Hands Across California: We did it!

Hands Across California is over.

Not gonna lie. I feel a little empty. LOL I need a new project, quick! It waas absolutely amazing to be part of something like this. The checkpoint I went to (Saddleback College) was pretty quiet--I think about 60 people came out there. But other checkpoints along the route had 350-400 show up to support education. The numbers are still coming in, but it's already in the tens of thousands of people for the turnout. I had an amazing time working on this; it was a great feeling standing up for something that's important to me and being part of something that was bigger than me. Sounds cheesy, but it's true.

Unfortunately, I got very little feedback from my friends--a whopping one person came out with Jordan and me to stand in line with us--but it was great to be around other people who felt the way I did. To those of you who didn't make it, don't worry. You have until June 30 to text HANDS to 27722 to make your $10 to the Scholarship Endowment and you'll be reading plenty of it on my Facebook, Twitter and blog. So there's still time to join and support the cause! :)

Here are some pictures from today:

Jordan sportin' his Hands Across California T-shirt

Us hangin' out, waiting for people to come out. :)





Part of the line!

Part of the group that came out!

Us in front of the "Worth Living For" wall

Jordan wants to skydive naked before he dies. ;) I wrote that I wanted to write the next great American novel. :)

Well I'm off to bed. I'm sportin' some lovely sunburns on my feet of all places. It looks like I'm still wearing my sandals even though I'm not. The joys of having your Swiss genes win out over the Sicilian side of your family. Sighhhh.

Hands Across California: "Arise & Seize the Day" (to quote 'Newsies')

The day has arrived. The time for words has come and gone and now is the time for action. Time to put your money where your mouth is, as they say. If you’ve ever registered for a new semester and you’ve complained that it’s too expensive; if you’ve ever said it’s not fair that students have to suffer the consequences for mistakes made by politicians; if you’ve ever said you wish you could do something to help, to try and make a difference…

Here’s your chance.

In three hours and forty-five minutes, a historic event will link thousands of students and community college supports from Rocklin to San Diego. Where will you stand?

I know where I’ll be. I’ll be checking in at Saddleback Community at 11:00 to get my Line Marshal kit and start organizing my segment of the line.

At 1:59, the countdown will begin and the energy will be unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. Knowing that you’re surrounded by people—total strangers—uniting for the same cause, taking a stand for something bigger than they are and that you’re a part of it as well… It will be absolutely incredible.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve never been much of an advocate for anything, really. Hands Across California is my first “fight for the cause”, if you will. I never thought I would feel this passionately about something other than the people I love and my writing. And, to be honest, it always seemed a little too ‘hippie-ish’. You know, fighting the ‘Man’ and all that.

It’s not.

This cause is real and it’s serious and it affects every aspect of your life, whether you’re 5 or 65. Our state will always need educated people and people will always need affordable education. California community colleges educate close to three million students every year and provide the open door that many people need to pursue a higher education who can’t afford a university.

Our state needs teachers, firefighters, police officers, nurses, lawyers, doctors, journalists, politicians (even if we may not like them very much right now), architects, scientists… The list goes on. And every profession on this list requires a college education. What will happen when education becomes inaccessible for us? For your children?

What will you tell your son or daughter if it becomes inaccessible? “Well, honey, if you want to be a doctor, you better a job and start saving for school because Mommy and Daddy can’t afford to send you to college and community colleges don’t exist anymore.”

By not standing up for our education, we’re robbing future generations of the freedom to be anything they want to be. So if you think it doesn’t matter because you already have your degree framed and hanging nicely on your office wall, you’re wrong.

Education touches us all no matter what stage of life we’re in.

So, having said that, I hope I see you all out there this afternoon to stand up for yourselves, stand up for education and stand up for not only our future, but the future of our state.

Visit handsacrosscalifornia.org to see “The Route” and find out where you can go to join the line. It’s not too late to take a stand.

 

Hands Across California: What Will Our Legacy Be?

In the late 1700's, men from thirteen relatively powerless colonies joined together and stood up for their rights as American citizens, breaking free from the British tyranny under which they lived. All of Great Britain was against them, as were many Americans who remained loyal to the Crown. Hundreds--thousands--of men laid down their lives for what they believed in, despite countless naysayers telling them their cause was hopeless; that it wouldn't change a thing. What would have happened to our country if those men hadn't stood fast and continued fighting for freedom in the face of what appeared at the time to be complete and utter defeat?

We wouldn't have the country we have today. We wouldn't be enjoying the freedoms we have today. We wouldn't be the country we are today.

____________________________________________________________________________

In the late 1800's, women banded together as Suffragettes and fought for women's rights. They demanded equality among both sexes and held that women were just as competent as men to perform vital roles in society. Despite widespread social opposition--both from men and other women, insisting these Suffragettes were making spectacles of themselves and shaming their families--they held firm and eventually won us the rights we enjoy as women today. Some of these women sacrificed lives of luxury and wealth to join the fight; others were thrown in jail; some were cast out by their loved ones unless they agreed to give up that 'nonsense'. What would have happened if these women ran back to their kitchens with their tails tucked between their legs, accepting that nothing could change? That this would be their way of life now and forever?

Women wouldn't be able to help shape the world and society in which we live. We certainly wouldn't be able to vote, attend college, or speak on any issue in a public forum. Our country would have missed out on some of the greatest historical figures of our past and present.

____________________________________________________________________________

In the 1950', one voice spoke out against racial segregation. He claimed that all men were created equal, regardless of the color of their skin. His voice sparked a Civil Rights movement that swept the nation and inspired thousands of African Americans to stand up for their rights as American citizens. Despite the hardships they faced--including the devastating assassination of their leader, that one solitary voice that first spoke out, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.--these people did not back down and continued to fight for what was rightfully theirs. Would would have happen if the death of Dr. King brought the Civil Rights movement to a standstill?

Our country could possibly still be living in a racially segregated social state, where people are judged and treated according to the color of their skin. In some parts of our country, this does still happen. However thanks to these people who stood their ground more than fifty years ago, we have grown in leaps and bounds to be more accepting of people despite our differences.

____________________________________________________________________________

What legacy do you want to leave behind?

Let our era be known for the Education movement. Let our children's children admire us for the stand we made against the budget cuts that threatened to destroy the rights we, as students, have to higher education regardless of our income. Let them know that if it weren't for us, California Community Colleges would have been relegated to history books as a brief blip on the historical radar; that they cut down one dollar at a time until these institutions were non-existent so politicians could dig the state out of the debt they'd created. There are hundreds of people who think our cause is lost and that we will accomplish nothing except make fools of ourselves and waste our time. Stand up despite this negativity and prove to our state that we're not weak or afraid to fight for our education.

If you believe that you deserve affordable education--and that future generations deserve it as well--then act on those words and those beliefs! Join us on April 17th in Hands Across California. Visit HAC's website to sign up and reserve your spot in line. Donate to FCCC's Scholarship Endowment to ensure that students will have access to the financial means to pursue their higher education.

The state may not take notice of our words by themselves, by it will note the actions we take to support our words.

Stand up for California Community Colleges.

Fight for our education. Fight for our future.

