inside the wonderful world of vee

hahahah rhoah oahohoahroaohroh.

so i watch BET in the mornings probably… 3 out of 7 days a week because like, my favorite show in high school, “the wayans bros.” is on for an hour in the mornings. but right after wayans bros. ends are BET music videos, and two days in a row they’ve started it off with this beauty.

snoop can pretty much do whatever the fuck he wants. but yeah, this video is bomb. the song is just funny. but you know what’s even better? this is the PC version. the actual version is called: SENSUAL ERUPTION!!!!!! — thanks to lingo for the mp3. available upon request. holla ^__^

you know what’s messed up about the consumerism of our society? the fact that people aren’t just content to be consumers themselves. they are often not even content with YOU not being a consumer. take for example my exerpeinces at work. i have found myself being repeatedly teased by a guy who drives a BMW about my car. because my car is a 2000 honda accord?!!!!!! what kind of shit is that. that’s not even that bad. it’s fairly common. it’s not THAT old. wtfx.

another similar example is my phone. people cannot keep from commenting on my phone. it’s so old, they say. get a new one, they say. most people don’t really care, but there are a few that find the need to repeatedly comment on how old it is… and not in a funny way really. is it really that big a deal to you if my phone is a dinosaur? because it *is* a dinosaur. but i like the games on it, dammit. and it has text-messaging, even if i have to type a bit (er, quite) slow… it gets the job done and for the most part, my life is not worse because of it (but only because it has the best game ever, triple pop, on it). either way, though… it’s not really your business. if i like archaic shit, so be it. i mean, it works, doesn’t it? good enough.

since coming back from germany and getting netflix i have been, somehow, perfectly content with the way i am budgeting my time. it is not particularly stressful. it’s mostly good even though i have a thousand things on my plate. i’ve also added 500 movies to my netflix queue and somehow watching movies makes me feel strangely accomplished in some obsessive way. i am probably crazy but something about having a list of things that haven’t been completed makes me want to complete those things. perhaps i need to compile a list of music i need to listen to. yeah. probably.

last friday i went to watch a movie called “ideal world” with rachel. it was created by this random entrepreneur guy she knew about the video game, “second life” (see my post below). the movie itself was much more tame than my “second life” experience, but it was definitely an interesting film. it made me want to try and play that game in an attempt to figure out why it is people indeed flock to these second lives when they have real lives of their own. some of these people seem to be perfectly normal and fine, such as this filmmaker. but he doesn’t even seem to play the game all that much. interesting points within the game:

1) one clothing designer (and she is not along) makes $100,000 a year drawing clothes for second life characters. she has numerous stores throughout the game. when i say $100,000, i mean… IN REAL LIFE. it’s about $100,000 in game money = $1,000 in real life, so yeah. she does a lot of fucking business, that’s for sure.

2) slippeth my mind at the moment. i will update with more later.

after watching that movie, rachel and i were supposed to go meet up with ben but she lent her car to her friend and it got broken into and well, she was freaking out (naturally, since the fool won’t agree to pay for even HALF of it because he thinks it’s not his fault although the reason it was broken into was because he brought it to portland) and stayed home. so that was pretty weak sauce. but i met up with ben @ linda’s and we had a nice chat about random ass things, such as… growing up in a hunting family and eating every body part of an animal (grreeeatttt), fine dining and french food, zumiez, german freakishness, and junk. my mind slips me now. wow. i suck. die brain, die.

it’s sad when you forget er, ah, how entertaining good conversation is? i don’t know. i haven’t met too many people as of late. i think i need to meet more. or something.

so, NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION!

i haven’t really come up with one in forever, but today, as i was guiltily eating my like, new favorite thing — the spicy chicken bites from jack in the box — i decided… i need to fucking stop eating this fucking shit. i eat it so much. so. my new resolution is this: no more fried foods. unless i have gotten one hour of exercise that day. hahahahaha. a little bit lofty for me considering i don’t exercise unless it is practical (ie: i have to walk to work) — but i need to start making a change.

in other news… my aunt has LUPUS. what the fucking shit. lupus sounds like, a little funny, particularly because mitch hedberg made a joke like this:

“alcholism is a disease, man, but it’s the only disease you can be yelled at for having. otto, you’re an alcoholic! otto, you have lupus! one of those two doesn’t sound right!”

