I’m waiting for FedEx and watchin’ the US get destroyed by European football. Czech is good. Work has been boring since I haven’t really started/had anything to do. I’m getting a laptop and people from Columbia, MD who I work for are arriving today, so hopefully they will give me a lot to do. I hate being bored at work. Here’s a poem:

Oh fuck me
uh…fuck me!

oh me oh mine
to us in time
fucking dreams
in which I’m dyin

why so heavy love
starved from food so
rich but richer still
poorer hearted broke

I see your face when I wake
so love sad oh love glad
to know your name to have
a kiss at last alas alone

dance with me tetrahedron
for me heathen godess dance
full-hips shake lips and dance.
and propose to me each night

the party was super fun. I drank too much everclear. I thought the show went well. My NY friends had fun, they enjoyed the dancing. I was glad to see people I hadn’t seen in a while. Wooo!

So I accepted the job at IU today, woo! It’s good to be employed. I would have liked to be in NYC, but it’ll be there when I need it. And any way, to quote Diane: “I’m so over New York.” She’s kind of a bitch sometimes, but it’s also endearing, sometimes. I think I’m gonna go visit her in Pittsburgh soon, in July maybe.

I have to get a car for work. I’m gonna go to the VW dealer, I want to get a Jetta TDI. 50 mpg yo, plus I can refine biodiesel from vegetable oil if I ever need a new hobby. It’s a profitable hobby. I also want to give some money to: http://www.kiva.org which is a micro-loan company I mentioned a bit ago. It’s such a cool idea, a bottom up aid org that uses capitalism for good instead of evil. It’s also great in that I get the money back and can regift it. I like being able to see how my money is helping.

A reminder and announcement for the party this weekend:

What: Bitesized Buddha Busman’s BBQ and Beer Boogie Bash (Gone Plaid). It’s music, dance, and food fun.
Where: The Fowlwoodrobber (218 S. Jefferson St (Ben, David, Deanne, and Emily’s house))
When: Saturday June the 10th, I guess we’ll probably start grilling around 9?, and I think Busman’s Holliday is going to do an acoustic set then. BSB plays when Ben gets off work, and Gone Plaid after that.

It’s BYOB, but I will bring more than I can drink alone, and I like to share.

My friends from NYC come in on Friday and are staying till Sunday, I’m so excited! I love visiters. I think Diane might come visit me at some point too, which would be awesome. I should get my friends from DC to come some time.

PS: this is awesome. Color Tricks!

News For Your Pseudo-Zionist Blues

Salon has had a successful week (and I apologize for not writing things up earlier). The best article delved into the world of politicized birthright trips Jewish-Americans receive to visit Israel.

What frustrates and saddens me about the birthright trip is that it is DECIDELY political, and also discriminatory. The very name itself promotes an exclusive agenda; people have the right to visit Israel for free based on being borne into a Jewish family, perpetuating the very cultural privileging that the Jews were once victim to.

Further, the trip quickly turns into a political ploy, rather than an authentic reason for individuals to reconnect to their identity. See this thinly hypocritical remark by one of the directors of Birthright Israel:

Taglit bats off any accusations of having a political agenda. “I don’t think it’s political for Jews to support Israel,” says Mark. “It should be an integral part of every Jew’s identity.”

In a nutshell, Israel is not a political subject for Jewish people because Jewish identity should intrinsically include support for Israel. So, in essence, politics is having different opinions which is not possible for a Jewish person to have about Israel.

In another interesting interview, Salon talks to internet celebrity Maddox. He’s pretty funny and semi-competent, which is always a plus. But the best is the reactions from firehose feminists who freak out about his over the top humor. Let us all show that over the top tolerance leads to being humorless whales.

If you watched the news, you’ve probably wondered why America has seemingly been pushed around by Iran. The direct correlation is that the war on Iraq has severely debilitated America’s and the West’s in general ability to stand up to Iran in a tangibly strong manner (ie. with military capabilities). The BBC evaluates this and America as a ‘soft power’ in response to Iranian threats.

Oh, and a sheep thinks its a dog. And, it likes football.