CANDY FOR STRANGERS

2009-06-05T14:24:00.001-04:00

2009-05-22T18:37:00.000-04:00

2009-04-09T15:09:00.001-04:00

Rebel Yellow, Queen Loseyateefa and Deathskull | Rollergirls

Sure, these three women are friends, but not until they get off the track. In the rink, they compete against each other in the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association for Atlanta. Deathskull, fondly called “Skully” by her husband and four year old daughter, is a part-time photography professor at Georgia State University. Rebel, just a rookie last year and now an all star, is a grad student at Emory. Queen Loseyateefa plays the Pivot, the leader of the pack, and works for Bank of America. They all play for different teams: i.e The Denim Demons, Apocalypstix and Dirty South Derby Girls. While their cute “boutfits” and nicknames are good-humored, the strategy and competitiveness of the game is serious. The Rollergirls play tough and can come home with plenty of bruised limbs and egos after a rough match. “We give our blood, sweat, and tears to this,” says Queen. “It’s like we’re in a relationship with this sport.”

2009-04-06T14:44:00.000-04:00

2009-03-27T10:43:00.002-04:00

at about midnight last night, i got what i assumed was a butt-dial - from Reckless Ndangerment. i heard a bar, and lots of noise...and then REBEL YELL, belted out by the one and only Flo Shizzle. love the love, from 700 miles away.

2009-03-25T19:35:00.003-04:00

first demons game this saturday!!!

so stoked. i think we've come together a lot in the last few weeks, and this game will be awesome. the sakes are in the same boat as us- rebuilding year, lots of rookies - and they are lovely ladies.

sitting in lab at 7:30(had a 6 hour stimulus)...working on helmets for the rookies in the downtime. the first was freehanded, a bastard font i kinda stole from riley, the second was with a stencil. love the demons' colors - navy, red and white - old school superhero.

2009-03-18T21:16:00.002-04:00

i have made it!!! am the theme of the lookbook on http://www.modcloth.com/

2009-03-17T17:52:00.001-04:00

2009-03-05T09:51:00.001-05:00

i've just been playing this over and over...

2009-03-03T20:08:00.002-05:00

it's been a while. between school and lab and derby, i haven't been the healthiest- late night food, junk, and lots and lots of caffeine. so tonight i fixed myself a last supper(seared steak with sage butter, spinach and butternut squash pasta!) as a pre-detox treat.

this is the deal: two days of juice. it tastes like weak grapefruit juice, and it's a gallon a day. i've gotta do it now, because it's my last two days without skating - and skating without eating is thoroughly inconceivable to me. i know multiple people who swear by this - we shall see. i kind of expect to be all kinds of delirious by this time tomorrow. if my next post is gibberish, they we'll know!

2008-12-30T09:59:00.003-05:00

i am a DENIM DEMON!! anchors away!!

2008-12-25T12:19:00.002-05:00

happy jolly fat man day!

am back in bmore(well, bmore adjacent) for the holidays...love being home, hate being cold. the trip back was alright, it was NSP's first flight and consisted of the normal travel BS- delayed flight, overweight luggage, waiting area drunk wailing hysterically, etc. that last was a blessing and a curse, it was absolutely delightfully awful.

picture a late thirties-early forties lands-end style blonde slurring and fake crying until she's red in the face. imagine her demanding luggage from neighboring strangers and threatening physical assault. cut to her calling the cutest(and most dapper) elderly gentleman i've ever seen an asshole, and pegging a kid in the face with her trash.....just warms the heart, doesn't it? turns out she was a passsenger who belonged two terminals down and left all her luggage in a bar and skipped out on her tab. just lovely.

anyways, i've got about two weeks here - trying to fit in seeing every one and balancing the desire to do so with my hate of the cold and limited mobility(not the scooter-store kind, the kind where i left my car all alone in the cold in atlanta). regardless, i'm back, hit me up if you wanna skate/eat/drink/address envelopes/fritter some time away.

2008-11-26T15:20:00.004-05:00

i don't know what it is about thanksgiving that's the ghost of summers-gone-by. personally, i love it, but i wonder what moves the powers that be to schedule armageddon, the day after tomorrow, the xmen trilogy, all the jack ryan movies - what is it a bout a fall day with a lot of turkey that makes us want to relive the epic and overblown?

it's the first time in five years that i won't be home, although grace promises me she'll hold down the fort at the kids' table at our always lovely and always schizophrenic thanksgiving dinner(think stuffing and sushi). one of the rollergirls down here has her parents in town and is taking in orphans, so despite my family-lessness i'll be steeped in holiday cheer.

there's one thing that makes me sad tho - it's the end of turkeybowl. it's not really my tradition(i only did it for three years, out of the 15 it's been running), and i'm not there anyways, but it's disconcerting to think that there's no hungover freezing muddy people on the thunder hill field. booo.

anyways, happy turkey day!

2008-11-25T17:22:00.002-05:00

lifted from Steven Bieri

2008-11-18T14:52:00.002-05:00

seen on the 2nd floor bulletin board in WMB:

WANTED: DWARF for CHRISTMAS CARD PHOTOSHOOT $100
-must be actual dwarf, not just a really short person
-must be willing to work with drunken santa

clever tall people who respond to this ad will be verbally abused.

2008-11-17T15:44:00.002-05:00

i'm flabbergasted. while i find jimmy fallon adorable, i've got no delusions as to his actual comedic talent, outside john-mayer-style songs about gay parades.

so ?uestlove, what are you thinking??

2008-11-13T22:38:00.004-05:00

have been sick since the end of october... miserable. halloween was worth it tho. i was a LOLzombie, a Bowie in Space, and an entry-level-alt/american apparel zombie :D

had two exams in a week - through a really bad haze of fever and bronchitis. scared to see how those turned out. but it's over, and it's fall - which i love, because it means i can start layering, and wearing whole sections of my closet at once. also, i can do break out the puppy apparel(see left!)

gotta do a bmore recap, but don't have the energy as of yet...more to come.

2008-11-04T23:02:00.000-05:00

it is FORECASTED that i am about to be VERY HAPPY!!!!! WHOOOO!!!!

