Woohoo! Kate's here-that's Kate L., if you were confused. I'm very excited to have her visit me; it's too bad that the weather decided to be so obscenely cold. Coming from LA to this could really shock the system.
Good weekend planned. Karaoke tonight with a few friends to ring in the birthday. Okay, I guess that's really pretty much the whole plan, except for shopping today. Some time in there, Kate and I will sneek in at least one tourist destination.
And, no, don't even ask: I did not get done with all of the things I had to do this week. I practically got none of them done. This was just one of those weeks. Glad to have hit the weekend.
And since I have nothing else to say, here's the results of a Mitsubishi poll of wacky street names in the US.
10) Tater Peeler Road (Lebanon, TX)
9) Intersection of Count and Basie (Richmond, VA)
8) Shades of Death Road (Warren County, NJ)
7) Unexpected Road (Buena, NJ)
6) Bucket of Blood Street (Holbrook, AZ)
5) Intersection of Clinton and Fidelity (Houston, TX)
4) Intersection of Lonesome and Hardup (Albany, GA)
3) Farfrompoopen Road--only road to Constipation Ridge (TN)
2) Divorce Court (Heather Highlands, PA)
1) Psycho Path (Traverse City, MI)
Saturday, February 25, 2006
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Overwhelmed
I am absolutely beyond overwhelmed this week. School work and a lot of (mostly good) outside responsibilities have combined to make this week out of control.
For example, I spent hours on Monday filling out background checks for my job. Yesterday, I ran to the other side of campus to get one of those forms signed. And then I discovered that I can't even complete the forms until my new passport comes in the mail in March.
I've been to health services (I'm fine, really), been running all over trying to get all the financial stuff worked out for my research assistantship, and today I'm meeting a friend of a friend (we've been trying to find a time to meet all semester; of course it would be this week). What's most stressful is that I'm not even very successful at all my running around. Everything seems to take extra effort this week.
And then there's our mock court. For our legal research and writing class, we're doing a moot court. And the way they've timed our assignments, pretty much all the work is due right now.
Well, my birthday's coming up this weekend. Kate's coming for a visit (yay!). I'm hoping to be stress-free by then.
For example, I spent hours on Monday filling out background checks for my job. Yesterday, I ran to the other side of campus to get one of those forms signed. And then I discovered that I can't even complete the forms until my new passport comes in the mail in March.
I've been to health services (I'm fine, really), been running all over trying to get all the financial stuff worked out for my research assistantship, and today I'm meeting a friend of a friend (we've been trying to find a time to meet all semester; of course it would be this week). What's most stressful is that I'm not even very successful at all my running around. Everything seems to take extra effort this week.
And then there's our mock court. For our legal research and writing class, we're doing a moot court. And the way they've timed our assignments, pretty much all the work is due right now.
Well, my birthday's coming up this weekend. Kate's coming for a visit (yay!). I'm hoping to be stress-free by then.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
Diversions
So I stole this from Kate. It's one of the fun, narcissistic activities on the web. I think it will be an interesting experiment, if you want to try it. Visit my Johari Window.
In other news, I'm super excited because I'm going to be working as a research assistant for a professor here. I'll be doing historical research--my favorite kind. And I get paid. Yay!
In other news, I'm super excited because I'm going to be working as a research assistant for a professor here. I'll be doing historical research--my favorite kind. And I get paid. Yay!
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
He Said, She Said
Thought I'd share some great quotes from today:
This morning I was walking (reluctantly) to class when I heard a little kid having a temper tantrum. "No, I don't want to go to school! I'm tired! I wan't a nap!" Amen, sister.
Property today was about whether or to what extent we own our bodies. A few of my favorite moments:
Professor: "What if a state court said, 'We don't like due process much, so all these things that used to be called property are now called schmoperty?'"
Professor, on organ donation: "A brain donation would be the most--you can't even, well, think about it."
Professor, telling us about a barber who sold Lance Armstrong's hair: "If I were Armstrong, I'd be creeped out by that. I just felt the need to interject that. Oh, there are no more hands anymore."
