A Cat's Tail

Star Wars! In! Concert!

2009-10-08T17:36:31Z

Yaaaaaaaaay!

Just watched Star Wars in Concert at the Nokia theater last night. OMG GEEKGASM.

Now, I will be the first one to admit that I am a ~~Trekkie~~ Trekker, not a Star Wars Fan. Jean Luc Picard, Seven of Nine, and Spock get me hot, not Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo. Still, the music was great--how can you NOT be moved by the orchestra playing the Imperial March, the choir voices mingling with the power of the orchestra, or the gentle and fluttery flute passages of Leia's theme? Spectacular, I say. The visuals and special effects were very well-designed. Oooh, the shiny. Shiny is good!

So many people came in costume. Various Jedi, Sith, and random aliens I was sitting next to a family with their kids dressed up as Luke, Leia, and Darth Vader. I was the Trekkie surrounded by Star Wars fans all around. I managed to keep my mouth shut by nursing a margarita though, so I didn't get jumped by angry fanboys. Still, their enthusiasm was very contagious, and even if I cringed every time Natalie Portman or Han Solo came to stage (because they fucking signed a petition in support of a CHILD RAPIST), I still got swept by the tide of emotion. Fun times.

It was rumored that George Lucas came to the show last night. Interesting.

Anyway, that was my try at Star Wars fangirling. Not a very good one, but wev.

*watches Tribbles episode to wash the taint of Star Wars away*

Teh Kitteh Has A Hobby

2009-09-23T16:45:08Z

He makes pretty pictures out of his food! And...damnit, he is actually better at it than I am.

This is the very first one I noticed. Kinda looks like a dolphin or some sort of fish, doesn't it?

From Squishy's pics

I think this one looks like a man bending over.

From Squishy's pics

This one looks like some odd sort of archipelago.

From Squishy's pics

If you don't believe me that he is the one actually making these, I managed to capture the art-making process. He started out with the second "artwork" (the one I said looked like a man bending over) and ended up with the third.

From Squishy's pics

There you have it. Teh Kitteh is an artiste. Can't wait to see what the little monster makes next.

On Unwanted Attention

2009-07-20T15:42:28Z

Hello! Long time no post. LJ says I haven't updated for 13 weeks. Wow. That's over three months. I blame it on the fact that I wrote three--that's right, three--full on research papers last quarter, and that didn't make me want to do any other writing.

I'll do a longer update later, but right now I want to address the problem of unwanted attention that farewell_mask wrote about recently.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ever had those times when you absolutely feel beautiful, attractive, and generally good about yourself, then some jerk bothers you and totally ruins your mood by being pushy, demanding, and generally...creepy?

Most of us women, and some men, have experienced unwanted attention. I've blogged about some of those here and here. If you think about it, you can probably recall an occasion or two. Or three. Or...several, if you are a decent-looking woman. As a feminist, this type of thing really grinds my gears.

Let me just say right off the bat that not all unwanted attention is bad. Not all attention given to you is creepy, rude, and objectifying. I've had encounters before where people would try to chat me up in a polite and respectful way, and those encounters left me feeling even better, even if I did refuse their advances. But that's the thing--they were polite and respectful about trying to hit on me, and they stopped when I asked them to.

As long as you make it absolutely clear that you do not want any sexual/romantic attention from someone, then they should respect that and stop whatever the hell they're doing. It doesn't need to be rude either--just say, "please stop that, you're making me uncomfortable" or "I'm not interested in you that way" or similar. If they persist, THEY are being rude, and then you are absolutely justified in being rude back to them. When you tell people to bug off, you are NOT the jerk!!! They are the jerks for still giving you unwanted attention. Seriously, people--usually MEN--should get a clue.

I've developed a "Stare of DEATH" for occasions like these. I also now run to the authorities if I'm creeped out enough. I get called a bitch by creeps, but the people who count know that I'm in the right. I know it can be hard for us women in these situations because we're always told to "be nice," but quite honestly, when we aren't treated nicely by some people, we have no obligation at all to treat them nicely back.

Brommie Goes to the Beach!

2009-04-16T05:58:40Z

Yesterday I had a day off, so what better to do than take my shiny new bike on the beach? Well, take the shiny new bike on the beach, go to the bike shop and buy cool accessories for said shiny bike, and then take lots of pics of the new shiny bike on the beach!

From Brommie at the Beach

Teh Kitteh is Photogenic!

