Below are the most recent 19 friends' journal entries.

Monday, December 28th, 2009
yubsie	4:13p	Well, made it to Halifax okay. Halifax people... are any of you currently actually IN Halifax? We leave at 1 PM on January second, and basically have no plans, so let me know if you want to make plans appear! Doctor Who Christmas special was WOW. Not sure when I'm going to get to see part two though, since I'm off to the NRC as soon as we get back to London. Blarg. Want part two NOW! Christmas has been full of books and DVDs and CDs. And wonderfully portable gift cards. A lot of those are to food type places, so I'm starting to wonder if our families think we aren't eating or something. My d*mn AU fic is all formatted so as soon as I get my computer booted and stick the thing on a flash drive I can post it and get it out of my LIFE. :p Current Mood: content (2 Comments |Comment on this)
pirate_lass	12:35p	The Final Move and What I'll Be Doing For The Next Week So here's the plan, as it stands: ( Here's how I hope the next week will go ) I'm hoping I'll stumble onto a place where I can mooch wireless internet-- bookstores are good for that, right? Maybe some place on campus? Otherwise I'll be utterly cut off from everything from... Tuesday to Sunday. Which is forever, in internet-time. Of course I'll probably still spam twitter like a fiend, but my phone's not one that lets me read tweets. Sigh. So anyway, I'm off to complete my Monday. Current Mood: excited Current Music: I will have lots of time to play Dragon Age (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, December 27th, 2009
pirate_lass	2:33a	Now that Christmases are over, it's time to do the Big Move. The things I got for Christmas that I was most excited about were a set of new pots and pans, a crock pot, and a microwave. I think this makes me Officially An Adult now. So anyway I spent Christmas Eve at my GeeGee's with my Dad and my sisters, and it was wonderful. I am so glad they've grown into such amazing, funny ladies. (Also the youngest one has officially outgrown me by at least half an inch, though her feet are STILL a size smaller than mine. Show me the justice in that, world. SHOW ME.) We played Apples to Apples and I got points off Dad for playing "Divorce" on his card "Hilarious." Yay being able to laugh about the shit we go through. Our cousin Nathanael came over and spent the night too, for some quality hang-out time. He had elk pelts in his trunk, that he found in a cougar den out west. And then after we woke up (six tweeeenty that morning, and Amanda and Norma were running late.) ******* Yeah so I wrote all that up there this morning (or rather yesterday morning) beforeeeee things got a bit nuts. It took quite a while to pack the truck, and my mother is, for the record, a Tetris queen. Day was crazy. Unpacking that truck was crazy, though there was one casualty (a bookcase). We ate at the Mellow Mushroom across from my apartment (you can see it from my wiiindow) and then went back and built my bed, couch, and big ol' desk. We didn't get home until about 1:30 this morning. (The cats were most displeased.) Tomorrow we do the last of the GA-shopping. Monday I go see my sisters before they go back to Seattle. Then Tuesday, I think, I go back to Birmingham For Real To Stay, and finish building things and arranging and unpacking and basically getting ready for OMG CLASSES START IN TEN DAYS WHEEEEE! ( More Christmas ) Current Mood: exhausted Current Music: THE SOUP. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, December 24th, 2009
jedifreac	5:28p	VINDICATION (again?) Racebending.com Supporter: Regarding the upcoming M. Night Shyamalan vehicle The Last Airbender, what do you think about the "whitewashing" of the production so that all of the original Asian cultural landmarks, architecture, philosophy, and costume design are being retained while they cast white kids to play the main characters? Roger Ebert: Wrong. The original series "Avatar: The Last Airbender" was highly regarded and popular for three seasons on Nickelodeon. Its fans take it for granted that its heroes are Asian. Why would Paramount and Shyamalan go out of their way to offend these fans? There are many young Asian actors capable of playing the parts. yay! source (7 Comments |Comment on this)
yubsie	3:13p	Merry Christmas/Happy Celebration of Your Choice all! It's mostly been fun being home. Siblings still fight, but not nearly as much as they did once upon a time. University has been good to little brother. My father keeps insisting that Lorne Green was the bestest Adama evah. Head!Bill has been unimpressed. It didn't stop me from introducing the siblings to BSG though. Gwenna thinks the mini is a little slow paced but it's picked up. Not screaming CYLON! at the Final Five is most difficult though. She's decided Starbuck is a Cylon because she annoys her. Pretty sure that's not how it works. :p My secret Santa fic is over 2000 words and I haven't finished it yet. Why couldn't my person have requested a short piece of fluff? Instead it's the longest I've written in ages. :p Shannon came over last night. We were going to go for a walk, but it was pouring rain so we watched Dr. Horrible's Singalong Blog. The whole family got a kick out of that. Which... says something about my family. There's no 10 PM Mass tonight, so we're going to the the 7 PM. Which is going to be... squishy. Current Mood: cheerful Current Music: Black Adder (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009