Student: "If I cut off my finger, I can put it in my freezer."
Professor: "Put it in soup or something."
And in the spirit of Valentine's Day, here is an article with hilarious overheard quotes about love.
This morning I was walking (reluctantly) to class when I heard a little kid having a temper tantrum. "No, I don't want to go to school! I'm tired! I wan't a nap!" Amen, sister.
Property today was about whether or to what extent we own our bodies. A few of my favorite moments:
Professor: "What if a state court said, 'We don't like due process much, so all these things that used to be called property are now called schmoperty?'"
Professor, on organ donation: "A brain donation would be the most--you can't even, well, think about it."
Professor, telling us about a barber who sold Lance Armstrong's hair: "If I were Armstrong, I'd be creeped out by that. I just felt the need to interject that. Oh, there are no more hands anymore."
Student: "If I cut off my finger, I can put it in my freezer."
Professor: "Put it in soup or something."
And in the spirit of Valentine's Day, here is an article with hilarious overheard quotes about love.
Friday, February 10, 2006
Sorry if I've Offended
Feeling better. But this week has prompted a good deal of thought (nothing better to do when you're sick). It seems like almost every day since I've gotten here that I have found myself having to defend (or being offended by comments about) my/others' race, religion, or gender. It's not that outward prejudice is rampant. Most of the stuff is a little more under the radar screen.
For example, in my Constitutional History class, someone argued that blacks wouldn't have been better off with "40 acres and a mule" after the Civil War because they were so uneducated they "could hardly communicate with eachother or anyone else." So, let me get this straight: blacks couldn't figure out how to farm. They had only been the life-force of the plantation system for a couple hundred years! If he was referring to illiteracy, most poor white farmers were illiterate as well.
The sub-text of the comment seems clear enough to me. But I find that when I try to call people on these sorts of statements, they don't see anything wrong with them. And it happens in conversations about race, religion, and gender all the time. To paraphrase Jennifer Aniston's post-divorce description of Brad Pitt, it's like some people are missing a sensitivity-chip.
On the other hand, I do believe it is possible to be over-sensitive. Apparently, some animal rights groups and others are up in arms about the new Curious George movie. I get the impression that they have the same objections to the movie as to the books. Basically, they claim it has imperialist undertones, and that since zoos are inherently cruel, a story about a monkey who (kind of) lives in one sends a bad message. Okay, I may not be painting the fairest portrait of their claims, so if you want to read what they say, check out this SF Chronicle article. I just think sometimes people get a little too worked up.
For example, in my Constitutional History class, someone argued that blacks wouldn't have been better off with "40 acres and a mule" after the Civil War because they were so uneducated they "could hardly communicate with eachother or anyone else." So, let me get this straight: blacks couldn't figure out how to farm. They had only been the life-force of the plantation system for a couple hundred years! If he was referring to illiteracy, most poor white farmers were illiterate as well.
The sub-text of the comment seems clear enough to me. But I find that when I try to call people on these sorts of statements, they don't see anything wrong with them. And it happens in conversations about race, religion, and gender all the time. To paraphrase Jennifer Aniston's post-divorce description of Brad Pitt, it's like some people are missing a sensitivity-chip.
On the other hand, I do believe it is possible to be over-sensitive. Apparently, some animal rights groups and others are up in arms about the new Curious George movie. I get the impression that they have the same objections to the movie as to the books. Basically, they claim it has imperialist undertones, and that since zoos are inherently cruel, a story about a monkey who (kind of) lives in one sends a bad message. Okay, I may not be painting the fairest portrait of their claims, so if you want to read what they say, check out this SF Chronicle article. I just think sometimes people get a little too worked up.
Monday, February 06, 2006
Sick
That pretty much says it all. I developed a fever yesterday. Today I still have one. Just thought I'd check in between naps. Had to go to class today because I was on panel in Property (didn't get called on, thank goodness), and I had my first Constitutional History class. I love it already. Yeah, I'm a nerd. Okay, back to sleep.
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