Gerald Ford Dead

Gerald Ford dead today at the senseless age of 93.

group stuff

[If the picture doesn't automatically re-size, just right click and select "view image."]
Here is the latest MJHS gathering--a little impromptu, but we actually talked with several that we wouldn't have if we were not at that location at that time...Scott will probably explain it more fully, so I won't bother. It was nice to see Scholes, Tara, Scott Seaton, our Burkas and Alison(Todd's gf). The service sucked. Bryan would've thrown a very mature fit, for sure. Some of us saw The Pursuit of Happyness afterward--thanks Billy!--and that was enjoyable as well.
The next night, some of us who are in the long-term habit of hanging out did so at the Nash house. We ate lots of great appetizers and drank...mostly white sangria. Fun fun. Here we all are.
And this post wouldn't be complete without a little holiday Dudley, now would it? Here he is with his lone present--aunts and uncles will need to step it up next year, alright? For the love!Josh and I are very excited to say that we're headed west ~to Colorado(central and upper)! Dad, Kim and my little brothers moved there in August. Sammi(my little sister) and David (step-brother) and his son are moving there in late January. We will be there a total of 10 days, missing 5 days of work in total. We leave Friday, December 29th and return Monday, January 8th. Hayley--I'd love to see your apartment and get an official tour of campus! Ryan-show us around--what are your plans during this period of time. We'd love to hang out with you and Nina if you're free. We'll be home-based in Colorado Springs, but plan on staying in Fort Collins at least one night, toward the end of our trip. Could we see you both at some point? Hopefully we'll borrow a car and have some travel freedom once we're there. Josh might meet with a couple of people for potential jobs, but the rest will be just R&R/sightseeing/family time. Can't wait.

That's about it-just wanted to keep you posted. Ryan-thank God you're back safely. Post some pictures already!
Merry Christmas friends.

Can't You See What Love Has Done?

U2's latest video, "Window in the Skies" shows old footage of bands and artists somehow lipsynced to U2's lyrics. See how many you can identify.

___ in a box

this was on SNL this past week. too funny. sorry it's the uncensored version.

just in case

Just in case any of you check this more often than your Myspace or Facebook accounts-

Due to the advances in communication networks over the last 3 or 4 years, its become really easy to get the word out about stuff and plan get-togethers and what-not....

so with that- i found as many people on facebook and Myspace that we graduated with, (all of whom i think we've hung out with before and are in good standing with), about 26 people in all- and sent out invitations to go to dinner this Friday the 22nd at 7pm at the O'Charlie's in providence place (MJ)- this will just be a normal MJ kinda get-together (ala Olive Garden in the past)... nothing special, just a good time to catch up with people and fill us all in on what you've been up to the last couple of years- if you could either post something on here or email me at sburka@utmem.edu if you are planning on comming- that would be great so i know about how many to expect!- hope to see as many of you there as possible- if you want to invite anyone else- you know i dont care- just let me know...
and dont stress if you cant make it or you've got family stuff- i know its on short notice...

give me a call with any questions: 615-838-4130

Pi is the new black...

i'm telling you- its just really popular these days...

Video

One of my favorite SNL Sketches

This is one of my all time favorite SNL sketches.

Carry on.

in the spirit of getting things going...

Josh Hunter is ugly- proove me wrong.

ummm what else...
for those of you who dont read my personal blog- shame on you- i have a photo-album of my cat here in memphis- i think you mihgt'a enjoy'a: (this is how you make a link... HAYLEY!)

ALSO- bryan- just thought you'd like to know that my pharmacy law final is TOMORROW- (dang)- but its not all that bad... the hardest thing is trying to remember all the different penalties- like for C2 or C4 controlled substances or different types of violations... seems kinda stupid- i think we should just have to know what NOT to do, so that we never have to worry about the penalties- i mean... we can't really do much about them anways... "oh crap i was going to sell some Morphine to my cousin, but since theres a $50,000 fine, maybe i wont...".... i mean... if you think you can get away with something- you're probably not too concerned with the penalty... i dunno... any lawyer thoughts on that?

also- i dont know if i said this earlier, but my last day of class ever was last week- and my last pharmacy test (before the boards- dang...) will be on monday!- i'll be home tuesday night the 19th- so start making your scott reservations ahead of time... i'm going fast!

ok gotta go!

Yep

so- we played "dirty santa" tonight...
i had this idea for a gift- i took a picture of myself looking goofy- went down to walgreens and had it printed out in an 8x10 and then got a nice frame and framed it. I wrapped it in a nice box and put it under the tree and when someone got it, the whole place went nuts- it was such a blast!
i'm definitly gonna use that again sometime... it was so worth it...


(also i saw THIS VIDEO on myspace and i enjoyed it- because i coukd sing along with the robot)

Why the World Needs Lawyers

Check this out.

It goes on a bit, but I found it to be quite entertaining. In case anybody out there is sensitive to potentially "mature" material, I would say this little video is PG-13. (Upon further review, I still think it is PG-13, but the R side of PG-13. I am not offended by this, but there are non explicit references to sexual acts. So you are warned).

What's Cooler Than Being Cool?

Way better than the original. It's amazing how soulful this version is...

Fun Vacuum

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/28/health/28natal.html?_r=3&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

So, apparently now I have to stop smoking and drinking just in case I want to EVER get pregnant. Suck the fun right out of my 20s, why don't you?

Wife Force One

this is pretty funny. i guess this guy is trying to say something about the similarities in Harrison Ford's movies.

Sleep is for babies

Nintendo Fanboy waits in line for a Wii...

in need of your help

ummm ok... so i just got my graduation pictures back (for my May 2008 graduation date- they were taken now because in january we disperse to different parts of the state to do our rotations- yeah i knew you were gonna ask that) - i gotta choose one of these three...
going for the one that makes me look the LEAST chubby, and thre MOST pharmacist-like...
yeah i know... i've got big hair... but when else in my life will i be able to look goofy and not really care? oh yeah... retirement... but before then?

oh and these are bad quality is because its from the photographer's website- and you cant save the files on your computer.... so i just took these up close with my camera and cropped them...
you get the picture... they are all actually really clear and high-res... alittle TOO high-res if you ask me :/

A
B


C

Wow

This has been in the news lately. Comedian (and former Seinfeld star) Michael Richards went on a bit of a racist tirade recently. When I first heard this news, I assumed that the media and PC society were just giving him a hard time. While it is never really acceptable to use the so called "n-word," I don't think that every person who ever said it is absolutely racist. Yes, something said in anger probably has a basis in genuine belief. But I think being racist is much more pervasive than losing one's temper with an individual who exemplifies the most annoying stereotypes of his or her race and reacting with a racial epithet. Again, it doesn't excuse it. But I think that being racist requires more pervasive personal belief.

Then I saw this video. It's pretty clear that it didn't just slip out. I think it might be fair to characterize this as racist. He had more than one chance to back off, and he didn't.



He apologized on Letterman. And it was really awkward. He says "Afro-American" rather than "African American." And the audience keeps laughing, but he seems genuine. Watching it just makes me feel uncomfortable.



Any thoughts?

enjoy your new plasma TV, scott.

How Rich Are You?

i guess there's some degree of error or something in it because i cant get above 107,565th place. still neat though.

Sweet New Trailer

I overheard someone talking about this so I went online to check it out. This is the trailer for the new Spiderman movie. It hugely expands on the teaser we have already seen.

Impressionist

This guy was on MadTV. His name is Frank Caliendo. He is best known for his impression of John Madden. He posted this on YouTube. It is a bit long, and some parts are better than others.. but my favorite part is the impression of Robert DeNiro as Frankenstein at 3:25.