jedifreac	3:23p	My Skin Color Has Been Discontinued I usually don't wear make up. Maybe I'm too lazy. I'm not bad at applying it, most people can't even tell I'm wearing any when I am, if I am. But since we're visiting Ken's family over the holidays and taking family photos, I realized I would actually need to buy make-up. And not the nice $40 a bottle of Shiseido makeup I used to be able to afford, either. I wanted to get everything I needed--foundation,powder, lipstick, concealer, blush, eyeliner, eyeshadow--under $40. And I had to do it in Los Angeles--I doubt your average American drug store will carry yellow toned make up. I stared at the drug store rack for a good half an hour and could not find anything yellow-toned. Sad Panda. (This is why I normally shop Shiseido-- a Japanese company, it actually sells make up for Asian people in the US.) Then I remembered that Neutrogena had make up, when it first came out, with colors like "Soft Gold" and "Golden Bisque." I was really excited and started hunting only to find these colors had been discontinued, slightly pinkened, and turned into "Nude" and "Natural Beige." Is it bad if I am upset about these politically correct name changes because it made it that much harder to shop for products for Asians? I didn't know I was a "Natural Beige" I thought I was always a Golden Graham Cracker. Egads. I hope I'm the right 'natural beige' for this stuff. People with pink toned skin have tons of different options, but what are make up consumers of color supposed to do? (Shop at the Shiseido counter, I guess.) I'm not saying that make up companies should start making make-up for every shade under the sun. It's unrealistic--statistically based on the US population, only 6 out of every 100 of the company's customers will be Asian. I guess it is just a privilege difference I did not notice until yesterday. Changing it to "Natural Beige" is just confusing, though. They should just have a big arrow that points at the yellow make up and says "If Asian, Latina, or otherwise yellow: shop here." Or just label skin color using HEX Numbers. E9BD96 (10 Comments |Comment on this)
pirate_lass	2:32p	YOU GUUUUYS I WON A TAUNTAUN SLEEPING BAG FROM THINKGEEK. NOW THE ONLY QUESTION IS DO I CALL MY MOTHER AND SQUEE ABOUT THIS NOW OR WAIT UNTIL THE PACKAGE ARRIVES??? Current Mood: PITY I WON OVER TWITTER Current Music: AS I LIKE TO PRETEND SHE DOESN'T KNOW I HAVE ONE (21 Comments |Comment on this)
pirate_lass	11:06a	Zevran is like Legolas gone fanservicey. ( That old classic, the Year In Review meme ) Current Mood: Kitt is sleeping on me Current Music: "Shatner of the Mount" -- Fall On Your Sword (7 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, December 21st, 2009
jedifreac	2:23p	The Military's Policy on Pregnancy is Horrific and Insane Anyone ever hear about the US Military's preggo policy? If you are a woman in the US Military, you are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq. Twenty-nine percent of women who were in the Los Angeles Veteran's Affair hospital reported being raped during their service. If you are a woman in the US Military and have sex or become pregnant, you can be fined $500, court-martialed, or even face a prison term. A new November 4th policy for women serving in Northern Iraq can completely torpedo your military career. Pregnancy is a punishable, criminal offense. And the kicker? These punishments-for-pregnancy policies are designed to prevent us from losing skilled soldiers. Never mind the fact that current policies, like Don't Ask, Don't Tell are also losing us skilled soldiers (who are less likely to get pregnant, too!) If you are a woman in the US Military it may be impossible to get access to emergency contraception. Military bases aren’t required to stock emergency contraception, even though it is available without a prescription at civilian pharmacies all over the US. In the civilian world, this drug--which does not cause abortions--is often given to rape victims to prevent pregnancy after rape. If you are a woman in the US Military, you will be unable to have access to an abortion, unless you happen to be at home on leave and pay out of pocket while hiding your pregnancy from your superiors. Military hospitals federally funded and restricted from providing abortions except in cases of life endangerment or rape, or incest. In cases of rape or incest, the patient must pay for the procedure herself. Salon.com and Religion Dispatches.org report on "Amy," a former Marine who became pregnant in Fallujah two years ago after an encounter she now recognizes as rape. Since she was unable to get an abortion through the military hospital, Amy ordered "abortificants" online and tried to use a sterilized rifle cleaning rod and a laundry pin to induce miscarriage. She was hospitalized for her attempt, fined $500 for having sex, and was sent home--military psychs thought performing a "self abortion" was a sign of mental instability. The military's ban on abortion did not stop her from seeking out an abortion, it simply drove her to more desperate measures. Despite the fact that abortion is a Constitutionally protected right, this woman who was serving her country had no way to access it. Women in the military have limited options to prevent pregnancy, such as access to contraceptives and abortive procedures, but despite all this, being pregnant is now a punishable offense. Abstaining from sex would be an option and is strongly promoted by the brass--but