the first to see the sun

2006-05-21T02:04:00.000-07:00

Gisborne is the eastern most city in NZ, and one of the first cities in the WORLD where the sun rises in the morning because of its proximity to the International Dateline. nathalie, annie, mateja, kristina and i just got back from camping there for the weekend.

so my title says it all, folks. i was one of the first people in the WORLD to see the sun come up on Sunday, May 21st, 2006.

pictures to come.

pondering the end of the semester

2006-05-18T04:21:00.000-07:00

went to the Sahara Tent in town tonight with a slew of friends. SUCH amazing food...i think i'm going to go live in Turkey so i can eat that kind of food everyday until i never want to see it again. course, that probably isn't possible.

everynight, though, that i spend with my friends, i can't help but remember that we're one day closer to end of semester, and that means kristina, ina, martin, romain, hannah, annie...just about EVERYONE that has so made my year in new zealand so far will be leaving. and worse, mateja is going home at semesters end as well, as she doesn't feel like she should stay in nz as she still has no major, and the new major she's thinking of (elementary ed) won't work to try to take classes here. plus, south dakota state doesn't think they'll accept her credits she's done here. so nathalie and i will be the SOLE year long residents of flat 6B. it makes me too sad to think about. there will be SERIOUS drinkage the night the last one leaves. i wish they'd all just leave on the same day, to get it out of the way.

it's not fair having to say goodbye to people, yet again.

Romain's birthday party pictures

2006-05-16T02:24:00.000-07:00

pictures from the Coromandel weekend

2006-05-16T01:07:00.000-07:00

punakaiki and the pancake rocks

2006-05-03T23:12:00.000-07:00

nelson

2006-05-03T23:04:00.000-07:00

kaikoura and picton

2006-05-03T22:55:00.000-07:00

south island pictures--Christchurch

2006-05-03T22:51:00.000-07:00

weeks prognosis

2006-05-02T02:15:00.000-07:00

academic prognosis for this, the first week of May 2006:

monday: remember what i'm actually doing in new zealand: studying. wears avs jersey to celebrate playoff victory. go to history class and workshop, brief visit to the library to put a hold on the historical survey by Phillipa Mein Smith, and look into books from the Philosophy section that will help me with PHIL250 midterm paper. spend night, not necessarily studying, but watching Grey's Anatomy at Kristina's with Kristina, Annie and Nathalie.

tuesday: realize really must get the marked assignments from the FIC that have been there since before the break. have gotten A- on PHIL quiz on Locke (score, especially since i thought i bombed it), 19 out of 20 on History assignment (score, as i knew i OWNED that thing), A- on second round of Chinese workbook practice, and a solid B on my first Chinese test in almost two years (score, double score). find out book checked out from library will probably be no help. intimidated by the new Chinese tutor, who's mighty intense for such a small woman. gloat viciously that first-place detroit did not survive first round of playoffs, and 7th place avs did. gloat viciously a little more. sit in on a UN lecture in Jess, Alex and Tracey's 20th Century World History class, and wish i had taken that class instead of NZ History. realize i REALLY need to write this paper for PHIL (only about 1800 words...eeep). have dinner and sit down to gather sources for PHIL paper. write in LiveJournal/Blogger. will start PHIL paper, i swear.

wednesday: will write PHIL paper, i swear. 30% of grade. must write paper. have no choice. will also crash 20th Century World History again to hear lecture about women's and civil rights movements.

thursday: will turn in PHIL paper by 4:30 with feeling that I OWNED this paper. will decide on topic for History paper, and spend time in NZ Collection gathering materials for my proposal.

friday: will write my proposal and send it to History prof before noon. i swear.

long term prognosis: some stress, but level remains middling, at best.

treatment: weekend at the Coromandel Peninsula, where will not have to pay for accomodation or petrol...will contribute a pot of chili to the venture to show greatfulness to steve's parents.

noooooooooo!!!