2008-10-30T21:15:00.002-04:00

such a good weekend home...family, friends, derby...and a derby wedding! more on that later. for now - vote for Riley for a Baker Artist Award!

http://www.bakerartistawards.org/nomination/view/mike_riley

2008-10-21T23:00:00.004-04:00

BACK TO BMORE!!!

that's right, i'll be back in town this weekend!!

friday night i'll be at the BALTIMONSTER closing party - great art, awesome bands, and free sparks, at THE ECHO, next to the windup!

saturday is the CHARM CITY ROLLER GIRLS CHAMPIONSHIP GAME!!! i'll be skating with the REGIME again, and pistol whip and mr pistol will be tying the knot at halftime!!

am stoked to be back, it's gonna be rad. if you're down for a drink or a coffee(or a brunch, or basement korean) gimme a call!

2008-10-14T15:24:00.002-04:00

i know i posted this on my facebook last week, but it's awesome enough that i had to put it up again:

2008-10-13T13:05:00.002-04:00

pics from the ARG Champ bout are up!! many thx to ed selby for these gorgeous photos.

2008-10-09T01:32:00.005-04:00

this show's gonna be AWESOME!!! put together by Peter Goode at the Echo, a new space next to the Windup - it includes tons of great artists(Riley's got about 30 pieces, including one of ours), opens THIS SATURDAY!!!

i'll be in town for the closing bash on the 24th, hope to see you there!!

2008-10-08T14:39:00.002-04:00

i understand that young people really need to turn out and voice their opinions for the upcoming election. but this??

really, YOU ARE NOT HELPING.

2008-10-04T13:01:00.003-04:00

still no pictures, but video from the grudge match- from edna's roomate:

i can haz spinning wipeout? at about 3:30..

2008-10-02T21:24:00.003-04:00

study break for the vp debate. wish i could be at midway playing debate bingo - but i'll survive. it's okay tho. i have joe. I LOVE YOU, JOE!!

that is all. :D

2008-09-30T20:41:00.006-04:00

spent this weekend feeling like i was beyond the thunderdome. nearly broke out my leather pants and biker jacket to hit the streets with NSP.

had filled up last week, thought i could ride this out - how bad could it be? www.jam-code.com said about half the intown gas stations had gas, so with a gallon in the tank i figured i'd get gas on the way to practice saturday. unfortunately, the internets LIED to me!! apparently, the tubes are filled with more than lolkittehs and porn - i drove around till i was on fumes, trying to find gas. after forty-five minutes of searching - nothing in va highlands, l5p, eav or midtown.

i managed to coast back to my apartment, and i was stranded. luckily, i managed to find someone with an empty schedule and almost a full tank of gas who was willing to help me hunt for gas. we found one station in the city with gas - and a line about half a mile long. after another hour of driving, we found a station with a shorter line:

srsly. that was the best we could find. after all this, i had a massive headache, 3 gallons of gas in a portable tank, and the sinking realization that i'd have to do it all again in a couple of days. i can haz elektrik car??

2008-09-26T11:39:00.001-04:00

just went to the doctor - the wrist is sprained, no messy broken bones! whoo!! now off to immunology...

2008-08-30T17:56:00.013-04:00

I'M IN ATLANTA. i know i've been AWOL and this has been a long time coming...

moving was tough. i was stressing a ton in the weeks before the move; it wasn't till my apartment was empty and i was through the walk-through that i felt better...even started to get a little excited.

so here's my move via photogallery, starring NSP, of course. i had a friend in college who did the same thing with a toy while backpacking Europe - he had a great story about asking a hooker in amsterdam to pose for a picture holding his Gumby - both miscommunication and hilarity did ensue.

snuggs mcvicious in my empty apartment. he was pretty sulky through the whole thing, what with all the commotion.

my co-pilot, hard at work. the trip wasn't bad - my parents and i caravanned and it's a 10+hour drive so we split it in two days. take home lesson: there's a whole lot of trees and not much else south of the mason dixon line. it did make me feel a bit better about how baltimore calls itself "the city that reads" or "the greatest city in america."

the sign that read "you are now entering VIRGINIA'S TECHNOLOGY CORRIDOR" was followed by thirty miles of woods, a couple of farms and a filling station/junk shop. north carolina's "crossroads of the future" was an econolodge, more trees and the country's largest cigarette depot. compare to that, our charm runneth over.

big pimpin, in our hotel room. we stopped in charlotte, about six hours from bmore and four to atlanta. it was to be our last night in luxury; when we got to my adorable little apartment, i found that allconnect(BOOO) still hadn't put my orders for gas and electric through...the electric was on, although still under my propery management - but no gas. this meant no stove, which was not huge - being anywhere with my parents means eating out and eating well. unfortunately, it also meant no hot water heater...WHICH MEANT NO HOT WATER. for a WEEK.

my parents moved on to savannah after they got me settled in...luckily, mel was in north carolina visiting family and she drove down for a few days to help me get acclimated. by the end of the week, i had hot water and internet again, and started feeling a little at home. saturday was the dragoncon parade with the rollergirls, and sunday jeff came down with hollowboy to open for MSI.

so now i'm back in classes, which takes a little getting used to...and i'm also cleared to skate with the sake tuyas in the ARG grudge match on the 20th!

ps. atlanta can be surprisingly cool, and i like have having visitors. FYI. kthxbai.

2008-08-14T16:37:00.001-04:00

so much to do. so of course, i'm doing this instead.

i've been trying to make plans; been kind of lost lately, thought being proactive about things would keep me more together. this weekend, at least, it kept me busy. and skating. and dancing.

on the upside, virgin fest went way better than i expected - granted, i was exhausted, but they took pretty good care of us. we had tons of water and a place to crash; they kept us fed and we had access to the VIP areas, bar and viewing deck. also, i got a chance to rock my gold fanny pack. on the downside, the area we had for the track was.....rough. really rough. slanted, cracked and gritty - i've got more scrapes and bruises than i've had all season. c'est la vie.

the music was good...the crowd in general, was not. or maybe it's just that i don't like crowds. at some shows though, there would be people waiting by the stage - who wouldn't get into the music at all and hadn't the faintest idea who the bands were or what they were playing. it really started getting to me at bloc party, where all the baby alts waxed ecstatic about crowdsurfing the four feet to the barrier. there was also a mosh pit, which just seemed ridiculous. moshing to 'this modern love' is like skanking to puccini - unnecessary and just kinda dumb. it amazes me how strongly i dislike people in general, considering how quickly and thoroughly i become fond of individuals.

anyways, i saw some good shows, danced a ton, and then realized i had a week left in baltimore. this isn't going how i thought it would - i don't know why it seemed so simple. leaving next tuesday, my mobile will be the same, e-me for my new address. (mail me something, it makes me feel special!)

