One the College tip...

Berkeley and UCLA bought the filthy lies that I sent them in my application. I was never all that into living in Southern Cali (no offense Lisa and Christina), but figured I should apply someplace else besides UCB. We shall see. I'm thinking of taking a year off to work for the educational non-profit that sponsors the youth poetry team that I'm on. I've been writing grants and running workshops as a youth mentor for them over the past year. Either way, the coming months are going to be amazing.

I'm listening to a track by Bahamadia off of her cd Kollage. Hmm...ironic? Awesome at any rate- She's by far one of the best female mcs out there. I've got a radio show tonight, and I'm definitely going to give her some play.

Five:

1. Livin' Again- Cee-Lo
2. Pete's Jazz- Pete Rock
3. Verses- John Cale
4. The Man Who Couldn't Cry- Johnny Cash
5. Dirt and Blood- Antibalas

How goes the college hunt?

Here's an idea lifted off the St. Louis TASP Blog. How about compiling the results of all the college-wooing that has been going on for the last few months (and which we should know the final results of by, well, this weekend)? We could eventually put down a finalized list of colleges (or prep school) we've decided to attend.

It'd probably be best to leave the list as comments to this post.

Good idea?

PICS!

Ok, so I was going through my Telluride photo folder today...And you know what that means!! I will be presenting the famed artistic pictures of you people. These are the ones that I'm most proud of because they're different and professional-looking. Hokay, anyways.. here ya go.

Musick more boldly

liveplasma.com.

That is all.

ups and downs

Today was a monumental day in my musicking life: I got to play a concerto with an orchestra accompaning me in front of an actual audience. And not just any concerto, the Mozart bassoon concerto, the most (okay, the only) famous bassoon concerto. It was crazy though because I had a forensics district tournament right before and had to run about with my shirt untucked and my reed hanging out of my mouth, but it went really well in the end.

Unfortunately, I got some bad news today. Georgetown doesn't want me and I got wait listed at Carleton. I geuss I'm okay with it. I've been leaning away from both of them for a couple of months now, and I'm sure that the people who got in were wonderfully qualified and hopefully more enthusiastic than me. Still, it would have been nice.

I'm in a dire situation! I have a project proposal due for honors World Lit. on Thursday and I don't have any ideas!! It's the most open-ended thing in the universe; it just has to relate to post-colonial literary theory. Anyone heard of Edward Said? He's totally awsome and also happens to be a very influential post-colonialist. So, if anyone has any ideas whatsoever, I would forever be indebted. My mind is completely blank! Gaaar!

~Emma

P.S. Go watch Howl's Moving Castle right now. Do it!

The Great TASP selection

[EDIT]As per Adam's suggestion, this post goes down, as it is private information on a public forum. I sent a forwarded copy to the taspers05 yahoogroup, so you should find it in your e-mails. He also sent me some corrections, so those are added too. I think most every regular blogger has read this already anyway, so you can check out the hard copy in your mail.[/EDIT]

Europe

So, I was thinking about it the other day, I'm gonna be in Europe for most of the summer. After checking out a couple soccer games in Germany for the World Cup, I'm gonna head down to Spain to meet up with my girlfriend. From there we're going to go all over Western Europe, possibly England. But anyways, I remember talking about European visits during TASP, who else will be there? We should meet up! It will be such an exciting time in Europe, especially with the World Cup going on during that time. Welp, let me know..

herb

Hey all,

It's officially 36 hours until I board the plane for France. Let the countdown begin.

I'm currently listening to "Blue". remember that song? it was all the rage when we were in 5th grade. It's an awful song. he's Blue! daba dee daba die daba dee daba die! really brings back some quality memories--like watching three of my friends (all male) dress up as britney complete with stuffed sports bras and sing "hit me one more time" for the class lip sync contest. What wonderful years. Oop. "get low" just came on. Not sure I want to think about what a lip sync of that one would look like. To the window...to the wall! Till... Yep, won't be finishing that lyric.

Managed to get through the musical without strangling anyone. Went out with some friends afterward and thoroughly gave our opinion of the acting cast. It was a fun night.