2006-04-20T16:39:00.000-07:00

i'm about to cry. i mean seriously bawl.

i was nearly finished with the longest entry EVER that detailed my entire South Island trip thus far, and the PIECE OF SHIT COMPUTER i'm working on at this Internet Cafe DELETED IT. and LJ Autosave is no help.

booooooooooooo!

needless to say, i'm having a FABULOUS time, and everyone will just have to wait for my full update a little longer.

kisses, everyone.

what a bust

2006-04-08T01:47:00.000-07:00

gor!

americans must be glutunious with fireworks as with everything else, cause i felt majorly disapointed with the fireworks show. it lasted all of about 5 minutes. wtf? and the balloons inflated, but didn't take off...i guess if they're launching fireworks, balloons in the air aren't a good idea, but couldn't they have shot them the other side of the lake or something?

gor.

going to watch grey's anatomy with nathalie and annie then. boo, hiss, balloons over waikato!

of realisations and pub-crawling on a budget

2006-04-07T18:50:00.000-07:00

i am really am starting to think it's absolutely imparitive to have friends outside my flatmates. don't get me wrong, i love them to death, but i live with them, i can't hang out with them ALL the time.

so last night, i didn't. i went to a campus bar with ceren and kimbrough (woo! for Don's...cheap cheap drinks! handles of beer only 3.50! woo, again i say!), then to town to pub-hop. i have four different stamps on my arm now from four different clubs, and i discovered that kiwi's really REALLY like the "I would walk 500 miles..." song. tehee.

tonight is the last night of the Balloons over Waikato festival, and i'm going with some Kiwi friends, and maybe ceren and kimbrough again, and possibly mateja and kristina.

oh well. i'm off to the gym (yay healthy living after cheap beer!) and then i have to get ready for hot air balloons galore!

the past two fantastic days

2006-04-01T01:45:00.001-08:00

anyway, last night kristina and her roommate barabra had a house party...amazing fun even though i didn't drink! we made smoothies all night, which was so fun, and hannah, another american who's just fabulous, made SALSA WITH CILANTRO. there is cilantro on this island, people! i've missed it so. such a great night.

and today i went to the beach! hannah rented a car so she could go surfing in Raglan, and i tagged along. i know, i said not ten entries ago i don't like the beach, but i'm coming around. i swam in the ocean and played in the waves for the first real time since i almost drowned at 10 years old, and exorcised my pacific ocean demons. it was such a wonderful time.

then, on the way back to hamilton, we stopped at Bridal Veil Falls...i can't actually put into words how beautiful it was. my pictures will just have to do some talking.

Tada!

view from the top of the fall, 55 meters down.

girls weekend pictures

2006-03-28T22:08:00.000-08:00

the following are pictures of girls weekend, which included a fancy dress cocktail party at orchard park, and a night at kristina's that featured nathalie's first taste of cheesecake. a life without cheesecake?!?! what IS that?

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weekend and marks

2006-03-27T19:17:00.000-08:00

had quite a relaxed and calm weekend. the boys went away on a guys-only trip, leaving us girls (and Sascha) alone with the flat. it's amazing how quiet it is without martin and romain...i love them, but damn, they're loud.

today i got my first marks, one on the first workbook assignments for my chinese class, and the other for my first official NZ test (a 5% quiz, really, in Philosophy). verdicts:

A for Chinese
B+ for Philosophy

i rule.

a few more pictures, just for kicks

2006-03-22T14:37:00.000-08:00

My gaggle at the Vineyard on Waiheke Island

Erin, towering over (a mural) of Auckland

My Kiwi friend JJ and me, reliving Slovakia days on St. Paddy's

The whole gaggle of international punks I call my mates at the Minus 5 Degree ice bar

weekend in auckland

2006-03-20T14:06:00.000-08:00

i spent this past weekend in auckland, about a two hour bus ride from hamilton. my friends and i stayed in a decent though not stellar hostel right in the center of town. we arrived on st. patricks day, so no one needs it spelled out for them that there was definate drinking involved. however, due to the festive nature of the holiday, i had quite a few people buying me drinks, so money transfer was minimal. i wasn't even wearing that cleavagey of a shirt...perhaps it's my magnetic personality.

anyway, i got to see my friend JJ, who was an exchange student in Slovakia as well while i was there, and whom i got to be pretty good friends with. it was fantastic seeing her, and the overall night was pretty much a success. okay, there was a little taking in of a really bad falafel kebab that made my friend annie really sick, but the night was still good.

saturday we went on a little cruise to Waiheke Island, about 45 minutes away from Auckland. the island is GORGEOUS, as just about everything is here, i'm learning, and famous for it's wineries. we got turned away due to a closed tasting room and long wait at the first two we went to, but got an outdoor table and 4 wine tastes and a bread and dip plate for about 8 bucks, so it was a pretty good, relaxed afternoon.

the highlight of the night was the Minus 5 Degree bar (that's Celsius, so it's not as cold as one may originally think), an actual ice bar that was such a cool experience. i'll never do it again because of a bit of a hefty price tag, but as i went with a whole group of really groovy people, it was a monumental amount of fun and totally worth it. but it's a definate one time only experience...yes, i've been to an ice bar, haven't you? automatic cool points for me.

