Thank you Newfane, VT

I found this article the other day, and it really piqued my interest. Newfane, a small, classic Vermont town (pictured at left), held a town meeting during which citizens voted 121 to 29 in support of impeaching President Bush. This unsurprisingly stirred up a bit of a ruckus; the town has been receiving countless angry e-mails and phone calls, and some yearly visitors have vowed not to return.

I applaud this town for what it has done. Not many people have dared to stand up to this administration in a way that would garner attention, like Newfane has, and I'm glad to hear that finally something is being done. It's highly unlikely that Newfane's vote will actually lead to the impeachment of the President, but that is far from the point - the town has already made an accomplishment: it has started something. It has brought attention to the issue. Perhaps now other towns will follow suit, or, at the very least, questions will be asked, ideas will be rethought, and decisions will be revisited. All that is needed to start a revolution of sorts is for a small action like this to be taken. Hopefully Newfane has inspired more people to take action. This is just the beginning.

Unfortunately Newfane has had to pay the price for its actions, but I think it's completely worth it. However, I think it's ridiculous how some people have been reacting to this. Refusing to ever return to the town in protest does not accomplish anything. In general, trying to punish the town for this does not accomplish anything. A lot of people have simply made themselves look ridiculous - for example, the anonymous person that called the town clerk, saying, "A little Socialist town like yourself is a disgrace to America." This kind of comment outrages me. To call a town or a person Socialist just because they disagree with the President is ludicrous. It's like accusing them of treason - something that some of these critics have actually done. As Americans we have a right to voice our opinions, even if that means speaking out against the President. The citizens of Newfane have simply exercised this right. They have done nothing wrong.

Yes, this move was a bit risky. Yes, they will have to suffer for it. But, as I have said, I think it's all worth it. They have earned national attention, and although that isn't necessarily what they wanted, I think it will turn out to be a very good thing. Maybe not for the town itself, but for people who, like myself, agree with their decision. Now people have taken notice, and hopefully that includes President Bush himself. He needs to know what much of America really thinks of him, something he hasn't realized yet. I know it's more than doubtful that Bush will ever be impeached, but at least this is bringing some much-needed attention to the issue. Newfane, Vermont deserves a huge "thank you" from all of us.

College acceptances!

I wrote a whole blog for today... and then I checked the mail. Finally, all of my college letters have come! Here are the verdicts:

Smith College: Accepted!
Mount Holyoke College: Accepted!
Wheaton College: Wait-listed?!

I really can't believe I got into Mount Holyoke. I definitely didn't expect to be accepted. I also definitely didn't expect to be wait-listed at Wheaton. I don't understand how I could have possibly gotten accepted at Mount Holyoke but not at Wheaton. Ah, well, I don't care about Wheaton anyway. That was a safety. But now that I've heard from all of my schools, I'm not so sure about my decision now. Simmons is still my first choice, but Smith is starting to really appeal to me. I haven't visited Smith yet, so I will have to soon. Plus, Smith is giving me about $16,500 worth of grants (plus a few loans). With those grants, and with my $10,000 scholarship to Simmons, Smith and Simmons are going to cost about the same amount of money for me to go there - roughly $20,000 per year. This makes my decision so much harder. I think Simmons could have given me more money (the didn't even give me a work study, but Smith and Mount Holyoke did), so I'm probably going to have to meet with Financial Aid and try to get them to give me more money so I can go there. As for Mount Holyoke, I really like that school, plus it's pretty prestigious, but I don't think I would go there. First of all, it's the most expensive, even with the $13k or so in grants that they're giving me. Second, it really intimidates me. That's one of the strongest feelings I got when I visited a few months ago. All of the students are so smart and the teachers are brilliant, it really feels out of my league (so I feel a whole lot smarter now that I've been accepted, haha).

So, now I have to choose from Simmons (my first choice), Smith, Mount Holyoke, and UMass Amherst. This is going to be a lot harder than I expected. My choice is probably going to come down to financial issues. I'm going to have to make some kind of chart of how much each school is going to cost me per year after all of the grants and loans and everything.

Oh, and I also got accepted into the Simmons Honors Program... so that's more good news. Plus as an Honors student, you get $500 a year to spend in the Simmons bookstore on books and things. Pretty cool.

