Heretical

...so I had all these grand plans to start up my livejournal again and get back into the community and make icons and things. I even re-downloaded the image program I used back in the day and started writing fanfiction to post to a community....

...and then college tackled me.

Being a complete dumbass, I decided it was a great idea to take 17 credit hours my first semester, eight of which are considered writing-intensive, and two of which are an after-school psychology lab that involves about ten hours a week of extra research and at least one week-long trip. I also work 20-25 hrs/week, and live half-an-hour from school and fifteen minutes from work, in opposite directions, and apparently will never sleep again.

But, anyway. So my grade on my last English paper was less-than-stellar (a B, but that was extra generous considering the quality of the work and also the lowest grade I've ever received on anything writing-related that I actually tried at). And I was hoping, being that all of you people are clearly intelligent and analytical, that I could get some constructive criticism on this one. Please be harsh; I really want to improve as a writer, and suspect I'm going to have to if I want to make A's with this guy. I need commentary on things like the persuasiveness and relevance of the arguments and the structure of the piece; I know I have style and I can bullshit effectively for days, but I'm not quite so good at things like comprehensive organisation. (I think that's because I was always so good at blinding my teachers with said bullshit, so they never thought to teach me how to actually write...)

This is meant to be an argumentative essay based on a concept presented in the Law & Order episode "White Rabbit", and using argument indicators as outlined in my text. I think it's decent, but I thought the last one was decent too until it was returned. =)

It is due Monday.

( Order and Law: The Use of Loaded Language in Courtroom SettingsCollapse )

This was originally posted on my Facebook, but I figured I should share it with you folks too. If you're a Twilight fan, read with caution. It's kind of, well, mean.

Warnings: strong language, excess sarcasm, one or two mentions of TEH SECKS.


( Twilight: A ReviewCollapse )

O hai!

So, I'm almost certain no one reads this journal any more. This is to be expected, considering I've been gone for over two years.

Well, if anyone is paying attention out there, I'M BACK. I missed having a forum to rant, create, and generally make a fool of myself, and Facebook was simply too full of dumb people. I'll be posting some stuff in the near future that anyone interested in literary review (read: eviscerating Twilight) should find highly fascinating.

::waves at anyone who's still got her on their friendslist::

It's my anniversary!

One year ago today, I came out of the closet...on this very blog, actually. History in the making.

So of course I wore every piece of rainbow jewellery I own to school, along with my pink "This Is Your Girlfriend's Shirt", my suit jacket, and a button I bought at the peace march that says "Lesbians Against War".

Coming-out day present? My girlfriend convinced her parents to let her stay at home. OMG YES. Doesn't make the communication problem any easier but...meh.

My girlfriend's mother has, in the past two days:

a) Called me to tell me never to contact them again.
b) Sat outside my girlfriend's workplace for her entire seven-hour shift to make sure I didn't try to visit her.
c) Taken away her phone, her computer, and her car.
d) Slapped her in the face twice and told her she is a horrible child who has torn their family apart.
e) Screamed at me in the middle of a public place that I've wrecked their family and if I ever try to see my girlfriend again, she'll file a restraining order against me.
f) Told her daughter that she has until her birthday, three weeks away, to get out of the house.

...

I went to the police and asked if there was anything that her mother could actually do, legally, about keeping me away from her daughter. They said no, she had no case.

I managed to talk to my girlfriend this afternoon. She's afraid of going home tonight.

WHAT THE FUCK.

OMG.

I'm going to DC in about two hours FOR MY FIRST EVER PEACE MARCH, OMGWTFBBQ. 100,000+ people expected, first time Northeast Tennesseeans have gone to a DC protest since the war started.

*waves signs and dances*

I am such a hippie.

*resists urge to use Kent State icon for this post*

XDDDDDDD

A Brief Summary Of The 2007 State Of The Union Address:

Bush: Madame Speaker.
Everyone: OMGWTFBBQ YAY.
Bush: ...please give me another chance?
Democrats: No.

nenya_kanadka and I played the State of the Union Drinking Game and threw things at the TV. It was very therapeutic.

