I was browsing my old high school's alumni page tonight, out of sheer curiosity. A girl I went to school with in the vocal program (Carrie Zaruba) is currently in the American Idol finals running. The top 45. Neat. But anyway, as I was browsing the list of names, I remembered quite a funny anecdote.

So, during my junior year of high school, there was this truly terrible WB hourlong drama called "Young Americans." Wretchedly awful, infact. If it were not for the amazing genetic gifts of its cast, the show would not have made it past episode two to sputter out mid-season.

Remember that band Aqua? The ones who infected the world with that "Barbie Girl" song? They were slated to be on said show, but at the last minute, they pulled out. Considering I went to a high school for the performing arts, the producers called the principal and asked for "rock chick types" to audition for a singing/speaking roll in a pinch. I got pulled out of class mid-day, on a day I was wearing a shoulderless red top and my black rubber pants. I had blonde hair at the time, streaked with all sorts of crazy colors. So, along with about 5 other girls, we were whisked to Canton. To a small warehouse-type office building painted bright teal on the inside and decorated with giant, framed paintings of John Waters characters.

The little blurb called for a "Skandinavian hottie," one who wanted to have a brief tryst with a "foxy American boy" before boarding a plane back to Norway. No, I shit you not. Seriously, that was in there.

Anyway, I get into the auditioning room, and I'm given the script to read cold. I got about halfway through it before bursting into giggles. "What's the matter?" says they guy who was reading the male part. "This is quite possibly the worst thing I've ever read," I reply. Well. I didn't get the part.

My friend Naomi did, however, but by the time they got to shooting, they'd changed the part to a Californian film student and dyed her hair red. So, in a show of support, I tuned in. Well, as it turns out, the "she" referring to a masculine character named Jake was in fact, not a typo. It was Katherine Moennig, lately Shane of "The L Word," playing a girl pretending to be a boy. That show also featured Ian Somerhalder & Kate Bosworth. So, in short, fuck. I shouldn't have made fun of the terrible script. :)


For the records, there are screencaps of the show-version of that terrible, terrible scene here. The redhead is Naomi. :)

Schedule - Week of 1/24- 1/28

Monday/Wednesday/Friday

9:10 - 10:10 -- Pilates
10:20 - 11:20 -- Senior Sem
11:30 - 12:00 -- Voice lesson (*Monday only)
12:30 - 4:30 -- Work @ bookstore
4:45 - 6:00 -- Madrigals (*Monday & Wednesday only)
6:00 - 7:30 -- Astronomy (*Monday & Wednesday only)
7:30 - 10:00 -- Rehearsal
9:00 - 11:00 -- RA duty (*Monday only)


Tuesday/Thursday

8:30 - 2:00 -- Work @ bookstore
3:00 - 4:30 -- Journalism
4:40 - 6:00 -- Choir
6:30 - 7:30 -- Staff meeting (*Tuesday only)
6:30 - 10:00 -- Rehearsal

( Something's Afoot ScheduleCollapse )

Also- do not forget to:
-Schedule a doctor's appt. in the next two weeks
-Schedule a meeting with Karen Arnie
-Ask Jessie for some algebra refreshing so I can take the damn proficiency thing


...is it March yet?

My Aunt Linda is a good person. But sometimes, she sends me really, really stupid email forwards. Forwards such as this one: ( Blah blah blah.Collapse )

My response:

"The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries." -- PRESIDENT JAMES MADISON, 1803 letter objecting to church use of government land.

Dear Aunt Linda,

I know that this email said to simply delete it if I didn't agree, but I have to say, I found part of it incredibly offensive. This part, in particular:

"I have a very hard time understanding why there is such a mess about having the 10 commandments on display or "In God We Trust" on our money and having God in the Pledge of Allegiance. Why don't we just tell the 14% to Sit Down and SHUT UP!!! OR, go back to their own country to live."

As an American, I reserve the right not to shut up, and the creator of this email would do well to remember that. There is a separation of church and state for good reason, and it is not there to persecute Christians. Though I completely support the right of all people to worship as they choose, provided they harm no one else, I cannot support a government run on biblical law alone. This is for many reasons, not the least being the following:

--All Americans *are not* Christian. We are a diverse society of many voices, voices that should be heard. For the government to endorse any religion over the others would effectively silence minority voices. Sorry, I'd prefer to not live in the 1700's.

-- Christians are people. As people, they are also capable of twisting religious doctrine to achieve particular political gain, perverting the gospel and using many passages out of context. Historically, when any group does this, it leads to loss of civil liberties and the silencing of minority groups. Lest we forget the Spanish Inquisition that used religious doctrine to slaughter THOUSANDS, I'd like to maintain political neutrality with regards to religion.

-- You want a theocracy? Be prepared to give up football and poly-cotton blends (Leviticus, anyone?). I'm just sayin'.

Lest anyone think that I am anti-Christian, no, I am not. We may all pray and worship as we choose, and that is something amazing about this country. America is also not anti-Christian. It is simply that we cannot govern a diverse society by only the rules of one of its components. No matter what one's religious beliefs may hold, I consider it completely unacceptable to demean or nullify someone else's beliefs or values. This is *exactly* what would happen if we had a Christian Theocracy.

In closing, I would like to leave you with some quotes:

--"The Bible is not my book nor Christianity my profession. I could never give assent to the long, complicated statements of Christian dogma." -- Abraham Lincon, speech in New York, 1864

--"George Washington's practice of Christianity was limited and superficial because he was not himself a Christian... He repeatedly declined the church's sacraments. Never did he take communion, and when his wife, Martha, did, he waited for her outside the sanctuary... Even on his deathbed, Washington asked for no ritual, uttered no prayer to Christ, and expressed no wish to be attended by His representative." -- "George Washington: The Making of an American Symbol", Barry Schwartz

--"The government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion..." -- Treaty with Tripoli, passed unanimously by the senate, signed by President John Adams on June 10, 1797

--"No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever..." Thomas Jefferson, in the Virginia Act for Religious Freedom, 1786

--"Christianity neither is, nor ever was, a part of the common law." -- Thomas Jefferson, in a letter to Dr. Thomas Cooper, February 10, 1814

--"It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg." -- Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia, 1787

--"Leave the matter of religion to the family altar, the church, and the private schools, supported entirely by private contributions. Keep the church and the state forever separated." -- President Ulysses S. Grant

I doubt that this email will become a forwarded letter, and that is fine with me. However, as an American citizen, I did want to take the time to voice a conscientious objection and explain my reasoning for doing so. Perhaps the writer of the FWD to which I am replying should learn similar courtesy. After all, I do believe that the Christian religion preaches to love one's neighbor, not to suggest they should move out.

Yours,
Christina

*Edited for a few typos because I should not type when angry.
...I doubt I'll get a response. And thanks to paganrose, whose quotage I referenced.