I went to the movies earlier tonight to see Inside Man with Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, and Jodie Foster. It was easily the best movie I have seen in theaters so far this year. It's a million times better than it appears in the previews. I'm really hoping that Spike Lee will win an award for his role as the director, and Denzel Washington and Clive Owen for their performances as well. It was a really great story with such an intricate, twisting plot that really made you think. One of the best parts was the comic relief - it came at just the right times, and it wasn't lame, it was actually really funny. The camera angles were awesome (and I don't usually notice that type of thing) and really enhanced the movie. That's all I'm going to say because I don't want to reveal anything, but everyone has to go see this movie. Don't even wait until it comes out on video - see it in the movie theater. You won't be disappointed.

Anyway, that's all I have to say for now. Since I had already written a whole blog before writing this brand new one about my college acceptances, I'm just going to post that one in its entirety tomorrow. Adios.

The Sounds are cool and sleep is, too

The Sounds
with Morningwood and Action Action
Boston, MA: April 14, 2006

Remember the other day when I wrote about how I was pissed that The Sounds were coming to Boston with Morningwood, but I couldn't go because it was an 18+ show? Well, after I wrote that blog I got a strange desire to check the Ticketmaster page again. Well whaddayaknow, "ALL AGES" was written at the very top of the page. Go figure. Anyway, upon seeing this I basically started freaking out. I knew I absolutely had to go to this show. Several different plans were made, changed, and scrapped revolving around this show, until I finally worked it out and bought them yesterday. I am so excited. This is something that I've been wanting to do for a while - go to a show in Boston. April 14th needs to hurry up and get here.

I have a valid excuse for not blogging so far this week: track. Yep, it started this week... for real this time, not the optional captain's practices that were held last week (the ones that I only went to one of). It seems I have already started a routine: after two hours of practice I'll return home a little before 5, go on the computer for an hour or so, eat dinner, watch tv, fall asleep on the couch, etc. I have been extremely exhausted this week, especially today. I've been trying really hard to go to bed early (as in 11-11:30) but for some reason I just haven't been able to do it. This week has been kind of busy schoolwork-wise, but I still shouldn't be going to sleep as late as I do (which is usually somewhere between 12 and 1). I really need to get into the habit of going to sleep earlier. Last week I did, and I was amazed at how much better I felt during the day. It's crazy what a good night's sleep can do to you. After being so used to being so exhausted during the day, it felt incredible last week to not be tired, and all I needed for that was an hour or two more sleep than usual. Unfortunately since I haven't been getting much sleep this week I've once again forgotten what it's like to not have lead eyelids and to not yawn every three minutes. Starting next week I'm really going to make an effort to change my sleeping habits because it makes a huge difference and it's definitely worth it.

I've been thinking of this prom dress thing a lot. I haven't gotten the chance to try mine on again yet (the only opportunity I've had is after track practice, and there's no way I'm getting in my dress when I'm all sweaty), but I have been looking at it every day. I still can't decide if I like it. I've looked through some of my magazines that feature prom dress sections and I've decided that I'm really into Greek-looking dresses. Elegant dresses in colors like ivory and seafoam, sometimes with jeweled embellishments or golden trim, are really standing out to me. Hopefully I will get the chance to go to the mall again sometime soon just in case I find any dresses like that that I want instead of the one I have now. I did see several Greek-like dresses in Lord & Taylor but most of them were either too embellished or didn't fit me correctly. I love this dress (it isn't very Greek-looking, though), but unfortunately there aren't any Rampage stores anywhere near me. Poo.

Oh my. Gee, Mr. President, is there anything you will do?

Hmmm... and people wonder why I so adamantly support gun control laws...

Well, I'm really tired and I still have a bunch of stuff to do (homework, shower, etc.). I'm not sure if I'm going to track tomorrow... I've been planning on skipping tomorrow's practice because I'm really tired and I need a day off (the first week of track and I already need a day off... kind of pathetic), but I actually kind of want to go. I'm not sure. But as I was saying, this is all I have time for today. Adios.

It's prom season already?

I was successful in finding a prom dress yesterday, though it took a while. First we went to Macy's, and although I tried a ton of dresses on I couldn't find one that I didn't think was gross and cheap-looking. After wasting a few hours there, we went into Lord & Taylor. Immediately upon walking in I felt rather out of place because of all the designer things they had there, but as opposed to Macy's, I saw tons of dresses that I really liked. I must have tried at least 20 dresses on, most of them too expensive for me to buy anyway, and I ended up narrowing it down to two: both blue, one knee-length halter with rhinestone trim around the neck, and the other floor-length with beaded embellishments. Although I liked the halter better, it showed way, way too much cleavage (usually I don't mind this, but in this case there was an overwhelming amount of flesh showing and it was just not appropriate), so I chose the other one, shown at left but in light blue (a much better color than the melon pink in the picture). I'm still not sure if I like it, though. First of all, I don't like floor-length dresses, and this dress is pretty much as floor-length as you can get (it will actually need to be hemmed quite a bit). Also, it tends to just hang on my body like a limp piece of fabric. I want something that hugs my curves (as cliche as that is) because that's what is most flattering for my shape. I'm going to try it on a few more times to finally decide if I really like it; otherwise I'm going to return it and try to find another one. If I do decide to keep it, I will have to have it altered a lot, mostly to shorten it so it's not dragging on the floor and also around my torso so it doesn't just hang there as much.