2009-03-09T06:36:22Z

I haven't posted pics of teh kitteh in a while, so here's some. There is an informal photo contest on one of the forums I frequent, and this month's theme was "circles." I thought I'd try my hand at it with teh kitteh, as he was being cooperative and jumping on or sitting next to circular objects. First photo is the actual entry, and the rest are the ones that I considered.

More pics of teh kitteh here, if you can't get enough of the kitty goodness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In other news, the WDCH Youth Orchestra Festival was great. Well, the parts of it I saw, anyway. I was only there for the first two (Pasadena and CSUN), and I must say, CSUN's performance blew me away. I enjoyed their rendition of Dvorak's Slavonic Dances #2 and 3 and Mascagni's Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana, but what got me was their really, really moving rendition of the Infernal Dance and Finale from Stravinsky's Firebird that brought the audience to a standing ovation. *fans self* Their Bernstein Overture to Candide was a bit dirty--quite understandable, as it's a hard piece--and I would've loved to compare their performance of it to Claremont's rendition, but...no. Teh bf and I had errands to run at the central library that took waaaay too long, so we missed Olympia and Claremont. Oh well. I see the folks at Claremont all the time anyway, but I would've loved to see Olympia in concert.

I was gonna post a Weekend Opera report on Das Rheingold, but I am waaaaaay too busy, what with finals coming up and all. I shall post it after finals!!

I feel this way about my experiments too.

2009-03-09T05:56:31Z

Electron Band Structure In Germanium, My Ass

Abstract: The exponential dependence of resistivity on temperature in germanium is found to be a great big lie. My careful theoretical modeling and painstaking experimentation reveal 1) that my equipment is crap, as are all the available texts on the subject and 2) that this whole exercise was a complete waste of my time.

Introduction

Electrons in germanium are confined to well-defined energy bands that are separated by "forbidden regions" of zero charge-carrier density. You can read about it yourself if you want to, although I don't recommend it. You'll have to wade through an obtuse, convoluted discussion about considering an arbitrary number of non-coupled harmonic-oscillator potentials and taking limits and so on. The upshot is that if you heat up a sample of germanium, electrons will jump from a non-conductive energy band to a conductive one, thereby creating a measurable change in resistivity. This relation between temperature and resistivity can be shown to be exponential in certain temperature regimes by waving your hands and chanting "to first order".

Experiment procedure

I sifted through the box of germanium crystals and chose the one that appeared to be the least cracked. Then I soldered wires onto the crystal in the spots shown in figure 2b of Lab Handout 32. Do you have any idea how hard it is to solder wires to germanium? I'll tell you: real goddamn hard. The solder simply won't stick, and you can forget about getting any of the grad students in the solid state labs to help you out.
Once the wires were in place, I attached them as appropriate to the second-rate equipment I scavenged from the back of the lab, none of which worked properly. I soon wised up and swiped replacements from the well-stocked research labs. This is how they treat undergrads around here: they give you broken tools and then don't understand why you don't get any results.

Fig. 1:

Check this **** out.
In order to control the temperature of the germanium, I attached the crystal to a copper rod, the upper end of which was attached to a heating coil and the lower end of which was dipped in a thermos of liquid nitrogen. Midway through the project, the thermos began leaking. That's right: I pay a cool ten grand a quarter to come here, and yet they can't spare the five bucks to ensure that I have a working thermos.

Results

Check this **** out (Fig. 1). That's bonafide, 100%-real data, my friends. I took it myself over the course of two weeks. And this was not a leisurely two weeks, either; I busted my ass day and night in order to provide you with nothing but the best data possible. Now, let's look a bit more closely at this data, remembering that it is absolutely first-rate. Do you see the exponential dependence? I sure don't. I see a bunch of crap.

Christ, this was such a waste of my time.

Banking on my hopes that whoever grades this will just look at the pictures, I drew an exponential through my noise. I believe the apparent legitimacy is enhanced by the fact that I used a complicated computer program to make the fit. I understand this is the same process by which the top quark was discovered.

Conclusion

Going into physics was the biggest mistake of my life. I should've declared CS. I still wouldn't have any women, but at least I'd be rolling in cash.

I Have a New Haircut and Color!!!!

2009-03-05T19:01:42Z

And I totally, totally love it.

That's all.

P.S. farewell_mask, you're going to the Youth Orchestra Festival on Sunday, right? See you there!

Few-body Systems!!!