(sorry — cannot pass up a time to quote senor hedberg.)

anyway, i never really knew what lupus was but i guess it’s somewhat hereditary so who knows, maybe there is a chance i could have it somewhere down the line. it’s my mom’s sister who has it. but the disease basically confuses your immune system and causes it to attack its own organs. no cure as of yet. only steroid and medicine taking. that’s some fucked up shit. seriously. scary.

i just signed up for a class at the seattle school of visual concepts (svc) and this is the result:

***

Invoice Date: Jan 08, 2008 Tue 01:03 PM
Account Address: WA, US

***

most expensive class ever. actually, it’s supposed to be $540. that better be wtf goes through.

i wrote to maria cantwell and patty murray about the violent radicalization and homegrown terrorism prevention act. unfortunately, i don’t have my original letter, but this is the response i got. hmm, see some similarities? thanks, unoriginal lackies. unless they actually respond personally. but i doubt it somehow. i’m not really expecting them to answer emails personally, though, but it is funny. and well, shouldn’t they?!!

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THE PATTERN:
1) greeting
2) thank you
3) explanation of the bill, starting with “as you know” or “as you may know” including who introduced it
4) one paragraph that is slightly different
5) thank you
6) sign up for my newsletter, bitch! request

***

FROM SENATOR MURRAY:

Dear Ms. Hua:

Thank you for writing to me regarding S. 1959, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007. It is good to hear from you.

As you know, S. 1959, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007, was introduced by Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) on August 2, 2007. S. 1959 would establish a National Commission on the Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism to examine the root causes of radicalization and homegrown terrorism in the United States and ways to prevent it. S. 1959 would also create a university-based Center of Excellence for the Study of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism in the United States. It would also require the Secretary of Homeland Security to ensure that research efforts do not violate individuals’ constitutional rights or civil liberties.

S. 1959 was referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security, of which I am not a member. An identical bill, H.R. 1955, was introduced in the House of Representatives by Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-CA) on April 19, 2007 and passed the House on a 404-6 vote on October 23, 2007.

Should either S. 1959 or H.R. 1955 come before the full Senate, please know that I will keep your views on this issue in mind. If you would like to know more about my work in the Senate, please feel free to sign up for my updates at http://murray.senate.gov/updates. Thank you again for writing, and please keep in touch.

I hope all is well in Seattle.

***

FROM SENATOR CANTWELL:

Dear Miss Hua,

Thank you for contacting me about the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act. I appreciate hearing from you about this important issue.

As you may know, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act (S. 1959) would establish the National Commission on the Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism to study domestic terrorism and ideological radicalization, as well as the methods other nations use to combat domestic terrorism. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced S. 1959 on August 2, 2007, and it was subsequently referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, where it is currently pending. A similar measure passed the House on October 23, 2007 (H.R. 1955), and it is also pending in the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs after being referred to the Senate.

I believe we must take necessary actions to defeat terrorists, including those here in the United States , but we should do so in a way that is consistent with the U.S. Constitution and that protects the rights of law-abiding Americans. We can protect both national security and civil liberties, and there must be oversight of government and anti-terrorism programs to ensure that civil liberties are indeed safeguarded. I will certainly keep your comments in mind when this issue comes before the full Senate.

Thank you again for contacting me to share your thoughts on this matter. Finally, you may be interested in signing up for my weekly update for Washington state residents. Every Monday, I provide a brief outline about my work in the Senate and issues of importance to Washington State . If you are interested in subscribing to this update, please visit my website at http://cantwell.senate.gov . Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future if I can be of further assistance.

Sincerely,
Maria Cantwell
United States Senator

***

contrastly, i previous wrote jim mcdermott regarding restoring the habeus corpus. he was better. see below. again, there are some similarities, but at least he’s telling me SOMETHING.

FROM JIM MCDERMOTT:

Dear Vivian:

Thank you for your recent communication regarding the need to restore the writ of habeas corpus and to prohibit unlawful detainment.

As you know, last year Congress passed the Military Commissions Act (MCA). I voted against this legislation, which allows evidence obtained through torture to be used against an accused person, and denies individuals the right to counsel. Sadly, this Act encourages perpetuation of troubling civil rights abuses such as those of detainees held at the U.S. Guantanamo Bay Naval Camp.