A Letter Everyone Needs To Read

Dear [YOUR NAME HERE],

I know at times we’ve had a rocky relationship. There were moments when you thought I was too demanding and took up too much of your time. I know you felt obligated to spend time with me when you really wanted to hang out with your friends and have fun. . I kept you up countless nights and made you deal with problems you didn’t want to deal with. I’m sure the notion that I’m more trouble than I’m worth has entered your mind more than once over the years. I know there were times when you resented me and everything I represented; sometimes you even said you didn’t need me. As painful as that was to hear, I’ve always been here and will always have your best interest at heart. I want you to succeed in life and realize your full potential and even though you may think I’m holding you back, I’m actually pushing you forward.

I am your education.

We find ourselves in time of crisis in the state of California and my existence is being threatened. People who have already benefited from me—who, thanks to me, have reached their potential—are now making me less accessible to the new generation. California Community Colleges have always been my biggest fans; they’ve always made sure that I was available to anyone who wanted to pursue me, no matter what their income. I don’t discriminate nor do I believe that I am a privilege for the elite. I am available for all those who thirst for knowledge and wish to fulfill their dreams.

Despite the power that I grant to you, I myself am powerless to stop the budget cuts that are hurting me and, by association, you. I have no voice and I cannot stand up for myself. My power lies in you. Now, more than ever, I need you.

Please stand up for me on April 17th and donate to the Scholarship Endowment so that I can continue to enlighten students in the California Community College system. It doesn’t matter if you’re a freshman who doesn’t pay for your school or if you graduated twenty years ago and you think these budget cuts don’t effect you. I promise you they will effect the future of the world in which you live if no one stands up for me.

Apathy is a dangerous enemy and I fear that this is just as dangerous a threat as the financial crisis I am facing. I know many of you think you cannot effect change. In order for a cause to be championed, we must first convince the public that it is not lost. I can assure you that education is not a lost cause. One voice by itself may not be that loud, but if we all gather in support of education, we can create a noise loud enough that it cannot be ignored and change will come. It may not be immediate, but we can make a difference.

Please visit http://www.handsacrosscalifornia.org/ to sign up and save your spot in line for April 17th or visit www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/michele-pluss/hands-across-california to donate to the Foundation for California Community Colleges (FCCC), which will provide hundreds of scholarships to students who may not be financially able to pursue higher education due to these continued budget cuts and tuition hikes.

I have, and always will be, your champion. Now, I am asking you to be mine.

Sincerely,
Your Education

Hands Across California, School, NY Food

I'm alive, I'm alive!!

It's been so long since I've posted a blog. I feel awful. The training in my new department is going swimmingly, but it's very different from my old office and getting used to the new work environment is a bit of a culture shock.

But we're not here to talk about work! I know I discussed my Math Midterm in my last blog. Well my grade posted last night and I checked it this morning...I pulled off a B, which gives me a solid 85% in the class. Woo!! Numbers and I have had a rather disfunctional relationship throughout my scholastic career, so to be able to say I have a B in the class... It's like coming home to discover that your very un-romantic boyfriend decided to surprise you with dozens of flowers, candle-lit dinner for two and triple layer chocolate cake for dessert. (Like that imagery?? lol).

Jordan and I have been checking Groupon and Living Social on a daily basis for deals in NY. So far, we've purchased three deals for restaurants in the City, including the Heartland Brewery--located in the Empire State Building, along with a couple other restaurants. There's one in the Village and I think a French restaurant somewhere else. The beauty of it is, not only are we getting ridiculously good deals on great restaurants, but by the time we get there, we'll have already paid for it! If we keep going at this rate, we won't have to pay for any meals while we're in the City. Except for all the bacon egg and cheese's on Kaiser rolls, pizza slices, and hot dogs I plan on consuming while I'm there. :) Thank God for good metabolism...
If any of you New Yorkers have any good restaurants you'd like to recommend while we're out there, please let me know!! We're always looking out for a good restaurant and willing to explore beyond the tourist track for some good NY food. ;)

So. I don't know if you realize this, but we're in the final countdown for Hands Across California. We're down to just 17 days!! I've set up a fundraiser page for HAC at FirstGiving.com, for those of you who may want to help, but are unable to come out and join us on the 17th. So, here's your chance to make a monetary donations to our cause. There is no donation too great or too small and everything is greatly and warmly appreciated. I've set up this page less than 24 hours ago and have already received $70 in donations, which thrills me beyond belief.

Click here to reach my HAC Fundraiser Page if you wish to make a contribution. All the proceeds will go towards the Scholarship Endowment of the Foundation for California Community Colleges, which will in turn help community college students pursue their education. Donations will be accepted until June 30, so you're not under the April 17 deadline. Of course, if you'd rather come out and join us in just over two weeks, visit Hands Across California's website to register and reserve your spot in line!

Oh and before I go, LET'S GO YANKEES!!!! I saw they won their Opening Day game today. :) That's just a good day for everyone.

Unless you hate the Yankees. Jordan. ;)

It's a Jumpin-Jammin Kind of Weekend

Here we are, another Sunday afternoon. I'm about to get crackin' on my two articles that are due tonight and we should be meeting up with Nathan, our friend from San Francisco who's in town for some family business. Yesterday we took Shane and his friend Seven to Jumpin Jammin, which is basically like Discovery Zone on steroids. They sufficiently wore themselves out over the four hours we were there and around nine-thirty, Shane abruptly stood up from the couch and announced, "Daddy, I'm going to bed."

I had my math midterm yesterday, which was...less than thrilling. We actually met our teacher face-to-face for the first time since it's an online course. He seems like a really nice guy and a very good teacher. The one thing that I disagreed with was his decision to have us spend the first hour of our scheduled exam time doing self-introductions for the whole class. So all that last-second cramming I did to make sure everything was fresh in my mind was successfully destroyed by listening to my thirty or so classmates tell me what their names are, what their majors are and what they like about the class. One woman spent about twenty minutes talking about herself and I was about THIS close to turning around and saying, "Could you please stop talking so we can take our exam already?" Except the language I would've used probably wouldn't have been that polite.

I would love to say that once I got the exam, everything came flooding back and I passed it with flying colors. I'm fairly certain I passed it, but I don't think it was quite up to the caliber that I deem acceptable (that being an A). After a slight nervous breakdown in my car, which I credit more to the build up of stress from a variety of different sources than the fact that I bombed a test, I headed back home.

Fortunately, that was the kick-off to my spring break so I have the next week off of school. Thank goodness. This will give me plenty of time to play a little catch up and a little get-ahead-of-the-game.

On the work front, Friday was my last day in the Exchange department and starting tomorrow I'll be working in Travel. It's a transfer that I requested and am pretty excited about trying something new at work. Now I'll be booking airfare, hotel reservations, cruises, tour packages...Everything but exchanges. Pretty stoked

Also...I am pleased to announce that our plane tickets to New Jersey have been purchased!! :) Woo!! We will be landing in La Guardia airport around five o'clock in the evening on June 15th and will be staying through the 21st. Thanks to the genius websites like Groupon and LivingSocial, we've bought gift cards at ridiculously discounted rates for a few places in the City so by the time we get there, we won't really have to pay for much as far as food is concerned. The credit for that idea goes to Jordan--and it's a pretty dang smart one! We spent $3.50 each for a gift card for a hamburger at a brewery that's in the Empire State Building--and after checking the menu, the hamburgers there go for an average $17. They better be dang good burgers, but for $3.50 it's okay if they're not the best. :)

Well, it is time to start the writing process. Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend!!