sunday we went shopping. everyone got sucked in to the cute shops along Queen Street...EXCEPT ME! granted, i saw a LOT of really cute stuff, but resisted and had the only uninjured pocket book by the time i got on the bus to hamilton. ha-freaking-ha, i win! self restraint! i possess it! who knew?

just gorgeous NZ pictures

2006-03-14T16:56:00.000-08:00

Mt. Maunganui

The RHPS Riff Raff Statue in Hamilton

The Mount

The Lake near my on-campus flat here at Uni

View from the top of Mt. Maunganui

more pictures

2006-03-14T16:50:00.000-08:00

Me NOT driving the van from Auckland airport to Hamilton my first day

My friend Annie (from IL) playing pool

Mateja (SD) and Nathalie (Holland) in Raglan

Mima (Slovakia!) and Romain (France) sharing a drink at a pub called The Bank

Mateja, Martin (Norway), and Romain at our very first flat-dinner

pictures

2006-03-14T16:44:00.000-08:00

My friend Ceren from Turkey at Hamilton Gardens

At Raglan beach

Out on the town

Me and my flatmate Mateja at our first rugby game

My friend Kristina atop Mt. Maunganui

the rumour was true...

2006-03-13T18:00:00.000-08:00

...mt. maunganui IS nicer than Raglan. after figuring out that i'm just not a "go to the beach and get sand in between my toes and EVERYWHERE else", i enjoyed my day there much more than Raglan. went window shopping in town, and swimming in the hot salt water pools...*loves*.the last couple of days in hamilton itself could be taken or left, definately, some crappiness i think occompaning the lousy weather. today the sun has shown all day, and though it's my officially crap-class-LONG day, i've gotten good news, namely that my Chinese prof will let me take my test that is currently scheduled for the DAY BEFORE fall break starts early so i can catch an earlier flight to the South Island, and save a ton of moolah. i'm managing. just wish i didn't have classes all day so i could enjoy this weather. ah well.

i regretably forgot my flash drive at home, so i'll post some pictures next time. peace out, i must away to class!

MEGA DEATH!

2006-03-08T19:28:00.000-08:00

there is.
no end.
to how PISSED off.
i am.
at Pierre Fucking Lacquiox.
right now.

HOOK HOOK DEATH DEATH DEATH Pierre. MEGA DEATH!

perhaps long awaited, an update

2006-03-07T16:33:00.000-08:00

I have no idea why New Zealand likes to make getting Internet so damn tricky, but it does. My flat will be getting broadband internet access by the end of the month, but until then, I'm restricted to using the library (which doesn't provide free access off the Uni of Waikato website: WTF inserted here) or Internet Cafe's. the Library is closer in between my two classes today, so here I go.
I'm still officially not homesick, but I do miss some of the comforts of home. I'm getting so used to everything here, though, and I'm so busy all the time it's hard to miss things too much. Last week, "O Week", school started, and my basic report on my classes is that they're fine. Philosophy will be tricky, but I like my Professor, so I'm good there, New Zealand History will be a bit dry, but duh, it's History, and Chinese is currently so boring I could scratch my eyes out...since it's 101, everyone is learning the basic characters for the first time, except me, so until we get a little more into it, it's bound to be dullsville. It should be fine in a few weeks, though. Every class here does three lectures and one tutorial a week, a tutorial basically being a lab. My history and Chinese ones will be cake, but my Philosophy is slated at 8am on Tuesdays. How the hell we're supposed to be Philisophical at 8am is beyond me. My tutor, Dan, though, is quite cool, and is going to try to push it back, so three cheers for him.
O Week is essentially a lot of pub-hopping and concert going, then going to first classes hung over, if at all for most. I successfully went to none of my classes hung over, though I did go to a pub Monday and Thursday nights, Thursday to see a really great Kiwi band, Elemeno P. The Lime-wire enabled would do well to get some of their stuff. Saturday night was a clubbing night, and since the drinks at pubs here are so god-awful expensive, I had a bottle of Riesling before we went out. In retrospect, the entire bottle was not such an ace-plan, but I didn't figure that out until a great night at the Bahama Hut was well over. Though someone please tell me now that boys named Matt are just TROUBLE and should be avoided.
Sunday was a cheap beach trip to Raglan, about 50km away...not bad for $2, but the weather was awful. We ate some good pizza in town, and now I've been to an NZ beach. This Saturday we're off to Mt. Manganui with the International Centre, which is apparently a much, much nicer beach, though I still only paid $5 to go. Yay. Then next weekend, my flatmates and friends and I are all off to Auckland for the weekend. I really, really love the fact I have no Friday classes, and no classes Monday until 3. I'm bound to get so spoiled here.
All this is definately been a lot of work, and a lot to get used to, but I'm doing so well. Sorry I can't update more frequently, but that should change the 27th. Unless Telecom screws us, which could happen to. I'm really off, now though, so I can look over the half of my Philosophy text I didn't read before class. Bye, everyone.

