My grandmother, Rebecca Goldie Granger, passed away in May. I loved her very much and it has been extremely difficult.
My dad and my uncle have been working non stop on preparing her house for sale since late May. It has been a big project, as my grandma had her house for over 50 years. Within that time, there was quite the accumulation of random things. I grew up in that house, as did other family members. As I walk through the now empty house, I remember my childhood. I remember sitting in the tub taking a bath while my grandma waited patiently. I remember the big wall heater, laying in front of it's warmth and comfort. All of it is such a big part of me- all of the memories, the past, and my childhood is deeply rooted within the foundation. Something I will never forget for as long as I live.
I thought it would be easy to have an estate sale. I thought it would be easy to let go of seemingly unimportant things. It's just "stuff". I was thinking about how I wanted to get the new iPhone with the proceeds. I was thinking it wouldn't be too bad to have a few extra dollars. I now know that is easier said than done, however.
I went to grandma's house tonight and it was very difficult to see her things piled up and in boxes. Most of my grandma's possessions were forgotten about, long ago, even by her. As I began sifting through the tangible remnants of her life, I found myself becoming weirdly attached to things that belonged to her and my grandpa. I want to hold on to everything simply because it was hers- because she once held it. Obviously, I can't keep everything, it's not feasible nor realistic. Howerver, it's so hard to loosen my grip on my grandparent's past and their life in that house.
Anyways, I should get to bed now. This is all a bit overwhelming and I feel almost frantic and anxious. I have a big day ahead of me. So help me, people better not act like assholes...
Friday, September 24, 2010
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Things I Hate (Relating to Food) Part 2
I made PP write a blog about food she hates. And although, her list is quite extensive, I have some oddities in my diet also. This is a continuation of Things I Hate (Relating to Food) Part 1.
Baby carrots. They gross me out and they taste like shit. It's like they weren't deemed as good enough or pretty enough to be whole carrots. I bet they had to be whittled down into "babies" because the original carrot had rotten bits on it.
Bag salad. I HATE lettuce that comes pre-washed and pre-cut in a bag. It's disgusting. It tastes funny- like plastic. I HATE shredded lettuce that comes on deli sandwiches too.
Pre cut fruit/vegetables. I don't know why I hate them. I guess in my mind, they don't seem as "fresh" as if I cut them myself. Hell yes, bitches, I can cut a fucking whole pineapple!!
Pre shredded cheese. There is some type of flour-y type substance on it which keeps the cheese from sticking together. It tastes funny. I guarantee that you can tell the difference from freshly grated cheese and pre shredded cheese.
Milk. I will only drink or use fat free milk. I don't really care if you think it tastes like water. It doesn't, you asshole. I love it and I will NOT drink 2%-- I would rather die than drink whole milk. Disgusting.
Tofu. I'm with PP on this one. I swear to God everyone says "it absorbs whatever flavors you want to cook with". I'm sorry it's absolutely disgusting. Barf.
Sweet potatoes. Sorry mom. I've tried them every god damn Thanksgiving and they make me want to barf every time. Ewwwwww.
Mushy fruit. It has to be firm. Mealy, mushy apples are the absolute worst.
Rotten bananas. I only like bananas that are barely ripe. If there are any brown spots on it, ANY, I will not eat it. Or... if it is so yellow that brown spots are just on the horizon. NOPE. Soooo sick!!
Vegetables in a can. Need I elaborate? Fucking nasty.
Ok, so I'd better save some foods I hate for part 3...
Baby carrots. They gross me out and they taste like shit. It's like they weren't deemed as good enough or pretty enough to be whole carrots. I bet they had to be whittled down into "babies" because the original carrot had rotten bits on it.
Bag salad. I HATE lettuce that comes pre-washed and pre-cut in a bag. It's disgusting. It tastes funny- like plastic. I HATE shredded lettuce that comes on deli sandwiches too.
Pre cut fruit/vegetables. I don't know why I hate them. I guess in my mind, they don't seem as "fresh" as if I cut them myself. Hell yes, bitches, I can cut a fucking whole pineapple!!
Pre shredded cheese. There is some type of flour-y type substance on it which keeps the cheese from sticking together. It tastes funny. I guarantee that you can tell the difference from freshly grated cheese and pre shredded cheese.
Milk. I will only drink or use fat free milk. I don't really care if you think it tastes like water. It doesn't, you asshole. I love it and I will NOT drink 2%-- I would rather die than drink whole milk. Disgusting.
Tofu. I'm with PP on this one. I swear to God everyone says "it absorbs whatever flavors you want to cook with". I'm sorry it's absolutely disgusting. Barf.
Sweet potatoes. Sorry mom. I've tried them every god damn Thanksgiving and they make me want to barf every time. Ewwwwww.
Mushy fruit. It has to be firm. Mealy, mushy apples are the absolute worst.