Hands Across California: It's started...

It has begun. I saw on @HandsAcrossCA's Twitter page that the budget cuts have started up in Sacramento.

Today, Governor Jerry Brown signed several bills including ones that will have an immediate and serious impact on California Community College students. It now costs $36/unit to attend a CA community college. For those of you who are not so great with numbers, I did the math: That's over $100 for one class (if you're taking a three-unit class, which are most college courses). So, let's take a full-time student like me: If you take four classes, that's over $400 for just the classes alone.

That's not counting books, which we all know are--or, I guess, used to be--the real element of each new semester that really did drain your bank account. I start the same rant and rave every semester when I find out how much I have to pay for one single textbook.

It's already started, everyone. I, myself, am trying to figure out how I will find that extra $10/unit on top of all my other expenses for school, rent, car payments, utilities, etc. I actually am starting to worry that I won't be able to afford school anymore.

So, if you were on the fence about whether or not you wanted to give up your Sunday to come out and hold hands with a bunch of people you don't know, realize that we're trying to unite as community college students/supporters/faculty/etc to make Sacramento aware of just how many people they're impacting with these budget cuts.

You may think you're just one person, but when you link up with thousands of others, you transform into an entity that demands attention and respect. Things probably won't change right away, but they won't change at all if we don't stand together and do something.

Please visit Hands Across California's website to reserve your spot in line. Remember, you can also text 27722 to donate $10 to HAC. :)

Hands Across California: A Few of Our Supporters...

Coastline students around Orange County rejoice: spring break is almost upon us! Time to break out the bathing suits, 'stunnah' shades (that's right...I typed 'stunnah') and suntan lotion. Or, if you're like me, time to catch up on sleep, recorded television shows and enjoy some quality time with a boyfriend who has been somewhat neglected these past few weeks as school packs on the heat. Whichever type of Spring Breaker you are, I hope you all have a wonderful week of freedom from school and come back in one piece with enough recollection of the partying you did to know you had a great time with your friends.

I'll be reminding you again upon our return (just in case, for some reason, you suffer alcohol-induced short-term memory loss during Spring Break), but I wanted to remind you that Hands Across California is fast approaching. April 17 is when we will all meet to join hands in a symbolic, unified protest against the tuition hikes we're sure to face due to the budget crisis up in Sacramento.

I'm not sure if you know this, but we're being supported by some well-known and influential people. Actor and comedian George Lopez will be in line with us somewhere in California. Time Magazine named him one of the 25 Most Influential Hispanics in America and he is coming out to support our cause on what will hopefully be a warm, sunny Sunday in April.

You don't have to be a music buff to recognize the name Quincy Jones and know what a major impact he has had in the music industry throughout his musical career. Among the multiple achievements, awards and honors that have been bestowed upon Jones are 27 Grammy awards and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. A participant of "Hands Across America", Jones sent in a letter of endorsement to Hands Across California, extending his support. In his letter, Jones wrote:

"I was extremely proud to be part of [Hands Across America], which showed

clearly what we can do when we stand together as one. I am just as proud
this year to join an equally important effort to shine a light on another serious
need with an event called 'Hands Across California'."

On the political end of the spectrum, HAC has garnered support from Karen Bass. For those of you who are not politically-inclined, Bass was the first African American woman elected Speaker of the California Assembly. While pursuing her college education, Bass attended several California community colleges and eventually earned her degree from Cal-State Dominguez Hills. She is currently a United States Congresswoman representing California's 33rd Congressional District. And she started out where we are right now: at a California community college!

Another person from the political arena who has endorsed HAC initially attended East Los Angeles College before transferring to UCLA and obtaining his Law Degree. He is a former State Assembly Member and Speaker. And his is a name we're all very familiar with. He is the Mayor of the City of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa.

For a full list of celebrity supporters and political endorsements for Hands Across California, click on the "Who's On Board" tab at the Hands Across California homepage.

Also, check out HAC's Facebook page for pictures, updates, and more info about the organization. They posted something today that I thought was pretty cool. AT&T has set up a number for supporters to text and donate $10 to the cause. That number is 27722. California Community College students thank you, AT&T, along with anyone who donates their time, money, or support to our cause!

Sources:
Hands Across California (http://www.handsacrossca.org/)
HAC's Facebook Page (http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Hands-Across-California/162349360471292)

UFC 128: Shogun vs Jones; Sunday Day Date w/ Mom

Ahhhh. Friday has arrived. And I'm still around to enjoy it. What a nice feeling.

I've been getting these really bad headaches in the afternoons the past few days. They're pretty brutal. Not full-blown migraines, but they're pretty close. It's rather frustrating, if you ask me. I'm sure staring at a computer screen even after my eight hours are complete at work is just making it that much better. But I wanted to post something before the weekend begins.

UFC 128: Shogun vs Jones
It's that time again, folks. Another UFC fight is upon us. And you know what that means...You'll get a recap blog about it on Sunday. A lot of guys are fighting that I really like. The biggest and most anticipated fight is, of course, the title fight between Mauricio Shogun Rua (the 'r' in his last name is pronounced like an 'h': hoo-ah) and Jonny Jones. Now, the crazy part about this fight is that Jones is the favorite in this fight despite the fact that he's the challenger, not the champ. Don't get me wrong, he's a crazy talented fighter and his arms...The man has an 84-inch reach. You read correctly. 84 inches. On top of it, his legs go up to his face. It comes as no surprise that his nickname is Jonny 'Bones' Jones. I really like him; he's very humble, very respectful; seems like a really likeable and friendly person. And he can put the hurtin on like no other. He's just still very new in the world of UFC and I'm afraid that he's taking this fight too lightly. Shogun has the belt for a reason; he TKO'd Lyoto Machida, the hardest man to actually hit in the octogan. So. I'll be cheering for Jones, but I'm a little nervous about the fight.

And then...Urijah Faber is making his UFC debut. Urijah is the 'California Kid' from the former WEC and was a title holder in the organization. I'm so excited to see him back. He's such a nice guy outside the Octagon (I love that at the beginning of every fight or after it's over, he always looks into the camera and says, "Hi mom." I think that's so sweet). But in a fight, he is an absolute animal. He's fighting Eddie Wineland, who seems like a pretty serious fighter, but I'm pretty sure that Urijah will be able to handle him. Nice to get the California Kid back on the scene!!

Brendan Schaub is also fighting, which I'm very excited about, although he's fighting a pretty serious opponent (Mirko Cro Cop). I'll be cheering Schaub on, but... We'll see what happens.

Girls Day with Mom
On Sunday, I'll be enjoying a lovely little Girls Day with my Mom. We're going to meet at Mainplace Mall in Orange after I attend the Cub Scouts Pushcart Derby for the newspaper (so cute!!). After a little shopping and unwise spending, we're going to be attending The Battle of the Dance in Anaheim. I'm writing a review of it for the newspaper and snagged two tickets so she's going to come with me. It's a show and dinner...all fancy. ;) What I'm most excited about is that there are going to be Irish Stepdancers performing. I have been obsessed with 'Riverdancing' ever since I saw a video of it when I lived in Switzerland when I was 12 years old and have always wanted to see it live. So that will be really exciting. :)

So that's my weekend. :) Tomorrow during the day, Jordan and I are going to the Sprint store to possibly get my new phone, but other than that tomorrow will be a day of laundry, homework, and rest at home until it's time to head up to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the fights. :)

Talk to you all soon!!

