So apparently Nathan was using the computer this morning, and all of a sudden, out of nowhere, the computer just turned off. But just the tower. I came in to look at it, and it was really weird. The monitor and everything else was on, but the tower wasn't. I kept pushing the button and it was as if it was unplugged, except it wasn't. I sat there for a minute, and then tried again, and that time the power did come on. I wish I knew what was wrong with it and what would cause that. Also, it wouldn't even try dialing up after that, but I got it to on the second try. This frightens me, because every summer, something bad happens to my computer and I end up paying a lot of money to get it fixed. It's working just fine now, but tomorrow is the first day of school, and I don't need to lose everything and go computerless, when I have to work on a project. Ugh, I wish I knew what caused this to happen. Does this sound familiar to anyone?
Also, Colleen should visit. Last night, a little snake got into our basement and crawled through a crack. Harry was just about to go to sleep, and then he saw it crawl out from under the door and into the closet. Oh, and we found its skin, which it left behind on the steps. He ended up sleeping upstairs, after Nathan and I waited with him to try to catch it or hit it with the shovel, but it's a strong and fast little thing. Right now, he and Christopher are ripping up the steps to try to find it. I don't like having a snake in the house, but this is way less scary than, say, a big spider running around.
Also, I am pissed at Guiliani.
Barbershop is a really good movie. After wanting to see it forevers, I watched it On Demand, because I let Harry sleep in my bed, so he could get three hours' sleep for work, and I was stuck in the living room.
I have loads to say about Monster Mania, and I'll try to work on that later. My main point with this entry was to be scared about my computer.
posted by Beth at 6:08:00 PM
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
Yesterday was a busy day for me. Here's a fun list of what I did.
-- Got up early, went to Philadelphia and volunteered.
-- Bought ticket for upcoming Rasputina concert
-- Had Nathan take me to school where I got money put on my debit card
-- Picked up transfer student packet, just because I could
-- Bought textbooks and didn't get my receipt (so I have to go pick it up tomorrow)
-- Went to comic book store and got tickets for upcoming Monster Mania convention. It sounds like it'll be really great this year, so we're going for all three days.
-- Had lunch/dinner at Friendly's
Today I caught up on sleep, and this evening, I went to the Olive Garden with Alyssa, Dorothea, and Eileen. 'Twas pleasant.
On Monday, Nathan and I went to Clementon Park. It was the same as it ever is, but I love it there. It's practically sick how much I love that little train ride.
I guess I should mention that Nathan and I saw the new Exorcist this past Sunday. Enh, at the time I wasn't crazy over it, but I like it a little more now. But I've also forgotten at least half of it, so maybe that's why. I am a huge fan of the original Exorcist film and book. I love it all, so it was no surprise that this movie would fall short. Some things that bothered me were that the makeup on the demon and the demon's voice seemed like they were trying to go for the exact same thing as in the original movie, but didn't do either one nearly well. And the music. There was too much of it and I didn't like what there was. One of the things I love about the original is that it uses silence really effectively. There were things in the movie that a bunch of the people in the theatre found really funny. I'm torn on that issue. On one hand, I think they're foolish, and probably didn't watch the original at all, so they missed the significance of a bunch of small things. On the other hand, yeah, a lot of stuff did come across as corny. I heard that a different director put this movie together first, and the studio didn't like it. Then the guy who directed Nightmare on Elm Street 4 put this version together, and this is what was released. Supposedly when this version comes out on DVD, they're also going to release the other cut, and I'd really like to compare.
posted by Beth at 10:05:00 PM
Friday, August 20, 2004
My last post was my 1100th blogger post. Congratulations to me.
Also, my baby cousin is now at home. Congratulations to her.
Tonight I bought a knit sweater to wear as a light jacket. I also got a Spider-Man folder for school.
