Script Tease

Vote Mark Warner for president in 08.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Warner

http://pandagon.net/2006/01/18/round-it-up-partner/#more-1915

With succinct coherence, Hackett said: “I’m pro-choice, I’m pro-gayrights, I’m pro-gun-rights. Call me nuts, but I think they’re all based on the same principle and that is we don’t need government dictating to us how we live our private lives.”

Asked to define being pro-gay rights, Hackett said anybody who tries to deny homosexuals the same rights, including marriage, as every other citizen is un-American. Are you saying, he was asked, that the 62 percent of Ohioans who voted in November 2004 to constitutionally deny same-sex marriages are un-American?

“If what they believe is that we’re going to have a scale on judging which Americans have equal rights, yeah, that’s un-American. They’ve got to accept that. It’s absolutely un-American.”

And he continued on...

"The Republican Party has been hijacked by the religious fanatics that, in my opinion, aren't a whole lot different than Osama bin Laden and a lot of the other religious nuts around the world," he said. "The challenge is for the rest of us moderate Americans and citizens of the world to put down the fork and spoon, turn off the TV, and participate in the process and try to push back on these radical nuts - and they are nuts."

The republicans, in response, called him a nutjob. He had this to say:

"I said it. I meant it. I stand behind it. Equal justice under the law for all regardless of who they are and how they were born is fundamental to our American spirit and our American freedoms. Any person or group that argues that the law should not apply equally to all Americans is, frankly, un-American."

"The Republican Party has been hijacked by religious fanatics, who are out of touch with mainstream America. Think of the recent comments by Pat Robertson - a religious fanatic by any measure - that the United States should assassinate a democratically elected leader in Venezuela, and that Ariel Sharon's stroke was divine punishment because Sharon wished to trade land for peace."

"Since the Republican Party has been utterly unable to stand for something positive, they have created an atmosphere of fear and intimidation, and have pandered to religious fanatics not to vote for something they believe in, but to vote against their fellow Americans with whom they disagree. Those among us who would use religion and politics to divide rather than unite Americans should be ashamed."

This is the man who should be the next elected president of the United States. Honest and brutal. It's too bad Hillary is going to screw it up for everyone. She's such a vile thing, really.

Here is my schedule.





Geography 205: Physical Geography
Should be simple. Show up to class, take notes, perform on four exams, each exam totalling around 10 pages of notes to study from.

Political Science 233Writing: Comparing Electoral Systems
Ran by a good guy supposedly. It looks like this class has about 2 major papers, 10-15 pages each and a bunch of little writing assignments as well as a presentation of some sort. Could be potentially difficult.

English 210: Poetry
God I hate poetry. I hate it with a passion. This class will be easy, but there are two papers, one at 3-5 pages, the other at 5-7 and two exams. It'll be easy though.

English 217: Science Fiction Literature.
Took a class with the same professor last semester. Really cool guy who knows his stuff. Hoping my writing will improve more under his guidance. It'll be a lot of reading (about 5,000 pages + by the end of the semester if it's anything like fantasy in literature) and about 3 papers around 5-7 pages each. Time consuming but worth it.

English 217: Rhetoric and Political Issues
Group presentation (35 minutes), two papers (10-15 pages) and a variety of other homework reading assignments. This is an area I want to know more about. Being able to take a part someone's argument or learn about techniques which help sway opinions will be useful.

English 230: Shakespeare I
I loathe shakespeare. I hate it I hate it I hate it. It takes me way too long to get through a line of text and even when I'm done I'm pretty sure I come out misunderstanding it. Hopefully this guy is good - I switched into it last minute. Lots of group projects, a few papers here and there, but it looks like it could be difficult depending on how he grades.


It's six courses with a total of 18 credits. I feel like a chaste monk who's going to have to lock himself up in order to be successful this semester. I really don't understand how anyone can find the time for their hobbies and school/work with a schedule like this, but either way I'm going to end up locking down until I know for sure I can get away with doing stuff during the week. I'll be working on another short story soon and hopefully have that done by next week before a huge rush of work comes in. I don't know about any of you, but Andrew needs his 7-8 hours of sleep in order to function properly. Bleh.

Well, good luck to those of you starting a new semester. I have to figure some things out.

This is for a website i'm working with. Needs to be edited but you get the idea.

