legitimate

Last night I went home to do laundry, let's just say I hadn't done any in at least 3 1/2 weeks... not really something I enjoy doing. Not important.

While there I watched a particularly interesting episode of Boston Legal. I don't normally watch t.v., and when I do this is not a show I typically watch. I don't think I've ever seen one episode actually.

Well, this particular episode was rather interesting. One of the cases involved a 17 year-old girl who wanted the right to vote. I felt the closing statements of her attorney were very smart.

"This country is ruled by the old, the white, and the rich" "Kids have idealism we have forgotten. They have a voice." (after listing all the problems there are with the United States and the world, he sarcastically says), "Let's not dare let children mess up our masterpiece... the kids are getting screwed."

And finally, he made the connection that teenagers are taxed freely but are not represented because they are not allowed to vote, that this is taxation without representation, and that we as American citizens have a history of excluding certain segments from the voting process.

I thought it was interesting.

anecdote

This past weekend I took my first road trip to MSU since high school for my friend's birthday. When I visited State in the fall of 2005, it was for a giant journalism workshop that is held there every year.

The context of my visit this time was to spend a night hanging out with Pete, a friend I met my freshman year at Aquinas. He just began taking classes this fall at MSU and lives in a house somewhere in East Lansing. I say somewhere because, in relation to the main campus, or anything else for that matter.

In general, though my visit short-- less than 24 hours-- I was completely over-whelemed by the size of the town. MSU isn't just a college, it is a town. I only experienced one gas station, a house on Virginia(Vagina), Pete's house that was 7 minutes away driving according to mapquest, one frat house that had possibly THE most disgusting bathroom I have ever seen, one Denny's where they were not allowed to sell any lettuce because of a recent e.coli outbreak, and one gas station before coming home.

A school with 45000 students or however many they have there is bound to be different, true. I encountered many different people and none of them seemed all that exciting. Maybe if I went there and fished around I would find a few that I actually liked as people and more than just those friends you party with on weekend. Speaking of partying, it seems every weekend at MSU is like our annual Stomp, which is fast approaching. I don't know how anyone could function drinking that much weekend after weekend. Once a year is fine with me.

That's all.

dead beat drop out

I would drop out of school but I don't want to work at Biggby for the rest of my life.

this is my friend pat

(00:06:40) Me: patrick
(00:06:58) Patrick: my darling.
(00:07:12) Patrick: speak to me.
(00:07:40) Me: seeing avenue q live is 100xs better than listening to it
(00:07:51) Patrick: i'm such a jealous fool
(00:10:08) Patrick: seriously though. i hate it here.
(00:11:18) Me: that bad?
(00:11:18) Patrick: how is home.
(00:11:24) Patrick: just boring.
(00:12:03) Patrick: and hot.
(00:12:43) Me: home is up and down, the temperature cannot make up its mind
(00:12:46) Me: it's still not quite fall
(00:12:51) Me: i'm waiting anxiously
(00:12:54) Me: i'm not ready for winter.
(00:13:00) Me: i just want it to be fall
(00:13:02) Me: and i want to drink cider forever
(00:13:05) Patrick: i wish it would be fall forever.
(00:13:11) Patrick: and summer for two weeks.
(00:13:14) Patrick: one week of winter.
(00:13:16) Patrick: ideal.
(00:14:05) Patrick: bike rides and a ridiculous scarf is what i need.
(00:17:13) Me: i rode my bike today
(00:17:19) Me: but i was not wearing a scarf. not yet.
(00:17:50) Patrick: i hope you have the common sense to wear a scarf only when required.
(00:18:14) Patrick: as a sensible young woman would.
(00:18:21) Me: I am not one of those trendy girls that wear scarves for fashion.
(00:18:29) Me: I wear fashionable scarves for necessity
(00:18:44) Patrick: <3
(00:19:34) Me: right? right.
(00:19:40) Patrick: totally
(00:20:31) Patrick: i'm coming home for two whole weeks.

