Ah, Sweet Validation

You are a GRAMMAR GOD!

Congratulations! If your mission in life
is not already to preserve the English tongue,
it should be. You can smell a grammtical
inaccuracy from fifty yards. Your speech is
revered by the underlings, though some may
blaspheme and call you a snob. They're just
jealous. Go out there and change the world.

How grammatically correct are you? (Revised with answer key)
brought to you by

Recover Post Worked!

I made my first purchase from AT yesterday. I think I ended up spending a little more than I've earned there. That can't keep happening. While the only retail job that I'd want to have is at a store whose product I enjoy (I know I'm a snob), that may have its disadvantages. I'll have to be disciplined about what I allow myself to buy. Especially since, I really don't have the money to continue my normal frivolities (eating out, seeing/buying movies, going to concerts, buying books, cds, and, of course, clothes).

I should start buying and reading books for the fall semster, since I was able to get the book list for two of my classes, but I just can't bring myself to be studious or serious academically. Rather than my crazy friend who is reading a biography of Byron a week after school gets out, I'm reading children's fiction (in the middle of The Erstaz Elevator book the sixth in A Series of Unfortunate Events).

Some films I've seen lately: Crimson Rivers 2: Angels of the Apocalypse. I loved the first film because it was quite the mystery thriller. I wish I could read the books that inspired it, but I can't find any English translations, which is sad. Do you think the French struggle to find a French translation of John Grisham? This sequal isn't quite as good as the first (and is sadly missing Vincent Cassel), but I do enjoy stories with overt, heavy-handed religious imagery and symbolism. This one has that, plus Christopher Lee playing a modern German Nazi in this French film. Soo-pair!

Girlfight. I bought this uber-cheap at Christmas time but had not watched it (though I'd seen it before I purchased). It's the female boxer story, way before Million Dollar Baby. Watching it made me want to run and hit things, but only if it was in a montage while my stomach got flatter, my arms got more defined, and there was "Getting Stronger" Rocky-esque music playing.

Happy Birthday, John C. Reilly!

I finished Buffy. There was narrative closure, and I felt satisfied. If I did not know that Spike survived and went on to season five of Angel, I would be very sad because he is very much dead at the end. But, I am supremely confident that Whedon and co. create some plausible reason for his return. Okay, maybe not plausible (though I don't know what it is yet), but I am very willing to believe anything if it allows me the pyschological comfort of knowing Spike lives. Now, in order to watch season five of Angel, I have to watch the first four seasons. I'm not certain if I'm ready to commit to such an undertaking quite yet, so I'm going to spend a little time on other projects: cleaning, Em's baby quilt, my knitting, and, of course, movies and books.

I've read The Wide Window and am in the middle of The Miserable Mill, both in the Series of Unfortunate of Events by Lemony Snicket. I watched the second season of The Office and Wilde.

Different Venue, Same Show

Yesterday I learned how to work the register at AT. It's trickier than I had anticipated. Not difficult necessarily, but tedious. For two hours, I was practicing with these story problems (Valerie buys a shirt and belt and pays with a credit card; Valerie exchanges, returns, etc.) and I only got through twenty of the seventy that I need to do. I wonder if I'll really have to finish them all or they'll just let me learn on the job. We'll see, I guess. I am curious to know how many hours I'm going to be working. I'll find that out on Sunday.

This weekend is already a lot of fun though. I'm visiting Katie and then I'm going to catch up with my family who are initiating the new pop-up camper. I'm very excited to be spending time with Katie. I haven't spent time with her in months. It's too bad that all of us are so spread out across the country (especially those two on the opposite coasts!), making it difficult for all of us to be together. I've hooked Katie and we've watched a number of episodes of Buffy. I have eight episodes left in the series. I hope that there's closure, so I can walk away from this obsession satisfied. Katie wants to see the end, so that's our big plan for the weekend.

I'm watching the weather channel, which just reported that its 57 and rainy in Dublin. Sigh, I wish I could go back.

Lovely, Lovely

Ann Taylor called me this morning, and I got the job! I went in and did a computer training--for four hours. It was lengthy, but, hey, I got paid for it. Congrats to Katie, who also found gainful employment this week!

I've been watching lots of Buffy though I'm less satisfied with it. I'm not happy about the whole Willow thing, though I've grown to enjoy Anya. I have to admit that I'm a bit of a sucker (hee hee) for Spike and am rooting for Buffy and him to get together.

Hmm, its been a while, so media update. Movies I've seen: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (I enjoyed it more than the book, even though I'm glad I read the book first), Othello (set in modern times in the "New Scotland Yard"),...and...okay, so I haven't been watching too much of late, but that is shortly to change!

New Super Hero?

Well, I'm finished. I didn't trip across the stage today. I'd like to start introducing myself much like He-Man, Master of the Universe, with "I'm Shazarah Master of the English." But that probably wouldn't be the best way to win friends and influence people.

Right now, I'm drained. I've been putting in long, long hours at school to finish all my papers, grading, and syllabi for next semester. I'm excited to be starting the PhD and taking classes in the summer, but I'm looking forward to some quality (and maybe not so quality) time in bed, with books, and with the tv.

Kingdom of Heaven, Part Two

I was outside being quite productive, grading final portfolios, and realized that after a mere hour and a slathering of 45 spf sunblock, I was already burning. Grr. So back into the house, where, of course, I feel compelled to check (for the third time today) all my emails and blogs. A link from Dr. Dave sent me to Chick Tracts where I found the answer to all my concerns raised by Kingdom of Heaven. Well, the Jonathan Edwards "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" answer. It's rather hokey and blunt, nothing I would ever, actually show to a non-Christian and say "Here's why you should join the flock." Though I would never phrase myself like this video does, does believing in Christianity as the One way to God mean that I have to think that harshly about those who don't believe? I don't want to be that mean, or is it just honesty shown meanly? Do moral absolutes have to be so...absolute? I don't want to be as relativistic as society is. There has to be Truth not just truth, or else what is there? But, that doesn't mean that I don't think there's grey in addition to the black and white.

