Battle of the 'Burgs, ASAC's All-Nighter

Yesterday was jam-packed with Auggie fun:

First came the wrestling match: Augsburg (ranked #1 in the nation) vs. Wartburg (ranked #2 in the nation). To be totally honest with you, it was the first wrestling meet I'd been to since high school. Which is really, really stupid considering how good Augsburg is. I mean, we're freakin' #1 in the nation. Last year, when we finished #3 (I think), we were disappointed. #3. Oh, the shame of finishing third in the nation. We've won ten national championships in the last seventeen years. So, in summation, Augsburg's wrestling team is pretty damn good.
Anyway, Lily and I went to the meet and got some good videos of the action--so check out Homemade's YouTube site, yo!
Oh, P.S., we kicked Wartburg tush.

One of the videos. Sweet, huh?

After the meet, we hoofed it back from Si Melby to Christensen Center for the ASAC All-Nighter, which is a huge event put on for the whole student body. ASAC (Augsburg Student Activities Council) brought in a hypnotist, a magician, and Shwazye, a rapper. I danced!

Caffeinated beverages to help us stay awake for the whole event. Mmm!

After the All-Nighter, I went over to Beau's place in Luther Hall and hung out with him and his roomies (and some other hilarious wrestlers). I didn't go home until nearly 8 A.M.: people going to weekend college were heading to class as I was finally going back to my room. I so rarely stay out late that it felt quite bizarre.

And now I'm going to wake Mitch up so he can take me to the grocery store. I'm going to make muffins for Beau, Ky, and whoever they want to share with: Augsburg's got another meet in Moorhead tomorrow, and they have to leave at 7 A.M to make the 2 P.M. meet-time, so I figured some yummy muffins will be much appreciated.

Augsburg vs. Wartburg

Go here to watch tonight's wrestling match: Augsburg College (that's us--we're #1 in the nation!) vs. Wartburg (some school in Iowa--they're #2).

Goooooooooo Auggies!

P.S. If you're interested in Augsburg's wrestling program (obviously, you should be), click here.

I'm 99% sure this is my pal, Beau. Woo!

Augsburg's Lunar New Year Celebration: Videos

As I mentioned in the previous post, Lily Morris, a fellow Homemade-er, attended the Augsburg Asian Student Association's annual Lunar New Year celebration, and recorded the event for all you great people to enjoy.
Check out Homemade's YouTube site, which now features all the videos from the event.

Here's a teaser to garner your interest:

Augsburg's Lunar New Year Celebration: Photos

Lily Morris, one of our fabulous first-year Homemade bloggers, went to the Augsburg Asian Student Association's Lunar New Year celebration and captured the whole event. I haven't sorted through the videos she took yet, but I have uploaded her photos to Homemade's Flickr account. Check them out, yo!
AASA'S Lunar New Year celebration

Here are a few teasers:

A dragon-dancer revealed

Part of the Augsburg Asian Student Association

You know you love cute animal videos

That's Maggie, our Miniature Poodle, and Ernie our cat

Maggie versus Ernie

Lab. Lab. Biology lab.

First things first: Amber Davis, an amazing gal who I worked with in the Admissions Office's backroom last semester, studied theater in Bali last semester. Well, yesterday, while I worked in the Communication Studies office, she stopped by and gave me the gift she brought back for me: a lovely and incredibly happy sarong.
I wore it around my neck today. It's a good match for me: it's made out of some lovely and cheerful-colored (I'm assuming it was dyed) fabric.


As you know, today is Tuesday. And as you may know, my Tuesdays are disgustingly busy. I'm in class nearly all day. Seriously. I am not exaggerating. Nine hours of class. Anyway, we looked at different kinds of cells in our HON 240 (Science, Technology, and Citizenship) lab. My favorite was volvox, which is a colony of cells that "floats" around. It's mega neat.

Sam pretending to be annoyed with me as I searched for cells under the 'scope

Oh, and Professor Gustafson, who teaches my History of Modern Non-Western World course, brought in a little statue from Ghana for show-and-tell. This one is for luck/health in childbirth and motherhood.

Kinyoubi! Doyoubi! Nichiyoubi!

Friday night, Mitch, Tony, Brian, and I ate at Old Chicago to celebrate Mitch's internship/employment with MVP Marketing and Design. I ordered nachos, which were in the appetizer section of the menu, and turned out to be a truly massive plate which I didn't even come close to finishing. After dinner, we drove to Tony's (he lives in Eden Prairie) to play Settlers of Catan. I hadn't played before; in fact, I'd vehemently refused to play until then. And, after all that fuss, it turned out to be a fun game. The basic premise is something like this: There is a board which represents an area to be settled. You compete against your pals to gain control of the land, until somebody has accumulated ten "victory points." I didn't win either time through, but I did kick major butt during a few rounds of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe.