I strongly believe the U.S. base at Guantanamo should be shut down. While many detainees may be guilty of serious crimes, the procedures and conditions at Guantanamo violate the most basic principles of our legal system. At the same time, the Bush Administration has refused to allow these defendants to be tried within the military justice system. Recent actions by the U.S. Supreme Court confirm that current military operations at Guantanamo are legally intolerable, and the situation there has generated widespread international concern and disapproval as well. The detainment center currently operating at Guantanamo Bay does nothing to promote our national security, but it showcases one of the Bush Administration’s most glaring blunders.

Because I share with so many Americans a deep concern about our country’s loss of moral authority in the world, I have cosponsored HR 1415, the Restoring the Constitution Act, and HR 1416, the Habeas Corpus Restoration Act of 2007. These two pieces of legislation provide for effective prosecution of terrorists while restoring our most fundamental guarantees of due process, habeas corpus, to detainees of the United States. HR 1415 has been referred for joint consideration by the House Armed Services, Judiciary, and Foreign Affairs Committees; HR 1416 is before the Armed Services and Judiciary Committees. Although I do not sit on these committees, I will continue to monitor the progress of these measures, and to urge my colleagues to support them. I welcome your views on this matter, and will keep your remarks in mind as we move forward in the 110th Congress.

Sincerely,
Jim McDermott
Member of Congress

P . S . - I have an e-mail newsletter available to anyone interested in updates on issues and events from the U.S. Congress or the Seattle area. To subscribe, visit my website at www.house.gov/mcdermott and click on “Newsletter Signup.”

hello, my name is chakazulu chakrabarti.

my name has caused the following things to be said:
“are you indian?”
“i love that show” (not that i know what “chaka zulu” the tv show even is)

chaka is my default name, usually followed by zulu or khan. i dunno, i just like the way it sounds, i guess.

anyway, onto the photos — oh, this is good stuff.

i’m sorry — i went a little photo happy. there’s just a lot of shit to look at, unfortunately. or fortunately? i’m not sure. is there something i didn’t touch on? let me know before i uninstall this game. i don’t even want to give myself the chance of liking it. more online attention? not useful unless i’m trying to promote something. which i have thought about but maybe as a last resort. through playing for five or six hours i have engaged in no useful conversation but maybe one that was… somewhat entertaining. but not really.

first off… i can see the appeal in: 1) occasionally seeing what is new and has been made; 2) having sex if you’re lonely rofls; 3) building stuff; 4) making money off the game; 5) fighting or roleplaying somehow.

all other reasons are moot as far as i can tell.

i do think everyone should try out this game, though, just to see what it is that people make because it is pretty endlessly fascinating.

sexcapades - bdsm channel

call me a pervert but in my mind, *of course* sexual deviancy would be the most fun place to explore. and the easiest, as well, since there is an entire section dedicated to adult and other things are a lot more vague (ie: arts & culture… like wtfs?). naturally, in real life, sex is probably one of the things people most obviously deviate at the most… along with violence, but violence is not nearly as interesting. at least, i don’t think so.

so, in second life, when you right-click on an object, it gives you some options. generally, there is “sit here” as the default object, but people can specify other things. this object’s “sit here” defaulted to “pee”… see that yellow shit? it’s pee.

some water jet squirter thing. had to be naked for full effect. btw, isn’t my chick hot? all my clothes made without spending money! sure, the jacket / shirt kind of looks like an alien mold is on her, but i like it. looks neat.

metal spikes on the chair are, well, spiking her, i guess.

she’s a trophy! this was in the bdsm place for some reason too.

this is a good one. see that cup down there? it’s for a “cum martini”. or something.

um, yeah.

if you’re not scared, you need to look closer.

um, yeah. this had to be screen-shotted just cause i never really got multiple people before this. lol.

fighting arenas

you can’t much tell here and the fighting seems rather unrefined, but these giant bugs are things that you can fight. they fight back, too. i didn’t see anyone fighting these, though. i only saw some guy fighting a rat and the rat hit him back quite a bit.

this guy was a mage. yeah. if you right clicked on him, you could see his mana level and stuff. interesting.

nightlife

rave on?

they’re definitely dancing. girl in the front had some moves. HOLLA.

see what’s in her hair? well maybe not. but they’re lizards, on either side of her shoulder, breathing fire out. that’s pretty bomb, i must admit.

amusement parks and zoos

this is a “skydiving pod”. i’m surprised it was free, but yeah. i chose some really high altitude, like 4000, and it took FOREVER to fall. so long that i just gave up and went somewhere else. took way too long. i didn’t even stick around for the parachute to come out! i guess 4000 was a really high distance or something.