After achieving an academic feat in my life, friends and acquaintances alike will approach me and ask, "Andrew, how exactly did you manage that work load with everything else you do?" The question is a difficult one because what may come naturally to one person can be extremely difficult for another. The following is a guide designed to help you achieve in any academic setting. Some things will be more important than other depending on where you are in your academic career, but all are skills that will help you conquer the educational institution known as school.

Show Up – Participate Actively
Actor Woody Allen once said, "80% of life is just showing up.” There is a lot of truth to that statement. Believe it or not: most of the questions on a test are from a professor’s notes and very little, if any, are directly taken from the book without having been mentioned in class. Participation is also essential. The more you participate, the more the professor gets to know you and the more you get to discuss the information you’ll eventually have to memorize. By repeating phrases and applying them in a class setting you will be more inclined to remember it when you decide to sit down internalize the material.

Time Management
We all have found ourselves in a similar situation: you have a large paper due on Monday, but decide to go out with friends on Friday and Saturday and have to hammer out a paper on Sunday at 9 PM. Depending on your speed or level of procrastination; this may take all night and leave you extremely tired. The paper you create may also be of poor quality, which is why time management is so important. Sit down and plan out your weekend if you have work to do. For instance, maybe you work 7 to 3 on Saturday; instead of procrastinating, start the paper after getting home so that you have time to revise it and make proper edits on Sunday. If you social life is anything like mine, save the weekend for fun and relaxation and instead write two pages a day through out the week so that you are finished by Friday and can spend the weekend casually revising it. Time management is crucial for success in any task you take up in life. Sit down, figure out what you can get away with and stick to it.

Did you also know that most instances of plagiarism are committed because students procrastinate? Students often feel as if they have to plagiarize in order to finish their paper which is an extremely dangerous practice. Do not plagiarize under any circumstances! The consequences are incredible and will follow you for the rest of your life. Remember, it’s only one letter grade, not the rest of your life.

Do the Homework!
Your favorite subject is English and you have a great level of contempt for mathematics. The algebra teacher assigns problems 1-12 for homework tonight, but he never checks anyway, so what’s the point, right? Wrong. It is crucial that you do the homework especially if you are unfamiliar with the material. Homework is an excellent way to reinforce the ideas you learned in class and prepare you for future tests to come. Some teachers even pull questions directly from homework problems for their exams! Whether the teacher grades you for homework or not shouldn’t matter: do it for yourself. Working on homework will make studying for exams a lot easier, especially if it is a class that relies on mathematics and equations. For liberal arts courses, reading the material before class and participating in class will help you understand the concepts better.

Programs/Professors that Help
Having problems with a certain part of the class? Visit the professor during their office hours or go to a writing lab/math lab if one is offered at your school. The professor has office hours for a reason and if they are a reasonable person they are sure to be an invaluable source of information. There are multiple ways to explain something and I bet they only used one in class. Not only will you master the information you were originally confused about, but the professor or person helping you will get to know you better which does affect how they grade you.

Studying
Perhaps the least favorite of any student, studying is perhaps the most stressful because a large portion of a final grade is dependent upon how well you study consequentially, how well you do on the test. Below are several study tips which will help you ace any of those pesky exams coming up.

Study in Advance
I can’t tell you how much this helps me when it comes to large quantities of material. If you have a test on Wednesday, start studying three days in advance. On the first night, skim the material and become familiar with it, I’m sure you’ll find some familiar phrases. Try to internalize what you can in an hour or however long you wish to spend studying and get a good nights rest.

The next evening, do the same exact thing. You’ll notice that remembering things will come to mind a lot faster and easier. Finally, the last night should be a full review and the material should be internalized by the end of the session. Studying in advance in little bursts is a sure fire way to owning your exams and your professor. You’ll also get to enjoy watching all the other kids sweat bullets as they attempt to cram 25 pages of typed notes for a biology course.

How to Memorize Information
Below are some ways to memorize information quickly and effectively.

Pneumonic Techniques
If you have to memorize the four disciplines of geography, why not make a pneumonic? A pneumonic is a clever play on words in order to help you remember material. The four disciplines are physical, human, socio-environmental, and historical geography. Instead of trying to cram all of that in your head, why not learn a clever phrase to help you remember it? Playful Humans Sometimes Eat Hummus. By taking the first letters in each of the disciplines I have managed to create a quirky phrase that may not make sense, but is certainly so odd that I won’t have any problems remembering it.

