Thursday, September 30, 2004

Indigo Man!
Not only has Girlyman gotten their album, "remember who i am" released nationally, but they are also touring with the Indigo Girls!

Everyone be sure to come out to the Electric Brew when they're here on Oct. 27. Unfortunately, Girly will not be opening for the Girls then. But, seriously, how would that work in the Brew anyway?

They're also going to come out with a new CD soon.
posted by D-Bo @ 4:51 PM

All my applications went out yesterday, and just today I get an email from Greater Boston Legal Services offering me an interview.

There are two ways to look at this. One is to be disappointed because it's Boston and there's no way I can ever afford to go there for a summer without a lot of compensation, more than GBLS can offer. The other more positive way would be to say that I didn't expect to hear from anyone this quickly, and maybe this will just be the beginning of a number of offers. Hopefully Legal Aid Bureau of Maryland. They're inside the beltway, and they pay.
posted by weiss @ 3:50 PM

Made this last night, though thanks to Todd Chatman for the graphic. Todd is one of the people from gee-dub-you who I didn't know last year but seem like they'll be friends this year.

Flipped on the telly, and who should be on but Gillian and David! Unfortunately, they were just wrapping up opening for Joan Baez, who proceeded to be a major disappointment. Have I ever heard a worse version of Caleb Meyer? No, not really.

James Murphy, another of the new cool people this year, has a girlfriend who reminds me a million times of Char. The three of us went to the Workers Rights Clinic. I hadn't been there for a while, but they'd never been there before so they shadowed me. They'll do a great job there, the both of them.

But ultimately, the highlight of the day was in Feminist Legal Theory where I finally lost my cool. The presentation was on Colombian women by two class members who are Colombian. The conversation moved to questions about gender roles more generally, which is fine because those questions really underlie a lot of other topics. But when one of the two women presenting suggested that GW students are in the "top ten percent" of the nation and that this is the reason for our more progressive views on gender roles, I lost my cool. In retrospect perhaps I misunderstood and she wasn't equating the class privilege of GW students with enlightened views, but that's what I heard. I went off for a few minutes on how education makes people stupid and that working class people actually have a much better understanding as a whole of our society and the functioning of its institutions than PhDs do. Rita laughed at some of the funny parts of my raving. I was too infuriated to get a good gander at other students' reactions.

When I finally decrescendoed, sweet Sylvia came in to back me up. She finished quickly, and the woman whose comment had set me off responded not to me but to Sylvia, and in that pathetic, petty way that overeducated people do.
posted by weiss @ 8:47 PM

the loveliness of my morning...
.. so yeah.. waking up today was definitely refreshing.. only until I looked at the clock, and a half second later realized what time it was.. this morning I got to do an amazing marathon of speed panic and speed dressing... and then rather than actually running, I decided to do some speed walking... so I managed to get to work at the connector coffee bar in about 7 minutes after getting moving from my bed.
this start can only mean a great things for this day...
posted by Erini CS @ 9:25 AM

Things I found while rearranging my room so our landlord can pretend to install a new heating system rather than spend her money in repairing what is so obviously a flagrant violation of 14 D.C.M.R. § 706:

• Dirt, so much dirt, and dust.
• Wizened old copies of MCN.
• A bunch of old checks for a bank account I never use anymore, but leave a hundred dollars or so in just to amuse myself.
• Slime...
• A list of pro bono hours from last year, which I actually really needed.
• Two water bottles.
• An article of clothing still wet and now musty from the time a few days ago when I spilled a whole glass of water off of my bedside bookshelf.
• My french-english dictionary, meaning that I'll finally need to write to my host family in Ivory Coast.
• Two socks.
• An intense sense of anger at my landlord, not to mention a surprising new desire to take this to court.

posted by weiss @ 9:58 PM

Ramblings from a disgruntled student:
I now officially hate college and am ready for it to be over. (Although, I still love living at 534; it's a hoot and a half!)

I would like to add that that although I am a fifth-year senior, the first time I was EVER involved with Kickoff (this past weekend) I was in a winning group! Yeah! $18, meet my pocket!

I am also addicted to the green tea bubble tea at the yet-unnamed coffee bar on campus, although as someone pointed out to me, it tastes like hay.

I would like to conclude by stating that drunken Bryn hurt my drunken ass by pushing me on a drunken hammock (that eventually broke) at the scandalous party. But, it's all good; I was into it. And, yes, it sure was scandalous!
posted by D-Bo @ 9:57 PM

I'm in Ireland again. Its beautiful and green and quite often misty. Everyone's real nice and friendly and crazy hospitable. I'd recommend it.
posted by Unknown @ 4:45 AM

So I messed up the blog with a table exported from Quattro Pro. If anyone is really pissed, I can take it down.
posted by weiss @ 9:42 PM 0 comments

Chocolate Eggs

When were they born?
From where did they come?

These odd little confectionary confabulations have no plausible birth place... or do they?

