Sunday, September 25, 2005
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Words of wisdom and encouragement from Nick
well you are young, and this is the point. sucks don't it? they don't tell you this stuff at orientation. what you are going through is social and spiritual reconstruction. you are searching the bends of your being finding things they you like and dislike. i know it sucks now, but you can trust me that you will come out the other end wiser for it. just maintain that you are the most important thing right now. watch out for yourself. if you're unhappy look to why and how it can be amended. on the other hand be comfortable with your solution. don't move against your will. work with your environment. all these bitches driving you nuts? spend as little time there as possible. find a coffee shop on the edge of town. strap the ipod in and find your peace.
Monday, September 19, 2005
Wild flowers
The east side of the Carrizo plain, in the Temblor Range, about 50 miles due west of Bakersfield, California.
Sunday, September 18, 2005
Po Po
This past Friday evening was a crazy one. Went to a house party of people I had been friend's with last year. Hung around for 20 min when Rachel had to pee (surprise?). As we're heading back downstairs one of the people who lives there goes- hide in the bathroom- the cops are here! So I'm hiding in the bathroom with 4 freshman girls; call Rachel who is hiding in the bathroom next to me. Get a call from Steph who says the GET OUT: the cops are giving everyone 5 min to leave. I become extremely scared to leave. Meryl calls: GET OUT NOW!. We run past the cops and a scared Jason to Steph and her car.
-Sigh of relief-
After we slow down our hear rates and clam down, we have Steph drop me and Rachel off at Phi Psi. We hang around there for 30 min, chatting it up and stuff and decide to go to another house party. Sober sis comes to pick us up and off we went.
Get to the house party to find that you have to pay a $5 donation to Katrina in order to get in. Blah. Then inside, there is all of this Monster energy drink and people who look very professional bartending. Someone tells me the party was sponsored by Monster. Cool. So we're chatting away. I chatting with a senior who was in SDT but deactivated. She has no regrets... Then all of a sudden, everyone is leaving. And I was just like, huh, I wonder why everyone is leaving. Then I hear someone say pretty casually, there is a cop at the backdoor. So I say RACHEL, put your drink down now we have to leave- there is a cop. So we hightail it out of there with the other underage kiddles to find a cop car pulling up the front. Luckily we just kept on walking, and ended up in a parking lot of some apts. End up walking 4 or 5 blocks to one of the kids I met townhouse (I was with his friend who I knew and Rachel- so not sketchy). Then, we call our hero who comes and picks us up and gets us safely home from our crazy night.
-Sigh of relief-
After we slow down our hear rates and clam down, we have Steph drop me and Rachel off at Phi Psi. We hang around there for 30 min, chatting it up and stuff and decide to go to another house party. Sober sis comes to pick us up and off we went.
Get to the house party to find that you have to pay a $5 donation to Katrina in order to get in. Blah. Then inside, there is all of this Monster energy drink and people who look very professional bartending. Someone tells me the party was sponsored by Monster. Cool. So we're chatting away. I chatting with a senior who was in SDT but deactivated. She has no regrets... Then all of a sudden, everyone is leaving. And I was just like, huh, I wonder why everyone is leaving. Then I hear someone say pretty casually, there is a cop at the backdoor. So I say RACHEL, put your drink down now we have to leave- there is a cop. So we hightail it out of there with the other underage kiddles to find a cop car pulling up the front. Luckily we just kept on walking, and ended up in a parking lot of some apts. End up walking 4 or 5 blocks to one of the kids I met townhouse (I was with his friend who I knew and Rachel- so not sketchy). Then, we call our hero who comes and picks us up and gets us safely home from our crazy night.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Competition
I'm in an unspoken competition. It's like this big game, that no one knows the rules, but everyone is trying to get ahead, and everyone is trying to have it best. I shouldn't feel guilty for the way I choose to lead my life and the actions I take, but I do, simply because others around me show their disappointment in their looks. I'm sick of having to explain my reasoning. Maybe I just don't want to talk to you today. Don't make me feel guilty. Maybe I don't want to go hang out with you and your chosen friend. Don't make me feel guilty. These are my decisions and my choices. Let's leave it at that.
Sunday, September 11th, 2005
A Letter to All Who Voted for George W. Bush from Michael Moore
To All My Fellow Americans Who Voted for George W. Bush:
On this, the fourth anniversary of 9/11, I'm just curious, how does it feel?