Rotten bananas. I only like bananas that are barely ripe. If there are any brown spots on it, ANY, I will not eat it. Or... if it is so yellow that brown spots are just on the horizon. NOPE. Soooo sick!!
Vegetables in a can. Need I elaborate? Fucking nasty.
Ok, so I'd better save some foods I hate for part 3...
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
The Brood
The movie: The Brood (1979)
The synopsis: I'm not really sure of an accurate summary. However, this is what I've gathered from the internet. The movie is about a pack of demented/deformed children who love killing for their "mother". This "mother" has these disgusting pods on the outside her body from which the babies emerge from. These little creatures grow up into extra creepy children. Basically, anyone who pisses off the mom is brutally beaten and killed by one or more of these little monster children. The creepiest part: the kids always wear these snow outfit things with a hood. So all you see is their creepy little faces surrounded by a tightly fitted hood.
The significance: One of my earliest childhood memories involves this movie. Horrifying. I'm not sure how old I was, but I'm willing to bet I was under four. It scared the shit out of me, as I remember one particular scene in the movie quite vividly.
The scene: The only thing I remember about the movie is a scene where several of these creepy bastards were trying to claw, punch, scratch, and gnaw their way through a door. On the other side of the door was a little blonde girl, terrified. Ummmm. Me. Little girl. Blonde. Bangs. Terrified. Oh shit. Yes, that's what I remember. These deformed, awful kids trying to kill a little blonde girl. Yes, once upon a time I had blonde hair-- real blonde, not the fake I have now. Let me tell you. It scared the shit out of me. Let me reiterate, it fucking scared the shit out of me. So much, that I remember being absolutely terrified. My earliest childhood memory involves this movie. Fabulous.
Youtube: So i thought it would be funny to watch other scenes on youtube. Just to see what I was so afraid of. Honestly, I love scary movies and watch them pretty frequently. However, I was actually nervous to start watching this, my heartrate even increased a little. And let me tell you, it was scary!!! Not like Freddy Krueger scary, but creepy, disturbing scary. One particular scene was in a classroom. Two of those snow-suit wearing little mother fuckers picked up a couple of mallets and started bludgeoning the teacher!!! No lie, they were wailing on that bitch until she was a lifeless heap on the floor. Her head was smashed and she was laying upon a pool of congealing blood. Are you kidding me??!!!
CPS: I bet CPS didn't exist then, but if they did, someone should have picked up the phone and called them. Who in the fuck let me watch this movie? I was talking about it one day and my dad goes... "yeah, I remember that movie-- all those deformed kids with parkas"... he informed me "they killed people their mom didn't like". So, it was my dad?!! He let poor little 4 year old me watch this movie?? Jesus Christ. I can't imagine my parents would willingly let me watch this movie... I like to think that they thought I was playing and wasn't paying attention. Who knows... All I know is that shit has been embedded in my brain for 29 years.
The synopsis: I'm not really sure of an accurate summary. However, this is what I've gathered from the internet. The movie is about a pack of demented/deformed children who love killing for their "mother". This "mother" has these disgusting pods on the outside her body from which the babies emerge from. These little creatures grow up into extra creepy children. Basically, anyone who pisses off the mom is brutally beaten and killed by one or more of these little monster children. The creepiest part: the kids always wear these snow outfit things with a hood. So all you see is their creepy little faces surrounded by a tightly fitted hood.
The significance: One of my earliest childhood memories involves this movie. Horrifying. I'm not sure how old I was, but I'm willing to bet I was under four. It scared the shit out of me, as I remember one particular scene in the movie quite vividly.
The scene: The only thing I remember about the movie is a scene where several of these creepy bastards were trying to claw, punch, scratch, and gnaw their way through a door. On the other side of the door was a little blonde girl, terrified. Ummmm. Me. Little girl. Blonde. Bangs. Terrified. Oh shit. Yes, that's what I remember. These deformed, awful kids trying to kill a little blonde girl. Yes, once upon a time I had blonde hair-- real blonde, not the fake I have now. Let me tell you. It scared the shit out of me. Let me reiterate, it fucking scared the shit out of me. So much, that I remember being absolutely terrified. My earliest childhood memory involves this movie. Fabulous.
 |
| OMG |
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| Dear God |
Youtube: So i thought it would be funny to watch other scenes on youtube. Just to see what I was so afraid of. Honestly, I love scary movies and watch them pretty frequently. However, I was actually nervous to start watching this, my heartrate even increased a little. And let me tell you, it was scary!!! Not like Freddy Krueger scary, but creepy, disturbing scary. One particular scene was in a classroom. Two of those snow-suit wearing little mother fuckers picked up a couple of mallets and started bludgeoning the teacher!!! No lie, they were wailing on that bitch until she was a lifeless heap on the floor. Her head was smashed and she was laying upon a pool of congealing blood. Are you kidding me??!!!
