GrandPooOfAwesome

2009-02-28T17:44:00.000-06:00

One of My Studnets Thinks I'm a Ninja

2009-01-22T18:28:00.000-06:00

I have this student who is a really super quirky kind of funny [if you've heard the Mr. Mop story...same girl].

Yesterday, she came right up to me and said, "Ms. Grandpoo, are you a ninja?" Without thinking, I very seriously replied, "I might have the heart of a ninja, but I don't have the skills." Quirky students and their quirky questions don't phase me...We're on the exact same wave length.

Today...she whispered, "I know you're a ninja." I just put my finger to my lips, winked, and said, "Shhhhh." She said, "Your secret is safe," and whispered, "Shhhh ninja" the rest of the day when nobody was looking.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm rubbing off on them or they're rubbing off on me.

xo,
The Secret Ninja

If I Were

2009-01-14T17:58:00.001-06:00

Tumblr

2009-01-03T00:52:00.000-06:00

Please consider following me on tumblr.

It Ain't Me, Babe

2008-12-13T22:53:00.000-06:00

I basically hate shopping. I felt I needed to go this weekend, because I needed some things for the last day of school before Christmas break. I usually manage to buy myself some junk to reward me for going shopping [because I hate it...in case I forgot to mention that.]

At McKay's, I got myself a gaggle of records. ["Gaggle" meaning a group or cluster...in case you didn't know ;).] Some of them include, Joan Baez, John Denver, The Allman Brothers, Heart, Neil Diamond, and...wait for it...DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. There were other great ones, but I can't remember and I left them in the car. Now I'm going to have to remove my television from atop my LP player so that I can dust off all of my records. I think I'll make that a task for after Christmas.

Oh, I also bought myself a blue gnome that acts as a magic eight ball. You pretty much can't beat that. Suck on that Gina [who stole my magic eight ball last weekend at the party during the five dollar gift exchange game].

Lastly, I felt like a complete retard when I ran into this Joan Baez cover of "It Ain't Me, Babe," because I had always assumed it was an original Cash song. I definitely didn't know it was Bob Dylan. I have SO much to learn.

Knoxville

2008-07-03T16:27:00.003-05:00

I just wanted to post some of the videos I've taken around my town: Knoxville. You can also watch them on my profile at DailyMotion. Also, did you know there was a knoxtube? It doesn't seem like there are a lot of contributors yet, but I made a profile there, too.

This video is my favorite video. I call it The Happy Dancer. The other night, I met the girl who got up there to dance with him and told her about the video, but I don't really know how to find her on MySpace or remember her name...so, if you know her or the happy dancer send them a link. [Oh, and I also can't tell you who this is singing, so if anyone knows...enlighten me.]

Happy Dancer
Uploaded by grandpoo

This video is equally awesome. I'm pretty sure I'm going to accrue a collection of drunk guys dancing. This was at Machelle Malone at Patrick Sullivan's. Michelle rocks btw, and you should totally check her out. I'm astonished that Knoxville doesn't support her like it should.

Drunk Guy @ Michelle Malone
Uploaded by grandpoo

And then there's this guy, who I don't think is drunk...just crazy. He was also "breakdancing" at pride, so I think he pretty much lives on the square. Here he's doing a dramatic interpretation of one of Hudson K's songs. You should also check out Hudson K...They're local, awesome, and on my friends list.

Dramatization to a Hudson K song
Uploaded by grandpoo

This is a video of the end of an Einstein Simplified show. They're Knoxville's best [and only] improv troup, and their shows are every Tuesday night upstairs at Patrick Sullivan's. If you'd like to go sometime, give me a holla. We don't go regularly, but I'm very willing to escort you to your first improv experience.

Einstein Simplified Ending
Uploaded by grandpoo

Here's another Einstein Simplified, but this time with a guest appearance from our friend Jo Dunkle, who moved to Chicago to study with Second City. We're kinda proud of her and kinda think she's awesome.

Einstein Simplified with Jo Dunkle
Uploaded by grandpoo

My friend Hallie took these two videos of Blue Mother Tupelo at Barley's. Blue Mother Tupelo rocks my world, and if you know me at all you've heard me gush over them for at least a year and a half. Not only do they rock out a joint, they are sweet as hell and spreaders of sunshine. They're very real and very talented.

Blue Mother Tupelo "Home"
Uploaded by grandpoo

With Ricky's dad:

Blue Mother Tupelo "Ride in My Wagon"
Uploaded by grandpoo

Here's Michelle Malone and two of Garrison Starr...both at Patrick Sullivan's and both awesome, awesome, awesome!

Michelle Malone
Uploaded by grandpoo

Garrison Starr
Uploaded by grandpoo

Here's Marc Broussard at Sundown on Market Square:

Marc broussard
Uploaded by grandpoo

And last but far from least...Here's my friend Samuel playing fiddle with his new band Smokin' Grass. I'm SO proud of him!

Smokin' Grass Singing "Wagon Wheel"
Uploaded by grandpoo

Smokin' Grass
Uploaded by grandpoo

Share Your Music With Me

2008-06-11T15:02:00.003-05:00

So...two peeps of interest launched new cds yesterday: Martha and Alanis. Obviously, I'm way out of the loop, because I had no idea that Alanis was releasing a new cd, but I'm way happy that it's the result of a breakup because I really missed the scorned but vulnerable, transparent, and soulful Morrisette of old.

Anyway, because of Martha's release and the bulletin her MySpace manager posted, I learned about ilike.com. I was using Last.fm, but this place is even better because it lets you play full songs continuously, artists seem to be more interactive, it tells you the release dates of new cds and whether or not they're on tour, and like other places, gives you great recommendations.

I invite you to join and share what you're listening to with me. My profile is @ http://www.ilike.com/user/grandpooofaweso I just started yesterday, so there isn't a lot of info about what I've been listening to, but you should join because it's super cool. I have no friends yet and I'd like some that I really know. I want to stalk your music taste, so add me bitches.

Oh, and also, I love you.

How Not to Make Money as a Street Performer

2008-05-29T15:14:00.003-05:00

I was trying to remember why I had the theme from Rocky in my head today, and then I remembered seeing this video late one night when I was probably high [on life] and how great I thought it was.

I'm not sure why I was video googling "street performers" in the first place, but here you go. IDK who to give credit to for this video, but many kudos to Tim Eric, aka grandpoo of awesome street performers...not.

Jesus Camp

2008-05-24T12:38:00.003-05:00

Here's the trailer, but see the complete documentary [here].

Jesus Camp is about children who are being raised up as a part of "God's army." I had seen bits and pieces of this documentary before, and it really hit home with me. It took me 25 years to grow out of this mentality that I grew up with, because it's a powerful force. At one point in the film, a little girl talks about how there are "dead churches" because the power of God isn't in them. I completely understood why she was saying that. This belief [which is really more of a powerful feeling] is all-consuming for people who are involved in churches where the people are fanatical, and kids are completely vulnerable to the power of this hypnosis. I don't identify with Christianity much at all anymore, but because of my experiences, I have an understanding of the power it has over people who consider it their life, their calling, and their purpose for living. A lot of people think that individuals who are prone to fall into this fanatic way of living are weak minds, but I think it's more likely to be the most passionate people with strong minds who have misfocused passion. The feeling of having a sense of purpose is overwhelming at any age.

When I finally broke away from everything I'd ever been taught growing up, it was like I had been living in the Matrix. I'd never even realized how closely related Christianity and the Right had always been. The first time I really thought about it was when I bought the book "Mind Siege" by Tim Lahaye and was like, What's all this crazy talk? I actually bought several copies at a Christian book store because they were on sale and I was really interested in how the brain works. I thought it would give some validation to the struggle between learning and faith that I was having. Rather, it validated the vital need to re-examine everything I thought I stood for.

I'd say I'm one of the resilient ones, who was lucky enough to eventually cross paths with people who challenged my beliefs and helped me to develop more of a world view. Not every child will be given that luxury. Many of them will take up their position in "God's army" and be surrounded by this mentality for the rest of their adult lives and will continue to fight to keep our country full of bigotry and hate disguised as "God's love."

Love Me Tender

2008-04-19T13:52:00.001-05:00

Look what I found :). I made this video about three years ago and have had YouTube accounts deleted [thanks to that video of Elvis Costello on SNL I had up] and computers crash, and I haven't been able to find it. So...I came across it today online by googling myself and was able to download it and upload it again to dailymotion [since YouTube hates me]. It was great to see it again. It made me cry a little...you know, in a good way.

Love Me Tender
Uploaded by grandpoo

"I'm Awesome, You're Awesome" the Ringtone

2008-04-11T16:41:00.001-05:00

So...at phonezoo, you can create your own ringtones [for free btw], and I created this "I'm Awesome, You're Awesome" ringtone, because I'm retarded and I do shit like that.

I keep forgetting that once you create it, other people can then send it to their own phones. So...88 random people out there somewhere have my voice as their ringtone. Now, that's awesome...and also retarded.

Create free ringtones at Phonezoo

Current TV

2008-04-06T12:56:00.002-05:00

Current TV is an independent media company headed up by Al Gore that gives viewers the opportunity to create and submit their own content. I think this is a phenomenal step in the right direction for keeping people in the US aware of what's going on around them both inside and outside of their own country. It also gives talented people with something to say an outlet. One of the things I love about the time we're living in is that we all have the opportunity to make our voices heard. Plus, mainstream media is highly censored.

Aside from all this, though, the pods [3-7 minutes each] are really interesting, and as the name suggests, it keeps you up-to-date; it keeps you current. If we don't know what's going on around us, we may as well be dead...we certainly wouldn't be truly living. To live is being connected to the things and the people around you. With Current TV [the television station and the website current.com], you have the opportunity to see, through someone else's lens, anything from young people now blogging in China, the mental health of US soldiers, and solar bath houses for tibetan buddhist nuns, to nipple ring removal via pliers by US airport security.