Emma- I definitely approve of your art project--even if I have nothing to do with it. On a related note, I just discovered that my computer came with a program for designing stick on CD lables. I've been experimenting with old TASP photos. So far the most awesome is the one with me, Henrik, Jason and Les on formal pizza dinner night. Now I just have to find some songs to fit it.

anyway, not (what the hell? the chiquita banana song just came on. this is a weird disc) much point to this post except to check in before I take off.

A quick admonishment: What the hell is with us producing a grand total of two posts this week? surely we can do better than that. I'll see if I can contribute sometime this week from a library.

And....to close off the post I have the strongbad song from teen girl squad. all in all a quality mix.

miss you all

bern

p.s. wish me luck, rumor has it that there is a general strike scheduled in france next week.

Hey, is it okay with Jason, Meri and Sophie if I turn this picture:


into a linoleum print for an art project? *smiles hopefully*

Early College Good News

I've had some good news since the start of this spring break. About a week ago, I got home and found a large envelope from Williams College. Inside was an early notification letter telling me that I had been accepted! A day or two later came a handwritten (!!) note from Swarthmore's XC and Track coach, telling me how much he'd like to have me on the team. Last Thursday came the clincher: an early notification acceptance from Swarthmore! I'm pretty psyched right now. I also am facing the prospect of missing a week of school. Monday, April 17 is Patriots' Day, so I have the day off. Tuesday and Wednesday are "Bulldog Days" at Yale. Thursday and Friday are "Ride the Tide" at Swarthmore.

I'm pretty pumped about getting to pick. Any thoughts?

trophies, scissors, and that lever thing on the left that pops the hood.

Woohoo for the recent slew of college acceptance! MIT is getting its TASP on, and I'm sure that it won't be disappointed if you guys choose to attend.

So, this weekend, I won my first forensics tournament of my life. It was fun, and I hope I've got a chance at winning state this year. A friend of mine went to a tournament on the east side of the state yesterday and said the orators over there are tough though, so who knows. Are you judging this year Adam? I think the real reason I won is because of my stellar new hair cut--I just couldn't grow it out. Unfortunately, I have not yet documented this exciting new development in my life with pictures, sorry Samyu.

In the not-so-stellar realms of my existence, however, is a very annoying car. It's been starting slowly for a while and today, when I was already late for a rehearsal, it died. And even though I'm ordinarily a wonderfully attentive driver, last Thursday I hit a curb in my school parking lot and whacked up a tire. Never again will I so absorbedly eat carrots while I drive. Ah well, at least I learned how to use jumper cables, and for no extra charge my dad showed me how check my oil, too. Next lesson: how to change a tire.

I'm taking my first art class since junior high this semester, and my perspective drawing is due tomorrow, so I better get back to it. It's so much fun being a mediocre artist! No pressure at all, and I'm making lots of freshmen friends because its an intro class. Hooray!
~Emma

More College News

So I got a likely letter from Cornell yesterday... woohoo!

And at around 11:00AM -6GMT,

ADMITTANCE TO MIT!!!!!!!!!!!OMGOMGOMG!!!11!1!1!!

WOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!(Wu?) Ummm yeah, that was about the end of my day; I fainted of happiness and woke up right about now. So you MITians, we need to have a Cambridge reunion!

AIEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

/runs around wildly

MIT

I got in! Good stuff. But the thrill isn't quite as big as Caltech was yesterday - frankly, I would've been able to brush off a rejection pretty painlessly. My dad figures Caltech carefully times its acceptance letters so that they arrive right before MIT's, giving them a strong psychological advantage among students admitted to both. But I'm still excited!

*crosses fingers for Charles*

I can't get over how cool this is

In one of my wikipedia-ing sessions, I came across a proof of e^pi*i=-1 that we can all understand, and it just struck me as being so incredibly cool (i'm not one to use the word "beautiful" outside of music, but this came close) so I thought I'd share it with everyone.
I don't know why e^pi*i=-1, but it's been proven, so it's true. Does anyone get this at all?

