Imaginus

On the way to the library just now, I had to physically and mentally restrain myself from veering off towards the entrance to the building here where the annual (or possibly semi-annual) poster sale is taking place. You know, that poster sale that, for every year that I have gone to school here, has coerced me into parting with some of my cash. Or credit. Whatever. It's all the same to me these days, especially given my online shopping habits. :P But anyway, evidently the physical restraint kicked in properly -- though I did meander a bit on the sidewalk, and be glad I didn't meander too much because I was, in fact, on the sidewalk across the street from the building -- since I'm here at the library now, but mentally I'd still really, really like to check out those damned posters.

Sigh. The only thing stopping me really is that I know I don't have any walls on which to put any of those posters which I would undoubtedly buy or consider buying if I was (were?) to enter that building. I mean, yes, I do have walls, and there is space, but damn it, my [sort-of] new home is, like, classier than my last home, and I don't really want to sully it all with posters. And besides, I still have all the posters that I already own but which are currently rolled up and in a bag in my closet somewhere. God I miss those. But there's just really nowhere to put them and still have my room look classy, y'know what I mean?

And yes, these ARE the major problems that plague my existence, and NO there is nothing wrong with that. Shush. :)

I've got a class or something I gotta go to soon, so,

Signing off,
- J.

p.s. The flyer for the sale actually says, "From Depp to DaVinci", which I assume refers to the range of products available. However, if you're thinking alphabetically, the way I do, that is, firstly, in a backwards order, and secondly, even if it WAS in the right order (DaVinci to Depp), that's still a pretty small range, yo. Like, the subjects of every poster you're selling starts with D? And anything starting with, say, Di or Du isn't available? Huh. Good thing I'm not bothering to go to the sale even though I totally want to.

Catch-up

So I don't think Fall is my favorite season anymore -- at least not this year, anyway. It's just been so [un]remarkably dreary so far, and I suppose we haven't gotten to the pretty-leaf-colors stage just yet. I missed my old house today for, like, the first time since we've moved here (more or less), because I suddenly recalled that we had a maple leaf tree (yay Canada) in our front yard that always yielded beautiful, red leaves every Fall. I miss that tree. It's weird how you miss the things you kind of didn't realize would be the things you'd be missing. Huh.

---

The fire alarm in our building went off on Saturday, and as I was waiting around for further instructions after the announcement on the PA system that told us to hold tight for more info, I was trying to work out whether I should (a) take my CPU with me in case of evacuation or (b) start trying to upload irreplaceable files online. And of course I was gonna take my journals with me, because I know they're filled with nothin' but crap by by george, it's my crap, so there. Eventually I realized, too, that I'd need my class notes -- 'cause yeah, my home would be burnt down, but, like, I still need to graduate, right? Eventually, of course, the situation was fixed or over or what have you, but I kept thinking about this. I mean...all of the stuff we all have sitting in our closets or in piles somewhere that we just have to have/keep -- why do we need all that stuff anyway? It's the kind of stuff that you're glad you have, even if you won't be needing it for any conceivable reason, at least in the relatively-near future. The kind of stuff you'd be sad to lose, but really, why does this stuff need to be sitting around in piles in the first place?

---

On the Things I Would Buy if They Weren't So Expensive list, there is (amongst various items on Amazon and several other sites, I'm sure) the following item:

Go Pirates hooded sweatshirt

Which is, tragically, a lovely mixture of two of my fandoms (Pirates and Veronica Mars). Dammit. Fortunately, it's only being sold until November 2nd. Which is good, 'cause this is totally overpriced for something I'd probably wear mainly at home. Arrr.

I have no idea why I'm blogging about this thing, really, but...yeah, there you go. :)

---

Question: What does the first digit of your version number mean?

Answer: The first number (5) is the version number since I changed the site title to Verbatim et literatim, and the second number (14) is the actual version since I started this site. :)

Maybe Astrology shouldn't be discounted

So...I guess that optimistic-sounding horoscope wasn't off its rocker, after all.

