11/01/11
I had an awesome Halloween party. Thanks to everyone who was able to show up. And surprisingly, I got a Wii system for my birthday. So far I have two controllers and nunchucks, the games Super Smash Bros, Super Mario Bros, and I just got Sengoku Basara today. ^.^ I've been playing that one pretty much all day long. So if anyone wants to come play with me (I have discovered how hard it is to play Sengoku Basara with one player) let me know!
In other news, I was finally able to pick up my new glasses prescription today. Holy fuck! I had no idea how blind I was until I put the new glasses on. I'm serious. My eyesight has gotten a lot worse in the past year. I do believe from now on, I shall be known as four eyes because I CAN SEE! I have no intention of ditching these babies anytime soon.
Also, I've got a question to anyone who knows anything about computers. In our house, our internet is working perfectly. Except my laptop keeps loosing internet frequently. Could that be because my hard drive is on the verge of dying (my laptop is almost five years old and I do need to replace the hard drive) or possibly because I need a new internet card (assuming I have one)?
Hope everyone is doing alright!
11/08/11
At around eight o'clock last night my dad got a phone call from my cousin Jeff. My uncles Joe and Gilbert had gone hunting and my dad was supposed to meet them this weekend. Uncle Gilbert was getting ready for bed when he noticed that uncle Joe had stopped breathing and didn't have a pulse. He had to drive out thirty minutes just to get phone reception to call the paramedics. He managed to call Jeff, his eldest son, before the paramedics arrived and he drove back out to take them to him. Jeff then called my dad (Uncle Joe and Gilbert's brother) and uncle Chris (the youngest brother). None of them knew what to do, so my dad quickly packed a bag and went to go get uncle Chris. They then drove two hours out to go meet up with Jeff, and had to drive for another three hours before they reached the campsite. During that time, we got another phone call around ten o'clock informing us what we all suspected. The paramedics were not able to revive my uncle Joe. The campsite has been packed up, arrangements have been made to get uncle Joe's body home....and now we're just waiting to find out what happens next.
Uncle Joe was the best uncle anyone could ever have. He died doing what he loves best and he will always be missed.
11/15/11
OMFG! I have spent the last six months applying for jobs in the United States and have not gotten one single fucking interview. Then last night I decided I was going to try applying for teaching positions in Japan. I filled out TWO job applications and then this morning I woke up to discover an invitation to an interview this week in San Francisco! What does that say about the US? God our economy sucks. And I am sooooooo excited!
I'll be driving down with my dad on Friday, the interview is on Saturday from 9:30am to 6:30pm. Hopefully they will still think I am worthy after all of that and I'll find out shortly if I qualify for teaching English as a foreign language in Japan. Either way, WOOT!
11/26/11
Now that I have caught everyone up on what has been going on in my life, I can tell you what is currently going on. First off, I did not get the job that I went down to San Francisco for. Which is fine, because after taking what they deemed a "grammar" test, I figured out that they are not up to date on their grammar and wanted me to be teaching old shit. I left, went to the museum, then got a hold of Saya and spent the evening with her. We returned home on Sunday.
On Monday, I got a hold of Christina (who had just gotten back from Korea) and Tam (who had just gotten back from Jamaica....). Can we say jealous? Anyway, Christina brought back a ton of suvies! Before she'd left, I'd given her some cash for Yaoi-con hoping she'd bring me back some stuff....holy fuck did she ever! I got a Sesshomaru plushi, a picture of Yoko Kurama, a phone charm from Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi and some seaweed. Then from Korea she got me some slippers (that I am completely in love with), a face mask (which was pretty awesome, if cold), a bookmark, hair clip (so cute) and a pair of earrings. I gotta say, what a way to cheer me up! After that, we started watching a Bollywood movie that I'd bought with one of my favorite actors in it...sadly not one of the best ones ever made. Then we looked at both Tam's and Christina's pictures. :D
The very next day, I got a phone call from Japan! It was from the Kindergarten job that I'd applied for. They told me that while the January position had been filled, they wanted to call me at a later date for a position that was opening up in April. So excited!
Lets see....I went out and about asking just about every store if they were hiring...I've got a couple of potentials that I hope to hear back from...
Thanksgiving was awesome, I'm still pretty stuffed and eating tons of leftovers.
Think that's about it.