CPS: I bet CPS didn't exist then, but if they did, someone should have picked up the phone and called them. Who in the fuck let me watch this movie? I was talking about it one day and my dad goes... "yeah, I remember that movie-- all those deformed kids with parkas"... he informed me "they killed people their mom didn't like". So, it was my dad?!! He let poor little 4 year old me watch this movie?? Jesus Christ. I can't imagine my parents would willingly let me watch this movie... I like to think that they thought I was playing and wasn't paying attention. Who knows... All I know is that shit has been embedded in my brain for 29 years.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Things I Hate (Relating to Food)
1. Mushrooms. One word. Disgusting. I especially hate the way they smell. Have you ever seen those shit dens where certain mushrooms are grown? In shit, in the dark. I like my food relatively shit free, thank you.
2. Weird meats. Self explanatory. Veal, venison, duck, rabbit, lamb. No Christmas goose for me. Organ meat...absolutely no liver, kidneys, etc. Disgusting.
Omg. PP, do you have Trader Joe's in Mass? They have the best vegetarian corndogs...soooo good!!
3. Cheap ground meat. You know, when there's grissle in it. Ew. And this includes sausage and hotdogs. I gave up on that shit unless they are a. kosher or b. vegetarian (which I prefer the most).
4. Meat and or eggs that are loaded with antibiotics, and the animals which are treated like shit and slaughtered so we can eat them. I only buy cage free, organic eggs (eggs kinda creep me out anyways). If I buy chicken, it's antibiotic-free, naturally fed, free range. That shit is expensive, so I'll buy it twice a year.
When I cook, it's almost entirely vegetarian. Seriously, maybe a few times a year I'll make chicken. I just don't think you need meat to a. be healthy or b. have a good meal. Handling raw meat makes me gag anyways. Sickening. If I cook it , I regret it because it's soooo gross looking. Ew!
Hey, I'm not perfect, I'll go out and eat, and of course I don't require everything to be organic, etc. Too difficult and expensive. A secret about me... I love McDonald's cheeseburgers--- delicious. That is my total guilty pleasure. Yum. Why are they so good? And why am I a hypocrite?
5. Meat that has fat, veins, tendons, bones, grissle, etc.
6. Deli meat. Have you ever bought turkey from the deli? If the light hits it just right, there's a rainbow embedded on the surface of the meat. Sooooooo gross. I was making sangwiches for my sister and I when I discovered it. SICK! My sister told me to shut up--- I was obsessed. Why is there a rainbow on the meat????? Why??? Rainbow. On. The. Meat?????? On the meat?!! Ewwwww. Someone told me it was the nitrates they use to preserve it. Even the expensive one is laced with rainbow. Cheese sangwiches for me. I can't do it.
7. Food remnants. When someone doesn't clean the jelly off the knife and puts it in the peanut butter-- then there's jelly in the peanut butter. That shit is disgusting. It's the same with butter. I will fucking cut you if I find a. crumbs in my butter or b. jelly in my butter. Soooo nasty. And I've found butter and other random stuff (LIKE POTATO PARTICLES) in my sour cream. It makes me mad thinking about it.
8. Mayonnaise. I absolutely hate when I get a sangwich and there's mayo dripping out of it. Disgusting. I only like it if it's nicely placed--- barely any. I can even deal without it. I don't know why it makes me gag. I can, however, eat it in like potato salad. But it's mixed in with something, so it's different.
9. Expiration dates. If something is expired I throw it away. I don't know why, but I'm weird about it. I absolutely hate it when someone throws away the thing to keep the bag to the bread closed. You know why? Because it has the fucking expiration date on it. I think my sister threw it away the other day...and I knew the bread was about to expire so I was irritated.
10. Green beans in a can with almonds. Need I say more? I know god damn well that PP wouldn't go for that.
2. Weird meats. Self explanatory. Veal, venison, duck, rabbit, lamb. No Christmas goose for me. Organ meat...absolutely no liver, kidneys, etc. Disgusting.
Omg. PP, do you have Trader Joe's in Mass? They have the best vegetarian corndogs...soooo good!!
3. Cheap ground meat. You know, when there's grissle in it. Ew. And this includes sausage and hotdogs. I gave up on that shit unless they are a. kosher or b. vegetarian (which I prefer the most).
4. Meat and or eggs that are loaded with antibiotics, and the animals which are treated like shit and slaughtered so we can eat them. I only buy cage free, organic eggs (eggs kinda creep me out anyways). If I buy chicken, it's antibiotic-free, naturally fed, free range. That shit is expensive, so I'll buy it twice a year.
When I cook, it's almost entirely vegetarian. Seriously, maybe a few times a year I'll make chicken. I just don't think you need meat to a. be healthy or b. have a good meal. Handling raw meat makes me gag anyways. Sickening. If I cook it , I regret it because it's soooo gross looking. Ew!
Hey, I'm not perfect, I'll go out and eat, and of course I don't require everything to be organic, etc. Too difficult and expensive. A secret about me... I love McDonald's cheeseburgers--- delicious. That is my total guilty pleasure. Yum. Why are they so good? And why am I a hypocrite?
