you're going to love this

i use this feeder thingy to read a bunch of websites. this is a pic of it showing details about the one of the last things i posted. it's funny because it shows that i actually wrote that post in june of last year. i just had it saved as a draft to post at a later time. and i did, posted it almost a year after i wrote it.

see, lindsay, i didn't want to forget. ha ha ha. [crossposted b/c i'm an idiot.]

lovin' the weather

good abortion news

Alabama introduces abortion ban bills:

I thought if South Dakota can do it, Alabama ought to do it because we are a family-friendly state," said state Sen. Hank Erwin, R-Montevallo, who has introduced a bill in the Senate that would even ban abortions in cases where a woman became pregnant because of rape or incest.

i like what [another] jessica says: 'cause nothing says "family-friendly" like bullying rape and incest victims.'

unless it rains today

then march will go down in the history books as the driest month in virginia.

so i'm normal

[quiz] How Quirky Are You?: Your Quirk Factor: 40%

You have a few little quirks, but you generally blend in well with society.
Only those who know you well know how weird you can be.

it would really suck to be the one who found her

these baby-in-the-dumpster stories are the worst.

note to self

'same time, same place'

i didn't want to forget it.

new movie news

with the potential to be cool:

Madonna, David Bowie and Snoop Dogg are lending their voices for a new animated film. [okay, i admit this caught my eye only because of Bowie.]

can you belive it? they are making Ocean's 13. with all the boys [Clooney, Pitt, Damon, Cheadle], but not the girls [Zeta-Jones-Douglas and Julia Roberts].

everyone talks about when she gains weight

but i haven't heard but one person talk about when Kirstie Alley lost a ton of weight. see the pics here.

birds sing with accents

researchers have discovered that female whipbirds sing the same basic songs, but with regional accents.

Female birds in general rarely sing, so that find itself is unusual. The determination is doubly noteworthy because the scientists observed that the males of this species sing with no accent whatsoever ... In terms of accents, he said that geographical variations, or dialects, are found in other songbirds, whales, seals and primates.

from 'The Fourth Procedure'

by Stanley Pottinger:

Because I cannot imagine being forced to remain pregnant against my will, I can't imagine a woman allowing that to happen to her, either. I can imagine her deciding to carry a child to term even though she would not have chosen to be poregnant in the first place. I can imagine her giving up a child for adoption. I can imagine her deciding to keep it, and I can imagine her changing her mind several times back and forth, exerising the one thing that distiguishes us from every other animal on the p[lanet-our intelligence. In my view, that's what the abotion decision is all about, an exercise in human intelligence ... Personally, i fI were a pregnant woman forced to carry a child against my will, I would take up arms before surrendering.

"Most people treat their pets better than your parents treated their kids."

South Dakota prepares for their first execution in 59 years.

it's crowded in here

school is fine, moderated a lecture on friday. the shelter is good, busy time.

the cat hasn't moved off this blanket all week. i got a haircut. eric moved in yesterday, hence the crowdedness. little missy is good.

oh, and how could i forget? i am in excruciating pain. i wonder how long i will have to wait to get an emergency dental appointment.

ten tv firsts

i like lists. from askmen.com [click for details]:

10 - First couple to sleep in the same bed- Mary Kay and Johnny - 1947 [this was tv's first sitcom]
9 - First openly gay main character - The Corner Bar - 1972
8 - First show about abortion - Maude - 1972
7 - First passionate homosexual kiss - Dawson's Creek - 2000
6 - First lingerie commercial featuring real models - Playtex - 1987
5 - First interracial kiss - Star Trek - 1968
4 - First condom ad - Trojan - 1975
3 - First lesbian kiss - L.A. Law - 1991
2 - First use of the F-Word - BBC3 - 1965,
1 - First baring of breasts - The Academy Awards - 1957

most of my students admit to it

now these students are suing the united states education department over the higher education act. the law denies federal financial aid to 35,000 students a year because they were convicted of drug offenses while receiving the aid.

