Billie J. Pilgrim

i moved

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 01:57:00 +0000

http://temporarilygrounded.wordpress.com/

Deep breaths...

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 16:16:00 +0000

And off we go.

An update (see Nov. 15 post)

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 16:23:00 +0000

I'm leaving Madison in 32 4 days. Between now and then I have to buy the remaining things I need for the trip, pack my backpack, put the rest of my belongings into storage, buy my Christmas presents, ~~figure out my health insurance~~, ~~defer my loans~~, ~~celebrate Thanksgiving~~, ~~grade 53 student papers~~, proctor my students' exam, grade 53 student exams, ~~write~~ revise a short story, and write ~~two~~ one term papers.

Breathe.

Signs I know the semester is ending / I am in a bad place

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 05:14:00 +0000

1. I actually purchase and finish an entire cup of coffee in one day

2. However, I don't actually need coffee to wake up in the morning, because the panic takes care of it

3. During the last several hours of sleep in the morning, I dream about oversleeping and not having time to do something important

4. I am wearing my college sweatshirt almost every day, and I pretty much never wash it

5. Still working at 3 am does not seem at all ridiculous

6. I find myself strategically planning which night this week will be my all-nighter

7. The word "meals" could in no way apply to how I eat throughout the day

8. I am blogging

This seems like an Erinn project

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 19:35:00 +0000

On my last backpacking trip (also with Kevin, also to South America) I did not take an iPod. It was a more innocent, more austere time. Neither did I have such luxuries as I will now be taking, like a personal pillow (compressible), or patterned clothing (for some reason I thought if I were stuck with the same clothes for 2 months, they should be as bland as possible--this was dumb). But back to the iPod. I've never packed an iPod on a long trip, and I've also never "packed" an iPod... aka, pre-selected tunes for months of future listening. The real trouble is that I'm only taking a shuffle, which only holds 200 songs. I mean, I have to preserve some illusion of hardship on the road. But making such a pared-down music list is posing some real quandaries.

My first instinct is to use up these slots with my top 20 albums. But maybe not. Maybe I should only include 15 albums to make room for stand-alone songs. But if you think choosing only 20 albums out of all the ones you have is hard, try choosing just 50 songs. And when do you make the call to pick a song but not its album? For instance, I love the song "The Dogs of Buenos Aires" by Mirah (and it's fortuitously applicable to our trip), but while several other songs on the album are also good, the entire album falls well below my top 20.

Do I go with my absolute, fixed, all-time top 15 albums, or do I shoot for a mix of stand-bys and new contenders? A list of all stand-bys could prove disappointingly... familiar. But can I really justify axing Modest Mouse's The Moon and Antarctica just to take a chance on something newer?

Do I include things that I'm obsessed with right now, or do I try to predict what I might be sick of in a few months' time? I'm all about the soundtrack to The Motorcycle Diaries these days (again, topical), but what if this is a phase that will run out in a matter of weeks? What if my obsession is particular to the fact that I'm getting ready for the trip?

Do I go for the pleasure index, or shoot for re-listenability? Life In Cartoon Motion by Mika is one of my favorite albums over the last couple of years, because every time I listen to it it makes me crazy-happy. That album gives me joy. But it is not the kind of thing you listen to again as soon as its over (unless you're Andy). Part of why it stays so fucking good is that I only listen to it once in a while. But that once in a while is sooo good. Can I sustain this dynamic when the album represents 5% of my entire music library?

What about old favorites that have fallen out of rotation? Is this the time for a Mates of State comeback? I used to listen to Team Boo on a loop, but I haven't in a couple of years. Is it still one of my "favorite albums"? Or can I safely say that it's been replaced by St. Vincent or Vampire Weekend, or Hot Chip, even though these are newer favorites?

So many problems, and I haven't gotten out of the M section of iTunes....

How do I choose just one Andrew Bird album? Just one Decemberists??

Do I screen out my favorite albums, to prevent the monotony of the playlist and the length of the trip from ruining them for me?