5. Meat that has fat, veins, tendons, bones, grissle, etc.
6. Deli meat. Have you ever bought turkey from the deli? If the light hits it just right, there's a rainbow embedded on the surface of the meat. Sooooooo gross. I was making sangwiches for my sister and I when I discovered it. SICK! My sister told me to shut up--- I was obsessed. Why is there a rainbow on the meat????? Why??? Rainbow. On. The. Meat?????? On the meat?!! Ewwwww. Someone told me it was the nitrates they use to preserve it. Even the expensive one is laced with rainbow. Cheese sangwiches for me. I can't do it.
7. Food remnants. When someone doesn't clean the jelly off the knife and puts it in the peanut butter-- then there's jelly in the peanut butter. That shit is disgusting. It's the same with butter. I will fucking cut you if I find a. crumbs in my butter or b. jelly in my butter. Soooo nasty. And I've found butter and other random stuff (LIKE POTATO PARTICLES) in my sour cream. It makes me mad thinking about it.
8. Mayonnaise. I absolutely hate when I get a sangwich and there's mayo dripping out of it. Disgusting. I only like it if it's nicely placed--- barely any. I can even deal without it. I don't know why it makes me gag. I can, however, eat it in like potato salad. But it's mixed in with something, so it's different.
9. Expiration dates. If something is expired I throw it away. I don't know why, but I'm weird about it. I absolutely hate it when someone throws away the thing to keep the bag to the bread closed. You know why? Because it has the fucking expiration date on it. I think my sister threw it away the other day...and I knew the bread was about to expire so I was irritated.
10. Green beans in a can with almonds. Need I say more? I know god damn well that PP wouldn't go for that.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Six Flags
My mom's company picnic was today at Six Flags Discovery Bay in Vallejo. Vallejo is such a shit hole city-- they actually went bankrupt-- the city went bankrupt. WTF. SHIT HOLE.
Anyways, we got in for $20. What a deal. It included park admission and a bbq lunch. Not to be a bitch but the lunch was pretty nasty. Nasty cheap hamburgers and these disgusting looking hotdogs, which I'm sure were loaded with nails, hair, and buttholes. There was also baked beans and potato salad. Unlimited Diet Coke, which I love. Ice cream sandwiches for dessert.
So, my mom, cousin, a teen girl I mentor, and myself went. My dad was supposed to go but he flaked. Whatever. Thank goodness my cousin came. She and the teen went on all the scary rides together. I felt like a mom- waiting at the exit for them. Ugh.
A little known fact about me: I have a terrible case of motion sickness. I have been known to get sick on car rides (I'm usually just nauseous, I don't typically barf). Since I feel like shit on car rides, naturally I also get sick on most rides. If I go on a roller coaster I have to shut my eyes, and even then, I feel like shit after. It's not just roller coasters, but anything that spins, goes up and down (i.e. Tower of Terror), or simulation rides. Fuck, so pretty much anything that moves. I can tolerate some rides better than others, but they all make me sick. Bitches.
Honestly, by nature I'm not a thrill seeker. I enjoy being on the ground. Don't ask me to go sky diving or bungee jumping--- if you do, I'll just tell you to fuck off. The most I'll do is parasailing-- which I almost had a heart attack, but it wasn't scary at all. Actually quite enjoyable, then again, I wasn't falling out of the sky. It wasn't scary at all.
The best part of Six Flags was people watching. I stared at every mother fucker there. Terrible. Just terrible. I'm not trying to be mean, but I saw soooo many girls who were, not to be mean, really, really large. Their guts were hanging over their pants and it looks awful. Ok, I understand that not everyone is skinny and I really and truly believe that people should wear whatever they want...but... it looks terrible!!! Tight, clingy t-shirts don't look good, especially if you can see the indentation of someone's belly button. I saw plenty of those. Belly button indentations equals terrible.
Secondly. Please guys, don't wear Ed Hardy shirts. Can you say douchie? I don't think I'm offending anyone... the only person who reads this blog is PP and Bob doesn't seem to be the Ed Hardy type. I also hate hate hate the way guys wear their hats. I can't describe it, but you know what I mean. Lame.
The moral of the story, or this blog rather, is that I will never pay full price to go to Six Flags. I literally can't go on any of the rides, so what's the point?
Anyways, we got in for $20. What a deal. It included park admission and a bbq lunch. Not to be a bitch but the lunch was pretty nasty. Nasty cheap hamburgers and these disgusting looking hotdogs, which I'm sure were loaded with nails, hair, and buttholes. There was also baked beans and potato salad. Unlimited Diet Coke, which I love. Ice cream sandwiches for dessert.
So, my mom, cousin, a teen girl I mentor, and myself went. My dad was supposed to go but he flaked. Whatever. Thank goodness my cousin came. She and the teen went on all the scary rides together. I felt like a mom- waiting at the exit for them. Ugh.