2008-08-12T14:10:00.002-04:00

i think i found NSP's family...there's definitely a resemblence.

photo via cuteoverload

2008-08-06T14:34:00.002-04:00

so this is it... my last week or so in baltimore. doing the virgin fest this weekend - it's pretty much my last hurrah before i sink into the madness that is packing and moving.

it's going to be an awesome time - totally pysched for gogol bordello, bloc party, the go! team, lupe fiasco and dylan just to name a few.

and guess what? we're in the WALL STREET JOURNAL!!! now that there's some serious street cred.

2008-07-25T17:43:00.003-04:00

LOOK! it's video from my derby debut - the seasoner opener a couple months ago!

Charm City Roller Girls 1 from SENBaltimore on Vimeo.

if you wanna see it in real life, my last game with charm city is TOMORROW, at DuBurns in Canton at 7!

2008-06-22T15:01:00.000-04:00

Yay pants!

2008-05-11T11:28:00.000-04:00

Yay!

2008-05-01T17:54:00.003-04:00

THIS IS IT!!!

I've been skating up to four times a week, volunteering my ass off, and MY FIRST GAME IS THIS SATURDAY!!!!!!!!! Doors at 6, bout at 7, in Canton at the DuBurns arena!

Get your tickets online or at the door, but COME SEE ME PLAY!!!!!!

Also, wear green and help represent the SPEED REGIME!!!!

2008-04-24T17:02:00.000-04:00

2008-04-09T16:19:00.003-04:00

YOU KNOW YOU'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO BE A DICTATOR.......

BE A SPEED REGIME SPONSOR!!!

"TOTALITARIAN" - $1000 or 6 uniforms

-Logo on scorecard, programs, team banner

-Logo and link on CCRG website and MySpace

-2 CCRG season passes

"DICTATOR" - $500 of 2 uniforms

-Logo on programs & team banner

-Logo and link on CCRG website and MySpace

-2 CCRG season passes

"REBEL" - $50

-Logo in programs

-Logo and link on CCRG website and MySpace

SOUND GOOD? you know it does, hit me up if you're interested.

2008-03-31T17:46:00.001-04:00

So this is it.....UW in Seattle, Emory in Altanta, or Vanderbilt in Nashville. Any thoughts? Anyone wanna just decide for me??

2008-03-24T13:32:00.001-04:00

2008-03-10T14:43:00.002-04:00

It's been a really busy couple of weeks....between work, derby, travelling for interviews and b-team practices(ie, more derby), I've been run kinda ragged. Did, however, manage to squeeze in an appearance at the Fashion Rocks party at the Rockstar showroom....fun fun fun!

Good new so far:

1. I got an offer from the UW Immunology PhD program! The visit to Seattle was awesome, and i'm relieved that I've got somewhere to go- and it's nice that it's somewhere I'd love to live for the next five years.

2. I'm playing in the bout this coming saturday MARCH 15!!! No, i'm not playing with the big girls, but I'm captaining the B-team for a scrimmage against DC. So get your tickets and come see me! Doors at 6, bout at 7 - we go on at 6:15, so get there early!!!!

2008-02-19T11:06:00.001-05:00

So Sunday was a smashing success; I don't really remember it - I was pretty much delirious the whole time. But we made the Examiner(of all things!)

2008-02-14T10:20:00.001-05:00

TWO OF MY FAVORITE THINGS....

just in time for vday.
http://www.core77.com/blog/object_culture/chocolate_scrabble_8947.asp

2008-02-05T13:11:00.001-05:00

2008-01-15T14:50:00.001-05:00

So the last two weeks have been a bit crazy...New Year's, then my birthday and the Rollergirls' Awards Banquet(pictures on Flickr).

My first scrimmage, my first three invitations to interview for next year(U Wash Seattle, Emory and Wash U in St Louis.....wheee!!!!) A trip up to NY to see Sharona, Stacy's birthday and Brandyn's too.

And then an accident last night that totaled my car. (not so wheee) No one was seriously hurt, but I'm not sure if the car is going to make it through....according to Riley, this is what I get for playing Good Charlotte in the car - a cosmic musical smite-ing.

2008-01-03T15:52:00.000-05:00

Love DOLLHOUSE BOUTIQUE. For the virtual runway show, and to see me rock marie-antoinette-punk, click the picture under "Runway"!!! too bad there are no shots of the giant fur hat....

2007-12-12T14:04:00.000-05:00

like hardwood? fishnets? want to know where I've disappeared to the past two months??

we're looking for new Charm City Roller girls....

the next round of tryouts will be held on:
Monday January 21, 2007 from 7pm - 10pm

Please come to these mandatory workshops prior to tryouts so that you
may work on some of the skills we will be testing for:

1. Sunday January 6 (8am - 10pm)
2. Saturday January 12 (10am - 12pm)

Also, Please continute to attend open skates on Thursdays and
Sundays at Puttyhill skateland. Don't be afraid to ask any of the
CCRG ladies there any questions you may have. And skate as MUCH as
possible before these tryouts (that includes outdoors if you can).

2007-11-19T16:19:00.001-05:00

2007-10-24T14:49:00.000-04:00

you should read baltimoresunonline....I'm in METROMIX!!!

2007-10-21T10:11:00.000-04:00

had tryouts yesterday morning, am now a CHARM CITY ROLLER GIRL!!!!!!

2007-10-17T15:52:00.000-04:00

LAST NIGHT ROCKED. We went to see Gogol Bordello at Sonar; the show was amazing(moustache, old guy in a bondage vest and matching percussion gypsies in full effect) and the mosh pit large and violent(I went home soaked in other peoples' sweat and Nitya got literally picked up and thrown), two of my favorite rollergirls were in attendance, as was Alex from Scythian. To top it all off, we got pizza and swung by Brewer's.....where we met none other than Steve McNair! Now, I don't follow the footsketball or whatever, but I see why the man is worth millions....