Define the complex number z such that

(ignoring the modulus term, as this cancels later)

Differentiating z with respect to x:

Using the fact that i² = -1:

Separating variables and integrating both sides:

where

C is the constant of integration.

To finish the proof we have to argue that C is zero. This is easily done by substituting x = 0.

But z is just equal to:

thus

So now we just exponentiate

Q.E.D.

Hey there!

Sam and Henrik, I'm insanely happy for you! It looks like California could receive quite a few (more) UMich TASPers next year.

Ridley, your weekend sounds amazing, all these TASPish experiences sweetened with bubble tea. Can't wait to see more photos. By the way, isn't the date for your haircut-to-end-all-haircuts coming up sometime soon?

Bern, here's a BIG E-HUG from me. Hopefully things will be better soon.

Speaking of long-lost TASPers like Nestor -- Ridley do you still have contact with Sophie? And what happened to Emily and Lisa? Christina's also been disturbingly quiet. I also wonder whether Jenny reads this blog, or whether she's too busy preparing for this summer's batch of Cornellian TASPers (remember she'll be co-factoting there with one of the St. Louis factota from '05). Hmm...

Anyway, let me tell you a little something about my school. Every spring the Junior class gives several performances of what is optimistically called a cabaret, with each year coming up with a different theme. My year, it was the rather uninspired "Hollywood" night, but guess what it's going to be this year? Pirates.

I admit, it's probably going to be an awesome show, and so fiendishly easy to tailor the food, decor, and entertainment to match the theme as well. This is one of those very (very very) rare occasions when siding with ninjas would just be plain wrong. Can you imagine how boring and silent a ninja-themed show would be?

I have discovered that I like the Red Hot Chili Peppers (marvel at how behind-the-times I am) and Corinne Bailey Rae.

Jason

YAY!

I got into Caltech!

TASPers Unite!!!

There is a page for all AB Duke scholars finalists, and I... uh... well, you see... okay, I inadvertantly started a Pirate vs. Ninjas debate. One of the current scholars had a profile going on and on about pirates, so I had to retaliate in the name of TASP.

Charles- I cited your excellent mathemtical model, and don't worry I said"Charels Wu, a genius by all accounts, wrote this..." and also argued that:
"Now I used to be a pirate-guy, but I have since changed for a very simple reason. Pirates may have more in the 'coolness' column, but Ninjas have a mystique that can top that. Besides, pirates can't keep all of their limbs on their bodies, just imagine what a ninja could do to such a weak being. A pirate might have a sword, pistol, and parrot (presumably trained in aerial combat) but Ninjas can move so fast that they will be younger then when they started, and no clumsy pirate who is a veritble 17th century cyborg (note the wooden and metallic parts) could possibly survive such an attack."

I implore you to blog your most convincing pirate vs. ninja arguments, and TASP can take on these people!!!

TASPUM VICTOR!!!
svmvs invictvs

(I dunno, it seemed like a cool slogan)

So, I got in to Idyllwild and Northfield Mount Hermon. Looks like I'm 4 of 4 for applications, woohoo! Now I'm gonna have to decide between the two: Mountains of Southern Cali or Hillside of Rural Northern Mass? I think Cali will be where I'll end up, but we shall see.

Henrik

sick of biting my tongue

I warn any who choose to read on that the following is a rant.

I have to tell any of you who ever get the wonderful opportunity to be a part of a musical theatre production a word. Never, never, over my dead body, be anything less than appreciative of the musicians who perform in the pit orchestra. I am playing trumpet in such an orchestra right now and I am so pissed I cannot see straight. To begin with, we are not paid. There is no compensation for our work, and we have no incentive to be there except to help our friends who are onstage and the cookies that one of our fellow musicians (who in my opinion is an angel incarnate) bakes for rehearsals. Our names are squeezed into the bottom inch of the back page of the program and we receive 2 seconds of applause at the end of the show.