Mitch and Brian, after Mitch had finished licking Brian on the cheek (I don't know why)

Part of the Settlers of Catan game-board

The next morning, Mitch had Weekend College ("Augsburg for Adults" is an ageist name) class, and I tutored in the Speakers Lab. I nearly fell asleep at one point. Mornings can do that to you.
After WEC (Weekend College) and work, we drove to Milaca so we could see our parents the remainder of the weekend. On Sunday night, Mom made us a going-back-to-school feast: steak, boiled potatoes, a cucumber dish, salad, and homemade applesauce. Yum!

My family's cat, Ernie, napping on my bed

Maggie, my mom's Miniature Poodle, wearing her big Christmas present--a coat

I wish I could find a screenshot to prove it to you, but...have you seen Little Miss Sunshine? Well in the kinda/sorta beginning of the film, you see a pair of Sesame Street sheets in one of the bedrooms. It's taken me a long time, but I finally took a picture of my childhood sheets--which just so happen to be the Sesame Street sheets in Little Miss Sunshine! Neat.

Next time you watch Little Miss Sunshine, look for these sheets!

Augsburg's Nancy Grundahl part of Obama's inauguration

An Augsburg choir-director (she directs Riverside Singers), Nancy Grundahl, made an arrangement of America the Beautiful after the events of 9/11. That arrangement was performed at Barack's inauguration!
She was my choir director last year. Way cool.

Nancy Grundahl

As he listened to the San Francisco Girls and Boys Choruses sing before the inauguration of President Obama, Augsburg music instructor Nancy Grundahl's husband thought he was hearing his wife's work.

"My husband heard 'America the Beautiful' and recognized it," Grundahl said, "and then my publisher confirmed that it was my arrangement a few hours later."

Grundahl, director of the Augsburg Riverside Singers, originally wrote the arrangement of "America the Beautiful" on the day after 9/11. "I needed something uplifting for my children's choir to sing in rehearsal," she said. The choir sang the arrangement for the rest of that season, and it was published by Alliance in 2003.

Peter Hendrickson, director of choral activities at Augsburg, said, "This is truly amazing. Nancy's arrangement was probably heard around the world, and over 1,000,000 people heard it on the Washington mall."

"It's been fun to have been a tiny part of the amazing inauguration of Barack Obama," Grundahl said, noting that the publisher has seen an increase in sales since the performance. Grundahl hopes to connect with the conductors of the choirs to hear more about their experience.

Check out the original Augnet story here.

Ernie the cat

Ernie, my family's cat, waits for Mom to come home.

I miss my kitty!

President Barack Hussein Obama, fruit-measurements

I used Obama's middle name because there's no reason to shy way from it. In fact, I think it's pretty cool that he was elected, with a name like "Barack Hussein Obama," especially in light of the fact that there are still people in the United States who care; i.e. racists. And don't pretend like you don't know this country is still full of them, even if they are secretive about it.
Anyway, at last, we're no longer run by a complete moron and his pushy V.P., an utterly unethical piece of trash. Harsh words, maybe, but busy Tuesdays make me crabby, and damn it, I'll say what I feel!
[Barack is finally our President!]

Me and Caroline, a fellow-Honors Program student. She's from Norway.
P.S. Yes, I'm wearing a "Baracktimus Prime" t-shirt.

Yesterday in Science, Technology, and Citizenship, which is the Honors Program science course, we did a lab on units of measurement. Every group got a different kind of fruit, and had to measure various objects with the fruit. It was supposed to teach us how valuable it is to have units of measurement that make sense. Sam and I used a banana--it was so hard to measure small things with our fruit! For example, measuring a page out of a textbook was devilishly impossible.

How many bananas is the cell phone?

Fruit-data

After International Economics last night, Whitney and I, along with a very smart young man, stopped outside the classroom to discuss classes and politics. It was a surprisingly enlightening discussion. I told Whitney how I often felt bad for her and Shannon, and others like them. Don't know what I mean? Well, Whitney is a religious conservative. And to those who may not know, Augsburg is a liberal campus. Not officially, but it's usually natural for a college to develop an inclination one way or another. We are affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church, but that doesn't mean much to the people who don't attend chapel or any other religious services or organizations offered on campus. It's very easy to be a non-religious Liberal at Augsburg, and some of us take that for granted. And so I told Whitney how I often feel bad for her, like when so many people around campus have loud discussions about how much the Bush administration sucked, and how McCain was a total ass during the campaign season. Which--don't get me wrong--I agree with. I think it would be hard, though, to be Whitney. She's a very brave girl.

Of course, Augsburg is very open to different points of view. Part of that comes with being an urban campus. But just like I have to try a little harder to accept many of the people in my hometown (a small, conservative, Midwestern town), so it must be for Whitney.

Some International Economics notes

Sometimes, while doing economics, I feel like my brain is going to explode.

Oh! One more thing: Mitch got a very important call last night. He got his internship! It's with MVP Marketing and Design. During one of Mitch's two interviews, the head of the firm said the internship will probably segue into a full-time job after graduation. Not only that, but the internship is paid! That's good news, as moving off-campus and getting a puppy will deplete any savings we've accumulated over the year.
So anyway, you should congratulate Mitch. I'm so proud!