the number of women who are raped is staggering, and abstinence doesn't protect you from pregnancy by rape. America punishes our servicewomen for becoming pregnant, but doesn't protect them from rape or provide them with ways to prevent pregnancy. This is completely illogical and unrealistic. It is simply heartbreaking. These women are risking their lives to protect our freedoms--including our reproductive rights--but they have very few reproductive rights of their own. Again: If you are a woman in the US Military, you are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq. A bipartisan bill re-introduced by Senators Al Franken and Olympia Snowe, the Compassionate Care for Servicewomen Act, would require that every military health-care facility stock emergency contraception. In 2002, Department of Defense had planned to add the medication to overseas military pharmacies, but the Bush administration reversed the decision. This Act was introduced previously by Hillary Clinton in 2007 but never got the support it needed to pass. NARAL Pro-Choice America has a letter-writing campaign to your Congresspeople if you're interested. Links Salon.com:Military Abortions : No Good Chioces New York Times: Pregnant GI's could be punished Think Progress:Top U.S. Commander: Women Who Become Pregnant While On Active Duty Face Jailtime CNN: Sexual assault in military 'jaw-dropping,' lawmaker says LA Times: Jane Harman: Rapists in the ranks - Sexual assaults are frequent, and frequently ignored, in the armed services Current Mood: rage (6 Comments |Comment on this)
yubsie	5:23p	You know what I love about being home? LOBSTER. It is apparently dirt cheap out here right now, so we had some for supper. It was marvelous. Current Mood: full (4 Comments |Comment on this)
yubsie	12:58a	We made it to New Brunswick! Only about two hours late, too! Half of that was boarding delays in Montreal. The other half I suspect is just a case of the sheer volume of passengers this time of year pushing everything off the schedule. It was a relatively uneventful trip. I finished two books and started a third. It had small print though, and I had a bit of a headache after getting at least some sleep in interesting positions, so in the morning I took advantage of the outlets on the train to play Avernum and work on my Secret Santa fic. I must say though... it's nice that they have so much space under the seats for luggage, but I wish the seats were a little farther apart. Mostly because every time I got down to access my bag under the seat, I wound up smacking my head on the seat in front of us. Ow. Still haven't seen my sister yet. She's out LARPing. We kinda thought she would be home by now though. Seeing my brother has been nice though, university has done good things to him. :p Current Mood: tired (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, December 19th, 2009
pirate_lass	11:05p	Moar Birmingham So today, in the Continuing Saga Of Moving To Alabama, we went to IKEA and bought junk (omg things were on sale!) and then loaded them up in my Papa's great big ol' red diesel truck and hauled them to my apartment and then drove back. We are tired. But happy. Also apparently part of my landlord's "tidying up" included installing a new sink in the bathroom? Which means I can take the under-sink IKEA shelf back and trade it in for, I dunno, a rug or something. So the plan right now is to spend tomorrow loading my car with things already in boxes (mostly stuff I never unpacked when I moved out of the last Athens apartment) and New Things that are still IN their boxes and things I've thrown in plastic tubs and get up at the buttcrack of dawn Monday morning to drive a carfull of crap B'hamwards, get it all thrown in the apartment (and, in the case of the plastic tubs, dump them out in the floor so I can bring the empties home and reuse them), maybe build some IKEA furniture, and then head home again. Possibly I will get someone to come with me, as navigator/muscle, depending on who is free and/or bored enough to tag along. My Official Last Day When I Seriously Am Staying For Real is going to be... a week from tomorrow. So like, two days after Christmas. I'm only taking one cat, at least at first, and it's going to be Abby. Because she's the really the one most suited to apartment life, and I'm hoping that without competition from the other cats she'll stop overeating, and so help me I will get her to curl up with me on the couch. Current Mood: itchy Current Music: "My Name is Bruce" on Syfy (Comment on this)
Friday, December 18th, 2009
yubsie	11:34p	QotD: Me: Lucky Cottle gets to be next to their discussion of pirates and parrots :-p non_horation: LOL non_horation: he'll let them have their fun non_horation: Laura's dying ;-p non_horation: sadface. Me: LOL! Me: Bill says Laura's not dying :-p Me: Egyptianface. non_horation: LOL! non_horation: Bill didn't look at Laura's test results non_horation: frownyface Me: Bill is trying to change those test results through sheer force of will Me: Harmonianface. non_horation: LMAO! non_horation: So is Cottle, but he has the power to actually do it! non_horation: smugface. Current Mood: amused Current Music: A Pirate's Christmas- Tom Smith (Comment on this)
yubsie	8:15a	I forgot to post yesterday about how awesome I am. After I went to get breakfast yesterday morning, I fell up the stairs on my way back. And... DIDN'T SPILL MY COFFEE. Is that not AMAZING? I'm sure I would have spilled it had it not been in a travel mug, but it was and I am AWESOME. Except, y'know, for the part where I fell up the stairs in the first place. :p Current Mood: silly (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, December 17th, 2009
