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October 31, 2004

Taking a page from the Rev's book on religion I thought I would share a bit more about my religion.

Today is Samhain's Eve, or Halloween, this is one of the most major Sabbats of the circle. It is the Wiccan New Year. The feast of Samhain marks the beginning of the dark time of the year, when the barriers to the netherworld are at their most insubstantial.

Most of you might already know this but I am going to share anyway.

Traditions state that during this time, especially All Hallow's Eve, ancestors and other spirits may walk in our world. From this has come several Halloween customs:
- Jack-o-lanters are to guard from spirits who may mean harm. They are also a beacon to your ancestors. A "yes we are home" welcome sign.
- Treats have always been left for the spirits, ghoulies, and ghosties. Traditionally these took the form of bread and milk left on the porch, but chocolate and sugar work wonders for appeasing all sorts as well.
- Costumes were traditionally a form of protection from the spirits you didn't know. The masks and make-up make it hard to tell a child from a ghost.
- Always answer the door if someone knocks on Halloween. You can never know if a spirit is going to be in the group of revelers or not.
- Trick or treating: This is a time for the spirits to play as well; not answering the door or making treats available is just making yourself a target for mischievous souls.

Tonight is also a great night for divining, so break out your cards, stones, mirrors, tea leaves, apple seeds, etc. and have at it. Find out what future holds, bond with your ancestors, or just enjoy yourself.

Merry Samhain!

posted at 11:44 AM
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October 29, 2004

Samhain...Halloween....All Hallow's Eve...Day of the Dead. Whichever you celebrate have a Happy Holiday!

This is my favorite holiday, always has been, but this year the strangeness surrounding it has gotten worse. In some cases people are making small tentative steps forward - like in Scotland. And then there is this place and this place. Their hearts are in the right place, they need to step away from the stereotypes. Unfortunately, there is also this.

My personal responses to each:

Yay for witchy pardons!

I think the Wiccan community in Seattle has spent too much time in the broom closet.

Major props to the ASPCA for protecting kitties from idiots who don't understand the High Holy Day or its rituals.

I stopped reading at "Accept Jesus,or else." Or else what? This ooks me out quite a bit.

posted at 4:36 PM
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I have to admit, I have a problem. I am horribly addicted to the "Next Blog" button. That thing is like crack. Yummy sugar coated crack! Since the day it showed up I have been using it as a gateway into other worlds and blogs I never would have found on my own.

Somewhere around the second day it was there I started wondering how many times I would have to press it until I came across a blog of someone I knew...someone on my links.

It has happened! I was finally "Next Blog"ged to a page I recognized. It was the Dastard's page! I'm wondering if this is some crazy mixed up sign...

There may have to be a prize or something.

posted at 11:44 AM
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October 28, 2004

The word, look, and attitude of the day? Comfy

posted at 1:59 PM
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October 27, 2004

Done! Done! Done! ~happy dance Peanuts style~

I am a procrastinator. Big time. There is no cure for it. Well, I'm sure there is but I haven't gotten around to finding it yet. Just thought I would share that bad joke. I discovered today in class that I hate worksheets. I know I will use them and make my students do them, but truly I loathe their (the worksheets) existence. I discovered this as I was comparing my unit design to others in the class. Now, I included everything that was needed (resources, quizzes, worksheets, study guides, etc.)but mine was about half the size of most of them. Honestly, I feel sorry for the poor students that are the guinea pigs for some of these lessons. I want to go to the Rocky Horror showing tonight, break out the vinyl pants and rock star top. I work right up until it starts though. No way am I going all stressed out n icky. I want a shower and time to prep...being a rock star takes work. Maybe I will just stay home. I can recite RHPS lines, lyrics, and the audience participation part in my sleep. 'Sides our campus is too staid to know what to really do with RHPS....they don't even allow Virgin Sacrifices anymore! mmmmmmmm...bananas.....ok this train of thought just died in a horrible firey ball of fire. Mo' later.

posted at 4:24 PM
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October 26, 2004

In the absense of actual things to tell you all, still too busy to think, I kipped a quiz from Jenn's site. This is the pin-up girl I would be given half a chance. Although, I really adore Betty Page too.



HASH(0x893d2d4)
You're Brigitte Bardot!