new digs, new people

2006-02-21T17:27:00.000-08:00

so i moved out of my temporary accomodation, and am now in my self-catered flat. i have my own room still, i lucked out with a corner room so i have two windows and a good amount of space. i dig my essentials shopping, got sheets and hangers, etc., and hung out downtown with Kim. my flatmates are all international students, all from different places: Mateja is from South Dakota, Martin is from Norway, Romain is from Paris, Nathalie is Dutch and Lena is German. i had to go to an unbelievably boring info session for Student Village, basically the Do's and Do Not's of living here. my friend from Turkey, Chiran, and I were going to go to a pub afterwards, but the place was a tad dodgy and closed early. instead, and this was extremely exciting to me, we went to a liquor store to buy chick beer, aka Smirnoff Ice Triple Black. woohoo for 18 being New Zealand's drinking age. i realized after leaving with my booze in hand that from now on, for the rest of my life, I'll ALWAYS be able to purchase liquor legally as i'll be turning 21 here. hee. the world is no longer a safe place.

back at my flat, Mateja was cooking dinner with two of her friends Kristina and Matt, both from the states, and Nathalie had two people in for drinks as well, Andi from chicago and Kylie, the lone Kiwi. Romain joined us, and the lot of us hung about, drinking not too much, but getting to know one another and generally being relaxed and groovy. i really, really, really like my flatmates, i love my flat, and i can't wait 'til tomorrow, when Leigh, the Res Manager for Student Village apparently gets buses to take us into town for us self-catered kids to buy groceries. have to pay for our own food, but the buses or whatever they'll be are FREE. i have totally scored here. seriously, i'll be so spoiled whenever i end up on my own.

i am so ridiculously happy here. classes start monday, and monday i have only one class, and a totally kosher schedule the rest of the week. i think i may have picked the best place in the world this time around for study abroad. i might be on the arrival high, and may be due for a crash anytime, but right now i'm having such a fantastic time!

first day of orientation week

2006-02-19T12:35:00.000-08:00

so after being quite the bitch hermit in my room when not wandering about the city, i sat outside in the courtyard to meet people, which was a total success. i met a few of the RAs, who told me people were playing volleyball, and amazingly, i played and had a good time. i met up with Kim, a girl i had been on the shuttle from auckland with, and we chatted, so i have a friend on campus now. the two of us met up for breakfast this morning, and now i'm sitting in the international office NOT paying for internet. yay, free internet makes me a happy clam. we have an orientation at 10 oclock, and then i'll probably so a little bit of essentials shopping. the summer school kid who is occupying the room i'm supposed to be in still hasn't moved out, but i'm okay living in my dorm room...still, apparently i get a sort of flat, like a full kitchen and bathroom shared with only a few other people. *does a little dance* anyway, i'll be letting Kim use the computer now, so i'll try to update again soon!

i'm in new zealand!

2006-02-17T16:45:00.000-08:00

so, it's been a trip, but i'm at last in hamilton, and sort of settled in.

first, can i just tell you how obscenely beautiful this country is? it's currently a tad on the roasty-toasty side, 76 with 63% humidity, but i'll get used to it. just have to drink a lot of water. i've taken a few walks, and am currently in an internet cafe downtown. hamilton seems like a spunky, fun place. and RHPS freaks, listen up: Richard O'Brien lived and worked here, apparently paving the way for him to write the play. there, i kid you not, is a Riff Raff statue in the middle of town. whenever i can get pictures uploaded to the internet, i'll prove it.
i'm not in my permanent digs yet, as there's someone else living in the room assigned to me. my temporary place is good, not the apartment-type thing i wanted, but perfectly livable. i'm just happy to not be having to look for flats like the other people i drove here from auckland with. most of the group the University driver picked up with me were Americans, plus two Germans. everyone seems nice, i actually bumped into two of the Americans, Andres and Nicci today, and we bought cell phones together. yes, i know, that was fast. but i'm happy to have one, and be contactable.

