f is for friends who do stuff together

u is for you and meeeeee
n is for anywhere and anytime at all
DOWN HERE IN THE DEEP BLUE SEAAAAA

hi.
okay, I should be cast off into a corner and forced to wear a 'dunce' hat because i did not watch Obamarama's speech on tuesday (i believe don't blame me if i get this wrong my days have been watercolored together) because i had two essays to fine tune and much more work to do. so, i had to read the recaps.
in Mr. Obama's Energy Future, an editorial from the New York Times, it said how Obama listed energy as one of the most critical topics that our nation's economic future depends on. this made me jump for joy because after Bush, energy conservation was pushed to the very back burner because we had other 'stuff' to worry about (like a certain war over certain weapons of mass destruction...) so it is nice to know that Obama intends to follow through with his campaign promises.
i wanted to see just how Obama approached the subject in his speech, so I found a copy of it online. He says,

"The fact is, our economy did not fall into decline overnight. Nor did all of our problems begin when the housing market collapsed or the stock market sank. We have known for decades that our survival depends on finding new sources of energy. Yet we import more oil today than ever before. The cost of health care eats up more and more of our savings each year, yet we keep delaying reform. Our children will compete for jobs in a global economy that too many of our schools do not prepare them for. And though all these challenges went unsolved, we still managed to spend more money and pile up more debt, both as individuals and through our government, than ever before. "

I was nervous about whether or not Obama would follow through with his campaign promises in the beginning, but just five weeks into his presidency, he still shows no signs of backing down!

The way Obama speaks reminds me of Nixon and JFK, because both spoke with such eloquence that audiences would be so inspired by them. In a well-placed effort to basically tell America to get off their butts and do something, he compared the US to Japan, Germany, and China in "investing in manufacturing wind turbines, more efficient solar panels and next-generation batteries." Obama understands that Americans just need a little push, and I think he definitely accomplished that.

GOBAMA!

25 random things about me

1. I couldn't possibly live without Jennifer Lynn Dorso. She is life because she brought me to Rachel Bilson.
2. Number one was brought about by peer pressure ensued by Jennifer Lynn Dorso.
3. I absolutely despise all lunch meats.

One of the fads currently lighting the world up via.... facebook... is telling your life story through 25 Random Facts about yourself that you believe people will deem interesting, witty, or funny.

4. I have a fanatic obsession with the teenage soap opera, The OC.
5. I call some of my mother's friends my best friends.
6. I call my mom during school to make her to check online sample sales for me. And after that, Jenny uses my phone and does the same thing.

I must admit that I was one to jump on the random fact bandwagon, but at the same time, why has it become so large of a craze? Why must everyone and their grandmother tell all of their friends that they were scared of the dark until the age of 20? Or that one likes to dance alone in the living room?

7. I check the Sartorialist and Garance Dore every day when I get home from school.
8. I work at a bakery, so I eat masses of donuts every day of my life.
9. No, I am not a legal midget. I am 5'2'' and proud.

Jason Tanz, the senior editor of Wired, said "[25 Random Things] is a socially acceptable way to tell people what you’ve been up to without seeming totally obnoxious." I agree, but why are we telling acquaintances our life story, anyway? Thanks to facebook, the world has been reconnected with the random person they met on the street 5 years ago on New Years, and people that have similar traits and talents from all over the universe. Including aliens. So by participating in a survery like 25 Random things, you are letting all of those random people get to know you without actually having a heart to heart with you.

10. My grandmother, mother, brother, father, and my grandmother's friend all have a facebook. I am only friends with my Grandmother's friend.

Yes, I did do the 25 random facts, but at the same time, I don't really like why. 25 Random Things is used so people can portray their best and quirkiest personality traits so that other people will find them to be funnier or more likeable. These facts are not for the sake of keeping your friends up to date, but rather to project yourself in a manner that people find pleasing.

11. I eat more food that the average human being should.

The article was interesting, but what was refreshing about it was that since its subject matter was light, the article was written lightly and infused with humor. For instance, every few paragraphs the author would interject a random fact about someone, that would lighten up the content and really make it obvious that it was intended to be a light read.

freddy my love

so our world as we know it is falling into a dark abyss.
or not.
but regardless, america has a vastly failing economy, we are in a war that is long overdue, and every other country in the world hates us, so we aren't far off.