this, of course, only affects low income students who would otherwise be eligible for financial aid. blacks are hit hardest. [blacks are significantly overrepresented among those convicted of drug crimes.]

drug offenders are the only class of people categorically denied. murderers and child molesters are still eligible.

the number one reason women are unfaithful

a woman who yearns to have sex with someone other than her husband can blame it on evolution, women with a wandering eye are just trying to improve the species.

so what excuse do men have?

pee and poo

a duo pack of cute and cuddy plush toys - escapees from our bathroom.

how about pot flavored prunes?

chroniccandy.com sells marijuana flavored lollipops and chocolates. the candy is flavored with hemp essential oils and contains no THC, making it impossible to actually get high from the product.

regardless of my opinions of the legal policies and practices of marijuana, these products seem clearly unacceptable. by choosing to flavor candy, they are marketing towards kids and teens. what message does this send?

oh yeah, the candy is presented in pictures by barely clothed women, too.

adorable photo of the day #4

talk about cost-effectiveness

this is crazy: 5-inch metal pin does $6.7 million in damage to Raptor

In an accident last October, a 5-inch metal pin flew into the engine of a new F-22 fighter jet. On Wednesday, the Air Force tallied the repair bill - $6.7 million.

nothing for sale

this site has nothing for sale, but he wants your money.



how much would you pay for nothing?

my bf asked me if i was counting the days

i'm not exactly sure to which event he was referring, so here's the countdown status:

34 days until little missy's ninth birthday
50 days until the vancouver trip

plight deepens for black men

Black men in the United States face a far more dire situation than is portrayed by common employment and education statistics, a flurry of new scholarly studies warn, and it has worsened in recent years even as an economic boom and a welfare overhaul have brought gains to black women and other groups.

many black men grow up fatherless and have no positive role models in their life. what do we do here?

sunday links

make a plate.

this is where you will be if you catch the last train to Clarksville.

Chocolate Toothpaste - it's just wrong.

It's Raining Beer - A Norwegian woman thought she was in heaven when beer flowed from her kitchen tap instead of water. Apparently the guy hooking up the kegs in the bar downstairs managed to mix up the pipes, causing beer to flow from water taps and, you guessed it, water to flow from the beer taps.

man, that is cold. take a look at these pics from Switzerland.

the average temperature in vancouver for the time we will be there is 61 F.

updated: to change license plate.

free association #28

Sugar rush:: candy
Chemical:: peel
Suspension:: bridge
Defending:: our own
Dance:: freely
Weather:: vane
Fuel:: $2.57 a gallon!
Heartbreak:: hotel
Insult:: to injury

more paws

naval academy covers doesn't prosecute sex offenders

not like we all didn't know this already. but keep in mind that unlike other colleges, 'the Naval Academy has the power to bring criminal charges directly against its students through the military justice system.'

Sex Cases Rarely Go to Trial at Academy
Despite Evidence, Most Accused Midshipmen Expelled Instead

With striking regularity, sexual-assault charges at the U.S. Naval Academy are dismissed without trial and the suspects are instead expelled from school, according to an analysis of hundreds of pages of Navy documents.

it's nice to know our military is looking out enough for us to release rapists and sex offenders into the general public without warning.

dallas cowboys

sign terrell owens. they can have him.

happy green day to you

my values, according to blogthings

[quiz] The Five Factor Values Test: Your Values Profile:

Loyalty:

You value loyalty highly. You're completely devoted to your friends and family. Even if they totally screw up, you're still there for them. Just make sure they're equally loyal to you!

Honesty:

You don't really value honesty. You do value getting your way, no matter what. And if a little lying is required to do that, no problem. A few white lies never hurt anyone (at least, that's what you tell yourself!)

Generosity:

You value generosity a fair amount. You are all about giving, as long as there's some give and take. Supportive and kind, you don't mind helping out a friend in need. But you know when you've given too much. You have no problem saying "no"!