What Classic Pin-Up Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

posted at 9:14 AM
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October 22, 2004

busy busy busy...sleepy...hide...runaway...lesson plans...midterms...papers....laundry...dishes...sleepy...busy busy busy

posted at 10:43 AM
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October 21, 2004

I'm feeling musical...

First, in honor of last weeks Drag Queens..."I'm wearin' sexy underwear..."

Then this also seems to be an Aerosmith type of day - my theme song:
"Pink - it's my new obsession
Pink - it's not even a question,
Pink - on the lips of your lover
(oh)
'Cause Pink is the love you discover

Pink - as the bing on your cherry
Pink - 'cause you are so very
Pink - it's the color of passion
Ah, 'cause today it just goes with the fashion

Pink - it was love at first sight
Yeah, Pink - when I turn out the light
And Pink gets me high as a kite
And I think everything is going to be all right
No matter what we do tonight

You could be my flamingo
'Cause pink - it's the new kinda of lingo
Pink - like a deco umbrella
It's kink that you don't ever tell her..."

And then there is the sweets a la Suzanne Vega:
"It won't do
to dream of caramel,
to think of cinnamon
and long for you."

And just cause there has to be some Queer music - Garbage:
"She gave you everything she had
But she was young and dumb
She'd just turned 21
She didn't care to hang around
So when the shit came down why she was nowhere to be found
This life can turn a good girl bad
She was the sweetest thing that you had ever seen

You're so such a delicate boy
In the hysterical realm
Of an emotional landslide
In physical terms

With your cherry lips and golden curls
You could make grown men gasp when you go walking past
And in your hot pants and high heels
They could not believe that such a body was for real
It seemed like rainbows would appear
Whenever you came near the clouds would disappear
Because you looked just like a girl
Your baby blues would flash and suddenly a spell was cast

You're so such a delicate boy
In the hysterical realm
Of an emotional landslide
In physical terms

You hold a candle in your heart
You shine the light on hidden parts
You make the whole world wanna dance "

posted at 1:08 PM
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October 19, 2004

Lady should not be let loose in Target! She went shopping for me and found a halloween headband. Ya know the ones with the alien dealiboppers on them? Well, these are sort of like that...only with ears instead of dealiboppers. Sticking out, green ears. After I tried them on I realized I looked very much like this - Princess Fiona.

All I need is a greenish skin tone and someone to be Shrek.

posted at 8:47 AM
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October 18, 2004

Why do people give me strange looks when I veer off of the sidewalk to tromp through the piles of dried leaves? The were scooped together a week or so ago then left to dry and blow around. What else could they be in such neat lines for but to play in?

posted at 6:16 PM
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October 17, 2004

Things I learned this weekend:

1. Never judge my family on past experiences. There were no petty fights, snide remarks or nasty jabs made at anyone's expense.

2. This funeral made Miller history. This was the first time all the "cousins" were together at the same time. The "cousins" is what my father calls all the kids from him, Joe, and Jack. There are seven of us.

3. I was reminded that I am the only girl "cousin".

4. Not everyone is as tall or blonde as I remember. There were a few tall ones, but I am right on par with most of the guys. I'm also pretty sure there were only a few blondes there.

5. My family remembers odd things about me. One of my cousins, Jimmy, says I used to read stories to our horses. He also remembers that instead of watching t.v. on Sunday morning with him I would spread out the newspaper and pretend to read it all. Yep, I was apparently a dork even before I was in school.

6. My aunt Star and her husband Paul are amazing people.

7. I'm not the only one that had to steel themselves to see the family. Every one of my cousins had a moment or two of "oh god what do I do with the whole family".

8. I'm not the only democrat! Several people, including Paul and Star, are very supportive of my work in the multicultural groups. Some even know of my bi identification.

9. Belly dance scarves make great dress-up distractions for the children of the family.

10. More modern colors and forms in stained-glass windows are strange to me. The church the service was held in is all about modernity. Pretty, but very odd.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I just want to tell everyone that I love you! Thank you for supporting me and giving me ways to deal with my family. It was never a question of if I would go. It was just how would I make it through. But I am all in one piece, and feeling better than I ever expected. I love you, I love you, I love you.

posted at 11:18 AM
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October 15, 2004

Warning: This is a part of Mandy that isn't very pretty. Welcome to my self-centeredness.