Perhaps they were born in 1928 when Hershey's Syrup was first brought to the market. I like to imagine a grandfather breaking an egg open in a bowl, swirling some syrup across the yolk, criss-crossing it across the placenta and imaging what a detectible treat this would be were the flavors not no repulsive when combined. Then, after some sketching on the morning news and some quality time staring at the puke-green 1920's fridge, decided that an egg, while beautiful in itself, would be even more appealing covered in chocolate but would remain tragically inedible. And voila, an egg-shaped chocolaty treat was born. Ha! I've debunked the chocolate chicken theory.
posted by meg @ 10:48 AM

Another Perk of a Kennedy Center Internship
So in addition to going to all the free concerts I can bear and sitting in on an occasional NSO rehearsal, an internship here affords me the opportunity to take detours on the way to the Document Center to sit in the orchestra pit of the Opera House, stare up at the balconies and DREAM!
posted by julia @ 2:23 PM

In Feminist Legal Theory everyone has to pair up and do a class. Alyson and I are doing a class on pornography on October 6. We're thinking of structuring it like this:

• Anti-porn feminism (Dworkin and MacKinnon, basically)
• Free-speech feminism (ACLU types)
• Sex-positive feminism (Pat Califia!)

We already have a video for the final category, and we wondered if Professor Ritter would have any ideas about what we could show for the first two.

"Just go to Tower Video and buy something," she said. I swallowed. She continued: "Lots of people think pornography is obscene but haven't ever seen any. Just go pick some up and show it. Stay away from the really extreme stuff, though, like the horses." I swallowed again.

Professor Ritter, you finally might break down my instinctive prejudice against professors.
posted by weiss @ 8:29 PM

has anyone noticed?
has anyone noticed the cost of war recently, it's well into the 12 figures going at about $1k a second -- how i would love to be on the recieving end of one of those seconds...
posted by kate @ 11:21 AM

OMG! it's not even noon yet
okay, here goes
please keep in mind that
a) i was not under the influence of any substances except when noted
b) i have a knack for losing things
c) i tend to make situations more complicated than they need be
d) this is not an interesting or grammatically correct story
e) i am mostly unemployed this week

yesterday i visited my little brother at CUA and then bummed a free lunch off my dad, on the way home i stopped by City Bikes to exchange my kryptonite for a lock that can't be broken with a Bic. Later that evening i found out my mom got a raise so we went over to her apt. for some champagne and strawberries and sorbet to celebrate. i think i drank too much because i woke up this morning with all my clothes on and my glasses no where to be found. My plans for the day included doing laundry and exchanging the other lock i bought from city bikes for a better one. I needed quarters for laundry, and with-out glasses it was hard to do these things, let alone look for my glasses and i was quickly getting a head ache. Fortunately, Julia called from work and told me where my glasses were and that problem was solved. Next up was solving the getting-of-the-quarters problem, but first i'm going to explain the bike lock situation. Me and Meg and Julia all ride our bikes to work and we all had kryptonite locks. Meg's was the shittiest and the oldest and it only one key left. Julia and I both bought ours from City Bikes and we have 4 keys for each. I already exchanged mine and i still had one exchange left, so i was going to exchange meg's lock (the rusty one with 1 key) rather than julia's, so we'd have a descent one still hanging around. so i gave Julia my new lock to take to work and meg would take Julia's lock because her bike doesn't really work anyway. that left me with meg's crappy lock which i planned on exchanging later in the day, but first i had to get the quarters. to keep from losing my shit, i keep all my keys and stuff tied to me. Meg's key was not tied to me. I locked up my bike outside the bank and went in to exchange for some quarters, when i came out i reached for my chin of keys, and of course, the key to meg's lock (the lock holding my bike to a meter) was not on my chain, so i emptied my bag, went back in to the bank, looked everywhere, a dude from the bank even came out to help me look, i went trough my bag again, all my pockets and still no key, no cell phone either, i'm such a dumb-ass. so i was like, "shit, what do i do, i lost the only key to the bike, it takes at least a day to order new kays, and i'm not leaving my bike on penn. ave. over night just to get stolen with a crappy bic pen." so i wandered down to Capitol Hill Bikes and asked the dude in the store if he knew how to pick the lock with a bic pen and he did and he showed me, but he warned me that if you mess up, than the lock is ruined, but it was the cheapest of the kryptolok line and i figured that if need be, i could take a bolt cutters to it. so i walked back to my bike, armed with a bic pen, half way there a woman came tearing out of a resterount asking me where i got my shirt, so i told her, through the corse of our conversation she managed to pick 4 other ethiopians off the streets of eastern market, including one from my service town. when i got to my bike i made one last sweep of the area, asked the guy at the bank agian, checked my pockets, checked my bag, and checked my wallet. YAY! My KEY! in my wallet! yay! i immediately added the key to the rest of the keys tied to me, unlocked my bike, and headed home. wasn't that exciting.
posted by kate @ 11:09 AM

- - - START - - -

Canton, MA September 22, 2004 ? Kryptonite today announced that the company is offering free product exchanges to all consumers who are concerned about the security of their current Kryptonite tubular cylinder locks.

At no charge to them, consumers will be able to exchange their current Kryptonite tubular cylinder lock for a Kryptonite non-tubular cylinder lock. Kryptonite will begin exchanging products within a few weeks as it accelerates product availability.

?At Kryptonite, we understand the responsibility that comes with being the market leader. Since we learned last week about the possibility of compromising some of the industry?s tubular cylinder locks, we have been working diligently to devise the best and most responsible solution to address the concerns of consumers and to meet the needs of our distributors and retailers,? said Steve Down, General Manager of Kryptonite. ?We decided to simplify and expand our planned product upgrade program so that we could expedite the process for consumers and eliminate any lingering doubt in their minds about their locks. Standing by our customers is the responsible thing to do for those who rely on our security products to keep their valuables safe.?