Humility:

You value humility a fair amount. You tend to be an easy going, humble person. But occasionally your ego takes over. You have a slight competitive streak - and the need to be the best.

Tolerance:

You value tolerance highly. Not only do you enjoy the company of those very different from you... You do all that you can to seek it out interesting and unique friends. You think there are many truths in life, and you're open to many of them.

i don't agree that this makes me seem dishonest. i'm proud of the generosity response, i've been working on it.

not even a wee bit

[quiz] How Irish Are You?: You're 20% Irish.

happy st. paddy's day everyone.

Why did God invent whiskey? So the Irish would never rule the world.

"Didja hear the news?" asked Keenan of his pal at the saloon. "Harry drank so much, his wife left him!"
"Bartender! Give me six boilermakers!!"

one more...

i'm about to remove the LOTW featuring 'George Bush's 50 greatest accomplishments' so i wanted to leave you with this to keep the spirit alive:

Understanding the Bush Administration's Statements About Executive Power And Treatment of Prisoners in Nine Easy Steps

white in a sea of silver

yesterday, the permanent crown was put on my tooth. finally. it's been over a year since the root canal.

Famous

by Naomi Shihab Nye

The river is famous to the fish.

The loud voice is famous to the silence,
which knew it would inherit the earth
before anybody said so.

The cat sleeping on the fence is famous to the birds
watching him from the birdhouse.

The tear is famous, briefly, to the cheek.

The idea you carry close to your bosom
is famous to your bosom.

The boot is famous to the earth,
more famous than the dress shoe,
which is famous only to the floors.

The bent photograph is famous to the one who carries it,
and not at all famous to the one who is pictured.

I want to be famous to shuffling men,
who smile while crossing streets,
sticky children in grocery lines,
famous as the one who smiled back.

I want to be famous in the way the pulley is famous,
or a buttonhole, not because it did anything spectacular,
but because it never forgot what it did.

this is no surprise

it's regent, after all:

six members of a gay-rights group were arrested Tuesday morning. they say that Regent University discriminates against nonheterosexuals from enrollment.

they deny it, but regent's student handbook prohibits homosexual conduct, premarital sex, and adultery.

btw - the local public agrees. i do not.

chesapeake police exams discriminate, too

this is really an update from this post about the virgina beach police exam being charged as discriminatory.

the DOJ now says that chesapeake's is as well.

in an effort to fix the inherent discrimination of the math portion of the officer application exams, chesapeake lowered the standards (70% instead of 80%) required to pass.* virginia beach is considering the same. for some reason, dumber cops doesn't seem like the answer.

* turns out this was not enough. only 57.34 percent of black applicants passed.

cheese

cause to celebrate

it's the Ides of March.

Isaac Hayes quits South Park

says he can no longer tolerate it's take on religion. i don't watch the show. but he had no problems thus far tolerating any of the disugsting, immoral, or otherwise intolerable ideas portrayed on the show.

not until they poked fun at scientology:

"There is a place in this world for satire, but there is a time when satire ends, and intolerance and bigotry towards religious beliefs of others begins," Mr Hayes said in a statement. "As a civil rights activist of the past 40 years I cannot support a show that disrespects those beliefs and practices."

the creators speak back:

"This has nothing to do with intolerance and bigotry and everything to do with the fact that Isaac Hayes is a Scientologist and that we recently featured Scientology in an episode of South Park ... In 10 years and more than 150 episodes Isaac never had a problem with the show making fun of Christians, Muslims, Mormons and Jews. He got a sudden case of religious sensitivity when it was his religion featured on the show. To bring the civil rights struggle into this is just a non sequitur."

sony tv for men and women

as if writing in pink and blue isn't bad enough, there are among the reasons why both men and women like this new tv:

women: because it has a wide angeled screen so you can arrange to put your couch anywhere in the room and lighting to make it look good.

men: because it has an amazing picture to make football and action movies even better.

oh please. what about my football?

baby steps

beer personality

[quiz] What's Your Beer Personality?: You Are Bud Light

You're not fussy when it comes to beer. If someone hands it to you, you'll drink it.
In fact, you don't understand beer snobbery at all. It all tastes the same once you're drunk!
You're an enthusiastic drinker, and you can often be found at your neighborhood bar.
You're pretty good at holding your liquor too - you've had lots of experience.

it's funny beause i am bud light.

first lines

i did this once before, anyone wanna guess?