He.... was my number one... a-guy

Jack Palance Dead at 87

Black Friday Ads

now you can plan further ahead. what a great site. (you can sign up to get updates when certain ads come in.)

Black Friday

By the way, I'll be in Africa for 6 weeks...

I don't know if any of you remember that I was going to Madagascar for 6 weeks or not...but I am. I leave on Friday and get back in mid-December. Feel free to email me while I'm there as I'll probably need the contact with relatively friendly people. My address is just my name @yahoo.com. There aren't any underscores or anything else weird and I don't want to actually type it since last time I posted it I ended up on some stupid mailing list with daily unfunny jokes. Everyone have a good November, and I'll have some good pictures when I get back.

oh snap

it's totally back. TV Links disappeared the other day and i thought it was a goner, but instead it just moved. anyway, it's back and with a shitload of new shows. for those of you who have bought every tv show in dvd, please disregard.

TV Links

i'm sorry. i just found the word "shitload" appropriate.

Croc Hunter

CNN Article



Thoughts?

Silly Japanese People

I have trouble believing this is an actual condition. What?! The French are rude?! Why didn't anyone tell them? Maybe they don't have stereotypes in the same way we do. Come on, Paris is a big city. How many big cities have any of you been to that are immaculate and brimming with friendly, helpful people? Exactly.

*And personally, Paris wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. I thought the people were decently accommodating, but my expectations weren't that high.

if this is a defense mechanism...

...look for these babies on the "endangered" list coming up.



(i love the Top Gun music)

after watching it a few times, it has to be some kind of defense mechanism or reaction to the light/sound because they start going crazy when he waves the light around and bangs on the boat. how much would that scare you the first time you saw it?

(i like the one that jumps up and hits him in the head at the end.)

billy sent me this

GOB's segway.

i'm thinking i might bid on it if it doesn't go over $9,000...

Can You Imagine This Happening?

This is an funny story. Sounds like something he would do on an impulse. Then again, it makes me think how it must suck to be a star sometimes. As soon as he showed up, people started coming in droves to meet him and he can't just relax and have a good time.

BECK OCT. FRIDAY the 13th - $850

Reply to: sale-215818293@craigslist.org
Date: 2006-10-04, 12:06AM CDT


i have a space where you can stand right outside of the front door that im willing sell for $850..i will consider trades for either a speedboat or a G5 laptop. first come first served!

• this is in or around city hall
  
• no -- it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

how funny is that? go here and look at all the jacked up prices people are selling Beck tickets for. i emailed him back and said i had a speedboat with his name on it.

enough of your borax, poindexter(s)!

this was passed on to me and now i'm doing the same. so just to make sure no one assumes i'm saying I discovered this (todd), i'm clarifying right now: i am but a messenger...

TV SHOWS ONLINE

this is so freakin rad. some superhuman has compliled a list of links to all these seasons of tv shows that are somewhere online. and it's fantastic. no more hours of downloading dragonball z/gt or futurama or family guy. it's all right there.

A Question About "The Pill"

I am going to begin this by noting that I am not trying to start a fight. I understand that there are a range of opinions of people on this blog. I'm not trying to get anyone to call anyone else a name or make a biting remark or any of that garbage. But this has been sort of bothering me, and I want to know what you (as educated and intelligent adults) think about this. I am not writing this to convince anybody to change his or her mind about abortion or hormonal contraception. The real question I have is whether you think that pharma companies and/or the medical industry are being dishonest by not discussing this more clearly. Obviously they have business interests in keeping sales up, but it seems medical ethics should require full disclosure. Even more importantly, I am not trying to "call anybody out." What you do with your personal life is up to you, I'm not trying to point a finger, just eliciting opinion about this possible controversy.

Read this article.

1) Those of you with a scientific, medical, pharmacological, or practical experience in this area- what do you think? Are his conclusions sound? I found various sources saying more or less the same thing. All the sources that discussed this issue in detail were so-called "pro-life" sources, which obviously can indicate ulterior motives. However, aside from groups with a Catholic affiliation, I can't see why a pro life but contraception neutral group would care unless it believed the substance of the article. A few sources which held themselves out as neutral and objective noted the anti-implantation effects of the pill, but didn't discuss any moral complications. Wikipedia, my favorite made-up source, alludes to potential moral controversy but does not discuss it significantly.

2) Whether you are pro-life or pro-choice, pro or anti contraception in general, do you think that this information is the sort of thing that should be discussed more openly? I know that there is a difference between being pro-choice and being pro-abortion (ie people who are pro-choice do not rejoice at the thought of an abortion- they simply hold the value of reproductive choice over the issue of potential life). I can't imagine that honest pro-choice people want to "trick" pro-life people, so I discount the likelihood of some sinister conspiracy. When it comes down to it, I can think of only two options. First, the pharma/medical industries are trying to keep this quiet OR people don't want to face this issue so they ignore it. Are either of these things justified? Is there another possibility?

Just Try it Scott, I Dare You

New Record For Memorization of Pi

Busted

Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) chatting with an underage boy

This guy is in BIG, BIG trouble...

Disclaimer: the email transcript is a bit graphic, and completely disgusting.

The Guitarist

This is for real. Mark Goffeney is guitarist for the appropriately named band, "Big Toe."

read it and weep, scott!

6-year-old boy did 10000 pushups in hours




this is also kind of interesting: Acid Trip Through the Eyes of an Artist

yowza

Matt Damon: really angry or is it just a gag?

honestly- i think it was for real and Matt really was upset... the show hasnt really addressed this or not so its still up in the air...

this is across the street at the Days Inn

this picture is completely unaltered.

Wii

(this is some info off billy's blog.)

apparently the new Wii will be released on November 19th for $250. (eat that X-box)

IGN article

Wii game preview

it still looks pretty interesting. Nintendo is definitely outside the videogame console "box" on this one.

oh man. this is great...




YouTube has many videos for the Wii system.

Signature Tower

Have you guys seen this?
Groundbreaking is planned for January of 2007. It will be the tallest building in the United States outside Chicago and New York.

see if you can figure out how it happened

cause i dont really know. this just happened outside. pretty wicked.



i know the accord hit the SUV in the rear.

Steve "Crocodile Hunter" Irwin Dead

Story

Killed filming a documentry. I can't say I'm surprised. I also can't say he didn't desearve it for being such a jackass. But it also makes me sad in a small way.

Career Woman

Careers And Marriage


EXCELLENT! Now I get married, have a litter of puppies, and save 'my man' all the grief of having to put up with me. Maybe I'll bring him his slippers.... aw.

Not F-ing Likely.

Also, I can't get the link to function as a "real link". Maybe one of you MEN can do it? Hmmm...? :)

does anybody remember what we used to write about on this blog?

because i dont really remember. and i'd rather write a new post explaining my confusion rather than clicking on the archives.


stuff of interest:

- Little Miss Sunshine
go see it. it's fantastic.

- car stereo systems with a USB plug on the faceplate. do you have one? i pretty much do.

- if you've never heard of Okkervil River, stop, and go hear. (hayley, i would be looking in your direction if you were still a Texan, but alas...)

- other great music of late: Phoenix and Silversun Pickups. actually, i dont know of too much NEW great music at the moment. any suggestions?

what else is there? jess and i are going to mexico beach, FL in a few weeks. (it's almost been 1 year.)

also, don't waste your time on the CSA.

McCarter & English, LLP

It's official. I now have a job. In September of 2007 I'll be shipping back up to Jersey to begin as a first year associate at McCarter & English. It's New Jersey's oldest and largest law firm.