Kryptonite is offering a free product exchange to consumers who currently have Kryptonite locks using tubular cylinders. To participate in the free product exchange offer, consumers can visit the company?s Web site at www.kryptonite.com for registration instructions. As part of this effort, Kryptonite will initiate a swap program through direct communication with all of its distributors and retailers.

Mr. Down concluded, ?At Kryptonite, we constantly remind ourselves of our responsibility to lead and offer solutions ? not excuses ? that strengthen Kryptonite?s relationships with consumers and channel partners. By instituting the most comprehensive program possible, we believe our company has again taken the lead in providing unprecedented customer support and service.?

- - - END - - -
posted by joel @ 11:38 PM

Self-hypnotists, unite!
So this morning, I biked to work, humming a repetitive Amy Mann song to myself (thanks to the musical tastes of Gratis House). I pedaled in a constant, rhythmic way as I passed a woman dragging her briefcase-on-wheels over the evenly-spaced cracks in the sidewalk. Then all of a sudden, the sky sommersaulted, time was suspended, all the rhythms of the universe aligned with the downstroke of my pedals, and I ceased to feel any physical exertion.

Ok, that's a bit of a lie, but I did feel weird. Think super calm and everything in slow-mo. Sounds like hypnotism, no? I had to work hard to snap myself out of it for fear of getting flattened by rush-hour traffic while I contemplated the universe.

Does anyone else do this? I swear I remember doing it a couple times as a kid, but this is the 1st time it's happened since I was little.

(p.s. above post and described experience was not induced by hallucinogenics.)

posted by julia @ 4:31 PM

'Fahrenheit' Gets Warm Reception by U.S. Troops in Iraq
According to IMDb:

Although Fahrenheit 9/11 has been widely condemned by conservative commentators as a device to undermine the U.S. public's support for American troops in Iraq, the film, now widely available on DVD, has become a big hit among the troops themselves, the Christian Science Monitor reported today (Wednesday). "Everyone's watching it," a Marine corporal in Ramadi told the newspaper. "It's shaping a lot of people's image of Bush."
posted by D-Bo @ 2:08 PM

"The feeling of rust against my salad fingers is almost orgasmic."
If you want to watch one of the creepiest online cartoons that you will ever see, go to http://www.fat-pie.com/salad.htm to see episode 1 of "Salad Fingers." Episode 1 is fairly freaky, but innocent. If you don't want nightmares, stop there and refuse to watch episodes 2-4.
posted by D-Bo @ 1:11 AM

So, like
I just did this line of coke while trying to keep myself awake on the drive back from Goshen and then all of a sudden, out of no where, there was this cop-guy and he was like, plull over dude. and I was like, huh? and so I pulled over, and he was like, you licence were and going registration 80mph please, and since I was totally tripping, I handed him the contents of my glove compartment and then I forgot to put the car into park, and so while he was in his car, my car decided to drift backwards into his, and then all of a sudden, smash, they collided and I was like, what the fuck dude (because I totally thought that he hit me) but he was like, no, you hit me. and I was like, damn it, cops are always right and then he gave me a fatty ass citation and I drove the rest of the way home with my hazards on because I thought they went well with my own personal rendition of "white christmas"

k, so maybe only half that story was true. but it's the true part that's funny, the tripping part was added for believability because honesty, who but a coke head would back there car into a police vehicle.
posted by meg @ 11:35 AM

Production Code of 1930
Some fun rules for movies from 1930-1968 taken VERBATIM from the original text. (I copied and pasted the best ones here.)

-The sanctity of the institution of marriage and the home shall be upheld. Pictures shall not infer that low forms of sex relationship are the accepted or common thing.

-Excessive and lustful kissing, lustful embraces, suggestive postures and gestures, are not to be shown.

-In general, passion should so be treated that these scenes do not stimulate the lower and baser element.

-Sex perversion or any inference to it is forbidden. (DEREK's note: This includes homosexuality.)

-White slavery shall not be treated.

-Miscegenation (sex relationships between the white and black races) is forbidden.

-Sex hygiene and venereal diseases are not subjects for motion pictures.

-Scenes of actual child birth, in fact or in silhouette, are never to be presented.

-Pointed profanity (this includes the words, God, Lord, Jesus, Christ - unless used reverently - Hell, S.O.B., damn, Gawd), or every other profane or vulgar expression however used, is forbidden.

-Complete nudity is never permitted. This includes nudity in fact or in silhouette, or any lecherous or licentious notice thereof by other characters in the picture.

-The effect of nudity or semi-nudity upon the normal man or woman, and much more upon the young and upon immature persons, has been honestly recognized by all lawmakers and moralists.

-Nudity can never be permitted as being necessary for the plot.

-But dances which suggest or represent sexual actions, whether performed solo or with two or more; dances intended to excite the emotional reaction of an audience; dances with movement of the breasts, excessive body movements while the feet are stationary, violate decency and are wrong. (DEREK's note: Mennonites take note.)

-The reason why ministers of religion may not be comic characters or villains is simply because the attitude taken toward them may easily become the attitude taken toward religion in general. Religion is lowered in the minds of the audience because of the lowering of the audience's respect for a minister. (DEREK's note: Because, as we know, people in high positions in the church never do anything wrong.)