Look into it. Get addicted to it. Spread the word.

I mean...did you know this went on in San Fransisco to protest the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq? I didn't. I wasn't there, but that doesn't mean I don't wanna know about it.

Know what's going on in the world around you. Stay current.

2007-09-10T16:24:00.001-05:00

Almost Lucid

2007-09-09T18:55:00.001-05:00

So, I came SO CLOSE to having a lucid dream this afternoon [yes, afternoon]. Here's what happened. I was having a series of unusual dreams full of random stuff with mostly people I didn't know except for my parents, my little sister, Vicki, and my friend Dustin [sorry James, I have no idea why Dustin and not James]. Stuff was happening like my little sister giving me a super rad set of speakers which would probably never happen and having dinner with Dustin [why not James?] at some strange Japanese restraunt [but I bet we were waiting for James].

But then skip ahead to the last dream in the series where I was in my apartment [though it was not my apartment] and my parents were there, and we were getting ready to go somewhere for dinner. I had a friend there [who I made up] and I was getting dressed. I was changing clothes in front of my parents [which was weird] and was standing there without pants thinking, "There's some reason I shouldn't be standing here without pants," then my friend walked in and I remembered why I shouldn't have been standing there without pants.

So, I was going with my friend in a jeep and we were going to meet my parents there. I was driving and there were four of us in the car [two dudes, one other chick, all made up not real]. We got to a stop light and I started feeling really, really sleepy and didn't feel like I could drive, so I swerved the car around in the middle of the road and pulled off to the side, which flipped my friends out. I said, "I'm sorry, but there's no way I can drive like this," and they told me to get in the back seat, which I did.

While in the back seat, I was reflecting on some of the other things that had happened in the other series of dreams and beginning to realize they were ridiculous. I started to think that I was dreaming, so I touched one of my friends and I could feel him, so I wasn't sure. But then, I decided that if I convinced my friends that this was just a dream of mine, we could go on a spree and do whatever we wanted without any consequences. So, I started murmuring, "This is a dream. This is one of my dreams," but they weren't paying a lot of attention because I was really tired and they were busy talking about what had just happened and what they were gonna do next. I finally got their attention and was saying, "Listen guys! I'm dreaming right now, and if we will all recognize this is a dream, we can do..."

Then the phone rang, and it was my sister. I kid you not.

Annie Leibovitz's John and Yoko and Other Stuffs

2007-09-01T13:15:00.000-05:00

You've probably seen this photo before, but I hadn't. This was taken by Annie Leibovitz in 1980 the morning before Lennon’s death according to Wikipedia.

While I'm talking about music, Patti Smith is totally rockin' my world right now.

I'm also listening to Van Morrison this weekend.

AND...If you're looking for a movie to watch, try The Queen with Helen Mirren as Elizabeth II about her reactions to the death of Princess Di. Then, proceed to watch Helen Mirren in absolutely everything else she's ever been in. You'll thank yourself. I adore her.

Cheers!

I Am Art, You Are Art

2007-08-12T20:34:00.000-05:00

Everything is Art, because...

In fact,

Even my TV is art.

And my computer...

And everything around it...

You know what, even...

And so are you.

I was having a Miranda July moment last week [okay slight obsession] that lasted about 168 hours. It started when I literally stumbled upon her website for her book which she created with messages in dry-erase markers. I had heard of her before but hadn't taken the time to look at her work. I was super stressed last week [being the first week back at school and all the business that goes along with that]. I was pretty close to losing it and I had decided in my mind that the only way I was going to be happy was if I could watch the movie "Me and You and Everybody We Know," because, you know, Miranda July probably understands what I'm going through [I kid]. Anyway, that was a big ordeal, but I finally located it. I'm not saying I'm recommending this film to you, in fact, I'm not recommending this film to you. Not everyone will appreciate it [though I did]. What I did want to share with you was what I've been thinking about this week because of Miranda's insane creativity, and that is that everything around us is some kind of art. We could be a Miranda July movie, or someone else's movie for that matter, but the point is, we are interesting. You are interesting.

So, I picked up on her habit of writing on things with dry-erase markers. I totally wanna write on everything. Like making notes to myself:

And reminding myself that life isn't all about the grown up stuff like paying bills and working hard and that I'm...

And may never be.

So, here's your assignment. Write a note on something with a dry-erase marker and share it on this blog. Come on, don't be lazy. Get out there and say somethin'.

This is my number one favorite scene AND it includes a dry-erase marker:

Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man

2007-07-29T16:20:00.000-05:00

If you have On Demand and the Sundance channel [and if you don't you should] you can watch the documentary film [Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man] until Tuesday. It's fair to say that this film made me weep tears of joy. It was similar to when I watched Scorsese's [The Last Waltz]. I feel somewhat cheated that I didn't grow up listening to this music, but also very grateful to be able to invite it into my world today. This film is amazing, because you can see, hear, and feel how much these artist [who happen to be a collection of my favorites...a dreamteam of musicians] have been affected by Leonard Cohen's music and poetry. When they sing his songs, they give them their own interpretations but it's still manage to completely capture Leonard's message in the song. It's absolutely bloody amazing. If you can see the whole film start to end, do, but if not, try to catch what you can on-line, or better yet buy the [dvd].

Here's Martha singing one of my favorite LC songs "The Traitor."

And Antony of Antony & the Johnsons singing "If It Be Your Will." Antony's voice makes me want to cry in a good way...you know, like watching a good crying movie. I always listen to him when I'm feeling melancholy. He's beautiful...like a beautiful sadness.

And, of course, Rufus singing "Chelsea Hotel"...one of Cohen's most wonderful songs.

Recommending Mates of State

2007-07-26T20:00:00.000-05:00

[Mates of State] is a husband [Jason Hammel] and wife [Kori Gardner] duo that absolutely rocks my world. Not only can you can look at my [Last.fm profile] to see that they often dominate my listening time, I even had the cops called on me the other day because I was playing them too loudly...yikes. How do you explain to a cop at 2 in the morning that it was the only way to listen to Mates of State? I think I have a real thang for duos: MoS, The Weepies, Blue Mother Tupelo. There's something about the way they communicate and "jive" with each other that's amazing to see and hear. The last time we got to hear BMT, my friend Micki leaned over and said, "She understood what he was saying without any words and they changed direction together." I thought it was super cool that they were that in sync. Well, my Mates of State is another fantastic combo of awesome. The first time I heard them was when I saw this video. I immediately looked it up on YouTube and watched it eleventy million times. I still have fits of needing to watch it repeatedly.

Fraud in the 80's is another great video. It's probably one of their most popular songs.

But, they're also fantastic live. This is my favorite MoS song live [This video is in my iPod] I sing this song when I'm happy [so I sing it a lot]:

They also just scored a commercial with AT&T. It was a big deal for a lot of Mates of State fans, and some thought they "sold out" because they did a commercial. I'm just happy that they're getting the attention they deserve [although AT&T sux].

Check out Kori's blogs on [Babble] about being traveling musician and parents on the road. They're really great.

Viva la Mates of State!

Pauline Croze

2007-06-24T23:42:00.000-05:00

Pauline Croze. La Javanaise
Uploaded by herbu

Bonnaroo 2007

2007-06-20T18:56:00.001-05:00

I guess the question on a lot of people's mind is, "Why would you wanna go to an event like Bonnaroo by yourself?" I didn't really want to go by myself, but most of my friends had already gone or weren't interested in going. I had several reasons for wanting to go. The main reason was that Martha Wainwright was going to be there, and obviously, I'm a big fan of her music. I connect with the raw and honest feeling she injects into her songs and really wanted to go and see her live. My ticket came from her management thanks to Brad, her bass player/producer. Her performance was fan-fucking-tastic and she was very friendly and pleasant. I also got to see Franz Ferdinand who are definitely on my list of favorites. They made the trip worthwhile.

I also wanted to see this event that so many people valued and loved, to make a connection with something that made so many people happy. I realize I wasn't getting the full experience of Bonnaroo. The full experience would've been to have gone five years ago with a lot of friends and drink a lot of alcohol. I guess I settled for seeing Martha and watching people have fun.

Martha
Uploaded by grandpoo

I Love You.

2007-05-24T21:19:00.000-05:00

Namaste

I do. And I have no pretense, or motive, or agenda [except when it means a list of things to do, because that's good...unless the things are no fun, because that's bad]. I really do like life as much as I say I do, and if I tell you I think you're awesome, I really do. If I dote on your music, it's because I LOVE it. If I tell you "you're swell," it's because I totally dig hanging out with you, and I want you to know it. I wanna always mean what I say and say what some mean to say and never do. I've come a long way with that. In fact, it's harder for me to express to you the longer I've known you, because I haven't always done it well. I've even noticed with the two fifth grade classes I've taught since I moved here in how much more I told my class I loved them this year than last. I know they're leaving this school year sure they were loved. I'm glad.

So...Life IS awesome. I DO love you. I'm NOT full of shit. The world IS full of endlessly amazing possibilities. Be warm. Be happy. Be grateful. And be excited.

I love you.

~Megan

Google Gone Awesome

2007-05-20T17:56:00.000-05:00

I just noticed the new iGoogle and I'm obsessed. I love that you can personalize your Google page, especially since I've been know to accidentally google Google. I'm digging my chosen iGoogle theme that changes colors as the time changes, but it messes me up when it refreshes while I'm playing [LineUp] on my Google page. This game is ridiculously addictive, although it's not half as addictive as [Drifts]. That game is downright narcotic. In case you haven't noticed, iGoogle lets you personalize your Google page with fun and/or helpful gadgets. Check out the screenshots from my page:

It'd also be great to work for Google. Here's a pretty interesting 45 minute video about the creative folks at Google.