Hollis Watkins, civil-rights activist, speaks at Augsburg

On Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, all classes were canceled. However, we did have convocation.
Convocation at Augsburg basically means that famous people come to campus and speak. For example, last year, Jane Fonda was one of our guests. Neat, huh?
Anyway, this past Monday, Hollis Watkins, a civil-rights activist spoke at our 21st annual Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation. He touched on his relationship with MLK, and how we exalt him so much, we sometimes forget we can be just as influential as he was--if we try. My favorite part of his speech, though, was when he blamed his generation for not stepping back to let my generation (and Generation X, to be fair) get on with the progressive issues of our time. He said we--that is, Generation X and Y (although he didn't mention them by name, I assume that's what he meant)--need to pick people like him up off the road, place them on the side, and demand that they sit back and let us get on with things.
I'm a little upset with myself for not taking copious notes like I did at the Winona LaDuke Convocation, but I did get some videos:

A local chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha performed before the main event

A community choir entertained the crowd

President Paul Pribbenow spoke about President Obama and MLK

Hollis Watkins

The time has come

This is a new age.

A few shots of winter

By the Old Main tunnel

Part of Memorial Hall

The Bush presidency is no more. In less significant news...

My weekend:

I got my hair cut at Moxie Saturday. Moxie is such a neat place. As part of your fee, you get free drinks, a scalp-massage, and of course, a fantastic 'do. Amanda, my stylist, "fixed" my hair, so that the dark color that was taking way too long to fade out, is less noticeable, and my hair looks more like it used to: blonde. Yes, I am a natural blonde. It's OK if you didn't know. Sometimes, even Mitch forgets.

Tada! Ali the blonde. The picture, for some reason, makes my hair look a lot lighter than it is in reality, but you get the idea.

After Moxie, Mitch and I visited my grandma in St. Louis Park. I can't remember exactly how old Grandma is, but she's well over eighty. When I asked her how she's feeling, she said "miserable." Well, poo! Poor Grandma. She's nearly always in good spirits, though. And there were Christmas presents there for me and Mitch: he got jelly beans from my Aunt Deb (I got a gift card to Target), and I also got a candle from my cousin, Alicia. The candle smells like breakfast food.

Saturday was a busy day: after Grandma's house, Mitch and I drove to Ikea, where we picked up some more stuff for our new place (since we're moving out of the dorms this spring). We got wine glasses, chair cushions, a dog bed, among other things--for cheap, of course. Ikea is every on-a-budget person's dream: cheap housewares. You have to be careful, of course, to not get the cheap-in-quality stuff--for example, avoid any furniture made from polycarbonate and not real wood. Other things, like glass jars, are pretty much guaranteed to be fine--after all, it's pretty hard to screw up glass.

I'm considering taking a class at EXCO, which is the Twin Cities Experimental College. It's a need organization: you can facilitate or take a course for free. You don't get credit, of course, but that's not really the point. The point is to learn from one another, which is an admirable thing in itself, I think. Anyway, I'm considering taking the Citizen Journalism course taught by a woman from the Twin Cities Daily Planet--which is on Franklin (i.e. close to Augsburg). Neat, huh? I don't know if I'll do it though: it's on Wednesday nights during the whole month of February--and Thursdays are very busy for me, so I'm a little wary of adding anything to my schedule that would detract from studying time. Studying is very important to me.

Guess what? Mitch made me a "romantic" dinner Sunday night. He made mahi-mahi, which is a kind of fish, green beens, and scalloped potatoes. I put "romantic" in quotes because we don't yet have a table that we can put romantic candles on, etc., so we ate at the coffee table--but it's the thought that counts. :)

Oishii desu

I was so full

Ah...I'm tired. Tomorrow is the dreaded Tuesday. Nooooooooo! I hate my life on Tuesdays.
In other news, Barack Obama will be inaugurated tomorrow, which is AWESOME.

"7. Make universities free." Amen.

School children's letters to President-Elect Obama.

Read this as well. It's so heart-warming. I know there's very little to feel optimistic about right now (Israel/Gaza, Iraq "War"/occupation, world-wide financial meltdown, etc.), but the knowledge that a person like Barack Obama will be our next President makes me feel hope.
As corny as you think that may sound, I have no better way to express it.

I fought Tuesday, and Tuesday only sort of won

I am SO POOPED.
You know my Tuesday schedule--I posted it in yesterday's entry, Praise Okuni!. Anyway, like I predicted it would, it kicked my tush. Majorly. It was a great day, though, to be fair. I'm excited for my classes--especially International Economics and the Modern Non-Western World. And I'm also taking Science, Technology, and Citizenship. It's certainly not fair that my hardest classes are on the same days of the week, but I suppose I chose them, so I have no one to blame but myself.

Me. Pooped.