2009-03-01T19:05:01Z

It's a facebook meme, but I'm gonna do it on LJ just because. :D

CREATE YOUR BAND NAME & ALBUM COVER:

To Do This

1 - Go to Wikipedia. Hit “random”
or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - Go to Quotations Page and select "random quotations"
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four or five words of the very last quote on the page is the title of your first album.

3 - Go to Flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 - Use Photoshop or similar to put it all together.

5 - Post it to FB with this text in the "caption" or "comment" and TAG the friends you want to join in.

I find my album very amusing...oh yes.

Writer's Block: AKA

2009-02-27T16:13:47Z

What's the story behind your username?

View 503 Answers

The story of neko-hime-lj? Not very interesting. I moved to lj after the great diary-x crash (*sob*) and found out that nekohime was already taken here. So neko-hime-lj it was.

The story of me using nekohime as a uisername almost everywhere is more interesting, though still not dreadfully interesting. A couple of my friends from elementary school gave me the nickname nekohime (cat princess) because I was, and am, very cat-like, both in demeanor and looks. Also, I love cats. Looooove them!! (Except those nasty hairless ones like the sphinx breeds. Eww.)

[LJ2ME] Schadenfreude, I has it

2009-02-26T18:01:24Z

Muhahahahahahahahaha.

That is all.

Virtual Shoe Throw at Bush Day!

2009-01-20T19:36:50Z

http://myecdysis.blogspot.com/2009/01/throw-your-show-at-bush-on-january-20.html

I'm throwing these evil-looking naughty monkeys boots, aptly called "Lil Kick Azz." What are you throwing?

My bike was stolen! Help me find it!!!!

2009-01-17T00:05:32Z

My Dahon Piccolo bike was stolen from where I locked it outside my house. This is in the West Covina area, near Nogales High School. I am so fucking upset because it is my method of transportation!! It was as if someone stole my car!!!! *mad* If you see someone on a Dahon Piccolo bike please let me know! Or just tackle the mofo and demand they show proof of purchase, and if they can't, drag their ass to the police! I did file a police report, but I don't think they'll take it seriously because it's "just a bike." *cry* Well, it's not just a bike to me. It's my link to the outside world. So pleeease, please, if anyone can find it, let me know. My bike looks a lot like this pic, except I put the rear fender back on and it now has big apple tires (with reflective stripe on the side) and two bottle cages.

Brainz, I haz them!!!

2009-01-08T04:35:52Z

This is from an fMRI study I participated in last December. Awesome! Check out my parietal lobes...gotta love the expansion of the primary motor cortex and primary somatosensory cortex due to playing musical instruments. The cerebellum looks yummy, like a walnut. Gawsh, how I love my brain. I'm gonna see if I can blow it up and put it on my wall. ^_^

New Year's Memes!

2009-01-05T06:55:13Z

In 2009, neko_hime_lj resolves to...

Drink four glasses of pisay every day.
Apply for a new disco.
Learn to play the violin.
Cut down to ten dogs a day.
Give up movies.
Get back in contact with some old cats.

I...what? Drink four glasses of pisay? Should I name a mixed drink after pisay? Hmmm...I'm thinking something that involves lots of vodka and looks like lab chemicals. But four glasses of vodka a day is just too much. >_< I already know how to play the violin. I will NOT give up movies or cut down to ten dogs a day, but I will apply for a new disco (i.e. dance class) and get back in contact with some old cats.

And now for the very long New Year's meme:

1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?
Organized a charity event. Boy, it was so much fun!

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
No, resolutions are for losers. Except the ones above for fun. :p

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Nope, not that I know of.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Yes...my grandpa, my great-aunt, and my favorite uncle. All on my mom's side. :( Well, actually my uncle died Jan 2, so dunno if he counts as last year.

My uncle was only 48, and he died of complications from colon cancer. People, get tested for colon cancer!!!!! It is easily treatable if identified early enough!!

5. What places did you visit
China--Beijing and Shanghai. It was awesome!

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Better control of my money. As a poor student, it's hard, but I need to get rid of my credit card debt.

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Uhm...the choir tour in China and the lovely applause I got from singing as a soloist on an international stage. Boy, that was absolutely thrilling--I love performing, I love being well-received, and I will always cherish that experience.