Movies Movies

2007-04-29T11:07:00.000-05:00

Three movies, one weekend. I haven't rented three movies since I canceled my unlimited monthly deal thingy [at least I'm pretty sure that's what it's called]. I was looking forward to taking my selections up to the counter and having the guy at the desk be super impressed with my awesome selections, but unfortunately for me, he was a dumbass. I waited for him to comment on what a genius I was for picking the movies I did, and when he said nothing, I prompted him with, "So, have you seen any of these?" to which he replied, "Nope," and sensing my disapproval, he added, "John Malkovich is a good actor though." Then, I gave him a chuckle that said I'm sure said, "You're such a retard." Anyway, here are the movies I watched:

Notes on a Scandal

I remember when a friend recommended this movie to me, and I laughed at him for recommending a movie about a teacher/student affair to a teacher. I'd argue, however, that this story is much less about an affair and more about severe loneliness and desperation. To sum it up in one word...It's "creepy." The movie ultimately leaves you with an eerie feeling. It's probably worth seeing, because Cate Blanchett doesn't choose crap. She's very choosy and she actually asked for this part. Additionally, Bill Nighy is in it, and he is fabulous. It's well done and worth renting, but you will not be left with a good feeling.

Colour Me Kubrick

Oh my god, I heart this film. I don't give a stink about the bad reviews; I think it's genius. John Malkovich really does have my heart. He's so, so, so, so odd. If you watch the extras, he's as weird as Allen Conway, the character he plays. He makes me uncomfortable in a good way. This is the kind of movie that I think about for days and days. One of the things that strikes me is that it almost doesn't matter who we really are, people believe that we are whoever we pretend to be. That's scary, but strangely powerful information. It also has some fantastic lines. I laughed out loud so many times. One of my favorites was something like, "Imagine how big Jesus woulda been if only he'd have played the guitar." I will buy this movie.

The Science of Sleep

I've been waiting so long for the chance to see this movie. It was worth the wait. For one, Gael Garcia Bernal is the cutest human alive. He makes me week. Apart from that, it's the kind of movie that transports you and you can't help ending up a little more of a creative person just from having watched it. It's a great story about love and creativity and the magic of dreams. Watch, watch, watch it. I can't wait to buy it so I can watch it over and over. I'm watching it again now.

Music:

This week I'm listening to [Cat Power] and [The Be Good Tanyas]. Click the links and check them out!

I love you. Take care.

2007-04-14T12:59:00.000-05:00

I don't know why I don't blog more. It isn't like I don't have any thoughts. It's that I have too many of them, and don't wanna organize them. I spend loads of time on MySpace, because you get to do things that you think are totally genius [and are probably not], like copy and post a picture from one of your friend's picture albums and tell her that you "found this picture" of her and her friends, then when she jokingly ask you "where in the world" you got that picture, you tell her it's from your magic picture finding box. This takes very little time and/or thought. I like that.

My cable isn't working. Comcast has a general message up when you call that says there's an interference. It sucks. I don't watch a lot of t.v. anyway, but I like to know it's there. Since I couldn't watch my usual Current TV, I put in one of my favorite movies, Love Actually. If you haven't seen this movie, go and watch it now. It's complete cheese, but it's good cheese. Also, I love, love, love everyone in it. I would love to jump Liam Neeson's bones, and Emma Thompson is an absolute goddess of all things good. Hugh Grant and Laura Linney are adorable, and Bill Nighy is genius. Here's a fan clip:

You can pretty much watch the whole movie [here] on Dailymotion.

I love you, Actually.

2007-04-01T20:11:00.000-05:00

For the past couple of months, I've been making out with a t.v. channel. Okay, maybe not "making out" but we've gotten really close. [Current TV] is channel 107 on Comcast. It's perfect for the ADD. It airs mostly segments they call pods that last from 3-20 minutes. Most of them are more like 3-5 min. long. They cover anything from devastating situations around the world to American pop culture.

But, you don't have to have Current TV to stay current. Staying current is what keeps us young and interesting [and BOY am I young and interesting ;)]. Here are some ways I think you can stay current [feel free to add to the list]:

1) Keep up with the news [yes, Stewart and Colbert count, but not in isolation.]
2) Keep up with pop culture. I'm surpised how many people are not in the know about pop culture. I know it isn't extremely important information, but it's fun to talk about and helps when cracking jokes.
3) Use the internet as your own personal information data base. That's what it is.
4) Keep your brain active. Make sure you're doing things you love. Seek out things that inspire you and make sure you're always thinking, writing, and sharing.

So...that said, here's what I'm listening to this week:

*WHY am I just now finding out about Amy Winehouse? I'm sad for all the listening time I've missed.

AMY_WINEHOUSE Rehab
Uploaded by AmyWinehouse

*Oh my god, MIKA is fabulous.

Mika (acoustic)
Uploaded by belletoutcourt

Fabulous

2007-03-27T15:34:00.000-05:00

What makes Kristin Scott Thomas so fabulous? Is it that she [speaks perfect French]? Is it that she's been in a [Prince video]? I could go on and on, but I won't. Yes, I think she's fabulous, but at least I'm not [this person].

I Can't Feel My Legs

2007-03-25T12:52:00.000-05:00

Oh wait, yes I can, and they hurt.

Now that I have graduated and am no longer facing a walloping beast of a dissertation, I have decided to live. And live I have been. I just wish I wasn't constantly reminded that I'm almost 30.

I'm supposed to go to improv practice today, buy my legs feel like they're about to fall off [dance, dance, dance]. My doctoral advisor is retiring and he hosted a "library party" this weekend to give away all of his books. It was a terrifically nice gesture. I went into town early to stay with another professor/mentor/friend who I had miss very much. Unfortunately for her, this was the first time she had met the "no holds bar" me, and I made her go to much more than she had planned as well as let her know how awesome she was. [I have a problem with this.]

To summarize:
My legs hurt, and you're awesome.

What I Want

2007-02-22T22:10:00.000-06:00

I want to be around people who help me to grow, I want to love easily and often, I want to be amazed with life, I want a big percentage of my day to be spent laughing, I want to make people feel good about themselves, I want to feel good about myself, I want to be your friend, I want to learn from you, I want to teach you something new, I want to work hard/play hard, I want to be fair, I want to see the beauty in everything, I want to be surprised, I want to see colors more brightly, I want to create, I want to judge less, I want to forgive, I want to be transparent, I want to be happy.

And I am.

I've Learned...

2007-02-03T16:52:00.000-06:00

I've learned that everyone likes being liked.
I've learned that I choose everyday how people perceive me.
I've learned that every minute counts.
I've learned that if I want to meet new people, I have to be willing to try some things all on my own and not depend on someone to go with me.
I've learned that it's worth it to take chances.
I've learned that I like my time alone.
I've learned that I don't need to get married and have kids to be worth something.
I've learned that I'm more enjoyable to be around when I lighten up.
I've learned that I can be funny.
I've learned that we all have untapped resources, and it's when we can be quite and listen without falling asleep that we can tap into them.

GangstaBitch Megan

2007-02-01T15:33:00.001-06:00

___________________________________________________________________

Dirty Fortune Cookie

2007-01-26T15:40:00.000-06:00

Today, I learned that everyone, yes everyone, thinks that adding "in bed" to the end of fortune cookies is hilarious. Sometimes we teachers order Chinese food for lunch, and when people read their fortune, I add "in bed" to the end of what they've read. Today, mine was, "You will receive an unusual gift willingly. Accept it!...in bed." We have a new intern in the library of our school who's older and, I thought, seemed a little prudish. She was, however, a big fan of my game and chuckled very heartily. She didn't even order Chinese, but I offered her half of my fortune cookie, and to our great surprise, I had two fortunes. She was so happy she got to participate in the dirty fortune cookie game. The point of this story is, of course, that librarians are kinky. And also that I'm a pervert.

I and Thou

2007-01-20T17:12:00.000-06:00

Last week, I visited a new church...sort of. It was a unitarian universalist church. I thought it was really interesting, and I'll probably go back tomorrow. The "sermon" was about "I-Thou" relationships versus "I-It" relationships. According to Wikipedia, an I and Thou relationship is: a book by Martin Buber. Buber's main proposition is that we may address existence in two ways: that of the "I" towards an "IT", towards an object that is separate in itself, which we either use or experience; and that of the 'I' towards 'THOU', in which we move into existence in a relationship without bounds. One of the major themes of the book is that human life finds its meaningfulness in relationships. All of our relationships, Buber contends, bring us ultimately into relationship with God, who is the Eternal Thou. I guess if I took anything from that hour, it was that we tend to treat a lot of people around us (like cashiers or coworkers) as though we have an "I-It" relationship with them instead of treating them as people. I was conscious of this throughout my week this week, and it's amazing how many times I was tempted in line at the check-out counter or with people that I work with that I normally don't converse with to go on about my business without glancing up. I tell myself that I'm just focused on my next task and that they should understand that. I don't genuinely believe this though. The truth is, people want to be treated as a person, no matter the reason you're coming in contact with them. I'm very guilty of being aloof. I blame it on my eccentricities and say that's what makes me unique, and that I wouldn't be me if I weren't a little hard to get to know. I'm at least going to be more aware of the people around me and make more atempts to connect. Pass it on.

My Conservative 10 Year-Old Sister

2006-12-19T18:58:00.000-06:00

me: Wanna listen to some Martha Wainwright?

her: Who's Martha Wainwright?

me: My favorite singer.

her: Never heard of her. (pause) My favorite singer is the woman who sings "Jesus Take the Wheel."