Do I specifically choose things that Kevin doesn't choose for his own (larger) iPod, thus maximizing our total selection but also relegating my own iPod to the status of a mere supplement, full of second-class choices made to meet external constraints?

Do I run with the travel theme, and choose things that I think I will like listening to on the road? Then I should go back to albums I associate with travel or with driving. I can't imagine taking a long road trip without Ted Leo, or Calexico, or The Soundtrack of Our Lives in the car, because I associate them with being on the road. But will that translate to bus rides? WIll I regret replacing something else that I all-around appreciate more?

Do I take thematics to the extreme and choose a driving album, a reading album, a walking album, a writing album, etc. etc., just to make sure all my situational bases are covered?

Do I say fuck it all and select twenty albums with household objects in the title, or bands with the letter V?

Should I try to effect an eclectically hip mix of cutting-edge indies, quirky mainstream choices, and I-know-my-music classics, just in case some outrageously cool Argentinian or Kiwi borrows my iPod? Do I need to maintain backpacker cred? Will my favorite Beatles selections suffice for this, or do I need to be the kind of person who has a favorite Beatles album and feel strongly that it be preserved as a whole?

And more distressingly, if I can't even load my iPod, how will I ever finish my term papers???

Maybe my next paper should be about food

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 05:33:00 +0000

All I want to do during finals is eat. Maybe it's because I have long been opposed to eating while working, and so eating is a cue for break-time. And because I give eating enough status that it can stand alone even during the busiest of times, it has somehow taken on too much status, become something so important that it is actually a productive activity. Or maybe it's because eating, unlike online procrastination, does not leave me feeling empty and ashamed. Or maybe it's because ordinarily my brain is given enough varying stimulation throughout the day to prevent its constantly returning to food, whereas the unpleasant singularness of the paper-writing task sends my brain screaming and fleeing. Or maybe painful intellectual exertion demands bodily retribution. Or maybe it's because I just really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really like food. A lot. And I think that I deserve it because I wrote another page.

The question is: How fat am I willing to get before tenure just isn't worth it anymore?

self-titled

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 03:36:00 +0000

oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god.

oh. my. god.

No news, no new regrets

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 20:06:00 +0000

I have to agree with Kevin. Thanksgiving is the new Christmas. My Christmases are not tremendously festive, since it's just me and my mom. And let's just say the present-giving in that scenario is pretty lopsided, so I'm always embarrassed by that, too.

And I do wish I could spend Thanksgiving with my mom, because I do love her and she's my family. But not traveling over this particular weekend of the year is SO NICE. I love having vacation time where I live. Sleeping in in my own bed, baking pies in my own oven in my jammies, having friends over to celebrate with. Also, being with K is a big part of it. This will be our 6th Christmas as a couple, and we'll have spent all 6 of them in different states. It's just how it goes. But Thanksgiving is for us. And having 6 or 8 or 10 friends our age come over and drink shitloads of wine and eat and carouse and watch movies with... just... yes. Having our own holiday feels like being a grown-up. Also, when we're drunk and drawing penises, it feels like we're still kids. It's a good combo.

There it is: the Fear

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 20:53:00 +0000

I always forget how much I love the song "Senegal Fast Food" by Amadou and Mariam. It's jam-tastic.

Anyone have any ideas for what my short story should be about?

I'm leaving Madison in 32 days. Between now and then I have to buy the remaining things I need for the trip, pack my backpack, put the rest of my belongings into storage, figure out my health insurance, defer my loans, celebrate Thanksgiving, grade 53 student papers, grade 53 student exams, write a short story, and write two term papers.

Piece of cake? :/

The eve of history

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 05:00:00 +0000

God, am I going to enjoy voting tomorrow. I may cry.

I'll see you on the other side.

WELLIES!

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 05:30:00 +0000

I finally used the Land's End gift card I got for Christmas last year. In other news, Land's End kinds sucks. But you know what doesn't suck? My fleece-lined, polka-dotted WELLIES!

