Variation Swimming

Today, I was swimming around, and wondered, "man, the Olympics have been using the same swimming techniques for AGES." I mean, you have the breast-stroke, back-stroke, regular... reagular? you know what I mean... butterfly, diving. Can't the Olympics committee be a little more imaginative once in while. You know -- mix things up a bit. So many of the other competitive sports have had some new goodness introduced, even if it's just only concerning the ability of the athletes, as in the case of the quadruple axis in figure-skating. Some sport really don't have much to work with in terms of creating something new. Speed-skating is prety much what it will continue to be. Running. I'm not sure what you can do with that. And some new sports have been introduced such as Snowboarding. That's cool.

But swimming -- it seems like there's so much you could work with there. I invented 3 new ways to swim jus this evening. And yo ucould also have a breath holding contest. ... although I suppose Olympics are more likely to be described as a competition rather than a contest.

Still, I hope.

Revelations

First off... everything on this computer is in Korea, making it sometimes difficult to move about the tubes of the internet in a way that exemplifys the German Efficiency that I have come to admire over the years.

Korea has been cool. We arrived in Busan from Seoul a couple of days ago. Things have been really interesting. Being the only white person you see in a day brings quite a perspective to the world. Here are some things I've learned so far.

1.)Asians are in fact horrible drivers. Imagine a whole country full of them with cars. I understand suddenly why those in America have a bad rap -- because they are in fact really bad drivers. It's not all their own fault really. Here, cars, vespas and motorcycles have priority over pedestrian life. It's frightening.

2.)Koreans love neon lights and Jesus, and take every opportunity to combine the two.

3.)Koreans do NOT care if you are in their path while they are walking. The old man with the cane with BEAT YOUR ASS.

4.)80% of the younger girls here are cuter than me, but don't let Justin know that.

5.)There are no trashcans in Korea. Except in restrooms. But there aren't really restrooms in Korea.

6.)There is an entire world of fashion districts underground. That must be why people are so pale. Everyone is always shopping.

More revelations to come.

Overall, the experience has been great. Only old ladies at the market yelled things at us which my mom and I assumed to be obsenities. Other people have been friendly and helpful in a city where try as one might to learn basic korean (I did on my 13 hours plane ride over here, memorizing a bunch of words, numbers, and conversational fragments), you can never pronouce it correctly and you might as well be speaking french to people.

I'll post one pic

SPRING BREAK WOO!

I'm leaving for South Korea tomorrow. I have to get up in 4.5 hours to leave for the airport, so i'm going to go to bed now.

But first... I really really dislike flying.
It makes me nervous.
but my mom said that there should be free alcohol, so I'll be fine.

Judgement Day

I have never recieved so much judgement from a single person within 4 hours.
I must admit, to a certain degree, my mother has impressed me with her ability to criticize/comment on in that "tone" every aspect of my life ranging from my hair to handsoap situation (we won't get into the handsoap situation).

Let me see what I can remember:
1.) Even before she got here, I called her while she was on the freeway to see where she was. I told her that I was going to turn in my essays that are due on Thursday via Justin, since I would be in SD. This was the first judgement.
2.) I opened to door to let her into my building. She looked me up and down, and had a weird look on her face. I let it slide.
3.) Handsoap, The Incident of the
4.) We leave my apartment to head out to the elevator. We don't even make it there and she says something about my hair (the first of many direct hair judgements of the afternoon). This actually caused me to be angry at her for sometime. I went back into my apartment and really didn't do anything with my hair, but when I came out she said that it was much more acceptable.
5.) So, are you still working that police department job?
6.) Commented on how my roommate looks pretty and put together, and then looked at me with a disappointed face.
7.) "Do you like my tank top?" .. reply: "Well, if it was ironed."
8.) A series of comments on how she likes me more if my hair is long
9.) A series of comments on how she wishes my hair had highlights, and insisted that you could still see my dye-job in my hair (which is wrong... it grew out.... I'm officially all-natural)
10.) Oh... yeah teaching is ok.... you should really focus on that economics.
11.) Started picking at my heel with a "what's this?"... it was simply a little red from my shoes. That was the last straw in which I told her to leave me the fuck alone (but in a nice way).

I sweat to God, nothing I do can please that woman.

Not that I'm trying -- oh god no.

Jesus, take me now.

Confessions

There are people who asked me to watch their laptops.
I'm not. I'm a little too concerned with my own ... concerns. Such as my final. Scratch that. Such as... avoiding studying for my final. Which is in 3 hours. hoorah!

