o rly?

SARA MARIA DEL MONTE!

2010-04-27T15:02:00.004-04:00

i missed you all this while! all this loading time between pages makes me go berserk. gah!

anyway- what's going on? how's life? how's the pup master? how's the apartment? how's having the visa? how's your room? how's stevie poo? how's paul- his dance moves during kings were impressive. how's your new coat- have you used it? how's your summer planning out? how's the weather in the g-ville- the weather is so bipolar around these parts. how's not having artichoke pizza every day for every day of your life? how's words with friends- because you're slacking. how's your butt bruise? how's tu madre? how's--- oh shit. i forgot you weren't here to make conversation. i forgot you had a true purpose. ok, well, i'm sorry for messing up so many times. you know how confusing it can get with all these www's and http://'s and .com or .net or .org!

Infuriating. Anyhow, i think i finally got it right:

http://tinyurl.com/3x83d7u

i'm a quitter.

2009-05-06T00:41:00.005-04:00

I think I might be quitting blogger, but i'm not too sure yet. I've been using tumblr the past few days and I really like it.. though I haven't actually written anything there, just been using it to post things I like on it.

Well, here's the site:

QUITTER

also, check out the blog for heartOFqueens, a new online magazine dedicated to the events and happenings of the beautiful queens, new york:

heartOFqueens

it's just starting up, but it's getting there...

slumdog millionaire child for sale?!

2009-04-20T00:47:00.004-04:00

According to an article at New of the World, the father of Rubina Ali, the nine-year-old Indian girl made famous by her role in Slumdog Millionaire, is attempting to sell his daughter for $295,000.

Rafiq Qureshi offered the deal to a New of the World undercover fake sheik this week, hoping to make millions (in rupees) off of his daughter's fame.

What's equally as depressing are some of the comments made in relation to this story:

1. "India is the most disgusting nation on earth. Those people need to be ashamed of themselves. What a morally and culturally under-developed, scum of the earth people/culture. Disgusting"

2. "Who cares?"

twitter & flutter (the new twitter)

2009-04-14T00:29:00.004-04:00

I'm sorry I've been gone from the blogosphere for a while. I've been looking for jobs-- focusing on that hardcore. In looking for jobs, I've been paying a lot of attention to Twitter. I've worked with it before, I have my own account which I update regularly and I've used it to promote things, services, ideas... The only problem I have with it is that it's becoming more and more noisy, people "tweeting" their thoughts, their new blog posts, their actions... but not listening to anyone else's. Because, I mean, it IS time consuming and if you're following a whole bunch of random people, the majority of the things are completely irrelevant to you. Or you just don't care.

However, I feel like Twitter has a lot of potential. One of my favorite things about it is how easy it makes it for people and companies to track these thoughts, ideas, actions, etc-- and with that, see people's reactions and ideas to things. There's a thousand websites out there that let you track any keyword being tweeted. For example, a band who releases a new album can plug in their name or album into the Twitter keyword search, and find out how people feel about their album right away. It definitely provides a platform with instant feedback.. for anything. You can also use it to find out a lot of demographics and psychographics about the people saying these things. Advertising research to the extreme. But you just have to know how to use it and respect it.... because if not, everything you produce becomes noise and in that, Twitter.. just becomes noise, too.

On that note, I completely understand why people think Twitter can be so ridiculous. Especially with people tweeting about their breakfast every 5 seconds.. so I just saw this new video about "Flutter: The New Twitter" and it's absolutely hilarious if you're Twitter inclined, if not, you'll probably hate it, so you don't have to waste your time watching it. Enjoy!

yay webster's dictionary!

2009-03-23T16:43:00.004-04:00

Well, this is quite surprising-- Webster's dictionary changed the definition of marriage recently. Check it out, this is exactly what the page says:

mar·riage

Pronunciation:: \ˈmer-ij, ˈma-rij\
Function:: noun
Etymology:: Middle English mariage, from Anglo-French, from marier to marry
Date:: 14th century

1 a (1): the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law (2): the state of being united to a person of the same sex in a relationship like that of a traditional marriage

marriage> b: the mutual relation of married persons : wedlock c: the institution whereby individuals are joined in a marriage2: an act of marrying or the rite by which the married status is effected ; especially : the wedding ceremony and attendant festivities or formalities3: an intimate or close union marriage of painting and poetry — J. T. Shawcross>

Of course, not everyone has met this change with my kind of excitement. There are those who are having a conniption over this. Here's one not-so-thrilled American's comment:

"The word 'marriage' has never been synonymous with same sex relationships," said the forum participant. "What is happening is the meaning is being changed to trigger it becoming synonymous, not the other way round."

