RIP

Gerald Ford has died.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/12/26/ford.dead.ap/index.html

While I don't consider myself a Republican, I do respect Ford more than most any president in modern history. Sure he wasn't elected, but who would have been a better person to help reunite the nation after Nixon's presidency? He was the right man for the job when it was handed to him, and he will be dearly missed.

I have just seen the most exciting 30 seconds of C-Span ever. No, I don't watch it usually, but I felt compelled to stop there this time and just see what was up with the FCC vs Fox lawsuit in the court of appeals. The spokesman for the FCC was describing how they were able to differentiate between words used to excite and tittilate the audience and words that aren't. He used Saving Private Ryan as his example. He said that when they swear in that movie, it isn't to excite the audience.

Here the justices began to ask him questions about how they selected which words were to be censored. One justice said "So, uh, would you say that it -it would be shocking to hear a justice on the court of appeals say the word fuck?" C-Span did not censor this word. The whole time this justice was speaking I was wondering where this was going. I thought for sure he would use "the f-bomb" or "the b word" or something else like that. But no. The US court of appeals justice just flat out used the word.

The funniest and most exciting thing that will ever happen on C-Span has just occurred. I will no longer bother to watch it because that channel has reached its pinnacle.

My back hurts. Otherwise I'm relieved that this week is over.

Dave Snell for president.

name: Kirk
single or taken: Taken
eye color: Brown   

shoe size: 10.5
height: 5’9" ish
what are you wearing right now? Jeans, long sleeve shirt, fleece jacket, socks, shoes and underwear.

FAVORITES
kind of pants: Jeans for sure
animal: Dog
month: August or May...can't really decide
juice: probably white grape, but there's no juice I'm particularly fond of
favorite cartoon/show: Favorite cartoon: Family Guy, Favorite show: the Office

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HAVE YOU EVER:

given anyone a bath?  Don't think so.

bungee jumped?: thought about it and was tempted to, but then I really thought about it and wussed out.
made yourself throw-up? nope
skinny-dipped?: no
loved someone so much it made you cry? word

played truth or dare? yes. its not really all that fun
been in a physical fight: C'mon, its Kirk. No way.
played spin-the-bottle? No.
been on a plane: several times

came close to dying? I do lots of stupid things, so probably more than I realize. 
been in a hot tub: Who hasn't?
fallen asleep in school: Few times, but generally I try not to.

ran away? nope.
broken someone's heart: Yes.
cried when someone died: Yes.
fell off your chair: Yes.
sat by the phone all night waiting for someone to call: Hm...I guess, but its usually at a planned time so I don't wait very long.
saved AIM conversations: No. If I can't remember the conversation myself, its not important.
used someone: I don't think so.

been cheated on: No. Well, kind of...I think...I don't really know but I'm saying no.

WHAT IS:

beside you: My desk clutter and a bottle of water.
last thing you ate: Snacks at the RA inservice last night. 
sore throat: obnoxious and scratchy.

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do you believe in love at first sight: Not particularly. 
do long distance relationships work: I think they can. Mine didn't. 
like school: I love learning, I hate grades. So yes and no.

question yourself: Nope. I'm always right. Okay, so every once in awhile I feel like I should question myself like you run diagnostics on a Porsche just to know that it still works perfectly.
the last person that called you? Probably Sarah...I'm not much for talking on the phone, though.

who was last person to text you? The phone company.
who makes you smile the most: All my friends, Sarah particularly.
who knows you the best?: Probably my friends from back home: The Guys. They've known me longest and know all the things I've gone through. A few people here are in a close second, but its a hard game of catch up to play with The Guys. 
do you like filling these out: Every once in awhile.

do you wear contact lenses or glasses: Glasses. Because they make me look smart and I need all the help I can get.
do you get along with your family: Rarely. Lots of bickering and pissing each other off. I try to avoid them if at all possible, but they're helping to pay for college, so I feel somewhat indebted to see them.  


Final Questions:

what did you do yesterday?: Class, papers, and an RA inservice.
what car/truck do you wish to have: 1972 Dodge Charger (like the General Lee) or a 1977 Potiac Trans Am (like the car from Smokey and the Bandit.) I WANNA GO FAST!

have a lava lamp: Back home.
how many remote controls are in your house?: Back home we have about 8. Here I have 2. 
are you double jointed: My arms and shoulders are.
when you last showered? Yesterday...looking to grab another one once the staff is done cleaning in there.
scary or funny movie: both!  Funny every day of the week. 
chocolate or vanilla: Depends. I like them both in ice cream form, but straight vanilla is too much for me. So maybe chocolate would win that one.
rootbeer or dr. pepper: Dr Pepper 
silver or gold? Silver, I don't look good in gold...unless its white gold. So silver or white gold. Whichever you feel like showering me with.
diamond or pearl:  If I have to, diamond. I'd rather not have either. Just too effiminate.
coffee or tea: Mmmmm...Coffee. 
phone or in person: In person...I hate the phone. 
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Today did you:

1. talk to someone you liked: Yes.
2. buy something: Not yet.
3. get sick: Nope
4. talked to an ex: No.