-The treatment of bedrooms must be governed by good taste and delicacy. (DEREK's note: Meaning Mr. and Mrs. Brady just masturbate in their separate beds.)

-The history, institutions, prominent people and citizenry of other nations shall be represented fairly. (DEREK's note: Because it's fair to say that American Indians are savages.)

-Because of its evil consequences, the drug traffic should not be presented in any form. The existence of the trade should not be brought to the attention of audiences.

Here is one of the reasons for instating this:

-Small communities, remote from sophistication and from the hardening process which often takes place in the ethical and moral standards of larger cities, are easily and readily reached by any sort of film. (DEREK's note: Because the lower class is morally retarded.)

To see the whole document, go to: http://www.artsreformation.com/a001/hays-code.html.
posted by D-Bo @ 1:33 AM

Actually Rob you know what's really cool? I'll tell you: coming to DC to see Pixies at DAR and helping out your old friend who accidentally bought two sets of four tickets...

Anyone can help me with this. I'm figuring one week to try to find friends who are interested, then another week to find acquaintances who want the tickets, then I'll just sell them on craiglist or something.
posted by weiss @ 8:17 PM

I'm so glad that the event is over. As you'd probably all noticed, I hadn't been posting because I felt too busy. It was keeping me up at night worrying. I'm no less busy now, but the things I have to do now are certain to come together. They just need some work.

We had a huge amount of dumpstered bread. According to Tarek it was still warm when he found it, and it tasted very good. But there was so much so we took the leftovers to DC Central Kitchen which was right next door.

The woman who took the food started writing out a receipt. Quasim told her that we didn't need one. She asked if we were sure. I concurred that we didn't need one. We just wanted rid of the food. But she seemed confused. Writing receipts must be part of the procedure. So we let her write one out.

I watched her as she wrote. "9-18" she scratched in on the "date" line. That was the first time that day that I'd thought about the date in a way separate from the event and thus the first time that day that I'd realized it was my birthday.
posted by weiss @ 2:09 PM

shiver me timbers
i watched pirates of the carribean yesterday and DIDN"T EVEN THINK that is was TLAPD. arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
posted by joel @ 1:59 PM

o shnizzle....
Your brand new U-Lock is not safe!

read...at bike forum so, while attending the food not bombs gathering this past sunday i was informed by a local biker that u-locks (key kind) can be picked using the casing of a ball point pen. hmm, i thought, i'm glad i bought the combination lock. for those of you who own key locks pay attention to this !!!
posted by joel @ 1:05 PM

for shame!
talk like a pirate day came and went yesterday and there was not a single post on or in the style of this hallowed holiday. for shame, for shame.

Qu'est-ce que fuck?

This is the list of top artists in my lil' group o' friends on friendster. I just want to know which one of my so called "friends" put cold play between radiohead and the beatles. I can understand how ani and u2 might sneak onto some people's playlist because they have a nasty habit of holding onto old CDs and then listening to them, but sseriously folks. coldplay? garrr

Radiohead
Coldplay
Beatles
Outkast
Roots
Bjork
Modest Mouse
Wilco
Ani Difranco
U2
posted by meg @ 11:04 AM

Jesus Spoke to Me in a Dream Last Night

He came in the form of Sidney King and said, "Just don't let Daniel know you are late," At which point I woke up, checked the clock and realized my alarm was set an hour too late and was on "vibrate" instead of "ring." It's a good thing Jesus stopped by this morning because I hadn't gone to bed until just three hours previous. Of course Jesus knew that, that's why he stopped by. I'm just glad that he takes drinking to be a good excuse for miraclse.
posted by meg @ 6:03 AM

This year for GC's Monday Night Live, I made an ad (for Chad & Susie).. there's a copy of it in the public drive. It's in the folder "BooDuckie" and it's the file named "dormtheft.avi" It's based off of CitiBank's identity theft ads.. for those of you not on the GC network and would still like to see it let me know.. and I'll see if I can store it online somewhere.. the second one is better than the first...
posted by Erini CS @ 4:39 PM

ah
cool, you can get the google page in amaharic, only, i feel like they've restricted themselves to only one character, "ah."
posted by kate @ 2:13 PM

today i woke up with the sun shine and hopped on my bike and delivered chunks from the $100+ worth of stinky
cheese i dragged home from work last night because it was stinking up our kitchen, both at home and at work.

recipiants of my cheese include harvard house, the mvs house,
and the school for little people at 18th and lamont (chez kennel-shank)

posted by kate @ 4:38 PM

Iraqi government behind kidnapping of Simonas?
I know, I know, it sounds like conspiracy theories, but Naomia Klein and Jeremy Scahill have an article on the kidnapping in today's Guardian that adds some disturbing facts to the account of last weeks kidnapping of Simona Pari, Simona Torretta, Ra'ad Ali Abdul Azziz and Mahnoaz Bassam:

Witnesses say the gunmen questioned staff in the building until the Simonas were identified by name, and that Mahnouz Bassam, an Iraqi woman, was dragged screaming by her headscarf, a shocking religious transgression for an attack supposedly carried out in the name of Islam.

Most extraordinary was the size of the operation: rather than the usual three or four fighters, 20 armed men pulled up to the house in broad daylight, seemingly unconcerned about being caught. Only blocks from the heavily patrolled Green Zone, the whole operation went off with no interference from Iraqi police or US military - although Newsweek reported that "about 15 minutes afterwards, an American Humvee convoy passed hardly a block away".