With that premise, let's move on to the music. I am given 3 run-through rehearsals in which to learn an entire 60 page book of music. This music was written by a vocalist rather than a musician. Consequently, not only is it written in some truly hellish keys (ever tried to play runs in the key of F# on a trumpet?) but it is also written with a range that would challenge dizzy gillespie. (nothin I love better than those triple high G's). I use a total of 5 different mutes and am not given the cuts until the 3rd rehearsal. In short, this is some tough shit.

As far as physical comfort goes--
I am squeezed into a tiny pit with 20 other musicians. I sit between the trombone player who occaisionally empties his spit on my foot, (not a big deal, I am a brass player too) the bassist who is insufferable due to his being a chronic joke-teller and the drumset player who, though she is very nice, has positioned her crash cymbal two inches from my ear.

Now--
All of this would be okay with me if it weren't for the fact that the cast and crew looks down on us as the scum of the earth that is intruding on their production. During the second rehearsal--the one that we get to solidify all the songs with soloists, they (the rest of the cast) lounge in the back of the room talking so that we can't hear the singer, much less the conductor. During the first dress, a major glitch ocurrs necessitating that we stop and figure out why the singer is now 31 bars ahead of us. When we stop, however, the snotty voice of the student director rings out from the back and proclaims "mr ----, this is a dress rehearsal. If you need to stop, you need to ask me first." His answer was to inquire "how I am supposed to ask you in the middle of a song?" My answer was to flip her off during intermission--a gesture she thankfully did not see as she had her head down at the time.

The next day, after all the cast has dragged themselves out of bed (the director excuses them for the first few periods--I still get to go to jazz at 6:50), I run into my best friend who also happens to be one of the leads. He calmly proceeds to inform me that the cast is really "ticked off" because the orchestra "sucks so much" It was all I could do to keep from decking the kid. Asshole.

Anyway, I'm sorry you all had to hear that, but I had to tell someone. Think of it the next time you get mad at someone you see as dragging you down. Sometimes that person will have just as hard a job to do for a lot less recognition.

Top five songs for when you are feeling melancholy (or just really pissed)

1)The gift--James Morrison
2)Grace is gone--Dave Matthews
3)Fanfare for the common man--Aaron Copland
4)Saltarello from the Italian symphony--Mendellsohn
5)Jokebox--Quintus

miss you all

-bern

Sam,

How has the death of Slobodan Milošević been sitting where you are? The whole thing seems complex, anticlimactic, and deeply insufficient. Obviously, this is a good bit closer to home for you than for any of us U.S. types. I'm awfully curious as to what your thoughts have been and how this is playing out in The Hague. Wishing you all the best.

Perplexed,

Isaac

Nestor, Modern India, and Nutella

While an article in the New York Times tells me that "the father of modern India" is Ghandi, my AP World Textbook tells me that it is, in fact, Ram Mohan Roy. Can anyone clear this up for me? Are they both entitled to this...title?

In news of the future, Nestor may come and visit me this weekend. Maybe I'll be able to get him to finally post something. But if not, we'll be a-snowboarding and celebrating St. Patty's Day. Any long-awaited messages for him?

I also heard from Vermont Academy and Cambridge School of Weston, and I got into both prep-schools. I still have to hear from Northfield Mount Hermon and Idyllwild, which are virtually the only schools of the 4 that I care about. So if I don't get in to the latter two, I'll probably do something else next year.

Senior play just got over and done with, I found it quite fun. It actually brought the senior class together, I was surprised. With the general animosity between cliques and socioeconomical groups, I'd say it was pretty uplifting to see this merge.

But other than that, AP exams are in 2 months. Better start studying. As they say, cramming it all in during the 11th hour sucks. I'll make a note not to fall into that cycle. All righty then, I'm gonna go eat a Nutella and Honey sandwhich. Goodbye.

Herb

Reaction: Why Ninja and Pirates are both OK (even if ninjas are better)

My source is Wikipedia (scorn me if you wish).