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Last person who:

10. slept in your bed besides you: Sarah. 
11. saw/heard you cry: I don't cry, my eyes moisten uncontrollably. And the only person who has seen that recently is Sarah.
12. made you cry?: Sarah. She hits me. 
13. went to the movies with: The Guys. 
15. said "i love you" to: Sarah.
16. ever been in a fight with your pet: Heck yeah. Dunkin likes to wrestle, so I beat him up sometimes.
18. been to Canada: No
20. been to Europe: In May I will, but as for now...no dice.
21. do you have a crush on someone right now: Friggin' eh, I do!  
22. what book are you reading now: I'm halfway through a lot of books, but I'm not reading any one of them in particular.

25. do you sleep with a stuffed animal: No.

26. what's under your bed: Dirty socks right now. I checked.
27. favorite sports to watch: Whodey football.
28. favorite locations: New Mexico, Hanover, and pretty much anywhere that isn't Clermont County.

29. any tattoos or piercings: Thinking of getting a tattoo. Probably won't though.
30. what are you most scared of right now? That during this next election cycle I'm going to slip even further into political nerd-dom, erasing any hope of escape. That and turning 20...two friggin decades, ugh.
31. who do you really hate? I don't know if I can hate.
32. do you have a job? I'm an RA. 
33. have you ever liked someone you didn't have a chance with: Yep.
38. song that's stuck in your head right now? Frosty the Snowman for some reason.

39. have you ever played strip poker? Yep. Its not as much fun as real poker, though. I like the risk of losing money more than the risk of losing clothing.
40. have you ever gotten beat up? Yes. I was about 7 or 8. Bastards.
42. have you ever been on radio? No. 
43. have you ever been in a mosh-pit? Haha...yeah, once. That was a learning experience.  

~~~~Random~~~~

what kind of underwear are u wearing right now? Black Hanes boxer-briefs.
whats the first things you notice about the opposite sex? Hm...Very first? Eyes. After that, I don't really know.
your favorite food?  RED MEAT!
are you too shy to ask someone out?: No.
hugs or kisses?: I think hugs win on this one. Kisses are pretty awesome, but I can't kiss everyone so I have to go with hugs based on quantity.

dogs or cats?: Didn't we do this one already? Dogs.
favorite flower?: Carnations...maybe. I don't really care for flowers. 
have you ever fired a gun?: Several. I'm a decent shot, too. 
how many pillows do you sleep with?: 2. 1 for support and 1 that is really soft and squishy.

So this is disillusionment...

I thought it would feel different. Better perhaps.

I'd supported candidates when I was in high school, but I could never vote for them so if they lost I didn't care. It wasn't my vote that had been cast in vain. Last night, though, a majority of the people I voted for didn't win. And most of them weren't republicans! When I voted for the libertarian candidate for governor I didn't expect him to win, and he didn't. And that didn't disillusion me. What did was that Jean Schmidt, our republican congresswoman for the past 2 terms won again. She is not the representative we need. I hope that by winning by only 2% might make her try harder, but I seriously doubt it.

Needless to say, I spent all last night (pretty much from 6 until 1AM) watching election coverage. I can honestly say that the one thing that made me happy was Lieberman's victory as an independent. At least that went well.

I am sick of a two party system. I am sick of republicans and democrats. I hate that parties have to battle for "control" of the congress. Shouldn't the real "control" be with the people? Why are these parties who are so far to either extreme the ones representing the people of this country? Why should we have to choose between a black and a white extreme. There is a gray area on many issues and we should have a choice on that as well. I voted for a libertarian for governor because I can't stand the other two candidates, but he recieved two percent of the vote because, I think, people feel trapped into voting for one or the other. Clearly, though, this is not the case in Connecticut. I think there is something to be said for that.

These ideas aren't fully developed, but if you really want to know more about them, feel free to ask me about them.

Kudos to Sarah, though, for watching all of that with me. It takes a lot of patience to put up with my nerdiness, and she puts up with a lot of it and it is appreciated.

Come back and see me in two more years. Maybe I'll be un-disillusioned...reillusioned...dis-disillusioned?