the movie Twilight tonight. The best part of the whole movie? The trailer for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Seriously, I was freaking out; I had tears in my eyes I was so excited. Seeing it on the big screen made me want to pee my pants with excitement.
I don't know how I will actually survive seeing the movie if I am this excited for a preview.
http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2427781913/
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Finally!
Well, I have finally finished the last of my Utah History assignments! YAY! I signed up for this independent study course about 16 months ago, and have clearly had no motivation to complete it. It was the last course that I needed to complete my history teaching major and it feels fantastic to be done with it. All that is left to do is take the final (probably in a few weeks) and then burn my textbooks for the class (immediately following the final.)
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Catching Up
Since most of my last posts have been political I thought I would catch my readers (both of them) up on what is going on in my life.
Not much. That's what's going on in my life. Actually not really, it just seems that way sometimes. My hours at Red Butte have died down, which is always sad. I love that job so much; it is tedious at times, but I could not ask for a more beautiful workplace, better coworkers, or better bosses. To fill in my time (and to make money of course) I am going to start substitute teaching soon, which will be annoying, but also fun. Even though I will not have my own class or anything, I am excited to be back in schools.
Speaking of school, I can't wait for the semester to be over. I love that I am in school and I love working on my minor, but it is just getting to that time where the semester needs to be over and conveniently, the time when the semester actually ends. I am taking three classes this semester: I love one of them but rather dislike the other two. My Literary Forms class is like AP English without the awesomeness of Mrs. Coon, and my Shakespeare class just...well, it sucks. It is boring and I think that Shakespeare is overrated. Yep, you heard it here: overrated. (Which some may find a bit odd, seeing that I will continue to contend that J.K. Rowling is a genius.) My last class, my Literary History class, is pretty great for the most part. It is a history of modernism and I have enjoyed much of what we have read so far, which, to be honest surprised me. I was always a little leery about reading Charles Dickens and James Joyce, but I find both authors to be captivating; I can't even begin to say how much I enjoyed Great Expectations and the Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man. We recently started, As I Lay Dying, by William Faulkner and though I am not very far, it seems promising. Another book that we read in the class was The Great Gatsby. I had read this before, as a junior in high school, and only remember that I found nothing memorable about it. This time, however, wow. It is beautiful. It speaks to my interest in both history and literature and the comment it makes about the destructive power of the "American Dream" is amazing. This is from the last page of the book:
"And as the moon rose higher the inessential houses began to melt away until gradually I became aware of the old island here that flowered once for Dutch sailors' eyes-a fresh, green breast of the new world. Its vanished trees, the trees that had made way for Gatsby's house, had once pandered in whispers to the last and greatest of all human dreams; for a transitory enchanted moment man must have held his breath in the presence of this continent, compelled into an aesthetic contemplation he neither understood nor desired, face to face for the last time in history with something commensurate to his capacity for wonder. And as I sat there, brooding on the old, unknown world, I thought of Gatsby's wonder when he first picked out Daisy's light at the end of his dock. He had come such a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close he could hardly fail to grasp it. But what he did not know was that it was already behind him, somewhere in the vast obscurity beyond the city, where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night.
Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter- tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther…And one fine morning-
So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."
Wow. Really, without going crazy pointing out everything in the passage that I love, all I can say is wow. Anyway...
I am looking forward to next semester, my last semester (hehe, for real this time; no last minute decisions to study something else. Atleast, I think not...) And well, I suppose that's it. School, work, trying to maintain some semblance of a social life... that's really it. Here are some pictures from the last month or so...enjoy!
A few of the girls at Chrissy's wedding shower.
At Chrissy's wedding:
One of the awesome things about working at Red Butte is working at their Halloween activity. Here are some of my awesome costumes.
A kitty! Actually, I was Puss in Boots, but you just can't see the awesome polka dot rainboots I wore.
A hippie: it was surprising how many people commented that this was a fitting costume for me. I used this costume twice ( I was too lazy to come up with another costume) and both nights my friend Yasmine worked with me and we made quite an interesting pair. 
A vampire: I don't know if you can really see them, but my fangs were awesome!
Little Red Riding Hood (sorta)
A cowgirl (sorta. Ok, I admit it, some of my costumes were a bit half-assed. Meh. ): Yes, I know that I am a nerd.
This is the awesome pumpkin that I carved. Yeah, I know it. It's awesome. 
Amber and I playing in the leaves in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
Emerson's finger, Me, Jen, and Ryan at Jen's birthday party.
