Blogger Fart

So blogger decided to fart on me for the last three months, and I finally figured out how to re-install my template so that the freaking thing would work again. God, what a pain in the fuckin ass. I had originally wrote some stuff in late Sept, but hadn't written anything in a while because it wouldn't let me post that last entry. So now it's December 2, 2002 and everything is totally different.



I'd been talking about getting laid off for a while. My co-worker and I would always joke around about how cool it would be to get severence and get to go on unemployment and all that. It would give me the opportunity to be able to go to school full-time, and not have to work, but be able to pay my bills. Well, be careful what you wish for. Star Trek laid me off on November 18. It wasn't just me. It was a whole bunch of people. 17 to be exact. Mostly Managers, leads and hourly support staff for those managers and leads. People who had been there for 5 years! People who had been there for 4 years (like me). No one was spared, not even our director of Human Resources, who was advised about a week before we were that he too would be losing his job. They told us with no notice and then rushed us out of there after we had gone back to our work areas to gather most of our personal items. There was a Town Hall Meeting that day, and they wanted us out before everyone got out of that meeting. It would have been nice to be able to say good-bye to a couple of people. Then again, it was nice to not have to see some people ever again. I'm torn. Let's organize our thoughts, shall we?



I'm angry because:

• I like Star Trek. I liked the product, I liked working for "Paramount", I liked my discount, and I liked having all the free rides I could get on the Experience. I liked being able to take my friends and family there and treat them.
  
• They did it so hastily, without any respect for the fact that we'd been there for a long time.
  
• It was Spongebarb's birthday on November 18. (She was my GM, she was it)
  
• Despite me getting bored with my job, I liked it. It was a routine that I had settled into and was able to do very well. I knew that job inside out.
  
• I liked my co-workers! We would have so much fun!
  
• They had a 5 year celebration on the Friday before the Monday lay-off. There was cake and pop and balloons and everything, even though they all knew that most of us wouldn't be there come Monday.
  
• Even though I get severence, that won't kick in for another 10 days, which will mean that I will have missed 4 paychecks. All of this they did right before Christmas. Nice.
  
• I had just really started paying off my bills, getting things in order, with a plan to move out in a year and a half, and now, that's all shot to shit.
  

I'm happy because:

• I don't have to get up early anymore.
  
• I don't have to work right now.
  
• Most of my friends and my boyfriend have weekends off, and now, so do I.
  
• I have a chance to clear my head, get myself organized, and clean my room for real.
  
• I will get to go to school and finish at CCSN almost a whole year ahead of time, because I'll be taking more classes.
  
• Change is good. Everyone needs a good kick in the ass. Things can never get boring.
  
• I live with my family, and I don't pay rent.
  
• There are some people at Star Trek that I never want to see again, and I won't have to.
  

So there it is. All laid out. That's pretty much the state I'm in right now. I should be happy. I should be jumping for joy. But I feel like I've lost a friend that I never got to say good-bye to. I know, it's stupid. It's amazing how you can get attached to a job. 4 years. I was there longer than I was in high school. (Don't worry, all you US people, high school in Canada is only 3 years.) I've been going to the gym. I've been keeping busy. I'm going to make all my Christmas presents (because I won't have a pot to piss in for a while.) Ok, I'm done with self pity mode. Oh! I have to tell about my trip to the ER!

My Trip To The ER

On Thanksgiving this year, I was sick. I was nauseous, and very encomfortable, so I stayed home. At around 9pm, I finally puked. What a relief, except that I puked up some blood. I know... eeeeewww, but the story just wouldn't be complete without that fact. So I was slightly worried. I was contemplating going to the ER then, but I figured that I felt better, and if it happened again, I would go. So I woke up around 3am and voila! Bingo! But there was actually quite a bit of blood. So, I had to wake up my whole family (who had to work the next day) and we went to the ER. There I was with my blue puke bucket, and Canadian sweatpants limping into the ER at Summerlin Mediacal Center. What a site. They asked me questions, and all that normal doctor stuff. Then, they took blood and put a IV in me. My blood pressure was low and my heart rate was high, which meant that I was pretty dehydrated. So they pumped me full of fluid and anti-puke medicine. I felt much better. The doctor said it was probably just a virus, which lasts a little longer than the flu, and that the blood was from my esophagus being irritated. That was a huge relief. I didn't want to die from internal bleeding or anything. My mom ended up staying home from work (seeing as we didn't get home from this ordeal until 7:30am) and Auntie went in late and came home early. So I ended up having my thanksgiving on Saturday over at Shahnon's house. It was fun. Her turkey was amazing. Heather made her famous garlic mashed potatoes and we got to try Shahnon's special family recipie pickled eggs. We didn't have pumpkin pie, we had pumpkin cheesecake, which was fucking awesome. Yes, that deserved an expletive.

Sir Edward Wiener III

Heather finally got her Wiener dog! He's so cute! He follows her everwhere. To work, to play to everywhere. He's so small! I'll get some pictures of him eventually, I promise.

Brandon

So the boy has a name. We're still together. Everything is going well. He has a new job that he loves, and he loves me too. That's always a good thing. It's hard to find someone you can really be yourself with. Oh, he's pretty cute too. He's everything I've ever wanted in a boyfriend. It's kind of scary. I would hate to scare him away because I feel that I'm not good enough for him. I've always had self doubt issues. I'm being dumb, just ignore me.


Well, that's it for now. I think I've given the millions of people who read this site enough to read. *wink*

Continued.... From Sept. 21...


