School is back

School has started again. Luckily I was able to get into all classes for my major and they are pretty interesting. I have:
Comm 398: Research methods (not all that interesting, but the professor is funny and it's a requirement for the major)
Comm 327 Interpersonal comm (a fun class, taught by one of my favorite profs in the department, it's going to be very typical of comm classes, making everyone be friends, and being very social)
Comm 318 Professional comm (probably the most useful class I'm taking, it ends with how to interview and whatnot, shit I actually need to know when finding a job)

It's a full 15 credit load and I'm just exciting that I'm finally making headway in the major. I can potentially graduate on time if I can continue to get into classes I need and plan my crap out right. We will see if that happens. Now life starts to get busy, always doing homework, neglecting reading, and checking blackboard 75 times a day. I like being busy and scheduling my life away, but I'm sure Christmas will be a welcome break. Thats really all thats going on lately. I'm also doing our own version of The Biggest Loser with four other girls from work, so I'm adjusting to eating healthier stuff (which I don't mind at all, I actually like healthy food), and going to the gym which I have been neglecting to do for the last .... year? Work is also slowing down, I'm down to only 15 hours a week in the office and 4 doing Lockshop stuff, we will see how that works out. My goals for this quarter are to get good grades in my classes, not stress as much, still have fun, and make more friends (already two new facebook friends! haha). Also pretty soon I should decide what the hell I want to do with my life post Western. I have an idea in the works for next summer, I just hope that it works out.

Toys

More than 70% of the world’s toys are made in China, most of them in Guangdong province.

I'm 90% sure they are just napping in that last picture. Unless all that lead paint finally got to them ...

Britney Spears

I'll admit it, I'm starting to feel a little sorry for this train wreck. I mean first she married Kevin Federline, clearly a mistake, then she let him knock her up ... twice. Her career totally tanked, everyone made fun of her and how white trash she got. Then they broke up, she was left with two kids, both of which she didn't take care of (fractured skull, almost dropped on the pavement, driving with no car seat etc. etc. etc.). She performed at the VMAs looking drunk or drugged or something, she looked out of it and her 'big comeback' sucked ass. She is all over the place partying and doing drugs, she shaved her head and entered rehab like three times in a week it seems like. Then just this week she got dropped by her new agent (it was brave of him to take her on in the first place), she is still getting crap about her VMA performance, she got ordered to do random drug testing in her ongoing battle for custody with K.Fed, and just today she got charged with felony hit and run for hitting a car and leaving back in August, all of which the paparazzi caught on tape.

Man, when one types it all out like that, it's mildly impressive! Now I do still think she is crazy and is making a bad situation worse by many of her actions, but I'm actually starting to feel a little sorry for her in all her madness. She isn't normal, so she can't do anything without everyone jumping all over her. I'm unsure where this post is headed, because I don't feel sorry enough to stop reading all about her on Perez and then judging her from my cushy little anonymous bubble.

Steve Miller

I have been waiting for most of the summer to attend the Steve Miller concert. Now a little background, I love Steve Miller, as with most of my older music taste (The Eagles, James Taylor, Chicago, The Beach Boys etc) it was nurtured by my parents and how they always had music playing around the house. Steve Miller is no exception. So when my Grandpa read me the names of the bands performing at the fair this year (he gets free tickets and it was my year to choose), I of course jumped on Steve Miller. Last year me and my sister and her friend big Mike went to see the Beach Boys and we got to sit on the infield not all that far back from the stage it was pretty sweet. So here is a recount of the adventure of Steve Miller:

Gaby and I left Bellingham shortly before 5:00 for the concert that was to start at 7:30, now I knew this would be cutting it close, but I was hoping that traffic would not be too bad and we could stop by my Grandpa's house to say hi and thank him for the tickets. Well we got in the car, and of course traffic was horrendous around Everett, then once we took the exit there was insane road construction which sent me on a detour through the Fife High School parking lot where I was almost hit by a 16-year-old driver with no reverse lights on his ancient Honda. So we weave our way around Puyallup until we get to the fair, it is precisely 7:36 when we arrive, we can hear someone performing. So after getting into the wrong lines, going to the bathroom and just generally wandering around lost, we notice that our seats are in the grandstands, not in the infield. The row 9 that I had been bragging about, was in fact, row 9 of the grandstands, probably 100 rows from the stage ... at least I had a good view? So we sit on our metal bench and watch the opener who I swear was playing Steve Miller songs which just confused me, I thought "Steve Miller isn't a black man dressed like Jimi Hendricks who plays guitar with his teeth ... right?". No. Eventually Steve Miller came on. He was amazing. He opened with some classics including my favorite song of all time "True Fine Love", it was great to hear it played live. He went into a blues set for a little over an hour, and brought out the opener Randy Hansen. I will admit, he lost me around hour two, the blues stuff was great, but lets be honest I was there for the greatest hits. Well he closed in amazing fashion with "The Joker" and then during the encore "Serenade", "Jet Airliner", "Swingtown" all the good stuff. Then we drove back up to Bellingham, leaving Puyallup at about 11:00. This was not a smart move on my part. I will admit it, I was doing some hardcore head nodding on the drive, so unsafe, and very very stupid. BUT we got back ok, around 1:30 and I passed out until 7:05 when I had to get up and dressed for work at 7:30. This summer ... lots of being out late and waking up early. I just want to sleep in!

