To Vote or Not To Vote:

(that should never be a question! VOTE!)

So after watching Memphis beat Gonzaga yesterday (how sweet it is!), I went and early voted for the Presidential Primary...just ahead of Super Tuesday. It was a truly "female" event as my Mother came along as well.

Don't worry; I'm not going to get all political on you (as in pandering for one candidate, etc.)...I just wanted to mention how alarmingly powerful and special the VOTING experience truly is! If you are at least 18, be sure to register! If you need help: Declare Yourself!

The last three times I have voted (2004, 2006, and 2008) I have gone along with a friend or family member. As far as I know, we have only voted for the same person ONCE! People with different ideas CAN be friends!

If you have time to spare, you can always volunteer for a campaign. I spent one night in 2006, calling people on behave of the candidate for Senate I supported. NO! I didn't just get a phonebook and started dialing! I went to his headquarters and volunteered my time.

Four years ago, I was able to see a candidate speak at a rally downtown. It was very thrilling and the crowd was very excited and loud. It was like attending a concert, but more was at stake! Somehow, I found myself front and center and even got to shake hands and take pictures.

&

THIS YEAR, I get to be on a College Campus during a Presidential Election Year! Waaaaa-hoooooo!

/geek out.

~~J

Sets & Abstract Relationships:

A is a subset of B.

But really, it looks more like A C B to my mind...maybe to yours as well?

So begins all the new little symbols I have to learn in my Foundations of Mathematics class. It truly is like learning a new language, although I don't get to go on a fancy trip to "Math Land" and attempt to use { }, ⊂, and ∈ correctly for another two weeks (our first exam).

I'll always have to put these things into terms I understand!

{Memphis > Gonzaga} or Memphis is Greater than Gonzaga and should win the game this morning.

&

They are both part of the same set (basketball teams) so I guess I could actually say that Memphis ∈ Gonzaga.

*whew*

I almost forgot to mention that my textbook arrived 3 hours before class on Tuesday! I decided to race home between Work & History and saw it jammed in the mailbox. How is that for perfect timing?

Also, Preston was born Monday morning. He is the first child of one of my friends--and her family are big U of M supporters. Don't worry, it's not lost on me that Monday the Tigers were ranked NUMBER 1 (for the first time in a long time) in a couple national basketball polls.

So goes Preston, so goes the Tigers.

And Preston is doing JUST FINE!

~~J

Say it ain't Heath:

Heath Ledger 1979-2008

I will never forget this scene from 10 Things I Hate About You from 1999. I can't tell you how many times I have seen this film--it was the perfect "thinking" teen flick and modern rendition of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. This is probably how I will always see him.

Very Sad.

~~J

Late Night: Sports.

Anyone else up after Midnight this morning?

I was.

& because of a lot of sleeping (aka Super Cold)--I was wide awake and completely enthralled with Dark Federer, I mean Roger Federer as he held on for dear life during his 5-setter in Australia. It went on for 4+ hours and I only caught HALF of it!

Too bad Andy Roddick didn't survive his 5-setter the night before...

Rafa aka The Pirate is set to play tonight (or super early in the morning, our time) and I am looking forward to that match vs. Mathieu!

I have requested off the latter part of the RMK Championships next month, but I have yet to purchase tickets. I mentioned John Isner last summer and it looks as if he has a Wild Card into the 2008 Memphis tournament. HOW COOL! Someone was listening to me! (very unlikely but I hope I get to see him in action)

*this is the place where I completely ignore the fact UNC lost to Maryland today*

~~J

The Good, The Bad & Super Cold:

So I have survived the first week of class (Spring Semester) & a Super Cold.

*insert cheers here*

History Class > Math Class = Super Cold

Which basically means:

I love my History Class (US History to 1877)...we've met twice and I can tell you this much already. It felt like "story time" almost, "story time" with note taking. My professor is both fair and knowledgeable. Lovely qualities to have as a professor (as opposed to disorganized and flighty).

I really really fear Math (Math Foundations aka really crazy stuff like Set Theory). Where did this branch of Mathematics come from and really, what is the point? This is making me yearn for Algebra. I'll give the first person $$ who has proof (in writing) I would ever miss algebra. YEARN for Algebra? REALLY?

Also, I ordered the textbook online (to save $30) and it might not arrive until Wednesday. I have class on Tuesday night. OY!

