Live from Shangri-La

I don't post on myspace. I have too many friends I don't really talk to, and it makes me nervous. Funny, huh? I don't want to write because someone might read it.

I may get over that someday, but until I do, I post strictly on here. This, however is not strictly writing. More like a fun time killer.

It's a Survey! Go to UrbanDictionary.com and type your answer to each question in the search box, then copy down the first definition it gives you:

1) What is your name? Stephanie; 1:The sexiest girl in the world 
             2: A very sexy, sophisticated woman. Someone that knows what they want and can get it. Can also mean a sophisticated bitch.  
            3: Stephanie is, to say the least, an incredible girl. She is an immediate soul mate, before you even have the time to realize it. She is gorgeous, but still stands out from the other pretty girls. She has a sense of humor that never dissapoints or keeps you from laughing. She has this aura about her that no one else could ever have. She carries herself with grace worthy of Grace Kelly herself. Stephanie is loving, unique, and maybe even a bit quirky; but its in a cool addictive way. Once you meet a real Stephanie, don't ever let go. 

  (I put a couple more in there, but who doesn't like hearing that much great stuff about themeselves?) 

2) What is your age? 27;  the age all rockstars die at:
jimi hendrix
jim morrison
janis joplin
kurt cobain
alexander the great
james dean
river phoenix
brad nowell (lead singer to sublime) died at the age of 28 years and 2 days (2 days from joining the club) 

3) One of your friends? Kevin 1:Anglicized form of the Irish name Caoimhín, derived from the older Irish Coemgen, composed of the Old Irish elements coem "kind, gentle, handsome" and gein "birth". Saint Caoimhin established a monastery in Ireland and is the patron saint of Dublin. 
  2: v. The act of hip-thrusting. The body is positioned in such a manner in which the movement of the pelvic muscles is maximized whereas the movement of the rest of the body is minimized. The hips are then thrusted back and forth in rapid succession. See HardGay.

4)what should you be doing? Walking the dog  1 : The act of taking your pet dog on a
walk in the great outdoors.
2: To fondle one's penis.
3: To fondle someone else's penis.
4: Something to say when one doesn't
want one/others to know that they
are about to smoke out of their
bowl/chillium/pipe.

5)Hometown? Waco TX,  :A town in centeral Texas were the Branch Dividian thing did not happen!! It was 24 miles out of town in Falls County. It is also the home of Doctor Pepper, the greatest college ever Baylor University and a city filled with history that nobody outside of the state of Texas cares about (idiots).

6)middle name? nope. If you know it, you look it up. I'm not posting it. 

7) Car you drive? Mini 1: The top choice in vehicles for motoring purposes.
         2:Noun: A non-offensive word used instead of fanny(the English meaning), beaver, snatch, pussy or the "c" word.            Sometimes spelt as minnie in some publications. 

8)  occupation? teacher n. A person whose life calling is in the perpetuation of the body of knowledge and experience gained through thousands of years of civilization. Often attempts to impart said knowledge despite resistance from students who do not care, parents who do not care, administrators who care about the wrong things and other people such as religious fanatics and governments who want their own agenda satisfied. Teachers are passionate about their subject matter, and given a class of students who actually want to learn, there is no end to what can be accomplished. Your typical student nowadays do not understand the one basic fact...without education, you go no further in life. Education is the cornerstone of a civilization. If people were given this value from birth, our poor country would not be in such a sorry state today. Teachers do not give homework to punish or ruin your life. They give it so that you can gain the practice you need to master subject matter. You might not see how you can use this matter later in life, but unless you happen to have a crystal ball (and know how to use it), you really have no idea when you might need it. One of the most important things you can learn in school is time management, so that you can both get your work done AND have a social life, rather than wasting time complaining and end up with no time to do either. Teachers are not people who failed at other things, all of the teachers I know and work with chose teaching as their career outright. We are teachers FIRST, in other words. Our current educational system is not perfect, it's not even great, it needs a lot of fixing up, but until our country as a whole begins valuing education and the role it serves in boosting the economic and social well-being of the nation, it will continue to get short-shrift, and parents will not encourage their children in a positive manner to participate in the process that will ultimate lead them to their adulthood. 


9) last name? Not that either.
 

E forgets that I don't share the same last name as him (so sweet!), and his Aunt G gently reminded him today that I was Steph R not Steph S, when he was telling stories about me using the latter as my whole name:

"Oh Yeah," he said.

"When did you stop calling her 'Ms. R' and start calling her 'Steph'?" Aunt G asked.

"When my dad got in love with her."

This is so wrong....
Yet so accurate.


AhhHahahaa "Don't worry, Rob's not voting for McCain."

I put together a box of costumes just last night to be added to all summer... and I, too have a friend who won't be attending because no one's seen him since his new girlfriend came around. Last year he said it changed his life, but she's since talked him out of it..... GRRRR (and he wonders why they're in couples' counseling)

*PS- This year's theme: "American Dream"!*

A lost African Grey parrot was able to tell a vetrinarian is name, his family's name and his complete home address, and was successfully returned home! We've been trying to teach this information to Eric regularly for the past year, and he probably still would not be able to relay all this information. ("We live in ... California?" "What city?" "California.")

