Greetings

I am back from my one month vacation to south Asia where I visited Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. I wanted to check out Shanghai, China but there was not enough time. I am heavily jet lagged and it's currently 4:52pm. I woke up around 3:44pm today. I've been in town since August 2nd but kept it quiet since I really needed time to myself. Updates after I get myself together and make several phone calls and try to rid myself of this awful headache.

Frustrations, frustrations, frustrations

A close friend as I were exchanging emails back and forth about upcoming plans for the next few weeks and she used a phrase that just irks me. I've asked her dozens and dozens of times (literally) during the five years of our friendship to refer my significant others as either A. their given first names or B. boyfriends. My requests had always gone ignored. However, today it finally occurred to me that I should explain to her my complicated, emotional reason for why I hated the term "your man" as opposed to "your boyfriend." She said to me in the email "Can your man give me piano lessons today?" After reading the end of that sentence, I went into somewhat of a rage. That term has always bothered me. I take that phrase literally by reasons that it sounds like enslavement or ownership rather than endearment (which was her offense). The way I see this is that human life isn't a commodity. People are people. It's a shame that today, humans are still being used as commodity in horrific ways. Take the Acholi children in Uganda for example who were stolen by the Lord's Resistance Army. Stealing children and using them as rebel soldiers against their own free will is enslavement and ownership. Young girls are used a sex slave due to their gender. These innocent children are the byproduct of political violence. Doesn't that just make your blood boil? My blood is at frying level, bring on the fried chicken! Having to call my significant other as my own personal creature just serves as a reminder of ownership. Just like the situation of human trafficking in Cambodia, Romania, Mexico, etc. Am I wrong to see it that way? If you believe so, then in my offense, the phrase "your man" or "my man" is slang. Sure, there are many variations of the phrase but I tend to see it as "Gurl, yo man be cheatin' on you." Why not step away from slang and use real terminolgy? There is absolutely nothing wrong with that statement, but the phrase is indeed slang. The reason why I take that phrase so literally is that it just serves as a reminder that enslavement still goes continues. This is something that I don't want to associate myself in. Maybe I'm taking it too far, but I tend to over-think things. Just to clarify, I see nothing wrong with everyone else making reference to their significant others as "your man" or "your woman" as long as it has nothing to do with me. I have no problem with people using that phrase and do not condemn those that do. It's their choice and as long as it isn't harming anyone else, I am all for it. I just don't like the term being referred to myself. I am probably taking it a bit too far, but I won't ever change my mind on it. I have given it much thought for the past five years and still have yet to change my decision on the term. After giving her a less condensed explanation of how I felt about the term, she agreed to stop calling my significant others (past, present and future) "my man." We've been friends for five years and she had always ignored my requests for her to stop. She always saw how uncomfortable I looked when she used that phrase. If she were truly my friend and cared so much about my well being, wouldn't she had honored my request five years ago and stop without me having to explain myself? If I say stop, it means stop. Honor it.

haha WHAT?!?!

Is anyone else watching the Senate Informational Hearing: The Policy Considerations of Proposed Agency Consolidations on the California Channel? HAHAA What is up with these presenters?? Well, just one of them. He doesn't seem to grasp the question being asked by Senator Alquist. He also seems pretty annoyed by her question. Yes, question, singular. Here goes the LAO to save his ass by answering his question on the federal financial aid process. Good crisis, yea? I can answer that question! Bulls eye for Ruby and I!

SJSU: Leslyn's Graduation

Mermaid and I attended Leslyn's graduation on the 23rd of May (Memorial Weekend) in San Jose, CA. The weather was perfect! Despite the perfect weather, Mermaid and I were shielding ourselves from the sun since we didn't have enough sunblock protection (I freckle easily and Mermaid would like to keep her peachy skin, silly girl). Before I left Elk Grove, I had to close down one of my accounts with a bank that was bought out by another bank. I didn't want to stay with the bank since I saw no need in doing so since the old bank is now non-existent and the policies of the new bank is just too familar with another bank I'm with. There goes one of the best old fashion bank where they all know your name with a small town feel. RIP Downey Savings. But closing the account was a bitch due to the policies of the new bank. Crisis, I tell ya! I don't want to go into the boring details of the simple task that needed to be done, so let's just say instead of spending 20-30 minutes, I actually spent over 2 hours dealing with the hairy situation. I should have closed the acount before it became US Bank, but that was my fault. This is how it's going to be. Bigger banks buying out smaller banks. Due to this annoyance, I was an hour behind on schedule for leaving for the Bay Area. I picked up Mermiad and Philliam and we went on our merry way blasting hardcore Disney shit and singing "Under the Sea" at the top of our Rastafarian lungs. We got to San Jose State University a little after 3:00pm, so we made it in time since the ceremony would begin at 4:00pm. Yay! How adorable is SHE? She pulls it off so well! We meet up with Russell. And finally! The grad girl herself! We begin fussing with her like mothers do. They spelled Leslyn's name wrong and even pronounced it wrong during the ceremony! WTF? That dress makes me look big. Or am I that big?? -___-;; Us friends. We're missing someone... Gurd! I look so stupid... But look at the girlies!!! Mermaid and Russell catching up. Philliam reading the program. Congrats Leslyn in completing her Bachelors in Studio Practice! If you need a photographer, I know a good one.

Samuel Brannan

Funny man he was. All of his major accomplishments were usually mixed in with his alcoholic behavior. I wish I had chosen to do my research on him instead of Ida B. Wells since he is a Californian, why not write a paper on my own people of the past, right? Don't get me wrong, Ida B. Wells is a woman who I truly admire, but there is something funny about Sam Brannan's history that would've been bizarrily fun to study. He was a great Californian entrepreneuer who couldn't hold his liquor. At one point in California history, he was the richest man in the state. It was him who had made a lot of good impact on the city of San Francisco (one of his landmarks: Brannan St.). He lost all his money when he divorced his wife who took half of everything he owned (lots of lands, buildings, etc. meaning he had to liquidize 'em to pay the dues!). What got me interested in him? It was by one of his quote when he spoke to a group of potential investors in what is now known as Calistoga, the resort town he founded. He meant to say that the town would someday be known as the Saratoga of California but the alcholic beverages got the best of him. Instead he said "Calistoga of Sarafornia." Bless his heart.

Ahem...

These are from last Friday's news. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing to further cut school funding by $680 million and eliminate in-home care services for the majority of current recipients, his Department of Finance announced today. Source: http://www.sacbee.com/topstories/story/1902345.html The governor was in Livermore this morning dedicating the "world's largest, highest-energy laser system," right around the time his Department of Finance was announcing $3 billion more in state spending cuts, including less money for schools and adult daycare. Source: http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/capitolalertlatest/022671.html o_O