Associate Editor at Webster's, Kory Stamper, has responded:

"We hear such criticism from all parts of the political spectrum. We're genuinely sorry when an entry in - or an omission from - one of our dictionaries is found to be offensive or upsetting, but we can't allow such considerations to deflect us from our primary job as lexicographers."
..."In recent years, this new sense of 'marriage' has appeared frequently and consistently throughout a broad spectrum of carefully edited publications, and is often used in phrases such as 'same-sex marriage' and 'gay marriage' by proponents and opponents alike. Its inclusion was a simple matter of providing our readers with accurate information about all of the word's current uses."
Marriage equality exists in several countries throughout the globe. The literal definition has to change, or it's inaccurate. Webster's knows that.

ahAHAha.. ha

2009-03-22T04:39:00.001-04:00

ha... and, if you enjoy portia + ellen together, you should also take a look at this video.

quite the interesting ad:

2009-03-19T03:19:00.003-04:00

This is an awesome/terrifying advertisement from the health club chain, Fitness First. When unsuspecting commuters in the Netherlands take a seat at this bus stop, their weight shows up in BRIGHT lights on the ad. It's is the brainchild of the agency N=5, and it's pretty damn creative!

so, pope benedict is ___________.

2009-03-19T02:30:00.004-04:00

Pope Benedict XVI has been getting ready to make his first trip to Africa. As he spoke about HIV/AIDS he said this:

"AIDS is a tragedy that cannot be overcome by money alone, and that cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which even aggravates the problems."

So, condoms aggravate the problem of HIV/AIDS?

Come on Catholic Church.. Come on..

so, should the tradition of "marriage" be abandoned?

2009-03-17T16:26:00.006-04:00

I'm all for it.

"If you're in the marriage business, do it equally. If you're not going to do it equally, get out of the business."

Ever since Proposition 8 was enforced in California, I've been quite attentive to the plights for gay marriage, for equal rights.. I've been formulating my opinions on the whole shabang, discussing them with others, hearing others out.. but in the end, I just can't wrap my head around the entire concept of marriage-- but mostly on the role that government has decided to play in it.

Recently, some legal scholars have been arguing that marriage should be taken out of the hands of the government and many say that it would be the best way out of the legal wars over gay marriage. Instead, gay couples and straight couples should be given the same license, a certificate confirming them as a family. It would be called anything but marriage. Civil union perhaps?

Of course, people could still get married through the church- where they could bless their unions through religious ceremonies as they do today, but for those that decide not to go through a religious institution- this license issued by the state would be all they needed to receive the 1,049 benefits secured in most states and in federal law for married couples (among them automatic inheritance, child custody, domestic violence protection, sick leave to care for partner, divorce protections, visitation of partner in hospital or prison, joint bankruptcy).

The idea is that if you take the state out of the marriage business then both kinds of couples, gay and straight, would be treated the same. The ongoing debates about the legality of Proposition 8 are centered around the question of whether allowing some couples to marry but not others disregard constitutional guarantees of equal protection under the law. Lawyers on both sides agreed that the idea would resolve the legal issues.

I think it's a great idea, i just can't see it picking up much speed. People are attached to the word "marriage," even if it is just a word. For couples joined in matrimony, having the state no longer call them married may make them feel as if though something has been taken away from them-- even if this new certificate granted them the same exact rights. And of course, those who are passionate about defending the traditional definition of marriage and defeating gay marriage at all costs aren't just against gay marriage but against gay couples and any kind of government sanctioning of gay relationships.

Although it's probably not going to happen, or at least not for a very long time, I'm glad it's being discussed. As the Libertarian Party's platform states it:

1.3 Personal Relationships: Sexual orientation, preference, gender, or gender identity should have no impact on the rights of individuals by government, such as in current marriage, child custody, adoption, immigration or military service laws. Consenting adults should be free to choose their own sexual practices and personal relationships. Government does not have the authority to define, license or restrict personal relationships.

.sigh.

so, this is the new dora:

2009-03-16T19:44:00.008-04:00

Ahahahahaha, I don't know why I find this so funny- but I do.

This is the new Dora the Explorer, you know, now that she's ten and all..

I guess after Mattel sued MGA Entertainment for their Bratz dolls, Mattel wants to capitalize on this-- and now Dora (by Mattel & Nickelodeon) looks just like a Bratz doll!