It is somewhat nice to know that that aspect of my life is secured. Now I don't have to worry so much about top grades and extracurriculars during my last year of law school. I have M-T-W classes this fall (starting today) and W-R-F classes in the spring. I have a major written project that I have to do in the Spring. Besides that, It's just a matter of trudging through the last year.

Funny Commercial

I might be way way behind on this one, but I think this commercial is hilarious. I saw it for the first time a few days ago, but apparently it premiered during the superbowl.

A Scanner Darkly

seen it?

is it more than just an 1hr 40min cell-shaded anti-drug ad?

D to the E-N-V-E-R (bitches, ya'll)

I'm settling in to Denver now... my cell phone is the same, and my hotmail address still stands (hayleyj82@hotmail.com).

The weather is wonderful... and I have to unpack a ton of stuff. Erg.

It's a Series of Tubes

Senator Ted Stevens describes the internet as a "series of tubes."



I guess it wouldn't be so bad, except that Senator Stevens is chairman of the Senate commerce committee which regulates Internet commerce...

GAR TO ME SAYS I

The Pirate Keyboard

engrish prcautions

these were on the back of a windshield wiper nozzle(s) package i bought the other day. can you guess which country these did NOT originate from?


i hope these were insufficient enough.

Country Wood Circle

Am I alone in this or does that street name sound odd? Oksana and I are going into a new apartment in August. We had previously chosen one on a street named Stones River Cove, which I think sounds nice. That apartment is no longer available, so we have been bumped to a slightly larger apartment with a much crappier view. I just don't know if "Country Wood" sounds like something I want to write often. Maybe I'm uncomfortable with the first syllable of "country" be so closely juxtaposed with the word "wood."

Comments anyone?

well... this is boring so...

Pappert sucks.

proove me wrong

I Remember When This Blog was a Happenin' Place

But those days seem to have passed. Someone say something controversial. Then someone else can say something equally controversial in response. Then we can fight about it. Anybody?

Small Apartment Building blows up in New York... Trains get bombed in India... Isreal more or less invades Lebanon (the country not the city in Wilson County)...

Anything?

Personally, I'm wondering about this Isreali military action. I know they fight alot in the middle east, even quasi-invading each other from time to time. But this seems kinda big-scale to me. If Isreal picks a fight with Lebanon, and all the other Arab States pick a fight with Isreal... then we're royally screwed.

okay fine: july 4th... nashville style

for all you out-of-towners who couldn't partake in some of the countries best fireworks, here you go...

(and what a finale! at the very end they detonated the Coliseum and let it burn to the ground. really quite spectacular. spared no expense.)

The Finale
(i like the part where it's like, "boom boom boom boom!")

feast your eyes on genius

a real winner

i found this one today.

The cutest puppy in the world?

Maybe.

Things you may not know about me

1.) Nina and I moved in together at the beginning of June. So far it is going well, and hasn't been too much of an adjustment, since we spent most of our free time with each other anyway. Statistically, this means we are twice as likely to get a divorce if we get married. Then again, 78% of statistics are made up on the spot, so I don't know how much stock I would put into that.

2.) We got a puppy. She's about 2 months old, and is a pure-bred Bernese Mountain Dog. She is a pretty good dog, just a butt-load of work. I didn't realize how much attention and supervision puppies needed, but it seems like they need as much as a baby...a mobile baby that poops* on the carpet and can destroy things. We're still a bit uncertain if we'll keep her, but either way I'll post pictures some time soon.

3.) I'm going to Madagascar. It will be for a little over a month, probably around October. I'll be the lab tech at that time for a project that CDC is doing over there. I'm excited, since that is somewhere I've always wanted to visit and I doubt I'll be presented with another opportunity like this again.

*Side note: The word "poop" isn't recognized by the spell check program. I wouldn't think it was that uncommon.

Dead Party... again.

A new posting is in order… and I’m going to post some more fluff, while encouraging others to follow suit. I am posing three questions for you… everyone answer! I got this from a co-worker, and it kind of puts things in perspective if you really think about it, other than the last question. I’ll post my answers as the first comment.

1. What is your new favorite “comfort thing”? Meaning, what is the thing that currently gives you a lot of joy. It can be an action, a food, a drink, a color… whatever.

2. What are you having trouble with right now? Could be work, a person, a hobby you are trying to master, etc)

3. What is your favorite smell (currently)? This can be very specific, or something general.

Happy One Day Anniversary!

Here's wishing Jason and AnnMarie(sp?) a lovely first week as marrieds. A couple phrases of wisdom for you:
*Enjoy the honeymoon as much as you possibly can
*Understand there's a learning curve to it
*Try not to go to bed angry, but sometimes sleep really IS more important that your feelings.
*Treat company like family; treat family like company.
*Don't give up on sex or cooking.
*Get a funny-looking pet. It's a sure-fire lifter of moods.

Any other advise to the newlyweds?
Jason, where do we send gifts(or anthrax)?

Click Me.

Graaaagh!

(link courtesy of Josh Co. Enterprises & Sons, Inc.)

when this party dies...

...it really dies.

anyway, i dont know how many of you saw those creepy pictures of an extremely buff carrot top, but i thought this was a funny photoshop of one of them...



(if you think that's creepy, you should see the originals. why does he wear so much makeup?)

Junesday dinner

Tomorrow night (Fri. june2), we are all invited to dinner at Alison (Grewing) Nash's house. Those who attended my glow-golf-ganza might recall mention of this. It's @7pm or after. Alison's making something with chicken and there will be dessert and appetizers of some sort. We'll either watch a movie or play a game--Alison just bought Drinkopoly so...could be festive. I didn't know Alison or Mike Nash very well in high school, but now i know they are both premium people and I think you'll agree! All Nashvillains please come and let a brother know if you plan to be there.
Contact josh or i for directions and/or more details. also, byob.

p.s. I'm home "sick" from work today and lucky for me!
I saw that TONIGHT THERE'S A "The Office" MARATHON with 4 episodes, starting @ 8pm cst. (you're welcome!)

the good news

Soooo after my 3rd MRI and a full-body bone scan- the orthopedist says he thinks i have a fracture at the neck of my femur. This information means that 1) i have to be on crutches (for i'm not sure how long- till the surgery) and 2) he can possibly fix me by putting screws in my hip...
3) if i put too much pressure on it, or jump and land the wrong way, or something of that nature- i could actually snap the bone clean off at that fracture--(and i was like "HUH? thats no good...")

he said that could have actually been causing the whole "constant pain" thing i've had for the last 14ish months... so that was alittle sobering-- i also go in for some nerve tests next week- involving electrodes on my legs-- oh well- good times--
the good news? women over 30 are getting married at higher rates than 20 years ago... thanks Jesse!

haha- see you this weekend!

Marriage by the Numbers

See! Things are looking up.

And a friend's a friend forever...

I just realized today that I've known some of you for 10 years. That's a friggin decade. That's a long time to an almost 24-year-old, and some of you have known each other longer than that. I remember being depressed about going to college in Colorado, and my parents telling me it's the friends you make in college that you keep for years to come. They said that you usually lose touch with the people you knew in high school, and nobody seems to mind much. I'm glad that isn't the case with us. I'm glad that we have stayed in contact over the years, and hope that we continue to do so in the years to come. Pardon the touchy-feely sentimental stuff. If you experience any nausea/abdominal discomfort after reading this post, induce vomiting immediately. Trust me, I'm a doctor.*

*Ryan may not actually be a doctor.

Bloggers BEWARE!

