I hope everyone had a warm, happy Thanksgiving!
I did. I was kind of depressed at first, because on Thursday morning I was pretty much the only person left in the dorms, besides another dude that was on the floor above me, and my family didn't come up until 1:30 in the afternoon. But then we (mom, dad, leah and me) went down to a "hotel" (ahem--motel) in Napa Valley and looked at a couple of wineries (they were really cool), ate REALLY good food (some angel hair pasta, artichoke pizza, mashed potatoes, Thai food), and went shopping at some really cool thrift stores (I got pink legwarmers for $1). PLUS I got to see my family! It's amazing how I haven't seen Leah for about 3 months, but I still manage to argue with her about little things. Not that that's a bad thing, we actually got along pretty well. I guess I still have to mature a little more though...what a surprise. Ha ha. When Kaylan comes up tomorrow, she's supposed to bring a sofa with her for our dorm. Hm, we'll see if that really happens.
Less than two weeks until I get to go home for Christmas! And see everyone!!
Oh yeah, guys--Christmas party at my house December 20th! Everyone is invited!!!

Corie and Bria left me for Thanksgiving today. Bria left me her fish Little Cow to take care of. I hope he doesn't die, since I have bad luck with fish sometimes, as does my friend Cammy (ha ha!). I'm sad that I'm not going home, but not really. It's gonna be fun. Everyone's leaving on Wednesday, and I'm pretty much going to be the only one in the dorms that's still here on Thursday...I should take advantage of that and run around the halls naked, as my pal Alicia said. It's all gonna be worth it, tho, because I GET TO SEE MY FAMILY!! Yay!!

This picture of Jude Law amuses me.

Oh yeah. Today I dyed my hair. With a permenent color! Scary. But I dyed it a medium brown color, so it didn't show up at all. So no one worry, when I see you all at Xmas, I will look exactly the same as I did during school and the summer. I know you are all breathing a deep sigh of relief. :-)

I think people that have xangas should not be allowed to put songs with their journals. I mean, sure, it might have SOUNDED like a good idea to whoever thought of it, but I say, if I want to listen to music, I'LL decide WHEN and WHAT SONG it is!! Why can't I just read a xanga in peace?!

Ok, I'm done now.

So, Rolling Stone ranked "The Top 500 Albums of All Time."
I think I can understand if Weezer's Blue Album(#297) and Blood Sugar Sex Magik by the Chili Peppers (#310) are ranked higher than the White Stripes' Elephant(#390), because those are really good, basically classic, albums. But the Strokes Is this It(#367)? How can that album be ranked higher than Elephant? And Coldplay came in last, barely making the list with Rush of Blood to the Head at #473! I think Coldplay is way better than the Strokes, and it belongs up there with the White Stripes. Oh well. Pinkerton wasn't even on the list. I guess when it's kind of hard to please everyone with these kinds of articles.

Oh, and in case anyone wonders, the #1 ranked album on the list is Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Beatles. Seems a little random, but then, I've never actually heard the album. So I guess I wouldn't know.

Last night, Corie and Kaylan and I watched Swingers. It was kind of funny, because I thought that the movie was ABOUT swingers...you know, those couples that...yeah. But it's actually about a group of guys (ie Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn and some other guys)who go to swing clubs and try to pick up girls. It was actually a really well-done, funny movie. I liked it.
Then, we proceeded to be exemplary Integrated Studies nerds. We hung out in the lobby of the dorm until, like, 1 AM playing... Hangman! And not just any old hangman, NERD hangman! Dylan was the one making up the words, and he used words like "endorphin" and "vacillate" and "axiom." It was really, really pathetic. But still really funny at the same time. After we finished playing hangman, Kaylan and I decided to do our (stupid and pointless!) IS journals at 2 in the morning. It was good times. But I am very sleepy now. I need to get back on a regular schedule.

JACK OF ALL TRADES

JACK WHITE is to contribute five tracks to the COLD MOUNTAIN film soundtrack, including two new songs "NEVER FAR AWAY" and "CHRISTMAS TIME WILL SOON BE OVER".

The White Stripes guitarist will also play the traditional "Wayfaring Stranger", "Great High Mountain" and a cover of legendary bluesman Howlin' Wolf's "Sittin" On Top Of The World" on the compilation.

As well as appearing on the soundtrack, White has a small role in the film as an itinerant singer and musician. Cold Mountain – a Civil War-era drama and adaptation of Charles Frazier's book - is set to open on December 25 in the US and stars Jude Law, Nicole Kidman and Renee Zellweger.

As reported on Billboard the album, released Stateside on December 16, will also feature songs from bluegrass artist Alison Krauss and pianist Gabriel Yared.

