Check it out… and my apologies for not continuing with this.  Who knows, I may come back with it.  I’m test driving Tumblr and I feel like it can cater to my random, random thoughts that occur ALL the time.

Moving on…

When I woke up today I did my general surfing of the internet.  Then I looked at a tweet from a friend that said Brittany Murphy died.  My heart stopped a little bit, but then I thought it was a prank.  So in general nature, I started investigating the story and more stories started to pop up everywhere.  It was then I knew it was real.  I don’t know why, but this death really affected me a bit more than the multiple other deaths of 2009 (which we all know were too many).  Brittany Murphy was the star of some of my all time favorite movies “Clueless” and “Girl Interrupted”.  Also the funny girl on a pretty silly stoner movie “Bongwater”, memorable to me in the horror flick “Cherry Falls”, and smokin’ hott in “Sin City”.  I’m not exactly sure why I feel so gray.  Maybe it’s the culmination of deaths that have happen this week (A young man from Princeton, Chris Henry, and now Brittany Murphy).  Maybe it’s because she happened to be the first girl I felt a strange attraction to on the movie screen.  I mean Clueless is seriously one of my all time favorite movies.  I loved it, I loved her as Tai.  Her quirky nature, rebel like qualities, all around bright and funny presence.  She could sing really well too.  I don’t know, she just seemed so real and so funny.  Her roles felt real especially in Girl, Interrupted.  It’s sad, another young life lost too soon. Maybe it was drugs maybe it wasn’t, bottom line she was a once beautiful talent who had plenty left to offer.

“Rollin’ With The Homies”

So lately I’ve been obsessed with a certain female body part!  How strange I know…  The little dimples on the lower back are called “Dimples of Venus”.  There’s just something about them that are so intriguing.  I won’t keep talking about them because I could honestly go on forever talking about them and the content would probably stop being G-rated.  So, here’s a picture… enjoy with me

Well…:

Thanksgiving break was in there.  It was fabulous hanging with the class of ’08 as usual.

My birthday was December 8th so I’m a year older.  Hanging in stasis at the ripe old age of 20.  I’m not  a big birthday person, but my friends here did a few small things that were definitely meaningful.  I hope they know I appreciate them so much.

Drunken entertainment from my suitemates.

90s mix session thanks to last.fm 90s radio.   The perfect mix of alt rock, ska, grunge, pop, and R&B. I love the 90s so much.   Everything about it.

Wasted nights hanging with the girl who causes my infatuation with her to exceedingly fluctuate.

Having really meaningful conversations with the people I love, and those who are gaining my friendship quickly.

Learning about a newer friends curiosity with me… yea she’s a girl .  Yes she had a boyfriend last year.  My friends here are giving me the reputation of being the girl who “turns straight girls.”  Clearly I’m not that powerful, and that’s not even possible.

And today is the beginning of finals week for me.  For me however, it’s not!  I already took my music final last Friday because he didn’t want to have it on the last Friday of exams, so he was nice enough to change that.  I should have a Spanish final today but I’m so in tune with the Spanish language that I received a final grade of an A- in the class and therefore I am exempt from my exam.  I guess taking Spanish every year since 6th grade paid off a little.  The next exam I have is Wednesday COM 134: Introduction to Speech Communication.  I know the concepts won’t be necessarily difficult on that exam, but there’s just a lot of material.  On Thursday I have my COM 143: Mass Communication final.  I know that will be a doozy because the material on all those exams are dense!  Finally, on Friday I have my COM 135: Public Expression & Critical Inquiry.  I’m sure I’ll do fine on this one because it’s similar to the midterm and I received a 85% on that one.

I should be studying, but like my nature I’m not.  I feel inadequate a lot around here because everyone is either a business or science major.  They study A LOT.  Sometimes the science boys make snide remarks about how no one studies or reads and they’re the only smart ones.  But of course I don’t let that get to me because I know I’m doing what I like.  I like people and communication and seeing how the world interacts with each other.  I tried doing numbers and being best friends with 50mL burets last year and that’s just not who I am.   I’m completely content with myself this year, and I can breathe.

Another reason I’m not studying is because of the building I live in.  In my residence hall there’s 3 fraternities (I guess it’s the ones who can’t live in the houses or something).  Anyways, my lovely drunk suitemate who I LOVE to death stole all the name tags on peoples doors on Sat. night.  Well this morning at around 240am, my roommate and I received a knock on the door.  Unusually, we both got up to go answer the door which never happens.  My roommate answers the door with me standing behind her, and BAM! A trash can full of warm water falls into our room and floods it soaking our carpet, some of her clothes, and an assortment of other items.  Needless to say, we weren’t very happy and spent the majority of dawn cleaning up.  I put my carpet out on the stairwell to dry this morning and of course when I woke up around 11 to run to my car that I forgot to move because of the prank (I got my THIRD $65 parking ticket for that), the carpet was gone.  So, now I have to search for the carpet, search for who did the prank, and survive the rest of the week.  I mean the prank was pretty funny, an pretty much the epitome of college pranks.