Interns? No Bloggers Need Apply

Fix it... and respond. Being someone who has witnessed this first-hand (and subsequently resigned because of it), I am interested to see what you think about it.

this is awesome

Arrested Development Memorabilia

there are a lot of cool things on there. i really want the "You're Killing Me, Buster" banner. (or the shirt that says, "Check your lease, man, because you're living in F**k City!")

woooooweee!

man, was that some sweet ass LOST last night or what!?

i feel more informed and confused than ever.


4 months of LOST deprivation here i come!

Jersey Bound

So I'm leaving for New Jersey early on Saturday. I'll be there until around August 6 or 7. At that time, we'll move into our new apartment at Stewart's Ferry (325 Stone's River Cove, Nashville, TN 37214).

I'm looking forward to the summer. It will be nice to have access to greater New York's food and culture and actually have enough money to experience them. If any of you want to come visit, feel free. We have a nice apartment in downtown Newark.

Oksana will be gone to Ukraine for all of June. It will be a difficult time for her to mourn with her family. So I'll be back in celibate-bachelor mode for a month. It is the first time we've been apart for more than a week since we've been dating, and our first time more than a night apart since we got married. I think it will be difficult to readjust to not really having anyone around. But she'll be back on June 30.

Anyway, I hope everyone here has a nice summer. Again, you are all welcome to come visit. Let me know if you are interested!

Insert Title Here

Things I currently dig....

Cherry sours
Sunflower-seed bread
My new dance class
Pomegranate Margaritas
Chicken Soup from Chick-Fil-A
"Dummy", an album by UK band Portishead
Stadium Arcadium
Kathleen Edwards (she's a alt. country artist... kicks ass)
Rose McGowan movies
Old horror movies

It's a little silly, but we needed a new post, and these are my new-little-favorite- things-that-make-life-worth-living. In your face.

Lost, Ahoy!

I don't frequent forums at all, so I don't know if this has been explored much. If so, provide a link in the comments section. I noticed a commercial for the Hanso Foundation (those responsible for the Dharma Initiative) on last week's episode, and it completely slipped my mind until I saw it again this week. I went to the site, played around with it for a minute, and promptly gave up. Still, I think this sort of internet tie-in to shows (e.g. Arrested Development) is a really cool trend. Sound off if you find/know anything.

http://www.letyourcompassguideyou.com/

Arrested Development Season 3

...comes out August 29 on DVD.

so, you know, that's cool.

(i miss it so much.)

Awesome phone

I was looking for a classic rotary telephone bell ringtone (still haven't found a good one that I can lift without paying for) and I ran across this. It is an awesome idea. Unfortunately, I lack the technical know-how after about a third of the way through (they lost me right after remove the casing). Anybody here know enough to throw one of these together? I'd love to carry one around and talk on it, as idiotic as it might seem.

free 411

hey, you guys should dial this number instead of '411' so you dont get the $1 charge or whatever. i tried it and it works just like normal '411'.

1-800-373-3411 (1-800-FREE-411)

in case you hadn't seen this...

(also, i wanted to try embeding the video. pretty sweet, eh?)



("'f', tucker!")

oh and this was on Billy's page:

All work and no play... makes Hayley SMASH

Sooo... does anyone have any advice about student loans (other than "they suck").

I am going to have to take out abour 20K in Stafford loans via the govn't, and am deeply bummed out by this.

Anything? Anyone? Bueller?

Query

Those of you that live in the Nashville area: are you planning on being there the majority of the summer or are you going to be gone at some point? I was considering the idea of a vacation, specifically to that place where I used to live and some of you currently live, but wanted to make sure that some (hopefully most) of you would be around. I was thinking early August-ish, but nothing definite so far. Let me know via the comments section.

why can't every day be Saturday, May 13th?

hey everbody (who's in town)...

if you didn't get an email: tomorrow we're having a good old fashioned pizza and mini golf birthday party for my dear wife (and good friend), Jesse. if you can and would like to come party down with us (cause it'll be so sweet you'll crap your pants*), it will be as follows:

Pizza Hut - 5.0pm
(on the Corner of Lebanon Rd. & McGavock Pike in Donelson)

Glow Golf - following the Pizza Hut
(Opry Mills mall)

and then we go party like it's may 2006 wherever we feel like. hope to see you.

[(615) 715-7354]



*extra pants will not be provided. please bring as needed.

Phone Police

Story

Does this bother anyone else?

FYI: I tried again to fix the link... when I put it in the appropriate "link fixture" it disappears completely. Someone should fix it though...

Sad News

Yesterday afternoon we found out that Oksana's mother passed away yesterday morning. She died of a heart attack. She was 46. She battled poor health last year, but pulled through and was by all accounts on the road to recovery. So it was a big surprise to everyone.

Those of you who pray, please pray for Oksana and her family. She's understandably upset. She can't go to the funeral because it is on Saturday (they don't embalm or bury on a Sunday, so they can't move the funeral back). Since it's about an 18 hour trip with layover and immigration/customs she would have had to leave last night to make it. We're going to do some special stuff at our Ukrainian Church in Conyers (traditional third day [Sunday], ninth day [next Saturday] and 40th day [?-she'll be in Ukraine and I'll be in Jersey] services)

...

(the guy on the right is scootie b.)

Overpopulation

Professor's overpopulation views stir debate

The professor the article is talking about is at UTex, and I wrote him a letter saying that I support his views and his right to express them. I also mentioned that I agreed with him to an extent, since the planet is overdue for a "population crash" at any moment, and we abuse our resources and simply CONSUME way too much with no (or too little overall) regard for sustaining. I didn't hear from him for over three weeks, and today, he emailed me and a few others who sent supportive emails, and attached synopses of his research and theories. I can't post them here (too long), but email me if you wish, and I can forward them to you. They are really interesting, and make perfect sense from a biological and sociological POV.

Fix the link... I'm at work.

from todd, with love

todd sent me this yesterday. i dont know if anyone's seen this or not. (i had seen "my anus is bleeding" before, but that was all.) if you haven't, they really are something quite special. so please, bask...



josh

truth or fiction?

0k so i was sitting here studying and/or watching TV for afew hours tonight and that combined with a recent (not too uplifting) event in my social life got me thinking some... of the couple shows i watched about people in their mid-late 20s-- every single character was in some state of a relationship-- some married, and the rest (majority) in some stage of a serious relationship... this was consistent between several shows without even 1 exception. not just the "bad" people, but the kind and good-hearted people with moral fiber/smarts/careers and whatnot.... everyone eventually succeeded-- nobody who tried, once or a couple times at this ended up a lone or feeling lonely or whatever... and that left me where i am now, after trying with a few of the rare single girls in pharmacy school--- is that how it is? i mean... of the 7-10 of us on here- who's single? Me and HG? do you find that your peers/friends follow about the same ratios or is that pretty accurate?

also i was going to ask-- i didnt get much of a response on my personal blog so i'll ask it here- whats the deal with dancing? how is it (asking you here girls) that guys who can are at such an advantage to those of us who think its kinda scary (ok i guess i answered my own question)

i dunno... i'm cool... i'm doing fine, i've just hit a slump--- and being slumpy is often a prime time for blogging so take this with a grain of salt-- ok- gonna study some more- holla!- Scott

Lost Stuff

I was reading about the drunken-I'm-indepndent-don't-tell-me-what-to-do life of Ana-Lucia Rodriguez, and I saw this link to an old (Oct. 2005) Lost story. Doesn't she know he's got a problem with heroin? Plus he's always scheming with con-men to steal guns and drag Asian women through the jungle. Plus, he's a hobbit. I would think that she could do way better. He's got to be the least attractive person on the island. That includes Bernard and the bearded guy (and even Ethan, who looked pretty freaky).