And then there were the weapons. The attackers were armed with AK-47s, shotguns, pistols with silencers and stun guns - hardly the mujahideen's standard-issue rusty Kalashnikovs. Strangest of all is this detail: witnesses said that several attackers wore Iraqi National Guard uniforms and identified themselves as working for Ayad Allawi, the interim prime minister.

Scahill and Klein go on to point out that an operation targeting anti-occupation NGO's could have a double benefit to the U.S. military and the Iraqi government. Not only scare other NGO's working against the occupation (like CPT) but it also may serve discredit the Iraqi resistance in the Islamic community.

Disappearances were a routine part of the Iraqi regime under Saddam. Prime Minister Allawi is a veteran of this game. Perhaps the benefits of a high profile disapearance was too seductive to resist.

Mennonite Trivia: Did you know that Jeremy Scahill did a sweatshop workshop with Matt Smucker at the Mennonite Youth Convention in Orlando in 1997?

p.s. joel, you can always use the <sub> tag for lower case numbers. it looks like this: _12345678
posted by Unknown @ 5:30 AM

lower case 12345679 and 8s
pet peeve: so i like to write in all small caps, something to do with my desire for a classless society i think. but the numbers throw this style to the poopsmiths. anyone know if there are lower case numerals? -eternally annoyed
posted by joel @ 9:36 PM

I fixed the crazy script issues
I fixed the crazy script issues. Seems a </div> tag disappeared. Silly </div> tag. Maybe it had something to do with the Cost of the Iraq war thing not working. Or maybe it just got sick of hanging around and ran off. I dunno. It's back now.

While I'm at it, here's a photo of the super cool "George Bush
Punching Peace Pounder" that Derek linked to below. Enjoy!

I also made the post title bigger again. I don't know if they got made smaller on purpose or not, so I thought I'd try switching them back and see if anyone yelled.

Oh and while I'm ranting about technical issues please remember to delete the <img src="url_here"> when posting. Blogger puts in automatically but it just shows shows up as a broken image link if you don't put in a url where it says url_here. I'm getting tired of cleaning them up after people forget about them. Thanks.
posted by Unknown @ 1:01 PM

I check and am once again relieved to discover that there are absolutely no election-night voter-sex parties going on within 25 miles of my zip code. Me, I'll be at the DC NLG party, baby. Or, more likely, going to bed. Why can't they have election day on a Friday so I could stay up?
posted by weiss @ 11:53 PM

George Bush Punching Peace Pounder
Stupid.com is selling this wonderful product:
http://www.stupid.com/stat/POUN.html.

Check it out.

Also, my next project: Learning a song with all of the chemical elements in it.


posted by D-Bo @ 4:07 PM

describing the self...who are you?

joelis defined by the following:

Origin: Hebrew
meaning: Jehovah is the Lord

Traits: The name Joel calls to mind a small, sensitive man who is very popular and nice, though a bit conceited.

Famous people with this name: the biblical Hebrew prophet Joel; entertainer Joel (Cabaret) Grey; singer Billy Joel; storyteller Joel Chandler (Uncle Remus) Harris

posted by joel @ 11:34 AM

bwa hah
It's 4 o'clock in the morning and I'm still awake because the internet is evil. so if you want to find me. I'm upstairs on the futon.
posted by meg @ 2:49 AM

yikes
as i was coming up a hill on East-West Highway a sporty little Honda almost hit me at like 80 mph, this sort of thing happens a lot outside of the district lines, where roads are considerably less bike-friendly. any way, this guy really pissed me off because a) he was going 80 b) there were at least 3 lanes of traffic, so he really didn't need to be so tight-in, and c) he was speeding in to a red light 100 yards ahead, so it was pointless. I was riding the old heavy-as-hell Fugi and carrying 2 packed bags on my back, and still managed to catch him at the red light. his window was down and his music low enough that i could tell him, "you almost hit me." at which point he replied "i saw you!" dumbfounded at the irony of his reply, all i could muster was, "you should slow down." i would have understood his not slowing down, had he not seen me, but you can still hit someone if you see them, agggrh, anyway, i guess i should be used to it by now, but i've just had enough of maryland drivers.


anyway, here are some highlights from the summer, yay! p.s. nice profile photo Robin. (l to r, t to b) our street (1620 c st. SE); meg cooking pancakes; julia biking and testing out dog hearing at the NG building; me at work; laura stopping by our apt. on her way to VA/school; me and julia getting ready to paint our room (which you all should come see, it's super psychedelic fun, ask tasara); sara, at the ft. reno; julia and meg having lunch by the potomac; val, chillin' with the cat; day-o-fun with katie o; me and val at work; teresa, me and sara at the black cat; val in her new classroom; my mom biking; meg and val at Asylum; julia getting ready to paint our room, me at the zoo; the cat, persephone; julia's feet; celeste at work (chez antoine); me with a fake chimp; val; a big ugly fish; julia and her new bike; me. yay, what a fun summer.
posted by kate @ 6:56 PM

Blatant Plug for Wednesday's Convo speaker
For those of you in the Shoup reading audience still in the Goshen area, I'd like to take this opportunity to put in a blatant plug for the convocation on Wednesday with Dale Suderman. Dale will be speaking on Storming Heavens gate or something like that. He's sent me a preview copy of the address and he's managed to put together a schpeil that I think has something for everyone. He has a no nonsense approach that can only come from someone who has spent many many years rebelling against his Mennonite upbringing and all the passive aggressive tendencies that go with it (hence the horns).