(00:24:00) Patrick: mom sent me a bible.
(00:24:15) Patrick: it was unexpected.
(00:26:11) Me: why...
(00:26:22) Patrick: i think she worries for my soul
(00:27:46) Me: do you?
(00:27:56) Patrick: not so much.
(00:29:16) Patrick: you and yours?
(00:29:38) Me: eh, not right now
(00:30:16) Me: maybe in a decade
(00:30:24) Me: i'll repent. but no promises
(00:30:37) Patrick: ( :
(00:30:57) Patrick: i may pull a deathbed foot in the door.
(00:32:36) Me: that's cutting it pretty close
(00:33:49) Patrick: a good catholic should feel guilty all the time, for no particular reason.
(00:34:00) Patrick: i'm not ready for that kind of commitment.
(00:37:07) Me: when are you coming home
(00:37:16) Patrick: the week before christmas.
(00:37:46) Me: so you will be home for christmas
(00:37:56) Patrick: yup
(00:39:50) Patrick: with bells on.
(00:40:06) Me: wrap yourself up and give you to me
(00:40:38) Patrick: it will be difficult, but i know my way around tape and scissors.
(00:41:01) Me: :-D
(00:42:32) Patrick: lets get some tea.
(00:42:43) Me: and really fucking shitty chinese food
(00:42:48) Me: and smoke a pack of cigarettes
(00:42:49) Patrick: oh yes, the shittiest
(00:42:54) Patrick: maybe two
(00:43:16) Patrick: and some awful cheap wine.
(00:43:22) Patrick: anything in a box.
(00:43:41) Me: god yes

(00:57:12) Patrick: god doesnt come to florida
(00:57:21) Me: only the DEVIL
(00:57:33) Patrick: he tries to avoid this place too.
(00:58:06) Me: aw it can't be that bad
(00:58:12) Me: maybe just the situation that has you there
(00:58:13) Patrick: its really not.
(00:58:30) Patrick: i just like to complain.
(00:58:37) Patrick: i'm feeling a little locked down
(01:02:37) Me: do they lock you in your rooms at night?
(01:02:46) Patrick: no
(01:03:00) Patrick: but they might as well
(01:09:17) Patrick: they confiscated my Einstein poster and snoopy figurine.
(01:09:22) Patrick: my world has been shaken.
(01:09:25) Me: whyyyyyyyy
(01:09:30) Me: why would they do that
(01:09:47) Patrick: random inspections. everything is supposed to be locked up and perfect.
(01:11:00) Me: will you get it back
(01:11:18) Patrick: yeah.
(01:11:52) Patrick: i hope!
(01:12:00) Patrick: otherwise this place is getting burned to the ground

looking ahead

I need something to look forward to.

some truths

want to get home and write out these thoughts
type down these thoughts...
addicted to the bliss of Eire
our dreamworld, unreal world
Now. I am here no longer in the world I can touch
but rather in one I can only feel.
and it is real to only me.

Danielle, perpetual asher, & lungs full of smoke.

I realize you can't be friends with everyone, but I will continue to try.

"the few times we've met, though brief, left me very curious and bewildered by you and i wish to pursue our acquaintance"

cider and caffeine and free
anxious love, facilitate nicotine
inhaled in lung, hard to breathe
love or smoke?

and i'm home in a home where no one's ever home
and the one who was my home left me
and then left the country
and i look at you and i know why we're friends
we're lonely, lonely, lonelilly
and we're holding each other
but we're lonely

and i think and i dream
and i know you're not the one for me
but you were the one for me
and who can say why we do what we do
or want what we want
or say what we say
i guess it just depends on the day

Space Odyssey

We are always pushing boundaries, exploring space. What do we want to find in the vast eternity beyond Earth? More proof that we are small and insignificant. More things that we cannot understand, cannot wrap our minds around. The idea of space and time so vast and so forever. We will never understand.

Home-body

A few weeks ago, some friends and I were at Little Africa. I think I may have blogged about it.
Anyway, as we were the only ones in the restaurant, the owner/server/cook came to talk to us. He asked each of us our majors, and what we planned on doing with them. Obviously, Ireland had to come up, and we started to talk about going abroad. Each of us expressed our love of travel, experiencing new cultures, and our desire to do it again, with the possibility of moving out of the U.S. permanently and establishing roots in other countries.
He, being a man who noticeably is not of American descent, responded to this with timid shock. "Why would you want to go anywhere else?" and "No place like home." And this coming from someone who emigrated here, who chose Michigan U.S.A. over his home and over anywhere else he had ever been (which was a lot, he named them all).
There are obvious reasons to staying in the U.S., family here, friends, freedom-- the 3 F's.