This is absurd. Do we really need to mention the war in Iraq at every possible opportunity? Next they'll be suggesting a moment of silence during Desperate Housewives. I'm also wondering how Stein considers failing to honor the troops during the Oscars "spitting in the face of Americans." Apparently we should all be deeply offended, but it seems he is the only one. He's making a big stink about nothing and needs to focus his attention elsewhere.

Yesterday I got my financial aid package from Simmons. They're only giving me $4625 in loans. They did already give me a $10,000 scholarship, but it's still not enough for my family to afford it. My scholarship basically takes care of room & board, and with the loans there is still about $21,000 worth of tuition and fees to pay each year, more than my family can afford. I have applied for several scholarships so far and I will be applying for more in the future (though most of them I know I don't have any chance of winning), plus there are many local scholarships that I will be applying for as well. Hopefully I'll win some scholarships that will lower the cost of college for me, but I know if I do, it will not be a lot. I'm going to be deep in debt when I graduate.

Right now I'm supposed to be working on a paper that's due tomorrow in my World Lit class. Basically I have to analyze the works of Percy Bysshe Shelley - something I have no idea how to go about doing. My teacher simply gave us the assignment without explaining how to do it. I don't think she realizes that none of us have done a literary analysis paper before and we have no clue what we're doing. Right now my lowest grade in all of my classes is World Lit; a B-. I know that's not a bad grade, and I'm not complaining. In fact, I'm pretty satisfied - I expected to be doing worse. I'm slacking off a lot... and I don't really care, seeing as how it's my last semester of high school ever, and I've already gotten into college. Just as long as it doesn't drop below an 80, I'm all set.

Anyway, I should probably get to work on that paper now. If I want to keep my World Lit grade 80+ then I'll have to get a decent grade on this paper, which means putting a decent amount of effort into it. I guess that means I'll have to end this blog. Ciao.

The general theme for today seems to be music (Part II)

Today I listened to my entire Weezer playlist. That is, almost all songs from their five albums (I have 49 songs on my computer - I left out a few that I don't like from their first self-titled album). It's about 2 hours and 45 minutes long. I'm not sure exactly what compelled me to listen to them in the first place, since I haven't listened to anything Weezer in quite a while, but I'm glad I did. I forgot how much I love those guys. I'm really bummed that I missed their concert in Boston back in October, which was probably their last ever concert in this area. I would have loved to see Rivers Cuomo. Lately I've just been listening to The Von Bondies, The Subways, Living Things, The Strokes, and a little bit of Pearl Jam, so it was nice to hear something different for once.

Right now I'm listening to the new Yeah Yeah Yeahs album "Show Your Bones" on their MySpace. I like their single "Gold Lion" a lot; it's really different. I might actually buy the CD when it comes out, but it depends on if I have enough money (at the moment, I don't) and if there aren't any other CDs that I want more (at the moment, there are). I never liked them until recently; I didn't even like "Maps" much when it came out a few years ago (or was it more recent?). It makes sense that I like them now, though, since I'm really only just getting into indie rock.

I also want to buy the new Sounds album, "Dying to Say This to You," which is coming out on the 21st, this Tuesday. So far I've only listened to the songs they have up on their MySpace, and I like all of them, especially "Song With A Mission." The main reason why The Sounds are so unique and appealing is because of the lead singer's voice. They are all from Sweden, so her voice is really interesting... rather difficult to describe. It was the very first thing that I noticed when I first heard their songs, and it's still the one thing that stands out to me the most. There aren't any other singers like her, and I'm sure that's exactly what's been giving the band so much attention.

I was very amused to hear the Morningwood song "Nth Degree" on an American Eagle commercial yesterday. I wonder what their fans think of Morningwood being associated with that type. As for the song, in my personal opinion it's not their best, but it's catchy and pretty much perfect for a single. I can see why it made it into an AE commercial. My favorite song of theirs is "Nu Rock." Anyway, they are coming to Boston on April 14th, and they're opening for The Sounds at Avalon. I would absolutely love to go to that show, but I can't. Why? No, it's not because of the date - it's actually at a perfect time, right at the beginning of graduation. Actually, (to allude to an earlier post of mine) it's because the show is 18+. Fuck. Another 18+ show that I can't freaking go to. Yeah, I'm pissed. I need a fake ID or something... ah, I definitely don't have the balls for that. I suppose I'll just have to continue to mope at home.