The lay eucharistic minister at my church, who also happens to be a priest in training, took me out to supper at the Indian restaurant with her girlfriend, ordered a Merlot, offered to watch "The L Word" with us, and lent me a Rita Mae Brown book about growing up gay.

I am so in love with my church.

I saw "The Nativity Story" tonight. Is pretty, pretty, pretty movie. And not too religious. And all the characters are reasonable, especially the wise men (<3) and Joseph (<3!) and Elisabeth (<333!). And well-staged and believable and everything. And has realistic birth scenes according to my mum, who would know.

And...Siddig.

AAA OMG I FANCY THE ANGEL GABRIEL WTF MY BRAIN AND CHILDHOOD.

On a different note, school is out for the holidays and I feel better than I did last post. Thank the chocolate. Mmm, chocolate. Keeps the Dementors away.

I'm at work and it's too hot in here and the thermostat's not cooperating and my new boss is all 'You can't do your homework at work anymore' and I'm all 'stfu n00b.' And I've been feeling crappy for a couple of days for no good reason, just general ick. And tomorrow's my last day of class before Christmas vacation, which would be shiny except...nothing to do because I have no social life in TN outside of, like, school, and I think my classes are going to be bollocks next semester (not that they aren't this semester, but at least I know the rhythm). I miss home right now so much that it hurts, like someone's twisting my heart out little by little. I miss snow and the skating rink and knowing everybody and being walking distance from everything and always having someone to see a film with. And I thought I'd quit biting my nails for a couple of weeks, but now I'm doing it again. And a friend of mine and I got into an argument on Friday which ended with her pretty much telling me to sod off, and we've sort of apologised to each other but things haven't been the same between us since, and I think she's mad about something else but won't tell me what it is. And I've got some disappointing news of a personal nature just now--not at all unexpected, but still disappointing, the kind that can really ruin your day. And my favourite mens' white dress shirt with the red candy-striped collar and the French cuffs has a stain.

I don't understand people. Really, I don't, not at all. I read emotions and body language like a book, or so my shrink told me¹, but what makes them work mystifies me beyond all reason. I'm constantly terrified that everyone's going to go away and stop liking me, or find someone more interesting to talk to, and I know I'm no good at conversation, because I say weird stuff that makes no sense and stutter and ramble endlessly or don't talk at all, and I'm so hypersensitive to people's emotions that they can walk in and smile a little less brightly than usual and I'm sure they've decided to hate me, and then I'm even more self-conscious and avoid people and run away from human contact because I don't want to go on that horrible emotional roller-coaster even though they probably would think I was all right if I could just get over myself. On the other hand, I really don't know why anyone would want to hang around with me in the first place, because I'm not funny or witty or worth your time and there are so many more people out there who are so much more interesting and I wonder sometimes if all my friends don't just put up with me out of pity.

This has been your daily overflow of emo. Razor blades are for people who don't have blogs.

On Friday nenya_kanadka and I are going out for dinner with Mo & Joni, who may or may not be a real live happy old gay Episcopalian couple. I've never met one, unless you count Bishop Robinson, which really doesn't figure, media firestorm or no media firestorm, as I was never actually introduced to his husband. Well, if you'd find them anywhere, you'd find them at St Christopher's, which is...the only church I've ever been to where I actually look forward to attending and miss it when I don't go. Which is surprising. And shiny. And I still haven't gotten over that.

And WTF, WHY IN THE NAME OF GOD does my boss have a giant cardboard box SHAPED LIKE A COFFIN that RATTLES WHEN YOU KICK IT leaning next to the dumpster for garbage pickup? O_O

¹ Which totally makes it sound like I'm a New Yorker who has a regular shrink who couchifies me every week and takes apart my brain, when actually mum dragged me to see one once during a period of mad depression in tenth year and she asked me questions like 'How do you feel?' and 'How's your sex life?' and I gave answers like 'Vaguely pissy' and 'Nonexistent,' not necessarily in that order.

( Self-perpetuationCollapse )