Jessica and I at the Tavernacle.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Interesting
OK, Maybe I am too cynical a person, but really, this is ridiculous. Using a "Mission Accomplished" sign just a month after the troops entered Iraq? No shit that was a bad call. I feel bad for the guy a bit, and I do respect the gravity of the decisions that he had to make, but it doesn't really change the fact that he f****d up. Again and again and again. I'm sure that many people will read this and pity the guy and say that I am being mean, but in the end, he is not the only president who has had to sit in the Oval Office and make tough calls. Some people are meant for it, I guess, because many presidents have made many wonderful, inspired, incredibly difficult decisions. Some people, however, are not meant for it. Looking back on the past eight years... enough said.
Bush Says He Regrets Use of Iraq `Mission Accomplished' Banner
Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush said he regrets the display of the ``Mission Accomplished'' sign as backdrop for a speech he gave about a month after the March 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.
``To some, it said, well, `Bush thinks the war in Iraq is over,' when I didn't think that,'' he said in a CNN interview today. ``It conveyed the wrong message.''
The sign was hung on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln on May 1, 2003, when Bush landed on the carrier wearing a flight suit to declare that major combat operations in Iraq were over. That speech has since served as a rallying point for critics of Bush's policies in Iraq.
Bush also cited other regrets in the CNN interview, which was conducted aboard the U.S.S. Intrepid in New York after a Veterans Day ceremony.
``I regret saying some things I shouldn't have said,'' Bush said. He cited comments he made after the Sept. 11 attacks, when he said of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden: ``I want justice. There's an old poster out West that said, 'Wanted, dead or alive.'''
He also said he regretted telling Iraqi insurgents in 2003: ``There are some who feel like that the conditions are such that they can attack us there. My answer is, bring 'em on.''
`Be Careful'
In the interview yesterday, he said, ``My wife reminded me that, `hey, as president of the United States, be careful what you say.'''
Bush, 62, also described his Nov. 10 meeting at the White House with his successor, President-elect Barack Obama, and said he asked former President Bill Clinton for advice on handling the transition.
``It was interesting to watch him go upstairs,'' Bush said of Obama's visit. ``He wanted to see where his little girls were going to sleep. Clearly, this guy is going to bring a sense of family to the White House, and I hope Laura and I did the same thing. But I believe he will, and I know his girls are on his mind and he wants to make sure that first and foremost, he is a good dad.''
Bush said he would return to Texas when he hands over the presidency Jan. 20 and may write a book.
``I want people to know what it was like to make some of the decisions I had to make,'' he said. ``I've had one of those presidencies where I've had to make some tough calls, and I want people to know the truth about what it was like sitting in the Oval Office.''
http://news.yahoo.com/s/bloomberg/20081112/pl_bloomberg/ahlrnlvfhsmc#full
Bush Says He Regrets Use of Iraq `Mission Accomplished' Banner
Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush said he regrets the display of the ``Mission Accomplished'' sign as backdrop for a speech he gave about a month after the March 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.
``To some, it said, well, `Bush thinks the war in Iraq is over,' when I didn't think that,'' he said in a CNN interview today. ``It conveyed the wrong message.''
The sign was hung on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln on May 1, 2003, when Bush landed on the carrier wearing a flight suit to declare that major combat operations in Iraq were over. That speech has since served as a rallying point for critics of Bush's policies in Iraq.
Bush also cited other regrets in the CNN interview, which was conducted aboard the U.S.S. Intrepid in New York after a Veterans Day ceremony.
``I regret saying some things I shouldn't have said,'' Bush said. He cited comments he made after the Sept. 11 attacks, when he said of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden: ``I want justice. There's an old poster out West that said, 'Wanted, dead or alive.'''
He also said he regretted telling Iraqi insurgents in 2003: ``There are some who feel like that the conditions are such that they can attack us there. My answer is, bring 'em on.''
`Be Careful'
In the interview yesterday, he said, ``My wife reminded me that, `hey, as president of the United States, be careful what you say.'''
Bush, 62, also described his Nov. 10 meeting at the White House with his successor, President-elect Barack Obama, and said he asked former President Bill Clinton for advice on handling the transition.
``It was interesting to watch him go upstairs,'' Bush said of Obama's visit. ``He wanted to see where his little girls were going to sleep. Clearly, this guy is going to bring a sense of family to the White House, and I hope Laura and I did the same thing. But I believe he will, and I know his girls are on his mind and he wants to make sure that first and foremost, he is a good dad.''
Bush said he would return to Texas when he hands over the presidency Jan. 20 and may write a book.
