katie's blog

skinssssss

Feb 1, 2010
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The fourth season (or "series" as they say in the UK) of Skins aired last week. It was a pretty decent episode, though it was a bit too....serious for me. I hope the entire season isn't as dark and moody and angsty as the first episode. I'm also mad at British shows for always being so damn short. Seriously! This season of skins is 8 episodes. EIGHT. So short, so sad.

Thoughts: Kissing and sex scenes involving Pandora make me feel awkward and uncomfortable. She's like a big child and it's just...weird. I prefer to hear her talk about other people "making monkey" but to see her do it? Awkward.

The opening scene was pretty trippy and awesome. I liked how as the camera followed this as-of-yet-unknown person around the club, she walked by most of the main characters. Cook shagging some random girl in the hallway, bumping into Freddie, walking by Pandora and JJ dancing, Katie getting hit on by some random guy, Emily and Naomi making out on the stairs. Oh and then she jumps off those stairs into the middle of the crowd and kills herself. What the butt!

It looks like Cook is going to be less douchebaggy than last series. Or at least it looks like he'll be good friends with Naomi and Emily, who he never really interacted with very much last series. I hate Cook, so I'm hoping this series will make me like him.

I hope Thomas and Panda stay broken up. They're my least favorite coupling in the show. And, you know, that way we can hopefully avoid the aforementioned awkward sex scenes with Panda.

I'm confused about Thomas' family. He's from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and last series his family was trying to move itself to the UK. It looks like they were successful. But his two younger siblings have British accents and they all speak to each other in English and just...well...they just seem very British. I'm going to just ignore it and chalk it up to bad acting/bad directing. And this show is notorious for having weird continuity errors and gaping plot holes that are never explained.

Anyway, I am excited for the rest of the series. It's the last series with the current cast, so that's sad, but I hope they at least go out with a bang and not a whimper.

QotD: RIP J.D. Salinger

Jan 29, 2010
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J.D. Salinger died this week at the age of 91. How many times have you read Catcher in the Rye? How did it impact your life?

I only read it once in 10th grade. I really enjoyed it and now I want to read it again since everyone's talking about it...I remember feeling weird because there's a scene near the end where Holden is walking through the streets and he says something about how every step he took he felt like he was just going to disappear, and I have had that exact same feeling so many times. Then everyone in my class started talking about how crazy that was and how Holden was a mental case. THEY JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND.

I have so many things on my plate at the moment, but I plan on re-reading it as soon as I can. I know I'll be able to understand and appreciate it more now than I could when I was 15.

The same goes for a lot of books that I read in school actually. Some on my list of "Things To Read Now That I Can Hopefully Understand And Appreciate Them More Than When I Was 11-17" are....

To Kill A Mockingbird
Dracula
Uncle Tom's Cabin
A Lesson Before Dying
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
The Great Gatsby
Of Mice and Men

And books that my friends read for their classes but that were never taught in my classes for some reason:
1984
Brave New World
The Giver (ok so that was in elementary school but I still missed out on it)
Slaughterhouse Five

Why did I learn Spanish? Here's why.

Jan 16, 2010
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During my delightful shift at the liquor store tonight, one of our regular (and by "regular" I mean "daily") customers, Teresa, came in. Teresa is from Columbia and knows I speak Spanish so we always talk together in Spanish whenever she comes in.

So tonight she comes in, and we are, as usual, speaking to each other in Spanish. We finish up and she leaves and then the next lady in line is pretty nice at first, she asks how long I've been studying Spanish, etc. Then she leaves on this delightful note: "I was going to say something like, 'why don't you just speak English since you're in the US', but I didn't." I just kind of looked at her dumbly and gave a weak smile, anything to just get her away and out the door.

What the hell? This is not the first time I have been met with the attitude "You are a native English speaker, why bother with a foreign language?" but each time I am faced with that question, I think I get more offended.

First of all, despite what we have all been taught in our American schools, we are not the center of the world. Just because we speak English, and just because a lot of non-North Americans speak English, does not mean that English is the most important language in the world. Please, get over yourself.