2007-10-07T10:34:00.000-04:00

I HURT. We had our first skatertot basic skills practice yesterday, and I am so sore I have problems sitting down and getting up, not to mention walking. My thighs are sore, my ass is sore, my ankle is wobbly and I have rink rash. Dead sexy, eh??

Anyways, am now throwing almost all the heels I own into a bag, have to head down to Dollhouse Boutique in an hour for hair and makeup- walking in a show there featuring some pretty awesome couture pieces....hopefully I'll be able to do a decent job, because right now I feel like I've got the joints, coordination and sex appeal of an octagenarian. Wish me luck....

2007-10-02T23:03:00.000-04:00

DERBYDERBYDERBY

So I'm definitely going out for Charm City Roller Girls later this month. The Championship bout is the 14th; if you wanna come, let me know - I'll probably be picking up tickets sometime soon.

If I make it, I need a derby name. And with that, I need help. All the names have to be unique(there's an international rollergirls' roster), so China White, Orient Express, Punky Bruiser, Kid Vicious and Bruise Lee are out. I'm taking votes, here's what I've come up with so far:

1. Viral Vexor - 4
2. Avant Garter - 2
3. Rebel Yellow - 6

we shall see......

2007-09-25T23:01:00.000-04:00

Every time, I start this with "it's been a long while"....and yet again, it is true. A quick catch up:

1. Sharona came down, met everyone, saw the place. This makes her third visit, more than anyone can reasonably ask for. So your friend jumped in front of a bus for you? So what, Sharona came to Baltimore THREE TIMES for me!

2. Went up to Boston to help Sharona settle in to Beacon Hill. Great musical roadtrip up w/ Nitya and Duncan, followed by a hectic weekend of moving. Her place looks awesome now though, and she now has more of my paintings up than I do. Love Boston, miss real cities.

2. Went up to NY for fashion week. Youssof is the best host ever, I heart NY. Real cities(esp. real cities with fashion) ROCK. Notice a trend?

3. I have bangs. Huge, mod, china-doll bangs.

4. Am going out for ROLLER DERBY!!!! Figure I should do the BMore thing while I'm here, and what's more Baltimore than that? girls + skates + fishnets = awesome.

5. Went to Missy and Jason's for their engagement/housewarming party. The house is gorgeous, and they were in fine form, as always. It was good to see everyone. Congrats, darlings!

I think that's all for now. Still applying to school, working, spoiling the pooch rotten. Might be doing something cool at Dollhouse Boutique; will try to be better about updating this...

2007-08-22T13:11:00.001-04:00

2007-08-20T17:28:00.000-04:00

anyone know of a job where you build famous landmarks out of tissue culture plates?
because las time i checked, being a Toys R Us kid doesn't pay so great.....

2007-08-06T13:00:00.000-04:00

Am sore as hell, but still basking in the afterglow, going through my pictures and rewatching my videos from Virgin Festival. Take a walk with me...

Welcome to Virgin Festival. Abandon all logic, ye who enter here.

The first act we saw was Regina Spektor, who was charmingly lyrical, even if she has a different accent in every verse. I forgive her, and I want that guitar. We were actually a bit far back in the crowd, but surprisingly it actually made for better video, since it wasn't as loud and there was less distortion. Vids are: Regina Spektor, Spoon, Smashing Pumpkins.

Next came Spoon, who rocked. We heart Brit Daniel.

I skipped out on Panic! at the Disco to see Bad Brains and hit up the Artists' Lounge a la the magic that is Mel and the VIP-ness she provides. Came back to the North Stage for Yeah Yeah Yeahs, who aside from SP may have been my favorite act of the day. Karen O is friggin crazy; like Joan Jett meets Gene Simmons, and she is awesome.

Then came Interpol, dusk and a light rain which seemed very apropos. By now we were packed in like sardines, and it became impossible to get a steady shot in low light - the crowd moves, and you move with the crowd, no matter how you try to brace yourself and exhale.

And then.....The SMASHING PUMPKINS. Well, it was pretty much Billy Corgan + others, but that's how it goes.

We'll crucify the insincere tonight
We'll make things right, we'll feel it all tonight

Billy always brings out the melancholie in me...

2007-07-12T14:54:00.000-04:00

you know what's awesome?

I'M GOING TO SEE THE CURE IN SEPTEMBER.
that is all.

2007-07-10T23:04:00.000-04:00

Yeah, it's been a couple of months. Being the dork that I am, I'm back on blogger because I wanted to write about Transformers and I don't want to work on my powerpoint for journal club...but I should probably run through the past couple of weeks first.

1. I graduated. I didn't walk, but I did celebrate a little.

2. Sharona also graduated -it's Dr. Ben-Haim to you. I visited Stace in LA and then we went down for her graduation...so proud!!

3. Since I got back, it's pretty much just been work, quality time with the pooch, brewer's art/dionysus/loitering in mt. vernon, frequenting our newly discovered Italian deli, and the odd musical diversion(ze renato = awesome). oh, and more brewer's, truffle shuffles and all.

2007-04-17T00:19:00.000-04:00

I know, it's been forever. But there has been stress, and drama, and a thesis. Should be working on revisions, or sleeping, but apparently waiting in the rain and the cold for an hour pre-Common whilst chugging Southern Comfort has it's price. I've got the headache, the sinus congestion and the chills, just waiting on the fever. Took the vitamins, but honestly I don't think even mainlining OJ would help now.

To summarize the past month:
1. my hair is bright red now. it rocks, and mel is a genius. my mother is trying to bribe me to dye it back.
2. congrats to missy and jason!!!!
3. puppy is now one year old. his bday celebration has been postponed, but will get him to thirsty dog posthaste for his own beer and pizza.
4. the advisor has gone through the thesis, and the readers have it now. turning it into records friday, then going to see j roddy!!!!

2007-03-16T14:09:00.000-04:00

Back in the day...

Once upon a time, a friend of mine had a dress-as-your-drink party. And being who I am, instead of studying for finals, I made shirts for the crew. Stacy was Absolut Blonde, Sharona was Absolut Princess, and I was Absolut Drunk. And Alex....Alex was Absolut Geek, complete with ASCII lettering. One of my most brilliant moments, if I do say so myself. Now, a scant four years later...