The Subways actually got a good review of their performance at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston a week or so ago. Not that I'm surprised or anything - I mean, The Subways are rather awesome and all - but (and again, to allude to an earlier post of mine) they really didn't sound so awesome on Leno not too long ago. I will assume that pre-recorded live isn't nearly as good as live live. Which, of course, makes complete sense - live music is amazing, almost no matter what it is, even if it generally sucks otherwise. But I still don't like Charlotte much. I can't get over how ridiculous she looked shaking herself around like that. Though I suppose that would look better live live, too. That kind of thing really isn't very fitting on Leno.

Okay, I can't finish this blog without talking about Voxtrot first. I like these guys a lot. I've noticed a lot of buzz about them lately, and for good reason. Their songs are really catchy and although they are definitely radio-material, they're unique so they don't fit into that boring mold of usual radio songs. They're coming to Wellesley on April 11... it's the one concert that I want to go to that's actually all ages, but I can't go because it's a school night. Figures, huh? Why do I have such shitty luck with concerts? Argh.

Well, somehow I managed to post an image for every single paragraph. Quite an achievement. Anyway I think I'll stop rambling on and on about music. I really could go on forever, but I'll spare you. Tomorrow my mom and I are going to Burlington to look for prom dresses. I'm really picky so I'm not sure if I'll actually end up finding one, but I will certainly post something tomorrow or Sunday with an update. 'Til then, adios.

Amsterdam is my hero

Yesterday I stumbled upon this article during my daily perusal of boston.com, and it gave me quite a laugh. To give you a short summary, the article discusses Amsterdam's practice of including a video as part of the immigration entrance exam. Would-be immigrants must buy a copy of this "racy" video that includes images of two men kissing and a topless woman on a beach. I think this is genius. What an excellent way to keep out radical conservatives that clash with the general political mind-set in Amsterdam. This will ensure that immigrants will not threaten the values that the citizens of Amsterdam hold. Of course there are many people that understandably oppose this rule. Yes, it's a bit radical, but I think it makes complete sense. I'm not sure why anyone in opposition of what is being shown in that video would want to live in Amsterdam, anyway. If you don't agree with it, then don't go there. It's that simple. The video requirement is to make sure you accept their culture before you try to live there, and if you don't accept their culture, then why would you want to live there in the first place? Unfortunately, it is a bit pricey. The package, which includes the movie and is used to prepare for the entrance exam, is $75, while the exam itself is $420. Needless to say, you'll have to really want to go to Amsterdam for all that. I think that's what they're aiming for, anyway.

P.S.: After reading this, my friend Morgan just pointed out to me that Amsterdam's entrance exam is $420... as in 4:20 (or 4/20, depending on which definition you choose to support). Hahaha. Coincidence? Hmm... either way, that just made my day.

It's already Thursday, and I've only gone to track once so far this week. That was on Tuesday. I didn't actually practice with the track team that day, instead I went with my friends Amanda, Morgan and Simon and we pretty much went off and did what we wanted... which was running to Wendy's. Yep. We ran to Wendy's and ingested all of the calories we had just burned off from running there (I had a large Frosty), and then burned them off again on the way back. It was pretty awesome, actually. It just goes to show that - in the words of Morgan - we are "THE FATTEST PEOPLE ALIVE." It wasn't a great workout (I'm sure we could've done a lot better, starting with the removal of the stop to Wendy's), but I was still pretty sore on Wednesday, and I'm still rather sore today, too. Yesterday, on Wednesday, it was snowing so we decided not to go (actually we were just being lazy, we simply used the snow as an excuse). Today none of my buddies were going so I just decided to go home. I'm not sure what's going to happen tomorrow, but I really need to do some running because track begins for real next week and running just once this week in preparation doesn't cut it.

The other day when I went to Newbury Comics (it was actually a while ago... last Saturday, when Amanda and I went to see 16 Blocks) I purchased the oldest Strokes album, Is This It. I don't like it as much as their newest album, First Impressions of Earth, but it's still rather good. The only two songs I recognized from the album were Someday and Last Nite, which were both singles. Last Nite is the best song on the album, and it's still played on the radio frequently because it's just that good. I've noticed that compared to Is This It, Impressions is generally heavier and even fuller-sounding, if that makes any sense at all. There is a significant difference between The Strokes as a new band versus The Strokes as a band that has been around for a few years. They have certainly developed and evolved. I still have to get their second album, Room on Fire, which I've heard is their best album, but I haven't seen it in record stores.

