I Am So Inspired

that I needed to share this again.

A week or more ago I posted a website from my swarm (websites I check regularly) in this post. I had only visited it once or twice and it was already on its way to becoming another facebook for me.

The Sixty-one
For a music geek like me, this is a great website. They have a constantly growing music selection of mostly indie and self-produced music, but also of some more popular, borderline MTV bands like 'Band of Horses' and 'Ratatat.'
It also offers a sort of democratic selection of what is good and incentives for the really big geeks like me.
Are you ready for the kicker?

There is an RPG aspect to the rating process that allows you to level up based on having good taste in music and friends with good taste. There are music quests (they aren't mandatory) to complete, something I really enjoy about the site that creates something to do while bored. Its Pandora.fm: the game.

If you're interested in getting involved let me know and I'll send you an invite. We can be friends on the Sixtyone AND be judgemental together!

Newbies

I got a message from a newbie in Indiana. She wants to go to Evergreen, but is terrified of the weather and also of it not living up to her expectations. Despite my usual attitude towards newbs, I told her the full honest truth. I told her that I like it here and that the weather sucks but not so bad. I told her that the school is good if you are motivated. I portrayed the school with cautious optimism. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME! As an upper-classmen I am supposed to HATE FRESHMEN! They just want us to buy them booze, they are soul-suckers. They are so OPTIMISTIC. RAWR

Also, this is very close to home.

Taking Things Way Too Seriously

All right, this one goes out to Charlie D

We had powerpoint presentations for class on wednesday of last week where we were being evaluated by our peers. Mine was on sleep deprivation. I got my evaluations and they were ok, all of them besides one. I got to read a page of cold, odd insults which I will now quote:

Did he give a clear and organized presentation? Was it easy to find the main point of supporting points? Did they stick to the main points?
"No. No. Yes. He did not go off-topic." (this is where i started getting a feeling that this person thought they were better than me, complete sentence? come on!)

Explained connection between the research and project?
"No. He did not mention his project." (to be fair, i didn't and almost no one else did either)

Made good use of visual aids?
"Made adequate use. The images could have been better." (btw those images were AWESOME)

Used the time well?
"Yes."

(Here's the best part)
Had good personal demeanor?
"No. He was twitchy, ill groomed, and hesitant. He was not confident."

(Yes, I am twitchy and ill-groomed. They should string me up for that. What, should I get a fucking haircut before I go to do a powerpoint presentation? I couldn't take anything this person had said in the evaluation seriously anymore. Who says that?)

Well-prepared?
"Fairly. He could not quote sources."
(WTF? I thought we weren't supposed to write out a speech for our presentations. I thought paraphrasing would be good enough.)

What was the best about this presentation?
"The information" (sleep dep is pretty interesting)

One suggestion for improvement?
"He should know his sources and be able to quote them." (and that receives a big 'fuck you' stamp)

is it just me or is it inappropriate to call someone "twitchy and ill-groomed." The first time reading it I was incensed, but then I realized that this person must be upset with me,(is that possible) crazy, or socially retarded to say something like that. I have my theories on whodunnit, but what good is caring about it going to do. If I want to follow the life path of an artist, I need to be prepared to take harsh and ridiculous criticisms. That doesn't mean I can't give those people harsh and ridiculous criticisms right back and in a completely vindictive way. I gave the suspected ridiculing party some scathing criticism. (Allow me to paraphrase: Your presentation felt very canned, make it feel more natural and make us more interested in your topic. kthxbye)

My advice for anyone who wants to fuck with my shit, 'if you can't take the heat, stay out of my fucking kitchen. I cook with a flamethrower.'

Happy 4/20! Prepare to have your 'mellow' harshed

Happy 4/20 everyone! Can you smell the Hippies?

As a reformed Hippy myself, I have great insight on their world and feel obligated to critique the culture.

What a strange holiday April 20th is. On 4/20 you are supposed to break the law with all of your friends, but as far as I can tell there is no real reason to do it. There is a lot of speculation about where the date's importance comes from, but no one really knows and I don't think anyone really cares. Wikipedia claims that the date and time originated with some high schoolers who would smoke after getting out of detention at 4:20 every day, but I've heard plenty of other ones involving Hitler's birthday and other even more outlandish origins.

Do Hippies really even need an excuse to smoke some grass? No, no they don't. As protest I am making a point of not smoking grass and telling anyone who asks me to that this is a dumb holiday. 4/20 is similar to Christmas and Easter, maybe it meant something to someone at some point, but now its just a reason for misguided idealists to embrace consumerism. While you may not want to hear this, dealing drugs is a business just like the Frito-Lay Corporation, the company that sells Funyuns and other such popular stoner snacks. Way to break the mold, kids.