8. What was your biggest achievement(s) of the year?
A tie between my three charity folder rides (more to come this year!) and being chosen as a vocal soloist out of a choir with people who have taken voice lessons longer than I have.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Er...amassing so much credit card debt. It was necessary for some purchases (e.g. new bike, books, supplies, stuff in China) but not for others.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Aside from the small stuff and my usual asthma, no, not really. Even the injuries from the car accident weren't bad, just really bothersome.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
My Dahon Piccolo bike plus many upgrades. So worth it.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Um...dunno.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and deressed?
Gah, the GOP. Republicans sucked ass this year.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Bike stuff and school books. Ugh, I hate college textbooks.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
China! New bike! First year anniversary with teh bf! New flute!

16. What song will always remind you of 2008?
Steve Rothstein's piece, Hymn of Light--the one we sang in China.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? Happier!
b) thinner or fatter? Fatter, but I feel fine about it. I'm just 125lbs on a 5'4" frame, so meh. Nothing to be panicked about.
c) richer or poorer? Poorer. Aaaaaargh student loans!!

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Hanging out with friends, going back to the Philippines.

20. How did you spend Christmas last year?
Spent it with teh bf's family, and I was quite bored. It was nice waking up to him though.

21. Did you fall in love in 2008?
Yep, every time I saw teh bf. *sappy*

22. How many one-night stands?
Nada.

23. What was your favorite TV program?
TV is for suckers! But I did like Making Fiends, a cartoon on Nickelodeon.

24. What did you do for your birthday in 2008?
Best. Birthday. Ever! I was in China getting sung to by 100+ people after a successful concert tour.

25. What was the best book you read?
I honestly can't pick just one, but the most influential would probably be Oliver Sack's Musicophilia.

26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
I don't have any, as I mostly listen to dead white guys (i.e. classical music).

27. What did you want and get?
A job I love and a research scholarship! Woot! But I think I will be buried in work this year because of that.

28. What did you want and not get?
A brompton folding bike. But it will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine.

29. What was your favorite film of this year?
Dark Knight, most definitely. But then again, I don't go out to watch movies much. *holds L up to forehead*

30. Did you make some new friends this year?
Yep, from bike forums and from my rides!

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Um...more money? I think this was a pretty good year though.

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
Whatever. I seriously stopped caring what I looked like except for interviews, and just wore whatever I felt like, whether it was jeans and a sweatshirt or a nice sundress. It felt good!

33. What kept you sane?
Who says I was sane? When have I ever been sane?

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Angelina Jolie? I've always fancied her, ever since Gia.

35. What political issue stirred you the most?
Feminism, presidential election.

36. Who did you miss?
All my friends, relatives, and acquaintances back in the Philippines.

37. Who was the best new person you met?
I...um...don't get out much. :( I'd say my soon-to-be research advisor, but it's really too soon to tell. She seems like an awesome lady though!

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
You have to open yourself up to new experiences and have no regrets about whatever happens on those experiences.

Who Is Tired of Being Called "Cutie" or "Honey"?

2008-12-17T02:21:35Z

I know I am. So...does anyone want a bunch of these stickers for Christmas?

http://www.stickersisters.com/shop/?shop=1&cat=9&cart=478706&itemid=19

If so, comment with your address...it will be screened, of course, but if you prefer, you can also IM me. Not guaranteeing it will arrive by Christmas, but it will arrive somehow! International recipients OK (YES, that means you guys over in the RP or wherever the heck you've moved to now)!

[LJ2ME] I Am NOT Taking This Shit. (+ride report)

2008-12-15T00:31:59Z

I was on my way to take the train to my folding bike ride when this guy grabbed my hands, which were on my bike's handlebars, and started harassing me, saying "let me ride your bike, let me try it" over and over and puling on my handlebars, even as I said "NO! You can't ride in the train station, please just leave me alone!". The guy did piss off eventually, but he was staring at me and calling me all sorts of names as he was doing so, including "crazy lady" and "motherfucking bitch."

I HATE this sort of shit, where just because I am a woman, assholes like him think they can bully me, touch me and my bike, call me names, and just get away with it. I do NOT deserve this kind of treatment and will absolutely NOT take this shit lying down. I didn't want to escalate the situation too much and I was running late too, so I just went to a security guard and asked him to catch the guy and tell him not to do that to me or anyone else again. It was a slap on the wrist measure, and I could have chewed him out even more if I had the time, but I wish that getting hassled by security was enough to at least make him think twice about doing this to another person. Or not. Old habits die hard.

The bike ride went ok though. It didn't go so well at first...I got at Union station at exactly 8:30, and was looking for the other riders milling around the ticket machines, but couldn't find anyone. Two riders did sign up for the optional train ride, but I guess they weren't able to make it. Then there was this incident with the above idiot. I did meet up with Folderfanatic, one of the posters on Bikeforums though!