The Science of Association
Instead of looking at the material you have to memorize and something so incredibly boring and disconnected from modern society, try and find out what similarities it has instead. Taking a biology course on plants? As your walking down the street, observe plants going through photosynthesis and try to remember the steps involved in the process. Trying to remember John Stewart Mill’s arguments in On Liberty? Try to compare the differences between our system today and his vision of what it should have been or how he influenced the evolution of American democracy. By associating the material with something meaningful to you whether it be through a song you love or how it affects you today; you’ll find memorizing the information a lot easier.

Misery Loves Company
Find people who are reliable and have good study habits. Studying in groups of 2-3 people have its benefits. If you missed a piece of the material or were absent one day another person can aid you in filling in the gaps. However, realize that you will need to sit by yourself and study the material alone at some point, but studying in a group can make things fun and enable you to remember material easier.

Learn From Your Mistakes
So you bombed the last test and are feeling down about it. Don’t! This is an opportunity and a chance to improve. Find out what worked and what didn’t. Did you work on review problems before the test? How did you try to internalize the material? Different approaches work for different people and I encourage you to do your best and own the next test. Set a realistic goal. For instance, on my first physics exam I got a 74. I was feeling down at first, but I realized it was one test out of three and said to myself, “you can do better than that, shoot for a B next time.” Sure enough on my next test I adapted my study habits and got an 88. Suffice to say I finished the class with an A. Find out what your weaknesses are and concentrate on your strengths. By doing this you will most likely come out with at least a C in any course you take.

Grades are Grades, Not Life
In summation, I would hope that you would remember that a bad grade here and there is not the end of the world. The grade in a subject you hate is not any indication of what kind of person you are or the worth of your life. I know plenty of people who have actually dropped out college at some point only to return, graduate, and become the CEO of their very own company. If you don’t have an interest in college, that’s okay too! Instead you want to develop a trade so that you can build houses, do plumbing, or perhaps sell a product for a company. There are many paths in life, just remember to do your best and never give up. Be the best at whatever you set out to do, whether that is running a multi-million dollar company or managing a department store. I hope this guide has provided some useful information and wish you the best of luck in life.

I was working today and after someone tipped me I came across an interesting dollar bill.



Apparently people track dollar bills/other currency. It's sort of interesting - I wonder where my dollar bill will go?

Check it out.

I was calculating it just an hour ago. If I work six days a week for 12 hours each day at seven dollars an hour I can make some amazing cash for someone my age. That comes out to five hundred and four dollars a week. One of my favorite hobbies as of late has been coming home after a long day of work, hopping online, and looking at how much I've earned and how much I can afford. Transferring...counting...this is why basic mathematics was always a blast because it had some real world application. Who could possibly care about something like calculus when it has nothing to do with a bank account?

When I first looked for a job, it had to meet certain requirements. It had to provide me the hours and preferably be paid under the table. This ensured that the greedy bastard, Uncle Sam, wouldn't steal a piece of what is rightfully mine. It was never his money and he shouldn't get a piece of it. I worked for it, not him.

My average day goes something like this: I wake up at 4:30 in the morning to head off to the restaurant where I am employed. It's a nice little place which provides the hours, which at this point in my life have become as necessary as food and water. Monday is always the easiest. You get up and are completely ready for a full day of work. Once wednesday rolls around, things get a little tricky: you begin to hit the snooze button and trick yourself into believing that you have a little more time to rest. If you're in denial too much, you end up getting fired because of the amount of times you were late and that isn't an option. What other employer would be willing to pay these hours and with these benefits? I need this so I eventually resorted to using my cell phone's alarm for early rising which thankfully doesn't have a snooze alarm and gives me an edge on all the competition at the diner.

But as I was saying: it gets harder. By saturday you want to roll over and die, but it's worth it. Who wouldn't want to be 500 dollars richer? Nobody, that's who, and no one respects a nobody.