2007-03-11T04:52:00.000-04:00

It's 4:52 in the morning on a Sunday. Excellent cheese and excellent company, along with too much Red Bull, has spun this schizophrenic day into restlessness. Listening to the Magic Flute - I'm supposed to be boning up on Wagner but I'm craving the frivolous and tragic; rereading a novel about gambling, disguises and a Venetian girl who walks on water. Thinking about the story Will told me about the singer who broke her voice on the aria of the Queen of the Night and the understudy who made her operatic debut replacing her. There's something so salacious about it, just passing it on feels thrilling but guilty and even vulgar. I'd feel like more of an adult if it didn't appeal to me so, but in the end I find I'm just wishing I had something like that to risk...

2007-03-06T15:57:00.000-05:00

Three cheers for today! I'm done my last final of my master's! I'm not counting ethics, which while worth a full three units, teaches us things like don't give hepatitis to institutionalized retarded children and try not to upset people or lie if you're going to interview them.

Feel like a rockstar, hopefully a rockstar who got at least 60-70% of questions about cytoskeletal structure and protein turnover right. Was planning to see The Hold Steady at the Ottobar tonight, but tix are sold out - a completely unforseen development. Don't know what I'm going to do with myself tonight, or any of this caffeine-supplemented euphoria.

2007-02-26T21:54:00.000-05:00

It's been a surreal day, and a bizarre weekend. On the upside, Reno 911 was awesome(I really need to learn to beatbox the COPS theme song) and I have equally awesome new hair and may be well on the way to straightening some things out that are all askew. On the downside, I have started using "awesome" with a ridiculous frequency, and it has to stop.

Snow came in on Sunday, making the city gorgeous for a day. I stayed in, just me, puppy, Rubicon Beach and The Hold Steady.

I guess I heard about original sin.
I heard the dude blamed the chick.
I heard the chick blamed the snake.
I heard they were naked when they got busted.
I heard things ain't been the same since.

If only it were that simple...

2007-02-14T00:37:00.000-05:00

Stressing. An ethics paper and two applications(14 total mini-essays) due thursday. Filling my thesis comittee by Friday - I guess I should start writing. Re-organizing my iTunes library, painting my toenails green, reading about consent to research and therapeutic misconception.

Can't wait for this week to be over, but compared to last weekend, I have no doubt the coming one will be a disappointment. Saw the Rapture on Friday at Sonar with the Griffin(including ex- and visiting) posse and Colleen+fiance. The show was phenomenal and we were right on the rail - they did the whole show in one go, no stopping for a set over an hour long. I guess it's easier now that they're alternating on lead vocals. Somehow, I ended up with a myriad of bruises and a new, apparently jealous friend named Courtney, whose phone number I did not get, much to Saurav's dissapointment.

Post-show we hit Never on Sunday for pizza and a visit with Jamie and the rest of the queen crew. Saturday was spent sleeping or in lab, then to the BSO with Joseph for Banu Gibson(meh) and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band(awesome - absolutely astoundingly amazing). Haven't had that good a musical weekend in quite a while....

2007-02-05T21:34:00.001-05:00

Things I have (re)discovered I dislike:

1. Drama
2. Flat tires. Note the plural.
3. Silly girls who act a fool.
4. People who aren't Tarantino doing Tarantino.
5. Poster sessions for prospectives on saturday mornings.
6. Hangovers.

Things I like very much:

1. Calvin's reccomendations is "personal safety."
2. Feather beds.
3. Dirty martinis.
4. Theme parties.
5. Hookah, Prince and commercials starring Robert Goulet.
6. Joe at Brewer's doing the Truffle Shuffle.

When you mix 3 and 4 above, you get:

2007-02-01T22:06:00.000-05:00

Call me THE COOLER...

Restless. Definitely restless, definitely on edge. Maybe I need to go dancing. Want to paint, but it's still wet, and I don't think I've got enough inspiration to double up. Hate being in this place of not knowing, waiting - just waiting. Waiting and hating it, and worrying that knowing will be worse than the waiting, then hating the worrying and the time it wastes, although it's time that would just be spent waiting.

Feel like today was a circus, a circus that accomplished absolutely nothing....although I suppose circuses are, in general, fairly achievement non-intensive. My secondary to UIC went out today; took off a little early to mail it and to fetch a visiting student from the airport. Unfortunately, the spare I used to replace the flat I got yesterday went flat as well(just a testament to my luck - almost worthy of William H Macy), leaving me at the corner of E Fayette and N Central with a donut leaking Fix-a-Flat, watching people go from the chicken place to the Family Dollar to the liquor store, and various combinations thereof.

Now I'm home, the car is at the garage, puppy is in his pen, and I'm blogging because everyone has gone to bed. I've got a playlist of nothing but the Bravery, which lulls me into thinking I could have an intense, glamorous and vaguely tragic life. I definitely need to go dancing.

2007-01-31T00:01:00.000-05:00

Midnight on Tuesday, painting again and listening to a whatever I feel like. So far: the Bravery, the Von Blondies, Chopin, Nina Simone, Maria Callas, Shivaree, the Rapture, Depeche Mode and Ravel. Remebering a fugue that kicked my ass for months - althought the counterpoint made it all worth it. Random tracks from a a cousin of mine who actually made it as a violinist. It's a mercurial kind of night, girl talk and papers for school, now a solvent high and rambling to myself then puppy and myself again.

Paging through the Basquiat book, trying not to get paint everywhere. Wishing I could compulsively paint crowns on walls and inscribe doors to repel ghosts. I think I need to open a window....

Everything's been black and white lately, I can't seem to get myself into colors. It's such a simpler scale, it feels comfortable but I get the nagging feeling it's because I only have the commitment for an underpainting - greyscale lets me pretend it's not unfinished. I like unfinished, anything sans conclusion has more possibilities and possibillities are alluring; endings alwyas disappoint me. Maybe I'm just hypercritical. No, I know that I'm hypercritical, as if recognizing my own mediocrity somehow makes it more acceptable. I just wish I knew I'd have a home next year....

2007-01-29T13:28:00.000-05:00

I am one happy geek: CHECK IT OUT.

2007-01-23T21:33:00.000-05:00

Mama was queen of the mambo
Papa was king of the congo....