Bobby says that my posts have too much a socialist undertone to them.
I'm pretty sure if my parents thought i was a socialist they would disown me. Those olde former Soviet block people are really against that sort of thing. But apparently they're still for disownenment. (is that a word?)

My (not so) Secret Crush

Ira Glass.
What a beautiful name.
What a cool person.

I'd love to meet him.

If by chance you don't know who this lovely fellow is please observe the banner to you right -->
That's him. Host of "This American Life," quite possibly one of the best forms of entertainment your ears could ever have the pleasure of experiencing. Go to itunes now, and download some episodes (they're free). I'm in the process of obtaining the last 10 years of the radioshow. That's a lot of listening.

It's a show about people in America. Everyday people with interesting, and completely true stories. And because it's real, it's so completely relatable. The program is so well done ... it's captivating.

They're coming out with a TV show for it. It looks good, but alas, I lack Showtime. I'll just keep listening to my iPod.

I would love to do something like that at UCLA. "This Bruin Life" or something. UCLA Radio always needs people. Hmm.... ideas are brewing.

And Justin? What does he think about all of this crushing?

He has a crush on him too, so I think that makes it ok.

The First of Final

Tomorrow is my first final. Genetics. Can't say I'm really looking forward to it. However, I do find that it has turned into one of those classes that makes a lot more sense upon completion of the course (thankfully... at this point, unfortunately ... at the point of all of the midterms up until now). I was studying last night, and I was getting the feeling that I knew what was going on (which is a good feeling to have two days before the final). Anyways, I suppose I'll do ok on it. Enough to pull off a B in the class, which seems to be the standard for me now-a-days.

Although I tend to do well in Ecology and Environmentalism classes... which I guess is nice seeing as that's what I want to keep studying. My current environmentalism class was going well up until a couple days ago when she assigned us the take-home final. Now, she gave us a take-home final to begin with because she didn't give us enough time to do the in-class midterm (which I did... ahem... very well on.... :-)). So I was safe there at least. The premise of a take-home final intrigued me because I had never had one before. My roommates have had them, and although they were not especially lengthy, the questions tended to be more difficult than for an in-class test.

Yeah. My professor is a fucking nutcase. On Thursday night, she assigns 3 papers, each 8 pages long. Due Tuesday
Holy Shit. I mean, I'm impressed on a certain level with your shear ability to grade that many papers in a week, especially since it took you weeks to return our midterms. We were able to negotiate it until Thursday. I just finished one of them (I'm so sick of agriculture right now) and will do the last two after my last final Tuesday night. I'm going home to SD on Wednesday so that will be kind of annoying because then I have to entrust someone (probably Justin) with the responsibility of turning in the hard copy on time.

Whatever. I'm so tired of writing. My brain is dead, and all I want to do is play WiiPlay. Soooo much fun.

Valerie Plame Needs to Shut Up

I don't know if you have heard of Valerie Plame. She's been in the news a lot in the last couple of years. She says her identity as an ex-CIA Agent was revealed in 2003 to discredit her husband, a former diplomat, for criticising the Iraq war. No-one has been charged over the leak, but the vice-president's former top aide was convicted of perjury.

Now, I suppose she's upset because she feels like maybe her life, or the life of her family could be in danger. I doubt many people care who she is ... and I'm constantly forgetting about her. But you know, I'm constant re-reminded of her time and time again when she continues the case, and the media covers the story.

So, I'm telling her to shut up about it. Stop reminding people who you are.I'm sure terrorists have bigger things on their minds than orchestrating a kidnapping of your dog or something.

One

A lot happens in one year. A lot *has* happened in one year. It is truly amazing how in 365 days my life completely changed – and all from a single decision. Recently, I have been thinking about the impact people have on each other’s lives. People say all of the time that they can’t live without a particular person. But life does in fact move on. People die, and life somehow goes on without them. Love is found, lost, and re-found. What does it mean to love, and what does it mean to die? (This is why I can no longer listen to 50% of “This American Life” episodes without being driven to the verge of tears). I’ve been dealing with this issue a lot recently, and though I’d rather not ever think about it, I constantly am, and of course, now I’m writing about – maybe to help me clear up some thoughts.

I don’t want to deal with Death right now, so let’s move onto Love. I’m certain that the first time I bring myself to deal with Death is when someone I know dies. I guess that’s just my style. Anyways, the two aren’t all that different. They involve loss and gain, and the stages of mourning should be co-labeled as the constant characteristic of Love.