The tracklisting for Cold Mountain is:

Jack White - "Wayfaring Stranger"
Reeltime Travelers - "Like a Songbird That Has Fallen"
Tim Eriksen, Riley Baugus & Tim O'Brien - "I Wish My Baby Was Born"
Alison Krauss - "The Scarlet Tide"
Tim Eriksen & Riley Baugus - "The Cuckoo"
Jack White - "Sittin' on Top of the World"
Tim Eriksen - "Am I Born To Die?"
Alison Krauss - "You Will Be My Ain True Love"
Sacred Harp Singers at Liberty Church - "I'm Going Home"
Jack White - "Never Far Away"
Jack White - "Christmas Time Will Soon Be Over"
Stuart Duncan & Dirk Powell - "Ruby With the Eyes That Sparkle"
Cassie Franklin - "Lady Margaret"
Jack White - "Great High Mountain"
Gabriel Yared - "Anthem"
Gabriel Yared - "Ada Plays"
Gabriel Yared - "Ada and Inman"
Gabriel Yared - "Love Theme"
Sacred Harp Singers at Liberty Church - "Idumea"

I'M SO EXCITED! I'M SOO BUYING THIS CD WHEN IT COMES OUT! And not just because Jack White is on it...I actually think the other songs should be good too--it's the same guy who did the soundtrack to O Brother, Where art Thou?, so it can't be bad!

THIS JUST IN:
Billy Bob Thornton's favorite TV show of all time is Saved By the Bell.

Yep, he said it on Conan like, 5 minutes ago. I had to report.

I saw three bands tonight:
1.The Lashes
2.Cobra High
3.Pretty Girls Make Graves

This is how I would rate them on a scale of 1-5:
Lashes: 4
Cobra High: 2
Pretty Girls: 3

It was funny, because the lead singer of The Lashes was a guy, but he looked kind of like Kelly Osbourne. Good times. And Cobra High and Pretty Girls Make Graves weren't actually that bad, but they were SOO amplified in a tiny space that I really couldn't tell how their songs sounded. That's why CDs are sometimes nice. But yeah--The Lashes could be big, man! Keep an eye out for them!

You have wonderful taste in movies, music, and so
on. I am just so proud of you,
it.....well.....I think I love you.


Do you have good taste?
brought to you by Quizilla

Ha ha! I knew it! If the quiz says it, then it must be true! I have good taste!

Ok, I just had to post this because it's really funny. WHO kisses like that?!

Today I actually gave blood! It was amazing. Because I have a (relatively) long history of failing my blood-giving attempts. Junior year: forgot my ID card, so couldn't do it. Plus, I was FREAKED OUT about giving blood and probaby wouldn't have gone through with it anyway. Senior year: got as far as the chair where they poke you with the IV, but then they said my veins were too small for their needles...glad they didn't attempt to poke me before they decided that. So today, Corie, Karie and I go out to Freeborn Hall to attempt to give blood. And they actually took mine! They really took it! I feel like such a saint. Well, not really, I actually feel a little light-headed still, but I'm just glad that I finally did it. AND I didn't pass out or anything! The nurse who took my blood was really nice too, she talked to me about classes and school for pretty much the whole time she took my blood. And it was kind of funny, because she couldn't see my vein, she could only feel it, so she drew on my vein with a "Surgical Skin Marker," and once you use those, you have to give them away, since they have to be sterilized. So now I have a surgical skin marker. Anyone need one? I actually made the mistake of writing my name on my arm and drawing a bracelet around my wrist with it, only to find out that it doesn't really scrub off in the shower. I guess that's why it's "different" from the usual markers.
Ok. That's pretty much all I have to say.

Aww! Look how cute they are! (And yes, Jack needs to cut his hair)

This is a short film by zefrank called "Cause". It's pretty funny, kinda weird, a little bit thought-provoking...just go watch it, ok?
Oh yeah, you need Quicktime, too. Just so's ya know.

Your inner disney song is "River Bend"
from Pocahontas! At this point in time, you're
not sure if you want to do what other tell you
to do, or wait for something you want to come
along. You can't wait to find out what will
happen next in your life. Don't lose hope!
It'll all be revealed eventually.


What's Your Inner Disney Song?
brought to you by Quizilla

What the? Why do I always get the disney movies that I hate the most?

I just think this photo is very arty-looking and cool. It's me and Jessica getting into playing the bongo drums at Colleen's boyfriend's house in Berkeley. And yes, everyone who lives in Berkeley owns bongo drums!


This is also at Colleen's boyfriend's house. Don't ask.

