I've decided to shut down my Facebook profile for a while, and I've decided to stop blogging too.

I'm tired of putting out negative energy in all of my public forums... so I'm doing my best to remove the temptation.
Thanks for reading.

So I went to Comic-Con in San Diego.

AMAZING.

As my friend Brittney put it, "Just you, and 126 THOUSAND of your closest friends."

We lined up for EVERYTHING (including crossing the street) but it was worth it.  I had fun.  There wasn't a time where I just wanted to go home. Yes there were moments where I was frustrated--sometimes you just want to go and see a panel and not have to plan to be there two hours beforehand, you know?--but I kept having other moments where I was just so happy to be there and so happy to be enjoying being present and in the moment.

Though I'm still kinda choked I didn't see Sam Rockwell wandering around anywhere.  Oh, Sam.  You were so good in Moon.  I would love to show you my "appreciation"... alas, you were nowhere to be found.  Probably because you were avoiding creepy fangirls like me who wanted to show you their "appreciation."

Brittney was great, too.  She is a great travel partner.  We were very respectful of each others' space and wants out of the vacation without being eggshelly about it.  And she didn't indulge my "I'm upset but let's just pretend I'm not because I may have to say something that could upset someone" bullshit.

She was really good about reminding me who the vacation was for (me), and not letting me make it about other people who weren't there... even though at times it was very, very difficult, even to the point of tears.  I felt like an addict who was being forced to pour their liquor down the drain or to throw away their works.

In a lot of ways, it's very much going outside my comfort zone, being consciously selfish.  I'm forced to make decisions that my not please everyone.  I'm realizing as much as I put myself out there as "wacky" and marching to my own drummer, almost everything I do is to please other people, almost every thought swirls around how other people feel.  I simply don't know how to ask for what I want in a straightforward, unashamed way.  Man, that's a depressing to realize at age 27!

Brit told me on the flight back I'm the first person she's travelled with that she's not hated by the time she went home.  So, total yay!  We're already talking about next year!

She's got all the pics on her camera, so I'll have to wait to link to them, but believe me, there's A LOT of them.

I'll sit down and do a proper recap of the Con a bit later.  For now, bedtime!

A bus ride with a friend and Monte's post about brevity being hard (re: Twitter) has inspired me!

A (very) short story:

So I had a problem in my directing class... and now it's fixed!

I am SO excited to work on my project now.  Cara (my partner) is teh shitz0rz.  In a totally awesome way, in case you're unfamiliar with the term I just made up.

Also... Electra opens tonight.

I keep wavering between freaking out at how awesome it's going to be and freaking out because I wonder if I'm deluding myself and that it's just a big, wanky, soapy mess.

It's prolly just awesome, but I can't help getting the "I-suckies."  It's like, an unwritten rule for me that it has to happen NO MATTER HOW ROCKIN' EVERYTHING IS.

On my way to have lunch with my cast WHOM I LOVE OH AND RY-GUY'S coming too!!!

Totally PMSy today.  I LOVE MOST OF YOU. 

Okay ALL OF YOU.

Cheers!

Omigod.

THIS would be SO MUCH FUN.

I'd be really good at it too.

My apologies for the redundancy for those who have already heard this rant.

So the drug dealer who lives in my building?

Apparently he has a few friends living with him.

FIVE to be exact.

That's (according to the cops) SIX people in total and EIGHT cats living in a one-bedroom apartment.

IT'S A FULLY FUNCTIONING DRUG HOUSE.

It's like that scene in Return of the Jedi when the Deathstar wipes out a Rebel ship.

"That thing's operational!"

Balls.

Oh?  And while the cops were there?  They found IN THE UNIT a bunch of stolen mail from last month.  (None of it mine.)

human_loser was greeted this morning to the sight of one of the writhing sacks of douchewater hotwiring our front door to get into the building. 
They've put a hole the wall that's just been patched to do so.

Charming.

Ry-Guy called the cops who told him that unless he was in the act... they couldn't really do anything... which bothers me, because he essentially BROKE IN to my home and was still INSIDE when Ryan called... that would be like someone saying "Oh someone broke into a house across the street." and the cops asking "Are they in the process of breaking in?" and the person saying "No, but they're still inside" and the cops saying "Well, there's nothing we can do."

I know I'm oversimplifying... my illogic makes me feel better.  Let me have it.

Apparently the shitfucks have until noon tomorrow to get the rent paid or they're out.  But who knows how long that will take.  At least until after the weekend.

And if they pay?  If they break into enough laundry machines and scrounge up enough change?  They get until the end of the month to cut their hair in the laundry room and destroy the locks on all the doors!  THEN they'll move out.  After they've maximized the damage to what is partly MY PROPERTY just to stick it to us uptight squares.