A little known fact about me: I have a terrible case of motion sickness. I have been known to get sick on car rides (I'm usually just nauseous, I don't typically barf). Since I feel like shit on car rides, naturally I also get sick on most rides. If I go on a roller coaster I have to shut my eyes, and even then, I feel like shit after. It's not just roller coasters, but anything that spins, goes up and down (i.e. Tower of Terror), or simulation rides. Fuck, so pretty much anything that moves. I can tolerate some rides better than others, but they all make me sick. Bitches.
Honestly, by nature I'm not a thrill seeker. I enjoy being on the ground. Don't ask me to go sky diving or bungee jumping--- if you do, I'll just tell you to fuck off. The most I'll do is parasailing-- which I almost had a heart attack, but it wasn't scary at all. Actually quite enjoyable, then again, I wasn't falling out of the sky. It wasn't scary at all.
The best part of Six Flags was people watching. I stared at every mother fucker there. Terrible. Just terrible. I'm not trying to be mean, but I saw soooo many girls who were, not to be mean, really, really large. Their guts were hanging over their pants and it looks awful. Ok, I understand that not everyone is skinny and I really and truly believe that people should wear whatever they want...but... it looks terrible!!! Tight, clingy t-shirts don't look good, especially if you can see the indentation of someone's belly button. I saw plenty of those. Belly button indentations equals terrible.
Secondly. Please guys, don't wear Ed Hardy shirts. Can you say douchie? I don't think I'm offending anyone... the only person who reads this blog is PP and Bob doesn't seem to be the Ed Hardy type. I also hate hate hate the way guys wear their hats. I can't describe it, but you know what I mean. Lame.
The moral of the story, or this blog rather, is that I will never pay full price to go to Six Flags. I literally can't go on any of the rides, so what's the point?
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
I Love Free
As you know I went to Europe earlier this summer. It was semi-stressful because we traveled so much, but I had a wonderful time. I got to see so much and it was amazing. My favorite place was London. If anyone ever wants to go there, I'm soooo down. I love it. Astounding, wonderful, fabulous... ugh I could go on about how much I love it there.
I think Europe in general has a better appreciation for their history, which includes monuments/architecture and works of art- sculpture, paintings, etc. Of course their history spans hundreds and hundreds of years, while ours is still relatively new, especially here on the west coast.
I don't know...it seems like in California there is high demand for everything to be new. Let's tear down the old buildings and put up nice, pretty, sterile ones instead. I know a lot of historical buildings were destroyed during the 1906 earthquake. However, a lot of old buildings are crumbling into the ground due to neglect and seemingly no one cares--- well that, and there's no funding from the state to fix them. Restoration. What's that?
In London, and Europe in general, they are less likely to demolish buildings, they restore them. Many of the old buildings are restored to their original state-- which means that they don't typically include elevators for physically disabled people. We stayed in a hotel with no elevator-- we had to lug our god damn shit up 2 flights of narrow ass stairs. Huffing and puffing the whole way. If you are either physically unfit, old, or disabled, your ass better stay in a newer hotel, or on the bottom floor. No air conditioning. Weird furnace heater things. Old plumbing.
So, I do have a point. All of the museums in Britain are free because they are government agencies. They take pride in all of the amazing art pieces they've collected over the years of British conquests. For hundreds of years, they've truly known the value of these works of art- monetarily, socially, and historically. Those bitches were everywhere- and they collected (or stole) thousands upon thousands of pieces of priceless art . The British Museum is one of the most breath taking places I've ever been-- sooo beautiful, I can't even describe how it made me feel. My chest was tight and I held back tears simply because it was that amazing. Speechless. The marble statues from Italy and Greece, so graceful and fluid and smooth. Like you are looking into their soul, through their life-like eyes. The paintings that have survived for so long. Being in the presence of things that are so old and beautiful is humbling and something I will never forget. The ancient Egyptians, all the artifacts- the mummies. It brings tears to my eyes as I write this. Did I mention that this museum is free? Yep it was. They did take donations, but it wasn't required to enter. AMAZING.
The British Museum of Natural History was also free (except the ocean exhibit was extra). They have fossils-- tons of fossils... everything you could think of. A HUGE collection of dinosaurs. A cool section about ecology...how everything is connected in the world and how symbiotic relationships are necessary for the survival of every living thing on the planet. How we are destroying our planet with waste. So much to see. The planets, insects, every species of bird. It was cool (not as cool as the British Museum, but still awesome). This shit was free too. FREE.
We also went to a weird medical museum. It was at some college for surgeons--- I can't remember exactly what it's called. It was basically a museum of weird shit. Medical oddities, skeletons of people with various medical conditions, specimens of different species of animals, human fetus, old medical equipment. Just weirdness in general. My kind of place. I will admit though, it was kinda creepy. FREE.