Anyhow, I've run out of semi-interesting things to discuss, so I think I'll go fill my grumbling belly with last night's leftovers. Ciao.

A movie marathon of sorts (spoilers)

Somehow this weekend I managed to watch three movies in 24 hours. I'm not sure exactly how I managed to do so, but I enjoyed it. My best friend Amanda slept over on Friday night (it was a spur-of-the-moment plan; she was originally just going to come over after school for a few hours as usual, but then I invited her to sleep over, too, and surprisingly she was able to) and my dad took us to the video store to rent some videos. I ended up getting Monster and Frida (this was completely my decision; Amanda refused to provide any input in the choices, which she regretted after watching Monster).

We watched Monster first, which was based on the life of Aileen Wuornos, a prostitute turned serial killer. It was incredibly disturbing. A few people have asked me whether it was good or not, and I really don't know what to say. I'm glad that it was already replaced in the "Movies Seen Recently" section because I have no idea what I would rate it. Aileen (Charlize Theron's character) killed seven men over the course of the movie, although not all of the murders are shown. The first murder was absolutely justified, and I'm sure anyone in her position would have done the same thing. This particular man picked up Aileen, a prostitute, from the highway and brought her in the woods to supposedly have sex with her. Instead, he knocked her out, tied her up, raped her, and poured rubbing alcohol on her wounds. Before he was able to carry out his ultimate plan of murdering her, Aileen somehow managed to escape and shoot him several times with his own gun. This ordeal severely affected Aileen's mental state and lead to her commit the six other murders. Each killing was less and less justified, especially the last in which her victim picked her up from the highway not to have sex with her but to help her. He died while begging for his wife and children. Aileen was ultimately arrested and sentenced to death.

As someone who is against the death penalty, I of course do not believe she should have been executed. However, this is one of those cases that I'm not completely sure. The first killing was justified, yes; the others, however (at least the others that were shown in the movie), were not. But most importantly, Aileen was not in a healthy mental state, and I think she could have easily plead insanity. On the flipside, I also think that she should absolutely have been held responsible, which she was, so in that case the insanity plea is not possible. In the end I'm still not completely sure of how I feel about this, except that she was undeniably a threat to society and nothing less than a life sentence would have been acceptable. Of course I am only going by what I saw in the movie, and obviously the real story was probably altered a bit for Hollywood. For example, in the movie Aileen's girlfriend was Selby (Christina Ricci's character), but in reality her girlfriend was Tyria Moore, who looks nothing like the petite and attractive Christina Ricci and has been suspected of being involved in some of the murders.

I'm not sure if I would recommend Monster, but if you do want to watch it, be prepared to be extremely disturbed.

The next day, on Saturday, Amanda and I went to the mall to see 16 Blocks. It was pretty good, but not excellent. It was somewhat predictable and boring at parts, and the action wasn't extremely thrilling. The ending was bordering on too sappy and perfect (though I'm not complaining; I like happy endings). What really sold this movie for me was Mos Def's character, the witness that several cops wanted to eliminate for fear that his testimony would ruin their careers. His character was a little annoying at the beginning of the movie (which was intended), but by the end I absolutely fell in love with him (also intended). He is one of the most lovable characters featured in any of the movies that I have seen recently. The character was perfect, and Mos Def did an excellent job portraying him. I did enjoy this movie, though I would probably only recommend it as a rental.

Amanda's parents picked her up from the mall, so when I returned home I watched Frida... and I absolutely loved it. This is definitely going on my list of favorite movies. It was long, but it was a great story. Frida Kahlo lead an amazing life and she was an incredibly interesting person. A lot of the things that happened to her were and still are taboo, such as her and her husband Diego Rivera's communist beliefs, her occasional lesbian trysts, and her affair with communist leader Leon Trotsky. The movie was completely honest and did not try to hide or sugarcoat the truth. Also, her paintings usually depicted scenes from her own life, so several times throughout the movie a few of her paintings were amazingly and accurately personified. One of the most ironically beautiful scenes in the movie was the trolley accident that greatly affected her health for the rest of her life. The last shot of the scene showed her sprawled out on the floor, bloodied and covered in gold leafing from a painter on the trolley. After the accident she was nearly crippled, with 11 fractures and several broken ribs and a broken spinal column, among other injuries. An iron handrail had impaled her abdomen, piercing her uterus, leaving her unable to bear children (which she realized after a particularly gruesome miscarriage). She was in a full-body cast for months, and would often experience relapses later in her life which would leave her hospitalized for months at a time, and also causing her to undergo nearly 35 operations (including the amputation of all of her toes on one foot due to gangrene) throughout her lifetime.