Hands Across California: If It Weren't For Community Colleges...

As strange as it sounds to us students, I know there are some people that have a slightly skewed opinion of community colleges. They may think that community college is for people who weren't good enough for a university or who 'couldn't hack it'. Well, we all know that isn't true. There are incredibly brilliant and talented people that get their start at community colleges. At these two-year institutions, they may have gotten the financial help they needed to attend college and complete their general education requirements before transferring and pursuing their dreams and passions. The problem is, though, we never hear what community college people went to. We'll hear people say that they're Stanford or UCLA graduates, but how many times have you ever heard someone say, "Well I graduated NYU by way of Coastline Community College"?

I don't think I've ever heard that. And that's a darn shame. Fortunately, however, I've located a list (and it's a list. Not grocery list length; this is pages long). This is a list of prominent and successful people in a variety of professions, from athletes to actors to scientists. It lists what they do now and which community college they attended. And not just any community colleges. California community colleges.

So. Click HERE to see the list of people who wouldn't be where they are without California Community Colleges...

Hands Across California

Granted, the majority of people who read this do not live in California. But I'm going to write about it anyway. (PS. I totally didn't intend for this to turn into a research paper, but...when I get going, it's hard for me to rein it in sometimes. So please, bear with me).

In case anyone's been living under a rock for the past couple years, California has been dealing with a bit of a budget crisis. It seems that Sacramento's having difficulty balancing their checkbook and schools, from elementary to college-level, have been feeling the effects.In the California state Constitution, education is listed as its number one priority, yet ironically, schools are the programs losing the most funding while the state tries to dig itself out of the hole it's in. Just yesterday, students, staff and administrators marched to protest budget and program cuts and tuition increases in their March in March. Last year, over 8,000 members of the college communit (community colleges, UC's, and Cal State's) joined the march. As soon as the numbers come in for this year's march, I will post them.

I've been saying that I want to do something to try to help, but I wasn't sure what. Well, now I do. I am the student coordinator for Coastline Community College's participation in HAC. What is Hands Across California (HAC)? It is a fundraiser dedication to raising money for the California Community Colleges Scholarship Endowment, which will provide thousands of California residents with scholarships and financial assistance to pursue higher education as it becomes increasingly more expensive--read: impossible--to do so. These budget cuts, quite literally, are killing the future of our state. The Hands Across California fundraiser will continue from now through April 17th, ending in an unprecedented student demonstration. The goal is for students, staff, administrators, friends and supporters to join hands in continuous loops stretching across the entire state. To give you an idea of just how many students that would involve: one mile is approximately 1,000 students.

According to the website for the March in March (http://www.iwillmarch.com/), California community colleges are attended by 2.9 million California residents. The Foundation for California Community Colleges state that this figure represents one-quarter of the nation's community college attendance. Originally created for students wishing to continue their education who do not have the funding to attend a four-year university for all four years, community colleges teach students who have an annual median income between $5,544 and $16,223. Those students who do move on to a four-year institution after graduating from a California community college tend to earn a higher grade-point avarage than students who have attended all four yaers at a university.

Have any of you had to call 911 because your house is on fire? Or had a sick relative in a hospital needing serious medical attention? Or perhaps you need help from the police for whatever reason. If you live in California, odds are the person coming to your aid is a California community college graduate. Our community college system trains approximately eighty percent of all firefighters, law enforcement officers, and medical emergency technicians. Likewise, seventy percent of California nurses receive their training from community colleges. What will happen, if these programs become increasingly expensive or are even cut entirely? Who will come to our aid if there is no affordable institution to train these individuals?

The issue doesn't stop at community colleges. UC's and Cal State's are facing the same setbacks. Answer me this though: If community colleges were created to allow students who could not afford a four-year school right away to pursue their education and these institutions are becoming too expensive for us, how are we going to be able to move on to a four-year?

I'm aware that college students aren't the only ones facing financial difficulties due to economic crises. I'm also aware people may not have the money to donate to a cause besides the one of caring for their own family. This may pale in comparison to the recent and ongoing disaster in Japan, but make no mistake that this is a crisis. If you wish to sign up and save your place in line for April 17th or if you wish to make a donation, please visit http://www.handsacrosscalifornia.org/. You don't have to be a student to participate, so if you're free on April 17th and would like help this cause, sign up and come on down! The "routes" for each region of California is listed on the website here.



Sources:
Foundation for California Community Colleges (http://www.foundationccc.org/)
I Will March (http://www.iwillmarch.com/)
Hands Across California (http://www.handsacrosscalifornia.org/)

Movies, School, and New Jersey!!

Alright. It's been a while since I've posted anything. I am still alive and kickin' though. I'm stuck in a bit of a rut right now, motivation-wise. This semester has been a bit harder than usual. I'm not really sure why. I blame the two-month long winter break. It broke down all my momentum and I'm havig a difficult time building it back up.

D-Box and Battle: LA
Jordan and I saw Battle: LA last night in D-Box seats. Those are fancy-shmancy seats that move along with the movie. Think of it as a far classier and better-made version of Star Tours at Disneyland. I'm not sure that Battle: LA was the best movie to kick off my D-Box movie experience. Since it was a war movie, it was mostly shaking and jolting with helicopter rides and explosions. The seats swerve and tilt and lean and all that good stuff (I was at the media unveiling of these seats at the UltraStar movie theater where they really showed off their goods). I'm thinking that a movie like the new Fast & Furious would be a good choice for it because of all the driving scenes that I'm sure it will have. :) I did learn a valuable lesson though. If you're having the "D-Box experience", make sure you time your sips of soda. Perhaps during a sex scene, where you don't anticipate your seat to start jerking uncontrollably (...I didn't mean to word it that way, but hey...If the shoe fits...lol). I almost spilled soda all over myself when my seat starting going crazy when one of the fight scenes started. All in all, it was your typical alien invasion movie. Aaron Eckhart was extremely rugged and gritty and handsome and Michelle Rodriguez played the same part she always plays in movies. Enjoyable, as long as you don't have a problem with watching Santa Monica and Los Angeles get destroyed. Although, I'm sure all the New Yorkers were pleased to see some other movie get attacked in a movie for a change.

FCCC & Hands Across California
I got a very interesting e-mail from the Marketing director for my school. She's referred me to the Foundation for California Community Colleges to be the student representative for Coastline in the Hands Across California campaign. Now, to be quite honest, I don't exactly know what that entails since I've yet to receive an e-mail from the contact over there with more information about it. But I feel really honored that she would consider me to be a good representative for my school. I'm excited to learn more about it and would love to participate. I'll keep you posted. :)

New Jersey Trip
We'll be purchasing our plane tickets for our trip to Jersey this evening. So exciting!! I've ordered the bridesmaid dress, so that's already done and paid for. I just have to wait for it to arrive by May 4th or earlier in "watermelon". It's a pretty cute pink. :) We'll be staying with my aunt and uncle, so we don't have to save for a hotel. (Thank you Aunt Ellen & Uncle Eddie!) So really, once the planes and car rental is taken care of, I just have to save up for play on the east coast. I am so excited to go back there, I can't even express it in words. This is the first time since the summer of 2002 that I will be going back to New Jersey for a visit that lasts longer than three days. I'll have 6 whole days out there! Ahh! :)

Lunch is rapidly approaching and I tragically did not pack anything today. Tempted to go out and get food, but I'd rather not spend the money right now. Guess I'll just skip it and wait till dinner.