How does it feel to know that the man you elected to lead us after we were attacked went ahead and put a guy in charge of FEMA whose main qualification was that he ran horse shows?
That's right. Horse shows.
I really want to know -- and I ask you this in all sincerity and with all due respect -- how do you feel about the utter contempt Mr. Bush has shown for your safety? C'mon, give me just a moment of honesty. Don't start ranting on about how this disaster in New Orleans was the fault of one of the poorest cities in America. Put aside your hatred of Democrats and liberals and anyone with the last name of Clinton. Just look me in the eye and tell me our President did the right thing after 9/11 by naming a horse show runner as the top man to protect us in case of an emergency or catastrophe.
I want you to put aside your self-affixed label of Republican/conservative/born-again/capitalist/ditto-head/right-winger and just talk to me as an American, on the common ground we both call America.
Are we safer now than before 9/11? When you learn that behind the horse show runner, the #2 and #3 men in charge of emergency preparedness have zero experience in emergency preparedness, do you think we are safer?
When you look at Michael Chertoff, the head of Homeland Security, a man with little experience in national security, do you feel secure?
When men who never served in the military and have never seen young men die in battle send our young people off to war, do you think they know how to conduct a war? Do they know what it means to have your legs blown off for a threat that was never there?
Do you really believe that turning over important government services to private corporations has resulted in better services for the people?
Why do you hate our federal government so much? You have voted for politicians for the past 25 years whose main goal has been to de-fund the federal government. Do you think that cutting federal programs like FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers has been good or bad for America? GOOD OR BAD?
With the nation's debt at an all-time high, do you think tax cuts for the rich are still a good idea? Will you give yours back so hundreds of thousands of homeless in New Orleans can have a home?
Do you believe in Jesus? Really? Didn't he say that we would be judged by how we treat the least among us? Hurricane Katrina came in and blew off the facade that we were a nation with liberty and justice for all. The wind howled and the water rose and what was revealed was that the poor in America shall be left to suffer and die while the President of the United States fiddles and tells them to eat cake.
That's not a joke. The day the hurricane hit and the levees broke, Mr. Bush, John McCain and their rich pals were stuffing themselves with cake. A full day after the levees broke (the same levees whose repair funding he had cut), Mr. Bush was playing a guitar some country singer gave him. All this while New Orleans sank under water.
It would take ANOTHER day before the President would do a flyover in his jumbo jet, peeking out the window at the misery 2500 feet below him as he flew back to his second home in DC. It would then be TWO MORE DAYS before a trickle of federal aid and troops would arrive. This was no seven minutes in a sitting trance while children read "My Pet Goat" to him. This was FOUR DAYS of doing nothing other than saying "Brownie (FEMA director Michael Brown), you're doing a heck of a job!"
My Republican friends, does it bother you that we are the laughing stock of the world?
And on this sacred day of remembrance, do you think we honor or shame those who died on 9/11/01? If we learned nothing and find ourselves today every bit as vulnerable and unprepared as we were on that bright sunny morning, then did the 3,000 die in vain?
Our vulnerability is not just about dealing with terrorists or natural disasters. We are vulnerable and unsafe because we allow one in eight Americans to live in horrible poverty. We accept an education system where one in six children never graduate and most of those who do can't string a coherent sentence together. The middle class can't pay the mortgage or the hospital bills and 45 million have no health coverage whatsoever.
Are we safe? Do you really feel safe? You can only move so far out and build so many gated communities before the fruit of what you've sown will be crashing through your walls and demanding retribution. Do you really want to wait until that happens? Or is it your hope that if they are left alone long enough to soil themselves and shoot themselves and drown in the filth that fills the street that maybe the problem will somehow go away?
I know you know better. You gave the country and the world a man who wasn't up for the job and all he does is hire people who aren't up for the job. You did this to us, to the world, to the people of New Orleans. Please fix it. Bush is yours. And you know, for our peace and safety and security, this has to be fixed. What do you propose?
I have an idea, and it isn't a horse show.
Yours,
Michael Moore
www.michaelmoore.com
mmflint@aol.com
A Letter to All Who Voted for George W. Bush from Michael Moore
To All My Fellow Americans Who Voted for George W. Bush:
On this, the fourth anniversary of 9/11, I'm just curious, how does it feel?
How does it feel to know that the man you elected to lead us after we were attacked went ahead and put a guy in charge of FEMA whose main qualification was that he ran horse shows?