The ICBM that I saw flying over Las Vegas


I don't know if any of you have ever seen an ICBM (Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile) but they are incredibly cool, or amazingly freaky, depending on if you know of their launch ahead of time or not. I was just minding my own business, had just come back from dinner with my friend Jen, and I looked up in the sky. There was this bright glowing trail of gas (or what looked like gas) heading up in the western sky. This little light broke off from it and headed up even farther, only to explode in a puff of white powder (that resembled a flower). Jen and I were freaking out. Well, I was freaking out. I thought it was the end of the world, or WW3, or some other sort of catastrophe. We rushed inside her apartment (after taking a very bad picture of the whole thing) and I called our local police department. They said that it was Vandenburg Air Force Base in California tasting their ICBM's. Now, you'd think, in times like these, that they would warn or at least try to warn us about what we might see in the sky. I ended up calling Vandenburg AFB the next day to ask them exactly that. The public relations guy said that they do a press release when they are dealing with and "unclassified" launch to most of CA and the surrounding area. I told him they should add Las Vegas to the list, because everyone who had never seen this before was freaking out. Here take a look at these pictures of what I saw that night and tell me that you wouldn't be thinking twice about what's going on.




Update on "The Boy"


Well, things are going really well, really really well. He's just the best person ever. I'm in gush mode. We have so much in common, and he's very accepting of how different I can be sometimes. By different, I mean strange. Well I am a Feica, need I say more?




The 15th Aniv. Of Star Trek: The Next Generation Convention (Sept. 27, 28, and 29, 2002)


Here I go again! This time I'm off to Pasadena, my favorite city in the US! I'll only be able to go on the Saturday and Sunday, but I'm really looking forward to it! I've never seen Patrick Stewart (Captian Picard) in person before, I might faint like a schoolgirl at a New Kids On The Block concert (and yes, I did see them too.) They are going to be auctioning off a visit to the Enterprise set at this con. God help my credit card! But thanks to an early birthday present from my loving Mom and Aunt, that dream might be a reality. We'll see.




School: Why my Physics teacher sucks, and why Physics teachers shouldn't suck.


I was taking one class this semester, a class that was a basis for my major and the teacher absolutely blew donkey balls. All he did was take over-head projector slides with the graphs from the book on them, and read what was written underneath the graphs. I could have done that at home. If I wanted someone to read a text book to me, I wouldn't have paid them $225 to do that, and that's basically what he did. So screw that. I can't learn in an environment like that. I got my money back for the books and I'm working on getting my money back for the class. If any of you go to CCSN, do not take Wilson for Physics. You hear ME! Spread the word.


So that's it for now. I'm sure I'll have more after this weekend. Smell ya later...
[edit]

[9/21/2002 2:17:38 PM | dee tox]


Hoser

I haven't written in here for a while. Alot has taken place, I think. I'll try to put together in chronological order what has been going on. I might go off on tangents though. Just a warning. Oh yeah, lets do a list for points to come!



The Slanted Fedora "Party" Sept 6,7 and 8, 2002

Heather's Wedding (Oct. 6,2002)

The Enterprise Season Premire (Sept. 18, 2002)

The ICBM that I saw flying over Las Vegas. (Sept 19, 2002)

Update on 'The Boy'

The 15th Aniv. Of Star Trek: The Next Generation Convention (Sept. 27,28 and 29, 2002)

School: Why my Physics teacher sucks, and why Physics teachers shouldn't suck.




The Slanted Fedora "Party"


This was a party that was planned instead of the huge convention that they were planning on having before Creation had theirs a month earlier. He had to scale it down, due to several factors. Many of the actors did not want to fly around Sept. 11, the convention a month before was a huge sucess and not as many people bought tickets for the SF one, and probably because Dave Scott (owner of SF) is not a very organized man. There was no admission to this convention, it was on donation basis only. There was only about 500 people there (usually you can expect 5000 at a big con) so access to the stars was great. Who was there you might ask? Armin Shimmerman (Quark from DS9), John DeLancie (Q from TNG), Wil Wheaton (Wesley Crusher from TNG - Duh), Robert Picardo (The Doctor from Voyager), Ethan Phillips (Neelix from Voyager), Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troi from TNG), Alexander Siddig (Dr. Bashir from DS9), Jerry Doyle (Garabaldi from B5), Walter Koening (Chekov from TOS), Nicole DeBoer (Ezri Dax from DS9), Garrett Wang (Ensign Kim from Voyager), Casey Biggs (Damar from DS9), Aron Eisenburg (Nog from DS9), Andrew Robinson (Garak from DS9), Denise Crosby (Tasha Yar from TNG and maker of the documentary "Trekkies") and several other various Star Trek and Sci-Fi stars. Oh! I almost forgot J.G Hertzler and Robert O'Reilly (Martok and Gowron respectively, both from TNG mainly) hosted Klingon Karoke. That's where several stars got on stage and sang. The most interesting moment was when Walter Koening dressed up in bonnet and an aprin and sang a sappy country song. Talk about random. It was bizzare. I had several pictures taken with various stars like Wil Wheaton (which there is a story behind, but just bare with me, I'll get to it), Alexander Siddig (hottie), Andrew Robinson, Robert Picardo, Ethan Phillips, and the guy from Farscape (Sorry Sally, I don't watch it, but I sympathize!).