"Ninja (忍者) were said to be agents of espionage and assassination in feudal Japan in legend and popular fiction. Some modern practitioners of budo ninjutsu argue that ninja were used primarily as spies, not assassins; and this appears to be borne out by some historical records. It is popularly believed that the ancient ninja were peasants, forbidden under law from studying the samurai swordplay techniques because of feudal Japan's caste structure; but more likely they originated from a variety of castes. The majority appear to have come from the "untouchables", the lowest caste in Japanese culture, and over time picked up a number of others, mostly criminals and outcasts from various levels of Japanese society. "

So much for ninja as violent elitists - apparently, ninjas were veritable populists.

"Contrary to popular belief, there is no evidence that the ninjas dressed in all black suits . . . these spies and assassins were far more likely to be disguised as samurai, priests, or peasants or when situation dictates, dark green, blue or dark red outfit which offers better camouflage to its surroundings.

Some ninjas were said to have disguised themselves as Fuke monks and used the traditional flute of the zen sect, the Shakuhachi, as a powerful blunt weapon. Many government agents and ninja disguised themselves as komusō, since one could travel about in complete anonymity and gather information. There were even short pieces that were supposed to be played by one komusō greeting another. These suizen melodies tended to be very difficult to outsiders of the sect. If the second komusō did not respond, the first would know that the other was probably a spy."

So it gets better - ninjas do have fashion sense (how many pirates get to dress up as monks?) and they (drumroll) musick. Sea chanties are fine and dandy of course, but melody-codes on weaponized flutes? This is pretty chill stuff we're talking about.

In bleak contrast:
"In the popular modern imagination, pirates of the classical period were rebellious, clever teams who operated outside the restricting bureaucracy of modern life. In reality, many pirates ate poorly, did not become fabulously wealthy, and died young."

But come, let's not turn this into a petty squabble - ninjas and pirates are actually brothers in arms! Compare the below passage with the first excerpt on ninja:
"Pirates readily accepted outcasts from traditional societies, perhaps easily recognizing kindred spirits, and they were known to free slaves from slave ships and welcome them into the pirate fold."

i.e. a lonely pirate washed up on the shores of feudal Japan would have been heartily welcomed by the local ninja cell, and a bedraggled ninja marooned in the briny deep would have been happily received by a passing pirate ship. Just warms the cockles of your heart, doesn't it?

Contemplatively yours,

Sam

writing

I think I promised a while ago to put up the Pirates Vs. Ninja article when the paper was published, and although it's a little late, here it is:

"Ninja: It's an Honor Thing" by Josh Boerman '08

In today's society, we are surrounded by people without honor. Nowadays, there is really no way of honestly knowing whether or not that nice-looking guy with the blazer and the briefcase may actually own you over the head with his BlackBerry. With such omnipresent danger, modern society is in need of a specially trained class of skilled warriors who will defend the long-standing American values of liberty, justice, and equality by killing people in their sleep.

One of the problems with pirates is that, unlike ninja, they completely lack any sense of honor. Terrors of the seas, they just kill people at complete random, pillaging and plundering all the way. Nobody respects or even cares about the well-being of pirates. The contrast to the ancient mastery of the ninja is astounding!

Furthermore, the ninja mystique has captivated generations of Americans. Shrouded in secrecy, the truth of ninja culture is known to very few. This has led to a legendary quality matched by non, inlcuding pirates. Thanks to their honor code, they dominate the world of stories, both visual and written.

The greates thing that differentiates ninja from pirates, however, is their stealth. Thanks to their raucous loudness, one can easily hear a pirate crew approaching from nearly a mile away. Sure, you might call this "horseplay" or even "fun." You would, of course, be wrong. Ninja are known, even celebrated, for their astounding covertness. YOu just try and tell me that some pirate could so much as get a chance at sneaking up upon and harming someone, let along killing them, in those ridiculous pirate getups.

Which brings me to my next point. What the heck is up with pirate costumes? They have to be the most absurdly over-the-top things I have ever seen. Buckles, belts, coins: uuuuuugly. Despite what some may tell you about the "big new look in men's fashion," there is no honor in puffy shirts. None.