i've made a few mistakes already. i locked my keys in my room when i left to brush my teeth this morning, and had to chase down the RHD of Student Villiage to let me back in. she's very nice, so there's no problem there. i also just bought two, count them TWO, random sandwiches for 12NZD that were made of chicken, avocado and i think cranberry sauce. it's not too bad, i suppose...i guess i have a meal for later.

all in all, i'm so glad to be here. getting here was harsh, i actually missed my connecting flight to san francisco from las vegas, but the us airways people had a ticket for another flight that got me there in plenty of time to catch my LONG sfo-auckland that night. plus, since i flew on star alliance airlines, they were able to check me in all the way to auckland from denver...score! and the flight was NOT 18 hours as i had reported, but 13. apparently the flight back is longer. i'm not too jetlagged right now, but we'll see how things go.

i miss people in the states, but i really feel like i got a good place here! i doubt i'll be updating too much, but i'll try to whenever i can! loves!

2006-02-09T18:52:00.000-08:00

i have a suticase packed! my cds and dvds i'm taking are set! yay! i'm on my way in less than a week! wahoo!

2006-01-24T21:59:00.000-08:00

awesome. freaking. game. will rewatch it on tv now, thankyouverymuch.

2006-01-19T20:33:00.000-08:00

i think it's all emilio esteves' fault. officially. that is all.

revear the talking scarf!

2006-01-15T18:10:00.000-08:00

i hate Bill OReilly...and I think I may LOVE David Letterman

2006-01-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

Many Ready to Spar With Bill O'Reilly

By DAVID BAUDER, AP Television Writer 2 hours, 26 minutes ago

NEW YORK - If Bill O'Reilly truly loves a good fight, then he's had quite a week.

The Fox News Channel personality's confrontation with David Letterman Tuesday night made for some gripping television. The cranky "Late Show" host told his guest: "I have the feeling about 60 percent of what you say is crap."

That same night, nemesis Keith Olbermann on MSNBC once again named O'Reilly his "Worst Person in the World," this time for battling with two people at The New York Times. That's the 15th time O'Reilly has been cited since Olbermann began his half-facetious, half-serious nightly "award" to wag his finger at bad behavior.

For whatever reason, it seems more people are willing to step into the ring with the host of cable TV news' No. 1 program.

But they'd better beware. Combat may be as essential as oxygen to him.

O'Reilly has already logged many minutes on his TV and radio shows to talk about what he called his "shootout" with Letterman, and posted a video clip on his Web site. He gave a telephone interview to "The View" to say that he didn't feel ambushed.

"I had no problem with the interview," O'Reilly said. "I enjoyed it."

The interview began poorly — with an uncomfortable silence after O'Reilly said he had "a nice winter solstice" — and went downhill. Letterman disagreed with O'Reilly's contention that de-emphasizing religion during the Christmas season was an example of political correctness eroding tradition.

"I don't think this is an actual threat," Letterman said. "I think that this is something that happened here and it happened there. And so people like you are trying to make us think that it's a threat."

They jousted over peace activist Cindy Sheehan, who O'Reilly said has referred to Iraqi insurgents as freedom fighters.

"It is a vitally important time in American history," O'Reilly said. "And we should all take it very seriously, and be very careful with what we say."

Responded Letterman: "Well, and you should be very careful with what you say also."

Letterman said he was "very concerned about people like yourself who don't have nothing but endless sympathy for a woman like Cindy Sheehan." That's where he issued his content analysis of "The O'Reilly Factor," although he admitted he didn't watch it.

On O'Reilly's TV show the next night, Fox News analyst Juan Williams likened the segment to a knife fight. "In some sense, it's like someone inviting you into their house and you find out you've been invited by, you know, John Wayne Gacy," he said.

A high-profile confrontation like this solidifies O'Reilly's relationship with his fans, said Martin Kaplan, an associate dean of the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California.

"He lives and breathes attention and combat," Kaplan said. "If he were to go on a friendly venue, there would be no story. It's made in heaven for him to be in a fight with Letterman."

O'Reilly has been atop the cable news ratings for four years. His average nightly audience increased from 2.42 million in 2004 to 2.49 million last year, although his ratings dropped among viewers younger than 55.

Kaplan said he believes O'Reilly's Christmas campaign may have backfired on him. "In TV sitcoms," he said, "they call that `jumping the shark.'"

During an interview with Newsday's Verne Gay in October, O'Reilly sounded weary about the scrutiny of his critics and their attacks. He even mused about retiring in a couple of years.