I want them OUT.  I want them escorted OFF MY PROPERTY IN HANDCUFFS.

• guests at all hours of the night
• paper being stuck into our expensive abloy locks to make the doors not close properly
• garbage all over the common areas
• the washing machines being vandalized in an attempt to pillage their change slots
• cigarette smoke in the common areas
• the laundry room garbage can being removed...  BECAUSE...
• someone had been using it as their own personal dumpster
• a near-fight in my parking lot
• RANDOM PEOPLE PARKING IN MY SPOT

I'm not sure if this has anything to do with the vandalism, but on Monday morning I was woken by the soothing sounds of water... dripping... from my ceiling... onto human_loser's laundry hampers and our bedroom carpet.  This water had made it's merry way down to my ground-floor unit from the THIRD floor laundry room.  Yeah.  A washing machine had vomited water all over the floor and it had seeped down through the walls just so it could bid me a good morning!

Mother.  Fuck.

I spoke to the people who clean our building.  They say they've noticed a real change.  So have I.  I used to feel safe about leaving my door unlocked to check my mail or to take out the garbage.  Closed but locked.  Not anymore.  Even if I DID trust the residents of 3-0-X (I DO NOT), I really REALLY don't trust their many "guests."

Apparently they were supposed to be evicted by Dec. 27, but it seems their landlady's extended it until the end of January because they couldn't find a place to stay.

I should feel bad about that... but this is MY HOME.  I don't treat my home like a garbage dump.  Why should I allow someone who DOES to stay and continue to do so?

...here's a shiny happy musical!

</div>

A politician who is willing to stand up for what's RIGHT!

He even mentions Alberta!

01. Name a movie that you have seen more than 10 times (not counting the ones you watched when you were little).
Kung Fu Hustle, Wayne's World, Army of Darkness, The Princess Bride, The Matrix,  many more.

02. Name a movie that you've seen multiple times in a theater.
The Matrix

03. Name an actor who would make you more inclined to see a movie.
Gary Oldman

04. Name an actor who would make you less likely to see a movie.
James Caan.  Dunno why.  Just don't like him.

05. Name a movie that you can quote from.
Oh my god.  Too many.  Ryan can attest.  Army of Darkness.  Mystery Men.   Any Monty Python movie.  Etc.

06. Name a movie musical that you know all the lyrics to all the songs.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch

07. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with.
Rocky Horror Picture Show (and dance!)

08. Name a movie that you would recommend everyone see.
Battle Royale.  Cheezy/Awesome Japanese horror movie about a bunch of 14 year olds who are forced to kill each other.

09. Name a movie that you own.
Uh... lots?

10. Name an actor that launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops.
Mos Def.  He's great!

11. Have you ever seen a movie in a drive-in?
Yes.  Sadly, it was Congo.  Yes.  The movie about those evil gorillas.

12. Ever made out in a movie?
Nope.  Ryan always wants to WATCH the movie.

13. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven't gotten around to it.
Rashomon.  I've rented it.  TWICE.

14. Ever walked out of a movie?
Tremors... but that was because I was a little kid and scared.

15. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater.
Tons tons tons.  One I remember was Saving Private Ryan.  Not so much the end... but the opening D-Day sequence... I was bawling my eyes out.

16. Popcorn?
Nope.  Gets stuck in my retainer.

17. How often do you go to the movies?
Not as often as I'd like.

18. What's the last movie you saw in the theater?
Holy crap I can't remember... was it The Dark Knight?

19. What is your favourite/preferred genre of movie?
I think I like smart action/suspense movies the best.  After that, quirky comedies.

20. What was the first movie you remember seeing in the theater?
I think I remember seeing Pee Wee's Big Adventure!

21. What movie do you wish you had never seen?
John Carpenter's Vampires .  Not even James Woods punching a priest in the face could make me enjoy that movie.

22. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed?
Funky Forest hands down, bar none.

23. What is the scariest movie you've ever seen?
The Ring.

24. What is the funniest movie you've ever seen?
Probably the first time I watched Monty Python's Holy Grail.  I just remember pissing my pants every five minutes.  And also laughing.

Thought bonemot would like this:

Ugh... like the subject line sez...

I am SO TIRED.

I woke up, did some reading, then I fell back asleep on the couch for a couple of hours... now I feel all... gross.

And I still have another handout to prepare for tomorrow.  Yuck.  We're presenting on Intertextuality and Adapatation.  Something I'm interested in at least, but still...

I wanted to take a look at the original text of Emma and compare that with a scene from Clueless, but I just don't know if I have time to go slogging through the book looking for a scene that is obviously transplanted into the movie.  Also I don't want to waste too much time.  I think I may instead come in with "STREETCAR!", the musical version of Streetcar Named Desire that Marge stars in on the Simpsons.  I think it'll be shorter and sweeter as everyone in the room would have read the original for school anyway.

