2005-01-24 - 10:36 a.m.

First of all, thanks to those who have sent me wishes of wellness during my recovery. I didn't take any painkillers today, since I am trying to stay awake so I can study. Of course, writing this entry totally counts as studying. But yeah, I have Faulkner and censorship articles to read, so I will bear the pain and use it to keep me from curling up on the library couch.

Second, I have been horribly remiss in forgetting to welcome Pearljammer--who will forever after be known as Texbex--to the diaryland community. Guys, this is one of my best friends since senior year of high school, so treat her right. Check her out at http://texbex.diaryland.com

I wanted to respond to Sars's latest entry over on Tomato Nation, not that I think she has ever read this diary or ever will. It's just that this last entry was about things that you should make sure you do after the age of 25. I didn't like this list. I felt like it was more of a "pet peeves" list than anything else, with some very basic pieces of advice mixed in such as "If you're sick, go see a doctor." I say pet peeves because while I certainly agree that a person should be able to talk about things other than college or their job, I feel like it hasn't reached an epidemic proportion where it needs to be made an issue. And besides, the stories that Shkbob and I have exchanged about our various job/grad school situations have kept both of us laughing for more than a year now.

So rather than slamming Sars's points, however slammable they may be, I decided to figure out my own. So, here you go: let go of 90% of high school shit (keep enough so that you'll remember the important lessons) and 80% of college shit (ditto). Realize that it is virtually impossible to change another person's behavior, and that it's a lot better to ask questions than to give advice. Be willing to let go of the human wastelands in your life. Don't hold grudges. Take care of medical, psychological, work, car, and home troubles ASAP. Ask for things if you want them; no one is telepathic, and wouldn't the world be terrifying if people were? Keep watching cartoons. Give money to charities. Walk into any room like you own the place, realizing that you should treat the people you encounter like honored guests in your home. Finally, in the immortal words of the Sexy Finger Champs, "We'll all be skinny in heaven! Don't let that brownie bring you down!"

Yeah, that's all I got. Oh, and as another direct response to Sars, thank you notes are nowhere near as important as treating your friends with love and respect in general. No one in my family has ever sent a thank you note, and most people consider us very well-bred and haven't complained. Personally, I like to take people out to dinner to thank them for things. Find the ceremony that works for you and go with it.

Finally, two of my beloved peeps have ordered me to take a survey. As I could never refuse my sister or Newgyptian, I must comply.

THREE NAMES YOU GO BY: As no one else has put their own name, I'll go with three nicknames and who gets to use them 1) Ru (Ms. Firecracker and associated Austinites only) 2) Rudimus (Alabama Slamma only) 3) Diva (originated with Fag Hag, but anyone can call me that one)

THREE SCREEN NAMES YOU HAVE HAD: I've only had two: NotoriousRRZ and ZapRudy (derived from Zap Mama, not the Zapruder films--I'm obsessed with Afropean a capella, not the Kennedy assassination

THREE THINGS YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF: 1) I can laugh at myself 2) I can remain calm in most crises 3) I try to be there for people who need me

THREE THINGS YOU DON'T LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF : 1) My tendency to gossip (I am so not doing well with that resolution, although I have been better about not naming names) 2) My capacity to procrastinate (Please see this diary) 3) My laziness

THREE PARTS OF YOUR HERITAGE: So far, people have gone with distribution of ethnicity, but I'll mix things up a little and describe aspects of my Latino heritage 1) A desire to feed people, manifesting itself in a love of cooking and of making more food than anyone could eat 2) A love of physical affection: I prefer to hug and cheek-kiss when I say hello and good-bye 3) To borrow from Dave Chappelle, a love of electric piano and drums put together

THREE THINGS THAT SCARE YOU: 1) Sharks: I always stay up against the back wall when visiting an aquarium 2)Spiders: I still freak out in the Shelob scenes in LOTR 3) The results of the last election

THREE OF YOUR EVERYDAY ESSENTIALS: 1) The internet 2) Juice 3) Fresca, cause I'm mad cool like that

THREE THINGS YOU ARE WEARING RIGHT NOW: 1) Glasses (everyone I know so far has said this one) 2) Socks 3) Jeans (I'm boring, I know)

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE BANDS OR MUSICAL ARTISTS: Like Dolo, I find this one too easy: Tori Amos, Ani DiFranco, Dar Williams. NEXT!

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE SONGS (AT THE MOMENT): 1) Le Tigre "Viz" (Yay! Queer liberation! Dyke power! Woohoo!) 2) Zap Mama "Miss Q'N" (I finally looked at the lyrics and discovered that "South and starry" is really "Southern stories") 3) Erykah Badu "I Want You"

THREE NEW THINGS YOU WANT TO TRY IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS: 1) French 2) Cooking tofu in a manner other than grilling 3) A latin dance class

THREE THINGS YOU WANT IN A RELATIONSHIP: 1) Respect 2) Great conversations 3) Someone who likes They Might Be Giants

TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE: 1) I am one eighth Irish 2) My favorite 80s band is Depeche Mode 3) I hate jam bands

THREE PHYSICAL THINGS ABOUT THE SEX(ES) YOU DATE THAT APPEAL TO YOU: 1) Eyes 2) Smile 3) Shoulders

THREE THINGS YOU JUST CAN'T DO: 1) Skate (ice or roller) 2) Ride a bike 3) Ski (water or snow). Apparently I have huge problems when my feet--or, at least, the soles of my shoes--are not in direct contact with the surface I am trying to navigate.

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE HOBBIES 1) Reading scifi/fantasy novels (reading anything else counts as work) 2) Online journaling 3) People watching while walking through cities (for some reason, I can't people watch while sitting down)

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO REALLY BADLY RIGHT NOW 1) Make my back feel perfect 2) Make out with the guy five computers over 3) Drink coffee (laying off caffeine for duration of recuperation)

THREE CAREERS YOU'RE CONSIDERING: 1) Professor of English 2) Director (of plays) 3) Writer (of . . . stuff, I don't know)

THREE PLACES YOU WANT TO GO ON VACATION: 1) India 2) China 3) London (been there before, want to go spend a few months clubbing there)

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE: 1) Have a family 2) Visit every continent 3) Publish stuff

At this point, the survey asks for three ways in which I am stereotypically a boy and stereotypically a girl. Having read way too much gender theory, I can no longer answer these questions. I'm stereotypically me, how about that?

THREE CELEB CRUSHES: 1) Orlando Bloom 2) Ed Norton 3) Paul Rudd

THREE PEOPLE THAT HAVE TO TAKE THIS SURVEY : 1) TexBex 2) Narami 3) GreatSirG

Alright, that's enough procrastinating. I'm outta here.

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