I feel all whiny, and I want attention and for people to sing my praises. I read other people's blogs, and 98% of it is just people winking and dripping all over the place about their friends. Eck. I'm just bitter, but I have that right.
posted by Beth at 9:40:00 PM
{sigh} I think I'm really going to have to quit the livejournal community for my school. There are some things I just can't agree wtih. And come fall, it's just going to be one post after another about where parties are. I was hoping to find some friendly people on there, but I don't think I can make friends with people whose number one hobby is partying. I mean, going to parties is one thing, and there are some parties I'd go to (not frat parties. I'm sorry). Going out and having dinner and doing things is even better. But if you define yourself as someone who loves partying, you and I are probably not going to get along. None of that is related to the link, but most of the people who post there fall into that category. There was also a dumb post about a week ago that basically said, "security is cracking down this year, so be sure to have a good place in your dorm to hide your drugs and alcohol." I don't want to fly into some kind of weird defensive rant, but I need to point out that my main problem with that post was not that people are drinking or doing drugs but rather that if you're going to do that stuff in your dorm room, you pretty much deserve to be caught. Do it elsewhere. Myeh.
My aunt came home from the hospital yesterday. Her baby did not. She has jaundice, which isn't a terribly big problem. I'm not sure if she's coming home today or not, as no one called to tell me. She's also very pigeon-toed, and they x-rayed her yesterday to decide if the problem is with her feet or hips and to see if she'll need to wear little casts on her legs. I'm sure she'll be okay and that it's something they can fix. Okay, Tina just called, so let me change that. There are no abnormalities in her legs or hips. It was probably just a positioning problem in the womb. As for how her jaundice is doing, Tina will find out in about a half hour.
It is imperative that I see the new Exorcist this weekend. If they mess up Father Merrin, I will be furious, y'all. Speaking of priests, on Who's the Boss? the other day, Tony got punched by one. True story. That reminds me that, if I were messed up, I could call my new cousin "Samantuuuuhhhhh." That was some grade A ramnbling right there.
posted by Beth at 3:06:00 PM
Thursday, August 19, 2004
Hey, I'm finally posting pictures of Jasper, after only nearly four weeks.
Here's Jasper.
And here's Jasper with Dewey.
He's still way too scaredy, and he doesn't really like any of us, me in particular, aside from Harry. I will admit that he's a very pretty boy, but he's not as great as my Chocolates.
posted by Beth at 12:05:00 AM
Wednesday, August 18, 2004
My Aunt Tina had her baby girl yesterday afternoon. Her name is Samantha Lynn, and she weighs six pounds, fourteen ounces, and she and Tina are doing well. I saw her yesterday and today, and I held her today. She's a very pretty baby with a full head of dark hair. I think they come home from the hospital tomorrow.
posted by Beth at 9:15:00 PM
Sunday, August 15, 2004
I think I'm just not suited to the whole normal person sleep schedule. Yesterday, after about 5 hours of sleep, I got up at 11:30am. Shortly after that, my uncle and I went out. We went to A. C. Moore where I looked at fancy yarns, but bought none. I'll buy fancy yarns once I'm a knitmastah. We had late lunch/early dinner at Red Lobster, and I swear that place is really going downhill. My food tasted good, but I just don't love the place the way I used to. It seems like if you want to get something really good, you need to spend at least $17 a plate, and I try never to spend more than about $13 out of niceness. I think I'll stop eating there for a long while. We also walked around the mall but didn't go into any stores, aside from the pet store. And then we went to Wal-Mart where I got some more needles and some other knitting accessories. We got home by 6, and I managed to stay up for about an hour and a half, and then I fell asleep til now. Bleh. And I think my knitting gauge is way too tight or something. Hmph. A bad thing about knitting is that now that I've started it, I haven't been reading at all. Or playing videogames for that matter.
I wish I already had my textbooks for the fall. I love textbooks, aside from the whole textbook racket business. I love to page through nice new textbooks and be optimistic and stuff, and I want to see what I have ahead of me. I also need to look into buying some new notebooks and other little school supplies. I enjoy doing that.
I had a dream about the Nintendo DS costing $230. I certainly hope that doesn't come true.
Basically, I just wanted to make a post acknowledging that it's Friday the 13th. Hi!
