Cake or Death?

akawhiplady @ 2009-12-05T01:45:00

2009-12-05T06:45:08Z

So, the grandparents flew in from Lebanon a few weeks ago and should be staying through February I think. My dad's sister also flew in last week. It's her first trip to America. She's leaving tomorrow cause she has like a damn job and a kid to take care of or some crazy shit like that.

Black Friday I got food poisoning, I think it was from chic fil a but I have no concrete evidence of this. At like, 4 AM I went to the bathroom and NEARLY PASSED OUT OMFG. Had to wake mom and dad up so that I wouldn't pass out and break my damn neck off or something. Then they sat up with me for a while then I VOMITED VIOLENTLY at about 5 AM. It was pretty epic, dad counted like 8 heaves and he claims most people have about 2 fewer. It was so epic that I passed out right before throwing up and woke up in middle of heaves. I had like, no senses working when I was first coming out of it but I felt myself convulsing and I was like WHAT THE CRAP. Then I felt awesome, so I went to sleep. Then I got up feeling bad again and dad said mom should take me to urgent care so they could put me on fluids or something, and I was all up for it but then I got so nervous at the thought of vomiting in the car that I vomited right then and there! But then I felt great again so we rushed to the urgent care while I was still feeling up. I felt ok, they decided I was hydrated, and got ready to send me home. I stood up from my patient's chair, took two steps and had to sit down in another chair. THEN I PASSED OUT AGAIN!

So they put me on fluids, which they apparently keep in a fucking freezer cause my whole right side was icy by the time it was done. Then I went home and slept for 22 hours (they gave me a shot of some anti-nausea stuff in my BUTT that hurt really bad and it was supposed to put me right to sleep - of course they gave me this before they decided to put me on fluids, so I was all cold and sleepy and miserable during the last hour or so there) and was just fine.

Also, dad's chemo seems to be working as of the last time they checked it out like a month ago. He says he's losing his hair but it doesn't look like he's lost any at all.

akawhiplady @ 2009-10-23T21:29:00

2009-10-24T01:44:33Z

About a week ago, the new Chekov from Star Trek popped into my mind and I've been on an Anton Yelchin bender ever since.

I've watched:

Fierce People
Law and Order: CI (episode Tru Love)
Alpha Dog
Charlie Bartlett
Hearts in Atlantis

He's just got these big old puppy eyes and tiny figure that makes you want to BEAT AND/OR RAPE AND/OR SHOOT HIM TO DEATH which happens in every single one of those movies I've seen so far (except for Star Trek, but that doesn't count). Obviously this is quite agreeable to my viewer needs.

It's disconcerting, however, that in each of these movies where his character is victimized (and usually quite violently), he just happens to have a mother who is neglectful, or absent, or just "bad." It's a shame.

I still have a small list of movies left to go. I bet they will fall into this pattern.

akawhiplady @ 2009-10-14T23:03:00

2009-10-15T03:18:00Z

Quite excited - not right this second, but was earlier. This semester is my theory class for Anthro (which is supposed to prepare you for senior seminar) and we have to write three papers through the semester, 8 pages each. I put the first off for longer than I should have. I spent like, 3 days holed up in the student computing center writing it. The professor, Starrett, is a really funny and nice guy (kind of stern at first glance) but apparently he doesn't like to give A's. A couple people who sit next to me in class had him for a different class and they promised me that for him, a B is an A. In fact, the syllabus basically agrees with that - the rubric says "An A is everything a B is, but goes beyond. Is a joy to read." I interpreted that to mean it is a B work but with extra smooth finesse.

There are 18 people in our class, and it was due last week, and he came into class today looking angry as fuck and at the end of class before he gave out the papers he told us more or less: "I've had a horrible few days grading these. They are not the work I'd expect from a senior. There are a few D's in there, a few C's and even some F's. There are a couple of B's. The people who came in to talk to me about their papers during the writing process did better than the rest. I don't want you to feel panicked - there is still time left to fix this - but I do want you to feel bad."