It's nice to know that lots of different people can enjoy these museums. Poor people aren't excluded because these places are so expensive. Try taking a family of 4 to a museum--- that can be pricey, especially if you don't have a lot of money. It's a great place for kids, to gain an appreciation for the earth and things of beauty. It's just nice...
Of course, there are a lot of things in Europe you have to pay for. For example, at Buckingham Palace, the Queen often has her private galleries open. We saw an exhibit for Albert and Victoria (if you don't know their story, you should read about it, interesting), which was cheap as shit. Around $12-$15. We also went into the Royal Stables where all the horses are kept, and also, those pimped out horse drawn carriages for coronations, births, deaths, marriages, and shit like that. The big ass gold one is crazy. This exhibit was also pretty inexpensive about the same as Albert and Victoria. The Tower Of London, around $25-- and you got to see all the Crown Jewels. Some of the towers are from the 1400s--- all the history. God, I find all that stuff absolutely fascinating. Uhhh hell yeah I'll shell out a few bucks for that.
Ok, so here's where my point comes in. Really. I have never been to Alcatraz. Are you fucking kidding me? I've lived in the Bay Area for 33 years and I've never been. I've been wanting to go forever. So, recently, I was checking times, etc. They have night tours. I thought that would be super cool, maybe a little creepy since it's supposed to be haunted. $35. Yep. $35. Honestly, a place so popular, and presumably owned by the state you think it could be a little more reasonable. Again a family of 4? Shit, you're looking at over $100 to visit a historical landmark in the state in which we live. A lot of people will miss out simply because they can't afford to go. What a shame. They probably make a shitload of money selling those fucking dumb t-shirts, "I escaped from Alcatraz".
Another example, The Winchester Mystery House. I know for a fact that the City of San Jose owns that shit. It is sooooo pricey. It's about $35 for the tour, which is like an hour. Please. If you want to do the extended tour, which includes going down into the basement (wearing a hard hat, thank you very much) and extends the tour by a half an hour is like $40. Really? The last time I went a few years ago the tour guide was a 17 year old pimply faced kid. He spoke too fast and was a fucking terrible tour guide. Jesus Christ. He totally looked like Alfred E. Newman (you know from Mad Magazine). I'm telling you, he was his son. Seriously. Anyways, I digress. So, it's the same fucking tour every time. Do you think they ever switch shit up? Hell no. Don't get me wrong, it's some interesting shit...that lady was crazy... but worth $35? Ummm no. I get that it takes a ton of money to run that place- to pay the employees, for maintenance, etc., but shouldn't the city/state help kick down? It is a California Historical Landmark. Shouldn't the state subsidize it?
Ok, so I do have an example of something cheap that's pretty cool, and after I tell you, I'm taking my ass to bed.
Not too far from where I live there is a Mission. Every California kid has to learn about the mission system. Junipero Serra? Native Americans being forced and beaten into Christianity? PP, you may have to ask Bob about this one. I'm sure in Massachusetts, you learn about the pilgrims, Salem Witch Trials and shit that happened in your state. Anyways, in Fremont we have a mission. It's pretty cool. It was built in the late 1700s, and for here, that's gd ancient. It's still a church, which is totally creepy inside and it has a little museum with artifacts, and a creepy old graveyard- which you know I love. So, all of this for the bargain price of $10. Not too bad. I think all the people who work there are volunteers. It's nice and a pretty cool place to visit.
So, most of the shit costs a ton of money. How can our kids learn to appreciate and respect our history when it's so expensive you can't go? It costs a lot of money to live here- almost 10% state sales tax. Why can't any of this money go to the preservation of our history and culture? Make it inexpensive so everyone can enjoy. I don't know, I really think we could learn from places like England.
Ok, I'm done now. :)
I think Europe in general has a better appreciation for their history, which includes monuments/architecture and works of art- sculpture, paintings, etc. Of course their history spans hundreds and hundreds of years, while ours is still relatively new, especially here on the west coast.
I don't know...it seems like in California there is high demand for everything to be new. Let's tear down the old buildings and put up nice, pretty, sterile ones instead. I know a lot of historical buildings were destroyed during the 1906 earthquake. However, a lot of old buildings are crumbling into the ground due to neglect and seemingly no one cares--- well that, and there's no funding from the state to fix them. Restoration. What's that?
In London, and Europe in general, they are less likely to demolish buildings, they restore them. Many of the old buildings are restored to their original state-- which means that they don't typically include elevators for physically disabled people. We stayed in a hotel with no elevator-- we had to lug our god damn shit up 2 flights of narrow ass stairs. Huffing and puffing the whole way. If you are either physically unfit, old, or disabled, your ass better stay in a newer hotel, or on the bottom floor. No air conditioning. Weird furnace heater things. Old plumbing.