Attempting to pull myself out of my recent Damien Rice-induced melancholie with a little Manu Chao. Previous attempts, involving mostly Pat Benatar and David Bowie, have proven short lived, as glam leads to post glam, and the Killers lead to the Raconteurs then Elliott Smith and the land of tragic vocals and melodramatic chord progressions.

So it's leftist euro pop-rock, research ethics articles and an trying to keep puppy out of my garbage bin as I sit in front of my computer, procrastinating in jeans, a beater and the prettiest hair I've had in months, a la Mel and her practical today at John Corbin.

The week is starting slow, maybe my weekends need to be mellower. Friday was girls' night in with Mel and Jesse, Saturday was puppy in the park, dinner with Will and Pan's Labyrinth en masse, followed by Club Charles, Brewer's and Jack, Jack and more Jack. Then, of course, Never on Sunday on, paradoxically, early sunday morning.

And here I sit, at 10:22 on a Tuesday night, craving a steak and with no one to cook for because Nitya is in India, Tommy is in Portland, Ivy has a man and everyone else is studying and non-social or vegetarian. So it goes...

2007-01-19T00:49:00.000-05:00

Finally, cooking again. Nitya's been craving the orange chicken and she's leaving tomorrow, so we hit the new superfresh, opened a bottle of wine, and made it a night. She even documented for posterity - apparently I'm supposed to put together some sort of a portfolio. I think it's supposed to be a menu for when one of my brilliant friends makes it big and I get put on retainer.

2007-01-13T02:28:00.000-05:00

Solaar il est l'heure, Ecoute Solaar pleure....

okay, it's 2:30 in the morning, and I'm listening to french hiphop post gay bar then sonar then red maple then gay bar then gay karaoke bar. it's been quite a night....

2007-01-06T11:13:00.000-05:00

2007-01-06T03:34:00.000-05:00

I'M OFFICIALLY 26. THX to all those who came out, called, txted, left me messages via myspace.

Honestly, it's 3:35, I'm still a little drunk and listening to Damien Rice(Woman Like A Man) with puppy and going thru pictures. I take lots, but somehow never manage to get whole faces into the frame. Whatev, it's my birthday, and I'll crop if I want to. Goodlove was fun & turnout was awesome, but what kind of hiphop DJ has no Outkast or BEP?

Okay, pirated internet is not uploading pics, but they will be up tomorrow. Gotta go into lab anyhow, THREE CHEERS FOR PLAQUE NEUTS!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-01-03T17:17:00.000-05:00

Scott's new status message - Sick... sucks. 4:52 PM

Scott's new status message - :-( 4:59 PM

Scott's new status message - Happy people make me want to throw up. 5:01 PM

i love my lovely friends....

2006-12-31T00:37:00.000-05:00

So here's a pseudopost about NYC:

1. bus trip sucked something fierce
2. youssof is ridiculously tolerant of us
3. apparently, places are bottle-service only now
4. oprah winfrey's stylist appreciates my choice in tops
5. a tea lounge in Park Slope has more hip people than the entirety of Bmore
6. we had dinner with the mob
7. nothing will get you high on life like a couple of bottles of champagne and a penthouse overlooking Times Square.....oh wait, that's not life...

that's what I've got so far, will post details and maybe an actual narrative later on.

2006-12-25T01:27:00.000-05:00

It's 1:27 on Christmas morning, and I'm awake because I thought it would be a good idea to have three cups of coffee after Christmast Eve dinner. So, it is with insomniac restlessness that I now present a selection of pictures from this weekend.

First, my cousin's new baby. She's up from NC with her parents for Christmas; she's 7 months and adorable. She does not find me the least bit amusing, and I have to say I'm crushed.

The following are from Tommy's Non-Denominational Holiday Party. If anyone is seeking additional or perhaps more incriminating pictures, feel free to contact me....

I've also got a whole gallery of portraits of everyone at this shindig in a Santa hat, so don't touch that dial....

2006-12-16T13:24:00.000-05:00

I am beginning to realize that I am blogging more that your average bear. I think I'm just so used to narrating my life to someone(12 months of long distance will do that to you), and puppy, despite his many virtues, is not the greatest listener.

Anyways, played hooky yesterday afternoon and went to see Eragon. Dorkalicious, I know, but we all know I've never been that cool. Anyways, it was a fairly disapointing plot-lite venture, which wasn't wholly surprising. Despite my love for any movie where everyone is in leather pants and bedazzled tunics(although Joss Stone, YOU ARE ON NOTICE - that was just ridiculous), it raised a lot of my issues with this kind of hero-adventure movie. When Jeremy Irons tells you this is not a good time to rescue the princess you saw in a dream, for God's sake, listen to him. If you are a dark lord, make sure someone needs more than a hooded cloak to walk into your stronghold.

In this spirit, I thought I'd share a few entries from Peter's Evil Overlord List:

5. The artifact which is the source of my power will not be kept on the Mountain of Despair beyond the River of Fire guarded by the Dragons of Eternity. It will be in my safe-deposit box. The same applies to the object which is my one weakness.

12. One of my advisors will be an average five-year-old child. Any flaws in my plan that he is able to spot will be corrected before implementation.

20. Despite its proven stress-relieving effect, I will not indulge in maniacal laughter. When so occupied, it's too easy to miss unexpected developments that a more attentive individual could adjust to accordingly.

21. I will hire a talented fashion designer to create original uniforms for my Legions of Terror, as opposed to some cheap knock-offs that make them look like Nazi stormtroopers, Roman footsoldiers, or savage Mongol hordes. All were eventually defeated and I want my troops to have a more positive mind-set.

63. Bulk trash will be disposed of in incinerators, not compactors. And they will be kept hot, with none of that nonsense about flames going through accessible tunnels at predictable intervals.

and my personal favorite,

34. I will not turn into a snake. It never helps.

2006-12-15T19:13:00.000-05:00

I've had my first Baltimore celebrity sighting! Usually in the Mt Vernon Rite-Aid it's your usual mix of crackheads, Hopkins dorks, Peabody kids and MICA hipsters, but tonight was a special surprise.....none other than Prop Joe of The Wire!!!!!!!

He actually looks a lot younger(not to mention cleaner) in person, with adorable little braid-pigtails. I almost wanted to go and give him a big hug, then ask if him to make sure Cheese won't waste me.