I didn't go in to get help with mine so it was quite nerve wracking up to that point even though I was super excited all day to get the grades back. He supposedly gives really long, in-depth comments in the margins, and I always love feedback, even when it's bad (cause I'm masochistic about my writing). His speech left me figuring that B's were the highest he'd given out this time. Imagine my surprise when there were barely any comments on my paper - just a few vague markings where he apparently approved of what I wrote, and then a comment at the end saying it was sophisticated, thoughtful and elegantly written. I got me an A! No where to go now but down, haha.

Unrelated but deserving of note: dad had his surgery (like a fuckin' month ago, where have I been with updating this thing?) and he's been doing the chemo for a couple weeks now. There are a couple small spots on his liver. I guess it's too soon to know how well it's working, but we remain positive.

akawhiplady @ 2009-07-24T20:02:00

2009-07-24T17:15:05Z

Day before yesterday I cleverly deduced that alia sabotaged my precious christmas stocking makeup. She became mildly perturbed when I informed mother that "there is a possibility that your daughter is a retard," at which point fisticuffs occured and my glasses got mashed in the process. They're functional, but one of the lenses won't pop all the way back in and they sit crookedly on my face (moreso than usual.)

Yesterday my parents' old friend Louay came to visit; he was friends with them in college and left charlotte when I was about 3, in 1993, to live in Lebanon. I believe they hadn't seen him since then - or mom hasn't anyway - and I never really remembered him or saw pictures of us together, but it was still really fun. He was really nice and funny and talked about my maternal grandmother and how mom and dad used to make fun of him for carrying a pen around in his shirt pocket at all times.

In the evening we went to a roof party where I made friends with a nice little girl named Yasmina who is about 6, and approximately my 3rd cousin. She does a remarkable impression of a small zombie (with growls and bites.) And also a stripper (those are her moms words.)

Today we went to a brunch-lunch at the little girl's house. I didn't want to go because I've had a spectacular headache where it hurts to touch my right eyeball and look in my peripherals, but the best I got away with was a postponement while mom took Alia to the hospital for strep throat. in the end, we had fun. The little girl's mom, Julia, has a very pretty home with a great deck on the 7th floor. So, plenty of shade and breeze.

Somewhere along the way we used up all the internet. Apparently there was a download limit, but to us download means like, limewire, whereas apparently it means stuff like youtube as well. So now we're back to rudimentary internet sharing on my uncle's computer.

akawhiplady @ 2009-07-20T09:57:00

2009-07-20T14:15:36Z

Day before yesterday, Manal drove us to Byblos. It was strange having the ocean on one side of your and mountains curling around the rest of you. They're just so much more immediate here; when you drive to the mountains in north carolina you barely see them, it's so gradual. And these mountains are lit up because they've got people on them - our mountains have like, squirrels on them. It's pretty dazzling, how the land rises up and the little pinpricks of lights all over them. There were some fireworks, and frankly, against the backdrop of the mountains, they're really... redundant feeling. We ate at a restaurant. I ordered a banana split and they never brought it. We stopped by a shop afterwards to pick up a drink and they had a baby squirrel in a bird cage. I let it sniff my finger before I tried to pet it, but mom just shoved her fingers in there and loved on it. It was apparently not prone to biting.

Yesterday Ahmad took us (excluding Alia, who was sick enough to stay home) to Tyre where we partook in walking through an old town thing that was just, surreally old. They were like inhabited catacombs or something I can't really describe. The peoples homes were mixed in with markets. We saw the chateaux de la mer which, of course, was antique beyond comprehension for americans. We then ate at this place next to the sea, but it was at that time that I began to feel flu-like symptoms (shivers, hotness, soreness.) The service was shitty but the atmosphere, I guess, makes up for it. The food was alright but I'd lost my apetite the day before and it hadn't returned completely. There was a family sitting diagonal to us, two tanned, dirty-blonde parents and their two tanned, platinum blonde childre. The woman was tall, and the man looked like Ralph fiennes. I think the son had some sort of mild retardation. Ahmad thought they were Swedish, but I thought the children were speaking German - when the parents spoke it wasn't so clear.