In other news, I'm watching Sex in the City and I'm mad at Carrie for letting Aidan go.

money$money$money$

It amazes me how much stupid mother-fucking shit people will do for money.

harder, better, faster, stronger

Discussing comparative advantage today, I got to thinking. The concept in itself makes sense. A company that can make a product faster, better, and/or cheaper than the rest will be more successful. Better, faster, cheaper. We all want to be successful, no? There is so much push to be better, faster, cheaper. Stronger. Better. And this is where I feel things go from being black and white to gray. It gets a little confusing. There are so many choices, shopping for anything gets frustrating. Which brand do you choose? But then again, shouldn't everyone have a chance to be successful?

Which is better... black and white, or just a whole lotta gray?

colors

My room has beige walls and beige carpet. I like my room but I hate the color beige.
I see beige and think.. why be beige? Why not just be white? Or brown? or any other color but beige.

gag.

yo baby

Whenever a baby is born, it is custom to ooh, aah, and praise said babies for being so gosh darn cute.
Hate to say it, but a lot of newborns aren't all that cute.
Chances are, your baby is ugly. Sorry about it.

who I want to be

I am becoming who I want to be. I wasn't happy with you.

Now, I'm free.

drizizunk.

more tomorrow.

We, we who were, we are the same no longer.

you aren't you, the one I know
or knew, I guess
in your glasses and your sweater vest

is there such a thing as happily distracted? because that's what I think I am.

This is getting too personal.

are you there, universe?

"Hand me more cash, Universe!"

Are you there, Universe? It's me, Danielle. That poor college student...

Things would be so much easier if the Universe would just hand me some cash. Not a lot. I'm not greedy. But just enough...

smoke

Normally, you don't notice your own scent, but right now I can smell myself. I smell like cigarette smoke. Smoking is offensive to all five senses and harmful to your health. And yet I continue to smoke.
I've "tried" to quit, but never really tried. I mean, I know I'm polluting my body with harmful chemicals, and I've known someone that died of lung cancer.

I'm about to go out for another.

your heaven

Is the cost of your happiness here on Earth, and your heaven later on the misery of someone else?

Is this the way the world works?

Blake

More thoughts on William Blake.

A man who naturally tied himself down to nothing. Developed his own mythology. Saw ghosts as an everday reality. Must make own philosophy and religion or we become enslaved by others. Believed art depicts not physical reality but spiritual reality. Creates something that will never be created again. Saw no limit to creativity. You never make what you have in mind. Free love.

We study this man of the past to learn from him? To learn how to create ourselves? A man who had no training and is more magnificent than we will ever be. This is what I want to be. Free of trying to be what everyone else is, or was, or wants.

Me.

anxious.

anxious.

Proverbs of Hell

Here a few proverbs from Blake's proverbs of hell.

Improvement makes strait roads, but the crooked roads without Improvement are roads of Genius.
Exuberance is Beauty.
The apple tree never asks the beech how he shall grow, nor the lion the horse, how he shall take his prey.
What is now proved was once only imagin'd.

Think about it.

rainbow of happiness

Candy makes people happy. This is what I learned today.

Can't get out of bed late to work bike to work and die because cigarettes cloud lungs and mind yelled at for slouching yelled at for not being happy and hungover late to Senate meeting see ex spill hot cider on new white shirt that is hand wash only Little Africa closed when it's supposed to be open.

And then things turn around.

Try to make other dinner plans but nothing sounds good when you've been dreaming about Little Africa all day but owner returns and we are his first customers of the night eat great food and drink great tea in great company overwhelmed with homework at library but oh wait Steph's brought a frozen coke an extra large packet of skittles milk duds and a giant piece of laffy taffy and everything is well great dandy silly because when's the last time I've had candy and I've got a bit of a sugar buzz.

No matter what goes wrong, it can be made better. There's a silver lining somewhere.

over-easy

I'm not easy, but there are things that are harder.

Hairy

Alright, time for a real post. I just needed something to post and a commercial about hair loss was on t.v. I'm not actually balding for all you concerned folks out there.
However, I will be chopping off my beautiful locks in a mere 2-3 weeks. All of it, or at least ten inches.