Before:

After:

so, this is why gay is NOT the new black:

2009-03-16T18:56:00.007-04:00

Gotta thank Paul Cruse III for this loverly article in The Daily Illini: "Gay is Not the New Black: There is a Difference"

There's not really much to say, so I'll just include some excerpts:

"To begin, I must ask: Are you gay? It is not the answer to this question that is important but rather the fact that the question has to be asked. For blacks, no one asks whether or not we are black. Society has determined what black is. From the second we walk into a room, everyone knows we are black. We are immediately entitled to all the stereotypes and assumptions (both negative and positive) that go along with being black, whether we want them or not. The same can be said for other racial minorities, like people from the Middle East, Latinos and Asians. The main point I am making is that if gays don't want to be discriminated against then they don't have to tell people they are gay."

"Hypothetically speaking, if a gay employee is scared that his new boss will not promote him because he is gay, all he has to do is not tell his new boss. But if a black employee is scared that his new boss will not promote him because of his race, all he can do is work hard to prove to his boss that he is worth promoting or prepare a lawsuit, if he feels he has been discriminated against."

"I am not saying that gay people should have to hide their sexual orientation or that the majority of society should change its belief and be more welcoming to gays. All I am arguing is that the option is there. If a situation presented itself where being gay would be detrimental to one's future (like in the employee scenario) or to one's immediate safety (like being the possible victim of a hate crime), gay people have the option to not tell others of their sexual orientation and avoid the situation."

I'll let this article speak for itself, but this is exactly what so many gay rights advocates pinpoint as one of the main problems with the gay movements: its invisibility. The fact that it can hide, that people don't know who they're discriminating against. After Dustin Lance Black's Oscar win, he had a lot to say about this problem:

"You see, one of the biggest hurdles for the gay community has always been invisibility. Unlike the black movement and the women’s movement, gays and lesbians are not always immediately identifiable. People still go their entire careers without coming out to their co-workers, not to mention their relatives or their neighbors. Harvey Milk saw this problem, and shouted out the solution, “You must come OUT!”
The entire concept of coming out was devised and pushed for by leaders like Harvey Milk back in 1978 as a way to counter this visibility problem. If people don’t know who they are hurting, they don’t mind discriminating against them. Watching these two conventions, I got a sinking feeling that Milk’s beloved gay and lesbian movement was off the table. I felt myself slowly vanishing, and for gay and lesbian people, invisibility equals death."

Okay, so there you have it-- the two sides of it. And I think I need to thank Paul Cruse III one more time.. yepyep. Anyway, any thoughts on this?

so, 15% of americans have no religion?

2009-03-16T04:02:00.006-04:00

"Religion easily has the best bullshit story of all time. Think about it. Religion has convinced people that there’s an invisible man…living in the sky. Who watches everything you do every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a list of ten specific things he doesn’t want you to do. And if you do any of these things, he will send you to a special place, of burning and fire and smoke and torture and anguish for you to live forever, and suffer, and burn, and scream, until the end of time. But he loves you. He loves you. He loves you and he needs money."-George Carlin

So, on a more serious note..or equally serious note: On March 9th, the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS), conducted by researchers at Trinity College, was released. Between February and March of last year, more than 54,000 people were surveyed on their religion. The results demonstrated a drastic decline in the number of Americans identifying as Christians: a 10% decline from 1990. Today, 76% of the population identify as Christian, and those who do are more frequently calling themselves under nontraditional labels: "nondenominational," "evangelical," or "born again."

Mostly, there has been a large decline (19% decrease since 1990) in people labeling themselves as "Protestant," "Methodist," and "Lutheran." The only group that grew in every state throughout the country, was the group of people saying that they had no religion-- this group now comprising 15% of the population. The least religious section of the country? Northern New England.

This study demonstrates a growing non-religious minority-- of those surveyed, 27% said they didn't expect to have a religious funeral or service, and 30% said they had married through a non-religious service. It's interesting to see a shift in the way people view religion-- the buses in England declaring "there's probably no god," Bill Maher's Religulous movie, ..., and now this study-- all demonstrate a radical shift in the way religion is being viewed and treated. It's interesting, I wonder how many of these people in this study are also like me.. I'm not religious, I'd say I'm somewhat spiritual, yet, I identify as Catholic. I'm Colombian, so naturally, I grew up Catholic. I attended a Catholic middle school, and my younger bother has been in Catholic school for 10 years. I don't go to mass, or do any Cathol-icky things-- but I'm sure that in taking this survey I'd identify as Catholic. How many other people do the same? Hm.. well, anyway, this study is quite interesting. And it seems that the media is interested in it too, as I've been hearing about it all week. It'll be interesting to see what the next ten years bring for religion-- maybe Microsoft will come up with a vision for that too.

also: some simple infographics on the bailout + where the money is going

2009-03-15T04:48:00.009-04:00

Thanks to Jonathan Jarvis who explained the credit crisis and told us exactly what an irresponsible family is, and to Flowing Data who placed these graphics onto one simple page, here are some of the infographics I found interesting and important for all of us to know about:

Where's the money going?

ohhhh.. okay, and what does this mean to me? (visit link to quickly calculate how much its actually hurting you)

and what about jobs?