Now for the Wil Wheaton story. I'm not sure if I mentioned that I met him at the Grandslam 2002 in March. Well, I had bought one of his "William Fucking Shatner" T-Shirts and brought it with me for him to sign. He signed it, "Wil Fucking Wheaton," which was pretty cool. So I decided to wear the shirt to the convention to see if he would remember me. So what does he say when I walk up to his table? He yells out and points, "Hey! I know you! I remember that shirt!" and he shook my hand and we talked for about 5 minutes (while there was a line forming behind me). Of course, we talked about how he's going to be at the TNG con at the end of the month because of all the traffic to his website. So then we had our picture taken, and he asked me my name. When I told him he said that he was going to remember me. I was thinking, "Riiiiight, whatever dude..." SO... later when I met up with Brandon *sigh* we were walking past his booth and he yelled out, "DeeDee!" So I went over there and we chatted some more, and his assistant asked me to run a quick errand. So I did and we moved on. Later on in the evening, during the picture session, Wil called me over again to show his wife my shirt. Then we all had another picture taken with the "rock" horns, it was pretty cool. So we'll see if he remembers me at the next TNG con. I don't want to seem like a stalker, I don't really know him. There's just so much that I want to talk to him about, he's got such a knack for creative writing, that he just draws his readers in.





Heather's Wedding


Heather is one of my best friends, and she's getting married on Oct. 6, 2002. That's just over 2 weeks away, and I don't have an outfit yet. It's going to be a Pagan ceremony, with various other middle eastern aspects to it. She's having two "priests", one male and one female to represent the God the The Goddess. I can't wait, it's going to be so beautiful. The guy she is marrying is really just the "bomb" yo. James is too cool. The two of them are going to have a beautiful life together. If there was a template from which all couples would base their marriage, theirs should be it. Loving, kind, silly, random, funny, open. Pure bliss, those two have it.




The Enterprise Season Premire


Well, I loved it! There were a few scenes that made me cringe. Ex. When Archer gives his "humans are like gazelles" speech. That was almost as bad as the "Some kind of .... Directive" speech he made it "Dear Doctor." But T'Pol speech about how flawed the Vulcans are gave me goose bumps. It was so cool to see her get on humanity's side for once. There is a real bond developing between T'Pol and Archer. And getting to see Daniels is always a treat! He is just the coolest person in RL. I spotted him in "Galaxy Quest" a couple of weeks ago when I watched it again. I wonder if he knew how closely his future career would mirror that particular role. Getting back to Shockwave, Part II; I only had a couple of questions. Did Daniels really go back to his century when he tricked Silik into bringing him back? Since when was Silik such a spineless wimp, whining about not being able to contact the 'Future Guy'? How did Archer break that spook apart and pound that metal into slices that were, "no bigger than a mm thick?" Maybe they were counting on that fact that most of the USA would not know how thin a mm is, and wouldn't think twice about it. But being the anal ST fans that we all are, you'd think the writers would know better, or maybe they just don't care. I'm not sure if I like the way Trip is developing, he's always just pissed off and yelling at everyone all the time. He needs to calm down, and stop being such a stereotypical redneck. He's still cute as a button though. Reed had a pretty small role this time around, but he did a really good job at playing the "I'm getting beaten up" part. All in all, good episode. We'll see about next week, where we learn that T'Pol's grandmother was on earth during the 50's or 60's.




Well as luck would have it, I have to get back to work. I'll finish those other points tomorrow...

[edit]

Spaghetti

So Brandon made me dinner last night. Not warmed up some food, but actually made pasta sauce from scratch. It was the best stuff I have ever tasted in my life. And yes, Tara, I had Spaghetti ring! I ate too much though, and got heartburn, but what are you going to do? I also tried some Superfood this morning. It's this organically grown powder stuff that can be used as a meal replacement. Of course, I had it mixed with freshly squeezed orange/grapefruit juice. It was ok. Not something I'd order if I were at a restaurant, but it gave me the energy I needed this morning to get my ass out and about. I'm going to a BBQ with that boy tonight, so I can hear stories about his antics at his previous job. Should be interesting to say the least. ***smile*** Oh dear, there goes the smiles again.

The power of Star Trek fans

It reminds me of those "The Power of Cheese" commercials. It's amazing to me how people can get togther and make something happen. On Thursday, Wil Wheaton posted on his site (click here) about why he was cut from attending the 15th Aniv. of Star Trek: The Next Generation Convention next month in Pasadena. It was a bitter tale of money and hard luck. I was drawn in, and felt I needed to voice my anger directly to Creation Entertainment. So on Thursday afternoon, I called Creation. I talked to a lady who told me that all the people that I could complain to were in a "meeting." (Basically, giving me the run around.) So I proceded to tell her that I was dissapointed in the fact that Wil Wheaton was not going to be at the Convention next month, and that I had already bought tickets to the event, when I found out he was going to be there. (His name was listed on the site a couple of weeks ago, and was suddenly taken off.) I told her that she should read Wil's website, where he called Creation cheap (not an exact quote) and felt he had been snubbed by the people who worked there. She was appalled that he would write such things on his website, and told me that Creation is not like that at all. I scoffed, and told her that I would like the email of the person who deals with the talent, so that I could give them a piece of my mind. Conventions used to be about the fans, not about the money. I also had a friend who wrote to Adam Malin (president of Creation) , and expressed his disappointment at this particular move. Well, Creation listened. After tonnes of email, phone calls and faxes, Adam Malin called up Wil personally,and gave him a better offer. And now, Wil Wheaton is going to be at the convention! It only took 2 days, and we totally hooked him up! I'm so proud of us nerds. I suggest you read his site, as he's a much better writer than I, to get the full story on what took place. As a Wil Wheaton fan, I'm thrilled! I'll have to wear my William Fucking Shatner T-Shirt that I got from his website to the convention. That's the one that he signed "Wil Fucking Wheaton." He has such a huge internet fan base, it's incredible.



On to other matters, I talked to Paul today, and he's doing well. He's just as busy (if not busier) as I am.