We watched a movie in Science(...) lab today. It's a 1989 educational film in which this guy (who of course has a British accent) predicts what global warming will do to Earth by 2050. It was interesting for two reasons: some sequences were shot to make him appear as if he was in a "Virtual Reality world," which really just looked like he was in the film Tron, except with way worse graphics--but it was fun to tease. Secondly, some of his predictions were nearly spot-on. Now, being a studious disciple of communication studies, I am, most would argue rightly so, a non-believer in the inherent accuracy of predictions. After all, if thousands, maybe millions of people make consequential predictions throughout time, some body's predictions will end up being "right." So I was not surprised that some of this British guy's predictions turned out to now be a reality--yet, they're still worth noting, if only for fun's sake: he predicted that we would go to war in the Persian Gulf in 1999. While this is not technically true--as we're at "war"/occupation in Afghanistan and Iraq, and those started only after 9/11 and the year 2003, it was still interesting that he picked that particular region of the world. His more incredible prediction was that the world would enter a recession, starting in 2000, and the recession would last for ten years. And again, this isn't entirely true, as his dates are a little off, but it was close enough to make my eyes open wide and a small, amazed giggle to escape my otherwise respectfully quiet lips.
But seriously: don't be surprised that somewhere, some one's predictions may come true. They are coincidences, OK?

Anyway. The Modern Non-Western World was waaaaay interesting, but I can tell it's going to be waaaaay hard. Guess what my homework for Thursday is? Read eight chapters in a novel! Poop. And then, as Prof. Gustafson warned us, we'll have a pop quiz on the material. I haven't had pop-quizzes since my junior year of high school. I hate them so much. From my experience (which is, admittedly, limited), pop quizzes test one's power of memorization--many times on obscure points. And frankly, I am much more talented when it comes to conceptualizing new ideas than I am at memorizing dates, names, and other information that has no direct consequence on my existence.
Still: this class will be mega-neat. I can tell I'm going to learn a ton. I already have! I already know more African geography than I ever pretended to in high school.

International Economics being a three hour night class may not bother me like I thought it would. This class (the people in it), it seems, is fairly receptive to discussion on controversial topics--which I like to think of as a natural part of Augsburg--and that makes time pass quickly. Like the Modern Non-Western World, International Economics will be very hard. Especially because I have no idea how I got a 4.0 in Microeconomics, which was only a 100-level course--and International Econ is a 300 level course. I seriously doubt my ability to maintain my 4.0 this semester. But encourage me! I will try.
Anyway, tonight's class was pretty cool. We haven't gotten into the more technical aspects of international econ yet (models, equations, and the like). Instead, we talked about some article my professor (the same professor I had for Micro) liked: it described the "waves of globalization," which, according to this article, were from 1870-1914, then an inter-war period, then 1945-1980, and finally, 1980 to the present. We did a lot of talking about the implications of European colonization on less-developed countries. How did their colonization affect the economies of these countries? Well, very, very simply put, it helped some and worsened others. The countries whose climates were conducive to European migration ultimately had better-off economies (for a number of reasons which I won't name, because I'm already getting really deep into this) than the countries whose climates were not conducive to European migration.

So, as is probably obvious, I learned a lot today--and although Tuesdays will continue to be hellishly tiring, I can tell it will be a constructive semester.
Onward, Wednesday!

His young god-daughter: a Facebook convo

So: I came back from 6-nearly straight-hours of class this afternoon, and checked my Twilight sites (to see if there was any new, good news). Apparently, this Thursday, Mute Math will be on The Tonight Show, playing "Spotlight," which is that fantastic song from the Twilight movie (at the part where Edward brings Bella to school for the first time, and he's the epitome of bad-assery).
So, naturally, I reflected my excitement in my Facebook status. This is the conversation that ensued. Note: Readers not fans of Twilight will probably not find this hilarious.

Alison at 3:51pm on January 13
[Status] The Tonight Show. Thursday. Omg.

Ian DeFoe at 3:55pm January 13
What?? Something about Twilight?
I sense it's something about Twilight.

Alison Rapp at 3:57pm January 13
Why, because I said "Omg," and that is usually only used when I'm acting ridiculous about something?
So yes, you are right. Mute Math will be the musical guest star, and they're going to play Spotlight! omgomgomgomg.

Alison Rapp at 3:57pm January 13
Also, I'm glad that you can read my moods/obsessions.

Ian DeFoe at 3:58pm January 13
Hahahahahaha, right??
It's our shared Twilight-love.
We are bonded together through our love of terribad lit.

Alison Rapp at 4:03pm January 13
OMG also:
I'm taking the Honors science course (it's what Honors kids who are bad at science take, so it's not as impressive as it sounds). Anyway, our course is geared toward disasters and catastrophes. We got a handout today: a list of some example topics for our final project. Guess what one of them was? THE SPANISH INFLUENZA OF 1918.
I nearly peed with happiness.

Ian DeFoe at 4:05pm January 13
ROFL.
YOU MUST DO IT. YOU MUST.
Also, are you familiar with the Veronicas?
For some reason their super-chic pop revival of the 80's synth era makes me think of you.
Listen in: http://www.imeem.com/theveronicas/music/r28oB91t/the_veronicas_untouched/
(P.S. this is totally not an evil virus link. To prove that it's me: Twilight Twilight Twilight, Jasper Jasper Jasper, omgbellaisdumbwtf.)