arcades! the donkey kong machine… sort of worked. well, kind of. the right-click option made this URL pop up on another website where you could ‘play it while your person was standing at the arcade machine’. i should have tried skee ball, actually. i’m not sure why i didn’t O_O

bumper cars!

i managed to get myself permanently stuck in cannonball mode, regardless of whether i was flying or sitting. OWNAGE.

getting stuck was all due to this place. i dived into the pool, on cannonball mode.

slide! WHEE!

ferris wheel. of ghetto variety. it looks okay but operates like shit.

aminals

this tiger was rideable. i was riding on it at first, and then i got off because i thought the other animals (ie, the dinosaur and the elephant) would also be rideable. they were not. they didn’t move. i came back to the tiger but another guy had jacked it from me. he was hovering around me the whole time, waiting for me to get off the tiger! and i jumped on the tiger with him but he kept running against a tree, i presume, to tell me get off without saying anything. lol.

i’m riding a duckypoo, yes i am.

i is at the bottom of the lake

aliens

i told him… “you’re hawt.” hahaha. and he said, “hello,” and then walked away. his tentacles moved by themselves! HOW THE HECK!

apparently robots are aliens… now?

landscapes

greek-inspired.

greek-inspired park.

winter wonderland park?

some island.

i guess they throw concerts here. none going on when i was here, though. i don’t know how concerts in this game work…

korealand; one of the most popular channels on the whole game. see that building in the background? that’s what buildings look like when they aren’t fully-loaded yet.

japanese place.

so i’ll talk about this later, but this lady, anshe chung, was in the documentary i watched about “second life” on friday night. she and her husband own one million dollars of US money in holdings in this game. errr!?! doesn’t sound like a smart business move to me, but what do i know? they employ chinese workers. farmers!

alexanderplatz in berlin. this is trippy. why? because i was just there. why even more? this place is fucking real. it’s weird. admit. aforementioned lady, anshe, and her husband live in germany (even though she is chinese). since they are all powerful and shit, they got a bunch of people in germany playing. it shows in the game. i looked up a few other cities and didn’t see many complete creations or anything. germany did have some, though. apparently more germans play than americans. that’s funny.

kadewe is the second largest department store in europe and first largest in germany or something. we visited it when we were in berlin. did it look like this? yes. but what is even scarier…

… is this. holy fuck. they got the christmas decorations down and everything. i saw this yesterday but i went back today and the christmas decorations were gone. what the fuck ass? are you wondering how realistic this is? well, wonder no more. here it is for your ass. i really think this is freakish.

upstairs at kadewe. how romantic.

jewelry at kadewe. sims need bling too.

satan-land. i guess that’s supposed to be blood or something.

again.

wedding chapel.

medieval land. the guy on the left looks pretty neat. people congregate around these campfires and camps. it’s weird. it’s not like you’re doing anything really. i don’t get this game at all. lol.

inside some store, sitting on a giant shoe. this shoe apparently is “lockable” — note the lock on the top. i don’t know what that means. i should have asked but i didn’t because she was busy trying to make a sale. lol.

china?

see what i mean about people congregating? this is a camp in china land. i mean, what are those people who are standing around even doing?

this is atlantic city.

eating sushi in japanland!

upon first arriving in japanland, this is where they put me. how rude.

toontown

toontown was so cool it gets its own label. i was looking for more stuff like this but didn’t know what to search for. hmm, mario would be a good one. i’ll have to try that later.

fashion styles

blang, blang, bang, bang.

people sitting at this table were playing the japanese game “go” (like othello).

hrm. why didn’t i press those buttons? i’m not sure.

wedding planner. she’s on a ladder, which is how i got this angle.

the first item i got upon touching down in this world: a my little pony! YEE-HAW!

have you seen an enema bag before?? I SURE HAVEN’T. I DID SEE ONE YESTERDAY, THOUGH. for the first time!! we went over to *someone’s* house (haha) to watch WAY TOO MUCH FOOTBALL (i thought we would be there for one game, aka three hours, but we stayed for TWO, aka, eight hours, aka MOTHERFUCKING SUCK). anyway. these kids were jumping up and down on this rubber bag. i thought it was a whoopie cushion — i was even about to point it out to lenny.

but then he said, “do you know what that is?”

i said no.