jedifreac	12:56p	Drive by Update Sorry I haven't been updating as often. Things have been busy. This is a good thing though, right? I don't mean for my blog to be only about peegs peegs peegs and the occasional political/socio/cultural complaint. What else have I been doing...well...proactively this year I finally could afford--for the first time ever--to buy presents for a toy drive. So I've had a lot of fun doing that. The cost of graduate school tuition in the UC system shot up $8,000 to about $20,000 for tuition a year so I don't know how I'm going to go to graduate school. Reactively, I am sad. If I'm going to put down the money for grad school I want to do it right and go to a prestigious and quality school to make it "worth it." I need to coordinate grad school with the rest of my life plans. I can't have a baby while in graduate school. I can't even get married before or during grad school, or I will lose financial aid. And then there's this other part of me that does not want to go to grad school. This part of me envies Stephanie Myer's life style. It would be nice to just shoot out babies and write successful trashy novels about sparkling vampire lovers. Right. So, it's been a year since Paramount's cast for The Last Airbender leaked in December 2008. My initially ranty posts about the issue eventually turned into a full time project that I spend hours on a week with a bunch of other people. I get 2-3 emails a day on the topic. It even spawned a website, Racebending.com. In the past two months I've had the opportunity to speak with some stakeholders--some from advocacy groups, others from the Hollywood machine itself--and it's certainly been interesting. I recently did some research and discovered that nearly 100 years ago--during a time when America was openly racist towards people of Asian descent--Paramount was the only studios willing to cast Asian American actors. For them to discriminate against Asian American actors in modern day is really assbackwards. This week is also finals week at UCLA. Which means it marks the five year anniversary of when I first began seriously exhibiting symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, and the beginning of a slip into a hellhole. I'm still slowly trying to haul my butt out of it, but any progress is good, right? Reduced symptoms, emotional stability, no more depression, a general "getting over shit" progress. Maybe this remission will hold. I hope so. But I can't believe it has been five years since things started to fall apart. Not sure where this leaves me, road not taken, blah blah blah. Current set of foster peegs need new home. (Comment on this)
yubsie	7:29a	It is almost 7:30. I am at work. I have been for the past half hour. This is so many kinds of NOT RIGHT. Ooh, Tim's is open! I can has FOODS! Current Mood: tired Current Music: Un Peu de Sang Qui Pleur- Les Misterables (Comment on this)
Wednesday, December 16th, 2009
pirate_lass	10:36p	Dear Journal, Today I went to Birmingham and signed a lease for an apartment and I'm on the top floor of a building with a hilariously old elevator and you can see the Vulcan from every room except the kitchen. Saturday morning we're going to hit IKEA early and then drag stuff back to Alabama. This thrills me more than you can possibly imagine. Also tomorrow I'm meeting Andrea at a restaurant called Chungdam. She was in ATL for a concert tonight and will be headed out tomorrow so we're doing lunch. And she's bringing a cousin and I'm bringing a pair of sisters, so we're going to choooow doooown and then head to an H Mart which is apparently a huge Korean store. Also at some point I need to finish up my Christmas shopping and finish making three more gifts and also mail off Jenny's (augh I meant to do it today but didn't have time so sorry <3) Conclusion: I am tired, and going to be running about like a headless chicken until New Year's, but life is good. Current Mood: productive Current Music: cats chasing eachother through the house (Comment on this)
yubsie	5:56p	I don't like phones. I don't like the Conservative Party. I am in no way interested in speaking to any representative of the Conservative Party on the PHONE. I'm not even sure what the hell they were doing calling me if there's no election on, but I'm not doing their survey. I want supper! :p Current Mood: annoyed Current Music: Sex Bomb- Das Palas Ochester (17 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009
yubsie	10:05p	Proctoring still sucks. And I had to do it TWICE this week. I really want to know where the cat keeps finding the dinosaurs. Partly so I could know where my dinosaurs are. They might be in the bedroom somewhere. We keep finding her playing with different dinosaurs. She won't tell us though! And, to completely change subjects AGAIN, there is no appropriate punctuation to describe the relationship between Kara Thrace and Leoben. I have a BSG fanmix I'm working on here and there, and I've decided that "I Will Torture You" needs to be on there for those two. Except every time I try to note it it's kinda "Kara/Leoben... no, that's not right. Kara&Leoben? But I wrote Bill&Saul..." Only in fandom do such problems exist. :p Current Mood: blah Current Music: Love Will Tear Us Apart- Prozak for Lovers (6 Comments |Comment on this)