Okay cool, so now that I've ruined your night/day/week/month, you can go ruin other people's night/day/month on this website, by guessing how old people are through pictures they've uploaded!

the crisis explained.

2009-03-15T04:39:00.002-04:00

I just found this video by Jonathan Jarvis online, and I really liked it/enjoyed it/thought it went through the process quitequitequite simply. I wish this existed a while back when I was trying to digest it all.. I think we all get it, but it's nice and concise (next rapper mc here)-- and the animated "irresponsible family" is interesting.

hello future, is that you?

2009-03-02T21:46:00.002-05:00

So, if the world doesn't end in 2012, this is the vision Microsoft has in mind for 2019.. just 10 years from now. Wowwowwowwowwow.

Of course it's just a vision, and putting that into practice is what counts (and it looks a little soon for such a world), but this is a video clip from a presentation given yesterday by Stephen Elop, Microsoft's Business Division president. And although it looks a little far-fetched, products like Microsoft's Surface do make it seem a little more plausible. (Oh, and consider watching the video about Surface, this product is awesome + its real [+1o pts.])

My favorite? The digital newspaper.

louis c.k. is awesome.

2009-03-02T02:22:00.003-05:00

"crappiest generation of spoiled idiots" = us.

fun ways states are looking to make some muh-knee

2009-03-01T21:39:00.008-05:00

Apparently the economy sucks and we're in a terrible recession.

..Which is why assemblyman Tom Ammiano introduced legislation to have marijuana legalized in California earlier this week. He proposed a $50-per-ounce tax, which could be purchased by anyone above the age of 21.

Basically, stuff is so bad states are saying that "everything is on the table." Over two-thirds of the states are facing budget shortfalls, so anything that can help out is at least being considered.

They are all trying to raise revenue without raising the sales and income taxes.

In Washington, they tried to tax pornography, proposing an 18.5% sales tax on sex toys and adult magazines. It didn't go too well.

In Nevada, they are planning on introducing legislation to tax the state's legal brothels.

In Hawaii, legislators are proposing legalizing same-sex unions in hopes of raising their crashing tourism.

In Massachusetts, they've introduced a proposal to build two casinos.

Some states are also considering lowering the drinking age to 18, saving costs on the persecution of underage drinkers + making more money.

As Andrew Coehn from CBS News put it, "Apparently, it was nothing personal after all. Apparently, it was strictly business all along....

After generations of defending capital punishment and marijuana possession laws on moral, ethical and religious grounds, after years of declaring that the death penalty acted as a deterrent against violent crime and that pot smokers were more dangerous to society than, say, alcohol consumers, all of a sudden thanks to our economic crisis more and more mainstream powerbrokers are considering dramatic changes to our criminal justice system."

So, how much money could they actually save by legalizing marijuana? Just take a look at this picture. And please forgive the terrible "up in smokes" pun.

ALSO, WTF? Pee-pee teepees?

this is really weird.

2009-03-01T16:22:00.005-05:00

"where cat's aren't treated like animals!"

so Microsoft decided to apologize..

2009-03-01T15:41:00.005-05:00

Microsoft apologized for Xbox Live's banning of a gamer who self-identified as a lesbian on her profile. Xbox Live didn't directly ban her, but players gave her negative feedback- and when it's done by a whole bunch of people in a short amount of time, the ban is automatic. However, when she looked to Microsoft for help, all they had to say was that other players found her sexuality "offensive." Nooooowwwww that everyone got furious with Microsoft, they've decided to apologize (companies just love doing that.. they sit around until their mistake/whatever goes public and then apologize. It's all about damage control..) Anyway, Microsoft said that its banning policies were "inelegant" and that they were "looking into" it. Eh, okay..

the subway: for finding your soul mate

2009-02-27T17:36:00.007-05:00

So, now that you're prepared to shell out $105 monthly for your unlimited metro card, and you're feeling a little pissed off about forking over an extra $24, I must remind you that every cent is well worth it. Because come on, you're not only paying for transportation, you're paying for grade A entertainment. I've had my day made (and destroyed) plenty of times after a ride in the subway..