Overall, Frida was an amazing movie and I would recommend it to anyone. Salma Hayek was spectacular, and no one else would have been acceptable for this role. I really want to buy the DVD so I can watch it again.

Anyway, now that I've written more about movies than I ever thought I could, I shall move on. Today track was supposed to start. And it did, but I wasn't there. I was planning on it, but none of my friends could go and this week's practices are optional anyway, so I just decided to stay home for today. For one last day. Besides, I hardly got enough sleep last night to allow me to function properly in school, let alone survive a whole track practice. Tonight I'm really going to try to get to bed by 11, because less than 7 hours of sleep would not be a good idea.

Well, this post is long enough for a few days, I believe. Hopefully I will still have time to blog regularly once I start going to track. Until then, adios.

I Heart Boston

Yesterday was a half-day at school so my friend Morgan and I went to Boston. First we went to Harvard Square in Cambridge, where we ate at Fire and Ice, and then we took the T to Downtown Crossing in Boston. I spent literally every last dollar that I had, out of the $85 that I had brought with me. We did tons of shopping. I bought a few pins at Newbury Comics, new black shoes at Payless, some Urban Decay eyeshadow at Hootenanny’s, an “I Heart Boston” t-shirt (which I have always wanted), and two pairs of earrings. One pair I got at a massive jewelry store that had more earrings, necklaces, bracelets, rings, and hair clips that I have ever seen in one place in my whole life. It was insane. The walls were lined with jewelry; so much so that it was overwhelming. Plus there was a really gorgeous Spanish guy working upstairs. That’s always a plus. It was pretty much the best way I have ever spent my half-day.

We spent a lot of time just walking around and going to random stores, while laughing about the most random and not-so-funny things that had happened. At one point, while we were on the T, I had sat down but Morgan didn’t want to because she didn’t want to sit next to strangers. I kept telling her to sit down but she wouldn’t, so finally, frustrated, I said, “sit down, Kramer!” Yes, I called her my dog’s name. I have no idea where that came from. Also, when I was telling her how I would probably forget where I parked my car, I said, “park my guitar.” I think I need to take speech lessons. Then there was the "man in the cage" incident... I would explain it, but I think it would be lost on everyone else. I'll spare you.

I just found out today that track starts this Monday. It was supposed to start on the 20th, but The Powers That Be decided that because the weather was so nice (I’m not sure who decided 40-degree temperatures were “nice”), we could get an early start. Normally for the first few weeks of practice we do circuit training inside in the gym. However, we won’t be doing that this year. Apparently we’ll just be running around the track. Now, this is really awful. I didn’t mind circuit training because it got me in shape and prepared to run outside. Now that we’re skipping the circuit training and just starting to run outside, I’m not sure if I’ll have a chance to get in shape. Plus, since I’m not in shape already, I probably won’t fare very well during practice outside on the track next week. I certainly am not ready for track to begin on Monday, and I wish they didn’t spring it on us today. It’s too short notice. I’m also really going to have to start going to sleep earlier. Lately I’ve only been getting five to six hours of sleep a night, and if I’m going to have to get a lot more during track. I’m already exhausted enough with these few hours of sleep as it is, if I don’t get more sleep I won’t be able to function during the day. Track is exhausting. I’m really not ready for it to begin.

I mailed my Simmons Honors Program application yesterday. After all that whining I did about how I couldn’t think of anything to write for my essay, I felt like kind of a moron when I realized it wasn’t that hard. I just opened Word and started typing, and the rest of my essay came out pretty easily after that. I wish I had started it sooner, but at least it’s in the mail now.

I’m at school now, during my free period (technically… it’s a long story I’ll save for another blog someday) and since I have nothing to do I decided I might as well do something somewhat productive. I haven’t been able to blog a lot lately because I don’t have much time (and I’ll have even less once track starts). During February vacation, when I made this blog, I had tons of time on my hands so I was able to blog every day. Unfortunately that’s not the case now so I can only blog a few times a week. Hopefully I won’t lose track and abandon this blog.

Anyway, that’s all for today. Ciao.