I got on the train (which was delayed several times by freight!!! Aren't passenger trains supposed to have priority?) and arrived at Anaheim stadium at 9:50. Couldn't find any of the other riders, unfortunately--I was looking for them in the parking lots and around the Rampart st. entrance, but nada. If any of you left because I wasn't there at 9:30am, I'm sorry! That was bad logistics on my part--I didn't account for the train getting delayed *that* much. Next time will be better, I promise. I looked around the parking lots until about 10:10 am, but no folder riders were to be found, so I just called v6v6v6, a regular on my folder ride, who was running late, and met up with him to do the ride with just the two of us.

We cycled the 15mi from Anaheim stadium to Huntington beach into a really nasty headwind...weather forecast said it was around 7-10mph!!! OMG, our legs hurt! I was riding the Kent because the piccolo's shifter/hub was being temperamental and kept ghost-shifting to 1st gear and that's definitely not safe to ride (she's at the bike shop now, the poor thing). Needless to say, I had a bit more difficulty with the winds than v6, who had his MuSL.

We got to the beach in record time--two hours. Not bad for two pootlers fighting against the wind! Had lunch at Ruby's, where I got the most protein-laden burger and they had and some hot tea. Hey, gotta replenish and warm up. V6 and I also talked about plans for future rides--we're definitely repeating the February one in the Orange Line bike path, and for the summer ride we are doing a beach bike path ride starting from either Redondo or Long Beach. After lunch, v6 and I briefly contemplated riding back with the tailwind, which would have been much easier than earlier when we had to fight the wind, but then we decided not to HTFU and just took a cab back to Anaheim stadium to give our poor legs a rest.

When we got back to Anaheim stadium, lo and behold--there were two other riders on Raleigh 20s, one folding, and one non-folding. They were there for the ride too, but somehow I missed them...I guess when I was looking for other riders, they were at the rampart street entrance, and they did ride on ahead of us. We chatted with them briefly, tried each other's bikes, and exchanged contact info, then v6 gave me a ride back to my place so I wouldn't have to take the train back. It turned out to be a nice ride, even if the start wasn't so good. :thumb:

Pictures will be up on the site by tonight. I don't have very many, but Joel, one of the guys on the R20s did take a lot and will be sending them to me.

I Can Has Xmas Gift?

2008-11-28T02:17:40Z

Yes, yes, it's the time of year to be materialistic again. Yes the economy sucks. Get me a gift anyway. =P

Top Picks:
Nirve Island Flower Saddle in Dark Brown and Cream. It's the first one on the page, and it's really comfy. Yes, I want squishy, springy bike seats because I bike commute on the most pothole-ridden streets ever.
Ergon GC3 Bike Grips. Not available right now--it's coming out either in January or February next year--so this is perfect for those who *forgot* to buy me gifts. Haha. Size small, gripshift compatible model please. This will help SO much with my carpal tunnel ouchies.
Shut Up Staff Shirt - self-explanatory.
Black Trench Coat - still don't have one. I have green and blue pea coats, but nary a black trench coat. Wardrobe staple!
Jewelry Shaped like musical instruments - I've started a collection--I currently have violin and piano earrings, piano necklace, and am starting a charm bracelet that has a piano so far. Help me make it grow! Etsy is a good place to start.
Avid Brake Levers - to go with my avid brakes, which don't go very well with my current brake levers.
Naughty Monkey heels in High Tea. Green roses, OMG. My tootsies are tingling in excitement.

Cheap Picks ($10 and under):
Kitty Staple-free Stapler - it is a stapler shaped like a cat. Need I say more? How about the prospect of not getting chewed out because I am cranky about yet another staple getting itself lodged into my hand? Yeah, now you're rushing to get me one. LOL.
This is Your Mind on Music by Daniel Levitin - ditto, need it for my research library.
Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks - another research one, plus it's really interesting even from a non-research point of view.
Make Me Chic Grey flat boots - cute, and more importantly, cheap. WANT.
Case for my Blackberry 8700 - they are cheap now...

Music Stuff
Pocket Synth - wasn't sure whether to put this under geeky or music stuff. Relatively cheap--$20 for a synth isn't bad at all.
Flute Pad Saver - I think these things are gross, but if they will help save the flute pads, then I shall use it. *squick*
Shut Up Staff Shirt - self-explanatory.