That's right. Horse shows.
I really want to know -- and I ask you this in all sincerity and with all due respect -- how do you feel about the utter contempt Mr. Bush has shown for your safety? C'mon, give me just a moment of honesty. Don't start ranting on about how this disaster in New Orleans was the fault of one of the poorest cities in America. Put aside your hatred of Democrats and liberals and anyone with the last name of Clinton. Just look me in the eye and tell me our President did the right thing after 9/11 by naming a horse show runner as the top man to protect us in case of an emergency or catastrophe.
I want you to put aside your self-affixed label of Republican/conservative/born-again/capitalist/ditto-head/right-winger and just talk to me as an American, on the common ground we both call America.
Are we safer now than before 9/11? When you learn that behind the horse show runner, the #2 and #3 men in charge of emergency preparedness have zero experience in emergency preparedness, do you think we are safer?
When you look at Michael Chertoff, the head of Homeland Security, a man with little experience in national security, do you feel secure?
When men who never served in the military and have never seen young men die in battle send our young people off to war, do you think they know how to conduct a war? Do they know what it means to have your legs blown off for a threat that was never there?
Do you really believe that turning over important government services to private corporations has resulted in better services for the people?
Why do you hate our federal government so much? You have voted for politicians for the past 25 years whose main goal has been to de-fund the federal government. Do you think that cutting federal programs like FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers has been good or bad for America? GOOD OR BAD?
With the nation's debt at an all-time high, do you think tax cuts for the rich are still a good idea? Will you give yours back so hundreds of thousands of homeless in New Orleans can have a home?
Do you believe in Jesus? Really? Didn't he say that we would be judged by how we treat the least among us? Hurricane Katrina came in and blew off the facade that we were a nation with liberty and justice for all. The wind howled and the water rose and what was revealed was that the poor in America shall be left to suffer and die while the President of the United States fiddles and tells them to eat cake.
That's not a joke. The day the hurricane hit and the levees broke, Mr. Bush, John McCain and their rich pals were stuffing themselves with cake. A full day after the levees broke (the same levees whose repair funding he had cut), Mr. Bush was playing a guitar some country singer gave him. All this while New Orleans sank under water.
It would take ANOTHER day before the President would do a flyover in his jumbo jet, peeking out the window at the misery 2500 feet below him as he flew back to his second home in DC. It would then be TWO MORE DAYS before a trickle of federal aid and troops would arrive. This was no seven minutes in a sitting trance while children read "My Pet Goat" to him. This was FOUR DAYS of doing nothing other than saying "Brownie (FEMA director Michael Brown), you're doing a heck of a job!"
My Republican friends, does it bother you that we are the laughing stock of the world?
And on this sacred day of remembrance, do you think we honor or shame those who died on 9/11/01? If we learned nothing and find ourselves today every bit as vulnerable and unprepared as we were on that bright sunny morning, then did the 3,000 die in vain?
Our vulnerability is not just about dealing with terrorists or natural disasters. We are vulnerable and unsafe because we allow one in eight Americans to live in horrible poverty. We accept an education system where one in six children never graduate and most of those who do can't string a coherent sentence together. The middle class can't pay the mortgage or the hospital bills and 45 million have no health coverage whatsoever.
Are we safe? Do you really feel safe? You can only move so far out and build so many gated communities before the fruit of what you've sown will be crashing through your walls and demanding retribution. Do you really want to wait until that happens? Or is it your hope that if they are left alone long enough to soil themselves and shoot themselves and drown in the filth that fills the street that maybe the problem will somehow go away?
I know you know better. You gave the country and the world a man who wasn't up for the job and all he does is hire people who aren't up for the job. You did this to us, to the world, to the people of New Orleans. Please fix it. Bush is yours. And you know, for our peace and safety and security, this has to be fixed. What do you propose?
I have an idea, and it isn't a horse show.
Yours,
Michael Moore
www.michaelmoore.com
mmflint@aol.com
Saturday, September 10, 2005
I-N-D-I-A-N-A
I suppose it's time to tap in to my brain and cause a little brain spill...