Second, since when does learning a language always have to be to some end? I'm sure some (a lot?) of people learn a foreign language in order to do their specific job, or study a specific field (I know that you pretty much have to have a strong working knowledge of Ancient Greek to be a scholar of the ancient Greek philosophers and writers, like Plato and Homer.) But what's wrong with just learning a language for shits and giggles? My parents took an Intro to German class not too long ago together. They had both taken German in high school and college and just wanted a little refresher (my mom is coming on 64 and my dad just turned 59, so college was quite a while ago.) They're not going to go to Germany and strike up any deep conversations, but they enjoyed the class, they broadened their minds, they learned something that most people don't learn. So good on them.

Thirdly, most people who present this question probably don't realize that language is an integral part of culture. I happen to be quite interested in Spanish culture, having lived and studied in Barcelona for several months. So being interested in the language is a given. I am unsure how to convey this properly in words (heh), but describing something in Spanish and describing the same thing in English are completely different. You cannot simply "translate" words from one language into the other. You have to translate the thought and the meaning behind the original statement. Translation and interpretation are forms of art. It's a kind of acting - interpreting the original source material in a different language.

What also offends me about people asking "why study Spanish? It's pointless" is because they are making vast assumptions about me. They don't know who I am, they don't know my interests, they don't know a thing about me. Don't jump to the conclusion that I only speak "a bit" because I "had to" in high school. You should be conscious of the possibility - and in this case the fact - that I am actually pretty damn good at speaking Spanish and I do it for a variety of reasons, most of which add up to "because I want to."

Fourthly and finally: Most people probably don't realize that the United States does not have an official language. English is the "de facto" language simply because most people speak it and the government uses it. But a lot of people don't speak it. There are large areas within our country where Spanish is the most common language, and that number is only going to grow. Especially in Colorado, where I am, we have a rapidly increasing Hispanic population. Unfortunately we also have a very large wealthy white conservative population who look down upon immigrants (even if they are legal) which I think is where a lot of the "why learn Spanish?" attitude comes from.

Maybe they see a white, blonde haired and blue eyed American girl learning Spanish because she wants to as some sort of violation of the "we are better than them" idea. Perhaps they see it as "us" giving into "them," instead of the other way around which is how they would like it. How about we all retain our own cultures and languages, while at the same time broadening our knowledge and appreciation of others? I think the world in general would be in a much better state if everyone had the attitude of "I am proud of my own culture and people, but I am also eager to learn about yours."

QotD: "To teach is to learn twice." ~Joseph Joubert, Pensées, 1842

Jan 15, 2010
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If you had to teach something, what would you teach?

Back in high school and middle school I would always want to be a teacher so I could be "the cool teacher" who everyone liked. There were so many things that teachers did that were so ridiculous and unnecessary that made students hate them, and I was so sure that if I was a teacher, I would of course never do any of that and would be the hip young teacher that got on with the kids. I don't think I ever wanted to teach a certain subject, I just wanted to be "a teacher." Fortunately that madness passed pretty much when I graduated high school.

This also makes me think of a quote that I think is mean and wrong, but funny nevertheless: "Those who can't do, teach. Those who can't teach, teach gym."

new years

Dec 31, 2009
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Oh joy! I get to spend the first part of one of my least-favorite days of the year working a 10 hour shift with no lunch break! :D

I hope everyone has a good and safe New Years Eve...I dislike the "clean slate" delusions of New Years, but I guess if it gets people feeling good and optimistic then...yay?

2009 was actually a pretty good year for me. I graduated college and went on an amazing 6 week jaunt through Spain and some of the rest of Europe. My sister had a daughter in July and she is the cutest most amazing little tiny person I've ever met.

2010 will hopefully see me leaving the nest and getting a "real" job and living on my own and all that fun stuff that adulthood brings. BRING IT ON.

So far I have been saying "two thousand ten" and that's what I hear most people saying. I wonder if the whole "twenty ten" thing will take off? It sounds kind of silly in my opinion. I also wonder if people will start using the word "the aughts" to refer to the 2000-2009 decade.