I finally got in touch with Andy, but our call was cut short by Nano. Damn you, Nano. God forbid Andy should learn how to play the guitar any other day of the week. *wink* But Andy pointed something out that really stuck with me. He said that this last time that I went up, It was really hard to say good-bye. Harder than any other time I've visited. I totally agree. When I finally said good-bye to everyone on that Sunday (after seeing Austin Powers 3 with them), I cried all the way back to the hotel. I cried harder than I've cried in a long time. I released so much, dumped all those expectations of staying there. I was even thinking of somehow trasfering to the University of Alberta. I was seriously considering it. Why? Because it's familiar, safe. I've got such an amazing bunch of friends up there, they have no idea how much they all still mean to me, even after living here in Vegas for 4 years.




Also, I went over to Brandon's friends house for dinner Thursday night. Robert and Susie are big Trek fans, and they are really cute because they just got married! Their living room is covered in Trek goods, and sci-fi bits. I could have looked around there for days. Susie made an amazing meal, seafood pasta, with every kind of seafood you could imagine. They are really cool people, and they have a beautiful home. Another really cool thing is that they are going to be on TLC's "A Wedding Story" sometime in October. I love that show. They had their wedding at Star Trek: The Experience. Now that is cool. A fully themed Star Trek Wedding. That sounds like something I would (or will) do, if I ever get married. I'm in no rush though. *smile*




Want to know something really fucked up about CCSN? Their book store is not open on the Saturday before classes start! I am so pissed. This means that I'm going to have to spend half the day Wednesday getting my book. *anger* Of course, I realize that I could have gotten the book before the first week of class. But I was so busy.




I saw the director's cut of the movie "Legend" with Tom Cruise. Interesting. I'm not a huge fantasy fan, but it reminded me of "The Never-ending Story" which is one of my favorite fantasy flicks. That and "Willow." Ahhh, memories. Oh! What about "The Dark Crystal?" Classic. Those are the only fantasy movies I can think of right now.



So that's it from this side of the hood, peace out.

School

It starts next week. I've decided to take only one class this semester because I need to get my life in order before I decided to stress myself out over school. I'll be taking Engineering Physics. I'm not all that excited about it. You know how I can tell? By now, I would have bought all my textbooks and supplies, and I haven't even thought of it. There is a new college opening up here in Las Vegas. It's cheaper than UNLV, but more expensive than community. They offer 4 year programs, so I'll have to check them out. I think it's called Nevada State University.

I tried to call Andy last night, but he had just left. BASTARD! No, just kidding, I love you Andy! So I'll try to call him tonight. I haven't talked to anyone from Edmonton since the trip (except for Tara, the night I got back.) I've just been so busy! I keep meaning to get the pictures of the wedding up on the site (oh, and I also have to add the pictures that defiantnx sent me for the Vega$ con) but it's such a task. Oh well... They'll get up some time or another.

Smell ya later homes...

Long Goodbye

^^^ They are wonderful and heart wrenching at the same time. I've been able to only get roughly 5-6 hours of sleep a night (sometimes less) for the past couple nights, and I'm somehow still alive. You've got to love Red Bull. My mom is afraid that drink is going to kill me, she gave me a little speech about it, but I'm not mixing it with alcohol, so It's ok.

I've made absolute plans to go to the 15th Aniv. of TNG next month in Pasadena! I'll finally get to see Patrick Stewart! I've been to about 8 conventions, and I've never been able to see him. I bought an autograph ticket for James Cromwell (who played Zephram Cochrane in FC and Enterprise; The inventor of warp drive for the human race) and it's too cool, because he's on my SevTrek poster. I have about 50 autographs on there now. It's my pride and joy, well, besides the Dominic Keating poster, which I still have to get framed.

***smiles***

Hmmmm... ***Smiles*** Today is a good day. I went to a really great club last night, they played all the old school music I used to listen to when I was in high school, and of course, you can't go wrong when they play Sarah McLachlan for 10mins. Happy birthday Grey! The Colombia meeting was good. It was interesting to see the reactions of "normal" people when they see "other" people dressed in Star Trek outfits. Saw some really good costumes. You go Dr. Phlox! I didn't get home until about 4am, but I'm just high on life so it's all good in the hood. ;)

Smell ya later...

Work

You know what I like about my job? I go into my breakroom (which is aptly named 'Ten Forward') and there is a Borg reading a newspaper. I'm so easily amused.

Dee

The boy

Ok, so I have to admit this. I can't stop thinking about the boy. I don't want to seem like a stalker, but he's really pushed some buttons that haven't been pushed in a long time. I just erased half of what I was going to write because I'm being stupid. I don't know, I need to go for a walk or something, or for a swim, or for a skydive. SOMETHING. Anything to just make this feeling of needing to see him go away. Not completely, but enough so that I can function as a normal human being. I did clean my room today, and I'm going to finish it tomorrow. You might think that got my mind off things, but no. I'm pretty sure the only reason I cleaned my room was so that he could come and see it some time. God, I'm being so stupid. I feel like I'm 17 again. (I'm talking like it was that long ago...) I really am as giddy as a school girl. Maybe I'll call Heather. Then we can go for a walk in the desert.

Smell Ya Later..

Dee

Cleaning

I found out what happens if you register early and don't pay for your classes on time, they just go ahead and un-register you. When I went to check for my classes a couple of days ago, I was shocked to find out that I wasn't registered for the fall at all. But, I called the school, and I registered for the class I want to take. I'm only taking one this semester, I need a break. I'll be taking Physics 181. Finally, I'm going to be taking a class that has something to do with my major; well, math does, but I'm always taking a math class, so that doesn't count.