God... I miss doing Desire Caught by the Tail.  For people who don't know, it's the reason I have the HUGE ass in those pictures on Facebook.  It was such a fun show.  Yesterday I couldn't sleep and ended up watching Funky Forest.

Hey Jesse, Audra... Remember the weird clip we watched?  With the Mole Brothers and "After School Club"?  OH.  MY.  GOD.  SUCH a mindfuck.  I loved it.  It's in my top 10 favourite movies now.  At least this week.  THAT'S how you do surrealism.  SO GOOD.  I must own it.  Just to show to people!  My favourite segments are "Home Room."

I've got a total boner for Tadanobu Asano.  So.  Hot.  And does WEEEEIRD films!  I first got hot and bothered for him when I was watching Survive Style 5+ at Animethon two years ago.  But honestly, I think it's more how weird the movies he does are than anything else.  TALENT CRUSH!

1.    More Adventurous - Rilo Kiley
2.    Hounds of Love - Kate Bush
3.    The Dreaming  - Kate Bush (I like her what can I say?)
4.    Mule Variations - Tom Waits
5.    American IV: The Man Comes Around - Johnny Cash
6.    Graceland - Paul Simon
7.    You Were Here - Sarah Harmer
8.    Funeral - Arcade Fire (I first listened to this in the bathtub... PERFECT.)
9.    Boys for Pele - Tori Amos
10.  Exile in Guyville - Liz Phair

Congrats to all my 'merican internet pals!

My favourite image that bonemot  (I think) drudged up:



I ran around our rehearsal hall doling out high fives.

However... some bad news is always mixed in with the good:

Prop 8 passed. Well fuck.

Some excerpts:

Proposition Eight, which would eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry in California, was losing -- 53 percent to 47 percent according to the polling. If it were to pass, it would undo a state Supreme Court ruling in May legalizing same-sex unions. (...)

The measure passed by 56 percent in a reversal of direction from 2006, when a similar measure on the ballot failed.

Here's another gem:

Fifty-seven percent of voters in Arkansas supported a measure to prohibit unmarried sexual partners from adopting children or from serving as foster parents. The measure specifies that the prohibition applies to both opposite-sex as well as same-sex couples.

Awww! See? They're not discriminating! All gays (and straights) have to do to adopt or foster some kids is get married and...
Oh. Yeah. Fuck.
Though I shouldn't criticize. GOD knows, being married automatically makes you the best candidate for being a foster parent. And GOD knows that there's a plethora of people willing to take in traumatized children. And GOD knows that child welfare agencies can AFFORD to turn away people willing to help. Wow, Arkansas. You're getting classier every fucking year.

Here's something that seems oddly worded to me:

Nebraska voters approved a measure to prohibit state governments from discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to people based on race, ethnicity, color, sex or national origin. Results on a similar measure in Colorado have not been announced.

haven't read anything else about this yet, and maybe I'm just a cynic... but why do I get the feeling the latter half will get emphasis in court and enforcement?

Here's one to keep an eye on:

Results are still pending for California's Proposition 4, which requires physicians to provide parental notification to guardians of minors at least 48 hours before performing an abortion.

Boo on that nonsense!

But not all is bad news:

Voters in Colorado rejected a measure defining a person to "include any human being from the moment of fertilization," which would have applied to sections of the Colorado Constitution that protect "natural and essential rights of persons."

Michigan chose to become the 13th state to legalize marijuana for medical purposes by a 64 percent margin. Massachusetts also had a proposed initiative to decriminalize penalties for possession of less than an ounce of marijuana.

Voters in Michigan also chose to amend the state constitution to permit human embryonic stem cell research with certain restrictions. The embryos, which must have been created for fertility treatment purposes, would have to have been discarded otherwise, and they may not be used more than 14 days after cell division has begun.

South Dakota rejected a proposal to prohibit abortions except in cases of rape or incest or where the mother's life or health is at risk. A similar measure that did not include exceptions for rape or the health of the mother was on the ballot in 2006, but voters rejected it 44 to 56 percent.

And here's one that's REALLY surprising to me:

In Washington, 58 percent of voters supported a citizen initiative to allow adults with six months or less to live to request lethal medication prescribed by a physician. A physician is not required to comply, but anyone participating "in good faith" with the request would not risk criminal prosecution.

What the Hell? Assisted SUICIDE? That's so... so... progressive!

Are there fewer Gawd-crazed fundies stateside than Fox News would have us believe?

Are there actually... *shudder* HUMANISTS living there?  Hidden among the Men of Faith™ like Odysseus and his crew among the sheep?

Hmm... if I were to take that metaphor further... who would the Cyclops be?

