Reed and Betsy have asked me to be in their wedding in 2012. At first I was just going to be the ring bearer, but now they've also included the option of being one of Reed's groomspeople, as well.

I really don't know which I want to be. If I were the ring bearer, I'd prolly wear a dress, but if I were a groomsperson I'd definitely wear a tux. I know I wouldn't have to, since we're already breaking convention by having non-male attendees of the groom, but I just like the look of a line of tuxes on one side and a line of dresses on the other.

What it really comes down to is whether I want to wear a dress or a tux at their wedding. Which seems like a frivolous thing to fret over, but for me it isn't. I mean, I love crossdressing. I love flirting and fucking with gender conventions. But for me it's a mischievous game, it's one of many ways I rebel against The Man. Is it really appropriate for me to do that at my friends' wedding? I dunno; this is their event, and I'm afraid it'd be disrespectful for me to use it as a platform for my own societal contrariness.

But but but I love wearing a tux.

But but but I love wearing a dress.

But I want to express my close friendship with Reed.

But being ringbearer is important, and that vain part of me likes to have such a central and visible role.

Aaaaaaaah! *runs around in circles*

The steampunk convention was awesome, as was seeing Dan again. His new house is so cool! It's got a neat little nautical theme going on - and it's also got a really efficient floor plan, so there's a surprising amount of space. And his roommates are cool, if amusingly prone to arguing amongst themselves.

We only went to one day of the con, unfortunately. I did manage to go to an interesting panel on representing African cultures in sci-fi, and the masquerade was fun, but other than that we didn't get to do much other than peruse the artist alley and ogle all the pretty costumes. Le sigh! But that's what I get for procrastinating and not pre-registering. It was still lots of fun - the first con that I've been to in a long time, and the first time I've took part in the steampunk community. I wish I would have taken the initiative to talk to more people there, but I was suffering from a massive inferiority complex from all the cool costumes.

There's always CONvergence!

But this week is hell week for the play, and I've got a take-home essay exam due Friday, and a history paper for Schue due Monday, and a fiction story due by Tuesday (and I STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT TO WRITE ABOUT) and my car's clutch gave out. It actually happened while I was in Chicago - city driving is hell on manual transmissions - but I managed to limp back to Ashland without incident. I called Bulldog Auto Repair, and they said it'll cost about $600. And they won't be able to fix it until the 30th. And I need to drive down to the Cities next Tuesday. Guuuh.

Red: i think the one thing that differentiates zombies from other mythic beings is that, unlike basically any other, it has one version that's almost universally agreed upon
Red: at least at the current moment
Red: that's subject to change in the next few years
Red: there may be some debate about whether zombies can run or not
Red: and there may be "brrraaaaiiiinnns" jokes abounding
Red: but basically everyone agrees that zombies are 1) infected by a virus
Red: 2) can spread that virus by just a bite
Red: and 3) are mindless killing machines
Red: vampires, aliens, werewolves - none of them have even that much consensus
umejack: not in the least bit
umejack: it strikes me now that zombies have a more universal definition than god
Red: LMAO

Brrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiinnnnssssss grrraaaaggghhharrblllllarrgghhaarbbbb

The zombies are coming.

I don't think I'll be getting much homework done this week.

I'm a wee bit tipsy. :3

PS the ending of X-2 sucks. There's no reason Jean Grey needed to leave the Blackbird to help the others escape. Her heroic sacrifice was totally unnecessary .

The other night I had a dream I turned into a dude. In male form I apparently looked a lot like Dan, though I think I looked more like Destry, this kid on the cross-country team I used to have a crush on in high school. Anyway, everyone kept telling us, "Man, you two look exactly the same!" Dan and I looked at each other and just shrugged. Then we got on our matching motorcycles and zoomed down the highway.

I still haven't figured out what I'm gonna be for Halloween. The situation is growing dire. D:

I've been staring at this page all night.

Even though I could only reasonably afford a bowler...

GAWD LOOK AT THOSE HATS.

Seems I'm understudy for the character of Natalie in The Butler Did It. Kinda bummed I didn't get a real role, but it was a small cast and I think only two of the parts were for women. Normally that' wouldn't be a problem, but there's apparently a lot of mackin' in this play as well, and not everyone's as keen on girl-on-girl mackin' as I am. Oh well. I still have one more shot at the stage before I graduate.

-North-central Wisconsin is absolutely BEAUTIFUL.
-The quality of people's driving is inversely related to proximity to the Illinois border.
-Beloit is much larger and better-off than Ashland.
-Oak trees have a distinctive smell to them, which you don't notice until you're surrounded by them for the first time in months.
-When you use the Illinois toll roads, you're actually paying for the privilege to completely disregard the speed limit.
-There is always traffic in Chicago. ALWAYS.
-Northland's meal plan/cafeteria system is actually pretty good.
-There are lots of turkeys in Wisconsin.
-Riding on a motorcycle is good for cramps (though it will make you sore in other places).
-The best sushi joint in Chicago is staffed entirely by Thai immigrants.
-Daniel finds perverse joy in getting me to jaywalk because he knows how nervous I am about crossing busy streets.

My latest obsession of assembling a steampunk outfit/wardrobe is reaching fever pitch. Bought a couple adorable blazers from Goodwill to wear when it gets colder, and am fast on my way to creating a few (hopefully) lovely pieces of jewelry. I've also gotten the Dude hooked. BOOyah!