Today Ahmad's babymama came over and got into a fight with my grandmother and it involved slapping and shoving and yelling in arabic. sarah was crying in the bathtub, and it was pretty sad and rather strange. I still haven't completely recovered my apetite. We've all been sick since practically when we arrived.

akawhiplady @ 2009-07-12T02:51:00

2009-07-12T06:58:52Z

I'm at the Dubai international airport. We got in a couple hours ago after a 13-or-so hour flight from NYC. We left Charlotte at about 7 AM, right now in charlotte it is about 3 AM and here it is nearly 11 AM. The long flight was really fun in the sense that they fed us constantly and there were like a million movies and television shows to choose from. I fell asleep to old episodes of The Simpsons (which i don't regularly watch anyway) for about 3 of those hours. They fed us dinner first, then a sandwich, then breakfast. Delish. The sandwich was totally slathered in mayonaise though and I regret eating it - I only ate it out of reflex, and because I didn't know if they'd feed us again (alia said I'm like a dog in that way.)

We'll be at the airport here for another 6ish hours, then we'll fly into Beirut at which point I will hopefully be allowed to sleep.

Flickr, and okcupid are forbidden in dubai, it's kind of depressing. If I lived here, where would I get my porn? and you know, upload pictures and whatever. Porn is what matters.

akawhiplady @ 2009-06-22T03:00:00

2009-06-22T07:04:33Z

I was cleaning up my room today and I must have upset a delicate balance in the ecosystem cause I just got bit by some bug on my bed and that never happens under normal conditions. The bugs do what they want to do, I do what I want to do, no harm no foul. When I showed Alia the bites it was like two huge mosquito bites byt they've come together to be some mutant growth on my arm. It's sort of disturbing, like a huge fat wad. It doesn't look infected or anything.

akawhiplady @ 2009-06-14T22:19:00

2009-06-15T02:29:03Z

My developmentally challenged mother slammed my finger in the car door the other night and stared at me while I pleaded for her to open the door cause she thought I was fucking with her. The appendage survived the trauma. Mother is forgiven after a back scratch was obtained from the perp.

Been watching Heroes with mom. We're beginning season 3. It's fairly exciting, but we're fairly boring during the summer.

It's a constant struggle in this house to be able to sleep past 2pm when the brother figure insists on playing drums at 11:45 in the morning. As I am arguably the best and most importantest person in this household I find it only fitting that I be able to sleep well into the afternoon with minimal disturbance.

We're going to Lebanon in a month for a month. Obviously I'm distressed at the thought of my rabbit being in her cage for a month straight and also at the probable lack of elliptical machine on which I can work my flibby flabby thighs into a rock hard strangulation mechanism.

akawhiplady @ 2009-05-27T00:10:00

2009-05-27T04:15:26Z

Tomorrow we're resuming the tradition of sushi wednesdays. Should be fun, Oscar may come. I would like to become acquainted with him outside of awkward run-ins in my own home.

It seems like it's going to be raining the rest of the week. I find this to be disheartening. I don't generally take Hannah on walks when it's raining and with a week between walkings our muscles will certainly turn to mush. I guess I should get into the habit of doing it rain or shine. I don't see the point of summer if it's just going to rain.

akawhiplady @ 2009-05-24T22:38:00

2009-05-25T02:45:17Z

pictures I got developed the other day. first one is at the lake walking to our boat, second is Alia in a life jacket, third is my dog Hannah in our neighborhood.

more at my flickr, they're mostly us at the lake during sunset. I'm pretty happy with them.

akawhiplady @ 2009-05-24T02:46:00

2009-05-24T07:03:22Z

Went to pick a load of film up from bigg's today. I had three rolls of color and one black and white. Unfortunately, there was a misunderstanding and they processed the black and white as if it were color which ruined the roll. It's disappointing because my black and white rolls consistently come out clear and sharp, but I don't remember what would have been on the roll so it's only a vague loss. They offered me a free roll and free processing which makes up for it well enough. Besides, the man I spoke with was much nicer than the usual guys I deal with so I still manage to consider it good service. It doesn't hurt that for once the color film came out really nicely and vividly; very encouraging.

I've seen the Star Trek movie twice and quite enjoyed it. I seem to be the only person who really, really cried during it. Tears streaming down my face crying. During the parts involving Kirk and Spock's respective mothers.