I've lost 5lbs this week. Whooooooo Hoooo!

I'm going to start to clean my room today, for reals yo. It's just getting stupid now.

Smell ya later...

Dee

Spongebarb Redpants

^^^Don't ask.

So the dates went really well, and yes, there was more than one. ***smiles*** Although I won't go into too much detail, because I just found out tonight that he read my site! We just had a really great time. We have alot in common, and he's a really nice guy. He's pretty cute too. ***smiles***

I'm going out to one of my first Star Trek Fan Club gatherings on Friday, and most of the people there will be dressed up in Star Trek gear. It's not required, but it's encouraged. I'm out of luck, I don't really have a uniform. I'm planning on being able to fit into the T'Pol uniform by February (the SF con). I've totally lost my appetite. I couldn't even eat all of James' salmon on Monday night.

Our last clinic was really good. We did alot of releasing of negative energy, and I think that may be why I have lost the urge to eat. This whole week has been one release after another. Whew! I can't wait for it to be over!

I had a strange dream tonight about the TrekBBS. (I know, if you start to dream about a website, you should probably leave it for a while) We were all in these tunnels, and we were able to watch ourselves through these cameras, but I could only see the people who I knew in real life. Which is pretty appropriate. But it was freaky, and I can't say that it was a joyous occasion, I think we were running for our lives. But then Brandon called, and brought me back from the depths of panic. ***smiles***

Ok, I've done enough smiling here to make everyone barf (all 3 of you). I'll post more when I have something to say. Or if I just feel like blah-ing.

Dee

I know, I'm bad

To those two people who actually read this, sorry I haven't posted in a while. Summer has been very busy!

I just got back from Edmonton, where I saw my friends Sabrina and Jonas get married! They are the first out of all of us to tie the knot. They've been together since the 7th or 8th grade, so good for them! I had a blast, saw alot of people, did alot of stuff. I didn't want to leave. It's always sucks to leave, but I know I can't stay. If only some of those people could move down here, now that would be fun.

I was just at a Star Trek convention, where I had a fantastic encounter with Dominic Keating. I ended up winning a bid for this really sexy picture of him, and he personalized it and everything! I even got a kiss in front of the whole crowd, and another backstage! It was really cool. I ended up meeting up with about 10 people from the Trek BBS site that I go to, and we all had great fun! You can see the pictures if you click the menu to the left that says "Conventions", then click on the third link. I met people from all over the US and even someone from Scotland! I think we're all talking about meeting up again (when we all have money) at another convention, which would be really cool.

Let's see, Paul is seeing someone else, I have a date tonight... hmmm... I finally finished Heather's birthday present. I thought I would just make it her wedding present, because her wedding is on Oct. 6. She is hand making all of her invitations using stamps and embossing powder. They look really nice, but they take a long time.

It was Shannon's birthday yesterday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHANNON!

I saw Signs a couple of nights ago, and that movie scared the crap out of me! I screamed 4 times in the theatre, and I've never done that. It was a fantastic movie, scary, emotional, funny and contemplative. All the things that I absolutely love in a movie.

Barry's pictures from Comic Con are up on his website Omnibuscortex.com. Even if you don't know Barry, they are very interesting to say the least.

I found out Wil Wheaton is not going to be in ST:X! That sucks!

That's it for now...

Dee

Going to be in Vegas July 4th?

I'm really upset about something that is happening only here, and no one else in the world knows about it. I haven't seen it on MSNBC or even the crappy FOX NEWS channel. Here's the story...



A couple of days ago, there was a man who was trying to call his wife from his cell phone (here in LV). All of a sudden, his phone call got mixed with another (and this does happen, it's happened to me, you can actually listen to someone's whole conversation) and he was about to hang up, when he heard the Arabic language being spoken (he knows how to speak Arabic). The people on the other line said (I don't have an exacty quote), "We are in the city of sin, gambling, legal prostitution. We will get them on their day of freedom." So I'm thinking that holy shit, this is going to be investigated, people are really going to check into this and all that crap. Well, Oscar Goodman (our beloved alcoholic mayor) got really angry because of how this terrorist threat would affect tourism ($ching $ching). So they've been discrediting this guy left and right, saying that he took a lie detector test, but would not disclose the results. What I'm really worried about is that our city is so worried about losing money, that they aren't really going to encourage the FBI or whomever to investigate this claim. Doesn't that bother anyone? It's really making me want to scream from the rooftops about how fucking greedy Las Vega$ is and how hard we're going to fall if we aren't prepared for a terrorist attack that might happen on July 4, when we weren't expecting it. I'm just getting my feelings out of the way, so that if something does happen, we can get that fucking drunk ass mayor out of office (ass-uming we're all still alive) and try to repair our city.
0


Another note, if Andy is reading this, you had better call me or write me or I will kick your ass.



Another note, The G8 summit is taking place in Kananaskis, Alberta. How? Why? Why not Calgary? It's just weird.



I've been having my terrorist dreams again, I hope they really don't come true.



Paul was just filling in for Jason in the Second City show at the Flamingo Hilton, and he did really well! It was really funny, and he seemed relaxed on stage. He will go places.



I'm trying to get the freaking Star Trek: Nemesis trailer from the internet, and I can't find it anywhere. I was supposed to be at a convention this weekend for work, but they ended up not going. At this convention in Tulsa OK they premired the new trailer. The trailer will be out in MIB II on July 3 or 4, but I wanted to see it before anyone. I wonder how many times I said trailer in that last paragraph? I feel like I'm living in KY. (smiles at Paul's family). Bada boom *smiles at Uncle Steve*.