Some might say I'm confusing the "real world" with the imaginary world of Lost. But I have no reason to believe Lost isn't real. What with the smoke monsters and murderous pack of crash survivors, and hatches and so forth.

Seriously though, gals, would you date a guy who looks like this? He kind of looks Semi-Down-syndromey, if you ask me.

Now before you say anything, I realize this is just stupid "entertainment gossip." I've said it before and I'll say it again, this is what you get when the board dies down, crappy crappy content. But for those of us who aren't Leanne, this might be at least a little interesting.

man, this party died fast

sooooo, do you... Myspace? i do and Death Cab for Cutie is my friend!


also, your thoughts on todd's new rabbit...

old school

so this is a picture i took of my roommate Aryan- lives on the 2nd floor... me and him and Chun were in my room and i was like... wow... i'm so messed up from this leg thing that i cant even wear half my clothes anymore so i gave him some shorts and some t-shirts... we ran across one t-shirt that i had never worn. Its the one that Josh and Jesse made me in Undergrad- i think it was junior year- and i was scared to wear it in public because i thought people would make fun of me... but aryan thinks its funny and isnt scared to wear it- so he's gonna wear it to shcool tomorrow... also i got those shorts about a year and a half ago as a present, but they are 33 waist- the tighest pants i own and i dont think i'll ever be able to make it back to that this lifetime... so i figured its either give them to aryan or goodwill... and i know aryan better... Holla 

Happy Bunny Day!

Enjoy your candy/mass/church, etc.

My mom is holding my Easter basket hostage until I come home in May. Wench.

Both sides are never right, right?

ha.

I read THIS article recently and thought it pertinent.
What do you all think? I had no idea remittance was such a big deal.


p.s. Josh got his synthesizer today--I tried to wipe that smile off his face, but could not. Also pictured, our neighbor Todd(aka ToddII).

Jobtastic!

(i must)


Fix the link if you must!

Top ten jobs in America right now.... Scootie B. has #9.

gotta see this...

exhibit A:
leprechaun news segment from mobile AL

exhibit B:
music video based on the news report

exhibit C:
see picture at top- its a T-shirt design


this could be one of the funniest things i've seen in alooong time... this is great. I credit my brother Todd with the discovery- i'm just the messenger passing on the good word.

Make sure you wath the entire news cast (maybe 2 minutes tops) and then watch the music video made from it... its just great stuff...

Attention Losties (Leanne, you can ignore this)

Interesting news:

Lost to be offered online

I'm happy (I'm sure iTunes isn't)... but do you think this is the future of television? Personally, I think it's overdue. I expected to see this stuff years ago.

Pulling Up the Ladder....

Today in Houston there are HUGE demonstrations against the new immigration bills. Literally, I am watching thousands of people marching downtown right now past the city hall and courthouse. What are everyone's ideas on this? Are there any big protests in Memphis, Nashville? I know Colorado has a very significant Latino/a population... any action up there? In St. Louis? Alabama?

Just curious... gimme your opinions, of course while observing HG's "Rules of Internet Conduct" (bitches, ya'll).

(what it looks like right now)

ok so i've had this facial hair for about 21 months or so... and i'm thinking its about time to cut it...
i need to take this to a vote- tell me what you think. I think it just makes me look kinda old... and i'm tired of looking old. But maybe that would help me seem more credible on my rotations, so i dunno... people definitly seem to listen to what i have to say a lot more now at the pharmacy than before... but i was at my fraternity's formal the other night (i might have some pictures for you later) and i noticed the facial hair was few and far between... maybe that was just a 2004 thing... i dunno... i just feel like i keep looking older, but then again, i guess thats how its supposed to go... something would be wrong if i started looking younger, right... ha...

Bookworming

So, I have re-started my book project. Thus far, I have one complete chapter, a full outline of the other 10-12 chapters, and about 40 pages of loose notes, paragraphs to work in and characters in-the-making.

I am going to try to work you all in (with different names but similar character attributes... though HG still has to be an abbreviation). But, I need approval. If anyone does NOT wish to be a character, express it now. A small publisher has already expressed interest, and I'm not in the business of rewriting complete chapters.

I'll probably mention the group in the chapter where I come home to visit, and we all get together in our usual way. Like I said, speak now... cause I have to print the confirmations out for the publisher eventually.

A brief synopsis: A recent college grad moves to the big city to carve out a life for herself. Life sets in, jobs are hard to find and there are early 20s-style encounters with booze, men and she realizes that life in the city is MUCH less glamourous than "Sex and the City". Tested audiences in my target range have responded well.... so let me know!

Hatch Door Maps

check it out, Lost-ees:

Map 1

Map 2

innnnnnteresting.

Bring It Back

i don't know if any of you (i can guess... 2?) even know who Mates of State is, but we got to see them perform sunday night. it was sweet. their CDs don't do their musical funness any justice.




(they're husband and wife too!)

Happy Brithboy, Vajohnna

So, Johnna's bday was yesterday... I sent her an e-card and it bounced back as no good.

Happy Birthday to Johnna... and give us a new email address, sucka.

Arrested Arrested Development...?

(you need to type in the words you want to be displayed as the link (such as "Hayley Says Click Here", then highlight those words, then create the link...))

Hayley Says Click Here

Josh... fix the link if you don't mind.

So, AD's main guy has quit... the hits just keep on coming. And Showtime was going to pick it up, too! Boo.

Soooo....

Anyone else see V for Vendetta? I was very pleased with how it turned out. King Kong comes out on DVD today for all you slackers who missed it in the theater, and cool people that are planning on making a smart purchase. On a sad note, according to CHUD.com, Mitchell Hurwitz has quit Arrested Development. He said he would be a consultant of sorts if the series was picked up by Showtime, but either way this is a bad omen.

cruel?

or incredibly lucky!




your thoughts...

because i care

... so i finally finished my 3 month-long public service project with the fraternity...
it kinda was hard because i had to be involved in every single step of it, including all 15, 3-hour public events... but its all done... and that makes me happy... i have some pictures because you probably have no idea what's going on... basically we made a display board about a health topic (avian flu this year) and some brochures and we went around to places like libraries, grocery stores and pharmacies and peddled our information... and most of the time it drifted to other drugs and medical questions... i thought it was going to be hard, but it turns out i might have actually learned afew things about drugs these last few years... so thats been cool... ANYWAYS... here are some pictures holla: www.pictures.uk.net.edu.cool

Law School and Laptops

Hayley's Platinum Plus Law School and Laptops Link

Sorry if the link doesn't show up... I'm at work.

At University of Memphis, the students are boycotting/protesting a professor that banned laptops in class. I understand her argument.(that they keep people from processing info), and Sewanee had the same policy. The laptops were distracting in small spaces (clicking all the time), and my profs. thought it kept people from listening and processing info in favor of simply remembering it long enough to get it on the computer, thus cheapening the “learning experience”.
I had an old-school English prof who calmly walked over to a laptop user, and closed his computer while he was typing, never ONCE breaking stride or lecture. V. impressive.
LeTal and CBry- does the laptop help… or do they just make you use them?

you got... sitemeter

this is a really great sitemeter that jeff whittle showed me back in my website glory days. i think you'll find it really fun and interesting. you can click on the icon at the bottom of the page and see all sorts of information about who's visiting the site, when, where they come from, where they go to... i mean, you name it and it's available to see. so have fun with it and definitely go check it out.

one question. how would you prefer the meter to look?