I know, a missing birthday post. Well, maybe it's because I can't handle the idea of being as unfathomably old as 26. Sigh. But my birthday was really good. K-Stapes and I threw our joint bash, and I think it was even more successful than last year. I didn't get any balls drawn on my face, but then E wasn't there. I did, however, get nice and drunk and have to be helped home by my boyfriend, during which walk I held forth on the universal applicability of "-ass" to the ends of adjectives in order to add emphasis, even when the adjective in question is a number. "Look at those four-ass houses!"

I got a lot of sweet presents for my birthday, many of which were in jewelry form, which if you know me, you know is not a problem. To say the least.

My birthday being a Monday, K. took the night off from school and made me a delicious bbq rib and mashed potato dinner, and a carrot cake, which was good of him, since he hates all things involving carrots that aren't raw. And I opened a lot of awesome presents from my mom, including the collected stories of Gogol, season 7 of Friends (3 more to go!), and an album full of my baby pictures:

Much amusement for K.

And he, being a sweet boyfriend, got me a series of gifts all related to our upcoming trip, like super-comfy socks, super-thin journals, and a super-durable water bottle. I kinda wish I could start packing right now. But I'll try to keep the absurdity pot from boiling over.

Here are the presents he adorably decorated with fall leaves:

Here's me getting excited to open presents:

And here's my sweet cake:

Another year, another batch of goodies to stave off the horror of being old. Yay!

the birthday post comes later

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 06:13:00 +0000

75 DAYS

Holding my breath

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:53:00 +0000

I am starting to believe Barack Obama is going to win this election. That's a hard thing for me to do, to give up my cynicism and allow myself to just straight-up believe he's going to win. Because elections rip your heart out. But he's polling 6-10 points above McCain in the national poll, and in every battleground state except Missouri, he's polling enough points ahead of McCain to be outside the margin of error. Which means if the election were held today and the poll numbers accurately predicted it, he would win something like 350-150 (by electoral votes). That's a pretty solid basis for belief, so I'm starting to believe he's going to win. (Now of course, I'm on to my new worry, him getting shot, since McCain/Palin seems perfectly comfortable inciting near-riots of hatred at their campaign stops.)

A black man is carrying the election, no one seems to care about McCain's swift-boat politics and war-mongering, and Connecticut legalized gay marriage, so the country seems to be tipping back to the middle, or maybe even left, or rather, it seems to be tipping back toward sane and kind and rational. The days of "kill the towel-heads" are receding into an embarrassing past.

Oh, except for that 10% of the country who actually believes Obama is the Antichrist. Ummm....

I guess what disturbs me is that it seems like about 35% of the country is voting for Barack Obama, 5% is voting for the Democrat in spite of the fact that he's Barack Obama, 5% is voting against John McCain, and 5% is voting against the Republican Party. Probably in the coming weeks we will see another 5% voting against Republican leadership during the financial crisis.

I hate to look a gift horse in the mouth, but this country baffles me. If you run Obama-McCain polls in just about every civilized nation on earth, McCain's percentage of the vote makes him look like he must have been a write-in candidate. I feel much the same way I felt after the 2004 election. It was comforting to know that 1 in 2 people was just as angry as I was that George W. Bush was allowed to remain in office. But it was shocking to realize that 1 in 2 people said he should be there. I will cheer Obama all the way to the White House, no matter how he gets there. And I'm thrilled to see that a majority of the country wants that to happen, as well. But I cannot understand why, in the current political and financial climate, given the stark difference in their policies, 2 in 5 people want McCain, and only 2 in 5 are actually excited about Obama. The middle 20% is going to elect him as the lesser of two evils, however they define them. How did this country become so deeply and evenly divided along the liberal/conservative divide? Why do half of us persist in sticking by hyper-conservative values while the world looks on and scratches its head. Why aren't we all parading in the streets with huge posters of Obama? Why is it actually somewhat reasonable to worry that he'll get shot, in a way it wouldn't be in almost any European nation? Why, America?

People are really stupid

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 15:01:00 +0000

Like, really stupid.

It's kind of like a 19C travel diary...

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 03:45:00 +0000

100 DAYS, BITCHES.

100 days until I'm on a plane bound for the southern hemisphere. Just thought you might like to know.