Yesterday was my mother's 60th birthday. I took her out to dinner and to the Second City show, we had a good time. She got a whole bunch of plants and stuff and she really liked the shorts and shirt we got her.



I haven't been able to get to the gym this week, I'm really low on energy. I'm going to the doctor on July 1, to make sure something isn't really wrong. I've had this lump on my neck for 7 years, I've just now decided to get a second opinion *in light of my friend discovering two lumps on her breast*.



Congratulations to my long time friend Jeff, who just got accepted at Vanarts in Vancouver. He's a really tallented artist, one of these days, I'll scan some of his drawings and show everyone.



I think that's all for now...



DEETOX

The Gym

This is just a little rant about my experience at the gym yesterday. I've been going about 4 times a week, for the last few weeks. It's a coed gym, but there is a seperate room that is just a "ladies" gym. So, I usually go in there, it's less crowded, and well, there's no men ;). I look over at this one woman, who was thinner than I, and kind of greet her as I'm walking toward the stair master. You know, just one of those little acknowlegements that happens when two people pass each other. She looked at me with such pity, up then down. I just smiled and kept walking. I think she might have stopped and watched me walk past her. I then had an epiphany. I was someone else's motivation at the gym. That girl was giving me the "thank god I don't look like that" look. When I look at people who are larger than me, at the gym, I'm always thinking "you go girl." It motivates me to want to lose weight. I guess some people need negative motivation in order to feel motivated.


Then I started to get really sad and angry because here we are all, at the gym, working our asses off (literally) and there is all this other shit going on in the world. I was watching Fox news on my headphones, and I was totally blown away by the events of late. And there I was, on the stair master, worried about some beauty standard that really isn't that important in the grand scheme of things. I was thinking about how that girl who looked at me funny could take her hostility and put it towards a good cause, like Yucca Mountain. I was thinking about how totally unfair it all is, I'm in an air conditioned gym, while there are people all around the world who are hungry, without shelter, and have no family.


Then I started thinking that I was a hypocrite. We all are. I would not give up this lifestyle, for anything. I would not go live in Afghanistan for 6 months, just to feel thier pain. I really just wish that things were good for everyone, or at least not so abso-fucking-lutly horrible. I realize that we need bad in our lives to recognize the good, but there is just so much bad right now.


On a lighter note... I have a job on Monday's and Tuesday's at my college as a math tutor. They pay me and everything. I will be tutoring 6 hours a day, and it's kind of like a drop in thing, where I'm there for 6 hours and people come and go. Maybe when the fall semester comes, I'll quit Star Trek and tutor full time. But I have to see how I like it. I might hate it more than here, but I doubt it. I just need a change. I'm getting restless...

YEY!

So I'm just sitting here at work, minding my own business, when I hear the doorbell. (They have to ring it, and then I let them in). Who is there? Paul. What does he have? Spider-Man 12 inch action figures! Holy crap! They look pretty good too. I really have to clean my room, and make it so that I can display all my toys. Not very feng shui, but oh well. Nobody's perfect. I have a waterfall near the door, for prosperity.And my bed is angled north/south instead of east west. I'm trying, damnit. I've also been going to the gym. It never fails, whenever I have to see people from Edmonton, I always feel fat. I have to go to the gym like 85 times a week. I think I need to just calm down.

Rico Suave

I saw Original Sin last night with Antonio Bandaras and Angelina Jolie (sp?). Pretty good sex scenes, good story line. I've just been spoiled on Sci-Fi and fantasy movies. I haven't been able to enjoy a "regular" movie for the last couple months. I'm a sci-fi snob. Oxy moron? Well, that too. Anyhoo, that's all I have to say right now.

House follow up...

Well, they passed the bill *shock, surprise* that I mentioned in an earlier post. Click HERE to read about it. They actually stayed until 3am (EST). Maybe that's the third shitty thing that will happen this week.

On a happier note... I'm going to see the monks tonight at our local library. It's a free show that promotes tolerance, healing and awareness for the people of Tibet. I really need to see something postive today.

Boldly not going...

Well, I didn't get into Caltech. Big surprise, I suppose. There was just this little "maybe" that had been in the back of my mind for the last 4 months. But you wouldn't believe how hard that "maybe" had burried itself into my head. Oh well, even Captain Picard had to try twice to get into Starfleet Academy. I'll send an email out to those who knew I applied, because I'm sure no one really reads this. Sorry, I'm just on a self bashing rant. Oh, and Paul and I have decided to remain "just friends"(tm). Everything comes in 3's, right? What the hell will happen next? Stay tuned for another addition of "God damn mother fucking bastard."

You can't be afraid of the wind...

I hope everyone watched the season finale of Enterprise. There is no way I can explain it, I barely understand it myself. Temporal mechanics gives me a headache. It was really good, and I'm angry that I have to wait 3 months to see what happens. I'm also relieved that I'm angry, because that means it was a good show. I have all of the first season on tape, so I'll just have to watch those all summer.

I talked to my friend Tara a couple nights ago, and I'm really psyched to be going to see them in 2 months! I'm thinking of getting a tattoo while I'm there, but I have to design it first. My friend's wedding is taking place in a hotel. This hotel happens to house the bar where I spent my 18th B-Day (good lord) and many other drunken occasions. I think we're planning on spending some time there, it should be interesting. Geez, I hope there isn't too much drama. We were really good for that in high school. I'll just be drinking wine and laughing....hahahahahahhahahaha... i'm giggling now just thinking about it.

While talking to Tara, (discussing Tobey Maguire) I realized that when he doesn't shave, he looks like an old boyfriend of mine. That's not really a good thing, considering we used to call him bacon, grease, scrub and all that jazz. Hopefully, Tobey doesn't stalk his ex's and give them diamond rings after they've been together for 2 seconds. Ba dum... shit.