My other life- my Indiana life:
I am a stranger, just visiting. Sometimes I wonder if one day I will wake up, only to find myself back in SLP- land of lakes (which I miss dearly). These past few weeks have been definitely up and down. Sometimes I am so in the middle of feeling happy or upset that I have no feelings at all. I loved last year. And more then anything, I don't really deal well with change. So, this has been rough- with so many new things to try to deal with. I have 3 roommates. Yes, I've lived with 10 other girls at camp for a month, but that felt more like La La land then this ever will. I went from a double-single, to the little Libby living in a shoe. There is more drama in my life then ever before. I eat an early-bird special (5pm dinner) regularly. And sometimes, all I want to do is scream. To top it all off, I've been sick for the past two weeks. But as my revenge to the house, I have infected many people... it has been great! But man, in times like those, I wish I was in MN with the fam like none other. And it's also hard, because as I sit here and think about the things I dislike, I am reminded how I do get to live with some of my best friends. And sometimes I feel like I have to dislike it- partly because I am stubborn, and since I've decided I don't like it, I don't want to change my mind; and partly because I feel like I need to dislike it for my friends who are unhappy, too. Right, that's a stupid thing to do, but it's something I can't help feeling. But I know I will stick it out. Mainly because I don't think anyone would quit with me, and also because I would miss the friends I have here, how small of the whole they are. Either way, I just keep hoping next semester will be better... But life otherwise: I am taking 16 credits (almost a full load), I am a peer tutor for a class I took last semester (so basically picked up another class but don't get credit for it), I am doing something for another sorority's philanthropy, I am a designated mail sorter, all along with balancing my hw and my social life (and finding not enough time for sleep). But I just had a really good evening, tonight. And when those come around, my dislike for everything just lessens. I told my tale of freshman year to the Rachels. I saw my Sammy boys tonight, and that was fun. I hung out with Brenden, and we had a really good talk (I always love those good talks with people when you think back and you're like... that was good). And I am really happy with him. He makes me really happy. And that scares me. I'm so nervous that I will get in so deep, and then get my heart broken. But I can't let fear guide my life. And so I give everyday what I can, and smile as much as I can, and go on from there. But I keep a pic of the spoon and cherry as my backdrop, to always keep my heart in the SLPizzle, and miss you all a lot, and continue to live my other life.
My other life- my Indiana life:
I am a stranger, just visiting. Sometimes I wonder if one day I will wake up, only to find myself back in SLP- land of lakes (which I miss dearly). These past few weeks have been definitely up and down. Sometimes I am so in the middle of feeling happy or upset that I have no feelings at all. I loved last year. And more then anything, I don't really deal well with change. So, this has been rough- with so many new things to try to deal with. I have 3 roommates. Yes, I've lived with 10 other girls at camp for a month, but that felt more like La La land then this ever will. I went from a double-single, to the little Libby living in a shoe. There is more drama in my life then ever before. I eat an early-bird special (5pm dinner) regularly. And sometimes, all I want to do is scream. To top it all off, I've been sick for the past two weeks. But as my revenge to the house, I have infected many people... it has been great! But man, in times like those, I wish I was in MN with the fam like none other. And it's also hard, because as I sit here and think about the things I dislike, I am reminded how I do get to live with some of my best friends. And sometimes I feel like I have to dislike it- partly because I am stubborn, and since I've decided I don't like it, I don't want to change my mind; and partly because I feel like I need to dislike it for my friends who are unhappy, too. Right, that's a stupid thing to do, but it's something I can't help feeling. But I know I will stick it out. Mainly because I don't think anyone would quit with me, and also because I would miss the friends I have here, how small of the whole they are. Either way, I just keep hoping next semester will be better... But life otherwise: I am taking 16 credits (almost a full load), I am a peer tutor for a class I took last semester (so basically picked up another class but don't get credit for it), I am doing something for another sorority's philanthropy, I am a designated mail sorter, all along with balancing my hw and my social life (and finding not enough time for sleep). But I just had a really good evening, tonight. And when those come around, my dislike for everything just lessens. I told my tale of freshman year to the Rachels. I saw my Sammy boys tonight, and that was fun. I hung out with Brenden, and we had a really good talk (I always love those good talks with people when you think back and you're like... that was good). And I am really happy with him. He makes me really happy. And that scares me. I'm so nervous that I will get in so deep, and then get my heart broken. But I can't let fear guide my life. And so I give everyday what I can, and smile as much as I can, and go on from there. But I keep a pic of the spoon and cherry as my backdrop, to always keep my heart in the SLPizzle, and miss you all a lot, and continue to live my other life.