Anyway, I've come to realize that the subway harbors some of the most interesting people EVER- and I'm sure you all agree. Where are all these people when they aren't in the subway? Beats me.

So, Dilidoo.com has compiled a series of pictures of the MOST BIZZARE and strangest people on the subway. Definitely worth the look.. My favorites? Probably the drunkards who have decided to take off their shoes and take a nap on the luxurious subway benches.

(CLICK HERE TO CH-CH-CHECK IT OUT) + have any interesting stories/pictures? feel free to share.

$105 monthly?? WTF?!

2009-02-27T17:07:00.004-05:00

Since this blog has so far been very transportation and recession oriented I was inspired to write about the only other means of transportation…other than your two little legs.

MTA, otherwise known as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, is raising fares, cutting back on subway and bus lines, and eliminating many more. I’m sure there are hundreds of devote Manhattenites who have never even heard of the Z line not to mention the N51, 53, 65, 66, 67, 80, 87 and 93, B23, 25, 37, 39, 51 and 75 or even the M6, 8, 10, 18, 27, 30 and X25 bus lines. But there are hundreds of people out in NYC who have and rely on these lines in order to get around.

With a $1.2 billion budget deficit, MTA is not really listening to the outraged voices crying out throughout the city. Snip, snip, snip seems to be there new motto.

Then on top of everything they are increasing all of their fares. The new prices for Unlimited Metro Cards? One day-$9.50, week-$32, two weeks-$60, and month unlimited will be at $105. Single ride tickets and cash fare for buses will increase to $3.00 and express bus fares to $6.25.

Everyone in this community is hurting and subway and bus fare increases will not help those most in need. Even with a $1.2 deficit, MTA will survive, but how will the guy who takes the M8 everyday from Queens to Riverside Dr. to get to work and pay rent when he now has to take two buses instead of one and is paying even more than ever to get there?

-Nicole Marimon

bug porn.

2009-02-26T16:50:00.004-05:00

Okay, so I just saw this and had to come straight here to post it. So interesting-- and more than interesting, its just so.. so weird that it's worth the watch.

It's called Green Porno, and its a series of short films by Isabella Rossellini about the sex lives of a whole bunch of creatures (fireflies, dragonflies, spiders, snails, bees, etc.). The films are amusing, as Isabella tries to capture her audience's attention on a drone subject such as insect sex. However, you won't see any insects having sex here, instead, you'll see Isabella dressed up in her costume, playing out the sex lives of these animals, thrusting away, trading sperm, and losing her penis (you'll see what I'm talking about..)

So why "Green Porno?"-- "Green," paralleling the variety of green movements today, and our growing interest in nature, and "Porno" alluding to the naughty ways these creatures have sex.. if it were humans having sex in these ways, a lot of them would definitely be considered racy and kinky. For example, snails, who have two to six hour sex marathons use "love darts" during their love making. They fire these hard, sharp darts at their partner throughout the process.. sadomasochistic much? And an interesting little fact: although no one knows where the Cupid myth comes from, some believe that it originated from the snail's love darts. In Greek, the love dart is called a Liebespfeil or "love arrow."

Anyway, i'll stop taking up your time when you could be watching a woman dressed up in glamorous costumes teaching you a little bit about how bugs get it onnnnnn.

(click here to go watch Green Porno-- and make sure to have some Kleenex handy!)

banned on xbox for identifying as a lesbian? wtf?

2009-02-25T23:49:00.009-05:00

This week, Teresa, a female XBOX Live gamer, was suspended from XBOX Live for identifying herself as a lesbian in her profile--something that has happened to other players before. First, she was harassed by other players, followed to different games/areas of the game and was verbally attacked (calling her a fag(?), etc.) as players decided to turn her in to Microsoft. She appealed to Microsoft, who replied by saying that other gamers found her sexual orientation offensive and distasteful.

I'm really not a fan of video games, at all, for a variety of reasons-- and one of those is quite clearly shown through this example. What kind of priorities do these people have? Guns, killing sprees, deranged violence, bloodbloodblood, flying limbs and organs, f%&#*@! language, etc. is okay, but identifying as a homosexual is not. Interesting..

So I decided to read through the comments that others were making about this article, and a pretty popular one was: (and here's the link to the page + comments from digg)

I don't want to sound like a homophobe here, but it's Xbox Live for fuck's sake. Sexuality is hardly relevant to the service.