I just tried thinking back on the past decade, and pretty much all that comes to mind is "Harry Potter." Yes Harry Potter came out before this decade began, and I read the first 3 books before then, but when I really started getting ~~obsessed with~~ into the series was circa 2002. So, thank you, the aughts, for giving me Harry Potter.

random geekery

Dec 29, 2009
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I need to put a freeze on my buying and receiving of various entertainment items, since I am rather overwhelmed by the number of things I have to read/watch/play.

The games that I need to play/finish:

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4. Totally awesome game, despite being TOTALLY CRAZY. It's a lot of fun though and I think it wants to take over my life.

Dragon Age Origins: Been sloooowly trodding through this one since it came out months ago.

New Super Mario Bros Wii: I need to get another controller so I can make people play it with me.

Fallout 3: Been playing this game since I think February or March of this year. I'm like, 1/3 done with it. fuck.

Mirror's Edge: I don't even really want to play this game but Target had it for $10 new so I couldn't say "no" to that and bought it and have played like 5 minutes of it. Might have to force myself.

Then there are like a thousand TV shows!

Skins: Series 4 starts up in late January, so of course I have to watch at least series 3 again before then.

The Vampire Diaries: Also starts back up in January, so I'll have to marathon the first half of the season to prepare. <3 U STEFAN.

Lost: Gonna start the season 5 rewatchathon soon before season 6 starts up in February. Like everyone else I have NO IDEA what the hell is up with that show, or even why I put up with its bullshit. I blame Kate.

Then there are shows that I want to start on, like the Sopranos, Weeds, Mad Men and so many more that I can't even remember what they are. I also want to re-watch Battlestar Galactica, because that series is awesome.

Comics!

The High School Comic Chronicles of Ariel Schrag: Totally awesome series, I'm about halfway done (I finished Awkward and Definition, which were pretty short, and am in the middle of junior year now, aka Potential. Likewise, which is senior year, is massive.)

Batman: I have a fairly large amount of Batman comics and NO IDEA where to start. I also have Birds of Prey, which I think I might actually start with, because it seems super gay and super lady-friendly.

The Walking Dead: I have the first TPB and need to get crackin' on reading it. I know nothing about it other than zombies are involved.

You can read minds?!

Dec 22, 2009
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Life is good. I still hate my job but I'm not going to get into that - fortunately my job is so mindless and so superfluous in the grand scheme of my life that when I come home, apart from having a few bitchy customers to rant about for 5 minutes, I pretty much completely leave work at work. It never looms over me. Which is good.

I have a resume and cover letter composed, though they are pretty rough around the edges and need some serious spit-shine. But I am being optimistic.

So sad to hear about Brittany Murphy dying. I was never a ginormous fan but I loved her as Louanne in King of the Hill and of course Clueless. I don't really remember much about Girl, Interrupted, and forgot she was in it. It's interesting how celebrity deaths affect people so much - I mean, none of us commoners knew Brittany Murphy, or Heath Ledger or any number of the young celebrities who have died over the years, but growing up knowing that someone exists, and then all the sudden they are no longer there - that's a bit weird. I think it also hits closer to home than, say, a 60+ actor dying of cancer, simply because it's caused by these people doing things that we do, or things that people we know do. I'm sure most of us know, or have known, heavy drug users, people with eating disorders, people in violent relationships. It sucks that it takes a celebrity dying for people to realize that this stuff can actually kill you. I'm not saying that necessarily applies to Brittany Murphy - I don't know how she died, but a 32 year old woman doesn't just drop dead from being healthy. Something was wrong, something was up, and that something ended up killing her.

Anyway, on a happier note...Christmas is going to be interesting this year. We always "do" Christmas on Christmas Eve, and this year is no different. We're not going to bring my Grandpa over for Christmas Eve for various reasons, but will have him over Christmas morning for breakfast and stockings and some additional presents. I'm excited! This is also of course the first Christmas with my niece Alison, so that will be fun, even though she's only 5 months old.