- Location:my room
- Mood:awake
- Music:Various Korean music.
In other news, due to the fact that I have so much time on my hands (seriously people, just call me to hang out and I'll gladly escape this house) I have been spending a shit ton of time playing my PS2. I am seriously almost finished with the Kingdom Hearts 2 game. After that...well, I'll have my Rule of Rose game...and then I'm out of games. Time to start praying for a PS3 to drop onto my lap.
I can also state that I will not be joining the Navy. I know, I really wanted to do so. But I wanted to get into the officers program, and no matter how many times I called them, they never got back to me to tell me if there were any slots available. This tells me that there ARE NO slots available and I'd have to start as an inlisted. Which is pointless since I have a BA.
PLEASE READ THIS:
That said, I have also decided that I'm going to take a page out of a friends book. Because my focus is in editing, I am going to throw myself out there for my friends. If you want me to edit something for you, I will. That said, I'm going to start charging people. Since most of what I get is short, I'm willing to charge no more than a dollar a page. However, if you want something rushed, I will charge extra (you would be surprised how many people have asked that of me). Since this would only really work for friends that know me, I am willing to negotiate alternative forms of payment if money is an issue.
Hope to hear from you guys!
That done, I'm trying to get a hold of mom on the phone, dad's getting checked over by a hot doctor *cough* and we finally find out that dad has a kidney stone trying to pass. Which, they repeatedly stated that that was the closest males could get to understanding what women go through during childbirth....needless to say, I am afraid I started laughing.
They get a CT of his innards and they find out he has four more in his kidneys....I blame his work. Prescribe him some meds and then mom drives us home.
Which leads me to today. Dads kidney stone still hasn't passed so mom took him to the doctor again....and is now set to have surgery on Thursday. Why they are making him wait that long, I don't know, but whatever. I guess they have to prep the surgery room and whatnot.
While all of this has been going on, I have been seriously contemplating joining the Navy. My hope would have been Coast Guard, but the Navy isn't much different.
Pros:
Fat paychecks (I'd be an officer with my college degree)
Masters Degree paid for
Travel
Great on resume
Not really any jobs out there right now...
Cons:
Six years service minimum (I'd be 28 when I got out)
Could be away for months at a time
Potential to be in fighting area (though not extremely likely due to being on ships...)
Could die?
Might have to cut hair
Do...you think I should join?
- Location:in my room
- Mood:
stressed
In the living room: The bookcases.
In the dining room: The kitchen table and stand by the table. The piano.
In the kitchen: The counters.
The hallway closet needs organizing.
The office needs organizing.
My bedroom.....the bookcases need to be decluttered and organized (boxed up another words), my decorations need to be boxed up, my posters and painting need to be taken down, my closet needs to be boxed up, my dresser needs to be organized....
So. Here I am, fretting over getting a job and moving out myself. Suddenly I have to help mom and dad with moving out. If people are able and willing...I could seriously use some help with boxing things up. Asap.
- Location:in my room
- Mood:
anxious
To start with, you all know that I'm graduating at the end of this term. Because of this I've been busy hunting for jobs. And I mean busy. My goal was Corvallis, so I looked up and found that Corvallis has six book publishing companies. Five of which are not hiring and one of which has yet to call me back. The bastards. I've looked for library jobs, secretary jobs and even office jobs. No such luck.
So I moved my search to Eugene. *sigh* They have two publishing companies, one of which I was rather hoping to get into. But neither of them are hiring.
So off I went to Portland. They have ten companies...and I think there is more that just isn't being listed since Ooligan was not among them. But anyway, I called all ten of them and was informed that they aren't hiring either, though two of them wasn't sure so they said to send in my resume just in case.
In a word, I'm not impressed. Frankly, I'm starting to wonder if it's even possible to get a job with just a BA in English. Most people tend to go off to be writers and publish books. And those that don't usually go in for an MA in something. Which I'm hoping to do so, but I need money first. And even if I did have the money, I still need a job in order to pay for an apartment. Quite frankly, I'm worried that I may have to look outside of Oregon. And I don't really want to do that. Despite what my grandparents think (and my parents for that matter), I'm quite happy where I am. I'll move to different cities if need be, but I'd rather stay in the state I'm currently in. At least for the time being.
Suggestions?