It's just self-explanatory. Pirates, as great as they may think they are, simply cannot compete with the dark majesty of Japan's secret warriors. We need more power, more honor, more minimalistic black outfits in modern society. Ninja for the win.


"Ninja Get Honor, Pirates Get Booty" by Emma, the pirate-loyalist

When I was a little girl, I was a pirate boy. Danny, Dominique, Holly and I used to stow away in the pirate ship that sailed between the sand box and the wading pool at daybreak, don dangerous eye patches, and do our best to blend in with the crew. Once because she was disgusted with the poor bathroom facilities on board, Holly successfully led us in mutiny, and that summer the four of us amassed a sizeable amount of booty. You wouldn’t believe it, but my parrot had wavy pink hair and sang pirate songs in four part harmony. Man, that was fun.

And fun is exactly what makes pirates better than ninja.

Fine, ninja would win in a fight. But the last time that counted for anything was when those dancing Jets and Sharks got sick of snapping and decided to express their emotions in more destructive ways, and we all know how that story ended. No, there’s much more to this than which group is better at killing. Just think about it: if you’re going to be an immoral murderer anyway, wouldn’t you like to have fun? When it comes to hedonism, pirates are the clear victors.

I won’t try to say that there aren’t pirates who don’t do anything, but in general, pirates do so many more fun things than ninjas. These sea-swaggerers get to swashbuckle all over the globe while their land-faring foes only kill people in secret. Honestly, how many friends have you made by killing people?

Pirates aren’t known for their fashion sense, but their colorful outfits at least reflect a fun sense of individualism. Ninja, on the other hand, dress identically and lack any sort of personality.
We all learned about empathy from Atticus Finch in freshman English class, so let’s consider the matter of dress from a calendar maker’s shoes. A pirate calendar might look something like this: January-a regal pirate with a long curling mustache and a big red hat; June-bandana clad pirate in a flowing chemise with many bangle bracelets; November-a weathered sailor with a striped shirt and a peg leg. But the ninja calendar? Every month would be exactly the same! Where’s the joy in turning the pages of that calendar, hm?

When the sun sinks below the horizon, it’s the pirates who fall asleep happily, and they’re a welcoming bunch too. You want to become a pirate? There’s no need for years of strenuous training; just climb aboard and glue a moustache to your upper lip! And hey, pass the really bad eggs, will you?


In other writing news, we have to write short, closed form poetry for AP lit, and I'm enjoying emulating the great Shel Silverstein. How's this:

On the Playground
She thought that it would be real fun
To swing up over the bar.
But instead of landing in the sun
She now lies six feet under.

Miss you all,
Emma

Laissez les Bons-Temps Rouler

I looked at the calendar today and realized it was Mardi Gras! Not even the Celebrations Around the World notice board at school picked up on that - all it had for today was Peace Corps Day. I'll bet things are rather subdued in New Orleans this year, though . . . for all the reputed debauchery in the French Quarter, Mardi Gras is actually quite a nice family-oriented holiday once you get out into the suburbs. It's one of the things I miss about living in Louisiana. *sigh*

Top 5 Mardi Gras songs
1. Second Line
2. Big Chief
3. Hey Pocky A-Way
4. Mardi Gras in New Orleans
5. Mardi Gras Mambo

Groetjes,

Sam

a change of pace

Sorry I've been absent recently. I was going to write a few days ago, but my cat finally gave up after being sick for a while and that put a damper on things.

The mad musicking in my life is finally over. I miss it. having finally gotten through my hell week of seven concerts it feels really wierd not to be rehearsing for anything. On the plus side, I got so used to doing stuff, particularly on my trumpet, that I have just continued practicing. This may not seem like anything, but I am one of those students that for 13 years has never practiced willingly. I love the instrument. I hate practicing it. My parents have coaxed, threatened and bribed me, but I have never done it on my own. Three weeks ago, with my solo looming, I took my trumpet home and blew for about 2 1/2 hours. I have never had a more fun afternoon. Now I am averaging an hour and a half to two hours every day and loving it. What's really weird is that neither of my parents are aware of it because I do it in the afternoons before they get home from work. (I know what a trumpet sounds like in a small house). How ironic is that? they used to beg me to do my measly 5 hours a week. Now I'm doing 14 and they don't even know it. Probably a good thing too. If they did, they would encourage me, and I would never be able to stand for that. Also probably a good thing that I'm not taking too many massively academic classes right now.

