This morning, I sat in my freezing cold car at a stoplight, waiting for the light to turn green. It was early, and there wasn’t another car to be seen. (Except for the one fateful car in front of me.) We waited. And waited. I kept glancing at the little green walking man on the lightpole, willing him to be replaced by the friendly flashing hand. However the little green man remained in his place, pulling faces and dancing in mockery of me. If it wasn’t for the car in front of me, I would have just gone.

Finally, off in the distance, I could see headlights. The light down the road had changed, and some cars were coming. And, after several minutes of waiting for the light to change while there was no traffic going the other way, it was ironic that the light turned yellow as soon as the first car passed, so that the rest of the cars had to wait while I went through my (finally!) green light.

Now how difficult would it have been to have a green light for us when there was no traffic the other direction so that when there was traffic the other direction, they could have a green light?

I think that there is something far more sinister at work here than ineptitude. Call me a conspiracy theorist, but I think that Greenpeace has taken over traffic duties here in Provo. Their evil plot? Drive people like me crazy until we give up our cars for more eco-friendly transportation, like walking.

technorati tags:traffic, lights, waiting, rant, greenpeace

Sitting in Hogi Yogi for lunch today, I was once again reminded how much I hate pop 80’s music.

I’m not sure what it is about the music that I hate so much.

Is it because the artists can’t seem to sing?

Is it because if they can sing (on a rare occasion), they’re always slightly flat?

Is it the overdone echoey effects?

Is it the lame-o synth instruments?

It’s hard to say exactly why I hate 80’s pop so much, but suffice it to say that I do. So much.

technorati tags:80s, music, rant

Some days I just want to give school the finger and walk away. Consider this post to be my internet equivalent of the double deuces. That is all.

Looking better and better all the time…

I know that this is coming a bit late, but I just had to come clean. As many of you know, I hate Halloween. Here’s why:

• Costumes - Now, it’s not that I actually hate costumes, in fact, I fully support other people wearing them. I just don’t want to put the time and effort into it. What I hate, however, is getting asked eleventy-billion times what costume I’m going to wear, and then, when I tell them that I don’t plan on dressing up, they hassle me about my lack of participation. Boo.
• Pumpkins - I don’t hate pumpkins either. In face, carving pumpkins is one of the few things that I really like about Halloween. What I do hate is the fact that kids think it’s OK to be total punks when October 31st rolls around, so they either kick my pumpkin’s face in, or they smash it on some poor old lady’s driveway. Not so cool. Also, I do hate pumpkin guts.
• Candy- Until this year, this was also a good part of All Hallow’s Eve. Unfortunately, this year I suffered from candy glut, and I am now officially sick of candy, for which travesty I hold Halloween responsible. (Casey Alvarez is also partially responsible for this situation by making me eat 4 Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups at once.)
• Trick-or-Treaters - They have become the bane of my existence, largely because these days, they’re all 15 (and older)-year-old kids who can’t think of anything better to do on Halloween night. And generally, they’re punks. Hello, it’s not cool to go trick-or-treating once you’re old. Trick-or-Treat is for little kids. I think when I have a house, I’m going to give all the old kids that come to my house fake candy. Or dog poo.
• Scary movies - I hate being scared. Period. I like to feel like all is right with the world, like America rocks, and that the good guys win at the end. I don’t like feeling like I’m going to die in my own house.
• Skeletons, zombies, etc. - See scary movies. Also, I think anatomy is gross. A little too much internal organ stuff going on here for me to be entirely comfortable.
• Music - With the sole exception of “Thriller,” all other Halloween music sucks. And in particular, I hate “Monster Mash.” It’s a lame song, no matter how far it takes you back. I don’t want to go back there. Ever.

Anyway, that about rounds out the list. Feel free to try to change my mind. I’d like to hear why you agree/disagree, and why. Until then, Happy Halloween? Bah. Humbug.

I stopped reading the Daily Universe sometime last year. Up until tonight, I had forgotten why, but my friend was reading the editorials and I read over her shoulder. Now I remember. The rundown today:

• Two separate letters complaining about how the letters to the “reader’s forum” (more on the name later) always hash over the same topics, day in and day out: modesty on campus (and the related slap at the cheerleaders), stopping for the national anthem, pedestrian stupidity, and “unrighteous judgment.”
• There was a new twist on an old theme with this letter about commecialization of scriptural themes and heroes as evidenced by the products in the BYU Bookstore. The writer’s final line: “Once again, thank you, BYU, for having zero tolerance when it comes to our dress and grooming standards, but making sure to turn a blind eye to priestcraft. Job well done.”
• Another one about the whole stopping when the national anthem is played issue. *yawn*
• This one made me sit up: “Borderline Pornography?” The reader was incensed that anybody could consider too-tight jeans to be pornograpy. She tackled this weighty subject with zest, leading me to conclude that girls wearing tight jeans are NOT pornography. Glad to have that resolved in my mind.
• There was a nice, short one gently castigating those who complain about the Daily Universe. However, being desensitized after reading so many flaming comments written by “appalled” readers, the writer’s subtle rebuke was lost upon me.

In conclusion, there is a war in Iraq, with people dying every day. North Korea is testing nukes. Within our own borders we are dealing with the problems of what we should do about a growing illegal immigrant population and falling graduation rates within our schools. China is set to overtake us economically in less than 50 years. And dang it, those cheerleaders have GOT to be more modest. That is all.