Suggestions?

From venalanatomica:  Copy and paste the first definition on Urban Dictionary for:

1. your name

Morgan


2. your age

26

(I liked the definition of 28 better...)

3. a friend (I did the friends I saw tonight:)

Jago

Stanley
5. favorite color

purple


6. home town

Edmonton
The capital city of Alberta, Canada
Roughly one million people
It is properly known as the City of Champions because of the five time Stanley Cup champions Edmonton Oilers. and the 11 time Grey Cup Champions Edmonton Eskimos (most in CFL)
Way better than Calgary

7. month you were born

February
"Damn I hate February"


8. last person you talked to

Ryan


9. your nickname

Morgasm

Morgs, Morgoid, Morgie and Morgoid had not been defined yet.

What is it about me and getting sick before a wedding?

I have a freakin' ASS-AWFUL headcold that hasn't shown any indication of getting better.  I thought I was starting to feel better last night, but I ended up waking up at 4:30am with a head full of concrete and in a bad mood.

I am officially not allowed to go to my Grandpa's 94th birthday party because I might make him sick.

On the plus side, I have been playing Neverwinter Nights, catching up on some Psychology AND Drama reading, AND I discovered this cute yet terrifying video:


HOGAWD SO ADORABLE.

OH and also?  We FINALLY got our washer/dryer installed and working!!!  I'm drying my jeans right now.

Hello YAY!

I am so late to the game but one of my favourite comic strips has become my new favourite internet thing!

Ladies and gentlemen, check out Get Your War On.

</div></div>Also reccomended: "The Race Card" and "Sarah Palin and the Rape Kits".

...I just need to remember the heartwarming story of Molly the Cow.

Stolen from shannonmariah .  I see what she means about it getting sad when you don't intend it to.

Where I'm from:

I am from  a notebook,
 
from  D.C. and  Marvel.
 
I am from the house with the cedars and the sloping driveway. Big, white,  the sounds of the ravine and the freeway.
 
I am from the poplar trees, dandelions, waxwings, the grass, strawberries, the tree swing.  The dirty pig bone dug out of the ravine.
 
I’m from ignoring grandma at the dinner table and fierce intelligence,
 
from Patrick and Phyllis.
 
I’m from walking on eggshells and wordless apologies,
 
From "Space is bigger than anything you can imagine" and "You're just a little red haired girl."
 
I’m from second-generation atheism and open disdain for religion.  From "The Pope is a shit-ass!"
 
I’m from England, Ireland, Scotland and Poland.
 
From grandpa's meatloaf and mom's spaghetti and dad's potato pancakes.
   
From the boy who climbed the high level bridge by the bolts and dug a 6 foot deep trench in the back yard after nearly dying from kidney failure.  From the girl who broke her nose in a softball game and graduated from Harvard.
 
The brother scratched by the black cat and treated cruelly by our father.  The sister who seems so tough and usually is; tougher and stronger than I'll ever be.
 
Photos in the boxes in the basement, all neatly ordered by year and month.  Stretching back sixty years to the abrupt stop at 2006.  From more boxes, neatly organized by year of schooling.  Newspaper clippings in plastic envelopes.  From afghans on the beds... one falling apart and tied together as carefully as a twelve year old could manage.  From a child's artwork framed and hung all throughout the house.  Mattes carefully chosen to complement the colours in the paintings.  From hundreds of drawings kept in an envelope marked "DO NOT FOLD" in neat capital letters that got less neat as he got more sick.  From plastic tubs (one of which is now a cat bed) that once held our toys, meticulously organized.  From the photos on the wall and the last gift he truly appreciated from us, his children... a photo of all three in a silver frame. From a house that used to be so empty but is now filling up with things my mother likes and my father never would have, but still feels emptier sometimes.  From all the little things he'd do for me and that my mother still does.  From all that but mostly from Patrick and Phyllis and Michael and Meredith and Ryan.

( You can do one too. )

I seem to have lost my gaming box.  THE gaming box. 

With all the dice argent_bear  gave me (my first set ever - hello sentimental value). 
And ALL but ONE of my RPG character sheets.

Balls.

I was just saying the other day how perfect it was for gaming... it had a little slot for sheets and it fit a pencil perfectly...

I swear to god, I nearly cried.

I really hope I find them.  Two of the characters I'd probably have ended up re-rolling anyway...  But my favourite character EVER, Spotted Hide from Deadlands, was in there.  Not to mention my newest addition, Aster the part-black-dragon chaotic neutral sorceress!  I re-did her today as best I could... but... *sigh.*

I'm so totally depressed now.  Not even the thought of my new washer and dryer being installed on Saturday can make me feel better.

And to top it all off, my next day off isn't for two weeks.  *Whiiiiinnnnnnnne.*