Blogs are bad for procrastinators

As I type this, I am practicing the one thing that I do best: procrastination. However, it's not just some silly homework assignment that I'm neglecting; it's my application to the Simmons Honors Program. It's a shame, really, since all I have left to do is the 400-500 word essay. I tried to start it last night - really, I did. Well... as long as you would consider opening Word and staring at the blank page for a few minutes before closing it "starting." I really need to get the application in immediately. The "priority deadline" has passed (March 1) so now I absolutely need to get it in by April 1st or they won't accept it. I'm not worried about making that deadline, but I do need to submit it as soon as possible because it's a rolling admissions type thing - first come, first serve. I'm fairly certain that I will be admitted into the program, but I need to send it in soon to make sure. Unfortunately my stubbornness and laziness is preventing me from doing so.

Perhaps I would start if I could actually figure out what to write about. I have chosen which prompt to respond to (the first out of two), but I have yet to decide what exactly my response will be. The essay question is as follows:

The Honors Program encourages students to experience life in another country. If you were to study abroad for a month or a semester, what country would you prefer to visit and what would you hope to learn from your experiences in another culture?

That's a pretty easy prompt, right? Right. Well, it would be if I could actually figure out what I want to say. I am leaning towards writing about how I have the most random desire to learn Italian and, afterwards, visit the country. However, I have also thought about visiting a Spanish speaking country (namely Mexico, Spain even) because I am already somewhat familiar with the language. Either way, I'm not sure if I could write 400-500 words (about two pages of double-spaced Times New Roman) about it. Sure, I could bullshit it, but I have not yet mastered the art of bullshitting so whenever I try, my bullshit turns out quite, well, bullshitty. Not quite up to par for a college honors program. Hmm. What to do...

Well, I could continue procrastinating... yes, sounds like a plan.

This is probably the last blog I ever thought I would be linking, but - surprise! - I actually agree with her latest post. She discusses an amendment that would prohibit the desecration of the US flag. Because she can form arguments much better than I can (minus the anti-"progressive-leftist hippie leftovers" remarks) and because, yes, I am still being lazy, I'm just going to order you all to read that blog. I'm not going to discuss exactly how I feel about the American flag, mainly because I have several staunch conservative friends that read this blog that would surely disown me if they were to read how I truly feel, but I will say that I [obviously] completely disagree with this proposed amendment. I think it is completely useless and frivolous, and just another pathetic attempt at patriotism.

Well, I'm done for the day. I suppose it's time to get started on my essay. Wish me luck.

The Subways suck live, and I wish I were 18

I watched The Subways last night on Letterman, and I was pretty disappointed. They didn't sound so great. It was all in the vocals. In most of their songs, especially Rock & Roll Queen (which they played last night) they have the half-singing/half-yelling sort of vocals, which can be difficult to get the desired sound. Billy, the guitarist and the lead singer, does the majority of the singing/yelloing and does a decent job of it as well. They also have Charlotte, the bassist, who occasionally chimes in with her own singing/yelling, especially in the chorus. It's hard enough to get the right sound with one person singing/yelling, but with two people doing so simultaneously it can be quite challenging - if it's done correctly it works well, but if it's done incorrectly it sounds pretty awful. Essentially, they have to be dead on. On their CD, Young For Eternity, it works very well and it sounds quite good. Of course this is because they had a while in the studio to make it perfect as well as all the necessary equipment. On Letterman, though, it didn't quite work out for them. Billy sounded decent - not great, though - and Charlotte... well, Charlotte ruined the whole thing. She sounded awful. Her voice completely clashed with Billy's and made it really cringe-worthy. Plus, she acted like a total moron on stage. Whenever she would step back from the mic she would shake her head around like she was having a massive seizure or something. It was not attractive (Billy was actually quite attractive, though. But that's besides the point.). Oh well, I still like them. Their CD is rather good.

I really hate not being 18. I've got 7 months to go, and I've already missed out on a ton of things simply because I'm not of age yet. Mainly, shows in Boston. There have been so many great bands that have played in Boston recently or will be playing in Boston soon that I can't go to see because the shows are usually 18+, sometimes even 21+. I missed the Living Things and Hot Hot Heat, and I will miss The Subways on March 8 and The Sounds on April 14. It's really disappointing. The really great thing about indie bands is that they're not so well known so they will often play at smaller venues with a really cheap cover and they will tour frequently, unlike the more mainstream bands that will only tour once a few years at huge venues with a high ticket price, and, depening on the group's popularity, will sometimes be sold out. Unfortunately most of the small venues that indie bands play at will only have 18+ or 21+ shows, which really sucks for the younger kids like myself. Basically the indie scene is awesome, as long as you're at least 18. When I'm in Boston for college this fall I plan on going to a ton of indie shows since there are great bands playing all the time. I'll just have to wait two months after the term starts since I don't turn 18 until October.

