Morbid Romantic

bringing you quality randomness since 1981

Copies are never as good as the Original.

Plus, you can’t do it unless someone is in the background playing Counter-Strike.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Fact: If you read stories about the Vietnam War before bed, you will have nightmares about dead bodies and ghosts.

In the dream, it was all Afred’s fault. He brought the coffin to me.

I was in a two room house… surely there must have been other rooms, but my dream was centered on only two. In the dream, I was in bed, which was made up of the coffin. The coffin had a glass top. Underneath the surface I could see the body, floating in water, of a young girl. Once in the dream, I ducked under the covers to look and saw the swollen face of the dead girl pressed against the glass with her eyes closed next to my legs. Her ghost was in the next room walking back and forth. The rooms were separated by thin plastic panels like you see in horror movies. Now and then a breeze would blow the plastic panels and I could see her ghost pacing. I didn’t want her to see me, but every now and then she would turn to look at me. It made me feel threatened, like she was going to hurt me. All through the dream, there was a prevailing desire for Alfred to come back from where ever he had left to make the ghost go away before she hurt me.

Popularity: 7% [?]

The boy who sat behind her had turrets that manifested itself in minor twitches and jumps. Though a quiet guy, at first she just thought that he was just spastic or itchy until he confessed rather matter of factly that he had turrets. During their end of the year projects, he sat in front of the class with a guitar and played a Gregorian Chant that he had translated from voice to string. It was one of the prettiest things that she had ever heard. Even though, to this day, she can’t remember his face or his name, she remembers that song.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Yes, I feel it necessary to celebrate Black History Month before it comes to a close at the end of this month. It’s the history major in me, what can I say? I feel that it’s necessary that we look back and remember great people who don’t get their names printed in textbooks, people who have changed this country for the better. To change not only history but the mindset of longstanding culture is a show of bravery that I don’t think many of us can understand. We easily take our freedom for granted, never thinking twice about the people who risked everything for it. For us. In the 1960s, African Americans struggled against the white power elite, most of whom were determined to keep them at a subhuman standard of life, denying them the simple civil liberties enjoyed by the majority of affluent America. No longer willing to submit to cruel and inhumane injustice, they banded together and attracted many outside to their cause.

December 2, 1955: Mississippi Bus Boycott. This dedicated demonstration led to the eventual 1956 ruling that bus segregation was unconstitutional.

1957: SCLC, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, led by Martin Luther King Jr., is founded. One of their founding principles was nonviolent protest.

1960: SNCC, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, is formed. This was a branch of the SCLC that was populated not by middle class adults, but young adults, many still in college. Some important members of SNCC include John Lewis (now a Senator), Diane Nash, and Cynthia Williams (who rode a mule through small towns in Alabama to organize African Americans).

February 1, 1960: In Greensboro, North Carolina, four young students stage a lunch counter sit in that spread throughout the United States as other groups mimicked their tactic for desegregation. Previously, in places such as Woolworth, Blacks were allowed to shop but not sit at the lunch counter to eat. These passive protesters stuck to King’s doctrine of nonviolent protest, many taught the principles by Robert Moses.

1961: SNCC, CORE, and the NAACP begin a Voter Education Project.

1961-1964: Blacks and Whites spread throughout the deep south to education voters and register them.

May 4, 1961: CORE, the Congress of Racial Equality (and later SNCC), begin the Freedom Rides from Washington DC to Alabama. The Supreme Court had ruled it unlawful to discriminate on facilities used for interstate travel, but the ruling hadn’t been enforced. James Farmer, leader of CORE, decided to force the government into protecting them by arranging a freedom ride of Blacks and Whites. They encountered much violence, even so far as to have one of their buses bombed, but continued on. In the end, Kennedy ordered for them to be protected though they were arrested afterwards. The ICC released orders that seating on interstate carriers was unlawful.

1962: Michael Harrington publishes The Other America, the first of its kind about poverty and displacement in America. One of his proposals for solving the ills of America is to grant African Americans Civil Rights.

September, 1962: James Meredith is denied the right to attend the University of Mississippi (Old Miss). The federal government has no choice but to step in and order the school to allow him admission.

Spring, 1963: SCLC begin a campaign of desegregation and voter registration in Birmingham, Alabama, one of the most segregated cities in the United States. Even when Bull Connor sets dogs and firehoses on them, they don’t relent. Many end up arrested and in jail, so the younger population of African Americans pick up where their parents left off and protest in their place. Much of what went on is highly publicized and shocked America. Martin Luther King Jr. is arrested and kept in jail where he writes his now infamous letter.

August 23, 1961: March on Washington.

November, 1963: Robert Moses comes up with the idea of holding a Freedom Election. Disenfranchised African Americans cast freedom ballots in a fake election. It’s widely successful and showed the voting strength that African Americans had if they could only be assured voting rights.

Summer, 1964: Freedom Summer begins. Mass voter registration drive of both African Americans (mainly SNCC) and white college students in the South. There’s much violence and death, the most widely publicized being the murder of Chaney, Schwerner, and Goodman.