Super Cold came into my life around 1am on Tuesday morning. We've been fighting one another ever since. I finally caved this evening and left work early. The Pharmacy has become a breeding ground for such sickness! I've personally handled 10+ people this week with Tamiflu perscriptions.

Super Cold and Math are pretty much the same as far as I'm concerned.

Oddly enough, Super Cold seems to be on the way out while Math is just beginning.

*le sigh*

~~J

My (imagined) Sitcom Life:

I think there should be a rule.

When you go to the mailbox and put in something very important, there should be a soundtrack of massive applause that automatically begins to play.

Very loudly.

Yes, I realize I don’t live in a sitcom.

But that’s what I was thinking this morning when I finally sent away my first Scholarship application (ever, in the history of Janet). I heard applause and cat calls. Or maybe that was just the construction workers because I had to run to the mailbox to beat the lovely USPS truck.

Just kidding. There are no construction workers nearby, but I did have to run (or jog or shuffle along quickly) to the mailbox.

Yes, I realize I don’t live in a sitcom, but if I did there would’ve been catcalls.

So begins the anxious Mailbox Watch of 2008 because selection announcements are mailed by April 25, 2008. Goodness.

While I’m watching the mailbox, I’ll be looking for a response from the University of Memphis. I submitted my “Re-Admittance as an Adult, Transfer Student” Application this weekend as well.

I did that online though, so the fanfare happened under the watchful glow of the laptop screen.

Classes actually start tomorrow for me. It's gonna be strange being on campus two days a week instead of 4 (or 5 like Summer session). I'm mildly excited. Who am I kidding?

If this were a sitcom, you'd see the little hearts dancing above my head.

~~J

Triple Threat (by the numbers):

North Carolina: 16-0
Memphis: 14-0
My taxes? DONE!

Classes THIS semester: 2
Work Schedule: Full-Time
13 hour days? 0!!!

Days until Spring (the season): 70
Days until Spring semester: 5
Spring Break: March 3-9

Months until my Birthday: 4.5
Months until Fall Semester: 7.5
Months until 2009: 11.5

McCain & Huckabee: 1
Obama & Clinton: 1
Days until "Super Tuesday": 26


That's about the sound of it.

~~J

Second Half:

So am I the only Memphian rooting for the Tigers to lose tonight?

(the CLEMSON TIGERS, don't freak out on me)

The Memphis vs Pepperdine game yesterday afternoon was quite interesting. It gave me a chance to actually watch our Tigers play. I always seem to be working when they are...working it on the court.

Tonight I get to watch my 'Heels in their ACC opener. It's been pretty close and I admit to chewing off one fingernail already. I just have several negative Clemson memories to draw upon (especially the upset of 'Heels in 1996 during the ACC tournament).

Speaking of heels, I'd love to learn how to knit SOCKS! This would require me to get over my absolute fear of double-point needles. I hope to make it to STASH (in same location as the former Yarn Studio) this Spring during their "Knit Nights" on Thursdays after class.

That was completely random.

I seriously hope I don't lose anymore fingernails tonight.

They're playing in Littlejohn Coliseum too! ACK!

~~J

p.s. I saw my first film of 2008 (In the Land of Women) and I completely over-thought it. Thanks Film Class.

This Film is NOT yet Rated:

(the title of a documentary I watched in 2007)

So it is very custom for people to make LISTS at the end and or beginning of the New Year and I must follow suit.

Of course, being the crazy "movie buff" that I claim to be--I have compiled and or painstakingly attempted to gather all the films I have watched LAST year. (Wow. LAST year.) The grand total is 103 or something very similar. I keep losing count.

I won't post the entire list, but the 12 that stood out as I was making the list as my favorite films VIEWED in 2007. I think only five of these actually were shown in theaters in 2007. HA!

Thanks to Netflix, I can't remember the last film I paid $8 to see. These are in alphabetic order ONLY, I can't really put them in any other order:

A Good Year
A Love Song for Bobby Long
A Walk on the Moon
An Inconvenient Truth
Evening
Little Children
Miss Potter
Notes on a Scandal
Stranger than Fiction
The Player
Veronica Guerin
Waitress

Similarities in these? (click for trailers and or the official sites)

Patrick Wilson & Cate Blanchett star in TWO of them, but not together.
One film features an old English professor in New Orleans (and really changed my life).

There are a few love affairs...a journalist murdered for uncovering a drug ring (true story)...a writer suffering from writer's block...and a crumbling Earth (another true story).

It's all good stuff. I wonder what I'll discover in 2008.

~~J