Dale and I spent a week and a half this summer wandering around France. I had a great time soaking up a whole lot of wisdom from this former Mennonite who went to Vietnam, spent the eighties chasing around Pat Robertson (ask him about the time he and some other anti-Contra protestors cornerd him at a country club) and is now an addictions counselor in inner-city Chicago. If you can make it to convo, you should find it interesting and make sure you go up afterwards and say that Tim said hi.
posted by Unknown @ 2:44 PM

I feel happy!
yay! moment of proudness for me!
I just finished my new background for my laptop.. and well, decided to use it to revamp my website! The first two rows were not done by me, but some other dude.. and well, he gave me the idea.. colour scrolls are now fun!
Pic-N-Clic!
Only two of the images lead to other sites.. and I'm hoping to fill them all up if possible.. if anyone would like to let me link their site, just let me know which image you want.. also, I'd like to link this lovely shoup blog, yet, don't know which image to use for it.
posted by Erini CS @ 10:12 PM

A personal angle on the kidnappings in Iraq
For the last few weeks my friend Justin Alexander has been on an emotional roller coaster as the kidnapping gangs in Iraq have begun to target anti-occupation activists. Justin is the founder of Jubilee Iraq, an organization set up to work for debt forgiveness for Iraq and an alternative to corporate privatization. Justin visits Iraq every few months to touch base with friends and colleagues in Iraq.

Three weeks ago, soon after he returned from Iraq, two of his friends traveling in a Red Cross convoy were attacked by gunment. Gareeb (left with Justin), an Iraqi activist who spent a week traveling with Justin last year, was shot dead by the gunmen. Enzo, an Italian journalist and anti-occupation activist (above), was kidnapped. A group calling itself the "Islamic Army in Iraq" announced that if Italy did not withdraw its troops from Iraq in 48 hours, they would not guarantee his safety.

Justin spent the next week calling all his possible contacts in Iraq to uncover any possible contacts or links that could help free his friend. His blog entries during those few days chronicles the testimonies of many prominent Italians and Iraqis on his behalf, including the Iraqi football team in Athens.

On Friday, August 27 it became clear the kidnappers had carried through with their threat as a video of his death was delivered to Al Jazeera. I was with Justin the next day as he struggled to come to terms with their deaths. He was emotionally drained and still in shock. How could any Iraqi group kidnap and kill people so clearly committed to helping Iraqis?

More Kidnappings this Week

This Tuesday, two more Italian activists (right) were kidnapped, along with two Iraqi co-workers. Simona Pari and Simona Torretta were the founders of Un Ponte Per Baghdad (a Bridge to Baghdad). The organizaiton is the Italian equivalent of Voices in the Wilderness and since the invasion has been channeling aid. This time the kidnappers entered their Central Baghdad offices and kidnapped them in broad daylight. These are clearly targeted kidnappings. This time, a group calling themselves Ansar El Zawahri claimed responsibility via the website islamic-minbar.com

Justin has set up the a Free our Friends blog to collect messages of support and report news as it becomes available. He's also set up an on-line petition of support. Please sign this petition. Though there may be no one to deliver them to, it is still a way of showing support for these four kidnapped activists.

Around 8 O'Clock this morning (GMT) the group issued an ultimatum giving the Italian government 24 hours to release hours to promise to release Muslim women prisoners in Iraq in exchange for details about two kidnapped women.

What can we do but watch and pray?
posted by Unknown @ 8:11 AM 0 comments

Obituaries

Eleanor of Aquitaine (Nellie), 14, Resident Standard French Poodle of the Schrock Household, Dies By MEG SCHROCK Nellie was the beloved pet and friend of many people who frequented 150 Ott Street in Harrisonburg, VA. Later in her life, she moved to NW DC and found the city a little less grassy than her previous home but enjoyed having her poop picked up after her. She will be missed. Ilona Marton, 92, Who Wrote of '56 Revolt, Dies By MARGALIT FOX Ilona Marton was an award-winning journalist who was imprisoned for her coverage of events leading up to the Hungarian uprising of 1956. Beyers Naude, Who Fought Apartheid, Dies at 89 By MICHAEL WINES Beyers Naude was an Afrikaner cleric who renounced apartheid, defied his church and became his nation's leading exponent of white resistance to racism.

Richard G. Butler, 86, Founder of the Aryan Nations, Dies By DANIEL J. WAKIN Richard G. Butler was a leading figure in the white supremacist movement who preached that Jews descend from Satan and black people are subhuman. W. H. Krome George, Who Led Alcoa, Dies at 86 By MARGALIT FOX W. H. Krome George, a former chairman and chief executive of Alcoa, was credited with overseeing the company's expansion into a global concern. Donald Allen, 92, Book Editor of Bold New Voices in Poetry, Dies By WOLFGANG SAXON By MARGALIT FOX Donald Allen was a poetry editor whose 1960 anthology of the era's contemporary and avant-garde poets remains a milestone in American letters.

posted by meg @ 11:32 PM

swank new photo
of me. check out the profile. rockin' the snake soup in hong kong.

dude, refurb macs rock my world. still have yet to buy a cell phone though. i'm sippin' wine and writing e-mail while the fruit flies filter through my "screened" window.