It isn't her fault, really. In fact, it's partly mine. For whatever reason, the kid loves me, and I haven't made the time to spend enough q.t. with her. It was only about a year and a half ago that she asked me what "drunk" meant. She lives in a bubble of ignorance, and I really must take more responsibility for pulling her out of it.

She's going to school with me tomorrow. She's the same age as the kids in my class, and we're going on a field trip to see "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever." This will be her first time stepping foot in a public school. She's nervous as hell. I can't say I blame her. Everything the kid has learned, she's learned from television. I've told her to relax and that it'll be a great experience for her. Say a prayer for her. She'll be thankful you did.

Leslie Hall Rocks My World

2006-12-09T23:44:00.000-06:00

Exhibit A:

and B:

Six Weird Things

2006-12-02T10:29:00.000-06:00

I was tagged to do to complete a meme by a MySpace friend. I thought I'd post it here too. The meme says:

so, if you get this, repost in your blog the 6 weird things about yourself, and then tag 6 more friends. let them know. here are the official rules passed to me: Tag Rules: Once you've been tagged you have to write a blog about yourself with "six weird habits/things about yourself." At the end you need to choose 6 people you want to tag and list their names. Don't forget to leave them a comment that says you've been tagged to tell them to read your blog.

I had to think pretty hard, because, believe me, there's plenty of "weird" when it comes to me. I kept scratching things out saying, "too much information." Nonetheless, I give you six weird things:

1) When I was a kid, I had really strange habits. I snapped my fingers when I walked, I made these weird grunting sounds when I was watching tv, I blinked my eyes repeatedly, if I touched something with one hand I had to touch it with the other hand...etc. I now think it was a mild form of autism. I don't think I do them anymore.

2) I make up my own disorders. I tell people I have a verbal processing disorder because I have a really hard time retelling things aloud. I don't tell a lot of stories unless I'm really comfortable with people, and even then it's hard. I even struggle explaining what happened in a television show the night before.

3) I thought I was a hardcore republican until I was in my early 20s. Then, I thought I was a "middle of the roader." I remember feeling offended by Ann Coulter's comment that people who were "middle of the road" had the IQ of a toaster. Now, Ann Coulter can suck my dick. I'm so far left, that Gore can't see me. I'm not about partisanship at all. My views on things are more liberal than most liberals. I'm just about not hurting people. Not many politicians are with me on that.

4) I'm almost positive that time travel is possible. I've seen Somewhere in Time so many times in the past month that I might have it memorized. I know it's incredibly cheesy, but I'm hooked. I also think everyone has untapped resources, especially in the brain. I'm sure there's a lot we can do that we don't know about.

5) I know every word to Vanilla Ice's Ice Ice Baby. Don't believe me? [Click Here.]

6) I am a walking oxymoron. I'm an optimist, but I'm very analytical. I have a very wacky sense of humor, but I'm very complex. This makes me really hard to get to know.

*I'm not going to tag anyone, but if you want to do it, please do, and leave me a comment so I can come read it :).

Martha Wainwright: You Had Me at "Mother Fucking Asshole"

2006-11-30T16:00:00.000-06:00

In case you weren't aware of my complete obsession with Martha Wainwright and her music (though it started quite strongly with her brother Rufus), let me tell you about it. Actually, since I'm all about conservation and time management (*cough, cough*), I'm just going to post the later part of a conversation with a new Myspace friend and show you the video discussed herein:

Cool :). I think she's absolutely fabulous. did you catch the videos on my profile? The best video out there (I think) that isn't on my profile is [here] where she plays (in her pajamas) with Pete Townsend and Rachel Fuller. They had uploaded all sections of the segment, but they took all of them down but the one.

Thanks for sharing your martha/rufus story. I think she's really interesting, because she was really kind of awkward, and people didn't have a lot of faith in her tallent, including her dad. He wasn't real supportive...in case you didn't realize, "Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole" is about Loudon Wainwright. It was to reciprocate the song "I'd Rather be Alone" he wrote about her when she was living with him at age 14.

I'm a bit obsessive over things/people I really appreciate, can you tell?

Cheers!
Megan

Hey Megan.

Thank you for turning me on to Martha. I listened to all of her myspace songs last night. She blew me away. Bloody Mother F-cking is amazing. What she does with her voice.

Just a couple of tidbits. I saw Martha play when she was very young at The Bottom Line one night at a Loudon Concert My, my... has she changed. Which of course, would be expected. And on Rufus' 16th birthday he was in the audience at another Bottom Line Loudon concert and proud Dad introduced him to the crowd. It was a nice moment.

Until now, whenever I thought of Martha I always thought of her Dad's song, 5 years old. You live and you learn.

Best.

_________________________________
[why i love rufus...joan wasser rocks ass too.]

Spot Me

2006-11-26T19:05:00.000-06:00

See if you can spot me in this picture:

People wonder why I'm strange.

Leave My Child Alone

2006-11-26T09:43:00.000-06:00

If you have kids in high school, this is for you. If you know someone who does, please let them know.

Go HERE to opt out of recruiting lists and the Pentagon data base.

Transformations...as Opposed to Transformers Which are also Cool

2006-11-19T16:08:00.000-06:00

I thought I'd leave you with something before going off to defend my dissertation, so...I give you the transformation of my table parallel to the transformation of my dissertation. One got neater, the other messier.

This is pretty neat. I like to work in neat.

We're getting a little messier here, but I'm making some progress on the edits of my paper.

Jeezus! Look at these revisions. What's gonna be left?

But, I do have my little dissertation angel by my side.

The paper starts to get neater.

The table, however, does not. (p.s. I only smoke when I write, or when I drink...okay, so that's all the time.)

And...off the topic, I managed to still rock it out on Halloween as none other than Alex from A Clockwork Orange.

Peace Out!
Love,
Megan

Post Election Day

2006-11-08T05:55:00.000-06:00

I have so much to say and no time to say it in. For now, I'll leave it to copy and paste.

House Speaker-to-be Nancy Pelosi: "Tonight is a great victory for the American people today. The American people voted for change. They voted for Democrats to take our country in a new direction, and that is exactly what we intend to do. The American people voted for a new direction to restore civility and bipartisanship in Washington, D.C., and Democrats promise to work together in a bipartisan way for all Americans. The American people voted to restore integrity and honest in Washington, D.C. And the Democrats intend to lead the most honest . . . and most ethical Congress in history."
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3 Bengal Cats

2006-11-05T02:00:00.000-06:00

THIS is why I should not take breaks. I could watch this forever. Thank God it doesn't loop. If I didn't have to press the watch again button, I might watch this all day.

Please Send Love

2006-10-29T20:03:00.000-06:00

Also Titled...Desperate Plea for Encouragement
(Please send caffine...and cookies if you've got em.)

I am deperately trying to write this dissertation, but I'm about nutso. I'm totally hyped up on caffine and have no idea how I will sleep tonight. I've been writing all day and I have to get up and teach tomorrow. Then, I come home and write. Then, I get up and teach. Then, I come home and write. Then, I get up and teach. Well, you get the picture. My brain hurts. Do they make band-aids for brains?

Love you much,
Megan the Weary

p.s. I'm sorry that I haven't been reading your blogs lately (except for monkey who seems to have this binding spell over me). I've thought about you. I also kind of love you, and I'll read blogs again one day. I might even start writing a few...later.

Dammit!

2006-10-17T12:20:00.000-05:00

i just saw the preview for Running With Scissors. i was planning on reading that book next. i didn't know they were making a movie. of course, i can wait until the movie comes out on video to watch it, but i've now already seen the people who play the characters. now, when i read it, i won't be able to picture my own people. i like picturing my own people. the funny thing is, when the preview came on, i was like, "wow, that movie is the shit," then i was like, "nooooooo!" i suppose it's my fault for being so behind on pleasure reading.

if you've already read the book and want to read about the movie click here.

i <3 fall

2006-10-16T18:04:00.000-05:00

I love Fall. The only bad thing about Fall is that it doesn't last very long. I don't so much like that I've gotten terribly wet today. I like the rain, just not on me. I especially like the rain on a tin roof. When I was about 13, we lived in a house my parents designed and we all helped build. My mom specifically designed that tin roof, and it was right under my bedroom. It was good to be inside when it rained. I love the newness of the cool weather and the colors of the leaves and the spookiness of October and the thought of hanging in with family or friends, making sweet stuff and watching movies. I even like the super cheesy Halloween kids movies on the Disney channel.

Also...upon several recommendations, I have fallen into a good book: "The Time Traveler's Wife" by Audrey Niffenegger. In the little time I have for reading over break, I am devouring it (albeit at my very slow reading pace). Perhaps if I could get this time traveling down, I could have all the time I needed for cuddling in bed with a book and my cat, Harriet curled in a ball at my feet.

Well...Happy Fall to All.

Zazie, Queen of Awesome

2006-10-06T23:25:00.000-05:00

Zazie - Toc toc toc 05
Uploaded by joe54

Zazie pretty much broke my Awesome Meter with her fabulousness. I thought you should meet her.

A Friend's Interpretation

2006-10-02T21:24:00.000-05:00

i must, must, must post my genius friend, make up your mind, hamlet, aka not_lizzie's interpretation of my dream that i posted on Sept. 24th. he is very insightful...