I'm all for homosexuals having the same rights as everyone else, but I don't quite understand how it's OK for them to constantly put their sexuality into EVERYTHING. In incidents like this it's almost like they're baiting people to harass them so they can get into the news.

Here's a clue for everyone: nobody cares about your sexuality. Whatever you do in the bedroom doesn't matter to me. People are too retardedly obsessed with their sexuality these days.

It kept coming up over and over again, and people were agreeing.. (and the news part really gets to me..)

Anyway, I wrote back to this user, and here's what I had to say:

Homosexuals "constantly put their sexuality into EVERYTHING" because heterosexuality is the assumption of people's sexuality. Just like being white in USA is the non-race (or the race that doesn't have to be spoken about or introduced, and is just assumed) and Christianity is the non-religion, heterosexuality is the non-sexuality. it seems that homosexuals make an issue of their sexuality, but heterosexuals do not, because heterosexuality is the normative culture, the order of things..

As Michaelangelo Signorile said, “These heterosexuals don’t realize that they routinely discuss aspects of their own sexuality every day: telling coworkers about a vacation they took with a lover; explaining to their bosses that they’re going through a rough divorce; bragging to friends about a new romance. Heterosexual reporters have no problem asking heterosexual public figures about their husbands, wives, girlfriends, boyfriends or children—and all these questions confirm and make an issue of heterosexuality. The ultimate example of making an issue of heterosexuality is the announcements in the newspapers every Sunday that heterosexuals are getting married.”"

Ugh.. we've come a long way, that has to be admitted, but still have a long way to go.. makes me want to go watch Sean Penn's Oscars Acceptance speech and Dustin Lance Black's too..

legalize it, time we recognize it..

2009-02-23T14:34:00.003-05:00

sean paul's been singing about it for years.. and it seems like now's the time it might happen. actually, i don't think it will-- all of a sudden, talk about marijuana legalization has been all over the place. but it's been too quick, too unexpected.. europe is supposed to enact these liberal laws before us. no? at least the dialogue is out there, and people in high places are wondering whether or not it should happen.

1. in obama's "open for questions" tool back in december, where american's voiced their opinions on all kinds of topics they were interested in, the number one thing american's were talking about was legalization. number one? intense.

2. michael phelps and the awesome photo of him hitting a bong, opened up the dialogue even more. kellogg's dropped him. subway is sticking by him. the guy who owned the pipe that phelps hit, tried to sell it on ebay--and got arrested. and phelps.. phelps proved to americans that you can have 14 gold medals and still smoke a little pot now and then.

3. recently, a rasmussen reports national phone survey found that 40% of americans thought it should be legalized, 46% don't and 14% are undecided. shit..

4. and now, assemblyman tom ammiano from califronia will be announcing legislation today, to legalize marijuana and earn around one billion annually by taxing it. the bill would "remove all penalties in California law on cultivation, transportation, sale, purchase, possession, or use of marijuana, natural THC, or paraphernalia for persons over the age of 21."

so, we'll keep following this to see how it goes.. and i won't sit here and write about the pros and cons of legalization because i'm sure you're all familiar with them. as for me, i don't really care either way. mostly, i think it's good because of the revenues it would bring in (saving almost 8 billion/year in expenses on prohibition enforcement, and bringing in a possible 6 billion in taxes). god knows we need it. also, i love to see this country being a little more liberal.

money & energy.

2009-02-23T04:53:00.006-05:00

i'm tired, and am going to bed. but before that, i figured i'd share this political cartoon. in much better taste than those of sean fucking delonas (who made the chimp/stimulus cartoon last wednesday). pretty insane/freaky.

ALSOOOO: if you haven't seen the commercials already, or been asked to join some facebook group about it--march 28th at 8:30PM is earth hour. yay! turn off all your "non-essential" lights and electrical appliances for ONE HOUR to raise awareness toward the need to take action on climate change. WWF is aiming to have 1 billion participants.. i think i can deal without "essential" lights + electrical appliances for one hour. I THINK.

check out the video of earth hour 2007 + 2008:

more on cabbies.

2009-02-21T18:54:00.006-05:00

so, i did some homework. last night i interrogated my cab driver for some juice on specs about his cabbie life.

1. he owns his cab. he bought it back in '93 and the cab/medallioncost him 300,000. the last medallion sold, sold for 600,000! shit's fucking expensive!

2. the medallion, the permit to drive a cab, is what's expensive- every city has a limited amount of them in order to regulate the amount of cabs in the city. new york's number: around 13,000. the system was introduced during the great depression, when nyc had about 30,000 cabs and something just HAD to be done.