Shannon and I are thinking about investing in a hookah. I really enjoy the social aspect of smoking shisha; case in point - I wanted to visit one of the numerous hookah bars I passed every day in AZ, but didn't because I had no friends to accompany me. So we're going to look around and see what there is.

Today I wore the Hello Kitty surgical mask to class and turned quite a few heads in the process. I lol'd. To be fair, it might not be a bad idea for me to wear one, since it's quite possible I'm a carrier. Typhoid Mary, that's me! Though I think it'd be fun to get some more visual kei masks and wear them on a regular basis. Swine flu chic!

This weekend I'm driving down to visit Dan. I'm really not looking forward to the prospect of navigating Chicago. ._. The things I do for love...

(And booty.)

My parents got to sit 20 feet from Obama and watch him speak while he was in Minneapolis. I AM SO JEALOUS. OH MY GAWD. I even spotted them in the crowd when watching NBC cover the speech the next morning. Certainly made breakfast more interesting.

I'm back up at Northland! Yay. :3

We met our new roommate, Lydia. She's a transfer junior from Vermont, and so far she seems really cool. She's got pink hair! Her birthday is this Wednesday, so we're going to take her to the Deepwater and get her a grasshopper.

I forgot how much CRAP I have. I think I may have overpacked. Well, I probably did. Especially with clothes; I'm a bit of a clothes horse. And a shoe horse, if that makes sense. But other than my posters, I'm really set to go.

It feels good to be home.

Gots me a new laptop. Nothing fancy - only $500 - but it's got a dedicated video card and lots of USB ports. They weren't in stock at the store I went to, so mine will arrive in a week. Yay!

So yeah, I'm home safely. Daniel isn't. He accidentally overstayed his visa and is trying to get out of the county/not go to jail. When I called him earlier tonight, he said he was on his way to the airport in an attempt to GTFO of Thailand before the authorities found him. Or at least I think that's what he's doing; he was kind of in a hurry and I couldn't quite catch what he said.

I don't think I'll be able to calm down until I can actually hold him again.

Thinking about sleeping on the back porch tonight; the weather has been absolutely gorgeous ever since I got home (especially compared to Phoenix) and the crickets and cool air will help me sleep, I think.

My laptop's been behaving even worse since the trip back. I don't know what happened to it, since it was packed securely in the trunk for the entire ride. Maybe it's finally given up on living or something, I dunno. I really need to get a new one. Until then, however, my online presence will be sparse. I don't mind. I've been on a clothing-modification binge the past few days. It keeps my hands and my mind busy.

I'm going to sleep now.

Dogs are about as smart as a two-year-old.

Average intelligence varies from breed to breed, with the herding dogs (of course) being the smartest. Border collies top the list.

Hound dogs are the dumbest, with the Afghan coming in dead last. That's because they haven't been bred to do anything other than what they'd do anyway (that is, hunt things).

I find this fascinating. The more studies we conduct - from teaching apes sign language to discovering tool use among rooks - the more it seems we've taken our intelligence for granted. How much more will the difference between "human" and "animal" intelligence narrow?

My laptop is dying. Specifically, its cooling fan(s?). It makes this horrendous buzzing noise whenever it's on.

I've been looking around for a new one, one that can last me past college and well into my future profession. Here's a list of what I'm looking for, so far:

-At least 3 GB of RAM
-2+ GHz dual-core processor
-3+ USB ports
-Slot CD/DVD-ROM drive (versus the kind with the little tray that pops out)
-Good cooling/ventilation (overheating is my biggest problem with this laptop)
-A keyboard and touchpad designed so that I don't accidentally activate the touchpad when I'm typing.
-A built-in webcam would be nice, but it's not necessary

The computers at Best Buy that had all these things usually ran $400-$600 or thereabouts. I think I have the money for it, but I want to make sure I can pay tuition. Though I would like to get a new computer before school starts, ideally.

"...When a bunch of white stoners announce their plans for a big pot-fest, known alternately (depending on which of several such events we're talking about) as 420 Smoke-Out, or the 420 Festival (the 420 being a not-so-secret code for cannabis consumption), and then proceed to break the laws against such an event just as promised, nothing happens. No arrests, no citations, no wading into the crowd by overzealous cops intent on bashing the heads of the hooligans arrayed before them. Of course not."

"...People of color simply could not get away with such a flagrant disrespect for the law, no matter how stupid that law may be. But white hacky-sack kickin' hippies who continue to believe--against all evidence to the contrary--that patchouli can actually cover up body odor? Well, they can get away with damned near anything. "

"...As the aforementioned Ms. Benson... indulges her habit, and as thousands of her white classmates do too--many of them styling each other's hair in dreadlocks, because nothing goes better with white privilege than cultural appropriation--it is students of color who continue to be told they are the unqualified ones, that they are the ones who are unjustly taking up space at elite schools, that their acceptance into such places is "lowering standards" and cheapening the value of a college degree."

I'm just gonna leave this here.

( My dream celebrity DnD party (image heavy) )


I also can't help but notice that a lot of comedians play DnD (a lot of the best ones, too, IMO). COINCIDENCE? I THINK NOT. FACT: PLAYING DND MAKES YOU FUNNIER.