Is celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve "weird" to a lot of people? It's fairly common in this area. Maybe it's a cultural thing? Wikipedia suggests Germans, among others, do it on Christmas Eve, and there are quite a lot of German descendants in Colorado so maybe that's why? All I know is we've always done it on Christmas Eve and a lot of my friends through the years do it then as well. Christmas Morning just seems weird! We do stockings on Christmas morning.

Whatever you're doing, you're doing it wrong.

Nov 28, 2009
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While I complain about my job as much as the next person, in general I really don't mind it. It's easy, it's mindless, it's money. But the past week has really tested my patience with it. Not only customers (I hate dealing with the public though I've gotten used to dealing with their asshattery so it doesn't bother me as much anymore) but also coworkers.

First, the owners. The liquor store is owned by two individuals, who are there during the day. They are nice people and I don't mind working for them but I dislike working with them. They micromanage and nothing is ever done how it should be. You're either working too slow or too fast. If you're doing Task A, you should be doing Task B, but then will get in trouble for not doing Task A first. We had a bottle stolen from the store today and it was, of course, the cashiers' fault. Similar to how a goalie will get blamed for letting the other team score in soccer, we got blamed for "letting" someone walk out with a bottle hidden in his hoodie. It wasn't the fault of the stockers or managers that were all on the floor and who can more easily monitor the entire store (the vodka aisle is way in the back and out of sight from the cash registers.) No, it was the cashiers' fault, or, more specifically, my fault. Fuck you. It's a liquor store, shit happens, shit gets stolen, deal with it. I didn't even see the kid, since I was doing OTHER WORK. But if I hadn't been doing that other work that was occupying me, I would have been reprimanded for "standing around."

On the day before Thanksgiving, near the end of the day when things were slowing down, around 8 o'clock, I was still running a cash register and was dealing with a pretty constant stream of customers. During a small lull, one of the owners commented that if I helped the other cashier who was currently stocking product at the front, then I could get out of there faster. Um? If I was doing that, who would do the cash register? I would certainly get yelled at for that. If I'm on the register, I should be doing something else, but as soon as I'm doing that something else, I should be at the register. How about you just fuck off and let me do my goddamn job? If, by the end of my shift, something I should have done hasn't been done, then maybe please remind me that next time I will need to do whatever it is that I missed. Don't talk down to me and boss me around about doing shit that is less important than what I am currently doing.

I also have a serious problem with the attitude that customers can't POSSIBLY wait in LINE for thirty fucking seconds. Today I had signed up a customer for our "value club" dealie, so after they left I still had to print a duplicate receipt and do some other shit to make sure that they would get registered in the system properly. This took me about 10 seconds, which was enough time for someone to walk up behind a customer another cashier was dealing with. One of the managers was around and basically said "Katie, you need to call customers over to you." Again: fuck you. I was working, finishing up a task from the previous customer. I'm not lazing about doing nothing and ignoring customers. Also, since when are customers completely helpless and incapable of doing things on their own? Can they not look around and say, oh, there is a cashier who is open, and go to that cashier?

One of the owners also has the feeds from the video cameras in the store on his computer at home so he can watch the store 24/7. This is fine and totally understandable, since there is a lot of alcohol in the store and a lot of money. But he takes it way too far into Big Brother territory when he calls in the evenings wondering, you know, "why is this person doing that" or "why hasn't that been done." Tonight he called because the ONE customer in the store hadn't been helped. Ohhhkay. Yes, someone should have asked the customer if he was finding everything alright, etc. But, seriously, buddy, get a life.

*sigh* Ok, just had to get that out lol.

Holiday brain dump

Nov 25, 2009
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We officially started the Christmas season the other day when my mom put on The Christmas Revels, a cassette (remember those?) that we had from way back before I can remember that we eventually replaced with the CD when it became available. Listening to it is one of our Christmas traditions and nothing gets me in the "holiday spirit" more quickly or more intensely than this album. It's very "traditional" and is what I guess I would describe as "really, really good church music." There aren't a lot of popular traditional songs, though it does have the Twelve Days of Christmas (which I cannot stand in any way shape or form), the Holly and the Ivy and the Lord of the Dance (my two favorite songs.) I can't find any of it on YouTube or anything, though I'll upload either the entire album or at least a few songs sometime before Christmas. BECAUSE IT'S SO GOOD AND DESERVES TO BE SHARED.