3. these cabs must be driven by the medallion owner for 210 nine-hour shifts per year. an average of 36 hours per week.

4. he loves owning the cab. he says it's the best thing a cabbie could do if he's able to shell out the money. of course, you go through lenders/brokers to finance it and take it from there.

5. his first year of owning the cab, $110,000 went to his pocket. shitttt.......... maybe i should become a cab driver.

6. he said he's indifferent about the credit card machines. the cabbies who hate it, hate the 5% that gets taken away by the credit card company, but he says it's brought a lot more business. most businessmen/women don't have cash on them at all times. now it doesn't matter. also, it's better for impulse cab trips (my downfall). + people have become better tippers because the credit card machine makes people choose 15%, 20%, or 25% tip.

7. cab drivers are not allowed to talk on their cell phones, handheld or otherwise, during the trip. i smell taxi rule breakers!

8. i've included a clip of cash cab (one of my favvvv shows that i've been trying to get on forever, to no avail):

the internet.

2009-02-19T00:20:00.000-05:00

the internet is fucking incredible, seriously. and i could sit here and write about it for days, going on about user-created content and the democratization of information made possible through blogs, wikis, youtube, etc. but i'll spare you, and leave you with ways in which the internet proved itself this week:

1) "today's lesson is animal abuse!": teens, 14 & 16, created a video of themselves abusing their cat. and uploaded it to youtube. method of disguise: a black mask and a fake youtube account. within an hour the video had 30,000 views and the internet community was appalled, looking for a way to track down these cat abusers. soon enough, everyone was collaborating with each other, putting together clues from the video to solve the case. and they did. the teens were caught and charged. and it wasn't their first time doing this, they had two other similar videos. wanna check out the news coverage? (click here) --> not for the faint of heart or animal lovers. bitch, the internet WILL find you. (reminds me of the man who was found guilty through his google searches, and the marijuana fields found hidden inside cornfields through google earth).

2) facebook's TOS: the internet is a force to be reckoned with. a couple of weeks ago facebook updated its Terms of Service (TOS). although facebook has always had a creepy + intense TOS (in order to use its services we allow all of facebook to "use, copy, publish, retain, publicly perform or display, transmit, scan, reformat, modify, edit, frame, translate, adapt, create derivative works and distribute any User Content" we post), it had recently been updated so that even when we removed content, it would fall into this agreement. anything posted on facebook, ever, was completely out of our control. we could find our old pictures in a porn advertisement in thailand and have to deal with it. HOWEVERRRRR, thanks to blogs and the communication capable with the internet, the backlash of facebook users worldwide and of angry emails and postings, forced facebook to revert to its old TOS. so when i logged on this morning, there was quite an apologetic letter from mr. zuckerberg himself. for all those people that say that "just whining about it on the internet won't do anything," here's proof.

3) uhhh......: the internet has a home for, basically, anything your little imagination can come up with. i'm pretty sure it even extends the limits of it. just watch:

a-______.

2009-02-18T22:08:00.001-05:00

In order to bring a little bit of spice, a little bit of change up in here, every week there will be some CELEBRITIES(!) posting about their areas of expertise. Today's celebrity: the wonderful, the insightful, the cake-loving AMIT PATEL.

A-Rod is now A-Roid, A-Fraud, A-Cheat. Call him what you want, but you can't blame him or point fingers. He was a creation of our (America's) need for excess. We like to leave what's hiding under the stone when things are going well. Baseball flourished in the late 1990's to early 2000's when jacked-up dudes were obviously taking steroids. Take a look at the before/after pics of Barry Bonds, McGwire, Sosa, Clemens, and others and you'll see. However, we don't care as long as we enjoy it. A-Rod was just following the trend during the times.

I was shocked at first--figured it was the end of baseball. But I can't blame him. It's like that stupid thing our parents told us when we were little kids: "If your friends jump off the bridge, will you?" Sadly I think most people would follow others off the bridge. It's not a matter of common sense. It's a matter of being accepted, being part of the group, being acknowledged, not being left out, etc. We have all done something for the reasons listed before.

This is why I won't blame A-Rod. Is he an idiot? Yes. Is he too old for Madonna? Yes. Is he insecure? Yes. Is he over-paid? Yes. Is he human? Yes. And that's why he shouldn't be shitted on. He owned up to his mistake and apologized. We should move on and admire his talent. Heck, I think we should give him a thorough blood test tomorrow to shut-up all those stupid fuck-heads who are going to doubt all his achievements from now on. I guarantee he's clean now. He hit 54 homers a year and a half ago. Steroids don't give you the power to hit home-runs, or the eye coordination, or the speed. You still need the raw talent and work ethic, which is what all the hypocrite journalists (not talking about you Nicole!) don't realize.