Speaking of music and academics, If any of you have some time on your hands and the desire to read somenthing that is moderately long, but also (I flatter myself) moderately entertaining, you can go to your umich emails. I sent a paper I wrote for my world lit course that started out as a parody of Dante's inferno and ended up as a major rant about musicians. Be prepared for some major cynicism.

In other news, Cornell found my SAT scores! Whew. For a while there, I wasn't even considered an applicant because my stuff wasn't complete. I don't know how some of you can survive applying to your 16 million colleges (Samyu!). I sweating bullets over here with two, one of which has already accepted me with a 15 grand annual scholarship (olaf). On a related note, I assume you all have been recieving those offers from places that are garunteeing guranteeing gaurintying screw it PROMISING you a full ride plus stipend simply for being a national merit finalist. Am I the only one that is not too jazzed about going to a school that would do this? I mean it's like; You're offering to give me the equivalent of 50 grand solely on the basis of two three hour tests and a 500 word essay? Don't you even want to meet me first? I may be odd, but I somehow don't relish spending four years of my life at a place like that.

Of course there is always the military. My mom went to a week long workshop the marines put on for counselers to teach them about the USMC and came back completely gung ho. She was telling me "If you could, I think you would do very well with the MC" (I can't because of a medical condition. some of you may remember the scar on my stomach) Now don't get me wrong, I'm no Vietnam peacenik flower child. I may not agree with Iraq, but I do acknowledge that there is a need and use for a well trained military. Given that however, I definitely think that there is the person who would make a good soldier, and there is the person who wouldn't. I am of the latter group. Let me tell you. If you want to have an interesting conversation with your parents try discussing your prospects in the military.

Anyway, I'm fighting a cold right now, so I'm going to sign off and go to bed early.

A word about my top 5. before any feminists want to castrate me for my top 2 (which I am currently listening to) I highly suggest you go dig it out and listen. Then go get the clean version. I can garuntee (damn that word!) that you will never laugh harder.

Top 5 right now

1) Get low -- lil john
2) Get low (edited version) -- lil john
3) track 4 off of a random disc of Japanese techno a friend gave me
4) Anything done by james morrison (the trumpeter)
5)the soundtrack to a random geico commercial

miss you all

-bern

Not so cool now that Charles did it

Hey all, I found out Thursday morning (as I typed my MUN papers the day I was leaving-yeah, I skipped school for MUN) I got into Duke.
Not only that, but the Angier B. Duke Scholars Program, which is potentially full tuition, a summer to study at Oxford, and other "nice things."

Charles, is this the thing you got? If so, cool, I get to see Charles in April, but crap, now there's major competition, lol. (They select 40 and take 15.)

You can't apply for this, but you can for the Robertson Scholars thing, so if nothing else, there's still that.



wow... I could be going to college with Charles. That would be totally kick-ass.

-Matt (S)

A reality TV gimmick?

Or will this actually promote dialogue and understanding? It's sort of a reality TV update on Black Like Me.

The news article in which I read about it

The Official Website

A Whole New World

If you have:

1. A relatively fast internet connection

2. A few minutes' free time

3. And the wish to see a brilliantly funny dubbing of the cartoon Aladdin, retitled Aladdin and the Cave of Cheeseburgers

Click here.

Now be warned, the first few minutes are a little weak, but some bits are brilliant. The swearing also gets tedious and isn't, for the most part, particularly cleverly used. However, this doesn't stop the whole thing from being fantastically funny.

Also, call me crazy, but I've developed a strange addiction to American Idol (don't gasp). It's not shown here, but I find videos and updates online. I really really want either Paris or Mandisa to win. And if that statement meant something to you, then great! :)

Jason

Bwahahahahahaha!!!!!

I love music.

That is all.