Alison Rapp at 4:09pm January 13
Yes! The other day, I told Mitch how many Twilight fans frequently/always hate Bella, because she makes some really stupid decisions.
Also, I think you perhaps know me TOO well. Such music, that is, electric-y-sounding music is a favorite, er, kind(?) of mine. I like the bleeps and bloops.
And I am seriously thinking about doing the Spanish Influenza. I will probably opt for something less generic, but wouldn't it be WAY fun? Then, when Edward talked about it, I could be like, "I KNOW THIS STUFF," and it would be amazing.

Ian DeFoe at 4:11pm January 13
Arrrharharharharharharhar.
Yeah, it'd pretty much be incredible. I would understand your opting away from it, though. It's a little generic. But you could put a WHOLE bunch of little Twilight references in it that only really savvy Twilighters would understand.

Ian DeFoe at 4:12pm January 13
Also, speaking of boops and beeps, do you like Lady Gaga?

Alison Rapp at 4:16pm January 13
I haven't listened to any of her music except that one really popular song that my friends made me listen to.
I could write "Like any medical disaster, the Spanish Influenza brought about a re-emergence of some people's more superstitious sides. Numerous rumors about dying patients turning to vampires, especially, resurfaced--although, needless to say, these rumors have never been confirmed."
hahahahaha

Ian DeFoe at 4:18pm January 13
OMG THAT WOULD BE HILAAAARIOUS.
"And had such rumors ever been confirmed, the evidence would most certainly suggest that a certain recently popular author's imagining of the vampire epidemic would be absolutely absurd."

Alison Rapp at 4:20pm January 13
"Further evidence discounts these rumors, as most sources have been traced to Forks, Washington, which had no reported cases of the Spanish flu."

Ian DeFoe at 4:26pm January 13
"In fact, most sources have been traced to a single family living in Forks. While the government has urged the CDC and the Department of Homeland Security that terrorist activity is not likely, a federal investigation is underway."

Alison Rapp at 4:29pm January 13
"The source of the remaining rumors, a Native American community near Forks, may be easily discredited on account of another of their claims: 'A few of us are werewolves.'"

Ian DeFoe at 4:32pm January 13
"If the absurdity of their claim wasn't enough to null any validity, several of the agents investigating have sworn statements testifying that one of the Native American youth was, in fact, 'a big douchebag.' Additionally, a second investigation is currently being discussed involving suspect illicit and pedophilic activity between the aforementioned youth and his young god-daughter."

Alison Rapp at 4:36pm January 13
I have nothing to come back with from that. That was HILARIOUS! I seriously, SERIOUSLY laughed-out-loud. LOLOLOLOLOLOL

Ian DeFoe at 4:36pm January 13
Hahahahaha, same with your previous one! I was in stitches! I feel like that little repartee should be on a blog somewhere.

Alison Rapp at 4:37pm January 13
I will make it a blog post right now.


And so I have.

Praise Okuni! Theater of the common people

Classes resuuuuuuuumed!

I saw Amber today! Oh jeez, it was exciting. I hadn't seen her since she came back to the states (Amber studied in Bali last semester). And then, as I was leaving Nabo, which is a coffee shop in Gateway Center, I saw her coming down the stairs. I wasn't quite sure that it was her at first, but when I realized it was, I ran absolutely screaming to her. I then, of course, realized that I was screaming and probably blushed a little. We chatted while I walked to work and she walked to class. I missed Amber!

Guess what else I did today? I started my SCLE, which stands for Student Created Learning Experience. As some of my readers know, last semester, I drafted a proposal to study gender-representation in Kabuki, which is a traditional form of Japanese theater. It official title is "Gender Representation in the Kabuki Theater: The Onnagata." Onnagata are men who play women's roles. Anyway, at 3:30, I booked it to the library where I picked up my waiting book (I had it ordered from a "partner" school, since Augsburg didn't have it--one of the many benefits of attending Augsburg). I then nearly ran to my room, mostly because it was snowing furiously, and began to read my first "textbook," which is really just a compilation of essays on the history/performance aspects of Kabuki. It's called A Kabuki Reader, and as I realized about a paragraph in, it's very dry. It's the type of book that was obviously written by a scholar who feels the need to be very flamboyant and pompous with his language. It's incredibly interesting, though. And thankfully, the authorship jumps around (being a compilation of essays and all), so who knows? maybe the next author won't speak like he's trying to sound way more intelligent than his audience.

The cover of my first SCLE book

I feel like I'm already much smarter about Kabuki. Before, all I'd ever done is see a Kabuki performance at the Kabuki-za, which is Tokyo's highest-respected Kabuki theater. So I guess that's not really an "all I'd ever done"--it's more like a "holy hannah! I've seen a performance at the Kabuki-za!" but in all humility and honesty, I didn't know much about the history of the art-form. But now I do! I like to learn.