Irony @ Its Finest

Ohhhhh wow. How perfect is this. Well, y'all don't really know me, so it may not be that funny. But if anyone who actually knows me happens to read this post, I guarantee it will elicit a chuckle or two. These are the recommended areas I need to study in my math course so far:

Ch 3: Numbers in the Real World
Ch 4: Managing Money

Figures.

Did They Really Just Say That: Two-fer Tuesday

People are on fire today.

Situation #1:Caller: So do you have anything in Europe?
Me: No, unfortunately we don't really see much in Europe.
Caller: Oh. So what about England?
Me: No, we don't really have much available in Europe.
Caller: What about Spain or France?
Me: ....No. We don't really get much in Europe.

Situation #2:Me: I have a week available August 5-12.
Caller: So...if it starts August 5th, that means it starts in August not at the end of July.
Me: .......The week starts August 5th. So it does not start in July.
Caller: Ohhhh. Okay, I see what you're saying.



::shakes head:: Humanity is so screwed...

Will you look at that...Rain...Who'da thunk?

Wow. It's raining again. Shocker. I'm sorry, do I live in Seattle or southern California?? Last I checked, I'm pretty sure I pay the ridiculous gas prices and housing costs of a southern California residence, but this weather...I don't know. I'll have to check my mail to see what the address is. Seriously, though. What the eff is up with this weather?? No offense to my fellow southern Californians, but if I have to deal with shitty weather anyway, I woud much rather deal with it back east than out here. At least over there, there's a reason why the weather sucks: The east coast actually has seasons versus our warm/warmer shifts. When you live in SoCal, you expect a certain trend of weather and this rain-every-other-day crap is not what I signed on for. Bad weather makes me cranky.

The OC Music Awards was pretty awesome. I met some really talented artists. I am an instant fan of two in particular. The winner of Best Blues was Parker Macy Blues and after hearing his music, I can certainly understand why he won. He has a really nice raspy--or "gravelly", as I call it--voice. Jordan and I got to meet him after the awards show. He and Jordan exchanged business cards and discussed the idea of getting down on a track together. It may sound like an odd combination (blues and hip hop), but it would sound really great, I think. I hope they get in touch. The guys already have a song that they really need a singer for (the chorus) and I think Parker would be perfect for that one as well. I have my fingers crossed on that one. He also even let me interview him on the fly afterwards. Super nice guy; I'm happy that he won.

Another artist that we met was Micah Brown, who won Best Live Acoustic. He played his song, "Coming of Age", which I believe is on his Facebook page. I absolutely loved it. Jordan talked to him too about doing some kind of collaboration so I hope it works out. Those two guys and Jordan and Nonsense would sound so good together.

There was even a little Kanye West incident towards the end of the evening. I'll refrain from saying the name of the person or which group they were with because I refuse to reward such trashy behavior by spreading their name. But at the very last award of the evening, this person stormed the stage and dropped a few f-bombs, insisting someone else should have won that category, dropped a few more f-bombs, flipped off the audience and ran off the stage. Way to stay classy. Hopefully the Academy bans them from future nominations at least for a year or something.

Here is the complete list of winners of the evening:
Best album: Nightmare, Avenged Sevenfold
Best song: “My Body,” Young the Giant
Best new artist: Railroad to Alaska
Best folk: Yellow Red Sparks
Best blues: Parker Macy Blues
Best alternative: Thrice
Best jazz: Evan Stone
Best electronic: Blok
Best live acoustic: Micah Brown
Best live band: The Steelwells
Best metal: Avenged Sevenfold
Best country/Americana: Billy Kernkamp
Best pop: Stacy Clark
Best world: The Dirty Heads
Best hip-hop: I & I
Best Latin: Nancy Sanchez
Best youth: Amanda Lamb
Best surf: The Growlers
Best DJ: Thrifty Lips
Best indie: Kiev
Best rock: Dahga Bloom
Best punk: Social Distortion
Best music video: “Amalgam,” Halos
People’s choice: Ugly Paint
Lifetime Achievement Award: Stan Freese
Orange County Impact Award: Social Distortion

Tick Tock

My birthday is exactly three months from today.

In three months, I'll officially be closer to thirty than I am to twenty.

Oy.

Day 13: Music Challenge

Ha-ha! Thought I forgot about this today, didn't you??

This will be a short post because Jordan and I are about to crack open a yummy Petit Sirah, watch Due Date and enjoy a nice quiet evening at home. :)

So, Day 12: A song that is a guilty pleasure... Well, basically the entire soundtrack, but this song in particular I just absolutely adore from the musical (yes, musical) Newsies. That's right. Christian Bale and Bill Pullmann singing and doing choreographed dance moves. Seriously. Does it get any better??

Reporting Live from the 2011 OC Music Awards

Dayumn! It feels good--nay, I would dare say flipping amazing to have an assignment for the paper. It's been so long!! The last two events I covered were the SuperCross at Angel Stadium and the Human Trafficking Awareness seminar in Garden Grove. That was at the beginning of January. We're in March. My Sundays have been so empty without any articles to turn in before deadline!

But that's all over because I am back! :) With a rather exciting event to cover. This Saturday, I'll be dressed in "rock n roll red carpet" attire (still trying to figure out where the line is between rock 'n roll and inappropriate: how short is too short??), working the red carpet and interviewing musicians, producers, label executives and whoever else decides to show up before attending the 10th annual Orange County Music Awards. I was given two tickets, so Jordan will be coming with me.

The OC Music Awards honors all the rapidly rising local Orange County talent. One of the bands, The Steelwells, are currently featured in Rolling Stone Magazine (the one with Justin Bieber on the cover ::shakes head::). I've actually seen them perform before. They played at the after-party for the Anaheim International Film Festival back in November and debuted their new music video that night as well. I like them. They're up for three awards--Best Indie, Best Music Video, Best Live Band--and will also be performing. Other bands that will be there that I like are Thrice, Avenged Sevenfold, and Social Distortion. I feel like a traitor to my kind for not knowing any of the country bands/singers that are up for nomination and will be performing. :( Jordan is stoked to be going, too. There are going to be some hip hop groups there, of course, including I & I who used to run in the same circle as Akronymz back in the day. Jordan told me that Nonsense (the other half of Akronymz, aka Clayton) actually battled one of the "I"'s at an underground show once. So it'll be exciting for Jordan to be around so many successful people in the music industry. I told him that if his career gets launched from someone he met at this event, I'm collecting some kind of finder's fee from him. ;)

I'm excited about the after party too. ;) Should be a great time all around!


The after party should be fun, too.

Music Challenge: Day 12

Day 12: A song from a band I hate.

