Saphhous

Appeals court.

Here's the rough draft. Like really rough. Read if you want. Thanks to Joy for giving it a good read-through when it was even rougher than it is now. It's still missing some info, which I should have tomorrow.

Oops.

Okay, so I lied about writing an update on the plane. I read a magazine and worked on my Court of Appeals piece instead. (Lede to follow at end of entry.)

No, I didn't go to any fun Halloween parties over the weekend. Yesterday Eric and I went slipcover and other furniture shopping. Z said that sounds like something his mother would do, and I thought to myself, "Tracy's all grown up." For the record, I'm just going to make the damn thing. It can be done, easily, and so I just gotta buy the stuff to do it. Then I can keep my original living room palette, and I can make throw pillows and shit to go with it. Fun! (mmmm ... chocolate brown suede couch with orange suede pillows ...)

What else? I went ahead and gave Eric his PS2 early, so he would stop driving me insane. Mom (and Paul, et al.) gave him GTA: SA, and he's logged a good million hours on it already. I'm surprised I'm not having dreams about green-clad thugs named CJ, Ryder, Smoke and Sweet.

Okay. I have to do homework. I have my JO piece due Tuesday, Russian tests Wednesday and Friday, and Irish songs to memorize. I hate school.

Lede: Appeals Court

It's nice to believe justice is served in court, just like hamburgers at McDonald's. But unlike the McDonald's menus, the law is a complicated thing, including the rules that dictate trial proceedings, and mistakes can happen. An incorrect affidavit, a coerced witness — these things can change the outcome of a case. Granted, you might not object if things go in your favor, but if they don't, head over to appeals court.

1:41 p.m.

Procrastinating.

I am. And it's because regular old "studying" kills me. So I'd rather be writing. But I can't get the rest of the piece to fall together. That's why I like to write in one fell swoop. If I get off my rhythm, it takes a while to find it. To keep me both on and off track at once, I went back to this article. Anyone who writes should print out a copy and read it over and over again. Believe me on this one, since I know you're all hot-shot-journos to be and don't like to listen when I get all teacher like. Read this piece. My CO201 professor made us all read it, and I've had it stuck in my notebook for continual readings ever since. (Granted, I didn't believe her at first, either.)

5:49 p.m.

ERIC!

So, here's a picture from the "photo shoot" from a few weekends ago. My friend Vanessa is in a photography class and needed models, so we agreed. This print got exposed funny (silly Vanessa) so we look like we have ghosts. And her scanner pulled it in a little dark, so my face is hard to see. But ghosts or no, it still looks like an AE ad or something. How cute!

Update, kinda.

This is a promise for an update to occur over the weekend. In fact, I'll probably write it on the plane tomorrow and post it as soon as I can after that. I've been a busy girl, really. So busy. I finally own my Russian text book, so maybe I'll pass with a decent grade. Still waiting to hear if I've been accepted to UofL. (Haha.)

So until I update again ... here's some links to check out:

• iPod Photo


• Southern State of Mind: Radio show about how the Southern vote is the deciding factor in most elections. Really good.


• Broadband over powerlines

Sox in Seven

Okay, so instead of rioting after the game, I was in the office writing this. They destroyed my lede and added two incorrect attributions, which I demanded be fixed. I also told them to never call me again. I'm angry. Hey, at least I gave them a chance.

School sucks. Or maybe I suck at school. Still reworking my shape-note story, so once that's really finished I'll put it up.Tired. Sick. No heat still.

Finally.

Okay, I hate loud obnoxious people on their cell phones in public just as much as everyone else, maybe more, but ... this is great news. Really. I mean, I suppose cell phone use couldn't be anymore annoying than anything else people do on airplanes, and I can still counter it with headphones. But I could do so much more on my frequent plane trips if I could use the phone.

Now, I wonder how long it'll take for them to get me an internet hookup.

Don't

Don't ever give up, don't ever look back, and for christ's sake, when you find that one person you're meant to be with, don't ever, ever let go.

Thank you.

Random.

I've got 30 minutes to kill, so I figured I'd waste a few here. I think I'm going to buy GT4. Not GTA4, that's something for someone else to get Eric for his birthday or for him to get himself. But I want gran turismo. I'm usually okay at car racing games. (Like that time I beat Mr. I'm-a-show-off Eric at that arcade.) Figure for $150, I should get some use out of this thing.