Well, At Least Jack White is Available

So apparently, Renee Zellweger and Kenny Chesney got married. I had no idea they were even dating. It seems bizarre to me, but I'm happy because that means she's not dating the uber-erotic Jack White, clearly leaving him open for me.

More Procrastination

After this, I am disconnecting my computer from the internet, so I only work on writing my paper. BUT, I just watched the trailer for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire!!! And I am rather excited.

A Defence of Poetry

Working on my final for British Romantic Lit, I read Shelley's A Defence of Poetry (ideally I suppose this would have been a re-reading, but it was a busy semester what with comps...and Buffy). It was rather amazing. Some particularly likeable quotes:

"Poetry is a sword of lightning, ever unsheathed, which consumes the scabbard that would contain it."

"Poetry ever communicates all the pleasure which men are capable of receiving: it is ever still the light of life; the source of whatever of beautiful, or generous, or true can have place in an evil time."

"All high poetry is infinite; it is as the first acorn, which contained all oaks potentially. Veil after veil may be undrawn, and the inmost naked beauty of the meaning never exposed."

That last one applies not only to poetry, but also to Christ, I think. It is why I study what I study, why I do what I do, why I live how I live.

Kingdom of Heaven

I saw Kingdom of Heaven last night. Cinematically, I enjoyed it. I've never been to the Middle East, and so the landscapes were wild and strange and beautiful. Orlando Bloom did an excellent job. The king (whose face one never sees) is played by Edward Norton, which I sadly did not realize until afterward. Emotionally, I was moved to tears and my soul ached as the war-mongers gathered their troops with the cry "God wills it." What affected me the most was the spiritual implications that I have already been wrestling with. Ideas about the separation of church and state and do I value that above even my church leading the state; is our current war really a result of a sincere desire to help people and do what is right, or is it economic convenience on a convenient platform; and, are there many paths to God or just one. I believe Christ's teachings of "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except by me," but how do I reconcile that with the Eastern religions that are full of committed, devout, pious, good people. If I allow for that, how can I still believe in moral absolutes?

Well, those are some of the issues the film raised for me; I'm curious to see how others react to it.

No Good

Last night I had a bad twenty minutes after class. I got a paper back in which I felt he condescendingly made inaccurate grammar changes. I looked at the cake I'd made to find the frosting had melted while driving from home to school, making the words "happy birthday" unintelligible. I then realized I had no candles. I felt like a failure at school, cooking, and life in general. I got to the party (after hitting Wal-Mart for candles because I'm going to get something right, gosh darnit) and proceeded to drink more than normal for myself. If I hadn't had to drive, I was in the mood just to drink and drink.

Today has been better, but I'm going to sit and grade, sulkily, until something better comes along. Maybe I'll see a movie tonight. Maybe I'll drink more.

At least, I cleaned my desk.

Baking Day!

A two layer cake, cupcakes (to test the cake flavor), a couple of batches of cookies...these are my goals for today.

What a Wonderful World

I have finished grading all of my research papers! Yay! I only got four and a half hours sleep last night, which is a rarity for me. Very little comes between me and six to eight hours. Now I still have final revisions and portfolios to grade, but those'll be of the wholistic, no comment variety and won't take quite as long.

Tomorrow is a friend's birthday, so I'm baking a cake for him. I figured I may as well bake cookies for my students (unusually, I haven't made them anything yet) and my small group. I'm excited to be domestic, though slightly worried. There's no way I can make a box cake (he's far too particular, I'd feel trashy), but I haven't made a cake from scratch in ages. I'm worried it won't turn out well. How am I to know unless I taste it? I can't very well come to the party with a cake missing a slice, but I don't really want to make two. Sigh. I'm so happy that these are the problems I'm worrying about now.

Of course, the semester isn't over yet. I still have to write finals and figure out student grades, but I'll blink and we'll be in the midst of summer. (I mean where did April go?) I'm looking forward to getting to my reading list that I've comprised this semester from being in classes where people reference works that everybody has read (except me). And watching movies! I get twitchy looking at my Blockbuster queue and thinking about tearing through it. All I've had time for lately is the first season of The Office (rather droll), which is all of six half-hour episodes. I haven't even watched Buffy for a week! And that is something.

Seven papers to go. It's like in video games when you've hit the boss twice and you know that three times will send him reeling.

A First

Okay so this isn't too exciting, but according to my site meter somebody came across my page through a search! I know Lij and others have nifty stories about what kooky searches brought people their way. The search phrase was "grading papers" and it wasn't Google, but Technorati. Still whoever that person was stayed to read about my grading woes. Sadly those troubles are not quite over, if I can finish twenty research papers today, I will have slain the beast of this semester. There will still be the kicking, thrashing about while in death throes (aka finals), but nothing will have the ability to strike me with a mortal wound.

Erasure! Erasure! Erasure!

The concert...was...awesome! I seriously think it is one of the top two or three concerts I've ever seen. So great. Gay men have such a talent for spectacle. And it was 80s pop music; anyone who knows me knows how much I love 80s music. The concert was absolutely delicious. I want to spend my summer driving around to the rest of their concerts that aren't sold out. There's one in Boston June 4th, too bad Em's baby won't have come at that point (probably) or else I could have had a real excuse to be there for it.

Speaking of gay men that I love, Rufus is going to be playing at Ravinia August 10th. Unfortunately, their site isn't working now, so I don't know if I can afford to go, if it's sold out, etc. But there's a strong possibility I'll be able to see him. Yay!