If I see the preview for Minority Report one more time, I'm going to boycott the theatre. It's driving my crazy! It's like I've seen the movie already. Boo, Hiss.

I don't know if anyone has actually sat and watched C-Span for more than a few seconds, but last night, I couldn't stop watching. The republicans are trying to introduce a new legislation that would increase the national debt by $750 billion dollars, in the name of war. Now, I understand that the "war on terrorism" is important, and yes, I enjoy living safely (?) but that money would come directly out of social security. I don't have to collect SS for another 35 years, but I really want it to be there when I can't work anymore. What fascinated me most about this whole play (and it was just like it) was that the representatives from the states that spoke out about all of this were really passionate. They were yelling and spitting, and almost swearing. These people are really fighting for us, It was refreshing. This was in the House Of Representatives. Alternatively, I watched the Senate (boring) while the majority whip (D-Sen. Harry Reid-NV) went blah blah blah blah for about 5 minutes. All those people really wanted to do was go home, where as in the House, they stayed late (it was about 10pm and they were still going strong) and postponed their flights home to see their families in order to try to sway the majority into not passing this legislation. I was really proud to be an American. I think we should all watch C-Span everyonce and a while, just to see what our government is up to. That is why it's there, they just really think that no one is watching. Prove them wrong. Make them accountable for their actions. Vote! Stay informed! Don't be a sheep! BAAAAAA! Ok, I'll step off the soapbox now. Just my two cents.

TTFN

Mars, here we come!

It's official! On Wednesday, there was a bill introduced that will set a goal for human exploration of space. Read the press release below:

PRESS RELEASE
Date Released: Wednesday, May 15, 2002
House Science Committee, Democratic Membership

Lampson Introduces Bill to Stimulate Human Space Exploration
(Washington) - U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson (D-TX) introduced bipartisan
legislation today to establish a series of goals to advance the
nation's human space flight program over the next twenty years.

Among the goals specified in the bill, the eight-year goal would
require the development and flight demonstration of a reusable space
vehicle capable of carrying humans from low Earth orbit to libration
points in space, which could be used to assemble large-scale
scientific observatories far beyond low Earth orbit. The twenty-year
goal would require development of a reusable vehicle to carry humans
to and from Martian orbit, development of a human occupied research
facility on one of the moons of Mars, and development of a reusable
vehicle to carry astronauts from Martian orbit to Mars and back.

The bill will allow the best, most innovative mission concepts to
compete. The bill also sets tough requirements for periodic
independent cost and schedule reviews to ensure that the exploration
initiative is properly managed.

"The real obstacle we face in overcoming the drift in the nation's
human space flight program is not technological and it's not
financial - it's the lack of commitment to get started. We don't need
another national commission to come up with goals for human space
flight beyond low Earth orbit," said Lampson. "What we need is a
national commitment to carry out any one of the many worthy goals
that have been articulated to date. The Space Exploration Act of 2002
provides this commitment with a concrete set of goals for the
nation's human space flight program after the International Space
Station."

The Ranking Democratic Member of the Science Committee, Rep. Ralph M.
Hall said, "Rep. Lampson's bill is an important step in establishing
a vision for NASA's human space flight program. I'm pleased to be a
cosponsor of the bill, and I hope that the Science Committee will
incorporate these goals in the NASA authorization bill when we mark
it up next month."

The bill also establishes an Office of Exploration within NASA to
carry out the programs to meet the goals and authorizes $50 million
and $200 million for FY 2003 and 2004, respectively.

How amazing is that! I might actually get invlolved in this one. Maybe I'll even call my congressperson. I really would like to be able to go to Mars. If they have a 20yr plan, it would be perfect. I would be 43. That is perfect. I'm so excited! I need to start training now!

With great power comes great responsibility

I went, I laughed, I cried, it became a part of me. You probably think I'm talking about Star Wars Episode 2, but NO! It's all about SPIDERMAN! What a fantastic movie! I've seen it 5 times. Yes, 5 times. There is not one bad part in the whole entire film. Tobey Maguire is excellent, as is Willem Dafoe, and Kirsten Dunst. I never read the comic book (and yes, I can still appreciate a "comic book movie") but from all the fan boys I know, it does it justice. Now we just have to wait until May 7, 2004 to see Spiderman 2. Danny Elfman's score for the movie gives me goosebumps and tinglies every time I hear it. I am an official Spiderman gusher.

On a less enthusiastic note, I went to see Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. Um, well, it was good. The only bone I have to pick is that the romance between Anakin and Padme seemed rushed. They probably could have done a whole movie on just that. I'm really impressed at how they really tried to continue every single plotline, and manage to make the movie only 2hrs and 20mins. I really liked the planet scenes, and Yoda. Oh my god, if you ever see one thing in your life, you need to see Yoda with a lightsaber. Good action, alright dialogue, and Jar Jar Binks was only in 3 scenes (Even though I didn't mind him in the first one too much). I really wanted to see it in digital. There is one theatre in Vegas where it is in digital, and I hear there is a huge difference.

And to bring the enthusium back... ENTERPRISE is great! Love that freakin show! I tape it every week, and I get home and watch it religiously. The season finale is May 22, and it will be a continuing storyline with the Temporal Cold War. Or TCP as us nerds like to call it. I really like T'Pol, Trip and Reed. If I ever get around to it, I might post my pictures from the Pasadena Grand Slam Convention where I met most of the cast of Enterprise. Now that school is over for the moment, I just might do that.