2006-12-15T09:42:00.000-05:00

Nitya is right. I am obsessed. I borrowed her camera(mine was stolen in the 2nd crackhead invasion of 1227 Haubert) because I needed a picture for med school applications, and I couldn't resist sneeking in a few shots of Nathan Scott Phillips; he's just so handsome.....

He's now in the big boy collar; I had to bathe him yesterday because I took him to Saurav's, where he gleefully rolled in dirty socks, and post-bath he managed to get his collar off the table and chew it to bits. So he's finally in the collar I got for Christmas two years ago...hurrah!

So as the holiday season is upon us, be prepared for a lot of pictures of NSP in sweaters, coats and scarves, possibly with babies for optimal cuteness. Tis the season....

2006-12-13T00:43:00.000-05:00

Normally, I'm not a fan of horror movies. I'm not good with the gross, and I usually end up watching anything involving serial carnage through my fingers. Shaun of the Dead is probably one of my favorite movies, but I still sat up for hours afterward completely convinced that zombies were going to come through my windows.

I never really enjoyed a horror movie until a couple of weeks ago at Tom's, when instead of going out, we sat on the couch, ordered pizza and watched Dawn of the Dead all decked out in our Saturday-night finery. Maybe it was the company, maybe it was the fact that we kept switching between that and old SNLs, but it wasn't so scary. So when Ivy lent me Slither, I figured I could handle it. It's got all your horror flick staples:

1. protagonist(young, handsome, former captain of the starship Serenity, who's got a very Bruce Campbell thing going on)
2. childhood sweetheart, married to older man who conveniently becomes the alien host
3. obescenity-spewing asshole mayor played by a guy who, according to IMDB, has basically been on every TV show since "Rich Man, Poor Man"
4. rednecks with guns
5. token black deputy who actually isn't the first to die. He's about third or fourth - how's that for "we shall overcome"?

Also of note are the receptionist from the Office, a guy who grows tentacles, acid spit(you know Dane Cook wants some of that) and some sort of rabid people-eating zombie deer which I'm pretty sure was made out of paper mache. The one-liners and occasional banter are pretty good(maybe just well-timed and profane, and I find that funny), which I'm not sure I would expect from the guy who produced the screenplays for Scooby Doo and it's companion masterpiece Scooby Doo II: Monsters Unleashed.

Anyways, I'm pretty much just rambling now to avoid turning the lights out and going to bed. Maybe I'll pop Office Space in one last time and station puppy by the bedroom door.....

2006-12-11T17:49:00.000-05:00

So far, so good. I'm doing a lot better than expected today, which I
guess is one of the benefits of lowered expectations.

Trying to focus on getting through a paper I have to present tomorrow
(I thought I got lucky with a fairly concise 5-pager, till I found the 40
pages of supplemental material). I think one of the most frustrating
things about all of this is that I feel like I don't own my own head any
more. I dwell on things that are better forgotten, I rehash events like
an emotional masochist. It's intensely exasperating, and it needs to
end soon.

Well, I guess there's nothing to take your mind off things like coffee
and a paper on a BAC transgenic platform in D. melanogaster. Can't
wait to go home and do this while re-watching Office Space(the
special edition, with flair! a la Ivy)....

Excuse me, I believe you have my stapler....

2006-12-07T23:29:00.000-05:00

My head's been all askew; between this cold and sleep deprivation, I was pretty much a hot mess at the end of the day. So guess what I did? I went by the post office to send out my netflix, and I reached into my bag, and deposited one movie and my completely open, unfinished secondary packet from Dartmouth into the mailbox.

Sometimes I think I belong in kindergarten, not grad school.

2006-12-07T19:08:00.000-05:00

Maybe I'm just a toddler at heart, but for some reason, no matter what, bright lights fascinate me. Tonight was the lighting of the monument in Mt Vernon, and Mel joined me in the ridiculously frigid cold for the muzak, the lights, and the fireworks. We scored a premium vantage point on the edge of the fountain in the east park; for a couple of minutes all the noise and the sparkling and the joy of seeing an ember take out a christmas light(multicolored this year) every now and again kept me from thinking about the mess I'm in and how vastly different this winter is from anything I could have expected.

Anyways, time to get back to studying - melancholy never earned anyone any points on a final about multiple sequence alignment, the principles of gene ontology and the differences between divisive and agglomerative clustering. Tonight it's me, puppy, and Bioinformatics and Functional Genomics. Yippee!!!!!!!

2006-12-04T16:14:00.000-05:00

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens.....

One of my favorite things arrived today - my BGE online bill notification!(YAY!)

Even with my fantastical math skills, I think having $84 in my bank account and a $220 BGE bill may be a problem. It almost makes me wanna take a hundred hour nap....

On the upside, puppy has learned a new trick. He now knows "stay" - as in sit, stay, leave the treat on the carpet until I tell you to take it or I'll smack you on the snoots. He gets it most of time, but every once in a while he thinks I'm not looking...the little bastard is fast.

2006-12-04T09:08:00.000-05:00

Not that I actually have any readers who don't already, but check out Tommy's blog....

2006-12-01T15:09:00.000-05:00

NO DAY BUT TODAY....

Today's WORLD AIDS DAY. Wear a ribbon, talk to someone, donate if you've got some free cash. Get tested. Also, check out the work being done by ONE and maybe start buying RED.

Because jar of gypsy tears isn't going to protect anyone.....

2006-11-30T14:14:00.000-05:00

So it's 2:14 on a thursday afternoon, and I'm sitting at my little tent-village of a desk(see last post). I can't take the tarp down because I'm fairly sure there's water pooled at the top, and also, I'm lazy.

I'm currently pondering the latest academic idiocy, an application to the Rosalind Franklin MD/PhD program which requires me to discuss their motto : Life in Discovery.(To the Rosalind Franklin folks: I didn't mean that. Your slogan is great, and it totally means a lot to me. Really.)

I guess I should count my blessings though- the seminar talk today was great(apparently you can you single markers for cytotxic T cells and central memory), but what's also apparent is that the Vaccine Research Center's motto is: Turn fog into rainbows.

Enough said.