Shall I record my thoughts on this auspicious occasion? My thoughts are FUCK YES.

This woman is going to be on Dancing With The Stars in 2 years, mark my words.

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 06:11:00 +0000

John McCain's running mate, a 44-year old partial-term governor apparently totally equipped to run the country* in the event of McCain's inevitable and imminent catastrophic health failure, or at least good enough to persuade millions of American women that she's just the same as Hillary solely because she has a vagina, despite being 100% opposed to her on every major issue:

The health teacher from Varsity Blues who turns out, to no one's real surprise, to also be a stripper:

*From 2007:

Alaska Business Monthly: We've lost a lot of Alaska's military members to the war in Iraq. How do you feel about sending more troops into battle, as President Bush is suggesting?

Palin: I've been so focused on state government, I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq. I heard on the news about the new deployments...

Well, at least no one's serving barnacles in their underwear

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 17:48:00 +0000

Sweet. Kevin recapped our summer in his blog, so I don't have to. If you're curious to see the long version of the pitiful summary I left in my last post, check it out.

So I've been spending a fairly large chunk of my free time preparing for my next overseas adventure. It's really exciting, because it will be the longest I've ever been out of the country at a stretch, and I expect my Spanish to improve mightily. It's also exciting that K & I are skipping out on about 3/4 of Madison's winter this year. And it's pretty bomb-tastic that we're taking a semester off school, because while on balance I do want to be in grad school, it's important that I pay attention to the part of me that doesn't. And, finally, it allows me to indulge my near-obsessive love of future-planning. I fucking LOVE making schedules and itineraries, doing internet research on hiking and sightseeing, making spreadsheets to compare hostels, passing whole entire afternoons curled up in a chair at Borders reading travel guides and taking notes. I fucking love it. I'm not a type-A traveler, ironically. Once on the ground, I do like to make sure I see all the good stuff, but I don't plan out every day or stick to even the loose schedules I've made. I go with the flow. I just like to go with the flow after I've arrived prepared with encyclopedic knowledge on all the best stuff to do. And I love planning for things I know I'm going to enjoy. So I've been making less than academically-wise use of my summer, but fuck it. I'm going to South America.

I've also discovered some interesting cultural tidbits that I'll share with you because I'm sure you'll find them more interesting than thousands of photos of gorgeous landscapes, which cause me to geek out like a lunatic and which in the spring months you'll be subjected to on my travel blog anyway.

1. Seafood is abundant and delicious in Chile, so I hear. But they eat literally everything that comes out of the sea, including things like octopus, squid, anemone, and barnacles. Yes, barnacles. I gotta be honest, until a couple of weeks ago I didn't even know there was any component of barnacles that was alive. But inside those spiny rocky fungus things on the bottoms of boats you'll find a slimy, wiggly little snail thing. They sell them in the markets still squirming. I know people all over the world eat things that seem gross to us, and I'm not trying to "Other" other cultures or anything. I just can't believe people eat these fucking things. They look like they ought to be bursting out of people's skin in horror movies (check out what it starts doing about 30 seconds in.. gahhhh).

2. Apparently Chileans have something like a version of Hooters that is somehow both classier and sleazier at the same time. Instead of pubs, they're coffee bars, and instead of just tight shirts and short shorts, the waitresses are in their underwear. I'm not sure how Chile has managed to combine the Starbucks market with the strip club market, but they have. And I'm intrigued. They're called café con piernas, meaning "cafe with legs." All I know is that getting my morning coffee on this trip is not going to be like it was in Bolivia, where a surly teenage boy would pour out lukewarm Nescafé in an empty restaurant. I did not come back from Bolivia with a single photo of a half-naked woman, which in retrospect seems like a real mistake.

More to come, I'm sure.

A Return to Blogging;-- In which Batman steals the Spotlight and Memoir is foiled once again!