For the past 18 months, the liberal Web site Media Matters for America has assigned a monitor to O'Reilly's radio and TV shows, and alerts critics to alleged misstatements. And Olbermann regularly tweaks his time slot competitor, particularly since starting the "Worst Person in the World" segment last June.

"He's writing this material for me," Olbermann said. "I'm thinking of sending him a check. Day after day he just gets weirder and weirder and weirder."

Olbermann said he's thinking of holding fire a bit lest it seem like an obsession. While he's not a watchdog in a serious sense, Olbermann said that "it's important to me that you provide an alternate perspective to whatever the elite is in a given field.

"I look at them — they're clearly the popular clique, led by the bullies in the school — so if you get an opportunity to point out what stupid thing has been said or what moronic action has been encouraged by them or simply when they have fallen all over themselves in relation to the facts, you should do it," he said.

Olbermann pleads innocent to being holier-than-thou because of his show's willingness to point out its own mistakes. "I'm sure I will eventually make the list," he said. "I will be one of the worst people in the world."

He may already be, at least at Fox News Channel's office. O'Reilly, who didn't want to talk for this article, has referred to Olbermann — although not by name — as a "notorious smear merchant" and pointed out his low ratings. (Olbermann's typical audience is about one-sixth of O'Reilly's.)

Network spokesman Brian Lewis was even more pointed. "Perhaps (NBC Universal chief) Jeff Zucker should think twice about tying his future, not to mention the reputation of (parent company) General Electric, to an unstable ratings-killer like Keith, who uses an NBC property for his personal attacks," he said.

Who will have the last laugh?

It's worth noting that nearly 2.7 million people — about 200,000 above last year's average — tuned in to watch "The O'Reilly Factor" the night after he went toe-to-toe with Letterman, according to Nielsen Media Research. O'Reilly's younger viewership was up 20 percent over his December numbers.

Thank GOD for the RCMP

2006-01-04T18:47:00.000-08:00

"Perhaps, our mothers never explained to us that it was not a good idea to play with handguns whilst using the restroom. But then again, maybe that was supposed to be a given."
-The Royal Canadian Mounted Police

2006-01-02T23:02:00.000-08:00

harry potter. IMAX. free. *dances* nuff said.

2005-12-29T20:51:00.000-08:00

p.s. tracy, you're crazy.

Confessions of a Feminist Dromomaniac

Why Am I Bothering?

*wipe wipe wipe*

open request to Sprint/Nextel

in a nut shell

i liiiiiiiiive

Botulism

Food-borne and wound botulism

[edit] Incubation

woo!

an open letter

...can't believe it...

three more amazing quotes about feminism

in response to the Virgina Tech shootings, and all gun-related tradgies

Brilliance

technoJOY!

Orlando Bloom on Extras

a response to prude parents

Denver Blizzard of 2006 pictures

bwhahaha

snow

how i LOVE little fishies, don't you?

gor!

i love Xmas!

Taupo pics

Wellington pictures

my last night in Cellblock 6

Another To-Do List

the 21st partay

oh, how i HEART eddie izzard!

papers, bumper guards and cherry beer, oh my!

tattooed freaky freak! as foamy would say...

tenative schedule for the 16-24 October, 2006

have to earn a degree, after all, yes?

no more Thursdays!

Annie and my 21st, Kiwi style

wahoo!

annnd, break is over...

they freaking got me.

aaaaaaaaand...break!

they'll never be able to separate Jekyll from Hyde...

tidiness! couples! traveling! oh my!

prank war

NZ Official Picture SlideShow

chinese and psychology

much better tonight.

no longer in denial

dude, that's just LAME-AS

and the space cadet award goes to...

i freaking hate snakes...

Semester B pictures

Wilson

start of B Semester

.

i am the party goddess

edit on the grade front

assignments, finals and what-not

only 8%? and I'm already 20?

if The Plague returns, i'll be MOST put out.

hup hup Holland!!

blast...

today

ow ow, my eyes!

VIVA DA VINCI!

the first to see the sun

pondering the end of the semester

Romain's birthday party pictures

pictures from the Coromandel weekend

punakaiki and the pancake rocks

nelson

kaikoura and picton

south island pictures--Christchurch

weeks prognosis

noooooooooo!!!

what a bust

of realisations and pub-crawling on a budget

the past two fantastic days

girls weekend pictures

weekend and marks

a few more pictures, just for kicks

wipe wipe wipe