For right now though, Love is the real issue at hand. In the last year, I’ve had the opportunity to open a door to an amazing experience. But of course, we all know that a door had to have been closed before hand … a door that for so long, seemed like it could never close.

I know that it sounds silly and dramatic, but I didn’t know if it was possible to feel the same way about someone, yet alone feel more. I didn’t think about Love, or what it meant, anymore beyond the fact that in my experiences it had been deceiving. What else could Love ever be but infinite? I thought that, and I lived that … but in the end, it wasn’t. Well, that’s a partial lie. It remained. … but it changed form … and it left me with hurt, and it left me to hurt. I didn’t want to deal with it anymore.

To be honest, when I got into a relationship with Justin, Love was not on my mind. Actually, that’s another partial lie. I was thinking about how much it sucked, and how much it ruined things, and hurt people … and how easily it drifted and came back, only to drift away once more to find its place elsewhere. It couldn’t be trusted. Instead, I strove to build a relationship upon interests, fun, honesty and affection. I didn’t want to place myself in a position to be hurt, or to hurt, again.

But things changed when I fell in love. Damnit. -- it got me. You know what though? It works. It works because the effort was made in the very beginning to base the bond upon commonalities, not vested interests. It was more like, “Wow. Being with him is *fun*. He actually *likes* doing the things I like to do,” rather than established as a means to fix a problem, or to do something for the reason that it could be done. It was genuine (it still is), and I think that sets it apart from everything that has failed to succeed. It’s because I wasn’t forcing it, hoping that it would change everything. It all just … happened. Naturally. And that’s when I realized that it is not a day to mark progress that matters – it’s everyday from now on. It’s today. And tomorrow. It’s everyday that we’re together, and everyday that we’re apart. They’re all the same, equally beautiful and worthwhile to experience.

I love him. Genuinely. I really, really do. It’s amazing how uniquely exhilarating it all is.

The 1 Year Test

I'm at the student store right now, and typing on a computer that has the largest screen ever. It's overpowering really. I mean, it would be cool if I was playing a game right now, but I'm typing this and then I'm going to check my email --- a screen the size a TV seems a bit overkill, really.

Tomorrow Justin and I will have been going out for a year. Bobby said I shouldn't remind him because he thinks he'll have forgotten. See, I think that's a bit cruel. I *know* he's forgotten, and I don't really care, but I just wouldn't want him to feel bad when I give him something. He's been really busy lately anyway. He had a paper due and a final today. Sucks.

Anyways, although we both agreed that it would be kind of funny to not tell him, that's just mean. And plus, I refuse to be one of those girlfriends that "tests" their boyfriend I don't feel comfortable knowing that he doesn't know something and then just not telling him.

We're going out for breakfast tomorrow. i like going out for breakfast because it's one of those meals that you really don't go out for. It'll be fun. There's this really cute bakery in Westwood that I'll have him take me. Cute.

Wonderful Dream; Horrendous Reality

Last night I had a dream I met up with some people at a diner. We were sitting in a booth, and I sat next to this guy I didn't know. It turned out he was Stephen King, and his hand a strong affiliation for my leg. It was uncomfortable, but I thought that I shouldn't say anything so that I could get him to autograph a book for my dad.

The we all went out to this field/meadow. Apparently, I spilled something on one of the guys while we were by a log. I started heading back to the place were other were, but I headed back to the guy upon realizing that he was angry with me. He wasn't really angry. He said I was too likable to be angry with.

Then I was alone on that side of the field. Everyone else had gone back. I went to run but instead... i flew. And it was so nice! I was flying around and everyone thought it was amazing. Then I turned into an actual bird and almost ran into another bird.

And then I woke up and realized I was going to be late for class.

Ice Scream for Sandwiches

It's really hot today. So, about half-an-hour ago I decided to go out and get myself an ice cream sandwich. Damn, it was good. I remember in elementary school, every couple weeks they would sell ice cream sandwiches for 25 cents. I would buy 4 and just eat them for lunch. That's the School Nutrition Association at its finest.

I had the traditional ice cream sandwich, but the pic of this one seems silly to me. I mean, an ice cream sandwich is silly enough... but really? A sandwich with ice cream?.....please.

LOA

I told my boss here at the City about my extended leave of absence. She didn't seem too pleased, but I suppose there isn't anything one can do about it... until, as she made cleat to me June 31st, when the new fiscal year begins and it isn't a hassle to hire someone new. The conversation was actually a whole lot nicer that that may seem.