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:49:00 +0000

Batman was incredible. I usually can't tell if people wearing face paint are acting well or not, but damn Heath Ledger was good. Christian Bale took the whole breathy this-is-not-my-real-voice voice a little too far, maybe because he sensed he was being outdone by the Joker and tried to ramp up his own game with, well, the only thing you've really got going for you when everything but your mouth is behind opaque black plastic. And I thought they did a great job of pacing a long film, using a steady, creeping feeling of the downward spiral. (---SPOILERS FOLLOW---) When Maggie Gyllenhaal bites the dust you look around and say, this shit is bad news bears. And then the movie just never really lets go of your nuts. I'm really feeling the altered mood of these films, the way cartoonishness has been flattened into a kind of really dark... not magical realism... maybe improbable realism. I like the way we're asked to accept this world as being coterminus with our own; even if it's not likely, it's not a cartoon, either. My suspension of disbelief did suffer, however, at a couple of key junctures, most obviously when Batman somehow rigs all the cell phones in Gotham to emit and receive sonar, and relay the data to him (in about an hour). In other Batman movies this would be totally of a piece with the general outlandishness of the gadgetry, but I felt I was being asked to believe in this movie a little more. None of the movie's other technology suggests Gotham has a much different electronics landscape than ours does. I can wrap my mind around a multi-billionaire with access to cutting-edge weapons technology building a car that flips over on walls or rigging one cell phone to map a room. To me, that participates in reality in a way that city-wide, remote-activated cell phone repurposing does not. K disagrees with me, but at that moment in the movie I found myself "WHAT??"-ing the screen a la Wanted and the Loom of Destiny. Maybe everyone has a different disbelief threshold. (P.S. don't see Wanted.) (---END SPOILERS---)

I'd tell you what I've been up to since my last post at the beginning of summer, but I don't know how to clown-car seven states, Snoop Dogg, 50,000 hippies, all the Leinenkugel's in the world, what I can only describe as "cunt-phrase," paddleboats, a general lack of moderation, and a glazed-donut-bacon-cheeseburger all into one blog post. And the long version would be a lot less interesting than this short one.

Madison will not be the same without Lee and Jeff.

In news you can use, however, after a death-match battle between Expedia, LAN air, my credit card company, and my very soul... it's finally official. K and I are leaving the country once again. From 12/28/08 - 6/12/09 we'll be bopping around Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Goodbye, graduate school. I'd say I'll miss you, but it's much more likely that I'll realize I don't miss you and that our relationship is built on lies and insecurity, and I'll have to break up with you for South America. I'm already blowing off my pathetically minimal summer responsibilities to read about trekking in the Andes, so what chance do my seminars stand in the fall? Sigh.

It's been a good summer, but I should probably be reading a lot more...

I survived my first year and the only thing I lost was my self-esteem. Time to get to work on my liver.

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sat, 31 May 2008 16:11:00 +0000

No term papers means fewer updates. I know, the loyal readership withers and pines. Here's a 5-point recap of the last two weeks:

1. Don't return library books on the same trip to campus in which you hazily, sleeplessly, turn in your last paper. You'll mix up books that belong to the library and books that belong to your friends (once again, Gwen, really sorry about that).
2. I would probably marry Erinn even if she didn't make pie. But the pie pushes it over the edge.
3. You should go on the Capitol tour. It's only 45 minutes long, and pretty interesting. The Capitol is beautiful inside. Also, it is full of badgers. Real ones or statues? I'll just let you wonder.
4. Getting really excited about J&K Do South America, the Sequel. Cuz, uhhhhh... look at this freaking place.
5. It turns out that even when you're 25, having your mom come visit makes you feel 15.

It's funny how my priorities change when the semester ends. I have a to-do list that never gets to-done, because while reading lots of theory, working up papers for conferences, and re-organizing my photo negatives all seem like seductive projects while I have term papers, I lose interest rapidly once the term papers go away and I realize that 1-10 on my to-do list are actually all "sitting on my ass." Not a new problem, but I have a new strategy: giving in to it. Since the semester ended, and especially in the last couple of days since my mom left, I have been doing a remarkable amount of ass-sitting, and you know what? It's good. I've been slowly adding in drinking and DVD-watching, but I'm trying to pace myself.