'Cause I had my interview(s) with one of the big 4 accounting firms this morning, and a few hours ago they let me know that they're extending me an offer to work with them... I'm still pretty stunned. I have no idea. They must think I'm someone else or something. But anyway...so...yeah. I'm still going to try to apply at some of the smaller firms, too, before I decide anything... My head hurts, yo.

In other news, I still have a Tax midterm coming up on Wednesday that I have to remember that I need to pass, so I can't rest just yet. That Tax Act is insane, people, for those of you who don't know (and count yourselves amongst the lucky, I say!). No, like, it's ... interesting enough, I guess, just to see what they've actually part of the law, but it's just that if you want to find out whether, say, a certain employment benefit is taxable or not, you've got to look in possibly 3 or 4 different sections of the huge-ass Act, and understand what you're reading, and know which sections override which other sections, and which sections to look at in the first place, and really, I'm pretty sure I'll forget to look at one of the 4 relevant sections and they'll dock me some marks. But, you know, I'll do what I can.

Anyway, just thought I'd share my current stresses/reliefs with you all, and I hope you all have less of a headache than I do (it's not a migraine, but 'twill serve). Talk to you all later!

Bif Naked album cover banned from American high schools

From the official mailing list:

Too Hot For Teacher

"I guess some people believe that continued exposure to my album cover will cause the ruination of teens in America...I think they overestimate the photo." Bif Naked

Bodog Music recording artist Bif Naked's "Superbeautifulmonster" album cover artwork has been banned from all forms of high school advertising in the United States as too provocative. The artwork features Bif Naked in a mini skirt and a traditional Indian decorative dance top exposing tattooed body art on her mid-section and arms. That was the least of their problems. Bodog Music soon discovered that the exposure of body art, the look in her eye, the aggressive stance and some of the decorative swirls airbrushed in the background of the album cover were deemed "satanic." It was deemed unacceptable for U.S. high school students.

In the news

In today's edition of The Globe and Mail newspaper, there were two bits of news that I found particularly interesting (okay, I know there's much, much more important news other than these two things, but I'm sure all that crucial stuff you can read about in your own newspaper, so...yes.).

1. Both Buffy and Angel were sitcoms.
2. "A student witch in the Netherlands has won a battle to make the cost of her brooms and spell-casting lessons tax-deductible, reports Ananova News. Tax officials finally agreed that the unnamed woman could declare the cost of her overheads against tax."

With regards to #1: ...Whaaat? The article, written by Jen Gerson (who is, apparently, the same Globe and Mail intern/Ryerson University student who was at the press conference for Everything is Illuminated asking this really ridiculous question. Evidently, though, that was part of the Festival Challenge given to her by the readers of the Globe.), starts off with, "After breaking through the bondage of Buffy and other cult-classic space-channel sitcoms, David Boreanaz is ready to take on the world. At least, the world of feature film." *cough* And just when you start to doubt, and think maybe she was referring to shows OTHER than Buffy, you get this gem of a sentence: "But long-time fans who remember him as the lead of the gothic sitcom Angel and romantic lead opposite Sarah Michelle Gellar in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, will delight in knowing that the actor has lost none of his bad-boy brooding intensity in his most recent movie, the Canadian film These Girls."

A "gothic sitcom", people. I didn't know such a thing existed. ALTHOUGH...that would explain a few things here and there in the last 2 seasons of Angel (*cough* PuppetAngel *cough* Cordelia/Connor *cough* Icouldkeepcoughingforever *cough*). And since when was David Boreanaz/Angel considered a bad boy, really? I mean, brooding? Yes. Intense? Well, at least for the first few seasons, and sporadically afterwards. But bad? ...Not really...or, well, at least not normally. Hmm.

With regards to #2: Heh. Note the "finally". I wonder how long this unnamed witch has been battling the tax guys?

Annular eclipse of the Sun as seen in Vigo, Spain, on Monday. (Photo: Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)