Instead of a band can it be a singer? Although I refuse to even categorize her as a singer, but unfortunately, she has released two (?) albums? I've never even heard her music, but I just know from morning radio talk shows that she does claim to have talent as a singer. She doesn't. She used to be pretty before she sliced up her face and body with scalpels from all that plastic surgery and she married the biggest douche (in my opinion) that reality TV producers could dig up in the greater Los Angeles area. Yes, ladies and gentleman. I'm talking about the great--or should I say 'fake'?--Heidi Montag. The only people I can imagine actually saying, "OMG!! I love her music!" are little prostetots (my word for little fourteen and fifteen-year-olds who insist on dressing like they're twenty-four-year-olds about to go clubbing in Vegas) in southern California who want to be her when they grow up. I have to search through YouTube right now because I don't even know what any of her songs are called... What do you know. It's called "Superficial". How fitting.

"Super Hot Writer Who Knows Her Shit for UFC"

Awww...Look at him promoting my writing to UFC president Dana White on Twitter. Such a sweetheart!!! My boyfriend rocks. :)

KaliMuzik Jordan Tabares

@danawhite if you ever need a super hot writer who knows her shit for UFC MJ Pluss is your girl. You should check her, you wont regret it!

 

Music Challenge: Day 11

Woo!! The double digits!! Awesome.

Day 11: A song from my favorite band

Hmmm. I don't actually know if I have a favorite band, per se. I mean, there aren't really that many bands in country music except for The Zac Brown Band and The Band Perry. Well, there are others out there too, but none that I would classify as a favorite. So we're gonna have to reach back into the memory bank into the time before country.

For some reason the only band that comes to mind (please bear in mind it's 7:15 in the morning and I coming off of two 15-hour days of work and school so at this point, my mind is running on fumes) is Forty Below Summer. It's a semi-known band on the east coast--mainly in New Jersey. They fall into the Metal category (betcha didn't see that comin'...), but oddly enough they did grow on me when I lived back east. I don't have any of their albums anymore, but I have some of their songs on my iPod. My mom would call it "bang on my head" music.

So, without further ado, I give you "Step Into the Sideshow" by 40 Below Summer.

Did They Really Say That: A new month of possibilites!

Speaking with a woman who's interested in booking a week in Aruba:

Woman: Okay and...would you say that flying is the fastest way to get there as opposed to any other form of travel?

'Other' forms of transportation? Exactly how many forms of transportation are there from the United States to Aruba? I mean, I guess you could swim if you really wanted to, but that'll definitely take longer than flying...

UFC 127: Poor Judgement

Well. I had no Internet for the past five days, which is thrilling. I have a crappy phone, so while I can do minor Twitter updates or Facebook posts, it is far from possessing the capability to do anything more complicated than that. This phone is ancient, in technology standards. Two whole years old!! Time to upgrade.

We had our UFC party Saturday night, which was a lot of fun. A lot of fun. There were the usual expected flake-outs (not to say that I expected these people in particular to flake out--quite the opposite, actually, since those people were in charge of bringing the beer), but someone always flakes out and bails. It's inevitable. My birthday last year was a prime example. About twenty to twenty-five people RSVP'd to our BBQ/pool party since my birthday is in June. So we went out and spent about $100 on food and drinks and come party day, I'd say about six people actually showed up. Lame.

I wore my lucky BJ necklace (I know how that sounds...let me explain: The first BJ Penn fight I watched with Jordan, we went down to Hennessy's in Dana Point. When BJ won, this massive Samoan guy gave me a Hawaiian Kukui Seed Bead necklace. He said it was tradition that you give it as a gift to someone so he gave it to me. Ever since then, it's been my lucky BJ necklace. I try to always wear it whenever BJ Penn is fighting.

So...BJ enters the building. He looks good. I mean, he looks focused and ready to go. He has that look in his eyes like, "Let's just effing do this already." Throughout the arena, you see Penn's white, black and red "Just Scrap!" t-shirts and you hear chants of "BJ! BJ! BJ!" Clearly, he's the crowd favorite. Fitch comes in. He looks good too. Although BJ is the favorite, Fitch doesn't exactly walk in to the sound of crickets. He's got his fare share of supporters out there too. And so they square off after Bruce Buffer's usual introductions (I just love him).

Round 1:
BJ flat-out rushes Jon Fitch. Fitch is clearly not expecting this and isn't prepared to defend against any kind of grappling or wrestling. BJ gets a couple take-downs, gets a couple dominant positions (including taking Fitch's back, getting the body triangle and starting to go for a rear-naked choke in a Kenny Florian repeat). BJ clearly got the first round, in my opinion. UFC president Dana White agrees with me.

Round 2:BJ starts slowing down a little. Cardio has always been an issue for him and really the only time I've seen a vast improvement in his cardio is when he fought Diego Sanchez (ahhh now THAT was a beautiful fight). BJ gets a take-down, Fitch reverses it, but Penn quickly gets back to his feet. Penn again takes Fitch's back and almost locks in another rear-naked choke and had it not been for Fitch's darn good wrist control, he would've gotten it. I'd say round 2 goes to Penn also. Again, Dana White agrees.

Round 3:This is not a good round for BJ. Fitch takes him down and keeps him down for the entire round. However. While Fitch does keep him down the whole time, he never assumes a dominant position. He doesn't pass BJ's guard once; doesn't get side control; doesn't land devastatingly damaging blows. While he definitely did handle BJ, there wasn't a point in time where BJ was in any serious danger of a submission or referee stoppage.

So the fight goes the distance and we go to the judge's scorecards. Judge #1 scores it: 29-28 Fitch. So we're thinking split decision victory, right? But for which fighter?? Judge #2: 28-28. Judge #3: 28-28. Result: A majority draw. Are you effing kidding me?!

A draw?? AGAIN?? This is the second time this year that a huge fight has ended in a draw (the first fight was the title fight between Frankie Edgar & Gray Maynard on New Year's day). BJ, however, was utterly disappointed in his performance and seemed near tears when Joe Rogan interviewed him. BJ flat-out said that he thought he'd lose by decision and made references to the possibility of retiring from UFC, but did say he'd be willing to do a rematch.

I read on UFC Octagon Girl Arianny Celeste's Twitter that the 'bosses' (clearly referring to Dana White and other big wigs) were NOT pleased with the judges that evening. There was another fight on the prelims (Nick Ring vs Riki Fukuda) that ended in an upsetting call. Ring clearly LOST that fight. I mean, he got a few punches in here and there, but he just did not win. Yet the judges gave him the victory in a unanimous decision.

This is yet another prime example of why Dana White constantly tells fighters to finish the fight. Never leave it in the hands of the judges.

Music Challenge: Days 6-10

Alright, well I don't think it counts as slacking off if you're without Internet access for the past four days. One might suggest I could've used my phone, but unfortunately I have an LG Piece of Crap that barely functions. I'm counting down the days until my contract is up with Verizon and I can switch over to Sprint. Only two months left.

OK, so here I go with the Catch-Up Game. Regular post to follow. :)

Day 6: A song that reminds me of somewhere

This is an Italian song that I learned in music class when I lived in Porza. There's one line in it: "Sono sempre pronti/a giudicare tutto quello che fai./Come ti vesti/e con chi ti incontrerai." Roughyl translated, it means: "They're always ready to judge everything you do: how you dress and who you're friends with." That pretty much described my classmates down to a T. I loved living there but the Swiss are extremely judgemental towards any foreigners that don't leave when the tourist season ends. The name of the group/singer is 883 (Otto Otto Tre). Enjoy! Every time I hear that song, I think of being in my old room in Porza, blasting it as loud as my CD player would go whenever I was pissed off about something that happened at school.