At least the weathers nice… right?

As for the panel, it was fabulous!  Me along with two other girls answered many questions from an audience of 34 I believe.  The other two girls identified as pansexual and gender queer/stacie… her name is stacie.  It was interesting.  We were answering questions on behalf of “Safe Zone Training” which is an organization that provides questioning, confused, concerned students about their sexuality with a safe, nonjudgemental place to talk.  The questions we were asked ranged from “how do you get treated on this campus” to “how’d your family and friends react”?  I was very pleased with the interests everyone took in it.  I actually felt as though I was opening the minds of other people.  Hopefully I can participate in another panel.

Finally… tomorrow is Thanksgiving.  I can’t wait.  I’ve been hungry for it since a couple weeks ago.  As usual my dad and Ms. Darlene started cooking Sunday so the house has been smelling delicious every since I got here yesterday.  As usual there’s a million and one place settings because the house is going to be full to capacity with black people.  YAY!  As usual, I love being home.  I have space to move in my shower, I have plenty of room to relax, home cooked food, and friends who have been with me since the beginning.  You know, it always unsettles me, or makes me slightly uncomfortable that many people celebrate holidays without knowing exactly what they’re celebrating.  But it’s ok, because it brings family together and hopefully memorable times, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

That’s all I have for now.  I’ll try to update more often, but finals week is around the bend (KILL ME).  My birthday is coming up too! December 8th.  I’ll be an old lady.

Today’s lecture topic was labeled “Magazines and the Politics of Community and Identity”.  Seems pretty “banal” (a word my professor loves using), however the complete focus was around the Gay Press.  He used gay press as the topic for today’s focus because it displayed many of the key characteristics of contemporary magazine that most people won’t ever recognize.  The gay press exemplifies: fragmentation of the magazine industry, lifestyle commercialization, media as a primary socializing agent, and media, imagined community, and identity.  I won’t explain those foundation building blocks, but that was kind of his rational for using the gay press as his focus on lecture.

Of course when I saw this projected onto the two giant screens in front of the lecture hall I was thrilled!  However, I wasn’t sure how the rest of my lecture mates would respond to this topic.  I do go to Miami University Oxford which follows the trend of America as it pertains to conservatism.  As our guest lectures (The man who wrote my Mass Communications Book) on News Media Biased and Journalism told us, Miami University tends to parallel the views of America, i.e, a lot of conservative viewpoints.  Bottom line, I was interested to see how the class would react to the lecture.  Sidenote:  By the way, there are tons of gay friendly people here, well I should say lesbian Kara friendly people.  Could be because I don’t fit the stereotypical fat, butch, self-loathing lesbian?  But I’m glad I’m informing people about the GLBT spectrum.  Whenever someone has something ignorant to say about GLBT I simply take the time to explain to them a different viewpoint.  It usually goes well.

So, he lectures about the atmosphere in America during the Pre-Stonewall riots period.  He asked if anyone knew what stonewall was and I looked back to see if anyone was raising their hand, as expected their were 0 out of 226 hands raised.  Of course I took it upon myself to shoot my hand up and answer his question briefly of what Stonewall was.  And for a side note, I sit in the very front of the lecture hall directly in front of the stage so I’m very visible to every one behind me, and the bright highlighter yellow-green hoody I was wearing didn’t hurt either.  Clearly I don’t mind being a stand out, in fact I prefer it, especially at Miami.

The rest of his lecture essentially went through the history of gay magazines from One, which was more like a news letter started in 1952, to current publications like Out, The Advocate, Girlfriends, and numerous other publications.  He discussed Supreme Court cases, social context issues of the 60s and 70s, gay vague advertising, and just a whole slew of topics pertaining to gay magazines.  He was showing a “Got Milk” ad in a magazine for an example of Gay Vague advertisement and he couldn’t think of the women’s name featured in it and I was like “Suze Orman”!  Then I felt, woah, slow the lesbian down… haha.  I was just excited, but his lecture continues on Tuesday and I’m excited to see what else is in store.

Speaking of sinful homosexuals, tonight at 7:00pm is a lecture called “What’s Morally Wrong with Homosexuality” by Wayne State University Associate Professor Dr. John Corvino.”He will be speaking as a philosopher, a moralist and as a gay rights advocate on the contentiousness of homosexuality. Dr. Corvino will discuss the most popular accusations against homosexuality’s morality and will ultimately argue that homosexuality is not immoral; but rather we have a moral obligation to treat gay people (and all people) fairly”.  Clearly I’m attending this, I feel like I should audio record with my laptop.