I make no claims to be a professional or even an amatuer dream interperter. But, not having the ability to do something has never stopped me before. So, here goes: Meeting somebody at 3:30 in the morning represents uncertainty. This of course is operating on the premise that you usually don't meet someone at such a time. What is 3:30 a.m. Is it late at night? Or is it early in the morning? It's an uncertain time of day depending on perspective. The men with guns are the personfication of potential failure. You go into a situation with uncertainty and look the danger of failure in the face. We all know there is no escaping this potential failure but it never stops us from trying to escape. The kind, nice looking cop represents every good archetypical character in your life that has ever at the very least tried to help you. But, of course there is nothing that can be done. The several other people in this dream possibly symbolize the assortment of friends you have. You clearly have an innate sense of community (which is a good thing). To me, it represents that you recognize the empathy your friends have with you. Could the old people possibly represent the eldere hieracrchy of your university? Not sure, I guess I would have to know you better. Perhaps you have had moments of highs and lows when you felt things looked optimistic when seeking the counsel of a friend only to have those hopes dashed by being "re-abducted"....

Of course, I am actually not surprised that you would see "yourself". I'm guessing your subconcious perceived the changes you are going through as a "clone". That was another potential 'you'. A 'you' that will be born out of this stress experience you are going through.....

The only thing I have to add is....you are not going to be killed. The new 'you' will be born through perserverance. Obviously you have an incredibly active imagination chock full of creativity and it applied itself in overdrive on the images streaming from your sub concious. Our subconcious is after all according to Carl Jung nothing more than our environment filtered through our senses.

I think there was the scary revelation of the rebirth of the GrandPoo of Awesome 2.0

2006-10-01T13:25:00.000-05:00

i'm feeling much better. i was so incredibly stressed last week that everything felt fucked up. along with my dissertation, things at school are crazy. administrators are always being pushed to enforce the lasted new trend in education. the problem is that the lastest new trend isn't the latest at all, it just alternates back and forth between two fundamentally opposite approaches every few years. so, we get used to teaching one way, then they want us to do something completely different.

as for my dissertation, i met with my professors friday and took them 28 pages of chapter 4. they were happy. i can breathe a little now, but not too much. it's gonna be pretty hectic until december 16th. i've accepted that.

i've actually had time this weekend to think and to think creatively...oh yeah, and to obsess. last night i obsessed over time travel again. the first time i obsessed over time travel was after i watched the butterfly effect. it was a weird situation though: i didn't know anything about that movie until i watched it. the week before i saw the movie i had this dream:

"i was looking at my kindergarten class photo, which is here by the way, when i was transported into that day. i called myself out of the photo and hugged my five-year-old self."

now, keep in mind, i had not seen the butterfly effect. i was dog-sitting for one of my professors a week later and he had rented that movie from netfix. so, of course, i watched it and was totally freakedthefuck out. i read all about time travel theories. since then, i've always believed there must be some way that time travel is possible. last night, i watched somewhere in time with christopeher reeves and jane seymore. yes, the acting was cheesy, but it still renewed my obsession. after the movie, i read about john titor who, back in 2000, claimed to be a time traveler from 2036. he had (and still has) a whole lot of believers. many discount him now because he claimed that a civil war would break out in the US in 2004 and that there would be no olympic games after 2004 (neither of which are correct.) it's still pretty interesting.

last night i had all kinds of dreams. one was so hilariously funny that i actually woke up laughing. that hasn't happened in so long. there's no way i could adequately explain it, but it involves a male friend of mine in a leotard with sparkles and a white painted face with lots of make-up. i wish i could have taken a picture of my mind to show. waking yourself up by laughing is really a pretty great way to wake up :).

i'm still obsessed with martha wainwright's music. it's like my life has a playlist of her songs constantly streaming in my mind. i've really tried to listen to some other stuff. lately i've been listening to the postal service. i love, love, love them. if you like them, you might also like the shins. i was actaully a shins fan before finding the postal service.

if you read all this, consider me very impressed. i hope you're having a super day! i plan to. :)

Baby Love

2006-09-25T16:59:00.000-05:00

<3 my new niece :)

A Strange Dream

2006-09-24T11:34:00.000-05:00

i got a call from someone at 3:30 in the morning and left to go and meet him. i stayed on the phone with him as i drove and stopped in at a fast food restaurant. when i walked in, i saw that there were men with guns, and i started to back out. i quickly explained what i saw to the guy on the phone and told him to call 911 before the men took me by the arm and led me to their car. there was a kind, nice looking cop there trying to help. he had wavy brown hair and a nice face. he wasn't able to help.
i was taken with several other people to a very large but very old, three story house. there were other people being held there. the owners of the house were an older couple in their sixties. they were very odd. they directed everything that went on in the house. we basically functioned as a family while in the house, but we weren't allowed to leave. the men with guns were always watching. some people in the house had been there longer than others. we became a tight-knit group, always discussing possible plans for escape.
one clear, crisp night, it seemed like the perfect night to escape. the odd, older couple seemed to be in particularly good spirits, and as a result, the armed men were a little lax. i sought out my roommate in he house and told her i thought it was the perfect time to escape.
so, the two of us managed to escape the house, acquire a car, and get into town. as soon as we got into town, we saw some of the armed men. the kind cop was also there, only there were two of him. one was trying to help, one was not. the one who was trying to help was captured by the men, and we were all taken back to the house.
when we got tot the house, we were all taken to the basement. the other house members were already down there. everyone was left alone to discuss possible reasons why we were all taken to the basement, when i caught a glimpse of the last thing i expected to see...myself!
then, we found out that there were two of each of us. it slowly became clear to us that we were there so that they could get to know us and gather information about us so that our clones could take our places in society. then, we came to the morbid realization that we were not only no longer needed, but it was necessary to do away with us in order for their plan to work. one by one, we were going to be killed.

myplace at myspace

sanctity of self

2006-08-21T20:58:00.000-05:00

"i am a radiant center of divine love."

i began at eighteen, when i started college, to be very dependent on the people around me for my self worth. it wasn't so much a self esteem issue, because it wasn't that i didn't like myself, it was that i didn't know myself. because of that, i was bored...so very bored with "me", so i wanted to take in everyone else. i probably sucked the life out of everyone around me. i didn't have the confidence to make it a wide range of people that i sucked from, so i became very dependent. there were a lot of factors involved with the many poor relational choices i made those four years, but many of them stemmed from boredom. this was no bad reflection of my friends, just my lack of ability to be entertained by my own personality.

the year after i graduated at such a young twenty-two, i found myself just so glad to be out of the bed i'd made for myself, that i was genuinely happy about everything. but, more importantly, i began to get to know myself. i can remember being alone in my first by myself apartment at twenty-two and thinking, "if i could choose to hang out with anyone in the world tonight, it would totally be me." that year, i acquired a very big group of friends who were so uplifting. they were my mirrors. they held me accountable and lifted me up at the same time. but...i was never dependent on them for my self worth.

i read in a magazine once that women are the happiest in their thirties because they spend their twenties figuring out who they are and their thirties enjoying the things that are important to them. i completely agree. now, however, my problem is no longer liking myself. i LOVE myself, although i'm not at all keen on my physical self. (jay from project runway mentioned that he hated his body and loved his mind...he might be my twin.) i get pissed when something takes away from my "me" time. i could swim in the ocean of my own mind for hours.

i can become too absorbed in my own interests and miss time with other people. i think i might sometimes make a shrine to my own amusements. i guess... as i go into my thirties (all too soon), i want to make sure that i'm still willing to sacrifice a little bit of that self that i've grown so fond of.

laid bare

2006-08-05T17:55:00.000-05:00

you know those people who, for whatever reason, acquire this following of fans, people who admire them and love them without equivocation. maybe they're famous, maybe not. maybe it's because of their talent, a beautiful voice or artwork that captures the soul. maybe they're just a beautiful person from the inside out. maybe they're the sort of person who makes you feel like the sun is shining on you when you're around them, like nathan does stingo in sophie's choice. i'm always amazed when i cross paths with someone like that. i'm much more amazed when that person consistently makes her/himself open and vulnerable. i wanna warn them, tell them they may be taken advantage of. they wouldn't listen. they're taking chances with their most valuable possesison...themselves.

i hope there will be times when i'll inspire other people. i hope that i'll have enough courage to be so laid bare. i wanna be that transparent. maybe i'll never have "fans." i don't sing or design or make large audiences laugh until they cry. i still hope i can shine a little sunshine on a few faces. i think that's a pretty good goal.

Turning Into a Marshmallow

2006-07-15T16:22:00.000-05:00

I'm turning into a marshmallow, not because of cookies (though that's true too) but from my iPod playlists. I like to think I'm hardcore. I can remember a time when there was nothing but Iggy Pop, Franz Ferdinand, and The White Stripes coming from my cd player, but since I got my iPod I've totally turned soft.

MiPod

Everywhere I look on-line, bloggers are obsessed with their iPod playlists. I think it's because we think our playlists somehow define us. After looking at my top 10 played songs, I hope that's not true, otherwise I am one big ball of fluffy cheese. So, here it is, my unaltered top 10 played songs from my 25 most played playlist. (This is a list generated by the iPod.)

Jack Johnson- With My Own Two Hands
Martha Wainwright- Question of Etiquette
Puddle of Mudd- She Hate Me (one hardcore song)
Natalie Merchant- Will the Circle be Unbroken
James Blunt- You're Beautiful
Taco- Putting on the Ritz
Damien Rice- The Blower's Daughter
Joan Armatrading- The Weakness in Me
Jewel- Angel Standing By
Antony and the Johnsons- For Today I am a Boy

On another note...

My car totally died and I'm totally stranded. Dad offered to bring me his spare truck to drive while it gets worked on. Let me show you dad's spare truck that he bought with his quarters.

I am going to go see Pirates 2 tonight. Someone's picking my ass up, of course. I'll get to meet a couple of new people who happen to live in my apartment complex. Maybe they'll be going to the grocery store tomorrow.

The Luckiest

2006-07-05T22:39:00.000-05:00

I am an oddball in my family. Nonetheless, I still kind of like 'em. The big people I like most of the time; the little people I like always. I feel pretty lucky.