The Kabuki-za

Here's my Monday(s) schedule:
10:20 A.M.-12:20 P.M.: Work at the Communication Studies desk
3:40 P.M.-5:10 P.M.: Gender Representation in the Kabuki Theater: The Onnagata
5:30 P.M.-8:30 P.M.: Tutor in the Speakers Lab

So Mondays aren't bad at all. In fact, I have a pretty enjoyable, somewhat laid-back schedule on Mondays. Which is good, considering the ugliness that is my Tuesdays:
8:00 A.M.-11:00 A.M.: Science, Technology, and Citizenship Lab
11:50 A.M.-1:20 P.M.: Science, Technology, and Citizenship (the regular class)
1:30 P.M.-3:00 P.M.: The Modern Non-Western World
6:00 P.M.-9:00 P.M.: International Economics

Ew, right?

O! R! G! A! N! I! Z! A! T! I! O! N!: a to-do list

I've noticed it's really hard to be constructive over break, what with me not working and such.
So here's the checklist of things I need to do before/directly after classes resume (this Monday, January 12). I'll be updating the checklist with "X"s for completed tasks.

*Email Michiko-sensei, telling her about my change of plans regarding Japanese class ( X )
*Pester Academic Advising about Directed Studies: can they be .25 or .5 credits? ( X )
*Give the room a last, solid cleaning before Mitch comes home from Chicago ( X )
*Email Emily--when is she going to work at the
Comm. Studies desk? ( X )
*Type up and post the new Comm. Studies desk hours ( X )
*Re-type and turn in Comm. Studies Club constitution ( "X," meaning I'm not doing this until somebody makes me, I've decided)
*Read old Time articles about homosexuality
(the ignorance was astounding) ( )
*Print out SCLE syllabus ( X )
*Retrieve A Kabuki Reader from Lindell Library ( X )
*Do laundry ( X )
*Make sure Lily gets whatever books she wants to borrow for
Liberating Letters ( X )
*Eat the rest of the pumpkin bread (too late, it's gross) ( X )
*Make lefse before it gets moldy (too late, it's moldy) ( X )
*Order exam-copies... ( )
*Post new Speakers Lab fliers ( )
*Give Speakers Lab fliers to mail room ( )
*Watch the Golden Globes ( X )
*Post Speakers Lab hours on A-Mail ( X )
*Buy more bronzer/athletic tape/mini-scissors? ( X )
*Order non-verbal books, if Academic Advising OKs Directed Study ( "X,"because the Directed Study is a no-go )
*Waste less time look at Facebook bumper stickers (sad) ( )
*Finish/get nearly done with Eclipse time #2 ( )
*Charge/make sure mini-laptop is charged/has enough battery for Tuesday's classes ( X )
*Urge my Science, Technology, and Citizenship professor to cancel class on Inauguration Day. If she does not oblige, inform her I will be skipping that day ( )
*Make a consultation/full appointment with Moxie ( X )
*Write a letter to Grandma ( )
*Write a letter to G-ma and G-pa ( X )
*Ask Mom if she can put Pokemon VHS on DVD (LOL) ( X )
*Email Martha ( X )
*Get $5 in cash for exam copies ( X )
*Email Wayne in Academic Advising ( X )
*Turn in Comm. Studies Club constitution ( )
*Mail grandparent letters ( )

P.S. Yes, I have been adding to this list. I promise I'll stop adding eventually. It's just that some of these tasks introduce other, related tasks that fulfill the original tasks. That almost didn't make sense.

Uh-uh! Finger snap.

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You really need to watch only the first 1:15 minutes--it's what I want you to see.

"And for those who claim we're teaching the test, uh-uh--we're teaching a child to read so he or she can pass the test."

Oh, President Bush...

Look at what I found on the interwebs!

I met with Kristen today! It was a good time.
Not to mention it was enough to get me out of bed before 10 A.M. I've been looking for an excuse to do that for days. I got my time sheet signed, so hopefully I'll get paid come January 15. I need money soooo badly.

OK, so I'm going to be honest with you: I've done nothing of consequence the last two days, other than meeting with Kristen, which was really just a very long, fun chat, and had no far-reaching implications. I have, however, found some good stuff online.

The first is a blog written by a crazy lady. And by crazy lady, I mean she represents at most .01% of the population (I made that statistic up, obviously). Hopefully. Not even my most conservative/religious friends are close to what this lady is like. Her views are so radical, she might fit in well with the Westboro Baptist Church. She's very, very bizarre.
Generation X-Pose is her blog.
Read ALL of it. I am not kidding. ALL of it. Here are just a few teasers to get you interested, if you're not already:

"Want to know how to really stop the spread of AIDS? Quit being a SODOMITE!
"I probably have spent more time making fun of gay people than praying for them or weeping over the lostness of homosexuals - guilty as charged."
--Dani, the crazy lady

So that's that.
Another neat thing I found was on Flickr. It's a Photostream made up mostly of pictures from Japan. The photographer is very good, and gets a lot of shots that really capture what it's like to visit and live in Japan: Altus.