Far surpassing gas-guzzling SUVs, the largest consumer of fossil fuels in the US are the animal factory farms which produce flesh, dairy, and eggs for human consumption. The production of animal flesh, dairy, and eggs accounts for 1/3 of ALL raw materials used for all purposes in the US (note that vegetables and fruit use less than 5%). Energy is required to bring food to the animals and even more is required to remove their waste.

*Length of time the world's petroleum supplies would last if everyone ate factory-farmed meat: 13 years

*Length of time the world's petroleum supplies would last if everyone were a strict vegetarian: 260 years

Oil Exploration and consumption is upsetting the natural balance of the oceans, land, and is seriously threatening the lives of animals and indigenous peoples by destroying fragile ecosystems. It is apparent that alternatives to fossil fuel consumption must be found in cleaner, more sustainable energy sources.

THAT'S (sort of) WHY I'M VEGETARIAN!
(not to make all you meat-eaters feel guilty, or anything)

Ok, I finally got my film developed from this summer/college. So here are some pics of random people in my dorm that I'm friends with:

Eugene, Ping, Josue, and Sharmen



This is Alicia. It was the first day the cold weather hit, and she was having problems warming up, so she was walking around dressed like that. We gave her newspapers and made her sit on the bench outside our room!



This is Dylan (on the left) and Scott (on the right) making fun of some girls who were lying outside in their bikinis. It was HILARIOUS to see how the girls reacted when Scott and Dylan came outside!



This is Scott (a different Scott) "trayboarding" on a stolen tray from the DC. Colleen and Scott invented the sport. He was actually pretty good at it...you can't tell in this picture.


Dylan and George playing soccer in the lounge area. A frequent spot for sports (you have no idea how scary it is to hear a soccer ball or a frisbee hit your door when it's closed--quite frightening.)

Ok, that's all I feel like posting. But I hope you guys liked the pics!

We went to San Francisco today! Since it was Veteran's Day, we had no school, and Kaylan, Colleen, Jessica and I decided to drive/take BART to SF! It was fun. And we took these awesome pictures! It's me and Jessica in the back, and Kaylan and Colleen in the front. (I just scanned two of them, since it takes up a lot of space to show all four)



Yes, they are extremely unflattering pictures of me. Sometimes I have problems looking normal in photos!

There are twelve pounds of milk in one gallon of ice cream. Is that crazy or what?



ps-I know this because Kaylan is in animal science. And she likes to tell me interesting facts like that. Oh! She just told me another very interesting fact. Milk is 88% water. Oh, what amazing fact will I learn next?!

Billy got to meet Naomi Watts and Benicio del Toro tonight. It makes me happy, but at the same time, I'm sad that I didn't get to meet them myself!

I had something else to post...but I forgot what it was. Oh yeah! I FINALLY finished One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (That's why it was up there for so long). It's only about 270 pages, but it took me FOREVER to read, because I didn't always feel like reading it in my free time. It was pretty good. I especially reccommend it to people who haven't seen the movie, since it's pretty much exactly the same. If you read the book, see the movie after, not before.
Since I'm not reading a book right now, I decided to put up one of my "childhood favorites"--Jame's Thurber's The 13 Clocks. It is one of the weirdest little kids stories ever, but in a good way, not a morbid "Roald-Dahl" way. I mean, come on, it's James Thurber! I love his short stories. He's a pretty weird author in general. But the book is really good. I've read it like, 4 times, since it's only 124 pages. So yes. I reccommend it. And I think I spelled reccommend wrong. But I don't care.

Billy is my friend. But this conversation is an example of why he bothers me sometimes. He knows exactly how to make me confused, annoyed, and angry...all at the same time!