XmasRevels_CD_800

Anyway, this weekend we are planning on putting lights up outside, as well as getting a Christmas tree. We probably won't set up the tree inside just yet, but we figure the tree we'd buy in 3 or 4 weeks is already out there in the tree lot at the grocery store, so we might as well get it now when there's better selection, and just let it hang out outside for a bit so it doesn't dry out so much.

So....for Thanksgiving we are having a total of 9 people plus a baby. This is the largest group we've had for a long time so that's awesome. It's going to be my parents, my sister, my brother-in-law, their baby Alison, my uncle (dad's brother), my grandpa, my other uncle (mom's brother) and his wife, and me. It's going to be fun!

Then for Christmas I think it's just going to be 6 of us, plus Alison. We're planning on having another turkey with all the fixin's, and maybe a ham as well. Mmmmmmm. We "do" Christmas on Christmas Eve, rather than Christmas morning. We do stockings and stuff on Christmas morning but our big dinner/presents/craziness is on the 24th. The 24th is my favorite day of the year, since the morning is spent cooking and cleaning (the only time cleaning is fun in any way) and listening to music and just having a good time, then having an amazing dinner and presents and all that. :D So exciting!

Also, good news: New Years Eve is generally one of my least-enjoyed holidays. It's even worse than being single on Valentine's Day, because that is more easily ignored. Ignoring New Years is impossible. AND I HATE NEW YEARS. But this year, I think New Years Eve is going to be a good time. When my sister and I were little we would play Monopoly and get Chinese food. Then everyone grew up and we all did stuff with our friends, etc. This year, though, I think everyone is staying home and I'm going to try and get everyone to do the old traditional Monopoly and Chinese food. My mom is already on board, and I know that everyone else will be on board as well. No pun intended, hardy har...

I LOVE this time of year. If that was in any way unclear. :D I'm not religious in the slightest, but I absolutely love Thanksgiving and Christmas, and the time surrounding both.

....And after I got myself all excited, now I have to go to work. Which is going to be INSANITY since everyone is going to be buying booze for Thanksgiving. I also work tomorrow, though only from 9-2 so that's not too bad. Still though....oh well. Nothing's going to get me down :D

metablog

Nov 21, 2009
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The other day I came into possession of a fancy dancy leather-bound journal that's pretty much exactly the sort of thing I've been looking for for a very long time. Now that I have it I am wondering how I should use it. I have written in a physical pen-and-paper diary twice: once for about a week in 7th grade (which is hilarious to read back on, by the way) and then while I was living in Spain for 8ish months a few years ago and didn't have a computer.

Other than that my journal-keeping has been all online. The first sort of blogging I did was on the Gamer Advisory Panel on the PlayStation.com forums in either late 2002 or early 2003. The only reason I remember it was around this time was because I remember blogging about how the release date for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix had JUST been announced that day, and I remember that news was announced in January of 2003 (because I'm clearly a nerd.) In March of 2003 I started my LiveJournal, which I still sort of maintain though I haven't posted there for a while (it's friends-only so if you're not my friend and click that you'll basically get my only non-friends-only post saying "fuck off pls" :P) Then I got my Vox like...I dunno, 2005? 2006? I beta'd it, but I don't remember when that was and I'm too lazy to look into it.

So, my "journaling" has evolved in a few ways over the years, from "this is what I did today" sorts of crap to whining and emoting and general rambling (often while intoxicated to some degree.) I think it's time to keep on evolving and change things up, and maybe my new physical journal will help. I'll still use my Vox and, to a lesser extent, my LJ, but I think I'll mainly just continue to use those to follow other people and less to post shit for people to follow me.

Also, wtf, blogging about blogging. I am lame.