Geeky/Techy Stuff
Kitty Staple-free Stapler - it is a stapler shaped like a cat. Need I say more? How about the prospect of not getting chewed out because I am cranky about yet another staple getting itself lodged into my hand? Yeah, now you're rushing to get me one. LOL.
Gorillapod - so I can take self-pics without the blurriness, of course.
Lightwedge Mini - feed my late night book-reading addiction!
Stuffed Octopus - cephalopods are cute.
Belkin Dove-Tarragon Laptop Sleeve - I like green!!!
Acer Aspire Netbook in Sapphire Blue - because I am getting sick and tired of lugging around my 14in laptop.
STFU shirt - I've always wanted one ^_^
OMGWTFBBQ apron - for when I'm drunk and don't know wtf I'm grilling.

Books
Psychology of Music by Diana Deutsch - I need it for my personal music-psychology research library. I'm starting to build it up, and this is one of the MUST HAVE books.
This is Your Mind on Music by Daniel Levitin - ditto, need it for my research library.
Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks - another research one, plus it's really interesting even from a non-research point of view.

actually most of the stuff on my books list is for building up my personal research library...so yeah. Nerd time.

Introduction to the Psychology of Music by Geza Revesz
Music, Language, and the Brain by Aniruddh D. Patel
The Cognitive Neuroscience of Music by Isabelle Peretz and Robert Zatorre
Language, Music, and Mind by Diana Raffman
Perception And Cognition Of Music by Irene Deliege

Bikey Stuff
Nirve Island Flower Saddle in Dark Brown and Cream. It's the first one on the page, and it's really comfy. Yes, I want squishy, springy bike seats because I bike commute on the most pothole-ridden streets ever.
Ergon GC3 Bike Grips. Not available right now--it's coming out either in January or February next year--so this is perfect for those who *forgot* to buy me gifts. Haha. Size small, gripshift compatible model please. This will help SO much with my carpal tunnel ouchies.
Planet Bike Superflash and 1 Watt led headlight - help me blind motorists! Yeah! I currently have PB's 1.5 watt and 3led taillight, but the front light is woefully inadequate. I need much brighter lights so I don't get run over by some inattentive yakking on cellphone while sipping a latte and wrangling kids driver.
Reflective Tape - same as above--I don't want to get run over by cars!!
Valve Cap Lights - ditto, plus valve cap lights are dorky-cool.
Stainless Steel Water Bottle - it's green, and is easier to clean and has less icky chemicals than my current plastic bottle.
Brompton M6L bike - yeah...I can dream.
Avid Brake Levers - to go with my avid brakes, which don't go very well with my current brake levers.

Kikay Stuff
Steve Madden Flat Boots - in Black Suede. I don't have flat-heeled boots--I need a pair! These are a wardrobe staple.
Make Me Chic Grey flat boots - cute, and more importantly, cheap. WANT.
Sweater dresses- like this, this, or this. Cute, and another wardrobe staple
Fitflops - dunno if they work, but the Isos and Electra models are cute.
Black Trench Coat - still don't have one. I have green and blue pea coats, but nary a black trench coat. Wardrobe staple!
Perlina Pewter Ballet Flats - OMG, cute.
Jewelry Shaped like musical instruments - I've started a collection--I currently have violin and piano earrings, piano necklace, and am starting a charm bracelet that has a piano so far. Help me make it grow! Etsy is a good place to start.
Naughty Monkey Heels - aside from the High Tea one I mentioned above, there's also this little lovely. Ooooooo, yes, shoegasm.

More to be added as I see stuff and go "WANT!"

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

2008-11-27T22:59:25Z

My Aunt and her family was over...so much food, so little people. I think we had enough food for 20, but there were only 11 at our party. Well, at least we'll have food until next week.

Now can I sleep? Yes?

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Got Into A Car Accident Today

2008-11-09T10:07:39Z

And thankfully, all involved in the accident are fine, just shaken. The front end of SUV we were in was accordioned, and the other car, a small hybrid, was totaled. I'm just so glad everyone is all in one piece and unharmed, except for the one passenger in the other car, who had a little scratch on his foot.

A Bittersweet Victory, but Mostly Bitter

2008-11-06T00:43:27Z

Congratulations to President Barack HUSSEIN Obama for winning the election with an electoral vote landslide. I am proud to be part of this historic moment, even if I didn't vote for him and did not donate to his campaign. I did all I could as a non-citizen to get him elected--I called voters, I put up signs, I rocked Obama stickers and spoke cards on my bike, I talked to people I knew and tried to convince them to vote Obama and donate to his campaign (because I, as a non-citizen, can't legally do so), and I fervently hoped that he would win. And he did. I am immensely happy that he did. I am proud to have a Black man as the president of the country I live in.