Day 7: A song that reminds me of a certain event

When I was...five? Six? However old you are when you're in Kindergarten, my mom and dad went to a Dinner/Dance party and when my mom explained to me what that was, I told her that I wanted to have one for my friends. So we decided to have a Valentine's Day party. The theme was a 50's Sock Hop and I had the poodle skirt and saddle shoes to boot. We invited my entire class and their families, my uncle DJ'd and it is probably one of my favorite childhood memories. There's a video of it somewhere, but whenever I hear "Rockin Robin" by Bobby Day, it always makes me think of my mom and my aunt gettin' down on the dance floor to that song. :) Good times.

Day 8: A song I know all the words to

Well shoot, just about every song on Go Country 105 or K-Earth 101! LOL. Let's see... OK, let's go foreign again. This is by far the funniest song I think I've ever heard, just because Italian rap sounds hilarious to me. It's called "Cosi e Cosa" by Articolo 31. Baaaaasically, it's this guy listing all the places he'd like to have sex with his girlfriend, from the elevator to a train to the top of a volcano. You may not understand it, but...C'mon. It's rap. In Italian. Does it get any better than that?!?

 

Day 9: A song that I can dance to

Dancing. I looooove dancing. Please note that by saying this I am not also stating that I'm good at it. But after a couple drinks, I stop being self conscious and other people stop caring. LOL Well I'll go with old faithful. This is Jordan's and my Vegas song. We hear it at least once on a Vegas trip, whether it's on the drive there, or at a club, or from a car driving by with its windows down... It's "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas. If it just so happens that we're close to a dance floor the moment I hear those opening bars, I am on said dance floor in a split second. I'm pretty sure we'll play it at some point at our wedding, too. It fits. LOL

Day 10: A song that makes you fall asleep

That's kinda hard since I don't really like listening to music to fall asleep. I can't even say any classical music since that's what I listen to when I do homework. Ummm, well I'll go with "Moon River", sung by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. As much as I love that movie, I always, without fail, fall asleep at some point in time during that movie if I watch it at night. So...I'll go with that association.

Whew! I'm caught up!! 

The World Revolves around the Sun. Not You.

Let me break it down really quick: I am one of two lead agents for the Exchange Program for a timeshare management company. Let me give you a for-instance. Say Joe-Bob has a week at the Cabo Wabo Resort in Mexico. But, after ten years of going to the same resort for the same week, he decides he doesn't want to go there this year. He can call me, "deposit" his week at Cabo Wabo for a week of credit to trade for a week anywhere that we have open. Say that he finds a week at Sunshine & Butterflies Resort in southern California. I would help him "deposit" his week from Cabo Wabo and book the exchange reservation for S&B Resort in SoCal. The info I need to deposit a week is: The name the resort you own, the start date of the week you're giving up and the size unit you're giving up.

It never ceases to amaze me how inconsiderate people can be. I truly believe that they think I have nothing better to do than sit on the phone and wait for them while they dig up the information they knew they needed to give me before they even picked up the phone to call in.

It's like when I worked at Jamba Juice (ahhh the good old days): It would always happen when we were in the middle of a rush. Some moron would stand in line for a good ten minutes. Then get up to the cash register to place their order, pull out a cell phone and go, "Hold on a second, let me call her and see what she wants." Really?? You had that entire time in line to get the orders straight, but instead of doing that, you're going to place the call now and hold up my line? Well, of course you are! Because the the world revolves around you, your time is the only time that matters.

It's even more interesting to see how full of themselves people really can be when you're simply a voice on the phone instead of a flesh-and-blood person in front of them. For instance, I had an owner call in a few moments ago. I won't give his real name, but he had an extremely common name like...let's go with John Smith. Shockingly, he wasn't the only John Smith in my system. There were no Junior's or Senior's--nor were there any middle initials--on his account that I could use to narrow down my seemingly infinite list of John Smiths in my system, so I had to resort to going into every single account and find the John Smith located out of Conscientious, California (I wish that really were a city...). When it took me longer than a half-second to locate his account, I was fortunate enough to listen to a litany of complaints about how slow and incompetent I am and how he's been an owner for a whopping 8 years.

Well that's fantastic, sir, but amazingly enough, there is more than one John Smith that owns a timeshare with us and instead of just picking one at random, I thought I'd find your specific account to make sure you get credit for the week you're depositing. So I locate his account after a totally unacceptable two minutes and getting the name of his resort, I ask him the standard question, "Do you have the start date of your week?"

Fifteen minutes later, after he scrolled through apparently a hundred e-mails, placed me on hold to call his wife, placed me on another hold to call his actual resort, he was able to give me the start date of his week and I could move on with the deposit and the trade reservation. His time clearly was more important than mine and the time of the five owners sitting on hold while I waited for him to get his shit together.

I wish there was an Aggravation Fee I could tack on to reservations: "Alright, sir, well since you were a total pain in the ass, I am going to have to collect an additional $25 fee." That whole thing wasn't even worth the $119 that went towards my total revenue for the month.

Day 5: Music Challenge

Day 5 is supposed to be a song that reminds me of someone. You know, there are a million songs that can fit each and every of these 30 categories, but as soon as I have to sit and think of one, I forget them all. It's rather frustrating. Hmmm...

So I'm going to go with "You're Unbelievable" by EMF. It's from the Coyote Ugly soundtrack. It may not have been the greatest movie ever made, but it was my movie with my three best friends in New Jersey, freshman year of high school. Catie, Casey, Katelyn and I lived and breathed that movie for practically the entire year. We each assumed a character (I was Jersey, "the Jersey Dreamer"; Catie was Rachel, "the NY Bitch"; Casey was Cammie, "the Russian Tease"; and Katelyn was Lil, "the Boss") and could quote that movie back and forth without even trying. Yes, slightly obsessed, but we were fifteen years old, so give us a break.

You better believe that when I went on my first real trip to Las Vegas (and met Katelyn and her now-husband there), we hit up Coyote Ugly in New York, New York and danced on that bar until our stilletto'd feet couldn't hold us up anymore. So now, every time I hear this song--along with pretty much any song from that movie--I immediately text at least one of the girls to tell them that the song is playing and it reminded me of them.

So, without further ado, I give you "You're Unbelievable" by EMF:

To Do & Eat in New Jersey & New York

Things I'm looking forward to in New Jersey & New York:

 

 Food & Drinks:

1. Good pizza
2. A real Classic Italian hoagie from "The Store" in Ramsey
3. Bacon, egg & cheese on a Kaiser roll with salt, pepper, ketchup
4. Good/real Italian food (Lasagna...Penne vodka....Baked Ziti...*drool*)
5. Lotte's Chocolate cream she always makes for dessert at family dinners
6. Hot dog from a street vendor in the City
7. Twisted Teas (apparently they only exist on the east coast...I've searched high and lo for them out here)
8. Diner food (not good for you, but soooo yummy at three a.m.)
9. Bagels--basically, bread of any kind
10. Dunkin' Donuts coffee if I have to wake up early and be somewhere

Activities:

1. Seeing my best friend, twin-sister-separated-at-birth, partner-in-crime since our freshman year of high school get married
2. Seeing my aunt, uncle, cousins and meeting Baby Stella!
3. Seeing the other original Coyotes (Catie & Casey...the other partners-in-crime)
4. Giving Jordan the "Before She Was Famous" tour of my hometown: Ramsey
5. Visiting the Lake and Boathouse in Central Park (*never been there)
6. Visiting the Met
7. Experiencing the City's nightlife (only did that once when I lived out there...tragic, I know)
8. Just walking around and getting lost in the City
9. Going to the Jamba Juice in Times Square and ordering a soy shot
10. Going down to the Village
11. Window shopping on Madison Ave and 5th Ave (and stopping to visit St. Patrick's Cathedral)

I have to do more research to find things I want to do and see that I've never seen in the City before. I'm sure there are hundreds of places and activities that I don't even know are there. Any suggestions??