Summer, 1964: As part of the Freedom Summer, Freedom Schools are created. These schools teach not only the basics of academics (the 3 Rs), but also politics and African American history.

Summer, 1964: Frustrated with the conservative Southern Democrat power, the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party is established. Their goal is to replace the segregated Democratic power in place and replace them with legitimate leaders. Though they only gain two seats, they are still given the assurance that any party of the future would be desegregated.

Summer, 1964: As part of his Great Society plan, Lyndon Johnson passes the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Basically, this bill said three things:
- Public facilities had to desegregate.
- African Americans had the right to vote.
- Schools had to desegregate if they wanted federal money. If they failed to do so, the government would step in and force integration while removing their federal funding.
Though the Civil Rights bill was a big step in the right direction, many Southern states still found that African Americans remained disenfranchised because of tactics of fear, literacy tests, taxes, and grandfather clauses. A voting rights bill was necessary.

March, 1965: Protesters march from Selma to Montgomery Alabama over the Edmund Pettis Bridge. The first attempt is stalled by violence. A second march is arranged, this one led by Martin Luther King Jr. At the end of the bridge, King is given an injunction to stop the march. If he did so, Johnson promised a voting Rights bill. In 1965, the Voting Rights Bill became a reality.

*Excuse some vagueness. I did this all by memory, so I couldn’t recall all the details and names involved.

Popularity: 6% [?]

I just feel like blathering a bit before I go to bed.

Wow. Akismet has collected 5,060 spam messages. Spam used to be uber bad for this blog. First, I put it on comment moderation. Then, I decided to activate Akismet and see how efficient it was. Seems to be working pretty good. I have had all but four messages caught to date.

Wanna know what I did Saturday? I took the Exit Exam for ODU. I had to write a paper about studying abroad. I wasn’t so worried about content since that was pretty easy. I spent the majority of the three hours I had focusing on the mechanics of the paper… making sure I followed all the grammar and punctuation rules, spelled everything right, had a flowing and cohesive paper. I tell you, I checked and rechecked until I felt numb. I feel pretty good about it, though, and I think I passed with flying colors. I won’t know until results are posted on March 16th, though. I hope to post a victory blog entry on that day.

Anyway.

I think I am just counting down now to all the things I have to do to graduate. One more major test, one more semester of classes, and then I may as well be out on my own. That’s something to look forward to, right? Maybe I’m not good with change… I want it, but I dread it. Maybe that’s because I have no way of knowing if the things I want will be the things that I end up getting. In the end, I might wind up far from all my goals with no way to get back. Then, they’ll be too much time to make up for and I’ll have to start all over again from point one. I’m getting too old for this.

Popularity: 3% [?]

I forgot to write about this.

Set List:
G.D.S.
THE FATAL BELIEVER
MR. NEWSMAN
THE FINAL
AGITATED SCREAMS OF MAGGOTS
孤独に死す、故に孤独 (Kodoku ni Shisu, Yue ni Kodoku)
朔 -saku-
愛しさは腐敗につき (Itoshisa wa Fuhai Nitsuki)
GRIEF
かすみ (Kasumi)
Merciless Cult
OBSCURE
°C
凌辱の雨 (Ryoujoku no Ame)
Spilled Milk
Beautiful Dirt
dead tree
NEW AGE CULTURE
CLEVER SLEAZOID

In addition, Kyo did two acapella songs.

How was the concert? Fucking amazing.

After getting my over 21 stamp (the place had a bar inside, so they were checking IDs to give the under 21 kids an X stamp), I walked into the place to find some place to stand. There were a lot of people there under 21. Hell, under 18. I saw a lot of parents standing around the back, letting the kids go off to do their thing while they waited and watched. When OBSCURE came on, I felt sort of bad for them. They were probably thinking, “Why the hell did I bring my child to this?” The song isn’t so bad, of course, it was just that they were playing clips from the video behind the band…

Stuff like naked Geisha looking things rubbing each other down, orgies with a gyrating fake penis, a woman caressing a babies head, and blood vomit aren’t things you want your teenager to like, watch, or be a part of.

Anywho…

I had a wonderful spot close to the stage with no one in my way. I was next to the really, really cute Japanese guy filming for TokyoTV. From where I stood, I was directly infront of Kyo in the middle.

…

Of course, I spent nearly the entire concert watching Die on stage. I’m telling the truth when I say that I forgot how to swallow when Die walked out on stage. I mean, I was SO close to them. That’s Die, people. It’s not something that I can take lightly. I was so close that I could see the tattoo on his hand while he played. He had on a sparkly AC/DC shirt on. Why is it that every time I see Die on stage live, he has an AC/DC shirt on? Well, at least he’s consistent.

Everyone went crazy during CLEVER SLEAZOID, but that’s to be expected. I still can’t believe that they did 愛しさは腐敗につき (Itoshisa wa Fuhai Nitsuki). I mean, I love that song. It definitely wasn’t one that I thought they’d do. かすみ (Kasumi), either. Only a few people had to be carried out during the show, though I didn’t see anyone getting kicked out for being bitches on the floor. Mostly, just passing out.

Yes, it really was the best night of my life.