So, I do have a point. All of the museums in Britain are free because they are government agencies. They take pride in all of the amazing art pieces they've collected over the years of British conquests. For hundreds of years, they've truly known the value of these works of art- monetarily, socially, and historically. Those bitches were everywhere- and they collected (or stole) thousands upon thousands of pieces of priceless art . The British Museum is one of the most breath taking places I've ever been-- sooo beautiful, I can't even describe how it made me feel. My chest was tight and I held back tears simply because it was that amazing. Speechless. The marble statues from Italy and Greece, so graceful and fluid and smooth. Like you are looking into their soul, through their life-like eyes. The paintings that have survived for so long. Being in the presence of things that are so old and beautiful is humbling and something I will never forget. The ancient Egyptians, all the artifacts- the mummies. It brings tears to my eyes as I write this. Did I mention that this museum is free? Yep it was. They did take donations, but it wasn't required to enter. AMAZING.
The British Museum of Natural History was also free (except the ocean exhibit was extra). They have fossils-- tons of fossils... everything you could think of. A HUGE collection of dinosaurs. A cool section about ecology...how everything is connected in the world and how symbiotic relationships are necessary for the survival of every living thing on the planet. How we are destroying our planet with waste. So much to see. The planets, insects, every species of bird. It was cool (not as cool as the British Museum, but still awesome). This shit was free too. FREE.
We also went to a weird medical museum. It was at some college for surgeons--- I can't remember exactly what it's called. It was basically a museum of weird shit. Medical oddities, skeletons of people with various medical conditions, specimens of different species of animals, human fetus, old medical equipment. Just weirdness in general. My kind of place. I will admit though, it was kinda creepy. FREE.
It's nice to know that lots of different people can enjoy these museums. Poor people aren't excluded because these places are so expensive. Try taking a family of 4 to a museum--- that can be pricey, especially if you don't have a lot of money. It's a great place for kids, to gain an appreciation for the earth and things of beauty. It's just nice...
Of course, there are a lot of things in Europe you have to pay for. For example, at Buckingham Palace, the Queen often has her private galleries open. We saw an exhibit for Albert and Victoria (if you don't know their story, you should read about it, interesting), which was cheap as shit. Around $12-$15. We also went into the Royal Stables where all the horses are kept, and also, those pimped out horse drawn carriages for coronations, births, deaths, marriages, and shit like that. The big ass gold one is crazy. This exhibit was also pretty inexpensive about the same as Albert and Victoria. The Tower Of London, around $25-- and you got to see all the Crown Jewels. Some of the towers are from the 1400s--- all the history. God, I find all that stuff absolutely fascinating. Uhhh hell yeah I'll shell out a few bucks for that.
Ok, so here's where my point comes in. Really. I have never been to Alcatraz. Are you fucking kidding me? I've lived in the Bay Area for 33 years and I've never been. I've been wanting to go forever. So, recently, I was checking times, etc. They have night tours. I thought that would be super cool, maybe a little creepy since it's supposed to be haunted. $35. Yep. $35. Honestly, a place so popular, and presumably owned by the state you think it could be a little more reasonable. Again a family of 4? Shit, you're looking at over $100 to visit a historical landmark in the state in which we live. A lot of people will miss out simply because they can't afford to go. What a shame. They probably make a shitload of money selling those fucking dumb t-shirts, "I escaped from Alcatraz".
Another example, The Winchester Mystery House. I know for a fact that the City of San Jose owns that shit. It is sooooo pricey. It's about $35 for the tour, which is like an hour. Please. If you want to do the extended tour, which includes going down into the basement (wearing a hard hat, thank you very much) and extends the tour by a half an hour is like $40. Really? The last time I went a few years ago the tour guide was a 17 year old pimply faced kid. He spoke too fast and was a fucking terrible tour guide. Jesus Christ. He totally looked like Alfred E. Newman (you know from Mad Magazine). I'm telling you, he was his son. Seriously. Anyways, I digress. So, it's the same fucking tour every time. Do you think they ever switch shit up? Hell no. Don't get me wrong, it's some interesting shit...that lady was crazy... but worth $35? Ummm no. I get that it takes a ton of money to run that place- to pay the employees, for maintenance, etc., but shouldn't the city/state help kick down? It is a California Historical Landmark. Shouldn't the state subsidize it?
Ok, so I do have an example of something cheap that's pretty cool, and after I tell you, I'm taking my ass to bed.
Not too far from where I live there is a Mission. Every California kid has to learn about the mission system. Junipero Serra? Native Americans being forced and beaten into Christianity? PP, you may have to ask Bob about this one. I'm sure in Massachusetts, you learn about the pilgrims, Salem Witch Trials and shit that happened in your state. Anyways, in Fremont we have a mission. It's pretty cool. It was built in the late 1700s, and for here, that's gd ancient. It's still a church, which is totally creepy inside and it has a little museum with artifacts, and a creepy old graveyard- which you know I love. So, all of this for the bargain price of $10. Not too bad. I think all the people who work there are volunteers. It's nice and a pretty cool place to visit.