I also encourage you to check out my Photostream, as I've added some new photos from my study abroad trip to Tokyo. I have a free Flickr account, so I can add only 100 mbs of photos per month, and I easily used that up with my new additions; although, keep in mind that the Japan-photos on my Photostream are not all I have. Look forward to more in the coming months.
Anyway, check them out, kk?
Here are just a few:

The Three Wise Monkeys at the Toshogu Shrine

Coco Farm and Winery

In full flower: The World We Knew

The sun had plunged into the Pacific, somewhere southwest of Bel-Air. In Studio One, Sinatra, like the Pacific, makes his own waves. Fluorescent light turns the singer a slightly lighter shade of grey. And amid this neon's irreverent hum, the singer looks out into the plastic, humming world about him. He stands at the microphone, singing in depth. Doing his best thing...sharing. Sinatra's songs, soon to scatter worldwide the belongings of one man's soul. He tilts his voice into a microphone, just as he has for three decades. Decades spent in living, in recording, and in singing small but poignant truths about loving. This ambiguous man, with clear, touching insights. Sinatra at a microphone, nurturing a bouquet of emotions, then plucking them in full flower, without first checking for possible thorns.

Remember my post about looking through Mom's/Grandpa's old vinyls (Vinyls, herpes, and root beer)? Well this is one of the Frank Sinatra vinyls I found, and the text on the front cover was too perfect to not share with you.

Starting off 2009 + Ducktators

You wanna know what I've been up to since the start of the new year?
Of course you do. (POMP).

Well, first of all, I've decided to not take my second semester of Japanese this coming semester. After a couple weeks of trying to cram in enough studying to pass Michiko-sensei's first semester final (to show her I was ready for my second semester), I realized there was no way I could re-teach myself all the Japanese I'd need to know. So, I've made an executive decision in my life that goes something like this: I will re-take Japanese I starting next year. This means I'm wasting money, as I've already technically taken Japanese I (in Tokyo, during my study abroad), but I feel this is the best option for me actually learning the language, and not just pretending to (which, I admit, is largely what happened while I was in Tokyo).
So, in place of Japanese II (which I was going to take this semester), I'll take History 104: The Modern Non-Western World with Donald Gustafson (who is an amazing professor, I hear). It's part of my International Relations major, so I'd take it eventually anyway.
This also means, though, that I bought one too many textbooks--I already bought my Japanese textbook...so I guess all I can do is hope that Michiko-sensei uses it next year--or else I'll have to sell it back on Amazon.com...

Hmm...what else have I done?
Well, I finished re-reading Twilight and New Moon. I'm onto Eclipse now. I meant to re-read Midnight Sun before I re-read New Moon, but then I forgot and didn't want to go back. I'll re-read Midnight Sun when I'm done re-reading the entire series, as I did the first time through.
I still have to read The Tales of Beedle the Bard, The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy, and the two graphic-novels my parents got me for Christmas: Ocarina of Time: Vol. 1 and Kingdom Hearts II Vol.1.
And then, don't forget, I have to play KH Re: CoM! So many things to do before class begins again...

Mitch left for Chicago today. He's going/leading the ABO (Augsburg Business Organization) through two busy days of meeting with Augsburg alumni and networking. It's a relatively cheap trip (about $200, I think), and they get a day (Saturday) to do whatever they want in the great city of Chicago. I wanted to go, especially so I could meet up with one of my study abroad buddies, Steve, but I couldn't afford it. Poop.

Mitch and I have started really looking for an apartment. Mitch wants to move out as early as April, and so it won't be long before crunch-time sets in. I bought some more housewares yesterday, which was exciting (call me a boring housewife, but housewares make me happy), yet sad in my wallet, because I'm very poor at the moment. Ali + no work over break = poor Ali. :(

Mitch and I have been trying our darn-dest to get through all the Oscar-buzz films before they're announced at the Golden Globes (although we don't care about those as much)/nominated for the Academy Awards. So far, we've, at some point, seen: Milk, Frost/Nixon, The Wrestler, The Reader, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog Millionaire, Burn After Reading, In Bruges, The Dark Knight, and Tropic Thunder (I can't believe Tom Cruise was nominated for a Golden Globe for this film). My favorites? Milk, Frost/Nixon, Slumdog Millionaire, and In Bruges. I'm rooting for Heath Ledger to win for The Dark Knight, Milk, Slumdog, or Frost/Nixon to win Best Pic, Kate Winslet to win for The Reader...and I'm bored of thinking about this for now.

Have you ever seen Ducktators? It's an old Loony Toons World War II propaganda short. I don't know why I suddenly thought of it, but I found it online for you to watch. I've got it on tape somewhere at my parent's house. It's amazing, in a hilarious (oh-em-gee, this was for children?) way.



Oh, and here's me in the empty box my vacuum came in. It's amazing how much difference in a room a good vacuuming can make. Love you Mom and Bob (love the vacuum!).

I'm in there--you can see a little bit of my jeans on the right-hand side.

Ali the Auggie in 2008: Dids, learns, and so on

***I studied in Tokyo, Japan, for one month over the summer. The organization I went through is called CIEE, which stands for Council on International Education Exchange. I learned a lot. I took two classes: Japanese Business and Management, and Japanese I (a language class). I have since forgotten most of the language I learned, but I will be continuing my studies next fall, so never fear!