- Location:campus
- Mood: annoyed
Out of all the plays that we have read so far in this class, I have to say that Rover was the one that caught my attention the most. At first it was simply because it was such a confusing play to try to read through, but after I went back to reread the play, things started to become clearer. The Rover is such a dark play, hidden behind happy frivolous parties and a randy nun, immediately catches your attention from the very beginning when Hellena and Florinda begin the play by talking about their wishes to fall in love on their own, rather than be forced into an arranged marriage or to the nunnery. In this play, we can see how women were little more than possessions to be bought or sold in order to make the most profit by men, and if they were deemed to be of little value, coming from a poor background, then they were thought of as little more than whores.
I think one of the most interesting scenes worth mentioning is the one where Pedro and Antonio start fighting over a picture of Angelica. From what I had first gathered, they both wanted the woman for themselves and were prepared to pay the price for her virginity. That alone would seem disgusting, but since that was what was considered normal during that time period it was to be expected. What had me really surprised was that even after Angelica opened the window to find out what was going on in the courtyard and asked them to stop, they ignored her. It would seem that Pedro and Antonio were more interested in having the honor of deflowering a woman of high class and being able to claim that they owned the beautiful woman. Neither of them cared whether or not she herself cared about them, or the fact that she was trying to get their attention.
Sometime after, in Act five, William, who was with Pedro and Antonio while they were fighting over Angelica’s picture, is seen trying to rape Florinda. In this scene, William thinks that Florinda is a peasant woman, and therefore fair game to have sex with, even against her will. When Florinda tries to reason with him, telling him that she would cry “rape” if he did not let her go immediately, he informed her that
“A Rape! Come, come, you lye, you Baggage, you lye: What, I’ll warrant you would fain have the World believe now that you are not so forward as I. No, not you, — why at this time of Night was your Cobweb–door set open, dear Spider — but to catch Flies? — Hah come — or I shall be damnably angry. — Why what a Coil is here. —”
By saying this to her, he was informing her that the upper class think of women, especially poor women, as little more than “baggage” and that anything she said about an upper class man such as himself taking advantage of her would just be ignored. Claiming that she was the one to come on to him, simply because she would be trying to get money from him. And when she tries to speak, to inform him that she herself is an upper class woman, he interrupts her. William did not want to hear anything she might have had to say, he only wanted to relieve sexual tensions, if he had listened to her, he might have been forced to think that what he was doing was morally wrong. Unfortunately for him, he had to stop anyway because people had heard the shouting and Florinda used that to her advantage to escape the scene, since it would not due to be found by her brother Pedro, who was attempting to marry her off to someone else in order to make money off of her.
If that was not enough, later in Act four, scene five, poor Florinda is once again almost raped by Frederick and Blunt. As she is trying to reason with them, they, like William do not listen, but suddenly are paying much more attention when Florinda shows them her diamond ring. By having a ring of such quality, it is implying at the very least that she is a woman from high class, and as Frederick states, “I begin to suspect something; and ’twou’d anger us vilely to be truss’d up for a Rape upon a Maid of Quality, when we only believe we ruffle a Harlot.” Apparently raping a “Maid of Quality” is a very bad thing, but having sex with a lower class woman is only considered a “ruffle” not rape and that they are only “harlot’s” otherwise known as whores.
In conclusion, I think it is safe to say that during that time period, before King Charles the second took the throne, women were seen as little more than property to gain money by having. And with the creation of this play, the writer, Aphra Behn, was able to give a taste to anyone watching it, what exactly it might be like for any woman at the time being forced into arranged marriages, or the nunnery if it so suited the father of the daughter. It had a taste of humor in order to make the play seem that they were not trying to prove a point, but at the same time, make them think a little about how their actions may be affecting the women around them. I would also imagine that any women who were watching the play at the time would have been extremely uncomfortable, maybe to the point where they may even have sympathized with the lower class women, enough to try to do something about it. Or maybe they were too busy fearing that something like that may happen to them and were becoming more wary of men in general. Either way, with the happy ending of Hellena and Florinda marrying the men of their dreams, it inspires women to fight against the oppression of the time, to take matters into their own hands and to try to change things for the better for all women, not just women of high standings.