So, most of the shit costs a ton of money. How can our kids learn to appreciate and respect our history when it's so expensive you can't go? It costs a lot of money to live here- almost 10% state sales tax. Why can't any of this money go to the preservation of our history and culture? Make it inexpensive so everyone can enjoy. I don't know, I really think we could learn from places like England.
Ok, I'm done now. :)
I love Facebook. I think it's a fabulous way to keep in contact with people (ahem, PP). But to what extent? Who should these "people" include? People in high school that I barely talked to? People I work with whom I never do anything with outside of work? Casual acquaintances? Someone you met in a bar?
I think friends on Facebook should be people you have an actual relationship with. Someone who knows you- but REALLY knows you on an intimate basis. They know what makes you cry and what makes you laugh. People whom you have shared special moments with. People whom you want to be in your life forever because they make it special. People whom I can't live without because they mean so much to me.
I occasionally get random friend requests from random ass people. Mostly people I went to high school with. Let me reiterate that in high school I barely uttered 2 words. Some of these people I don't remember talking to at all. I have a few theories as to why this is... first, they are god damn nosy-- they want to see what you look like, how fat you've gotten, who you married, what you do, etc., the other theory is... they are Facebook friend whores. It makes them feel good to have 60000 friends because in their mind it makes them "popular". I have news for you: a. I'm not married b. I don't have kids c. I don't have any bikini-clad pictures and none with my boobs hanging out (not that I have any to hang out). Basically nothing to incriminate myself. Hope you aren't disappointed you god damn nosy ass bitches.
I feel somewhat hindered on Facebook. I don't know... I guess I can't really be me. Why do I always cater to everyone else? Why do I care? God, I'm so lame sometimes. I guess I'm afraid that if I post "eat shit and die" people might not understand my humor and think I really mean it. Like on this blog, I can talk about whatever I want and not feel weird or judged. And I have 2 followers- my cousin and PP. Neither of them would ever judge me and I can be free to talk about whatever I want. Whatever I want. I can tell them both to eat shit and die and they'll just think it's funny. They just get me.
And I bet 95% on Facebook don't give a shit about me either way. They don't care if I post a super cute picture of Phoenix, or if Shelby just had surgery. You know what I mean? The people on your Facebook should care about what you have to say. If they don't, they shouldn't ask to be my friend.
The politics of Facebook is just weird. What brought this up you ask? Someone from work asked me to be their friend. I'm her boss and I didn't really think she cared for me all that much anyways. Almost everyone at work is on my Facebook. I have a business relationship with most of the people. I have a couple of good friends, but the rest???? No. All I can say is you'd better not call in sick and post on Facebook that you had a great day at the beach.
P.S. Farmville, Frontierland, Fish Tank, Cafe World, and whatever the fuck else there is can all EAT SHIT AND DIE. I hate looking at those posts.
I think friends on Facebook should be people you have an actual relationship with. Someone who knows you- but REALLY knows you on an intimate basis. They know what makes you cry and what makes you laugh. People whom you have shared special moments with. People whom you want to be in your life forever because they make it special. People whom I can't live without because they mean so much to me.
I occasionally get random friend requests from random ass people. Mostly people I went to high school with. Let me reiterate that in high school I barely uttered 2 words. Some of these people I don't remember talking to at all. I have a few theories as to why this is... first, they are god damn nosy-- they want to see what you look like, how fat you've gotten, who you married, what you do, etc., the other theory is... they are Facebook friend whores. It makes them feel good to have 60000 friends because in their mind it makes them "popular". I have news for you: a. I'm not married b. I don't have kids c. I don't have any bikini-clad pictures and none with my boobs hanging out (not that I have any to hang out). Basically nothing to incriminate myself. Hope you aren't disappointed you god damn nosy ass bitches.
I feel somewhat hindered on Facebook. I don't know... I guess I can't really be me. Why do I always cater to everyone else? Why do I care? God, I'm so lame sometimes. I guess I'm afraid that if I post "eat shit and die" people might not understand my humor and think I really mean it. Like on this blog, I can talk about whatever I want and not feel weird or judged. And I have 2 followers- my cousin and PP. Neither of them would ever judge me and I can be free to talk about whatever I want. Whatever I want. I can tell them both to eat shit and die and they'll just think it's funny. They just get me.
And I bet 95% on Facebook don't give a shit about me either way. They don't care if I post a super cute picture of Phoenix, or if Shelby just had surgery. You know what I mean? The people on your Facebook should care about what you have to say. If they don't, they shouldn't ask to be my friend.
The politics of Facebook is just weird. What brought this up you ask? Someone from work asked me to be their friend. I'm her boss and I didn't really think she cared for me all that much anyways. Almost everyone at work is on my Facebook. I have a business relationship with most of the people. I have a couple of good friends, but the rest???? No. All I can say is you'd better not call in sick and post on Facebook that you had a great day at the beach.
P.S. Farmville, Frontierland, Fish Tank, Cafe World, and whatever the fuck else there is can all EAT SHIT AND DIE. I hate looking at those posts.
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