Here's a montage of mostly the 4th. Some have asked for more BeiLei pictures, so...here you go :). I finally got a good dose of BeiLei, and, as you can see, a pretty healthy dose of fuzz therapy too. Kittens are fab.

Wanna Travel the World...

2006-07-05T00:27:00.000-05:00

but don't have the time? Try traveling vicariously through the Morans. Brendan and Sarah (Lane) Moran are on a year long honeymoon around the world, and their podcasts are great. These kids have worked wonders with the Mac to bring us Greece and Turkey and are now in Istanbul. Of course, they did just leave their jobs at G4 (tech) tv, so they're no strangers to the technical. Really, check out their podcasts. They're very high quality and fun to watch. (Watch, don't listen. You don't have to subscribe to the podcast to watch.) Both Brendan and Sarah are blogging their adventures in he said/she said style. I tend to read Sarah's blog more. I have no real reason for this other than blatant favoritism. The site is well done, and the blogs are great. They've linked oodles of fabulous photos of their trip. Seriously, come on, let's go with them. They would totally want us along. Who wouldn't?

Kitten Montage

2006-07-04T00:02:00.000-05:00

This is a kitten montage to my rendition of the song You Suck by the Murmurs. Hope you like it.

I may need a kitten in a sandwich t-shirt to wear for live performances.

:)

Malvina Reynolds, Leave Me Be

2006-06-29T04:39:00.000-05:00

I can't get Malvina Reynolds out of my head. This is an unprompted and somewhat unwelcomed temporary obsession. She's taking over my brain. I've been quoting her everywhere I go and it's gotta be annoying.

Rest in peace, dammit, and leave me be. I love you by the way.

And no, I will not explain. I need sleep.

Please send pillows.

She inches along on the rim of the world,
Always about to go over,
How she can manage I never will know,
To get from one day to the other.
Scrounging a buck or a bed
Or the share of a roof for her head,
This nobody's child, this precarious girl,
Who lives on the rim of the world.

She looks like a princess in somebody's rags,
She dreams of a world without danger,
Climbing a stair to a room of her own
With someone who isn't a stranger,
But now she eats what she can,
And accepts what there is for a man,
This nobody's child, this precarious girl,
Who lives on the rim of the world.

Upcoming Talent

2006-06-28T22:07:00.000-05:00

We no longer need American Idol. As the amazing potential of the internet continues to grow, talented artists and musicians are continuing to tap into the resources it provides for disseminating their talent to people who will appreciate it. If you truly have talent (which I do not, *sigh*), you can make it happen for yourself thanks to sites like MySpace and YouTube. I, for one, am thankful. I'm very glad, for instance, that I was able to have a virtual run-in with Terra Naomi. I'm already a fan. Check out her YouTube profile here and her MySpace profile here. I send her many kudos and wish her much luck.

Why I've Not Been Blogging Lately

2006-06-26T21:43:00.000-05:00

I'm a doctoral student, remember? I'm doing enough writing. This is an official break. The table in front of me is strung out with papers, notebooks, my calendar, a stapler, those little metal clips, post-it notes, envelopes of various sizes, a voice recorder, the "extra" laptop (the apple that I'm trying to befriend), a copy of Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design (probably a less thrilling read than Chelsea Handler's slutbag book that I'm waiting to have arrive in the mail), and both a coffee and a diet pepsi.

On a positive note, people are letting me interview them for my research. They even seem to be a little excited about it. I've only had one significant fopah. I won't mention what happened in case its a major threat to validity and someone knows enough to call me on it.

I did have a happy moment today. I found my old cassette to cd car adapter and found that it works for my ipod. Now I don't need to buy a cd player for my car and I can ask for something else for a graduation present. I think I'll ask for help improving my "veranda".

Also, I miss monkey.

Please send bananas...or plants...um, for my "veranda".

Winston Cigarette Commercial (1961)

2006-06-17T01:53:00.000-05:00

Wow. Ethical marketing?

MadV

2006-06-12T00:05:00.000-05:00

This guy has gots some Mad Skillz. He's the shit. He's 16 years old and after four weeks on YouTube he's signed a deal with a production company. See his full YouTube profile here.

He creeps me out, but in a good way. Is that normal?

Watch for him. He's moving up in the world, probably by levitation.

Most Recently Awesome

2006-06-11T00:03:00.000-05:00

Here's the shit that's keeping me amused right now.

Favorite iPod podcast:

Of course, I'm enjoying my Chelsea Handler podcast, but another podcast that I heart is Tim and Eric. If you don't have an iPod, no worries. You can still check out their podcast Here.

Best recent movie: V for Vendetta. I say, "V for Awesome." I was entertained from beginning to end. I know it isn't a recent movie, but we caught it at the cheap theatre.

Most recent downloads:

1) a bunch of Garrison Keillor and Prairie Home Companion. What better to have in the pod than some classic Keillor stories and the news from Lake Wobegon.

2) Martha Wainwright. Rufus still has my heart, but Martha knows how to put it out there.

Powered by Castpost

Chelsea Handler

2006-06-05T22:48:00.000-05:00

I do not sit and watch videos of her online any time I get a chance.

I did not used to watch Girls Behaving Badly and think she should have her own show because she was way funnier than everyone else.

I have never spit milk out my nose because she's so funny.

I do not think she makes being a slutbag seem especially cool.

I do not stalk her MySpace page.

I do not wish she would move to my hometown and be my best friend.

Okay, okay...Yes I have, yes I did, and yes I do.

By the way...She does not have a filthy whore mouth.

Yes she does.

Buy her slutbag book.

Dear Fabulous Principal,

2006-06-05T16:13:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to tell you how happy I am to be coming back to "Fabulous School" next year. You like to use the phrase "It's an honor," and I must say, it's an honor to be here and to work with a principal who cares about the children, the faculty, and the school. Before I went back to school, I was discouraged with school administration. I felt like administrators only wanted to meet requirements. I feel like everyone here strives to go beyond what's required and be "excellent." I appreciate that so much. I am truly, truly proud to be a part of this staff, and I'm excited about what next year holds.

Much Love,
Me

2006-06-03T00:54:00.000-05:00

My laptop had better not get any ideas from this article while I'm writing my dissertation. We don't need anymore heroes. Click Here.

Much Thanks to Superlong

2006-06-03T00:18:00.000-05:00

Long live Spam.

EmbarrAssed?

2006-06-02T22:11:00.000-05:00

Someone asked what our most embarrassing moments at work were. I don't know about most embarrassing, but not long ago, I walked into my Math class having just gone to the bathroom. I mentioned before that my Math class is much more "cheeky" and talkative than my homeroom. I walked to the front of the room as normal, and one of the girls said, "Miss 'GrandPoo', you're so funny," to which I replied, "What do you mean?" She said, "You're so funny." I said, "I didn't do anything." She said, "Oh yes you did." Another student said, "Turn around." I asked if they had put a sign on my back. They said, "No." Finally, I realized I had toilet paper streaming from my pants. Damn those paper seats I insist on making before I sit down. They expected me to be absolutely mortified. They were disappointed when I gave them an explanation about how as you get older you learn to shrug things off. I really wasn't embarrassed, actually.

At the end of the year, I had my homeroom students write letters to my new fifth grade class giving them advice for the year. The one student who's in both my Math class and my homeroom (a boy) wrote, "Don't laugh or at least tell 'Miss GrandPoo' when she has toilet paper streaming from her pants," and at least three of my homeroom students (who, by the way, weren't even there) wrote the incident as their most memorable moment in their fifth grade memory book.

So glad I could provide them with such a happy memory.

Beilei

2006-05-18T22:59:00.000-05:00

My sister is in China now bringing home my niece, Beilei. I'm excited. She'll be here next week. Just thought you'd like to know.

Sarah Silverman

2006-05-10T05:53:00.000-05:00

The first great impression I ever got of Sarah Silverman was when I was watching public television, and they were having an auction of doodles done by various celebrities. Most of the doodles were really neat, and I was enjoying watching as I lay sleepily in my bed. Then, they showed a very simple doodle of what was, as it was obvious to me, a butt with a little turd coming out. It wasn't, however, obvious to the public television announcer. She said, "And here we have a "W" with a bubble by Sarah Silverman. I thought I'd die of laughter fits.

2006-05-06T14:30:00.000-05:00

2006-05-04T21:00:00.000-05:00

*a pretty amusing cartoon called "The Immigration Debate" here*
*and, oh my god, one about Bush and MySpace here*

5th Grade Teacher Rambling

2006-05-04T18:55:00.000-05:00

Learning to Write a Persuasive Essay

(addressing the class)

"A couple of weeks ago, we read an article from the adult TIME (as opposed to the TIME for Kids) about kids and technology. What was that article about?" [student: It was about whether or not technology was bad for kids.] "And what do you think the author was trying to get across in that article?" [student: That even though there are some bad things about technology, that there are some good things too, like some skills that are built.] "Right, and what he was doing was persuading his reader to see his viewpoint. Authors do that a lot in their writing. That's why I always tell you guys to think about what you read and develop your own viewpoint about it. Listen to the author's views, but remember that many times what they're saying is their opinion and not necessarily fact." (enter explanation about how I would be asking them to write a persuasive essay)

Later that day...

[student (one who needs multiple explanations of a task): What are we suppose to do with writing?] "Brainstorm a list of topic ideas for a persuasive essay." [student: Is that like what we did with the fake petition we started in Social Studies?] "Well, yes, sort of. You could use what you chose for your petition as a topic to persuade your readers to see your viewpoint if that's something you feel passionate about." [student: But, isn't that sort of mean?] "Well, I see your point, J., but if it's something you believe in, you will want other people to feel that way too. Hopefully, other people will do what we've talked about and develop their own views about it, sort of like you did with the article on technology." [student: (grins shyly)] (She was the only student to challenge the article, claiming technology "sucks time from kids" and "makes them lazy". And she questions my ethicality for asking them to write a persuasive essay. Pffft.)