Here's a tip for you. Saved By the Bell comes on for an hour at 7am on TBS, but did you know that on Fridays, both episodes are The College Years? It's true. I just saw an episode where Zack threw a rave in order to raise money to take Kelly to Cancun, and some guy bullied Screech into bringing some nitrous, but he panicked and accidentally brought helium. I wonder why Slater is dating that borderline retarded girl in their dorm.
I was just looking at knitting patterns for Hogwarts scarves. It'll be a long time before I'm ready to take on something like that, but I will indeed do it someday. I like that this site shows the colors for all of the houses. And I never even noticed that the book and movie don't name the same colors for Ravenclaw. I'm a bad egg for not noticing. I also can't believe that I didn't notice that the scarves in the third movie were different from the ones in the other two movies. While I was looking at this stuff, I got an email saying that Prisoner of Azkaban will be available on DVD on November 23rd. Yay!
And LPS linked to this time turner. It is beautiful. I wish I had one.
And although non-Harry Potter-related, I will mention that yesterday, I got my liner notes for The Spine Surfs Alone. They are now snug in the CD jewel case where they belong.
posted by Beth at 12:38:00 PM
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
I was at a restaurant tonight, and I overheard this from the booth behind the one I was in.
"Anal beads. Anal beads."
"Oh, I thought you said Rachel Green. She isn't real!"
I wish I'd heard the whole thing. {g}
Okay, so on the late night teevee, they show this commercial all the time for a drug called propolene (I think that's how you spell it). It's a weight loss drug of some kind, and the way the people talk about it, it sounds incredibly dangerous to me. "I didn't change my routine and I still lost weight." "I eat fast food everyday, and I still lost weight" I'm not thinking of taking this or anything, but it sounds so unhealthy to me that I kind of want to know what all it does to a person, but I'm a crummy researcher, so I coudln't find anything. It's just a matter of interest, because I'm really bothered by the idea that some people think that a magic pill will solve all of their weight-related problems without wrecking their heart or something. I get the impression that diet pills are harmful 99% of the time, and these commercials are more unnerving for me to watch than the kind with the money-making scams. Okay, in reality, I'm intrigued by the money-making infomercials. {g}
posted by Beth at 4:40:00 AM
Sunday, August 08, 2004
Holy crap! I just read the most ridiculous thing in my entire life. I look at the livejournal community for my school, and that in itself is 99% garbage. "I didn't get my housing assignment yet. What do I do?!" "I'm a freshman. Hey!" "I'm living in Chestnut where R U??" and so forth. {puke, puke} So anyway, some girl makes an uninteresting post, and out of boredom, I went to her journal, and I read this. Oh please do take a look at it!
I am so sick and tired and nauseous and exhausted of people posting utter tripe like that. I know that I don't have to point this out (because people who read my blog/journal are the most intelligent people ;) but that story is entirely untrue and reeks of urban legend-ness and is also downright retarded. Anyone going over 100mph on a motorcycle is gonna die. Some flimsy helmet is saving nobody. And it isn't even worth addressing, but it isn't meaningful in any way that the chick said she loved him, as she was only trying to shut him up and save her own ass. And he shouldn't have been such a cheap sonofabitch and only sprung for the one helmet (but if you're going 100+mph, you might as well be wearing a party hat, to paraphrase Jerry Seinfeld). I find it staggering that people not only still fall for that kind of crap, but they eat it up like so many tragic M&M's of sadness. I mean, I just can't believe it. This one may be worse than that one I read sometime in the past year. This is the short version.
I was in high school, and it was Friday afternoon and I was excited about the big homecoming weekend. There was this kid who was taking all his books home over the weekend (therefore he was a huge nerdyface that no one liked), and these bully kids tripped him and laughed. I helped him pick up his books. And then he didn't kill himself that weekend like he was originally intending.