BuckoGal : do you get excercise
BillyBob7x : no
BuckoGal : i can't spell
BillyBob7x: but i lose weight
BillyBob7x: lol
BuckoGal : ha ha
BuckoGal : do you never eat?
BillyBob7x : sometimes i eat a lot
BillyBob7x : sometimes i eat never
BuckoGal : ha ha
BuckoGal : same here!
BuckoGal : i only ate one meal today
BuckoGal : at 5:30
BillyBob7x : good job
BillyBob7x : anorexic
BuckoGal : but then i had a lot of food on the weekends
BuckoGal :ha ha
BuckoGal :i'm never anorexic
BuckoGal : food tastes too good
BillyBob7x :haha
BuckoGal :i''m just lazy
BillyBob7x : vegetarian?
BuckoGal : huh?
BillyBob7x: are u stil
BuckoGal : yes!
BuckoGal : and proud of it
BillyBob7x : im not
BuckoGal : i'm trying not to eat ANY meat now
BuckoGal : ha ha
BuckoGal : wait
BuckoGal : you're not vegetarian anymore??
BillyBob7x: nope
BuckoGal : what??
BuckoGal : why???
BillyBob7x : cuz i dont care
BuckoGal : why don't you care?
BillyBob7x : cuz it tastes good
BuckoGal : billy
BuckoGal : i should call you right now
BuckoGal : but i don't feel like going outside
BillyBob7x : lol
BuckoGal : i can't believe that
BuckoGal : are you serious?
BillyBob7x : no
BillyBob7x : im lying
BuckoGal : really?
BillyBob7x : muahahahaha
BuckoGal : YOU CONFUSE ME!
BillyBob7x : id never eat meat
BuckoGal : i hate you!!!!!!!!!!!
BillyBob7x : thats demon's food!
BillyBob7x : lol
BuckoGal : so.....what is the TRUTH?
BillyBob7x : im still a good vegetarian
BuckoGal : whew
BuckoGal : you have no idea how happy i am
BuckoGal : ha ha
BillyBob7x : haha
BillyBob7x : why
BuckoGal : it's like--a reflection of your morality or something
BuckoGal : ha ha
BillyBob7x: lol
BuckoGal : i don't know
BillyBob7x: sounds good

Yes, Billy likes to trick me sometimes. But I love him anyway.

I just got back from playing ultimate frisbee again. It was actually fun this time! We went out to the field after it had rained a lot yesterday, so there was some mud, but it was really fun because we weren't keeping score this time, and no one really cared about winning. Our team lost. And I'm proud of it!

I've added Burt's Bees to my list of links. This is because they are awesome. They use almost 100% natural ingredients, never test on animals, aren't overpriced, AND they have a big conservation effort going on, where they're buying lots of acres of the great North Woods in Maine to protect the wildlife and keep them from being developed. And their chapstick rocks. What more could one ask for in a company?

Today they had a "Tunnel of Oppression" near my dorm...yep, that's what it was called. We didn't really know what it was, so we decided to go for fun. It wasn't very fun. It was a kind of "museum of tolerance" type of thing, showing how apathy and different types of oppression towards others can build up around us and inside of us, without us really being aware of it. Like being mean to a homeless guy, or making fun of homosexuals. Kind of cheesy, but hey--at least they were trying to spread a good message, right? I got this good quote out of it too, which I will share:

In Germany, they first came for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up becaue I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionist, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the homosexuals, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a homosexual.
Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me--but by that time no one was left to speak up.
--Pastor Martin Niemoller

Interesting times at Halloween

This photo is disturbing for a number of reasons. Perhaps the most disturbing reason is that he is wearing my jeans.

Hmm.
This guy digs his rats.

The End of the World
Ok, this is a really funny little cartoon.
Warning: Language and some violence

Ok, I'm NOT crazy! I promise! I looked at Kaylan's computer, and there's basically nothing wrong with my blog. Except I had to fix the comment boxes. And now there are no comments. And it makes me sad. Oh well. Everybody comment! Make me feel special!
So guess what, guys? I got to see Gandhi speak last night! For free, too! Ok, so it was exactly MAHATMA Gandhi, but it WAS his grandson, Arun Gandhi. Very exciting. Well, ok, maybe it wasn't that exciting either. But it was kind of inspirational, regarding ideas of nonviolence and tolerance of those around us, and all that sort of thing. He told about the memories he had of his grandfather, too. So yes. If he comes to your school (which he probably won't, because UC Davis is SPECIAL, and they asked him to come), then go see him!
ps-Halloween photos are coming! I'm sure you guys just can't WAIT to see them! But I have to shoot up the rest of the 3 shots that I have left on the roll.

Ok. SOMEthing is wrong with my blog. I'm so sad! It's never had problems before! But there's a weird dandylion-looking thing instead of a bracket-thing next to my title, and the comments boxes are gone! Why? Why?! I will try to fix it as soon as possible.

Welp, Halloween is over. I think I procrastinated a little too much this weekend; I had about 200 pages to read for the conscious thought take-home midterm tomorrow, but um...just didn't read any of them. But because of my procrastination, I figured out what classes I'm (hopefully) taking next quarter. Art Studio (beginning painting), Conversational German 6, Linguistics 103B, Beginning Badminton, and Constitutional Perspectives. Does that sound like a lot? I think it's only about 17 units. But yeah. I don't think the badminton or the art class is gonna be too hard. And hopefully, I can be in the fencing club, too! So I can get actual excercise! Riding my bike to class only does so much....
ps-Jessica's dad said he doesn't need the jumpsuits back. So I get to keep it! Anyone need to dress up as a janitor anytime soon?