I don't want to see my family. I like and am doing well with the arrangement we have. I live my own life and they live theirs. I don't have to listen to their conservative republican rhetoric and they won't be asked to go to Drag shows. It works. It has worked since I was in highschool...maybe even before. Why do they have to change it now?

I only speak to my father when absolutely necessary. We have come to terms with the fact that I am too much like my mother to make him happy. I am loud, outgoing, and openminded. That isn't even mentioning how physically alike we are. Unlike my father's side of the family I am short (5'7" isn't short but it isn't the 5'11 + that is the rest of that side) and curvy and not blonde. My father and I didn't talk for quite a few years after the divorce, which happened when I was 12. He blamed me for things I didn't do. I told him to piss off. We started talking again just before I moved to Alaska....so about 6 years ago. During that time only one other person from that side of the family wanted anything to do with me. I haven't heard from any of them since I moved back. My father didn't even know I had broken up with Chris.

I have heard from members of my family whom I don't even know. All wanting to know if I will be there. My grandmother has called twice, for hours at a time, berrating me about what a poor granddaughter / niece I am. If I really loved my uncle I would be down in Cheyenne right now with the rest of the family. Everyone has been telling me about my uncle Jack's life. I don't want to know. I'm sorry but I don't. Jack is one of those that I haven't talked to since I was in highschool. Even before that we didn't speak often. The Jack I want to remember is from when I was little little, 3 or 4. He was the first to call me princess. He had no problems playing dress up with me when everyone else was watching the football game. I will always remember, even though I wish I wouldn't, when he bought me a computer for school. It broke down after about two weeks. We couldn't send it back to be fixed. None of the registration codes matched. This is the only part of that Jack that I know. Honestly, I don't want to know what kind of man he really was.

I am just venting. I'm trying to build up my defenses. It's not enough that there is a funeral. I have a feeling that things will continue this way and they will play their favorite game of tear down Mandy.

posted at 1:52 PM
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October 13, 2004

I just talked to my father. My uncle died today. He was 57. He had been battling bone marrow cancer for 5 years. The funeral may be Saturday, no one knows for sure.

posted at 6:18 PM
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October 12, 2004

Yep, it is a day of mini-posts Mandy style.


The ASUW senators are having some sort of meet and greet in the Union. They seem to be playing all of U2. Yay for Bono and the boys!

posted at 1:34 PM
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There are random piles of sand all over campus. Most are located near the bike racks for some reason. Any one feel like building sandcastles with me?

posted at 1:31 PM
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Now what do you suppose this guy's Halloween costume is supposed to be?

posted at 9:37 AM
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This morning I noticed the graffiti love bandit is on the prowl again. This time bus signs, stop signs, and game day traffic signs were tagged. Even the College of Business marquee, union parking lot side, was not safe. Some bore the trademark heart that I saw earlier on HalfAcre. Others were blessed with the word, in bold flourished letters, LOVE. I want to find this person and hug them....or just send anonymous gifts of thanks.

posted at 8:36 AM
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October 11, 2004


SuperMan
Originally uploaded by MandyFish.
I'm sorry hear that this happened. SuperMan has fallen. Christopher Reeve died Sunday. The Man of Steel will always look like him to me.

posted at 1:52 PM
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October 10, 2004

~sigh~ I missed "church with the Rev" today. No boomerrangs for me. Instead, I drove over to Cheyenne bright and early this morning. When I hit the summit (Laramie is in a valley for those that don't know) I was possessed with the urge to take the scenic route. I took Happy Jack instead of the highway. This was such a happy thing! Fall is the most beautiful season here. The brilliant golds, rusts, and reds offset the deep greens. So peaceful and beautiful. I think there needs to be another journey in the evening...perhaps to Vedauwoo. I want to spread a blanket out on a boulder and watch as the dazzle of the sunset turns the fall colors into fire. I want to watch the stars start to peek out. I don't want to be in town.

posted at 11:13 AM
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October 08, 2004