Work Cited:
1. Behn, Aphra . The Rover. 1677.
- Location:my room
- Mood:
chipper - Music:Whiskey Lullaby
While reading the book Shell Shaker, written by LeAnne Howe, there was one theme that really stood out to me in the book. Whenever corruption is taking place, particularly in the face of what the Choctaw deemed Osano, otherwise known as “a predator of his own people,” (24) the people, particularly the women from the Billy family, would find a way to make things even in order to maintain peace. This book takes place in both the past and the future with the past taking place in 1738, where the Choctaw women were known for sacrificing themselves in order to protect the younger generations and to maintain a sense of peace between various tribes particularly the Red Fox village. It is amazing that the women in the Billy family are very courageous, despite being looked down upon, in order to not even pause in stating that they are the murderers even if they are not. In the current time, 1991, there is the beginning of a court system that, while still corrupt, is obligated to at least attempt to find the truth behind the murder of Redford McAlester.
In the second chapter, titled the Will to Power, Howe created the character Auda Billy who had fallen in love with the man Redford McAlester, but after he went off to college he became a man that was corrupted and power hungry. Auda had tried to forgive him of all the transgressions he was committing, like stealing money from the mafia and assaulting her, but eventually she had enough and after heading home she envisioned a shell shaker telling her
“Auda Billy, do you hear? Do you understand? We have returned. You can use any fire. Use them all. There are woods stripped and burned for you. There are dead leaves to feed the flames. There are words burning inside the wood. Amid the fires and more fires, amid woods and rivers, amid wind there are voices. The copper-gilt medals of the foreigners have lost their luster forever. Inside this turmoil we have slept. This day we branch our antlers and dress. Your time has come. Black time becomes red.” (25)
And just like that she put on the red dress that McAlester gave her, which she refused to wear in the past, thinking of it as the red war paint that her people used to apply to their faces when they are out for vengeance and headed out to go confront McAlester. All the while thinking “You can use any fire,” (25). By stating “we have returned,” Howe leads us to believe that the women of the Billy family that died in the past trying to protect their people from the Osano are not only trying to tell Auda that it was okay to bring justice for herself and her people, but that in the end she would be protected. That her people would in turn protect her. As for the comment about the “copper-gilt medals of the foreigners have lost their luster forever,” that could be taken to mean that their lust for land, in order to gain precious minerals such as copper, can be turned against them, as it was a gun that killed McAlester. And obviously the phase from “black time to red” is Auda’s way of knowing that her time of mourning what has been done to her and her people is over, it was now time for vengeance.
The next scene we see is Auda lying on the floor with the gun beside her and McAlester dead. At the time we did not know that she has been injected with insulin, which if someone is not diabetic, that is a very bad thing to have added to your system. It was no wonder she passed out. But it was because of this that she was carted off to jail and was informed by a police officer that he was charging her with the murder of Redford McAlester, stating that “although there are no fingerprints on the weapon found at the murder scene and no powder burns on your hands, I believe you are guilty as charged,” (28). Ironic that they were actually attempting to use proper court procedures, but at the same time they still had issues with accepting the evidence, or lack thereof and were quick to accuse anyone scene at the crime scene. It lead me to wonder if part of the issue might have stemmed from the past when there was the daughter accused of killing a Red Fox clan member and ended up having the mother killed instead. Maybe they felt that they could finally seek proper vengeance for the lost soul. Whatever the case may have been, because the sheriff accused Susan’s daughter of murder, she immediately stepped forward and did exactly what one of her previous shell shaker ancestors did and attempted to take the blame in order to not only protect her child from the Osano, but to also bring peace to her clan by being able to place the blame on someone, in this case herself.
Unlike her previous ancestor, she was not killed when she informed the deputy “Osano abi bolle lit tok,” (29). But it was because of that statement that they were forced to hold a trial for her daughter, and eventually it comes to light that the man that Redford McAlester was stealing money from was the actual murderer.
Without this interference Auda might not have received a trial at all, which leads me to the conclusion that there are various outcomes that can take place by having the women in the Choctaw clan speak out in order to “make things even” in the face of corruption. Auda might have been planning to kill Redford McAlester, which does make her guilty of intent of murder, but she was not responsible for the murder itself. Also, by having Susan attempt to make things even, she ended up forcing the court to come up with more concrete evidence to prove or disprove her daughter’s innocence. And that evidence consisted of an old woman with a recording of the murderer claiming that he would “splatter Chief’s brains all over the state of Oklahoma if Chief don’t return the money he stole from Hector’s Italian family back east,” (215). And then went on to explain how she watched them wipe the fingerprints off of the gun and drop it next to Auda’s unconscious body. It is also because of this odd dynamic aspect of their culture that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and definitely intend to keep this book on my shelf to read over and over again. Thanks for the great term!