Jesuschrist, I won't even say that if I'm fixing to kill myself, I am doing no homework prior to that event. Here's another ridiculous thing about that very same urban legend. A few weeks ago, I was watching part of that Trading Spouses show, and one of the women read that same story to the family she was with on her last night with them. I wish I could see the paper, because I'm sure the email headers were printed on it as well. It isn't relevant, but I truly hated that woman. She was a rich white woman who was married to a doctor and staying with a black family, and every word out of her mouth was in that horrible fake-polite tone. She was telling the camera, "To you and me, $50,000 isn't a lot of money" and she also basically said, "we're all the same, except when I have a party, I have more silverware and nicer dishes." Whatthefuck? I was so glad that on her last night, none of the family walked her out of the house. She left while the husband was practically taking a nap on the couch. Anyway, I couldn't believe she read that story to them over dinner, and then tried to make it all relevant by saying, "every little decision you make can impact someone's life." To which I must agree, because if people choose to take a second out of their day to send me retarded forwards, then I would be royally pissed. Not so much because the forwards are idiotic, but because they apparently believe them.
Rarrrrarrrarrrrrrrr... only bolding things will calm me now. {g}
posted by Beth at 9:57:00 PM
Friday, August 06, 2004
Rick James died? And he was only 56? :(
Attacked By Plastic answered me:
We recently sent customers who ordered Ben Folds new EP "Super D" an e-mail informing them that due to manufacturing delays, the Super D orders would be shipping three weeks later than originally planned. We accidentally sent that e-mail to you even though you did not order Super D.
Yes, and it was scary! Last year, people I don't know did make charges on my card, but they, of course, didn't use (or even know?) my email information. I do intend to buy Super D and the Bens EP someday, just not yet. It's the shipping prices that get in my way, really.
My family's vacation ends after this weekend. I can't help but feel bad that I didn't do anything interesting with them, while they were off.
I'm a tired apple, but I mustn't sleep.
posted by Beth at 6:27:00 PM
Okay, I just got an email from Attacked By Plastic thanking me for my order and telling me that the new Ben Folds EP is going to be delayed for a few weeks. But I didn't place any such order! That's really troubling. I emailed them, but I'm going to call customer service tomorrow, too. How does that happen?
So today, I met Nathan in Philadelphia and we volunteered. That was really uneventful. The weird southern guy who worked with us was also uneventful.
On the way back, I barely caught my bus, but I found an empty seat, even though it was crowded. More people got on in Camden, and this very old black lady sat next to me. She saw that I was knitting, and she talked to me about it all the way to my stop. She kept questioning the way I held my needles and asked if I was left-handed, and I kept telling her no way. I kept saying that I knit that way, because that's the way my book taught me. Then she took my needles from me and started knitting with them! I'm not mad, it was kind of funny, and she was very nice. She also showed me a trick that helps me knit faster, but I'm a little clumsy with it. It really does make more sense for me to wrap the yarn around with my right hand. I thanked her for the trick. That was one of my more productive rides home, and I did okay with the forced socialization. {g}
After that, my uncle and I saw Anchorman. I thought it was funny but not great. Then I slept all evening, because I could sleep for only four hours last night. I woke up at 6:20 and just could not fall asleep again.
posted by Beth at 1:25:00 AM
Wednesday, August 04, 2004
I will update, because I am unable to sleep.
Last Friday, Nathan, Dorothea, and I went to New York to see TMBG. Earlier in the day we went to Opane, which changed its name, and I didn't know it. I think they must have also changed ownership or something, because they didn't have nearly as much cute stuff as they did last time, especially downstairs. After that we went to Sanrio where I bought a cute Cinnamoroll purse and Nathan bought me a Chococat umbrella, and Dorothea got some lipgloss or some such. Nathan got a book at Books of Wonder, and then we went to a pizza place to kill some time and a Barnes and Noble to kill some more time. As much as I like trips to the city, it's always hard for me to find things to do in between going to the places I intend to go to, if that makes sense. We shouldn't have wasted so much time, because I forgot how much time it took to get to Brooklyn. We got to Prospect Park at about 7:35. Doors were at 6:30, so the place was packed. I also didn't know there were going to be seats, otherwise I'd have definitely gotten there earlier. We ended up sitting on the grass and not being able to see anything. The show itself sounded great, and they played a lot of new songs from The Spine. The setlist also made me regret not getting there early enough to see. Oh and Corn Mo opened, and I'm glad Dorothea got to see him. {g} This was probably the first time in about four years where I didn't meet up with or at least see someone I knew there. Namely erin. I kept thinking, "is she here? She must be here" but I didn't see her come out, and for some really stupid reason, I didn't call her, even though I considered it a bunch of times. I felt bad, because I miss her and her ways. Come to think of it, I didn't see any of the TMBG usuals there, including the onesI like and the ones I don't. Because of this, we left New York and Jersey City pretty early and ate at the crappy Phily Diner on the way home. I really hate it there. They seated about 15 of the noisiest kids (I shouldn't use that word, they were my age forchrissakes) I've ever seen next to us, and we had to ask to move. I don't ever remember having to ask to sit away from people in my whole life other than this. It was still noisy after that, and my club sandwich was pretty yucky. That place sucks eggs.