Let's forgive the man.

-Amit Patel

things.

2009-02-16T04:08:00.000-05:00

as i walked around the city the other day, i stopped to just enjoy the moment: to look around and feel the city-- watch the people, look up at the powder blue sky, detach myself from the hustle&bustle of good ole nyc, bathe in the beauty of the aging buildings.. but instead of the usual dose of happiness this provides me, i couldn't help but think about exploitation. the exploitation of labor. so marxist of me, i know.. but after taking a marxism class last semester and reading text after text about the alienation of labor, and etc.etc. i don't think i can help it. but anyway, it boggles me how everything we use, own, see-- everything, somewhere down the line, came to be through the exploitation of someone, somewhere. you're reading this and thinking, umm.. yes, daniela, this is obvious. and i know. we all know this, but we don't ever realize it. we don't ever stop and think about it. everything is cocooned in this pretty little package that entirely hides the process of its creation. we have no idea how this product actually came to be, the hundreds of individuals necessary for its creation, for the product to be available to us. so many stages of production--primary, secondary, tertiary.. all hidden away. so hidden we never think about it. and we should, even if it's for a second.

here i sit in my nyu dorm room--on my mac computer, with my bose headphones, listening to frank sinatra, my feet resting on my martha stewart coffee table... so comfortable, not lacking anything. and as i look around, at the vase in front of me, the coffee mug, the warm fleece blankets, the cushions that adorn the couches, the can of coca-cola, my notebook for class, the stack of dvds under the television, the wine bottles resting on their rack, the pile of printed articles for class waiting to be read-- that "so comfortable" feeling just starts to slip from beneath me.

the thing is, i know i will acknowledge this, write about it, and soon enough-- i'll forget it and just continue to aid in propagating this cycle. i won't do anything about it. and what should i do? what could i really do? i guess it's also just very hard for me to see it being any other way. but then again, is it really the human condition? it is human nature? exploit/be exploited/exploit/be exploited.... i think that's a lame excuse. we can help ourselves. i guess for now, acknowledging this is a step...

cab drivers.

2009-02-13T13:48:00.000-05:00

one of the things I like most about the city is taking cabs. but not just because of how convenient they are, but because of those behind their steering wheels. cab drivers are just so interesting to me. they're all so different, come from so many different places, have such different stories, different views of the city, different ways of reacting to a drunk girl interrogating them and asking personal questions from the backseat..

from what I've gathered (and actually remember)-- cab drivers are pretty apathetic about their jobs. hate how expensive actually buying a cab is (around $500,000) but think its a good investment because they can have their own hours. are really upset about the new credit card machines. have all been walked out on by many people. think that cab drivers that drive around to get more money during peak hours are stupid ("it's the 2.50 initial fee that i love!"). have had many people have sex in their back seats. with lots of moaning and groaning. --> some cab drivers get turned on by it, others have wives that get mad about it. some cabbies like anal sex with their wives when they're drunk because they scream and it turns them on. etc.

some advice i've received from cab drivers:

i was really upset one night, got picked up from a bar where sadly, i was cheated on. i started ranting.. and the cab driver had a very adamant opinion about it. he told me girls were worthless and that they were only good for cooking. that all girls did this, but that it was okay because they cleaned and cooked. he told me to forget about it, not let it get to me, and get revenge because it would make me feel best. to make sure not to just let her get away with it. he dropped me off at home and said he would pray for me. i don't know if he knew i was a girl too. --> anyway, i didn't take his advice, but i'm sure that if i would have, it would've been best. dammit.

a year ago, i was ranting about how this person i was fucking was fucking my friend (i was using the word "fucked" that night), he started getting pissed off that people did these things. he started yelling and ranting and saying that he hated love. and that if he had any advice to give, it would be to avoid it at all costs because it will just destroy any chance of being happy in life. i think i left him in a horrible mood, hopefully i made up for sending him into depression or giving him insane road rage with my tip.

anyway, point of this entry is: talk to cab drivers- they really are interesting people. they deal with so many different passengers and have a lot to say. they are also good for ranting and comfort. so next time you need it and your friends aren't picking up their phones- jump in a cab. it'll totally be worth the $10.

++have any interesting cab stories? share!