Steve Miller (the older one, like I saw) is pictured. He is, in fact, not a black man dressed like Jimi Hendricks who plays guitar with his teeth.

Aliens

Aliens are sending down poison from the sky!

A fireball fell from the sky and slammed into southern Peru over the weekend, creating a huge crater that emitted a sickeningly smelly gas, local authorities said. More than 600 villagers fell ill, the Peruvian radio network RPP reported Tuesday.
How are they trying to cleverly disguise their efforts? Not by making us glow green of course!

Limache told RPP that the gases emanating from the crater caused nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches and stomach pain — so much so that authorities were considering calling a state of emergency. The newspaper La Republica reported that seven policemen became ill and were taken to a hospital.

So there you have it. Our friendly neighbors in the sky are not being so friendly anymore ...

Bus Pass

Well today I bit (is that right?) the bullet and went and picked up my bus pass. Now a little background on why I consider this biting the bullet:

1. The bus pass initiative was passed by only 1800 or so people (out of 13,000 students at WWU) by 80%. They have since said that it was passed by 80%, no, it hasn't.
2. Everyone has to buy the bus pass, it is included in tuition, no matter if you want it or not.
3. It has increased tension in the parking office 10 fold.
4. It has turned parking into the bad guys on several different areas, only a couple points are valid.
5. They are saying 'everyone gets a free bus pass' no they don't.
6. They made a lot of promises that they are not holding true on, late night service and expanded services.
7. The late night shuttle is only good for Western students, people can't just pay a fare, which I don't think is right. And they are using our shuttles, not WTA buses!
8. WTA isn't doing nearly enough even though we are giving them THOUSANDS of dollars.
9. The sustainability people are stuck on their high horse.
10. I didn't wanna go to the library to pick up my card haha.

The whole thing just kinda irks me, not to mention that people are coming into the office trying to buy their passes and we tell them we don't have them, and they get pissed. Really pissed. We literally have three signs posted around the office, one on a window facing the road, one on the front door, and a sandwich board literally right out front of the door and people still walk in and bitch. Really its the other people that piss me off, but oh well. I am getting a discounted pass (compared to last year) so I guess I should be happy. It just sucks for everyone who won't ride the bus!

extras

I recently was introduced to a hilarious show called Extras. It's made by Ricky Gervais the guy who created The Office. It's a British show so it's a different kind of humor, but it's a lot like the office only its about a guy who is a movie and TV extra always trying to get parts and whatnot. That was horrible description, but it's bloody hilarious. It even makes me type in a British accent. Check it out.

the plague

The plague is back! Just as Dwight Schrute predicted:

A woman in Apache County is battling an infection of the plague, and state health officials are warning the public that the disease appears to be on an upward trend in the state and more cases are likely.
The human case is the first reported in the state since 2000, said Craig Levy, vector borne disease program manager with the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Here we go again ...

bank robber

People are getting smarter and smarter these days. Well at least he saved himself a little time, and the enviromentalist in me is glad that he recycled!

A man robbing a bank demanded the money by writing a note on one of his own checks, authorities say.
Not surprisingly, he was caught soon afterward.
Forest Kelly Bissonnette, 27, apparently tried to cover his name on the check, then handed the note to a teller Sept. 5 at the Bank of the West in Englewood, according to authorities.

Hey at least the police were done in time for another round of coffee and donuts before they went home for the night.

bras

Is this news? I could have told you this around age 15!

Whether women are said to be flat-chested or big-busted, ordinary bras fall short when it comes to supporting bouncing breasts, a new study claims.

And during exercise, women's breasts bounce more than previously estimated, moving a vertical distance of up to around eight inches compared with a past maximum measurement of six inches.

The bouncing, in some cases with breasts weighing 20 pounds or more, can prove painful and damaging to the limited natural support system.

Now this part I both believe, and am frightened by:

A pair of D-cup breasts weighs about 15 to 23 pounds.

Well alert the media, boobs are big and bounce when you run ... I think about half the population didn't need a study to tell them that.
Bra Story

Arranged Marriages

The internet has many many weird things on it. Including this crazy website all about arranging marriages and making the men pay a pretty penny!

Marry Our Daughter is an introduction service assisting those following the Biblical tradition of arranging marriages for their Daughters.
We charge a variable fee per listing, depending on the bride price requested and other factors. Potential grooms are not charged. We do not assist in negotiations, we only provide introductions

The girls ranged from 13-17.5 and priced at 3,995 all the way up to 99,995 for a girl who had been on "local billboards" apparently thats something you look for in a child bride. My favorite blurb on the site for the girl pictured above, is here:

Kimberly was raised from birth knowing that her place in life was to be a good wife and mother and she might as well get started on that now. She knows God put her on Earth to serve her husband like it says in the Bible and we’ve made sure she knows exactly how to do that.