A)


B)


C)


D)


(i've always liked the last one because of it's subtle look, but let me know what you think. i also like A)

Mea Culpa mea culpa mea maxima culpa

Ok.. I'm not sure exactly what just happened, but I want to assure you all that it was not intentional.

Josh said I could edit my comments on a page called haloscan.com

I went there, registered, and it didn't list any of my comments. So I played arount with it and somehow managed to erase ALL the comments. Nowhere did it say this was going to happen.. NOWHERE.

I'm really sorry. I guess we get to start anew... now that it is spring and all...

Let the abuse begin (just think, the first comment of a new era can be highly critical of my mistake... i swear it was an honest mistake)

can you guys help me out?

so i'm doing this window display thing about the avian flu... and we've got some great contact numbers so far, actually with some hard work i've been able to set a fraternity record of about 3,025 through brochures and direct contacts... BUT we've got a website which is basically a compilation of all the information i put on my display board..(i.e... its all me)... and there is a counter at the bottom and i get to count every count as a contact (the website is on the back of the brochures too)... so if you guys could maybe all visit this (and no more than once per person, i'm not trying to cheat or anything) that would help my numbers out... and thats a good thing!
looking forward to seeing you guys this weekend, first time i've been home since early january -

here is the website (and feel free to explore around the fraternity site if you are curious as to what kind of organization i'm the VP of! woot!)

Statutory Interpretation

Don't be too intimidated by the title of this post. I have a very simple task for all of you.

I'm sitting here in my little conference room that I use as an office in the law firm I work for, and the senior partner (who must be nearly 80) comes in and hands me a piece of paper. "This is going to be debated in the General Assembly next week. Tell me what it means." I proceeded to read it, then he very loudly said "Now what in the FUCK does that mean?" After the moment of surprise for his choice of words, I read it again and realized it doesn't really make sense. But since we legally minded folk sometimes fail to see the forest in all the trees, I thought I'd elicit some ideas from the rest of you (Todd- you can participate despite your legal mind in training). Many of you did Youth in Government, so maybe you understand.

"If a motor vehicle is involved in an accident and there is more than (1) driver of such motor vehicle, only a driver found at fault shall be charged with a violation of the rules of the road complied in title 55, chapter 8."

Read it again carefully and tell me what it means. If it is written correctly, I can think of only two situations where this makes sense. 1) Fire trucks with a "back driver" or 2) Drivers education cars with two "drivers."

My other idea (the more likely one) is that it is a terribly written attempt to keep non-at-fault drivers from being cited when they get in an accident with another driver (in another car). Based on the apparent average IQ of a Tennessee lawmaker, this seems to be just a horribly written attempt at that.

Last thing- I realize this isn't TERRIBLY interesting, but nobody is talking about anything else... so this is what you get.

BEWARE THE IDES OF MARCH

Bewaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaare the ides of March...

Gamers/Violence Lovers, Beware...

I highly doubt that this would make it to an actual law, but I could see it happening in Tennessee over many other states.

http://www.gametrailers.com/viewnews.php?id=3018

I read this on a couple of other sites as well. If you don't enjoy video games, then this isn't a problem for you. If you do, I suppose you could always buy/rent online. Age restriction is acceptable, but this seems like excessive and unneccessary censorship to me. Book burning, anyone?

recap

here's a recap of my white coat ceremony with some pics, if anyone is interrested

For British Eyes Only...

I finally finished Arrested Development last night, with a feeling of satisfaction and despair. From episode 1, that show was fantastic, and it just kept getting better and better. I just can't believe that's it. How could Fox cancel such a good show? I guess they judge all shows by ratings, but I can't believe a program of such high quality could be cut down in the prime of it's life. Was it too self-referential? Was the humor too sophisticated, over-the-top, or off-beat for mainstream America? What do you guys think? It seems that TV is trying to pull itself out of this downward spiral with the few really good shows that have come about recently, but it keeps getting dragged back down. And what the hell is the deal with this "doing things with celebrities" reality show trend? I don't give two shits about ice skating, why should I care about ice skating with some has-been that was on an obscure TV show in the 80's? Seriously, come on.

Nothing much going on in the personal front, mostly just studying for the MCAT again. I've come to severely dislike standardized tests. How will this determine if I would be a good doctor? I know they need a way to narrow down the number of med-school applicants, but devoting a Saturday to taking a test that I have no idea how to study for and will never feel prepared for irks me on many levels. And it costs $210. Seems like a scam to me.

B.A.N.A.N.A.S.

sooo... me and my roommate went to the local kroger, often affectionately called the "crack kroger"... and i'll let you figure out why... and we did some shopping, just a quick in and out deal. I got some diet mountin dew, bananas, and milk... so we get out to the parking lot and, to my suprise someone asked me for some money (and by suprise, i mean that happens no less than twice every time i go shopping there)... it was a little old lady... she walked over and got right up next to me like (not unlike the close-talker from seinfield) and asked me for some money for some food... my reply:

"well i just have my credit card, i'm sorry"
"but i'm just really hungry"
"well i have some bananas, you want one of those?"
"i need some food... i'm really hungry"
"yeah... you want a banana?"
"no i'm really hungry... i just need something to eat"
"sure, no problem... so 2 bananas? would that do it?"
"no i need food... can you give me some money??"
"no, but i can give you a banana"
"i just... i'm hungry... i need food... need some chicken... "
"sooo is that a yes or a no for the banana?"
"i'm just really hungry"
"yeah i bet, you want a banana? i've got some of those right here in my car, you can have one... or two?"
".....i dont really like bananas"
"ok...well... see ya"

gotta love memphians

booyah, brokeback

so jess and i went to the Oscars last night. it was a lot of fun.

(a 3 piece suit? how do you like them apples?


so how awesome was that when Three 6 Mafia won best song for Hustle & Flow? that was the craziest. i mean, a rap group just won an Academy Award. and i was extremely happy when Crash won Best Picture. i was pretty happy in general. i was really afraid Brokeback was going to pull in way more than it did. (while it did win 3, i can't argue with those).

anyway, hope you all had a good oscar night. happy week 9 of 52.

picture pages...

Soooo I thought i might take some pictures... they are pretty random, so i'll try to explain... from left to right:

1) 3 days after it snowed afew weeks ago, i looked out my window to see that my big snowman was looking alot smaller... someone had knocked him halfway down! i saw som elittle kids there and i kinda just assumed they were the ones who did it... but after i watched for a minute, i saw that they were actually building it back up to correct snowman proportion... it kinda made me happy that i was wrong about them
2) 2/14/06... being my first single valentines day since 2003, i figured it would be pretty crappy... but i just decided i'd buy some little things for afew single girls i knew and spread the love and just be happy anways... and it worked. I had a visit to my applied therapeutics class (the one where we present, discuss, and get questioned on patients at a memphis hospital) i decided to go for the pink tie and pink-ish shirt to celebrate the holiday

3) OK... so there is this poster of a half naked girl that says "study hard" at the house... the last guy who lived here was somehwat of a patriarch and his last request before he left was that we leave that poster up... and when i was putting together our fraternity composite pictures, the photographer brought some large prints from last year, and i was just one of the random one he brought... so he let me have it and then i had the idea to put it up over her face... i mean.. the tie kinda matches... it creeps some people out... but i like it.

4) these are the movies i've got right now... 2 of them arent mine, and 2 of them are kinda weird ones that i wouldnt have bought myself but someone got FOR me for a present "go" and "true romance"... so i really dont have that great of a selection... i mean... i've actually got 4 or 5 more decent movies around here... i just need to round them up and put them in their place...