Look, CHANGE!! Change is fucking awesome!!

I am also happy that all around the country, anti-choice measures were repeatedly shot down. California parental notification for abortion--did not pass. Colorado fetal personhood amendment--did not pass. South Dakota abortion ban--did not pass. I am glad that women everywhere can still make the CHOICE about what to do with their bodies and their fetuses.

But now the bitter part:

Proposition 8 in California: Passed. I am heartbroken. Extremely heartbroken. I am also disappointed and disgusted at all those who voted yes. I thought Californians knew better than to give in to the fearmongering of the Yes on 8 faction. Also, WTF Californians--you care more about chickens than gays?!?!?!?!

Amendment 2 in Florida: Passed. Yet another gay marriage ban. Of course, it's FLORIDA, but still. It's a blow to gay rights everywhere.

Proposition 102 in Arizona: Passed. Yay, no gay marriage for Arizona. *pukes*

Act 1 in Arkansas: Passed. Now gay couples are unable to adopt or foster-parent children. There are more children in the foster care system than there are homes for them, and placing them gay homes would have helped with this. Pro-life people who voted to pass this--you are fucking hypocrites.

Also, a former classmate of mine passed away last night. He was in a car crash, and sustained a lot of injuries. My condolences go out to his surviving family.

This has been a bittersweet day for me...all I want to do now is go home and gather my thoughts before tackling the world again.

Moar Election Day Humour!!!

2008-11-04T21:46:54Z

Vote Vote Vote...Vote Vote Vote....

2008-11-04T05:29:38Z

...unless you are a felon, 'coz felons can't vote.

Just some pre-election fun for all of you!

Dear Electorate:

2008-11-02T22:56:09Z

I was going to write a glowing endorsement for Barack Obama, but now, I feel that I can't. A more powerful and gripping candidate is on the scene, and he would be better for the country. As such, here is my endorsement for president of the United States:

Vote Cthulhu. Because if you don't, he'll fucking eat you.

LOL. No, but seriously, these are my endorsements for President and for the CA propositions this coming election.

President:
Barack Obama. No DUH. If you cannot understand why I endorse him, you are missing some neural connections. (Hint: I do not want Palin anywhere near public office)

State Initiatives:
1A: YES! YES! YES! Don't you want a high speed rail system (ala shinkansen in Japan) for California? That would be bloody awesome. It will also be cheaper and more fuel efficient to run high speed rail lines than fly everywhere. More efficient rail systems=good.

3: Yes. This will benefit hospitals that treat seriously ill children, and who doesn't want to do that? Of course, it will be a drain on our tax dollars, but our hospital systems need to be fixed, STAT, or in the future we will pretty much be screwed.

4: NO! NO! NO! NO!!!!! This is NOT about parental notification. This is an attack to a woman's right to make decisions about her safety and her own body. The LA Times says of this measure--

"The real safety concerns are these: If this measure passes, some girls will seek out illegal abortions rather than notify their parents. Some will attempt to hide the pregnancy, go without prenatal care, give birth alone and abandon the newborn. With no real evidence that this proposal would enhance the welfare of the state's teens -- and with no doubt that it would roll back decades of hard-won constitutional rights -- Proposition 4 deserves defeat."

I agree. Plus the campaign that the Yes on 4 people have been running is very deceptive and full of misdirection. The woman they named the law after, "Sarah," would not have even been affected by this law since she was already of age and in a common law marriage according to the State of Texas. The Yes on 4 people are also saying that it is about stopping "child and teen safety" and "stopping child predators," but seriously, what about those who feel unsafe about telling their parents about their abortions because the parents are abusive?

NO NO NO NO NO. This is one of the measures that if you vote yes on, you will seriously piss me off.

5 and 6: NO. These measures are rather contradictory on how to treat criminals and how to run anti-crime programs, and are wasteful spending. I would love to have systems in place that focus on rehabilitation of drug addicts rather than imprisonment (prop 5), and I would love to have a California Early Intervention, Rehabilitation and Accountability Commission (prop 6), but this is not the time to pass these bills.