“it’s an enema bag!” he said.

and shit mother fuck it IS an enema bag. and it was sitting on the kitchen counter. what kind of fucked up shit is that?

aaah. with the new iowa huckabee winning, i have to ask… at what point is running away from a country you love okay? it seems *extreme* to say that a government is “so scary” that you need to run away, but if you ask people from nazi germany or former communist russia, they would say that sometimes it is warranted. i suppose my question is just — did these people in the other countries sense something wrong early on and instead just waited and waited because it seemed illogical to leave? is it better safe than sorry? and more importantly, can something that seems so inevitable happen in the united states? would you be a complete fool to leave even though you feel something *is* being threatened? or is it more practical (of course it is more practical) to just stay put until shit actually goes down?

well, the fact of the matter is that shit *is* already going down. so at what point do you draw the line? at what point is it okay to run away and at what point are things still hunky-dory? are things only scary when your day to day life is actually affected in a tangible way? are things only scary when people in your community start dying?

so right now, the part of me that thinks, “oh, you’re overreacting, certainly nothing could ever be THAT bad in this country,” is what is keeping me here. the other side is freaked out about potential events to come. that other side is now thinking, “if huckabee gets elected, there’s no way things will be getting any better. it’s time to go to another country.”

perhaps things in the united states really *will* not get as bad as the aforementioned countries, but things certainly are moving in that direction beneath the surface. those who are not dissenters (aka, most of the population), will probably never notice a difference. consumerism and capitalism will continue to be the main points of life, just as they are now and have been for decades. but the brave people who do see injustice and try to stand up for wrongs done by the government in their own lives *will* see a difference in the way things are working.

and say things really do get worse. people never think anything can happen to them until it happens. in the event that something scary does go down, i wouldn’t want to be a part of it. it would be too scary to be too late to action.

it’s hilarious that the united states pressures other countries to behave democratically and act like we are the saviors of democracy when, in many cases, democracy isn’t practiced wholly in our own country.

i will end with a chart so that you can see huckabee’s stances on issues, as taken from issuedictionary.com. if these stances do not seem to you like a perpetuation of the bush regime, then you probably aren’t too worried. as for me, though, i’m scared that if huckabee wins, this country will be taken even further into the religious right where all things different will become feared.

huckabee supports the war in iraq, wants to bring democracy to iran, is pro-life, is against same-sex marriages, supports the death penalty, wants to continue to keep our torture camps open, and wants more money diverted towards military spending.

CLICK HERE TO READ HUCKABEE’S STANCES.

but while i am placing heavy emphasis on HIM, he is NOT ALONE. these are the stances of all the people in the republican party, and the democratic so-called party is governed by some other thoughts altogether. both are scary, although i do think the republicans are a little more scary in this regard. but none of them make me comfortable.

i will also leave you with a huckabee quote about guantanamo…

“If we let somebody out and it turns out that they come and fly an airliner into one of our skyscrapers, we’re going to be asking how come we didn’t stop them, we had them detained,” he said. “If we’re going to make a mistake right now, let’s make it on the side of protecting the American people.”

not cool.

I SUPPORT DENNIS KUCINICH. AND WILL VOTE FOR HIM IF HE’S STILL ON THE BILL BY THE TIME IT ROLLS AROUND TO WASHINGTON STATE. IF NOT, I’M NOT SURE. BUT THE WAY I SEE IT, ALTHOUGH KUCINICH IS CONSIDERED LIBERAL BY EVEN DEMOCRAT STANDARDS, AT LEAST HE VOTES AGAINST THINGS OFF THE BAT THAT OTHER DEMOCRATS LATER FLIP-FLOP ON, SUCH AS THE WAR ON IRAQ AND NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND. AMERICA IS SO FAR ON THE RIGHT THESE DAYS THAT PUTTING IN A LIBERAL PRESIDENT WILL PUT THINGS MORE TOWARDS THE MIDDLE THAN TO THE LEFT.

zomg, so i got the new temposhark cd, the invisible line, in the mail today. i love love love. the album wears on me after a while, but the first track i absolutely adore. i can’t share the track right now as the album is not released until march 2008, but sample lyrics for the first track, “don’t mess with me”:

see my crown?
i am king!
you’ll love the endless worshipping.
i am raw, a dinosaur,
but i will never be extinct,
so don’t mess with me,
i’ll shoot you down,
so don’t mess with me
i’ll knock you down
TEMPOSHARK - DON’T MESS WITH ME.