5) ok so i was looking at my book case... and i figured it was time to do a lineup of some of the heavy hitters... and i figued i'd stand on it... i dunno... YES i know everyone has big books from undergrad or law school or wherever, and i'm not trying to say my stack is bigger or better (and thats not all of them, by the way)... just saying... they make a nice little stack...

6) thats a closer look at them... added the tennis ball for comparison

7) thats my bedside table... if you notice, there are a handful of drugs there... and i promise you, they are all either ibuprofen, or tylenol... just in different dosage forms- extended release, quick release... why are they there? because when you wake up every single night with pretty bad hip and leg pain... its not a matter of IF you need to take something to go to sleep, its a matter of how SOON you can get it in you and go back to sleep so you arnt up for an hour and a half... so the quicker the better...

8) thats my computer desk... i've got a desk directly behind that chair, that i can put pharmacy stuff on so i can just turn my chair around 180 degrees and be at a totally different desk... it works... and let me say... if you've got an extra monitor, and a computer with a port to add in an additional monitor, DO IT! it is so awesome being able to multi-task... aka- watch movies on one, and type on the other... chat on one, and read on the other... its seamless- i can tell you how if you want to know... but its really changed the way i surf- i totally recommend it...

9) lastly, thats me in front of the poster i have hanging over my mirror in my room--
it has a picture of a guy holding up his fist and smiling while showing the camera a C- history test... the quote at the bottom says "SUCCESS: It may pay to get As but Cs get degrees" and under that in smaller text "ancient chineese proverb"... which i dont really think it is... ha...
but its something inspirational to look at for those of us who still have to measure our inner worth by one of 5 letters... yikes... i think i'll be glad when thats not happening anymore...

other than that... all is going well... we have or "white coat ceremony" this week where we get our custom fitted jackets with our names inscribed on them and the special "UT college of pharmacy" patch on the right sleeve... woot... i just like all the pockets... i try to put something in every single one just so i feel like i'm getting all the worth i can out of them...

discussion question:
rhode island is neither a road or an island... discusss

Seems like an opportune time to post

Most of you have met my sister, Kristina. She can be a little over-dramatic. Well, over the summer, she told me something I've carried with me, half in speculation. She told me about how lots of young women get married and really have a sort of identity crisis for a while. She said that you want so much to be a good wife that you feel(for days or for months) like that's all you can be. She explained that it's a process of breaking one's self down to one thing, when that one challenge is all you have room for. What you eventually learn to do is, slowly and carefully build yourself back. Eventually, your individuality won't necessarily clash with the duties that come with being 1/2 of a successful team.
In the summer, I thought she was just being dramatic. And now, at the tail-end of winter, I can attest that(at least in my case) she was onto something.

The post-baccalaureate year is really not fun! At least getting married has cushioned the blow and I'm not in Nashville, totally disconnected. I'm not that fond of my full-time salaried job. I'm still learning how to function in a way that is helpful to my colleagues; I'm fairly new at it. To be honest, I feel like this period in my working life is something similar to a hero's trial. I pray to GOD that graduate school is in my near future, that I will eventually find work I'm passionate about.If you ask, I will let on that I have a few ideas for that. a few.

i'm boring aren't i? you've stopped reading, so now I can really get crazy and not use ANY punctuation! or can i.

Let's see~Dudley's getting pretty big now, but aren't we all. Josh and I have an appointment tomorrow night with a trainer at the YMCA--the first of 4 meetings in this 12 week shape-up thing. We're using Bonnaroo as our goal, since it'll be hot out there and lots of people won't be wearing clothes. I've got my hopes up for this personal trainer thing, but fully doubt it'll be like they spotlight on E!, whipping those celebs into shape.
We've been hanging out with some people lately that I never really knew in high school, like Alison(Grewing) and Mike Nash and Billy Hammock and Jody Southards(band buddies,all of them). So that's cool. We're also currently church-hunting and have visited a couple of really really "different" ones. yikes. And you thought I was extreme?!

I guess I'd also like to mention that Josh and I are probably up for, or atleast will consider, another road-trip and/or inexpensive travel outing with any of you guys. Bonnaroo is June16-19th, but we're open to a long weekend, an overnight campout(NOT at my parents property...ever again. what an uncomfortable night!), or something else. So share your ideas. We might even be willing to come to you.

Jason Myatt--when is the wedding? I remember it was tentatively set for June.
Matt Rogers--when are you going to famous? How's that going?
Johnna~Where even are you? Josh said your email came back to him. Let's get together some time.
Scott--(i just know you like being included.scott rules.)

Alright. Til next time!
(Oh and we attended a Marijuana Criminalization debate at Vandy last night. You can discuss that if you like.)

Cartoons and Violence

http://blog.stopanncoulter.com/

A friend of mine from Sewanee maintains an anti-Ann Coulter website. This week, Coulter's column was on the violence over the Muslim cartoons. Check it out and her column if you want to get two different sides.

Also, apologies if anyone is a fan of Coulter and her work. Scott (my friend) takes her argument, breaks it down and contradicts all of her points.

You've been warned.

Bonnaroo

Anyone who didn't receive the Bonnaroo email, consider this:
http://www.bonnaroo.com/2006/

It's a 3-day concert event, with so many great bands. Yeah, it's way expensive. Yes, it means you'd have to possibly take off work/school.

But if you're interested, let Josh or I know! :)

We now interrupt this broadcast....

Hayley’s news in brief:

The job is still great. I had almost forgotten what it was like to ENJOY my work, and not just feel bound to it by duty, money, need for survival, etc. We’re going to be switching dockets soon, so, I’ll get to gain experience with more state cases. Almost all of my work has been federal docket, so state might be a little different…. Texas laws are strange about some things. The perks are great, the hours nice and flexible, and the people I work with respect me and know I do a good job. Awesome.

Volunteering is going slow, though. I signed up to volunteer (again) with Planned Parenthood’s main surgical campus in Houston. I passed the background check and security clearance to be a “scout”, meaning I escort people to and from their cars, shielding them from the wacko protestors. I was supposed to being in January, but they had a protestor incident, and I think the security is doing some switching up as well. Hopefully, though, I can being again in late February or beginning of March. It’s a bit of a sticky situation… every now and then, one of the teachers from Jack’s school takes a bunch of KIDS down there to protest on the weekends. I don’t have a problem with it… and he respects my decision (he wants to get involved too, but doesn’t want to run into any teachers, so he comes to the speakers and mixers with me). I might have to answer a few questions at the school’s Christmas party, or something though.

I’m still waiting to hear back from law schools. U of Maine, U of Denver and LSU are out, and I’m waiting on all the rest… though I have “you’ve advanced to the last round of application review” letters from most of my schools now. I called the U of Houston law center, and they said that at this point, “no news is good news”, and if you haven’t been rejected… you’ve probably made it to the final round. Well, you all know how serene and patient I am…. I want to know NOW, DAMMIT.

Jack asked me to move in with him. I said yes… with the provision that I get into law school in Houston. If I end up somewhere else, he’ll wait a year and keep teaching, promoting the band, etc., then move to where I am. His band (Archer Avenue) is the second-highest selling ITunes band in Germany for the past three weeks. Just under Night Rider himself… David Hasselhoff. But they DO love the Hoffmeister there… The band is in talks for a summer tour, and if the European charts keep up… an eventual Euro-tour, as well as playing (hopefully) at Whitney’s wedding in October.