*sigh*

Of course, this happened in Japan. I can only assume that Japanese parrots, like Japanese children are much more advenced and disciplined than those here in the US.

Ironically, Eric would be able to tell his saviors the names and characteristics of every single Pokemon ever invented (the Japanese card game) before he would be able to give descriptions of any of his family members. Tiny country... huge influence.

Link to the article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080521/ap_on_fe_st/odd_japan_parrot_returns

I've decided that with all my time off, I should invest myself in creative endeavors. Not the usual ones of sewing and sculpting... No, nothing I have any actual talent/experience doing. Why would I want to do that? I have been moved to sit around like a hippy and paint. It's pretty fun, actually, and no, you may not see anything I've produced so far.

I have a wild variety of acrylics, but they're left over from my effects days, when I would use them to make PAX paints. Here's where I am:
*I have materials, sort of (I'm using old make up brushes)
*excellent color mixing-skills
*a good sense of light and shadow for realism when applying paint to 3-d objects or fabric
*no idea how to apply paint to 2-D surface and not have it come out looking like something I would have painted in highschool

I'm having a great time. My goal is that by the end of the summer, I'll stop painting things that should hang up at the Museum of Bad Art. ( www.museumofbadart.org )

Any suggestions for subject matter are welcome (Exceptions : Unicorns and/or Elvis or portraiture of any kind- While I am adept at painting ON people, any attempts at painting pictures OF people only result in a flagrant display of my lack of talent.)

I'll start with the bad, because then I can cheer myself up later.
( The Frustrating )

( The Rewarding )

Two 1st tier (but still overpriced) Burning Man tickets are on their way! And it only took an hour of hanging out near my computer not really doing much. I'm thrilled.

Hooray!

Okay, I'm all for anarchy....

No I'm not. Who am I kidding? In theory, sure, but I also work with an "anarchist" group and watch first hand what happens when leadership disappears. Answer: I wash cutting boards alone in the driveway for an hour while skinny black-clad anarchist kids stand around nearby watching me talking about how the world would be better if there were less organization. Then I stab them with my squeaky clean knives.

Okay, so I only imagine that last part.

Anyway... Burning Man is a lovely social experiment which has outgrown its anarchist potential. There are tiered tickets; the lower-priced ones selling first. This worked fine when it took a few weeks, or months for the first tier to sell out. Over the past few years, the growing popularity of the event (which is destroying its coolness), however, has caused an internet feeding-frenzy on the old Burning Man site within minutes of tickets going on sale. I have, myself, spent frustrating days hunched over my laptop doing nothing but repeatedly hitting the F5 key, hoping to get into the system and be lucky enough to get a ticket, only to find that the first tier tickets were already gone.

I was expecting that same experience today, but no! I was directed to a site which told me "You are in line to purchase Burning Man tickets". The page refreshes every 60 seconds and tells me what order I am in line. I started (at 10am on the dot, when tickets went on sale) at 2,500th in line, and now, 26 minutes later, I'm 1,977th. I just leave the window open and it waits for me. This is wonderful. Good job Burners!

I'm going to sign off now and not touch my computer beacuse I'm afraid something will happen to cause me to lose my place in line; like my thoughtlessly closing out of Safari, or something. I have other things to do, anyway.

heehee, 1,881st now.

(PS- If any government watchdogs are out there, I was just kidding about spending my grant money on Burning Man Tickets.Ha Ha.. I'm gainfully employed as a tutor and have been saving my Christmas money like a good girl. Plus, I'm borrowing money from K for this and am paying him back over the next couple of months.)

1,828th

Wait, wait... Hear me out.

I just went to my school website to check on my class schedule, see what books I need, and when my next payment is due. Lo and behold, the tuition window stated simply and marvelously, "You have no outstanding charges."

Well, that's not exactly true, I thought. I've only paid up 2/3 of my tuition.

Then it dawned on me to check out my financial aid standing, and after a couple of months of waiting, it came through!!!!!! I received a Federal Pell grant and a State education grant which will not only pay my ENTIRE tuition for the semester (I'm getting a reimbursement check for the amount I have already paid), but also a cover books and living expenses during the semester. It's not much - It's a damn good thing I'm not paying rent anywhere or I'd be in a bad way, but it really helps with things like the extra gas the daily commutes to the valley will cause me to need.

Not a loan, a grant (TWO grants!). For me to have and use for paying for school (and Burning Man tickets, obviously) and not pay back ever. Hooray government. For today, anyway.

Go see The Orphanage in the theatre.

On a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being the most frightening and disturbing), it's a 10. If you have children, it's a 15.

As someone who used to make horror films, I'm fairly critical of the genre, and not particularly sensitive to "disturbing" images on film. This film was so scary it made me cry. I think the plausibility of certain parts of the story were what made it truly frightening and poignant.

That said, it's well done. It has creepy music and unsettling scene breaks; present but understated. Anyway, I won't dwell on the fine points. It was released by Guillermo Del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth), and it was awesome. I haven't seen a movie that made me talk about it for days afterwards in a long time. Take someone sturdy with you and see it early enough that you're not going to go straight home to bed afterwards.