Voxtrot is actually playing an all ages show on April 11 in Wellesley. I really want to go, partly because it's one of the few all ages shows I've heard about in this area recently. Unfortunately it's a school night - a Tuesday - so I doubt I will be able to go, but I'm still going to try. I just have to figure out what time it starts and ends, and if I'll be able to get my mom to give me a ride (doubtful) since there isn't any public transportation from here (the middle of nowhere) directly out to Wellesley.

Well, this weekend is going to be pretty boring. I did nothing to do today, and I've got nothing to do tomorrow but indoor soccer. I woke up at 1 today. Yep, 11 hours of sleep. I feel like I need another vacation already.

That's all for now. Adios.

My blog lives up to its URL

After a whole week of blogging every single day, it feels kind of weird to have missed two days in a row. I do have a valid excuse, though: I've had tons of stuff to do this week for school and college junk. Granted, I didn't even end up doing half of the things I had to, but... I'm still using that excuse. I'm still working on my Simmons Honors application. I still have to write the 400-500 word essay - of course I saved the worst part for last. That isn't really a long essay, but it's still going to take some major motivation (the kind that I currently am lacking) to get my ass into gear and start working on it. My original goal for finishing the entire application was today, but seeing as how it's 9:14 pm right now and I haven't even started the essay, I'm thinking I'll have to push it back until next Friday. Isn't it wonderful how procrastination works? Hopefully I will be able to finish it next week, but judging by what my teachers have been planning for us lately, I'm not sure if I'll even have time. I certainly didn't expect my second semester of my senior year to be this way - it's so much more stressful than it should be.

Today sucked. I found out yesterday that The Strokes tickets were to go on sale today at noon. Naturally, I was extremely excited. I would go with my friend Morgan, and we would surely have an awesome time. I planned to rush to the computer lab to buy the tickets as soon as the lunch bell rang (approximately 12:07). I asked my mom if it would be okay (since I would have to use her credit card to buy them online and pay her with cash) and at first she didn't have a problem with it, but then she began asking how I planned to get into Boston. I told her we would take the train, but she explained to me that it would be really complicated and we would have to switch from the train to the subway at some point, and it would take a while to get there. I went online to plan out how to get there and how long it would take and such. Ultimately, it came down to this: it wouldn't be much of a problem getting there because we would have enough time to figure it out, however on the way back it would be a lot more complicated. We weren't sure what time the concert would be over, but we guessed around 11. We would end up having to rush to take the subway in time to make the last outbound train of the night from the train station, and especially since we weren't familiar with the subway it would be a whole lot more difficult for us. Plus, my mom wasn't too keen on having to pick us up at the train station in town at 1:20 in the morning on a school night. So, alas, I won't be able to go to the concert. It really sucks because I was looking forward to this so much. I don't often have the opportunity to get out of the house, and I just really wanted to go somewhere with my friends and have fun. Blah. Oh well. I'm trying not to dwell on it so much.

This Thursday there's a half day so Morgan and I are going into Harvard Square after school. We've been planning this for a while, and I can't wait. This is one of the few opportunities that I get to to go out and have fun. Also it will be cool to see where I will probably be hanging out often while I'm in college in Boston come this fall. We might go to see a movie at Lowes in Landmark Square, depending on how much time we have to spare. I really want to see Brokeback Mountain, Capote, and Transamerica but I don't think they're playing on the date that we're going. Munich is, which I would like to see, though it's nearly three hours long and we definitely don't have enough time for that.

Not only did I not get to blog much this week, but I hardly got to listen to any music, either. Not even the radio. (I did get to listen to my Palm Zire on the bus in the morning, but that doesn't count because I do that every morning) I think the last time I listened to music was on the weekend, maybe Monday. That's pretty awful. Well, I'm trying to make up for it now by listening to my favorite playlists. So far I've gone through The Subways, The Von Bondies, Living Things, and now I'm listening to The Strokes (even though it does kind of make me want to smash things out of frustration from not being able to go to the concert). I doubt I'll get to listen to all of my favorites tonight, which include Wolfmother, Led Zeppelin, Pearl Jam, and The Rinse, but I think this will do for now.

Speaking of The Subways, they're going to be on Letterman tonight, so I think I'm going to go get in the shower and get ready for bed and everything so I don't miss it. I apologize for the completely uninteresting blog (well, just look at my blog URL), but for some reason it seems that my life has become incredibly boring since vacation ending, even though I didn't do anything at all doing vacation.

Anyway, that's all for today. Hopefully I will come up with something more interesting to discuss this weekend. Ciao.

P.S. Gross gross gross!!