2006-11-29T12:14:00.000-05:00

So today I returned to school hale and hearty(read pale and wheezy), determined ot make ago of it. I get to school early, only to find that it's been evacuated for some fire-type thing. This happens all the time, usually some imbecile(graduate student or professor) has no idea how long one should leave a bag of popcorn in the microwave. I shrug it off, and go to class in another building. A fun-filled hour and a half of protein structure searches later, I return to my lab to discover my desk, covered in plastic with all my papers and notebooks in little puddles underneath.

I've spent the better part of an hour cleaning up and throwing stuff out....this is what it looks like now:

I can't get rid of the tarp, because it's still dripping from the ceiling, and I'm trying to dry out the papers that I can't just print again clothesline style - it all feels v bumblescum..... gimme a shotgun and a pick-up truck and I might as well be in the South.

2006-11-28T11:58:00.000-05:00

I GOT CHILLS....

Every year, when free flu shot week comes around Hopkins, I plan on getting one. And then I put it off, because I basically feel like crap for the next day. And some years, like this year, I put it off completely, and end up where I was last night - with the full on fever and chills, to be followed today by muscle aches, a migraine and just a general aura of yuck.

So as much as I would love to blame friends(TOMMY) and labmates(GUILLO) who passed this loveliness on to me, it was totally preventable. The funny thing is, despite my years upon years of education, I totally woke up in a delirium last night, completely convinced puppy would catch my flu, and I panicked because my pirated internet was too slow to tell me how to take care of an influenza-ridden miniature pinscher....

2006-11-18T12:30:00.000-05:00

The deed is done....he's still a little wobbly but a lot better than when I picked him up. He was all sleepy and shivery, and not so great with the walking. He was just hobbling around - but now he's back to running(a little) and pretty playful, considering. I think it'll take a day or two for him to get all the way back, but I hear he'll be calmer, less jumpy - which will be nice.

So now he's got all his shots and everything, wich means I can register him with the city now - dog parks, here we come!

I wonder if I should get him micro-chipped.......

2006-11-17T13:35:00.001-05:00

okay, just talked to vet...he is doing good, still waking up. I get to pick him up at three!!!!!!

2006-11-17T13:09:00.000-05:00

TODAY IS THE DAY....

Dropped off Nathan Scott Phillips at the vet this morning...poor thing. He was so happy, he thought we were just going for a really long walk. Then we got to the vet's and he remembered enough to not want to go up the stairs...or in the waiting room...or on the table. He was then subjected to the further indignity of sharing the exam room with a bag full of kittens, whom he found v. threatening - to the pointwhere he felt the need to use his big-boy bark.

The vet told me it would take a few hours and he'd probably call around noon for me to come pick him up...it's already one and so far I haven't heard a thing.........

2006-11-12T18:17:00.000-05:00

In an attempt to prove that I have something more to talk about than bitterness and the boy who walked out on me, I will now tell an anecdote about SOMETHING ELSE(read: TV and puppy)....

So last night, we all go over to Tom's in preparation for a night out, and amidst a few drinks and some channel-surfing we realize:

1. a rare, good SNL was on
2. Back to the Future was also on, running continuously
3. Dawn of the Dead is also on, in all it's sappy, mall-dwelling baby-zombie-shooting glory
4. the minute Mike mentions pizza, none of us have the least motivation to go anywhere, much less get off the couch.

Anyways, 4 hours, two pizzas, a cheesesteak w/fries and two live performances by Christina Aguilera later, we disbanded and went home. I let Flip out of his pen and let him sleep with me, totally out of guilt for having fun and leaving him with some water, peanut butter and network TV.

Halfway through the night, a neighborhood dog starts barking, and Flip wakes up, leaps off the bed and runs to the open window. Being a tiny little scrap of a dog, he can't actually see out the window, but is completely prepared to defend me from the pitt bull that lives three stories down and a block and a half away. However, he does see his reflection in my mirror, and he proceeds to approach, growling. He then parks his little tush, nose-to-nose with his reflection, growling and emitting strange purr-like sounds to ward off the intruder. Really, what could make a girl feel safer than that?

2006-11-11T19:03:00.001-05:00

The girls, in general, have been great about getting me through this end of an era. Girls, Tom, and Scottie actually - thank you.

I don't know why nobody told you
how to unfold your love
I don't know how someone controlled you
they bought and sold you

I look at the world and I notice it's turning
While my guitar gently weeps
With every mistake we must surely be learning
Still my guitar gently weeps

I don't know how you were diverted
you were perverted too
I don't know how you were inverted
no one alerted you

2006-11-08T00:26:00.000-05:00

12:32 AM, and I'm glued to the TV. No, it's not a marathon of Project Runway - it's election coverage. 69% of the vote is in, 51% O'Malley, 48% Erlich. O'Malley is at the Hippodrome quoting Maya Angelou, Erlich is at the Hyatt talking about winning in overtime. It looks like Cardin has a solid win, which makes me happy, and the AP is predicting that the Dems will get their 15 seats in the house and the senate.

Must...look...away.....

DAMN. with 75% in, O'Malley's only ahead by a percent.....this is excruciatingly excessively ridiculously agonizingly insufferably unbearable....

2006-09-21T14:34:00.000-04:00

Okay, it's been a while. I know. But with moving, Chris getting back, school starting- it's been a little busy.

So it's almost the end of September. I'm halfway through 1st term, the weather is finally getting nicer and the memorial ride Chris is organizing for soldier from his unit is saturday.

What could I possibly have to rant about? Let's see.....

1. The department was supposed to pay %75 of my tuition this year. The money has yet to appear, although it seems the papers reccomending us for schalrships have been filed...this week.
2. Puppy has fleas. Nasty, huh? We had to flea-bomb both Chris' house and my apartment and I'm still getting bites.

I basically now fit all the requirements for a hobo. I'm flea-bitten and destitute; my future may well involve making scultures of kitties out of soup cans and selling them on street corners whilst wearing tissue-boxes for shoes or standing on a crate yelling obscenities at passers-by outside a Dunkin Donuts.

Okay, so maybe that's a bit extreme. I would never do that...I love Dunkin Donuts!

2006-07-19T15:30:00.000-04:00

2006-07-18T16:14:00.000-04:00

2006-07-18T16:11:00.000-04:00

Not necessarily so dumb....