Shinjuku

The Pokemon train

Front left to right: Ricky, Chelsea, Rebeka
Back: Francis and me
(Japanese Business and Management buddies)

***I braved the Minnesota-cold to protest Prop 8, which reversed the California Supreme Court's decision saying denying gay marriage was unconstitutional. Boo bigotry!

Me at the protest

So inspiring!

***I became involved in politics; specifically, Barack Obama's campaign for the Presidency. Over the summer, I phone-banked. Once school started, I contributed by donating a little of the money I made as a student-worker to the campaign. And, of course, being a flamboyant, convincing supporter.

Two students--one an Obama supporter and the other a McCain supporter, high-five

Me OMG-ing as MSNBC announced Obama's win

***I started my own radio show, You're a Nerd, and dj-ed every Sunday night at 8 P.M. in Augsburg's KAUG studio. I played video game, anime, and other nerdy music, and between songs, talked about various news or issues in the nerd world. I even gave away prizes!

Me at the mic inside the KAUG studio

***I became addicted to the Twilight series, after giving in to the exploding phenomena. I found myself procrastinating dangerously on homework to read the books. The last two books, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn, I read in two days--Eclipse one night, and Breaking Dawn the next. I learned, through the realization that the books are garbage in terms of literary merit, that it doesn't matter if they are or not (I believe they are)--I can have and enjoy guilty pleasures without feeling insecure about my intellect.

Me in the fort Mitch built me, reading Twilight, the first book in the series

***Of course this is not all that happened in 2008, but they are certainly some highlights that stick out in my head. Here are a few other things that made 2008 2008:

I:

*rekindled my love for Coldplay, and found a love for Paramore.
*maintained my 4.0 GPA.
*along with Mitch, settled on the Shiba Inu as our breed-of-choice (for when we move out this spring and get a puppy).
*proposed, and had accepted, my application for an SCLE, or Student Created Learning Experience, which is much like an independent study, only through the Honors Program. So this spring, I'll be taking a "class" on gender in kabuki, which is an ancient form of Japanese theater.
*finally met up with Taryn and Cassie (old friends), and Calvin (old friend and senior prom date), after not having seen them since graduation.
*got a job tutoring public speaking in the Communication Studies' Speakers Lab.
*was awarded a post-secondary Dollars for Scholars scholarship.
*damaged a tendon in my right-hand pinky, which has caused me to, under doctor's orders, constantly have that finger in a splint.
*was offered (and took) the position of Editor of Homemade, which, as you may know, is the reason for No, I Am a Cat!
*became a summer-Tour Guide for Augsburg Admissions.
*took these courses: Interpersonal Communication, Small Group Communication, Liberating Letters, Foundations of Fitness, Honors Effective Writing, Riverside Singers, Lifetime Activity: Badminton, Performance Studies: Voice, Japanese Business and Management (at Sophia University), Japanese I (likewise at Sophia), Argumentation, Christian Vocation and the Search for Meaning II, Principles of Microeconomics, and the Scholar Scientist.

I finished out 2008 with our little gang of friends (minus Katie, as she was celebrating in New York): we ate at Chiang Mai Thai, walked over to the Lagoon theater to see Milk (it was amazing), and then went over to Tony's for homemade cheese dip and video games. A somewhat typical night for our gang, and yet, as I fell asleep on Tony's floor that night, I realized it was exactly what I would have liked 2008 to end like. It was a good year.
Er, minus all the bad stuff that happened to the country and such. :D

So here's to 2008. On to 2009!

Our Mutual Joy

Check out this piece from Newsweek's December 15, 2008 issue:

No more bigotry!

It's called "Our Mutual Joy," and the issue's cover is titled "The Religious Case for Gay Marriage." And although I don't entirely agree with Lisa Miller's take on the solution to the gay marriage issue, it's an interesting piece that I'm sure many of my readers will enjoy.
The reason I don't entirely agree with her take on the issue is that I feel there should either be marriage for all or civil unions (or whatever you want to call them) for all. I don't think marriage should be a state-regulated er, thing, and at the same time remain subject to pressure from a/the religious community. And, I suppose, religious communities should be free from government intervention in their traditions.
If I, as a heterosexual, can get married without incorporating religion into the event (which is what Mitch and I are going to do--we're not going to be married in a church, or by a priest, or anything like that), then gays should have the right to marry as well (without incorporating religion). Of course, as we know, that is not the case in most states. Therefore, we should either make marriage totally state-regulated (and therefore, in theory, totally equal), or give "marriage" to the religious groups, and instead, re-name and designate the state-regulated and state-recognized event "civil unions," or "state-recognized partnerships," or whatever.

Of course, there are many, many more factors to take into consideration, but this is the base of my belief on the issue--which, as many of my readers may know, I like to think of as my issue--the one I take the most passionate action on.

So that's that. I have more issues of Newsweek to catch up on before bed. :)