in a time where the hope that a new president brings us is crucial, and a time where his plans to help america can literally make or break us as a nation, lets talk about... the president's love of basketball?
In Hoops Fans Can't Wait for Obama to Take Office, Jeff Zeleny talks about the President Elect's love of basketball, and how he going to be horrified when he sees the dismal court on the White House grounds. Although I do understand that this is a light article, I was assuming that there woulid be a connection to the way that Obama will run the White House or SOMETHING, but as the article came to a close, the only tid bit I walked away with was that the Basketball makes third graders think that they can be president one day.
Note to self: please don't write pointless articles and not connect them to current events.

hahahahahahahahahaaaaaaa

so i woke up this morning with no intention to post at 9:39 in the morning, but then I saw an article on my homepage, MSN, that was screaming for attention. It's called Bury Me With My Cell Phone, which is a touching article about how the hot item to die with is one's phone. In fact it was only no. 2 to being buried with your pet's ashes. Although there are no statistics on cell phone burials, this tends to be a common occurance with the younger generation and also the tech savvy.
But why? Why must one be buried make alongside their crackberry?
Well, the answers actually sense.
First of all, some people consider their cell phones a memento of the life they once lived.... As one quote in the article said, "“It’s an extension of them, like their class ring.”
The cell phone is also comfort for the dead, and also for the family of the deceased. For instance, one family gave their loved one their phone charged so that way they could call them later. It makes them feel like they still have a connection. Also, the fear of being buried alive has been heightened in recent years, so being curied with a cell phone can give someone a way out...
What do you all think of this? I understand that our society is dependent on technology, so is this a step too far?

I am in desparate need of a snow day.

time for the spoon under the pillow!
anyways, I just finished reading one of the saddest articles that I have ever read. Ever. It really really tugged at my heartstrings, and it inspired me to do whatever I can to help. Except I cannot yet help with Unicef because I am under 18, or so they told me...
Anyways, I read Cholera Is Raging, Despite Denial By Mugabe, which is written by Celia W. Dugger. It talks about the Cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe, and how their president of 28 years is in denial that anything is happening right now. Currently, water in suburbs has been dried up, and that is what helps Cholera from spreading (washing face and hands and everything one eats). Teachers are no longer showing up at school because their pay isn't enough to cover the 'bus fare'. The inflation hit 231 MILLION percent July, and an estimate made is that the inflation has now hit 8 Quintillion percent, you know, 8 with just 18 zeros...
I can't believe that as the United States is laughing at a President who had a size ten shoe thrown at him, that there are people on the opposite side of the world that are worrying about whether or not they and their children are going to be alive tomorrow... puts things in perspective, huh?

older chests reveal themselves

Older chests reveal themselves
Like a crack in a wall
Starting small, and grow in time
And we always seem to need the help
Of someone else
To mend that shelf
Too many books
Read me your favourite line

-Damien Rice, Older Chests

Today I found an Op-Ed by my favorite columnist, Gail Collins. In Three Guys And A Table, Collins discussed the last presidential debate, and using her amazing wit and sarcasm, she managed to compare John McCain and Barack Obama to campers, which is something she could only do.

One of the best parts about Collins' editorials is that they all have a theme that is woven throughout from the beginning to the end. In this editorial, that theme is camp. She starts off the article with, "Couldn’t help feeling nostalgic Wednesday night. It was a little like the last bonfire at summer camp." With that statement, Collins' wove the idea of camp into every point that she said, making for a more enjoyable read on a serious topic. She continues to describe the candidates as the kids that you meet at summer camp, Obama being "the coolest, most popular camper. You can’t wait to see him again after school starts. Then you discover that back in real life, he’s founder of the Model Boat Society and the president of the Safety Club" and McCain is "like the head counselor who led all the hikes and who you wished was your older brother. Until you realized that he spent the cold weather hanging out at a biker bar and watching reruns of 'Dog the Bounty Hunter.'". Since I am leaning towards McCain in the presidential election, the Obama analogy really struck me as hilarious, because I feel like Obama has amazing ideas, but he doesn't really know how to follow through with them, so he is the guy who everyone loves, but then they find out that in reality, he's kind of a geek. I find the McCain analogy full of irony, because it would truly be hilarious if you saw him in a biker bar watching "Dog the Bounty Hunter", but it would be fitting because McCain has a tougher side to his personality.

What started out as an editorial about the debate ended as one on the end of the presidential race when Collins' started talking about the undecided voters. She says how both of the canditates have moved away from the mainstream voters that are clear on who they are voting for, to the "handful of people in Ohio who have managed to avoid noticing that Obama and McCain disagree on virtually every important issue facing the nation and continue to insist that they are torn between them". I like how Collins' tied the targeted audience so beautifully into the witty banter about the debate because she was right. Those few voters who really don't know who they are voting for are now crucial to both of their campaigns, and those people are now making the two candidates more distinct than ever with their views on important issues.