Oh, except for last night when I got big-time drunk during and after the Sex and the City movie, which is fucking long. And there's way too much squealing. AND CHEERING IN THE THEATER. I HATE MOVIES WHERE THE AUDIENCE CHEERS. CARRIE BRADSHAW CAN'T HEAR YOU! But though I never thought I'd be part of the mass of estrogen crowding the theatre on opening night, wearing "I'm a Carrie" or "I'm with Big" t-shirts, I can hit pause on my cynicism long enough to admit that it was fun. I give the movie one thumb up, so long as your other hand is wrapped around booze.

But I did not get as mega-drunk as my boyfriend and his new butt-buddy, whose initials (coincidence? who's to say?) are BB. We came home to find them absorbed in an epic video game marathon and 2/3 deep into a handle of Cutty. Oh, boys. The Butt-Buddies also did something I'm not supposed to talk about. No, no, not that. The penises in this adventure are metaphorical. (Okay, okay, don't tell MW, but they bought Guitar Hero. Shhhh.)

The gang's coming back from whatever that $tate was they went to, and the 10-day is full of bright sunny afternoons for sitting around in the park, sitting at Mallards games, sitting in front of a grill, sitting on the terrace, sitting on the steps of the Sacred Feather with ice cream, and sitting pretty much anywhere with booze. I wonder if we could set up beer pong with chairs. It's gonna be a good summer.*

*Except for BE and MT leaving for the summer. What's up with that, dudes?

Oddly comforting

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sat, 10 May 2008 06:20:00 +0000

The mid-mod talk today really hammered home what I've long suspected. Namely, that the appropriate model for papers and lectures is more or less, "Assertion. Also, if you think about it, [opposite of] assertion."

Sweet, nothing is ever true, and self-contradiction is a plus. I can roll with that.

The answer to lots of questions... I suck.

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Wed, 07 May 2008 01:42:00 +0000

Why do I never go to office hours to talk about my papers? Why am I scared of my professors? No, no, scratch that. I know why. So... no question here.

Just fuck.

I suck.

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 06:30:00 +0000

FUCK NO.

Web errata

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 20:43:00 +0000

No real post here. Just dumping some stuff that's been accumulating on my desktop. You can click on any of the photos to see a bigger size.

1. Everything that's wrong with this country: a screenshot of the "current ads" on Facebook. Don't even get me started on the fact that you can click underneath of an ad to see a whole page of ads, or the fact of the ads in the first place. Just take a look at this shit. Unattainable figures, unattainable figures, celebrity gossip, and real estate development simulation. Poor Obama down there in the corner.

2. Stereotypes R Us: yet another facebook ad. This one really speaks to me, because I'm a girl so I do know that image is everything, especially when it comes to having the prettiest high-interest-rate credit card so that I can buy lots of stuff (I'm a girl) and live beyond my means in an adorable fashion.

3. Where the Darwin Awards come from: this is pure genius. It's tempting to give this one the same title I gave number one, but I bet these people would be awesome to spend an afternoon with.

4. Scary 'cause it's true:This is the banner on the Metro homepage. Just because many of the Madison bus drivers are terrifying Knievals, doesn't mean they should advertise that fact.
a.) Is the bus gunning for that girl? There's no bus stop there, so that's my only guess.
b.) Shambles over there on the left is the best and only evidence I've ever seen that jaywalking actually should be a crime. Is this the best they could come up with to represent our city's public transit? WTF is this photo?

The Lifted Veil

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 22:54:00 +0000

Yesterday felt like the real first day of spring. It was the first day this year I've seen crocuses, the first day I've seen people playing frisbee in the park, the first day I didn't see any snow anywhere. In the last week the last thin layer of ice covering the lake melted, the fountain came on, and the food carts came back. We made it, people. Today was even a little warmer. It may have hit 60. So what's my point? That tomorrow is an excellent candidate for Skirt Day. The day when it's finally warm enough for the undergrad girls to break out their minis and flounce to class. It may not be quite warm enough tomorrow, but it isn't usually. Skirt Day is a strange phenomenon that has less to do with the actual temperature being appropriate for skirts, and more to do with a psychological breaking point followed by a perceived shift in the weather. And I've seen a number of people in the last couple of days who were overdressed, which usually inspires an over-correction in the other direction. Now, why should it interest you that tomorrow might be Skirt Day? Because tomorrow is also supposed to be very windy, which could turn Skirt Day into Asscheek Day, and that would just be fun for everyone.