And then I really will be bald.

I don't remember the last time I cut my hair. All through Ireland I just let it grow and grow, rarely washed, no brushing or anything remotely close to proper grooming.

Now that I've revealed that, wouldn't you want to wear my hair on your head?

Grocery list

4 my BS 200 class, we have to pick 4 companies to invest a fictitious $200,000 in. This is problematic for 2 reasons. 1: I know nothing about the stock market. Nothing. I do not understand it. 2: If I had that sum of money, I would not invest it. I am not a gambler. I don't even play the lottery.

So, after some guidance from my younger brother, I decided on my 4 stocks. Pepsi Co., Target, Spartan Stores, & Google. I am not expecting to make any "money" whatsoever, but who knows. Maybe I will become a millionaire.

free-dom to do, freedom to choose

Well yesterday was a pretty cool day. Mom and I were looking at a few houses around the area for her and dad to possibly buy. Afterward we stopped at my old place of employment, The Fare, to pick up a six pack. Beth decided on BL Lime, which she prefers over Miller Chill. Not as much lime.

We brought the beer back to my house and drank, where else but on the porch. A few people called me while we were out there. "What are you doing?" "Oh, just on the front porch, drinking beers with my mom."

Later, much much later, after a bike ride downtown yelling "Sláinte" the whole way, I ended up back on my front porch, with different people. A late-night phone call to Gino's went something like this:
"I have a coupon, I would like a pizza with extra cheese and onion."
"Okay."
"When will it be ready?"
"When can you get here?"
"I can literally see you from my front porch as we speak."
"If you come now, you might not need your coupon. A drunk, rich guy is here buying everyone food."

Immediately I hang up the phone and Jessie, Marcie and I book it across the parking lot to Gino's, where said rich man paid for our pizza. Nothing like sharing the wealth.

We devoured the pizza like lions. It was the best tasting thing I've ever experienced, and more importantly a great night spent with the people I love.

revelation

Last night in my Romantic Lit class I came upon 2 realizations.
1. Just how inter-connected we all are. To learn the Romantic writers, I must study elements of history and philosophy and governement to fully understand the writing of that time. First I must learn about the French Revolution and what was going on during that time in Britain. I must learn about Rosseau, a philosopher. I must learn about government and hierarchy and monarchy religion. This is all for an English class. To study history, you need language, you study influential authors, the same language and authors I study. We are all connected.
2. To be remembered and considered great, you don't have to be original. We were reading Alexander Pope's "Windsor Forest" and all he did was mimic and suck up. He was completely unoriginal in his work. He didn't write for himself, he wrote to please Queen Ann and make money. Why am I studying someone who was completely unoriginal in his thought and work? That is a question to which there is no answer.

Teeth

Yesterday I got to thinking about my teeth, which I don't normally do. Consider the importance of teeth. Teeth influence how people perceive you, how you speak, how your voice sounds, how you eat, and help you display emotions. Teeth are used frequently. While at work, a coffeeshop mind you, I realized how often I really consider what I put in my mouth and how well I take care of them based on their importance in my life. Come to find out, not very. Some days I don't even brush my teeth before going to bed because I'm not home where my toothbrush lives or I'm just too lazy. I never floss. On my once a year visit to the dentist, I am told to start flossing, but I simply brush off the advice as a nuisance.
If I'm not careful, I may end up like George Washington. Except nowadays, we're a bit more advanced than wood. However, there's not excuse because we have toothbrushes and dental floss.

conspiracy theory

Whenever I am at the beach, I have this strange suspicion that we are being watched. Aliens from another galaxy are looking down on all of us humans at the beach, baking away in our Earth-oven. And they laugh. How stupid are we, to see global warming occurring and do nothing. Naively, we allow the temperature to increase and thus prepare ourselves for them. We relish in it, love it, flock to the beach and strip off our clothes and the aliens watch and wait, gradually increasing the temperature until we're all crisp and ready to eat.

complain

When I am at work, I complain the whole time, even when I have nothing to complain about. How annoying.

torn

I am torn between the desire to be well-known when I get older, or having close friends and being successful on a small scale. I don't think one is necessarily more important than the other. I think I can still make my "mark" either way.

This is a rather vain post.