The Diner is a war with two fronts: customer relations and employee relations. You've got to keep your cool and go with the flow a lot, but you can't be pushed around. This is a general rule for handling the competition. Being the "Go To" guy is especially important: take the jobs that no one else enjoys and really stand out. That's how you get the hours and that's how you get the money and raise. Always be kind to the competition when you can afford it and if you find you are being targeted be sure to find someone everyone can dislike together. The rumor-mill is the greatest weapon of any saavy worker.

The customers are another story. Bend over backwards to please them because a satisfied customer means a happy customer. Make them happy enough and it really helps your relations with the employer. Do onto others that which you would want done onto you...unless of course it's your competition. But it's crucial to establish a relationship early on, smile even if you don't give two shits, and greet them as if they were a God falling from the heavens to order a number two. If something is screwed up when you deliver the food to them, take a hit and offer a free entree because in the long run that will reflect on you and ultimately lead to that goal: more hours and more money.

II

12 Hours at work. Seven dollars an hour. Six days a week. Sunday is necessary preparation for another 12 hour daily work week and by preparation I mean sleeping, eating, and staying in your pajamas all day. But you're not thinking of Sunday when it's 5:59 pm. and you're about to go home.

It takes me an hour to commute from home to work, work to home. It's the closest job which provided sustenance: hours, food, and water. By 6 p.m. you don't really have any idea where time has gone or where it's going. I've driven to and from work so many times I could probably do it in my sleep, which I unwillingly catch myself doing now and then. As I'm driving home I feel the smooth ebb and flow of lights sliding up and down my body. The lights usually blind me, but it doesn't matter because this is all routine. I'm so comfortable and at home in that light. My body melts as the lights engulf the entire interior of my car. Seeing them leave is probably the saddest thing that happens to me daily.

I'm relaxed, barely paying attention, and making my way home when a red hue rises above the horizon. It's almost as if the sky is on fire as I make my way down the highway. This fascination always turns into anger as I slam on my brakes and realize that I was two inches from wrecking my car. I can't lose my car no matter what, it help facilitates my need for work and hours. That reminder hits me everyday I do the commute, but quickly succumbs to aggravation as I realize I'm going to be in traffic for the next hour, making it a two hour commute.

III

Time slowly passes by and I can hear the bangs of each click on my wrist watch as I wait for the driver in front of me to move forward another couple of inches. I notice the person on my left wants to move into my lane. It's a woman. Probably has kids and has worked a full day as well. I wave her in and she lifts her hand and shakes it emphatically, smiling in my direction. I smile back. I'm really happy at that moment. Incredibly happy. That's not really important though, I've got to get home and get some rest so I can be ready for work tomorrow.

Wait, what the hell is this?

I'm driving like any other man on the road, but this fucker in the S.U.V. thinks he owns the goddamn freeway. We're all struggling, inch by inch, foot by foot to complete our commute so what makes this prick so special? I worked my ass off and all I want to do is be home. Look at him. Oh, he's a smart one. He slowly inches in front of me and then what option do I have? Smash into him or let him have his way. By the time I get home it's going to be 8:30 pm and after cooking dinner, eating, taking a shower and finally getting to relax, it's goddamn ten. I can't even function at that point. I just sit in front of the tube until I fall asleep and the sad thing is that this happens everyday. I swear to God almighty himself and this sonavabitch's praise jesus bumper sticker that as soon as I have the time I'm going to get myself a pistol license for jerks like him.

I'll show him. And I do. I Cut off one or two people and i'm side to side with this moron and turn to look at him, but he's already looking back at me. I couldn't believe it. Chills run up my spine and I feel a droplet of sweat slide down my back, shopping only because the pants around my waist forced it to.

He looks just like me.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

I was thinking of adding something which hinted at the fact that he aged and nothing ever changed, but this is just a quick sketch. Other than that, maybe some snippets on certain customers/fleshing out the customer section, but I don't know what that would add. Gotta edit it and what not, but I should actually get to writing about what I said I'd be writing.

Also - this isn't the story I was talking about in the previous post. That one is a fantasy novella of some sort that i'll have to write (150 pages) sometime next year if I take the course I'm aiming for.

I'll be either posting ideas for short stories or actual snippets i'm working on. I need help because for whatever reason, it turns out horrible once I put it on paper. Just need some constructive criticism. I have one part written out, but it turned out really poor so I'm editing. Once it's bearable i'll have it up on here. Stay tuned.