It is Friday. Why am I here? At work I mean. I don't want to be. I even took an extra shift during my break. Money is good, but do I really need it this badly? I would rather be napping. That isn't a surprise though, napping is my usual first choice for activities. I should be doing homework. I have 6 weeks of daily lesson plans to get done. I'm having issues though. I don't know what my mentor instructor has planned yet, so I can't just add to it. But, I don't want to make my own up completely and be out in left field. It is too quiet in this lab. Hearing the machines humm is making me sleepy. Oh, never mind cat lady is here...soon she will be coughing and talking at me, occasionally flipping her teeth out. Joy. Don't you just want to rescue me? Close the lab and let me go home to my kitty? Or out. I could go out. In fact I think I am ready for a date. I'm pretty sure I am emotionally stable enough now that a date or two wouldn't break me. I may be lying but you don't know till you try, right? Now I just got to find me a date... Maybe a nap first? Perhaps I shouldn't have worn my comfy clothes to work today? Too much comfort and I don't want to move unless necessary. Okay, I'm done now...at least I think I am. Have a good evening and watch the second round of the debates!

posted at 3:44 PM
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October 06, 2004

Britany Spears has done a remake of Bobby Brown's "My Perogative". Now instead of being a slightly cheesy I'll-do-my-own-thing type of song it is an overly sexualized, leave you feeling dirty song. Well, at least the video is. ~shiver~

Bride & Prejudice will hit the US movie scene on Dec.24. Yes, kiddies, just in time for Christmas you can rent the Bollywood reinvisioning of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice. It is being done by the same director who did Bend it Like Beckham, so I'm hoping this is a good sign. If you've never witnessed a Bollywood film, steel yourself, rent one, and be prepared to witness strangly wonderful and ridiculous things. ~bouncy bouncy bouncy~

Why are people, specifically women, so offended that I wear a shirt that says Vagina on it? Seriously people, get over it! If women are afraid to see the word - how in the hell are they making it through gyno exams? Shit! There's another word good girls shouldn't say. ~shrug~

Apparently the general command of "Fall" wasn't happening quite fast enough for Mother Nature today. Currently she is thowing heavy rain and hail at the trees. The streets are a flutter of golden leaves dancing and swirling dramatically to the ground. The streets look like they are covered in snow. I'm going to stop now since the lights have started flickering.


Have a good evening!

posted at 4:39 PM
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October 05, 2004



How to make a Mandy
Ingredients:

3 parts competetiveness

1 part courage

1 part beauty
Method:
Layer ingredientes in a shot glass. Add fitness to taste! Do not overindulge!


Username:


Personality cocktail
From Go-Quiz.com

posted at 8:19 AM
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October 04, 2004

I am, of course, none other than blank verse.
I don't know where I'm going, yes, quite right;
And when I get there (if I ever do)
I might not recognise it. So? Your point?
Why should I have a destination set?
I'm relatively happy as I am,
And wouldn't want to be forever aimed
Towards some future path or special goal.
It's not to do with laziness, as such.
It's just that on the whole I'd rather not
Be bothered - so I drift contentedly;
An underrated way of life, I find.
What Poetry Form Are You?


posted at 7:50 PM
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October 03, 2004

Ummm....So I'm thinking that having the pineapple/banana shake after the Indian food was not necessarily the smartest thing I have done. Not only was my stomach seriously unhappy the entire drive home, but that could also be nerves over my car battery randomly quitting on us, but I had some freaky weird dreams. One involved a dead body, another was about the 1950's tea dress Abra wants to borrow.....only she turned into a gummy bear as she tried it on (Sorry love can't control these sorta dreams!), and another was a journey into space. I think I am going to skip the 'nana icecream and stick to non-scary foods such as mac & cheese for a while.

posted at 11:27 AM
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October 01, 2004

"Honey, if you love me...would you please just smile?"

The first week of practicum wrapped up on a high note. There was pizza for lunch, students who read over the summer won it (amazingly all girls), and a game during the final SST hour. I'd never played "Honey if you love me" before. I tried to sit out. However, there were only 3 girls in the class today and I am a sucker for a student who says please, so I played. The object is to make the person you are asking smile or to not smile if you are the one being asked. I did pretty well, only broke once. I just couldn't handle it when one boy came up to me blushing, big puppy dog eyes, and trying desperately not to break into giggles himself. I had to smile and laugh. I got my turn though. It is funny how easily 8th grade boys will smile and start laughing when a teacher holds their hand and makes a dopey face.

"Honey, I love you, but I just can't smile."

posted at 4:38 PM
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