I like my job.

*The article was "Don't Fear the Digital" by Steven Johnson. I liked the article (which was actually quite balanced) and I've liked what Steven Johnson has to say since I saw him on The Daily Show last year promoting his book. I definitely think that if I'm going to waste my free time, I'd rather be doing it in a way that's engaging and interactive rather than sitting hypnotized in front of a box. Note: I do, however, make it a point to keep my own opinions to myself in front of fifth graders. That allows me to talk about all kinds of stuff that makes them think critically. Teachers who give their opinions during lessons, in my opinion are very much over the ethical boundary.

Steven Johnson's blog.

2006-05-03T19:51:00.000-05:00

Friends don't let friends get addicted to MySpace.

Pacman

2006-04-30T20:37:00.000-05:00

You're so welcome.

I'm telling ya, I gots the MySpace fever. Yes, I'm aware of how uncool that makes me.

Games Provided By FreeCodeSource.com

The Karate Kid

2006-04-30T14:31:00.000-05:00

The Karate Kid and the song "Glory of Love" WAS my childhood. I was inspired to be a better person. It taught me about love and honor and awesomely bad hairdos. I even sported my own Ralph Macchio feathery "do" for a brief and hideous time. That was the tomboy stage in my life. It only lasted a year or two. I even had a sweet-ass karate jacket. I took karate lessons for a short time too. I gave up soccer for that year, which is cool because I totally suck at sports...karate included.

The Shower Project

2006-04-29T17:27:00.000-05:00

I'm currently obsessing over showers. Why? Because I haven't had one today. The water has been off in my appartment all day and it's driving me insane. I'm a shower first thing in the morning kind of gal. As much as I pay for this fucking tiny-ass apartment, the least they could do is have the water running. So, I found this website where this dude showered with 100 women and documented it. I only found photos for 38. They're worth a look. The quotes from the women are funny. He says he wants to do the project with 100 straight men next. Jiggs? You up for it?

Harry and the Potters

2006-04-28T05:40:00.000-05:00

Yes, I went from obsessing over YouTube to obsessing over MySpace. For so long, I refused to pimp my MySpace page or even look at it, but my sister kept insisting on leaving me goofy messages that I wanted to see. Now, she's not even on-line, but I keep going back. It's pathetic. I think it's because I don't have a lot of time to be on-line, so I want to have to think very little.

I guess you know that the primary purpose of MySpace is to promote bands, which I think is an excellent thing. There are probably some who get annoyed with bands requesting to be their MySpace friend. I don't mind for three reasons: 1) I don't have any other friends anyway, 2) that's what it's fucking for, and 3) you can hear some great bands.

My favorite by far is Harry and the Potters. I guess I relate to the uber geekiness of this band, but I also dig the tunes. If you're cool and you don't detest Pottermania, you might click on their photo and go to their MySpace page to check out some tunes.

*Note: This will probably require you to have a MySpace account. I'm sure you could quickly make a faux one for the purposes of viewing this page if you're interested.

Just Do It.

2006-04-25T17:53:00.000-05:00

Ellen Fucking Pompeo

2006-04-23T22:30:00.000-05:00

I thought in honor of the Grey's Anatomy re-cap week, I'd post the video of Ellen Pompeo's punking session which I finally found courtesy of, of course, another YouTube user. Here's what I hate...I LOVE Grey's Anatomy. I think it's a fun show to watch with good characters and an awesome score. I even love Meredith Grey. I just can't fucking stand Ellen Pompeo. How can she appear so stunning and her character be so lovely but she herself be such a bitch? It puzzles me, and I have to concentrate really hard during every episode to block out the mess of a person I see in this clip. It's sad when people don't live up to their potential as a human being. She could be fabulous. Thus sayeth the Grand Poo of Awesome.

It Never Ends. It Never Ends. It Never Ends...

2006-04-23T01:53:00.000-05:00

Check out this sweet graphic.

I've been spending too much time on MySpace.

Go to my MySpace page and become my friend.

Word.

In case you're saying you don't feel like doing the above suggstion, please stare at the Hasselfoff picture while chanting, "Go to GrandPoo's MySpace page and become her friend." That should do it.

Two of My Own

2006-04-19T21:20:00.000-05:00

Parents that is. I love my family. They make me feel warm and fuzzy even when a certain member of my family (MOM) is strung out on prescription meds, and another certain member (DAD) is proud of the fact that he can take out some of his teeth. This is a video of Easter. We ate out. They came to me for Easter dinner because I'm the best. My little sister thinks I'm a demigod, I'm sure she does, which makes her pretty fun to hang out with. She thinks everything I do and say is funny.

I said, "I love this song, I really do," when James Blunt's Your Beautiful came over the speaker. My mom responded with, "I love percocet." My mom's fucked up on percocet on Jesus-Bunny Day and she thinks I'm going to hell.

I Heart Nornna!

2006-04-18T19:27:00.000-05:00

I'm serious. I can't get enough of her. I don't know if it's partly that she no longer has her 700+ videos up on YouTube and now there's only 11, or if I'm just truly Nornna obsessed, but she makes my world go 'round. She's an promoter of singing, good hygiene, good eatin' (like root beer and Spaghetti O's), and, most importantly, being thankful for your many blessings even the small things like your cat. What more could you ask for? And, she's a good singer. She's everything I wanna be.

I wish I could buy her a big huge Eeyore to cheer her up, because some bad people are making it hard for her to share herself with the world. When she asked me what I thought of her stalkers, I didn't know it was that bad for her. Today I read at Dlisted about how bad it got. It sucks hardcore. I miss her old videos so much and she hasn't added me to her friends list. I hope we get to see those old videos again.

CRAZED NUMA FAN !!!!

2006-04-15T20:07:00.000-05:00

I am currently obsessing over YouTube videos. (Nornna, by the way, has taken down her videos, dammit.) I have no desire to produce any creativity of my own right now. I'm just sucking in other people's weird shit. I can not seem to stop watching this Numa Fan video. I'm not even high, and I'm still watching this over and over while in a trans-like state. It's so weird. I've been sitting at my computer for like, ever, because I'm transcribing interviews for my doctoral dissertation research. It's weird how excessive work can make you slightly delusional. Maybe that's why I think this video is fucking genius. If these kids were in my class, I'd give them all A's for everything, because they're obviously already brilliant.

Harriet's Intention

2006-04-15T15:40:00.000-05:00

My cat, Harriet, barfed on this book. Do you think that could mean anything? Like maybe the Source doesn't intend for me to finish it?

If you think you want to read it, just read the chapter called Portrait of a Person Connected to the Field of Intention, because the rest of the book just draws out and regurgitates that chapter.

He has some decent points, he just rehashes them over and over throughout the book. He reiterates the same points. In other words, he says the same thing over and over. He just keeps telling you the same thing in different words. It's the same idea said in a different way. It's redundant.

Harriet's Work

Go, Nornna, Go!

2006-04-05T21:16:00.000-05:00

***Okay, Nornna has taken down all of her videos, but someone is trying to launch a Nornna movie. You can see the clip by clicking on what I've just written. Really, click anywhere on these sentences. Go ahead and do it now.***

Nornna is so popular! She is the most popular girl on YouTube. She is the most popular girl ever. She is an international celebrity. I want to help spread her popularity. This is a worthy cause. She has 727 videos. Be aware that you can't watch just one. She's that good.

She took down her "Popular" video today. She said she had too many comments. She's still adding to her video collection. You can still watch I'm ON The MAIN PAGE!!!!!!, which is a great one. Also, Missed Bus is pretty good. Anytime she talks about her therapist is a winner. Just wait until you see her eat something, or go on a root beer quest, or hug her stuffed animals before she goes to bed. Oh my God, she is so awesome. The spin-offs created by her fans where we can watch them watch Nornna are pretty good too. I like the one by james called Me eating and watching Nornna.

Oh wait, Popular is back on. We'll see how long she leaves it public. She's so finicky, that Nornna. Seriously, go waste some time on this shit.

"I'm gonna open up a can of Spaghetti O's when I get home. I'm starving."
-Nornna

Time

2006-04-05T15:39:00.000-05:00

What were you doing at 01:02:03 04/05/06? Today at two minutes and three seconds after one, we experience an oddity in time. It will never happen again.

I was going to pick up my kids from lunch to take them to the library to get a book of poetry. What were you doing?

I Need a Hug.

2006-04-02T22:15:00.000-05:00

I am a weirdo. Today, I was shopping for sunglasses at the mall at one of those thingies out in the middle of the mall. (Yes, I'm pretty sure "thingies" is the real name for them.") I was trying them on in the mirror when I saw not one face, but two. Someone was hugging me, and I didn't recognize this said someone. It turned out it was a cousin I hadn't seen in a long time. She's just really friendly.

I turned around laughing and said, "I didn't know who you were. I just thought some stranger was hugging me." After I gave it a little thought, I said, "You wanna know what's really weird? I didn't mind. I thought, how nice...a hug." Apparently I'm completely open to total strangers hugging me in the mall. Maybe I should just wear a sign that says, "Hugs Accepted."

Speaking of hugs, if I could hug a tv show, I'd hug Grey's Anatomy. I've already downloaded every song I could find from the show. More good songs tonight- Sounds like I'm gonna have to do some more searching. I would also like to give Denny a big hug. I heart him.

Did you know the shows writers have a blog? This seems strange to me. I guess they're either cashing in on the popularity of blogging, or they just really dig what they do. Perhaps it's a little of both. Someone also writes as Joe from the Emerald City Bar and as "Debbie" from Seattle Grace Hospital. I ran across those some time last week and thought they were just creative bloggers, but apparently they're related to the show and written by the writers. They're worth checking out if you like the show.