Continuing on the rainbow road, Monday I’m participating in my first panel for the Spectrum Education Board.  It’s basically to inform Resident Housing Association members why they should join safe zone.  Safe zone is an organization here on campus that promotes and open door policy to discuss any feelings one might be having about homosexuality.  It’s a safe, confidential, comfortable atmosphere.  So I guess we’re just going to be asked a few questions and we answer them from our experiences and point of views.   Again, hoping to the circulate the importance and image of the GLBT community

In closing, it’s just very inspiring and plain old awesome to have a lecture that sparks your interests again.  When this happens, tons of ideas about the future just start flying through your head and you don’t know where to start.  What’s for me in the future?! I don’t know I have too many interests.  I want to study the behavior and pattern’s of specific groups of people and how they interact with media, somehow I would like to be in the music business, I also feel the strong need to be involved with gay rights activism, I think advertising is interesting.  I JUST DON’T KNOW!  Having the broad major as Mass Communications helps I guess.

Tanget:  This is the facebook status I saw of one of my super conservative, yet lover of Cher, Adam Lambert, Elton John, and other sparkly people, facebook friends “Why does the media always attack smart conservative women like Sarah Palin, Carrie Prejean, and Ann Coulter”.  All I have to say is “ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS”?  By the way, Carrie Prejeans fit on Larry King was hilarious.  If you check it out, look at the way she’s trying to sale her book.

By the way… the people right above my room, room 205.  Your sex is really loud and your bed is extremely squeaky from down here.  Please try to calm that down or pick appropriate hours of the day to partake in set activities, or buy WD40 for the springs on your bed.  Thank You, your downstairs neighbors.

Oh, and tell me these photos of abandoned theaters aren’t creepy

By the way, check out some of the other articles on their internet version of the magazine, especially our haunted history.

Clearly You Can’t See That… So, here’s what she had to say:

Oh how I love thee. You and your Karisma bags filled with size -3 pants that cost $900 each walk into my restaurant. I smile enthusiastically as I come to your table, eager to serve no one but you. I’ve been waiting

all day just for you two, my only customers. I count the hours until you walk through that door and then my heart jumps for joy, as you look over the menu, in your Ralph Lauren outfits with a confused look on your faces. 

I admire your devotion to the brand and the fact that if it were a religion, you (and the credit card your parents pay for) would be the most devout followers of

Ralph Lauren-ism.

As I cheerily state my name, one of you cuts me off with your request for a cup of soup and a water. A grand total of $10 for you and your friend combined. Don’t worry about knowing my name, just cut me off and tell me exactly what you want. I am your humble, lowly slave. In fact, please just snap your fingers in the air and no matter how busy I am or how far away I am, I’ll know that you need me for something minuscule. Like the saying goes, “every time a bell rings an angel gets its wings,” every time you snap at a waitress, her self-worth goes up a whole half of a point. It’s just what she lives for … to be snapped at by spoiled, rude people.

I work quickly to get the items to you and savor all

the time you spend speaking with your friend about important things like celebrity gossip, how many times you’ve been tanning today and how you need to go to cvs to get some more platinum Miami blonde hair dye while gazing at your expensive fake nails to see if they look just right. Oh, I know I was supposed to go home at 2 p.m., but having you come in at one and sit around until four is just fine. I love to spend extra hours working when I have a ten-page paper due tomorrow – but

that’s my fault for having to work so much and put myself through school. At least I’ll have the privilege of making some money for the great job I did serving you. I would just fall to pieces if I didn’t have you, sweetie-pie.

You finally snap your fingers at me as I walk by. You

ask for the check. I have six other tables, but no matter – you, my darling, are the only one I have eyes for at this very moment and I know you know that since that’s how it’s been your whole life. You’re the apple of your daddy’s eye and mine too. I let out a sigh of gratitude as I gingerly hand you your checks and curtsy as I back away and thank you so very much for coming to my restaurant and getting soup and a water. It’s a good thing you didn’t

miamiquarterlyonline.com

go to a coffee shop where there aren’t any waitresses and you can sit for as long as you want and you don’t have

to tip anyone regardless of the total amount of things

you bought. That would be a waste of time, so instead, please, oh please waste my time instead.

You rise from your seats, Vera Bradley / Coach casecovered Blackberries in hand and turn to leave the restaurant, Karisma goodies in tow. I wave goodbye and thank you for coming in and you gracefully ignore me while your friend murmurs something that sounded like “thanks” … or maybe she just sneezed. Nevermind. I watch you leave and count the minutes until you return.

I turn to clear your table and the whole 30 cents that lie there are like a beacon of hope – to me, my wallet and my Miami bill for going here. Now I can buy a whole bag of penny candy at the old fashioned candy shop down the street or perhaps a slingshot. Don’t worry bad tipper, I won’t spend my 30 cents all in one place. Who tips at least 20 percent anymore, anyway? Not you.

You have no concept of that idea because you’ve never waited tables, but that’s okay. I can only hope to see you soon and that the tip you leave next time will be a modest 10 percent. Perhaps even 20 percent if you have your wits about you.

The Waitress

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