I'm now taking the appropriate actions and becoming acquainted with the original series. A few months ago I was planning on watching some Star Trek: The Next Generation due to my love for Patrick Stewart's character Avery Bullock on American Dad, haha. In any case I feel rather like I've impregnanted Star Trek and am doing the right thing by going back and marrying it.

akawhiplady @ 2009-04-27T23:56:00

2009-04-28T04:14:17Z

In the last few week I've been reacquainting myself with Buffy and Angel. I've gotten through the first three seasons of Angel in an astounding amount of time (when finals are around the corner it's probably ill advised to watch 7 hours of anything a day, by the way). I'm going to pace out the next two seasons because it's just too sweet to not savor. Besides, unlike Buffy, I've never seen more than maybe 6 episodes of angel before now, so it's a sexy new experience. The fact that FYE sells the seasons for 24 dollars each doesn't hurt, either.

In real life news: Today there was a Student Organization banquet and award ceremony. It was me, Austin, Mark, Jesse and Nate. Jesse ran into Nate and invited him (only RSVP'd four people, but whatever, not gonna get mad about it). Jesse and Nate left after food - which turned out to be an extraordinary buffet dinner, praise jesus - which is also alright since they were both pretty obnoxious (cue Nate wearing sunglasses and listening to his iPod while the Distinguished Speaker spoke.) We were somewhat underdressed. It was a good time.

This summer I'm not taking any classes. I'm going to chill. Just. Chill. (and watch Angel.)

akawhiplady @ 2009-04-07T22:49:00

2009-04-08T03:07:56Z

I saw Choke today. It was good. Ever since we got this nicely sized flat screen television in the living room we've been renting movies out the wazoo. In the coming days I will watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail as well as Hound Dog (the lulzy hardcore Dakota Fanning rape film).

We also sat around and watched several episodes of season seven Buffy which was a nice trip down memory lane. Ah, 2002 was such an innocent year. Wow, was I seriously only 12 when Buffy ended? So young and yet so into hardcore Angle/Spike fics. We could only watch the first episodes on any given disc because dad lost the remote to the TV, so it was slim pickings.

akawhiplady @ 2009-01-11T22:34:00

2009-01-12T03:46:07Z

I ordered by books used from amazon this year because I was influenced to do so. I know they're not going to get here without being about a week late (class starts tomorrow). I'm thinking that's going to be a problem when it comes to calculus and chemistry in particular so I may end up with buying doubles.

Chemistry lab will be on thursday so I have until then to get my lab supplies.

sounds and words

2009-01-09T06:07:21Z

I just finished reading one of the 'love stories' in the anthology of love stories I bought a long time ago and I zoned out for a minute; I was looking at this picture of a tree and I realized that I had a tune stuck in my head and it was repeating over and over. I thought they were words but when I tried to really be aware of what I was thinking it turned out the words were just nonsensical syllables. It's still ringing and I've counted nine syllables. The syllables seem to be grouped in two. The second group seem to say 'wish he was,' but the H in 'he' is silent, so it sounds like "wishy was," but I'm sure that's not what it is because that's just sounds and it feels like it might be words.

So weird.

I got new glasses:

School's starting back up on monday. It's been a long break but of course I didn't take advantage of it to be productive and of course I can't decide if I'd like it to go on longer or not.

akawhiplady @ 2008-12-09T21:52:00

2008-12-10T02:54:02Z

I have a flickr now - anyone else have one?

http://flickr.com/photos/jkarout/

akawhiplady @ 2008-12-01T04:40:00

2008-12-01T09:42:09Z

I just finished a paper I put off for WEEKS in about 2 hours.

I... I have no clue why I do this, EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

I have two and a half papers due in the next two weeks. This time, using these last two hours as inspiration, I'm GOING to get shit done and I'm GOING to do it well. Fuck.

akawhiplady @ 2008-11-04T23:26:00

2008-11-05T04:33:39Z

HAHAHA

YEAH

YEAH.

HAHA.

FUCK YES.

OBAMA :D

akawhiplady @ 2008-11-04T08:47:00

2008-11-04T13:58:39Z

I have become a woman; I voted. Obama, duh.