come to indy this weekend. right.
posted by joel @ 8:32 PM

grah
why nasty peaches, why?

it's the worst thing in the world, it feels, good, it smells good, you can;t wait for that first sweet juicy bite... peh, peh, peh, nasty spongy nastiness, peh, peh, peh... i ate it any way... i'm hungry...
posted by kate @ 1:10 PM

thanks to my Intro to Linguistics course w/ Skip, I need to relearn the English language.. after a few hours last night, this phrase came out of me:
"how change form of word that meaning is found."
... Derek gets it..
(and to him, I say, Kuda ini bagus...)
posted by Erini CS @ 11:09 AM

So I'm out running, waiting at the red light at Park and Beach, down in Rock Creek Park. There's this guy in a station wagon hollering at me. I figure he wants directions so I go closer to hear him. It's amazing how people think you can understand them when they shout from their cars. So I go talk to him and he asks, "Is there a cop car around the corner?" and gestures up Beach. I go to check for him, give him a thumbs-up to let him know that there's no cop. But then later it bothers me: why did he need to know?
posted by weiss @ 10:14 PM

"United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama...."
So, I stayed true to my word and randomly interrupted a photography class TWICE today at Goshen High School to dance around and sing "The Nations of the World." To see the lyrics, go to http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs.cmu.edu/user/clamen/misc/tv/Animaniacs/Nations.html. (This page will also show embarrassing omissions from the song, including Cote d'Iviore.) Let me just say that to see the looks on their faces was priceless.

This is available on VHS for those who want proof.

Well, two down($20), three to go ($30)! (At last, to get paid for my work!)
posted by D-Bo @ 2:07 PM

On my way to getting lost trying to find Gunpowder Falls State Park I stopped for gas at a funny gas station in north Baltimore. It was funny because it was just a tiny bullet-proof building for the clerk with a whole bunch of soda outside, some in fridges and some two-liters just sitting in cases. I paid for my gas with a twenty and got back a two-dollar bill as part of my change. Super cool! Contrary to the recommendations of the Treasury in the above link, I am not going to spend it but rather put it in that glass jar where I stuff tiny cool things like funny-shaped rocks, a whistle that says "Blow the whistle on the Republicans," and a bona fide Mao pin that Sasha gave me.

Maia was over for dinner, as Monday nights are now Grant's cooking night. I've taken Thursdays. While she and I were waiting for everyone else to come out on the back porch, I pulled out my wallet and said, "oh let me show you this!" "What, a two dollar bill?" she joked, and she was right.

But yeah, it was nice to see my parents. They're fun.

p.s. Sasha - Over dinner Tim Kennel mentioned your grandmother's passing.
posted by weiss @ 10:43 PM

Worst and best ideas EVER!
Why didn't common sense hit me and tell me that consuming chili, some fries, a cookies 'n' cream malt and a double steakburger with cheese at 2 A.M. this morning was NOT a good idea? Man oh man, am I paying for it now.

Let's just say the Sign cast had the munchies after the cast party. ...

On the contrary, tomorrow I will be a part of one of the best ideas ever. I am going to a high school to randomly pop up in a classroom to perform the "Animaniacs" song, "The Nations of the World." Why? Because somebody is paying me $10 to do this. (And I'm hoping to do it five different times in five different classrooms; that's $50!) We are hoping it will be taped as well. The best part of it is, it's a photography class!!

What a weird life I live.
posted by D-Bo @ 3:03 PM

Sara totally wins, I'm SO sleeping at damn green
I'll be out late on the 13th with celeste in the car! score.

Order of business #2
"Pearl Diver" is looking for some helpers! Specifically, some people to help out as a grip/electric. You can learn some neat skills and make some great contacts. If this sounds interesting to anyone or if you know of anyone who would be interested you can email me, the director of photography John Rotan, or the writer/director Sidney King. We are looking for people who can help out on the 17th, 18th and 19th so you would only be skipping a night class. Email me or any of the others if you have any questions.
posted by meg @ 10:19 AM

Happy Labour Day!
Hey there everybody. Hope you all had a fulfilling summer and all. At Alisa's request, I'm blogging again. It's been a while, so I'm also doing squats to limber up my blogging muscles. Oh yeah. Okay, now I'm ready. So, up to what the fuck have I been? Studying for the MCATs? Working for the Fringe Festival (pic)and a classical music magazine? Galavanting about town with my great cousin Debby, who had a summer internship here? Getting my anger on at the RNC in NYC? Answers: yes, yes, yes, no. Mostly it was the studying. But the test was fun and is over, so now I just have to wait, apply to schools and try to get a hospital job for the year. Plan B: a Master's in Public Health. Plan C: more Robinson Davies books and a whole lot of hot chocolate.

Meantimes, in the last two weeks my brother and I got Tom out of the house and into a plane for Botswana, wrote some PR for the local church, reunited with the family for my grandmother's memorial service (NYT), then Misha returned to Vanier College and we welcomed a new housemate, Sachiko, into our home.* My grandmother's death was more sudden than expected, which meant that while we were sorry to not have shared last words with her, we are all very thankful that she died peacefully and comfortably. She was a great woman and a wonderful grandmother, and I miss her a lot. Thanks to those who sent condolences. Rebecca (my mom) will arrive from PA at the end of this week with my grandfather, who will spend a month in Montreal fixing up her place and preaching. We look forward to seeing them both again.