I've decided to do the living room in mossy green and chocolate brown, with pumpkin accents. I love color. My plan is to not paint, but leave the walls alone (I know we'd never get around to painting before January, and I'd be happy with a buttercream on the walls with the green and brown.) I'm going to make a patchwork curtain for our patio door, which pretty much covers one wall. That way the curtain will add a wall of color to the room, plus the accents. Dining room is getting some orange, I think, and I've come up with a good, sensible (I promise) plan to cover the wallpaper with some fabric. Probably yellow. Then the kitchen will get orange accents and more of the yellow fabric. It'll work, I promise.

So I should be writing my story tonight, but I'm too cold. It'll have to wait till tomorrow. I'm going to try and find a good, warm workspace. For next week, our JO professor is giving us our assignment Monday morning. We then have till Tuesday at 1 p.m. to finish it. I think it sounds like fun.

Actually, I should have done something tonight, but I haven't. I perused the latest FHM instead of doing any real work. I don't have anything to do that can't wait till tomorrow. Of course. Everything can wait till tomorrow. But hey, I did do some important Web site stuff today, so at least I did something. I went to class, too.

Alright. Almost time to leave for the debates. I want some soup. Bye.

Back

Okay, so I was supposed to leave Friday and come back on Monday. Instead, I left Saturday morning and got back, er, about an hour ago. So, the weekend:

I bought a toaster, a lamp and lots of groceries. Not to mention reserving a new PS2 when the smaller ones come out. I ate chick-fil-a. I was very, very happy.

However, Eric did get robbed at gunpoint on Sunday night, which wasn't too cool. I was running around the house freaking out for about two hours because I couldn't do anything. He did transfer stores, however, and is working even closer to the apartment.

And he'll be in Beantown on Friday. My parents will be here Thursday. I will be here, too. At least for a while.

Well, I got to work and do some homework ...

'L Yeah

For the record, since this seems to be a huge deal to everybody. Reasons for leaving B.U.

• I'm paying for (as in taking out loans) for over 50 percent of my costs here. That includes tuition, room and board, books, etc. I get a little bit of help from the family, but that help seems to be decreasing and my debts are rising. So should I stay here and keep trying to take out loans that aren't easy to get to the tune at least $10,000 a year, or should I go somewhere cheaper and ... well, that's the next point


• Work. If I go to UofL, I'll be working at the Cardinal which may or may not be a paid position. Regardless, I'll be able to write for Snitch as well, so I'll also be working more, ergo making more money and ergo being able to pay my expenses better.


• Work, part 2. Which is more valuable to a journalist? Experience or a degree? I can most assuredly say it's experience. This isn't a field that says, oh, look at that, you took some hard classes. Great! I'm sure you'll do fantastic on the police beat. And then you go to a crime scene, you get freaked out, you get pushed around by the po-po, and wonder, why didn't anyone ever tell me this? So, I think the experience would make up for the slightly lower-quality education which will include fewer JO classes.


• The people. I will, in this reason, cluster together a lot of people: Eric. Our doggy. Our apartment. My family. (Maybe I can teach my sister how to drive before she graduates.) My dorky friends who can be counted on to go eat chinese food at this crazy buffet, come to my house and take stuff apart for fun, argue about calc, go to grocery stores at 2 a.m. for fun ... And listen to all my bullshit that most of them have put up with for many years. There's Mallory and our plans to take over many newspapers, my mentor Jon, my editor Des (who can teach me every bit as much as any professor here) and all my fellow Snitchians ...

Now, hopefully things are clearer for some of you. If not, well, stop being so goddamn selfish and consider my reasons. Thank you, and the prosecution will now rest.

I should also mention my decision is not final until I've actually left.

Oh, and read des' editorial. It's funny and it gives you a good taste of Snitch-city.

An update.

I like the way most of the comments on here are people saying I should do this or that, or that something's broken or I need to update. Damnit, instead of bitching, why don't you occupy yourself by reading one of the things I wrote, then commenting about it.

Forgive me, I think I'm getting sick, and I'm tired and cranky.

In brief ... This past weekend was good, I got my new phone, my baby sis is doing remarkably well for having surgery on Friday, Eric had Sat. and Sun. off, so we got to spend plenty of time together.

Prof. liked the square piece, said it was one of the two best and gave me an A on it. If you haven't read it, I think you should. Damnit.

I listened to the VP debates last night. I think Edwards whooped Cheeney's ass.

So, until I have something interesting to write about ...