Top Five:

5.Moanin' At Midnight- Howlin' Wolf
4.Evening On The Ground (Lilith's Song)- Iron & Wine
3. Famous Friends- Judith Owen
2. Waitin' Around To Die- Townes Van Zandt
1. We Are What You Say- Sufjan Stevens

life, the universe, and everything

I've been quite remiss in terms of posting, lately. Swim season's ended, and water polo's starting up. Unfortunately, the transition was not smooth. The filter in the pool broke, so we came in one morning to the black lagoon. Our coach insisted that we dive into the murky, green waters, insisting that it was safe. We responded that if we turned into slimy, bog monsters, we were coming for him first. It was highly disorienting, and flip-turns were difficult because we couldn't find the wall. Humorous now, horrifying then. The advantage to living through the murky waters and early morning practice, though...Hawaii preseason during spring break. Woooo!

Tremendous news! I have made contact with one of the elusive Cornell TASPers, Richard. They survived the summer, apparently, despite what the communication lockdown seemed to indicate. I assure I found the Corneller TASPery, and I'm very excited.

Also, I never mentioned this song in TASP, even though I should've: "Uncle Tom is Dead" by Guy Davis. He released the album "Legacy" a couple years ago, and he collaborated with his son to make this song. It's basically a back and forth argument about the blues vs. rap. I know we spent some time discussing the evolution of blues into other things, noticeably the development into what is on the surface divergent genres: rock and rap. My friend Katie and I got some calls and had a lively discussion about the song on our radio show, "Punk, Funk, and Junk in the Trunk," which tries to see lingering resemblances in rock and rap. Guy Davis' son is like, "Blues is an outdated reminder of oppression, and boring, to boot. Rap is the thing, get it into your head, old man." And Guy Davis rejoinders that without blues, there would be no rap, and people need to pay attention to history. Very funny, interesting song. So, check it out.

Top 5 Songs that Make Me Say "Word":
1. Uncle Tom is Dead - Guy Davis
2. Lovin' In My Baby's Eyes - Taj Mahal
3. Blessed To Be A Witness - Ben Harper
4. King Without a Crown - Matisyahu
5. Perfect Gentleman - Wyclef Jean (just 'cause she dances go-go, that don't make her a ho, no!)

Grand Theft Dispensationalism

So, I was reading the most recent Newsweek in the bathroom, and I stumbled upon an image of digitalized angels carrying a dead body into heaven. Remember Dylan's dispensationalist pubspeak? Well, soon there will be a video game coming out based on the fictitious books that two dispensationalist authors wrote. Dylan spoke about these guys as well. But check it out: The purpose in the game is to wander the streets of New York and gain as many converts as possible before the coming of the Antichrist. The article stated that the game has "violence reminiscent of grand theft auto". For those of you who don't know what "Grand Theft Auto" is, it's a video game where you can just run around and kill random people on the street with virtually any weapon and using any method. Charles played it quite a bit on his computer.

So I found that pretty hilarious. But the interesting thing is that athe article does not once mention the word "dispensationalism". It seems that this sect is assumed (by the writer of the article) to be purely "Christian". What do you guys have to say? Dylan?

om goosh

And to round up the feb notification thing that charles told me about like two days ago, I got into Rochester!!!! woooo. wooo.
ok.
I'm no longer keen on this college.
Actually, not at all.
But w/e.

So this is the third college that I've heard from, other than Emory and Binghamton. Still waiting for 11 more. (amherst, swarthmore, cornell, yale, columbia, brown, princeton, duke, johns hopkins, washington U, and NYU)

One more month, guys.
~sanjukta

oops!
haha, i <3 enna.

and ps: to the northern TASPers - here's hoping for a snow day tomorrow!

options

At last I've been accepted at more than one school! Like Charles, I got an early acceptance letter in the mail today from Macalester (minus the all expenses paid campus visit). It feels nice to have options, but now...I have to make a decision. *sigh* Still waiting on Carleton and Georgetown.
-Enna

That's not what I meant to type, but I sort of like the sound of it. Enna.