7: Weak No. I would love to have benchmarks for the use of renewable energy for public utilities, but the language of the bill is such that the small producers, like the companies and homes that have rooftop solar panels, are not included in the incentives being given. Besides, we already have a very good renewable energy policy in CA--the Governator has set the benchmark to using 33% renewable energy by 2020.

8: NO! NO! NO!!!!!!!!!!! I have already listed my reasons for not supporting this bill, but if you want more, read this opinion piece from the LA Times, which shows just how much the Yes on 8 people are willing to lie and misdirect so that they can push their bigoted homophobic views on the whole Californian populace.

This is another one of the measures that if you vote yes on, you will seriously piss me off.

Local Measures:

Measure R: YES! YES! YES!!!!! More funding for public transportation? YES. As a user of public transportation, I can honestly say we badly need efficient public transportation systems. I don't care if we hike up our tax rate for it. We need this, people. Californians are slaves to their cars, and we need to break free of this so that we can have more time- and cost-effective ways of going around.

Just think--if you vote on this, my commute time will be shaved by an entire hour. Yes, you heard me right. An HOUR will be shaven off from my daily public transportation slog from West Covina to UCLA. Is that not a great thing?

Measures J and RR: Yes--these measures will improve the community college system, providing upgrades to buildings and classroom technologies. Better community colleges=better prepared workforce.

Please, Please, Vote NO on California Prop 8

2008-10-29T18:17:31Z

My facebook status this week and until election rolls along is this:

Jolleen will shun anyone who votes for Props 8 and 4. Shunnnnn. Shuuuuuunnnnnn.

Because of this, I found out that a cousin of mine is voting yes on 8. My heart is broken. Broken, I tell you. You have no idea how bad it feels that a family member of yours is voting on a proposition that would deny rights to you and to the people you love, effectively shunning you and others like you under the law.

Notice my choice of words in the above paragraph.

I've been dawdling about this, but I guess now is the time to come out (yeah, I know, too late for national coming-out week). I am bisexual. I've known it for quite a while--since HS, actually--I've told some of you about it, and for those of you I didn't tell, you may have guessed it. Surprise (or not), Jolleen is bi.

I've only ever dated and shown that I was attracted to guys, yes, but that stemmed out of fear--fear that I would be judged, fear that I would be shunned, fear that I would not be loved back by the woman I'd show love to, fear that my sexual orientation would be dismissed as promiscuity and not taken seriously. It's a horrible feeling, this fear that you'd be judged because of the gender of the person you choose to be with. Even now, as I broadcast the fact that I am very much bisexual to the whole world, I fear that my family and friends will change their opinion of me when they see this entry...that they'll love me less, or even hate me. I know how my mom and some of my other family members and friends talk about gay people. I've heard them say "bakla," "tibo," "fag," etc. in that horribly dismissive and deriding tone. I've carefully hidden how much that hurts, but now, I have to speak up. It hurts. It hurts ME.

Look, I'm still currently very much in love with a male member of our species--my boyfriend is a wonderful man, and I'll go on loving him as long as I can, and I plan to marry him someday. But...I just can't help thinking that I was (and still am, a little) attracted to a female who is a lot like my boyfriend--she's a wonderful, beautiful woman who shares the same interests and love of music that I do. If circumstances were such that I got over my fears, accepted her offer to go out, and ended up with her instead, I would most probably have loved her as much as I love my boyfriend. I would've wanted my family to welcome her as much as they've welcomed my boyfriend, I would've wanted her family to welcome me too, I would want all my friends to be happy for us, and I would have wanted to marry her. And I couldn't have married her if it was illegal under the law. Do you understand how heartbroken I would be? Do you understand how much it would hurt? I do, and I'm not even in the situation--I just came *thisclose* to being in it.

So...now that you know this about me, you will understand why I am asking--no, begging--all of you to vote NO on Proposition 8.

[LJ2ME] Sunrise

2008-10-27T14:34:06Z

I'd forgotten how pretty a sunrise can be. I just watched the sun climbing over the rooftops as I waited for the bus, and oh boy, was it beautiful. I just stood there, unmoving, as the sun slowly rose from the horizon and cast its light and warmth over me. I basked in the glory until it got too bright for me, and I reluctantly turned my eyes to the ground again.

I can't believe I miss the sunrise every day because I am too busy looking out for the bus or worrying about the million little things I have to had done before going to school. Just a friendly reminder to all of you--don't be so busy that you miss things like this. I promise to myself that every day, at least for the 5-10 min it takes for the bus to get to my stop, I will stop worrying and just enjoy what's around me.