Corporate Secretary Barbie, Carpooling, Bad Country Music

I feel like Barbie today.

Which is strange because I'm not wearing pink and I didn't drive a plastic pink convertible to work from my pink cardboard mansion. I'm pretty sure it's the ponytail and the bangs. It may not make sense, but I feel like Barbie. Maybe Corporate Secretary Barbie, complete with legal pad and glasses.

Jordan and I carpooled to work today. That's the benefit of working in the same office as the person you live with. Some people say that they could never work with their boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife, but it's actually not that bad. At work, we barely acknowledge each other. I mean, yes, we talk. But we don't go skipping down the halls, holding hands and making googly eyes at each other and not once have we attempted anything in the copy room. At work, it's work. We don't go to lunch together every day (on occasion, we do) and we work in completely different departments so at the end of the day, it still sometimes feels like we haven't seen or talked to each other at all. Plus, you can save a shitload of money on gas carpooling, especially now that gas is slowly creeping towards $4.00/gallon. It's $3.65 at the Shell station right by our office. $3.65!! Those gas tycoons are loving it right now. Jerks.

So anyway. He flips on K-Roq to listen to the Kevin and Bean Show and the first sentence we hear after flipping to that radio station is Kevin going, "Country music bah-lows." Seeing how this is a constant topic up for debate in our household, Jordan immediately made it louder and started laughing. Now, I will admit that some country songs are just horrendous. But then again, some pop songs are horrendous. Some rock songs are horrendous. Some punk songs are horrendous. Some hip hop songs are horrendous... You get my point. I just don't know why people pick on country so much... Kevin did compile a list of country titles that are true, honest-to-God songs and I'm pretty sure these contribute to the bad wrap country music has:

I Still Miss You, Baby, But My Aim is Getting Better
Her Teeth Were Stained But Her Heart Was Pure
She Got the Goldmine, I Got the Shaft
She Got the Ring, I Got the Finger
Brown Chicken, Brown Cow (not the worst title, but if you listen to it...Yeah...Pretty bad.)
I'm So Miserable Without You, It's Like Having You Here
Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in the Bed
I Changed Her Oil, She Changed My Life
I Would Have Wrote You A Letter, But I Couldn't Spell Yuck
If My Nose Were Full of Nickels, I'd Blow It All on You

I'm fairly certain that these are all old, old old country songs and I will freely admit that these titles make me cringe they're so bad. But, I mean, they are kinda funny, no? LOL

Day 4: Music Challenge

Day 4 is a song that makes me sad. I'm going to go with "The Christmas Song", which everyone knows as the "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" song, by Nat King Cole. I'm not really sure why, but everytime I hear it, it makes me miss New Jersey and my friends and family over there. There wasn't one Christmas in particular where I listened to that song over and over and over again so it is forever connected to Jersey in my mind. I think it's just because it makes me think of the 'perfect' Christmas: snow outside, fire in the fireplace, house packed with family. Out in California, it's just my mom and my aunt as far as family is concerned. My other aunts and uncles and cousins are all back east and I would love to be able to spend Christmas with all of them again one year, especially now that Stella is born and we have a new baby cousin in the family. The last time we spent a Christmas back east, I was fourteen years old. In any case, this song always gets me a little teary-eyed.

Following Myself...

Oops. I started following my own blog by mistake. I'm trying to decide if I should just leave it there since five followers boosts my ego even more than four (4!!!!!! Welcome, The Restaurant Manager! May I call you TRM?? :) Seeing that little 3 change to 4 triggered a tiny little happy dance in my living room on Sunday. Jordan thinks I'm crazy.) buuuuut at the same time, I don't want to be that blogger. You know, the narcisistic one who cares so much about what she thinks and says that she follows her own blog?

Meh. Maybe I'll leave it for a while. I feel better now that I've made it clear to the blogging community that I began following myself on accident.

:)

UFC: "The Prodigy" vs Fitch, "Rush" vs Shields, "Rush" vs "The Spider"

Well good morning to you all!!

For some reason, I am in a remarkably good mood this morning. Can't really figure out why, especially when I had to drag myself out of bed when Jordan got to stay buried under the covers since he doesn't have work today. He does have to go in to work on Saturday, though, so there's the trade-off.

The countdown is officially on!! This Saturday, BJ Penn will square off against Jon Fitch in a fight that ultimately decide his future in the Welterweight division. GSP is currently preparing to fight Jake Shields (which really is an insult to GSP. True, Shields was the welterweight champ in Strikeforce, but his debut fight in the UFC was a total let-down. He didn't fight like a champ at all and he barely pulled off a victory. But Dana White did promise him a shot at GSP if he won that fight, hence the GSP/Shields match-up. GSP is going to take him to the ground and just ground him out for five rounds. Should be scintillating to watch.) However.

After the Jakes Shields fight, GSP will prepare to move up a weight class to fight Anderson Silva. If he wins, then he'll be the new middleweight champ and have to forfeit his welterweight belt. Which means...BJ may get a title shot in the welterweight division! Wooo!! (Side note: I'm going to cry if I have to watch Silva defeat GSP. Seriously. That's the most humble, respectful champion in the UFC versus the cockiest, most conceited champion. Plus, St.-Pierre came to this country and actually made the effort to learn the language. Silva can speak English, but never does. As someone who moved to a foreign country and learned not one, but three of their languages, I find it very insulting that he refuses to speak our language.)

We'll be having a little shindig at the apartment this Saturday to watch the fight. Nothing too big, just a few friends, drinks, snacks. I'll probably be either curled up on the couch watching between my fingers or jumping up and down like a crazy woman watching the fight. All I have to say is, BJ better bring it. He better be the same BJ that walked out for the Matt Hughes fight. You could tell just by the way he was walking that he was ready for that fight. And sure enough, twenty seconds into the first round, BJ knocked Hughes out. It was beautiful. Jordan got so excited that he jumped up from the table so fast, he almost knocked over the glasses on our table and spilled soda all over the one nice purse that I own. I hope to see that kind of confidence in BJ again this time. I don't know what happened to him during the two Frankie Edgar fights, but for some reason, he just lost all his confidence and it was rather heartbreaking to see. When Bruce Buffer said, "...and the new Lightweight Champion Frankie 'The Answer' Edgar", we both wanted to throw up a little bit.

And that is my rant on UFC for the week. LOL

courtesy of jonfitch.net



GSP vs Shields (courtesy of tkomanagement.net)





Silva vs GSP (courtesy of hammerfisted.com)