So, speaking of seeing things you're not supposed to see and that kinda give you the creeps, have you all seen Google Maps Street View? The map service through Google (which is way better than Mapquest, if any-a-y'all are still using that junk) has long had both a map version and a satellite version. The satellite version was equal parts creepy and useless, because if you've never noticed this from an airplane, well, the tops of buildings all look the same. But now... NOW... you can click anywhere on the map, and a street-level photo pops up showing you the storefronts, houses, yards, whatever is right there. And it's interactive. You can spin around, walk forward, move to the left. You can walk down your own street, without leaving your house. You can zoom in on your own house and stand in front of it like a stalker. Oh yeah, and there are people in the photos, too, so if you happened to be taking your trash out the day they took the pictures, you and your terrycloth robe are on the internet.

So, okay, first of all, PanopticonMaps--I mean GoogleMaps--how the fuck did you do this? I'm not even sure how you make something like this in the first place. Do you use video? Photo? Psychics? Secondly, how did you do it for just about every city in the fucking country? Like, side streets and all. There's no reason I should be able to see a street-level photo of the alley behind my apartment. Which brings me to thirdly: WHY would you do this? Other than because you're the Panopticon. Check out our new features! You wannnnnt the features. You neeeeeed the features. The features are harmless. The features looooove you.

Features are creepy.

Geting my accomplishment on.

noreply@blogger.com (Billie J. Pilgrim) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 13:55:00 +0000

I often mention "small victories." Cuz, you know, grad school takes up all your time and is really hard, and most of the time it makes you feel like a fuck-up at best, if not an essentially defective person. So I'm going to recount two victories, one small and one large.

Small: Yesterday I read an entire book. That's right. I know, I know, this is not a big deal to everyone else, because you all took some kind of "exam" where you had to read approximately 750 books in 10 days, while being poked with sticks and standing on hot coals or something. But it's a big deal to me, because I have an attention span problem, as well as a finishing-stuff-I-start problem. So, yeah. I read a 300-page book in one day, and I didn't start until 4. What's up, bitches.

(Nevermind the fact that reading that book occupied the lowest-priority slot on my to-do list, and I only read it because of a staggering guilt complex about not reading for class, and also to procrastinate on working on my term papers or reading Our Mutual Friend, which is actually relevant to my field. Also nevermind the fact that I ended up not really participating in the discussion about the book in class and instead talked about the the articles, which I didn't read. Whatever. It was a good book.)

Large: This weekend K threw up ham. Okay, okay, this is not about grad school. But it was awesome and deserves celebrating nonetheless. Saturday night, after we all ate an ill-advised amount of ham, B wagered K that he could not drink 2 beers in five minutes. No slouch to a challenge, K slapped on his smug face and put a shotglass down on the table next to his beers. 4 minutes and 50 seconds later, everyone is yelling a new-years-style countdown and K is looking quite green around the edges. Not a man to give in, however, the shotglass tips back. Also not a man who can consume a pound of ham and two beers without consequences, the shotglass tips forward again. Whiskey sprayed all over the table. K running, hand on mouth. Vomit everywhere. "Oh, God, it's all ham!" Me laughing harder than I can remember laughing in my entire life (excluding anytime I was stoned, particularly one time I laughed so hard I fell off a porch at a house party).

So things are going pretty well. Except for those looming paper deadlines. H(ow)TF am I going to finish this semester? Lord do I hate HD's class. Let me count the ways. Why am I never caught up on my reading? Why do I always feel like I'm not really learning anything? Aren't I supposed to be doing PA work? When am I going to buy plane tickets for my summer trips? Why did I sign up for a summer class with a bad professor? Should I buy a house? And HOW? Help...