``I want people to know what it was like to make some of the decisions I had to make,'' he said. ``I've had one of those presidencies where I've had to make some tough calls, and I want people to know the truth about what it was like sitting in the Oval Office.''
http://news.yahoo.com/s/bloomberg/20081112/pl_bloomberg/ahlrnlvfhsmc#full
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
I am so thankful for...
George W. Bush. (Betcha didn't see that one coming!)
In my state of complete euphoria following tonight's election results, I actually had a positive thought about good ol' Dubya. So many people are apathetic to politics; they don't know or care about their government and its actions. George W. Bush made it impossible for me to be apathetic. I am so grateful for my knowledge of and passion for politics and I don't know if I would have that same knowledge and passion if it weren't for President Bush. During the eight shameful years of his presidency I have gained the desire and ability to scrutinize my government, to research its positions and actions, and to question the decisions made by the leaders of my country. People may suggest that it is a negative thing that I developed this cynical approach to my government, but I am so thankful for it. I think that I am a better person every day that I think about the state of our country, the state of the world. I feel more educated, more enlightened, by my desire to search for truth, to analyze, to think, to know, to care about the world around me. Thank you, George Bush. Your dismal approach at running this country and the free world has, ironically, made me a better person.
In my state of complete euphoria following tonight's election results, I actually had a positive thought about good ol' Dubya. So many people are apathetic to politics; they don't know or care about their government and its actions. George W. Bush made it impossible for me to be apathetic. I am so grateful for my knowledge of and passion for politics and I don't know if I would have that same knowledge and passion if it weren't for President Bush. During the eight shameful years of his presidency I have gained the desire and ability to scrutinize my government, to research its positions and actions, and to question the decisions made by the leaders of my country. People may suggest that it is a negative thing that I developed this cynical approach to my government, but I am so thankful for it. I think that I am a better person every day that I think about the state of our country, the state of the world. I feel more educated, more enlightened, by my desire to search for truth, to analyze, to think, to know, to care about the world around me. Thank you, George Bush. Your dismal approach at running this country and the free world has, ironically, made me a better person.
There are no words
to describe how happy and relieved I feel right now. After eight years of waiting, we finally have the opportunity to move forward from the persistent problems of the Bush regime. As a history nerd and simply as an American, watching them call the election in favor of Obama was one of the highlights of my life. I'm not going to lie and pretend that I was an Obama supporter from the beginning, seeing as everyone who knows me knows that I was, am, and always will be a supporter of Hillary Clinton, but on this night, in this election, I truly believe that Americans made the right choice.
I have been disappointed before by the American people (Election '04) but tonight I believe that they really pulled through. I applaud their acknowledgement that America is not moving in the right direction under their current president, that there are issues that need to be handled immediately; I admire their willingness to look beyond all the negative GOP campaign rhetoric and look at the potential of Obama; and I commend them for putting their faith in Obama, knowing that right now what the country is risking is more than it can afford to lose.
I cannot, of course, guarantee that Obama and his cabinet will make all the right decisions, that every thing they do will work, but I so respect the American people for their willingness to give him a chance. He deserved it. And so do we.
I have been disappointed before by the American people (Election '04) but tonight I believe that they really pulled through. I applaud their acknowledgement that America is not moving in the right direction under their current president, that there are issues that need to be handled immediately; I admire their willingness to look beyond all the negative GOP campaign rhetoric and look at the potential of Obama; and I commend them for putting their faith in Obama, knowing that right now what the country is risking is more than it can afford to lose.
I cannot, of course, guarantee that Obama and his cabinet will make all the right decisions, that every thing they do will work, but I so respect the American people for their willingness to give him a chance. He deserved it. And so do we.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Just a quick shoutout...
to all my amazing friends.
I know that this is random, but to all my friends who read this, I just wanted to let you know how much I love and appreciate you guys. I have been through some crazy times and I know that I would not be here now without you.
Tonight I had two friends tell me how grateful they were for my friendship, so I just wanted to take this opportunity to tell all my friends how truly grateful I am for their presence in my life. Really, you will never know how much it means to me.
Love you guys!
Love,
Meg
I know that this is random, but to all my friends who read this, I just wanted to let you know how much I love and appreciate you guys. I have been through some crazy times and I know that I would not be here now without you.
Tonight I had two friends tell me how grateful they were for my friendship, so I just wanted to take this opportunity to tell all my friends how truly grateful I am for their presence in my life. Really, you will never know how much it means to me.
Love you guys!
Love,
Meg
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