Life is a mystery / everyone must stand alone

I'm down a one-way street / With a one-night stand
With a one track mind / Out in no-man´s land

You know sometimes, I don’t know why / But this old town seems so hopeless

Here´s the thing / We started out friends / It was cool, but it was all pretend

In these days and these hours of fury / When the darkness and answers are thin

Ooh you make me live / Whatever this world can give to me

On a long and lonely highway east of Omaha

three recycled posts

social problems

oh my god, becky

i've been thinking

the vancouver fund will finally see light

actually, it's probably being spent at the moment. here's the announcement: my best girl* and i are going to vancouver in may. we booked our tickets last night. as you may know, it's been a dream for some time.

to be officially heplful, greg has offered his assistance. click here to read it. hil-are-e-us.

* no, not the child. the other one.

from 'Dead Ringer'

by Jasmine Cresswell:

She had a challenging job, she earned a decent income, she paid her taxes, and she was polite to her fellow citizens. What more could anyone ask of her?

from the tricks of the trade website

i've dug up some good ones for you. you're welcome.

for a bartender:

If you work somewhere with a marble top bar, try rubbing ice on the marble. This serves two purposes. First, you'll look busy, like you're dedicated to keeping the bar clean. But even better, it makes the marble wet. Now, when you return change to patrons, put the coins on the bar top. Many people, after struggling to pick up their change from wet marble (a neer impossible task), will leave the money as a tip rather than slide to the edge and put a handful of wet coins in their pocket.

for a farmer:

If your rooster is waking you too early, try bedded him down in a cage where he can't stand on his tippy toes. To crow, a rooster needs to arch his neck while standing up.

for coping with frozen windshields:

If you live in a cold area you may sometimes walk out to your car to find the windshield completely frozen over. Rather than scraping away at it you could just start you car, urn the window defroster on, and -- here's the trick -- put down the sun visors. The warm air will be forced back onto the inside of the windshield and it will defrost much faster.

can you believe it: coke

i took this 'what kind of soda are you?' quiz and it told me that i was COKE.

i hate coke. and i would almost thirst to death rather than drink diet coke. more unbelievably, look what else it says:

        'Stay away from: Dr Pepper'

what? like real people?

cheers to all women

it's international women's day and blog against sexism day. don't forget, march is also women's history month.

i was going to write something about how many men are sexist, about patriarchy still existing in our society, or about how women are still underpaid, earning only 77 cents to every dollar earned by men. i was going to write about the feminization of poverty.

but i am not going to be taken down by sexists. or get myself down about women being underpaid. i will rise up against patriarchy and fight.*

i fight by working and taking care of myself, without a man. i fight by loving myself and not conforming to the prescribed standard of beauty. i fight by raising my child, without a man. i fight by making my own decisions. i fight each day because i am proud to be a woman.

* cheers to soopermouse.

saturday

i actually left the house. we dropped of the child for a sleepver and went to dinner and then karoke. i am coming to the conclusion that all filipino women can sing well. here's two beautiful ladies:



oh, and today i got an email from a textbook rep with the last name of Franceschini. i used to know someone with that name. how common can it be?

okay, i looked it up. it ranks 25,602 in american surnames. odd.

jessica simpson weight gain

that was 10 of the last 20 keyword searches (people who found this site via a search engine). i guess people care about this? this post will just make it easier for them to find my not writing about the topic.

on marriage

marriage as a social institution has fascinated me. it is a social institution so strong that nearly everyone does it. the United States has higher rates of marriage than those of other industrialized countries, though numbers are declining in recent years. about 80-90 percent of Americans marry at some point in their lives.