She will cost you 20,995. I wonder how parents decide how much to sell their children for?
Children Sales

Police Dog

This just makes me sad, both as an animal lover, and as someone who studies and works with police officers:

A suburban police officer is accused of leaving a police dog in a patrol car for more than 12 hours on a 109-degree day, killing the animal.

The sheriff’s investigation showed Bandit was in Lovejoy’s patrol car from about 9 a.m. to shortly after 10 p.m. Aug. 11. During that time, the investigation found, the officer ran errands, napped and ate out with his wife. Lovejoy later found the dog dead in the car.

It's really kind of disgusting, it's just like the article about the child I posted a while ago!

Note: The dog pictured is not the actual dog 'Bandit'

Full Article

the concert

My Goodness. I'll say it again, my goodness. This show was a-mazing. Now I'm a tiny bit in love with Spoon to begin with, so to see them live in an intimate venue was great.

The unfortunate part was that we somehow got surrounded with really tall boys and I had to jockey around all night to see the band. So worth it. We got there a little after the doors opened, got a drink and scoped out a place to stand for the remainder. Their opener was really good, it was kinda of a soul/funk/rock band out of Texas, the winning part of their set ... horns. Yes they had a trumpet, alto and tenor sax and I loved every second of it. My heart skipped a beat as I fantasized that "maybe if I just stayed with jazz I could play in a band like this ... and meet Spoon". Now clearly a female Trombone player didn't really fit into their whole scheme, but that is besides the point. After their set (of greatness) we stood around for a while longer and eventually Spoon came out.

They played a really good set. A really good, LONG set. It was a 20 song set with a 4 song encore (more on that later). They played through several excellent tracks from their current album (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga) and then several more from my personal favorite album Gimme Fiction. Now, I'm in love with watching guitar players. I love watching how they convulse on stage in fits of musicality. It's good convulsion though, it's like the musical equivalent of when you eat too much Chinese food and then 8 shots of tequila and go puke in a club bathroom. It feels good, and makes other people feel good too. This was far better than that. Far better. Not to mention the fact that I am IN LOVE with the leader singer. I would mother his children today if he asked me too. And it's not the type of love like I've read his favorite movies and think that we are soul mates, it's strictly based on watching and listening to him play, and thinking he's dreamy. I think when he sings he sounds like a brit, and he LOOKS like a brit I think, and after further investigation, increasing my obsession, I found out that he is named Britt. This just makes me giggle. So after watching him convulse (in a good way) on stage, and watching him giggle with his bass player, and bring the horn section from the opener on stage, the set ended. There is always an encore, always at shows. So we sat there, the patient, pumped up, tired and sweaty audience waiting. And waiting. And after what seemed like hours, probably closer to two minutes (a very long time in waiting for the encore time) they came out and played a 4 song encore. Excellent! 24 songs of Spoon loveliness. It was an amazing concert and I'm glad I went.

I'm a little dead today, I got home at around 1:45 and now am at work at 7:30, but I'm ok. I'm still very excited about the whole thing. OH pictured here: my boyfriend, Britt Daniel, close enough to stalk in Portland Oregon.

police

Man alive, I-5 was littered today with police pulling people over. That means that everyone went 3 mph instead of 70 and it took that much longer to get where I was going. I always forget that over holiday weekend the po po comes out in full force trying to pull everyone over. You will be glad to know that I was not one of their victims.

In any case it was a dandy visit with my Grandpa and Mom for the day. Lots of my Grandpa calling everyone fat, taking naps and then eating dinner at 4:00, always good. He did however give me awesome tomatoes from his garden AND my Steve Miller tickets. So I guess I'll let it slide this time. He is one silly old man.

Spoon

Today Rachel called me. Shortly after the "hey what's up", "what are you doing", "i haven't been outside all day today" conversation was over, she invited me to go see Spoon on Wednesday. Spoon the band. Now Spoon was pretty much the biggest draw for me when we went to Sasquatch, and when I missed most of their set I was pretty bummed, so I'm really excited for this. I only discovered them a year or so ago (and by discovered I mean a burned copy of two of their CD's was placed in my hands) and I adore them, especially their album "Gimme Fiction", it's excellent. It it at the Showbox in Seattle which I have never been to, and even with all the taxes and stuff it's only like 22 bucks. I am always surprised when bands that I've heard of and really like either play small venues or have cheap tickets. I guess I always just assume that if I've heard of them they must be a pretty big name, apparently I know more obscure bands than I thought!

In other music related news, AS pop music is ALREADY lining up incredible shows for this year and the school year has not even started. So far on the list that I'm incredibly excited for:
Jimmy Eat World (perhaps my favorite band while in high school)
Presidents of the United States of America (another fave in high school, I was one of about three people who even knew they had more songs than Peaches)
Iron and Wine (a new favorite)
Minus the Bear (they were here last year also, I don't think I'll go again, I have bad associations with them, I was dumped the night of their show! haha)

Kudos to Hunter and Victor, such incredible music these last couple years!