It'll be good though. I'll at least be working here a year by that point, and we'll see if I decide to keep working here. I guess I just need to see what other opportunities come up. Because seriously, I can't stand it here anymore.

fun fun fun. goodbye.

Rubiks Cube Super-Challenge

It's really just solving the damn thing. I'm trying to figure it out. I'd say I'm about 1/4 of the way there. Jason and Adria taught me the moves to make the first and second layer. It's easy until you forget them.

Insufferable Dependance?

I was reading the NYTimes last night, and there was this really interesting article.

It's about clinginess -- a word, as indicated by the squiggly red line seen in Microsoft Word, that is not recognized to have any significant meaning by a computer dictionary at the very least. However, it has become an integral part of the disliked relationship. Clinginess is looked down upon, but can simply be a healthy dependence mislabeled as that horrible, ghastly word. I'm not going to go into the discussion in depth, so you're welcome to read the 2 pg. article that's an easy read.

I don't generally describe myself as clingy. But lately, I've begun to view myself in that light. And after reading the article, it made me realize that I'm not in fact clingy at all. I'm just the only one who makes the effort.

I'm the one who makes the phone calls. I'm the one who organizes things. Why is it that I have to play the peacock? Why is it that women in general have to? Women make the largest biological contribution to a contraception (hooray for evolutionary studies kicking in), therefore women should be be choosy. If that boy over there doesn't give me what I want, screw him... because I'm not the one that should feel like I'm competing over him. When did chivalry die? When did all of those men stop competing for the village beauty, and instead somehow convince all the girls to pine over them, to dress up, and to seriously, and unfortunately end up looking like peacocks at times?

... I think it happened when the quality of the male went down. I can look around UCLA, LA, SD... any place I go, and good guys are difficult to come by. They'll either lack some standard form of intelligence, have their collar popped up, be rude, be too short, be too tall, can't make a conversation, indescribably horrendous body odor etc etc. When did this happen? When can a girl suddenly not find anyone worth her while?

Maybe that's what it is. What can seem like clinginess to guys, or even girls, really is the partner's mind freaking out over the fact that they found someone worth their time ... and when it hits them that there isn't an over abundance of good people anymore... they have to hold on.

Or maybe I just want to be swooned over for once. Well, for once in a long time. Swooning takes energy, and I'm a busy girl. And most importantly, I'm coming very close to just "getting over it." What's the point of exerting so much time and energy when it's not being reciprocated by someone who has time and energy (maybe not the energy part, but still)? Or maybe I'm just not getting the message. Maybe I'm missing something here.

The Model CSO

I really need to get myself to write more. Things are happening, people are annoying, and a great part of the world is going to shit -- words must be written!

I worked baker 2 last night. First night in a long time... probably since the summer. It was a good night. Nothing all that exciting happened from a policing standpoint. One guy up on the reshall crew was calling in some sort of suspicious activities but I think he wanted to be all sneaky about keeping obs on them; he was talking so quietly into the radio... it was so mysterious listening to him. Control didn't like the intrigue. Matt yelled "YOU ARE EXTREMELY LOW VOLUME." It was funny. Jeff was saying how police officers don't even care about being quiet if they are calling something in. They'll yell it if they want.

The Department has been using the same boring photos to advertise the CSO Programs, so we finally convinced them to take new ones. When I came into work last night, Eric told me that a photographer was coming to take pictures of the people on that night. So I got a bunch of pictures taken of me on my bike. It would be funny if I became one of the "faces" of the department, given that I work so little. ... although that'll change after this quarter. Being on the bike was nice. I think I might even sign up for the shift permanently.

When I was visiting Jason and Kaufman, Jordan came and we played Lava Floor. I won. Mostly because I survived and she died in the Lava. Shit happens.

Autumn Leaves

I found this article to be so entertaining. It's about one man's quest to find Autumn, a desktop image that comes standard with Windows. Here it is. Enjoy.

Circle of (my) Life (in a cubicle)

I got to work here in Downtown about 10 minutes ago. I plugged myself into my iPod, with my songs on shuffle. The first song was "Circle of Life" from the The Lion King. That was a wake-up song.

WAHHHHHHHH ZABANGAAAAA ALA Titsivava...... ohhhhmmmmm wangaya wangaaaaaya

WAHHHHHHHHH etc etc.

And so my least favourite day of the week begins.