Thursday, November 20, 2008

and once again, with feeling...

It's bad... I didn't even know my password anymore.

okay
-updates...

still breathin.'

been in school, actually (pre-requisite classes for nursing, mostly science and math stuff (because that's all I needed...) ---maybe 3 to 4 more semesters (summer doing math... not a math guy,) and then applying to various local nursing schools.

In all honesty?
It's going to be tough...
Not the homework, (I'm nailing stuff, totally LOVE this.)
---but there's only 200 seats per year to the RN program here at City, ---and (ready for this) 800 qualified applicants -per year... (that's 600 left over per year) ---so I get to go into the lottery... (yep, a lottery.)

There's other ways of scheming one's way in, --but will talk of that later.

Work -busy busy, ---especially with holidays coming on... (still have other stuff ta do too.)

School -again, busy busy (loving it today? dissected a fetal pig (we named her betty, --she were already done dead (thanks to the Carolina Biological Supply, ---rockin shop, --used to read one of their old catalogues in the 7th grade, ---you can get anything from them... (vital arteries dyed blue... etc.)

Home life. --see 'work and school.'

Fam back east all doing okay, (see them (I hope) over Christmas week...

Fresno... (again see: wk-sch..)
----Actually?
I love Fresno City College. --FINALLY a truly diverse place in Fresno... (folks just being themselves, very very cool environment, (yeah, lotsa cops on campus, ---but some 60year old shot his Calculus book up at another campus (the new 'nice' one) ---Gimme ol' crime-ridden 'city-main' anyday.

The neighborhood?
Hmmmmm, well the kids in my area are horrendous, (you know how they say that there are no 'bad kids,' ---yah... sorry, found them.. (two of the lil bastards took out my one outdoor cat last spring with two pitbulls, ---they like to run around dent up people's cars, terrify old people, and turn off power switches in the back of the apartments, (and they're like 9 thru 14.)

Ummmm, Writing:
-Mostly on MindHub (when I do write,) and BeeHive (when I do write,) --which, honestly? has not been that much (comparitavely speaking) ---with (you guessed it wk&school...)

Church:
---Well, ta be honest?
My own denom went through a real real rough experience.. (most of the Episcopal churches split and left, --taking people and property with them,) -leaving my own church as the only one in Fresno...
---And then it had it's own issues...
So's I chilled on that for a while...
---Got invited by a friend (Andy) to be a part of a smaller service for a local United Methodist Church (turns out the Methodist Movement was founded by a Episcopal Priest... (Wesley)
---and, well, I guess I'm sort of an elder or something now in it... (though I'm still Episcopalian..)
Bottom line?
Great bunch of people, great (female) Pastor, open and accepting of anyone (a big thing with me,) and a nice simple service that has some songs, some scripture, a lot of prayers of the people, communion, and then folks just grabbing some chow...
I've gotten involved in some of the tech. stuff, ---but have taught the sunday School here and there... Very very very great fellowship and a bit of a different feeling, (like I have a church home now in a lot of ways...) ---so I'm digging that.

The 'arts' community...
...Who?
Seriously, I really don't see much of anyone outside of work and school, (and figured that would be the case...) -miss 'em, but I'm going after stuff that's really sort of life-changing (hello-nurse) and everything else is sort of coming in second (as it must.)
Didn't even make it to one of Liesl's shows the other week, and that's not like me.

Local issues:

Um.... well, my town just revealed itself to be horrendously bigoted against the basic (municipal) rights of folks who are 'same-sex' getting married.
---(Worse) --a lot of folks who were the 'radicals,' -honestly?
Just really didn't do squat regarding speaking out against this...
-Most of the area churches were either (strangely) silent, --or very very vocal about 'removing the marriage rights.' ---I have friends who got married this summer... they're sort of sweating it out...

But it kind of comes down to a very
'...yeah, well, you have your feelings about civil rights and how this place ain' like Selma Ala... --(yet) for fear of reprisals and such, ya'ain' doing a whole lot to really support folks who just want ta get married and have same visitation rights in hospitals (etc. etc.) ---as heteros...'

--We'll see what happens.
--For the church thing on this (we went through this a good year and change ago,) there was already a lot going on that folks had to be like:
'...yeah, well, I love you as a friend, but my church won't endorse your sexual identity,' (but it is my church, and it does define my faith,)
(so geeeeee, there's a bit of a gap there, huh....)'

I kind of simplified it:
I really can't live with this double standard in my own life and faith, and really don't want to be associated with any church that wants to be like
'..yeah, we'll preach love, but act in (denial) or outright hate.'
I got tired of that game years ago.

Either you love people and you have a spine, or you do not... (period.)

Needless to say...

That's about all for now... need to go build some bikes...
Selling a few of my own, (hopefully,)
Papers to write, Tests to take, stuff ta do... (maybe cleaning my house for the first time in months... (needs it.)

Music I've been listening to?
-hmmmm, lotsa
-Counting Crows (August and Everything After / Recovering the Satellites)
-Some Ben Folds (early stuff.)
-(believe it or not... -ancient Beastie Boys (I know, I know, it's the rhyming structures that get me, --and the mixing... very crude but beautifully done...)
-And a Bruce Hornesby album 'Halcyon Days,' ---amazing tracks on that... (not one of his better known, (it's more recent, I'd say, like the past 5years I think...)
-Dido (anything by Dido) --she has a new one coming out soon too....

And I have this huge Tabby Siamese Mix (tomcat) who's made friends (cause I feed 'em) who's got really bad vision (Siamese almost always do,) ---he's great... sort of like Lenny from Of Mice and Men... loves to walk up and pounce on the screens just to say hello (scares the daylights out of my two indoor females,) ---Turns out his name (he was named by the 13 year old daughter of a nurse who lives across the courtyard), cause he's so big, and (obviously) not neutered?
SnowBalls...
(don't ask.)