Regardless of the band’s tours, the “Jack and Hayley 2006- The Living in Sin Tour” will commence in late July. I’m a little nervous and apprehensive, but we’ve been doing trial runs with living @ each other’s places, switching each week. It’s been working, though I am still getting used to him leaving things on the floor (are men genetically predisposed to throwing their clothes on the FLOOR?!?!), leaving dishes on the counter NEXT to the sink, instead of putting them IN the sink, and the “who’s making dinner” tiffs. I think it’ll work though… we had a little sit down and made plans for grocery shopping, meals, etc. Budgeting with another person makes things a little cheaper for both of us… if I can keep Jack away from buying $3 designer sodas… he loves them. We’ll get a big loft or townhouse and settle in, I suppose. Cramming the two of us with the cat and dog into a 700sq ft place is a bit of a stretch. Ah well, it’s still fun and fresh… hopefully the household drudgery won’t set in for a while.

I’m posing a scenario/thought to you all that might be a little controversial, but it’s an issue here in Houston now… here goes:

Suppose you go to a private institution, and this private school’s theology dept. offers extra credit based on kids (13-15 yr. olds) participating and picketing an abortion clinic. Now, the kids that do not go for whatever reason get NO extra credit, and the teacher is advocating, supporting and leading the group to the clinic. Is this ok?

Talk amongst yourselves… I’m a bit verklempt.

C.Butt Co., Inc. presents: josh censors himself (...sort of)

i had originally posted an entry here regarding my current feelings about the Muslim situation. however, i was a bit concerned that someone might get offended(?) by it and i didn't want to start anything. but at the same time i feel very strongly about this issue and what i wrote. so as a compromise i posted it on my blog and decided to provide a link to it on this one. this way you can read it if you like. obviously, since i posted it here first, i wanted to share it with everyone, but i suppose i understand if you dont care to read it. so... here it is:

click here if... uh... you like stuff.

thanks

woxy.com

i dont know if any of you listen to or have ever listened to woxy.com, but if you have and would like to support them, now is when they need it the most. if you've never heard of them then probably disregard this, but if you have then you know how incredible a station it is. well, they're really struggling right now with support and need it more than ever. they're going to a $9.95/mo rate for the CD quality stream and if that doesnt help they probably will get shut down. the rate doesn't start till Feb 12 or so, so if you know anyone that likes independent music (eg. someone that listens to college radio) tell them to check it out. there's no way they wont like it. anyway, if you're interested check it out...





in other news, this friday (2/10) is the season (series) finale of Arrested Development. if anyone is interested in having a brouhaha in honor of the show that night, i think my house will be the location. not my apartment, but my house in MJ. we're being presented with the classic "my parents are out of town and i have the whole house to myself" scenario here and i feel like we whould accept the invitation. so anyone interested, please let me know and we can plan accordingly.

and finally, where the crap is everyone (refering to the dozen or so listed to the right)?? did bryan and i run everyone but pappert off with our "tough love" attitudes present in all entries/comments?

How right you were

So I finally started watching season 1 of Arrested Development, and I can say after 3 episodes that all of you were absolutely right. It is great right from the beginning. I was honestly skeptical, just because most TV sitcoms are only good for what they are. This goes beyond my expectations. Thanks for the recommendation, and screw Fox!

the nominations are out

here are the Oscar nominations for 2006


(go Crash and Terrance Howard)

A History of Violence

Has anyone else seen this movie? I finally got the chance last night and I am curious what others opinions might be. I, for one, thought it was good, but wasn't sure if I liked it, exactly. How about Brokeback Mountain? Anyone else see that one? This will probably end up being a conversation between me and Hunter again.

It's the MOST Wonderful Time of the Year!

Tax season! Many will find that absurd, but for me, tax time is when I get to call in that interest-free loan I've been extending to the U.S. Government for 13 months.

This year's refund: $1240.00

Not too shabby, am I right? That's becuase as a married student with high tuition filing jointly, our total income tax for the year was $0. Education deductions, sales tax deduction (that's right- you get a deduction just becuase if the insanely high TN sales tax).... It's great. I highly recommend TurboTax. For just $10-20 (depending on which version), you get all this done and transferred to your bank in about 10 days.

Now what do I do with that $1240? I guess I have to share it with the wife, since she accounted for about 85% of the income.

How to Do What You Love

this is a really articulate and insightful article about, well, figuring out what to do in life. i mean, it's just really well thought out. and it's not that all the information is new or unknown to you, but you've probably never had it put into words this clearly. check it out.

How to Do What You Love


oh and if anyone wants to see Sword of Doom, you probably might shouldn't get your hopes up too high about loving the ending.

Remember our discussion about "Jumping the Shark?"

From Arrested Development trivia

-In the episode "Motherboy XXX", Barry Zuckerkorn (played by Henry Winkler) says, "I missed breakfast, so I'm on my way to Burger King" and then jumps over the dead shark on the pier. This is, of course, a reference to Henry Winkler's character in "Happy Days" (1974) jumping over a shark while on water-skis, signaling the moment when that show lost its relevance. The phrase "Jumping The Shark" was made popular in the 1990's as a metaphor for a television show reaches its peak.

It's amazing how much cross reference there is in this series.

One more interesting one:

-Amy Poehler who plays G.O.B's accidental wife in many season 1 episodes is in fact Will Arnett's (The actor who plays G.O.B.) wife.

Al Terego's Double Anal Alternatives

so this was on Billy's page. it's this porn star's IMDb page and it's impressive. 1622 films as an actor. 1622! insane. but what's awesome are the titles. you just have to scroll through and see some of them. the title up there is No.324. it's just a goldmine for porn titles. you gotta see No.146. it cuts straight to heart of the subject matter at hand.

some are bit confusing however, such as, Butt Motors and Fame Is a Whore On Butt Row.

You lucky Nashville bastards!

In the end, Hunter is probably the only one that would be interested in this of all of you folks that currently reside in and around the Nashville area. I thought I'd post the link anyway. If you can at least make it to see Seven Samurai, it would be worth it.

http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=22208

Guerolito

i don't how many of you heard last year's Guero by Beck. i thought it was alright, but wasn't crazy about it. anyway, he just released another one called Guerolito which is an album consisting of all the Guero songs remixed by different people. it's really awesome. i like them a lot better than the originals. so if you dug Guero i highly recommend you check out Guerolito.



oh and this is awesome too: pictures of stuff right as it breaks/explodes (courtesy of billiard enterprises)



okay and i just found this...

This just in: "Arrested Development" season (series?) finale scheduled...against Olympics opening ceremony

fox must be trying to get rid of it. is that the only open time slot? come on!

Title of the Song

I can't remember if I've shown any of you this, but it is hilarious and worth listening to again if you have already heard it.



Title of the Song

Matt, this should sound very familiar. You have probably sung dozens of variations of this song.

Sorry, you have to ignore the annoying Bob & Tom laughter.

links... of suspense!

i thought these were interesting so... whatever.

Top 50 Music Videos Of 2005

Cute Overload (i just thought this one was funny)

100 things we didn't know this time last year

so how many bands do even recognize on the Top 50 list?

4 left(?)

did anyone see monday's Arrested Development? it was hilarious. i think maybe the best this season (although i loved the ending after Charlize walked across the pool).

i dont think anybody knows when the last 4 episodes are going to be. but here are some interesting articles on that last show...

Save Our Bluths. Please.

Arrested Development: Save Our Bluths

has anyone else heard of the term 'jumping the shark'? i hadn't.

there are many more articles if you google 'save our bluths' or 'save the bluths' (or some variation of that).

Is Scott old, or what?

Jeez, Scott is old. I mean 24 is pretty freakin' old, am I right here people? He's just so...old.
Happy belated birthday, amigo.