He was at UNCC yesterdaaaay and I didn't go because I suck. I even took Alia with me so we could see the rally but beforehand Jesse was leading us and Eber all around campus and by the time it was established that he was leading us on a wild goose chase (trying to find the the relocated site of the FTA meeting) we were all like, fuck it. In retrospect I think we really should've gone, but hey. What's done is done.

Also, on that note, I have a history exam at noonish which is fucking ridiculous. I mean, what kind of teacher schedules an exam on election day? Granted, Eber's professor Oscar Lansen did, but he's like the fucking, head of the whatever department, tenured old guy professor. This bitch is barely 30.

Also - I dropped the russian anthro course. It was really just a mockery of all things academic. It was a farce. A FARCE!

akawhiplady @ 2008-10-22T23:38:00

2008-10-23T03:42:19Z

Joe Biden's going to be at UNCC tomorrow but it's going to be hella early (like, 1030, admittance starting at 830). I won't lie and say I'm considering going. I wouldn't get out of bed that early for Stephen Colbert unless I was guaranteed a good parking space and a quick fuck in the back room with him.

akawhiplady @ 2008-09-29T02:32:00

2008-09-29T06:44:35Z

Tuesday was my 18th, I got a 2004 honda civic. it's pretty sweet.

I got my legs waxed the other day and I'll tell you what, it didn't hurt. Also it's not all it's cut out to be. It's superior to shaving, but it's not like god wiped his hands over you and you were left smooth like a baby's ass.

If you ever get the urge to watch Pretty Baby with Brooke Shields, just... resist. It's costumes are gorgeous, it's plot is stupid as fuck. I've never been more uncomfortable than watching prepubescent Brooke Shields run around naked. Susan Sarandon was extremely hot, though.

Watched a PBS one-hour documentary on Genie the feral child with the FTA today. It was a subpar documentary. I would've prefered something more indepth about the aspects of feral children, but it was just a biography about the specific girl. It was a good watch, just not what I'd expected.

At some point after the documentary everyone disappeared but me and Nate and we decided to build a fort in the living room. There was something about holding the suite hostage in the name of a more militant FTA. The fort was structurally unsound because it was made from some random table ontop of a bunch of rocking chairs. Then we got bored and I went home.

spoilers.

2008-09-22T04:09:23Z

mood: shocked. astounded.

I got this movie Fat Girl by Catherine Breillat from netflix the other day. It's french and about two sisters, one fat and one skinny. There's more too it, there's stuff about sex. It was good but it was agonizingly slow in parts. 10 minutes left in the movie and the family is driving home from the beach.

A MAN BREAKS INTO THE CAR

STABS THE OLDER SISTER IN THE HEAD WITH AN ICE PICK

MOLESTS AND STRANGLES THE MOTHER

TAKES THE YOUNGER SISTER INTO THE WOODS WHERE HE RAPES HER

yeah. that lasts all of one minute (30 of the seconds being the rape)

and then it's over.

basically ROCKS FALL; EVERYONE DIES

akawhiplady @ 2008-09-17T21:19:00

2008-09-18T01:21:42Z

on friday BJ's having his birthday. on sunday it's the first meeting of the FTA (basically the athiest club) at jesse's place.

and right now i consider opening a can of tuna.

akawhiplady @ 2008-09-16T00:53:00

2008-09-16T04:54:25Z

THEY PUT SEASON 1 OF AMERICAN DAD BACK UP ON HULU

REJOICE OMG

I HAD A DREAM THIS HAPPENED... IVE JUST BEEN LIVING OFF OF THE SEASON 3 EPISODES THAT THEY LEFT ME FOR WEEKS. IVE SEEN THE WHOLE SEASON ABOUT 5 TIMES... ITS JUST... IM CRYING FROM JOY

akawhiplady @ 2008-08-30T13:19:00

2008-08-30T17:26:18Z

So were at a venue waiting for the msi concert to start. I didn't intend on coming but I was coerced

It starts at like 8 and its now about 1. Talk about overzealous, amirite?

I don't really listen to the band but its something to do other than the copious amounts of reading ineed to.

Mom just called, apprently they just saw Jimmy urine in the taco place but they didn't say anything. Cool, whatever.

At least I'm in the shade.