Popularity: 100% [?]

In January, I took the Praxis II exam for Social Studies content knowledge. The Social Studies includes US History, World History, Geography, Government, Economics, and Behavioral Sciences (Sociology, Psychology, and Anthropology). It’s a test I have to take and pass in order to become a licensed and certified teacher.

I have to admit, I was nervous about the exam. A lot of the people I talked to beforehand gave me horror stories. Hell, I had a girl in my Food & Culture in Pre-Modern Europe class who was on her fourth try. It’s not an easy test. I mean, think about it… all those curriculum areas in addition to the wide span of time and culture involved. They can ask you ANYTHING about world history. That alone is pretty daunting, nevermind that there are other curriculum areas involved, too. I mean, it takes some people eight tries. Here I was, though, spending my $115 to take it for the first time. I can’t student teach without passing it, either, which makes the need to pass even more immediate for me.

Anywho, I sign up for the test and get my study guide, which I barely crack. I skim it, yeah, but I’m spending too much time with Choelin to really bother studying. When the Winter Break comes, I’m too busy with holidays to study. It was also around that time that I met Alfred, who (with my permission) further distracted me from Praxis studying. A few days before the test, I did a little bit of review, but nothing substantial.

So, I don’t go into the test with much confidence. I curse myself, “Valorie, if you fail, you only have your own laziness to blame.” My self-scolding only makes things worse, but I manage not to get sick when I am sitting in the test area waiting for it all to start. I mean, this is my career, folks, not something to be taken lightly.

However, when I take the test, it’s really easy. I was surprised. I was sure when I was taking it that I was completely bombing the economics portion because that is my weakest area. I hoped to make up for it in the World History and Government portions, though, since those are my strongest areas. Still, I didn’t think I was doing very well despite the apparent ease of it.

I didn’t leave feeling too good. Then again, I never do.

To be on the safe side, I sign up for the next test on March 3rd when I get home. It was sort of hard to part with the $115 again, but the company gives you back your money if you sign up for a test before you get your results and pass the one you took previously. I had the assurance that if I passed, I’d get my money back, and if I didn’t pass, I would be signed up for the next test ready to go at it again.

So, I pay. I wait. I get my admission ticket.

The day rolls around for results. Now, you can call and pay $25 for immediate results, but I hate spending money on anything, especially for news that might turn out to be bad. I decide that I’m going to wait a week for mine to come in the mail.

All is good. All is calm. I’m only dreading my results a little… okay, a lot. But, I eat a lot of candy and have a lot of sex.

Yes, all is dandy in Me-land.

Except when I log in to the ETS website to make sure that my seat is all fine and good because I’m anal, I no longer see my registration for the March 3rd test. I’m sort of freaking out because I need to take that test if I don’t pass. AND, I dropped $115 on it! I can’t afford to miss one of the test dates in case I’m truly stupid and need 8+ times to pass it and I sure as hell don’t want to be out $115.

The next day, I call the ETS company and tell them that I signed up for a test and paid but my registration isn’t in my profile.

The woman leaves, I wait. She comes back a few seconds later and says, “I do see you as having registered for March 3rd, but your registration has been canceled.”

I’m thinking, “What the fuck?”

I explain to her that I paid for the test because her first question to me was, “Did you pay?”

Hell yeah I did.

So, she leaves again. I wait. When she comes back, she tells me, “Off the record, your registration has been canceled because you passed the PRAXIS and you don’t need to retake it.”

You would think I would jump up and down and scream a big YEY, right? Wrong. My reply was more along the lines of, “Really? Huh. Okay, thanks.” Real lame like.

To tell the truth, I didn’t really believe her. I tend not to believe word of mouth. I want tangible proof of what is being told to me. Apparently, that has something to do with being born in the year of the Rooster, but what do I know about that kind of stuff, right? Still, I am feeling a little good because she is an experienced phone helper person, so she must know what to look at, what to look for, and what all of it means.

Today, though, I go to the mail and my results are finally here.

Break down:
VA Passing Score: 161
Average Score: 150-170
MY SCORE: 180

It said right there in big, bold letters PASSED. So, now I have to believe it. Bitches, I cracked the PRAXIS II in one try, a rare thing indeed. I even scored above average on it, too, which is going to look really good on my professional record.

Detailed Information
United States History: 21 (average- 16-23) <--- I knew I would be average in US
World History: 24 (average 17-23)
Government/Civics/Political Science: 16 (average- 11-16)
Geography: 13 (average 9-14)
Economics: 15 (average 9-14) <--- How I got above average in economics in beyond me
Behavioral Sciences: 10 (average 6-9)

So, even in the three areas I scored average, I was still at the high end of average. That makes me happy. It makes me even happier that I scored above average in three areas and over all above average for my total score.

Popularity: 3% [?]

In black and white no less. I feel so old-fashioned.

I look goofy in color. Even goofier in black and white. I’m for serious when I say that I don’t like pictures of myself. I avoid cameras, shy away from them, and quickly discard any pictures of me that are made available. However, some I do keep. I’ll keep these.

Popularity: 3% [?]