Speaking of school, I will hear from Caltech in the first week of June. My finals were harsh. I really kind of messed up my Calculus final, and I got lucky (I think) on my Finite math final. My teacher asked me if I wanted to tutor math in the math lab for the summer, so that's something, right? I'll let everyone know what happens either way (with Caltech).

That's it for now. Smell ya later.

So tired...

Today, I am the most tired I've ever been. I finally took my Caltech entrance exams (they determine, if you get accepted, what classes you will place into), and I totally sucked. I only answered one question on the Physics exam. I've never taken calculus based physics before! The calculus exam was ok, but it was kind of like those math exams that I used to get entered into in Jr.High and High school. They really try to trick you, and if that is all a test is trying to do, then it can kiss my ass. I found myself dreaming about calculus last night, how sad.

I talked to my friend of 17years (Emily) yesterday. I hadn't talked to her for like a year. Man, it's amazing what a person can go through and still be ok.

Is it just me, or are there a whole crap load of people getting married this year? At least in my small neck of the woods. I know at least 5 couples that are for sure for sure getting married in the next year. Do I add my name to that list? No, I don't think so.

Pass the Donuts

Over at The Trek BBS people are just giving no end of shit to Enterprise. So seeing as I'm still a little bitter from a couple days ago, I added this saying to my signature...

"I am an Enterprise whore."

It seems that I am. I don't see anything wrong with it. It's like a children's christmas play where every kid but your own sucks.

I don't like Voyager, but I don't devote several days to writing about how much I hate it. Maybe a few sentences, but that's it.

Did I mention that "I HATE TODAY!"

Yup, still sucks. It keeps getting worse.

That third test will remain unknown, and the teacher in that class sucks ass. Never take a class where "staff" is written where it should say the teachers name. This usually means they don't have anyone to teach the class at the time of publishing the catalog. They will hire anyone, and no, you don't need a teaching degree. Isn't that sad?

I hate everyone today. It's amazing. I work in the ultimate beacon of hope for all humanity, and the irony is that everyone (well not everyone, but you know who you are) is the polar opposite of that hope. People suck. I really wish I could just not work here anymore, but be able to find a job that is as flexable and pays as well as this one. Oh, and I also work for my favorite hobby. Insert: Rock and Hard Place. The rest of today better rock.

I ended up getting all my homework done, 3 tests (two of which I did well on, the third is unknown) and I am now on the last day of my spring break. (BOO). But the convention was too much fun, as usual. I will have pictures and a report up soon, because I know the one person who actually goes here might be interested. I really will get a .com or .net address someday. Oh yes, it will be mine. A couple of highlights...

-Wil Wheaton was cool as usual. He signed my William Fucking Shatner T-Shirt with "Wil Fucking Wheaton." William Fucking Shatner T-Shirts. He was so happy to see someone with one of his shirts that he didn't even charge me for the autograph! Too cool.

-Ricardo Montalban... "KAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHN" Is in a wheel chair with a degenerative muscle disease, but is still as handsome and witty as ever. He gave a very inspiring speech about never giving up and knowing that everything happens for a reason.

-Futurama Episode... Got to see the season finale of Futurama, which is themed off Star Trek! Very funny! Everyone needs to watch it! Unfortunately, Futurama has not been renewed for next year. Fox sucks. Go to Got Futurama to try to save it! There was a panel of 12 people from the show on stage to answer questions including the creator, David X Cohen and the guy who does the voice of bender. (Real names will be in the full con report.)

-Random Stars that are connected to Star Trek showed up... Michael Bein, David Arquette, Bill Paxton... it was pretty cool.

So that's it for now, smell ya later...

No matter what anyone says, Generations is a great movie. I was just out in the main store of where I work, ST:TE, and I watched about 10m of it. Now I want to watch the whole thing, but I'm at work and I can't just spend 3 hrs hanging out in the store. Oh well, I will get my fix of Star Trek in exactly 5 days. I have so much homework too, I just can't get a break! My room is also a mess, much to my mother's dismay. I feel like i'm 12 years old today. Maybe I'll go play barbies. (Yes, I still played barbies when I was 12, sue me.)

Ooops! No rant! I visit the TrekBBS alot, and do alot of my ranting there.

Pasadena Grand Slam is in 8 days!

Just found out that Wil Wheaton, geek extrodinaire, will be there. So will Bill Paxton, Joan Collins and everyone else. My friend Kim and I are going for the 4th straight year in a row. Yes, I am a nerd. OH WELL.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Did you know that William Shatner has a Blog?

Bill's Blog

It's doesn't seem quite as personal as Wil Wheatons, but hey. He's been busy!
---------------------------------------------------------------------
My high school english teacher finally wrote me back. (I had written him an email 2 months ago.) And he still remembers me! He's the one who let us watch Star Trek in class, and discuss it as a form of art. He is the coolest teacher ever... he wrote this...

"Good Luck Deedee - I always believed you'd pursue your dream. Live long and prosper."

ahhhhhhhhhhhh... memories.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
For those of you who are fans of MTV's "The Real World", they are filming it at the new "Palms" hotel here in Vegas! The people are living on the 27th floor of the hotel, and are doing what they normally do, get up in each others shit, hilarity ensues.

----In physics, resistance is not futile.

I think I finally figured out why I decided to have a Weblog. I need an outlet for the anger/joy I experience at the world and sometimes at myself. I'll tell you right now, I'm not an English major. I don't write in proper sentences, sometimes, i don't capitalize. If you are a member of the politically correct thought police, move on, i don't care. I'm excercising FREE SPEECH. I feel a real rant coming on...

Testing, testing, 1 2 3...