Yesterday, after helping my aunt shop for a computer desk... Okay let me rant about something here: why the hell do they build computer desks that look like they're designed only to fit little, tiny monitors in them? The average computer monitor is probably 17", right? Maybe 15". But some of these things have a space in them that could fit something about 14 inches tall. Doubleyou-tee-eff? Right, so after shopping, I accidentally fell asleep for 25 hours (after being awake for 24 hours). I don't know how that happened, but it did. One of my dreams involved Ted Allen watching me play Super Mario Bros. 3 for a couple minutes at a party. Wow! {g}
Over the past couple days, I've been watching a bunch of free movies On Demand. It's movie review time! Lalalooloolee!
feardotcom--I was interested in seeing this, because it's a horror movie, and I will watch pretty much any horror movie, and also because it had a bunch of common elements with The Ring, which I love. Well, it's like The Shitty Ring is what it is. A few things looked kind of cool, but it was mostly just dumb and didn't make much sense--and not in a "mysterious" sort of way, but rather in a "crappy" way. And the villain man was a weenie. It was a tremendous letdown. I read the IMDb messageboard for it the same night, and this movie is apparently on a bunch of "worst movie ever" lists. Rightly so.
Bowling For Columbine--I actually liked this a lot. Michael Moore is pretty good at making his movies simultaneously humorous and upsetting. It had a bunch of things in common with Fahrenheit 9/11.
Wendigo--I must have seen this movie on some kind of horror list, but I have no clue where. I also had a Monster in My Pocket trading card for a wendigo that I got when 7 Eleven was giving out cards, whenever you bought a Slurpee. That was reason enough to watch it, yes? Oh man, it was horrible. But not in the same way that feardotcom was horrible. Instead, this movie tried to do a lot of crazy things with the camera as a means of being "artsy," but they were largely "pointless." This movie also had some of the worst pacing I've ever seen in my life. The first five minutes were interesting, and then there was 60 minutes of excruciatingly slow stuff, followed by 25 minutes of weirdness, and a blah ending. I might not have horrible, horrible distaste for it if 1. this wasn't billed as a horror movie, 2. it was really bloody, or 3. it was at least scary. Bad bad bad. The kid who plays Dewey in Malcolm in the Middle was in it, and that was the most interesting thing about it.
Halloween Resurrection--I just watched this. I meant to see it at the movies, but I missed my chance. The Halloween series had been taken down a notch in my head, while I moved the Friday the 13th series up a notch. But this movie was really great*, especially as far as Halloween movies go. I liked that Busta Rhymes was in it ("trick or treat, motherfucker" haha), and I especially liked that Jamie Lee Curtis was in it. This Halloween was all about usage of the modern technology, like that Internet and those palm pilots. I really was pleased with this, and I thought I'd guessed the ending, but I was wrong, which made it even better. Of the eight Halloween movies (yes, counting number three), this was in my top three, at least.
I'm a regular Siskelebert.
I really should say more about us getting a new puppy. It was over a week ago. My willingness to write about it tells you a lot about my excitement. I kid, I kid. He's very cute, but he's too scared of everyone who isn't Harry.
*I'm very lenient when judging horror movies. They all practically get an extra four points just for having a good scare or a ton of blood in them. I'm biased. That's okay.
posted by Beth at 6:07:00 AM