*We also hung out with Tasara and made her help paint.

Story: Last night I went to see "Paparazzi" for free, and still managed to get less than I paid for! For the first time in my life I felt like walking out of a movie (I guess we really do become our parents). I managed to sit it out, though, and after told manager dude why I found it so upsetting ("He just kills them and this movie acts like it's the best thing ever!" "Do you want your money back?" "No, I just think-" "Well, OK then.") and then I put some shit on the internet because really, what the hell.

Anyway, hope this little update finds you all healthy. Feel free to visit; colours are well good this time of year. Also, I'll make you eggs with maple syrup and we can talk about what you're up to. Or just email, that works too. You bunch take care, now.

PS: Derek, here's a neat little spelling test for aspiring copy-editors. Good luck, yo.
posted by sasha @ 8:33 AM

MEG!!!
you're coming to goshen!! you can stay with me!! 'course, you'll be working all the time since you're a cool movie person now, and the only times i'll get to see you are when you crawl home at 2am like a cheater-ass boyfriend. or something.
No, really, you should stay with me.
Reasons to stay with me:
1) I live in Damn Green.
2) with really nice people
3)and I will be there
4)and we have thebestcouchforsleepingon ever. seriously. it was in canada house last year.
5)and my house is conviently located across from another house of people you are friends with
6)and i'll buy you nice cheese
7)and sing you songs about puppies
8) and belshazzar's feast
9)but not if you don't want me to.
whoa! nine whole reasons to stay with me. i'd like to see some other goshenpunk try to come with that many good reasons.
see you in exactly ten days!!

-sara
posted by Sara @ 11:45 PM

dude, weiss, I totally watched that movie as a freshman with the soccer team in a hotel room on the way to pennsylvania on the way to play emu. it was the most awkward experience of my life.

p.s. we just rented drum line; my favorite movie. (correct semi-colon use? I don't know)

now: time for some popcorn and some hardcore drumstick action!

sweet-ass
posted by meg @ 11:11 PM

So I've got a new favorite movie: Eyes Wide Shut. I really should have watched this years ago. It's fantastic.

Searching for images for this post turns up a disturbing number of photos of people dressed as the characters from the masquerade party. I wonder what inspired them to do that. It feels too much like they're missing the point completely. It's not sexy at all.
posted by weiss @ 10:55 PM

Camera crew returns to Goshen!!
The "Pearl Diver" crew returns to goshen to do a re-shoot of some days that got fugged due to a funk-ass generator that made the lights flicker.

so look for us down town around the 15th

can I sleep at someone's house that is still in goshen?

check out the new trailer, it is super scary so don't watch it alone!!!

also, yesterday I did a commercial shoot for old spice red zone. very exciting. will be seen on mtv, espn, and spike tv after october 16th during a maryland game, so check it out. I did the important job of getting some release forms signed and holding up a sign in a couple of the shots.


now you have no excuse to not write to your host parents




posted by meg @ 11:40 AM

Did I really just spend the entire afternoon playing Civ II? Yes, I think I did. Ick. At least I ran this morning, otherwise I'd feel really stupid. Now I'm going to try to get a little reading done for Fed Income Tax before maybe heading out for a bit with Emily.

I should have played saxophone or bough a wedding gift for Sarah Lehman or something. Oh, and I should have written to my host family in Ivory Coast, but my constant excuse is that I lost my french dictionary.
posted by weiss @ 5:32 PM

yipee!

posted by kate @ 1:08 PM

"I want to fuck your brains out."
Jessica Smucker Falcon came up with the idea of making a movie all about my weird experiences and making them into a short film. She's very interested in writing the based-on-true-events script. Her husband, Bryan, then came up with the title: My So-Called Sexual Preference. And it looks like we'll probably film some of the movie in the 'Rot (with Dave Kendell behind the counter). (And in Yoder 1st. ... Well....)
posted by D-Bo @ 11:33 AM

level 12 is jumping mad. i can't get past it. go guardian ducks!
posted by joel @ 11:29 PM

i win!
so my first 3 hours of work today were spent playing the owner and the manager at Chez A at Risk, what a waste of time, but hey, it's money!
posted by kate @ 9:43 PM

They Might Be ... Homestar Runner
So, it looks like TMBG and Homestar Runner are going on tour together ... seriously.

That's all I have to say.

I thought it was cool.

OK, um ... bye.

(Nothing like a late-night blog from the Hub!)
posted by D-Bo @ 2:02 AM

aye, level five is verrry harrrd to beat, indeed.

and i wish i could go to NYC
posted by kate @ 11:43 PM

Why why why can I not beat the fifth wave in Duck Guardian? Has anyone else been able to get the fifth wave beated?

And yes, if you were wondering, the second year of law school is somewhat easier.
posted by weiss @ 10:33 PM

"special prize" awarded to gap in blog


neighbor's downstairs say: "What's all that bumpin up stairs"
I yell: "wooo weeee, finally some internet!" and then I opened up the blog and I said to my belly,
"damn, that's more empty than you are, B"
and belly said
"don't mess with me, I'm hungry"
"word"

special prize is negative prize
positive proze to those who post
negative prize to those who's posts smell worse than my socks
like this post
this post smells worse than at least two days worth of socks and running
posted by meg @ 10:19 PM