((*Hugs* all around!))

Goodbye, Lisa.

2006-03-30T20:44:00.000-06:00

I'm not just a little embarrassed to say that I actually cried at Lisa's farewell to American Idol. I wasn't really a fan of Lisa Tucker (who I kept wanting to call Lisa Turtle), but she was really talented and so sweet! She just kept on a smilin'. She's so cute. Granted, ask me who I thought was going home tonight, I'da said Lisa Tucker.

But the bottom three...I'm sure the blogosphere and message boards are buzzing in unison with a big WTF? Sure, Ace needed to be in the bottom three. What a complete tool showing that scar and that crap look he tries to give at the end of each performance, but the third bottom should've rightly been Bucky. I like Bucky, I really do, but he's not becoming an American Idol. He'd be cool as hell to hang out with, but he's just not making it big. But, Katherine McPhee?? She's in my top three! I got the McPheeva! I'm having me some Katherine and she is not bottom three worthy. Something mighty weird is going on...mighty, mighty weird.

Here's my top three in no particular order. This is long overdue. I'm jumping on no bandwagon here, I've liked these three from the start (even though I swore I wouldn't watch past the auditions):

Taylor Hicks

Who doesn't like Taylor? He's the good and happy kind of unique. I totally dig.

Mandisa

We don't have to know her last name. It'll be like Cher and Beyonce...one name: Mandisa, and she's every woman.

Katherine McPhee

Smitten.

Monkey Memories Day

2006-03-29T06:36:00.000-06:00

Today is National Monkey Memories Day as set forth by Jiggs Casey. In case you're a total retard and don't know who monkey is, I should inform you that he is an epic of monkey proportions. I mean, he is a monkey of legend proportions. I mean...he's really, really great.

Today, I'm gonna sing the praises of monkey, and if you skulk around on all the cool people's blogs, you'll see that they're all doing it too. Jiggs is linking the others, so you should go there. I mean, watch my shit first, and then go there.

I'm a Good Christian Girl!

2006-03-25T15:29:00.000-06:00

I've been going to church lately, and you'd better not give me any shit about it.

I've been going to a very small, very multi-cultural church. There are definately things I miss about church, one being the genuine hearts of many of the people. I still cringe at evangelical, hit-you-on-the-head peeps who's minds are closed to divergent views, but there is definately some merit to a group of people gathering together and letting go of the crap of the week in unity together for a couple of hours or more each week...you know, and shit like that.

I Hope Not to got to Hell for This...

2006-03-23T12:46:00.000-06:00

I've seen this guy preaching on the local station a couple of times, and one day I video taped a little bit of his sermon. I hope I'm not going to hell for laughing so hard, because I'm sure God loves this little guy, but he's funny as hell. I uploaded it to YouTube here. I think he's swell. Hang in there cause it gets better.

And all this time, I thought I was the only one Jared was sneaking out with to smoke Marlboro Mediums, dammit. My Marlboros never taste like burnt plastic.

Hell, yeah I am.

2006-03-22T11:15:00.000-06:00

You Are The Sun

You represent the best of life - vitality, success, and and truth.
You tend to have a strong, centered, balanced personality.
Inspiration and discovery are your fortes. You are very mentally strong.
A talented mind, you tend to excel at math, philosophy, and music.

Your fortune:

As well as you have done in the past, the future is going to be filled with more success.
A new creative project is coming your way. Feed it, and it will grow into something huge.
Great riches, recognition, prosperity, or happiness is coming your way.
And it's possible that a fantastic vacation, or a new baby, is coming sooner than you think.

What Tarot Card Are You?

Brooke posted this on her blog. She's death because she rules! I'm not afraid of her though. She's pretty pleasant.

CastPost Blogs

2006-03-18T19:05:00.000-06:00

I thought every once in a while I'd post a random song. I'll take it off after a while, because I don't want the blog to load slowly for my peeps who still have dial-up.

I don't know about you, but for me, my music is an extention of myself. I like some pretty obscure stuff too, but I mostly listen to stuff in groups like...(mellow: James Blunt, Rufus Wainwright, The Shins, The Indigo Girls) (rock: The White Stripes, Jane's Addiction, Franz Ferdinand, The Killers, Modest Mouse, Iggy Pop) (popular: Shaggy, The Black Eyed Peas) and then the other stuff is pretty random. I even like folk and blue grass.

CastPost is an okay site for sharing songs...Not sharing as in file sharing, but sharing as in "Here, wanna listen to my shit?" It fucks up a lot though. When it's working well, it's pretty cool to go to and play a few songs while you're surfing around without having to launch itunes or real player. I remember frog asking if there was a radio grandpoo. I guess this is the closest thing :).

Right now, I'm working hard on rebuilding my song bank in itunes/ipod. It's really a lot of work when you've just lost about 2,000 songs. I'm almost glad though, because my music was really disorganized.

This song is definatley random. It's the Russian version of "All The Things She Said". You probably won't like it, but you can bite me. It actually makes me a little nauseous too, but it's interesting. I do shamefully like the original song though. It's really catchy. (moved- see castpost blog)

I'll work on getting some more stuff on my CastPost Blog (It's in my sidebar). Let me know if you make one too. I'd love you hear the stuff you listen to.

Song for frog moved to CastPost Blog.

Okay, I'm Back.

2006-03-17T05:22:00.000-06:00

Yes, just like that.

My laptop needed a revival. A Polanski revival, I guess. Windows crashed and everything had to be reinstalled. Fresh start.

Since Super Mongo decided to be all bitchy about the pictures I left on the blog while I was gone, I decided to go and find "the best picture ever," so I did the reasonable thing and typed "the best picture ever" into the google image search engine.

I am not at all surprised that the following were the first and third pictures respectively. Enjoy.

MIA

2006-02-25T18:54:00.000-06:00

I'm not going to be around for a while. Constant abuse of my laptop has taken it's toll. I'm going to have it looked at, but until then, my abillity to get on blogger will be limited. I'm going to look at this as rehab. You know you're addicted too. I'm going to try to find some other creative outlets for a while...like working on that fucking dissertation. I'll pop in whenever I can to say "hello". I really do love you guys and think of you often in my "real life", the non-virtual one. I can still check my e-mail from school, so feel free to drop me a line (grandpooofawesome@gmail.com). I'm coming back. Don't take me off your blogroll, or I will kill you. Thanks.

Flickr Monkey

2006-02-16T05:55:00.000-06:00

Want something to do this weekend? I was very pleasantly surprised when I got a flickr invitation to join this new, fun, and creative group. Flickr monkey is easy to build and cute as fucking hell. I changed the hue of my monkey a bit, so he's strange.

I'm not sure this particular monkey will be making it back to my arms. I took him to school, and he was literally kidnapped. My kids are obsessed.

Flickr monkey admin asks if this special monkey has a name. Any suggestions?

Any Questions?

2006-02-16T05:46:00.000-06:00

The majority of my homeroom 5th grade class is wonderful, considerate, and quiet. My Math class is a different story. We had a long weekend due to "snow day" and I come back to 50 questions.

-Did you get married this weekend?
-Who did?
-Are you dating anybody?
-Did you dye your hair again?
-Where did you get those shoes?
-Are they boots or half shoes?
-Can I see them?
-Are those your real nails?

Thank GOD I don't teach middle school.

My Monkey Valentine

2006-02-11T10:45:00.000-06:00

Okay Monkey, you did it. You wholly and completely captured my heart. You complete me. If you ever doubted it before, please let me assure you that I am 100% Monkey loyal.

I'm not the only one either. Your plan to take over the Blogosphere is working. Jiggs Casey made Monkey this Vanentine's Card and Miss Kendra sent Monkey some Vanentine's hippos. I have a feeling more are to come.

For you Monkey, I give you a list, I do so love lists, of why I love Monkey:

-his furry hoo-hah
-his fabulous adventures
-his witty and loving comments
-the love he shows his humans
-the love he shows his fellow bloggers
-his cute Bea Author voice
-the way he says, "Hello, this is Monkey. Welcome to my blaaaahhg."
-his honesty, his passion, and his trashiness
-his dragon friend, Calzone, who is insanely loveable
-his ability to find the coolest people in the blogosphere!
-and most, most, most of all...his fabulous human. more fabulous, I think, than Cate Blanchett. Did I just say that?

Poddie Mouth the iPod Sock Puppet

2006-02-09T22:36:00.000-06:00

It's best if you click the little play button at the bottom.

Don't say I never gave ya nothin.

"I Like Eggs"

2006-02-07T05:20:00.000-06:00

My Spaces

Some of my students have an advanced sense of humor. This is one example:

I was walking my class to lunch as the TAG teacher (gifted and talented) walked by. He has a pretty good repoire with all of the students in the school. One of my students said something to him that really didn't make any sense. He repeated to me what she said and then asked me, "Are you teaching your students the concept of random?"

Another one of my students who was at the back of the line turned around with a big grin on his face and said, "I like eggs."

Still Kind of A Kid

2006-02-05T08:07:00.000-06:00

I got them! The awesome Sysm sent me the rest of the Sponge Bob crew, and let me tell you...I was fucking beside myself. When he offered to send them, I had no idea how excited I'd be when they got here. Note that this is the first time I've received something via real mail from another blogger, so Sysm you're a part of my blog history :).

Plankton Rules!

Patrick is my favorite.

I took the watches to school to get these photos, and I wore the Patrick watch all day. At one time all of the girls were huddled around me checking out it's reversibility. One of them noted, "You're a kind of a kid in you're own way." I replied, "Well, yes I guess I am."

Thank you Sysm for helping me to stay young! :)