Work Cited:
1. Howe, LeAnne. Shell Shaker. San Francisco: Aunt Lute Books, 2001.
- Location:my room
- Mood: calm
- Music:Just Be Friends
American Indian Lit: B
Graphic Novel: B+
English Drama: A-
Senior Capstone: Enhancing Youth Literacy: A
I SURVIVED!!!!! *cough* Yeah, anyway the next two entries will be papers that I completed this past term. Yes, I technically completed more than that...I'd say around fifty (not joking), but since they aren't big ones I don't see the point. Also, I would post my final project for Graphic Novel...except I'm seriously thinking of refining and finishing that one in order to someday publish.
Which brings me to my next comment. I am one busy woman. No really! I am cowriting a book series with Ara-tun, I'm working on several projects on my own that I hope to someday publish and as of yesterday I am now the cocreater of a game. Yes, you read that correctly. I have a friend that has been working on it for quite some time now and she asked me to help her come up with character history and whatnot. Needless to say, if one gets really popular, the others shall be noticed. CHACHING!
On a rather happy note, I am very pleased to say that this is my last term in college possibly forever. In three months time I will have a BA in English with a minor in writing. Am I happy? Beyond. Only thing is that my parents were only able to pay for the first four years of college (which is great since I don't have any loans) and with my sister now in college, they cannot afford to pay for grad school. What do I want with grad school? I want to be an editor in the book publishing world. But because there is no spare cash, I am intending to take at least two years off of school and work to save up money....note how earlier I said "this is my last term in college possibly forever." Yes, "possibly forever" is what I said. The really nice thing about the publishing world is that I don't necessarily have to get an MA in order to enter the business. I can start from the bottom and work my way up.
Neat right? You betcha! I've been looking at publishing companies in ********* where I'm hoping to land a job. Nice thing is that I can be a house mate with Ara-tun. More house mates = less rent. ^.^
I'm sure there is more that I could be saying, but I'm honestly drawing a blank...that and I need to go brush my hair (just got out of the shower).
- Location:my room
- Mood: chipper
- Music:Lady Gaga
If that wasn't enough, dad's official deadline for moving to Washington is in September. What does that mean? I need to be moved into an apartment by then. Am I stressing? Yes. I still don't have a job, which is making me nervous since I obviously need one to pay rent.
But hey, that doesn't mean I haven't accomplished anything, I've actually gotten a lot of stuff done lately, just that I tend to focus on what still needs to be done.
Done with that, I feel like I need to post this video on here. I understand why the United States might have banned it in America, but at the same time, I really think some people need to sit down and watch this. People need to wake up to reality and understand the serious consequences of texting and driving. I have plenty of friends that drive, and some of them do text while driving, but at least they are smart enough to only text at red lights. Still...this video should be spread. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMYKXSPg
- Location:my room
- Mood:accomplished
1. Trench coat (OMFG IT'S SO AMAZING)(and I really did need a new coat)
2. Rice cooker and steamer (dude, I'm a Caucasian woman, but I will admit that I embody Asian culture...I NEED a rice cooker. And since I'm moving out this summer...perfect timing)
3. Season 1 and 2 of Star Trek: The Original Series (can I just say FUCK YES BABY?)
4. The "collector's edition" box set for Sherlock Holmes. It's got two movies in it, Incident at Victoria Falls, and Sherlock Homes and the Leading lady....but OMFG it has a special dvd added to it called The Secrete Identity of Jack the Ripper!
5. The Unfortunate Events volume 2
6. SMUT *cough* I love my friends. One friend got me a yaoi book and another is at yaoi con right now buying me stuff.
7. 25 dollars from grandparents...and a rather nasty card directed towards parents. I swear, they are just digging a deeper grave.
A lot of my friends are off in various locations for college, so I have a feeling I'll have more later, but overall, a very awesome birthday. And I got to go to my favorite restaurant, Ichibans.
- Location:my room
- Mood: chipper
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