the average age to get married has increased, as well. in 2003, men got married at an average of 27 and women at 25. this is a full year or two later than in 1990 and five years later than in 1950. it is believed that this is due to an increase in cohabitation.

blacks are less likely to get married than whites, and if they do, they do at a later age. 2001 data shows that the percent of people 'ever married' is 56.7 for blacks and 78.2% for whites. [interestingly, black men have sex at an earlier age that white men.]

there has also been an increase in interracial marriages. i see this as an example of our country becoming more tolerant.

regarding class and education, those with less education marry earlier while people with more education marry at a later age. this can be explained by the fact that people will wait until after they finish their education to tie the knot.

some recognize that they do not have to get married. historically, one had to get married to have a family. in the US, the percentage of births to unmarried women has steadily increased in the past few decades, from 5.3 percent in 1960 to 35.7 percent in 2004. the office for national statistics reports that the percent of children born outside of marriage in the UK has risen from 12% in 1980 to 42% in 2004.

despite all this, and government debate on the definition of marriage, why do we still want to do it?

adorable photo of the day #3

interesting idea

the lowercase L:

Ever notice hand-written signs with letters in all-caps, except for the letter L? It looks like an uppercase i ... WHY DO PEOPlE WRITE lIKE THIS?

as someone who's annoyed by idiotic mistakes, i appreciate this. [via j.]

free association #27

Upgrade:: electronics
Happy ending:: fairytale
Stale:: chips
Tripping:: klutz
Working:: hard for nothing
Explicit:: lyrics
Happy place:: in my head
Tornado:: wizard of oz
Medication:: is wearing off
Muppet:: miss piggy

all of a sudden, YOU are a suspected terrorist

this story is the kind of thing that really makes you wanna hurt someone in regards to the department of homeland security. *&!%* bush.

The balance on their JCPenney Platinum MasterCard had gotten to an unhealthy level. So they sent in a large payment, a check for $6,522.

And an alarm went off. A red flag went up. The Soehnges' behavior was found questionable. And all they did was pay down their debt. They didn't call a suspected terrorist on their cell phone. They didn't try to sneak a machine gun through customs.

They were told, as they moved up the managerial ladder at the call center, that the amount they had sent in was much larger than their normal monthly payment. And if the increase hits a certain percentage higher than that normal payment, Homeland Security has to be notified. And the money doesn't move until the threat alert is lifted.

15 year old caught drinking

on camera. oh wait, that's emma watson, aka hermione granger.

murder v. assassination

leave it to me to wonder about the requirements for a murder to be labeled an assassination. how important does a person have to be to be assassinated, rather than just plain old murdered?

the definitions are as follows:

mur·der: n. The unlawful killing of one human by another, especially with premeditated malice.

hom·i·cide: n. The killing of one person by another.

as·sassi·nation: n 1: an attack intended to ruin someone's reputation 2: murder of a public figure by surprise attack.

so i guess it is any public figure, regardless of import? am i not a figure in public? if someone were to shoot me, it would be a surprise.

who's tammy?

i'm hell on wheels

well, tires really. this one was a nail.

presents!

what's better than getting an unexpected gift, for no reason at all?

nothing. hooray.

note to the gift-giver: we got the other one last night, too. and we wrote all over the place!

site update

you might have noticed that the links on the right have changed a wee bit. the 'main site' link is gone, signaling the end of that site altogether. i warned you this was coming. it was a nice run, with 74,453 visitors. it may still be up for a bit, but i no longer have control.

so that you won't feel deprived, i have added something new: scribbles.

pregnant woman shot herself in the stomach

i find this especially sad.

i'm not going to mention bush's approval rating

i'm not going to mention bush's approval rating... it's at 34%, but i'm not going to mention it.

i will, however, mention cheney's at 18%.

update at 5:20 pm: this day in 1854, the Republican party was born. ha ha ha.