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The Western Herald - Forgetting origins can destroy customer base

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It's just sad sometimes....
This used to happen to me when I lived at Spindler Hall. Then it happened a few times while living at Goldsworth Apartments. Now, I live at Stadium Drive Apartments. All of which are on campus housing. Last night, someone broke into my car and rifled through my glove box, ashtray and tossed around the trash that's already in my car.

Did I report it? No. Why not? Well, here's why.

I've reported this everytime it has happened, and because I keep nothing of value in my car anymore, the police doesn't consider it important. The fact that they broke my door lock the first time, and it costs upwards of $1000 to fix the locking mechanisms on my car, doesn't seem to make a difference. Even if I report it, I ALWAYS get a police officer that blames me for not locking my car door, even though the first thief destroyed the lock on my door.

So, no, they didn't get anything this time because I put nothing of value in my car. So, the police don't see this as a problem. It's not even a crime. So, those who do get stuff stolen from their cars will continue to get broken into because the police don't actually investigate continuous break-ins in which the people who own the cars know better than to leave valuables in their cars.

What bothers me is that this isn't exactly a huge crime area. Yet, this happens all the time. And what bothers me even more is that it is a non-statistic, so no one cares about it whatsoever. In the end, some bureaucrat always tells me it's somehow my fault that someone broke into my car.

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Exercise Can Cause Symptoms - like sweating and exhaustion

I bought myself a treadmill a few weeks ago, and it was delivered on Friday evening. So, on Friday evening, I tried it out for the first time. It only took me 25 minutes to realize that this was work. What's with that? I bought the treadmill because I wanted it to do the work for me. I finished my 25 minute exercise completely exhausted and sweating to death. What's with that? I'm thinking of contacting Sears and telling them their product was defective, much like the companies that sell fat burner pills in which the people who take them are still fat.

Cool stuff being released this week
Okay, I figure not everyone else here is a fan of Wilson Philips. I am. I once got a kiss from Chynna Philips in front of a huge crowd of people. It was the coolest moment ever. This was because we had a long conversation as I escorted her from backstage in San Francisco to a restroom where I knew no one would bother her. We talked about music and how much I thought Huey Lewis and the News was a dying band (Wilson Philips was the opening band for Huey and his dying band). Huey Lewis had been rude to me after their set, so I immediately predicted his band would crash and burn after that. It did. Anyway, Wilson Philips has a new album being released this week, and if anyone remembers them, they were notorious for the fact that they had two very beautiful women in the group (Chynna and Wendy), and one very, VERY overweight singer. A lot of people don't know that she went on a serious diet program and is actually extremely beautiful these days. Should make for a lot of interesting interviews over the next few months, if their music is strong enough to create somewhat of a rebirth of their group. Either way, I'm buying their CD.

Buffy, Season 6, is being released Tuesday. That's just cool cause I'm a huge Buffy fan. Unlike the old days, I'm not going to buy the DVD set. I'm going to get it from Netflix, but I'm looking forward to actually watching the season. With the release of Smallville Season 2 and The West Wing Season 2 (which I'm watching currently), this should be a pretty cool week for these types of shows.

Internet frustration
Since moving to Stadium Drive Apartments, I've been having serious problems with my internet. I've figured out that the system doesn't allocate enough power to run the cable internet signal, but everytime it goes out, I have to deal with the Help Desk, which is absolutely no help as they know less than a tenth of what I do about network systems, and when you have to explain why the system to some dork that keeps asking "is it plugged in?" then you get really, really frustrated in response. I don't see any immediate solution here as I don't think they really care. I've practically given up on being connected for days at a time, and I've been completely unable to even make a solid connection just using the phone line. I love my new apartment, but I didn't realize the sole reason why I live on campus (internet connection) would be the sole reason why I'm thinking it just may not last.

School plans
This summer I'm working for Dr. Kuersten again, and I finished grading the papers and the first test, which I will give her on Monday. I'm really burned out. I've been doing this same routine for a year now, and I'm tired, really tired. I just want to veg out, but I just can't seem to manage the time or even the energy to do nothing. I'm taking an independent study with her as well on poverty through the legal system, and I've done very little work on this so far, even though I really want to do this because I think the thesis question I'm asking is a very important one.

This fall, I'm taking an independent study course with Dr. Corder on the third party political system demise in this country. I am also taking, of all things, Biology 150, which is the introduction to biology course. I'm going to contact the graduate department in biology to see what they would need me to crank out so that I could actually begin graduate studies in biology while finishing off this doctorate here in political science. I really don't think I'm ever going to do anything in political science. I find it to be such an unimportant field that is asking no questions that make a difference in the grand scheme of things.

In a few hours, I have to head to the Western Herald and work on the Monday morning paper, even though I don't really have an opinion article for tomorrow. I really don't want to write one right now, but I might end up having to do so. It is so hard to get this thing going during the summer, and it is one of the reasons I'm looking forward to actually having people around in the regular school year.

I went to a munch the other night (a get-together of people of similar interests) a few weeks ago, and it was somewhat interesting, although it kind of felt like I was crashing someone else's party. Hopefully, it's something that allows fitting in over time.

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My latest article

To find a real role model, ask a monkey
Read it even if for the title alone.

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President Bush and college commencements

I was reading in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal (political opposites of each other) that President Bush is not going to attend the college graduation of his daughters because he didn't want to disrupt the commencement ceremonies of their school. I actually thought that was pretty nice of him.

Then, today, it's been announced that he will be attending the commencement ceremonies of at least three universities in areas where he needs to raise votes. So, will those ceremonies not be disrupted by the presidential entourage? I'm kind of confused (not really a new problem for me).

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My 5 favorite books
I received this fromMelanie's page, but here are my favorite 5 books I have read (non-required).

1. The Aeneid by Virgil (gave me the understanding I have today about the growth of literature with tragic undertones)

2. The Box Man by Kobo Abe (excellent surreal book)

3. Briefing For A Descent Into Hell by Doris Lessing (possibly the one book that forever changed the way I write. It gave me a sense of how to write two stories within one story to serve two separate audiences at the same time).

4. If You Want To Save This Planet by Helen Caldicott (probably the book that changed my political ideology overnight)

5. A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami (wonderful story and told in a way that will never be duplicated by any author ever again)

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The first and lasts from Melanie and Miguel's lists

FIRSTS:
First best friend: Roland Pena (also longest, from age 3 or 4 to about 17)
First car: Volkswagon Rabbit
First date: picnic with Shirley when I was about 12
First real kiss: Marie
First break-up: Shirley, about 14
First screen name: duane@crl.com (didn't really have screen names yet)
First self-purchased album: Queen's The Game
First funeral: My grandfather
First pet: Misha, our dog
First piercing/tattoo: None
First credit card: Visa
First true love: Marisha. Quite possibly the only one ever.
First enemy: Andy Thorn. Bully in elementary school. Didn't like a smart ass like me who also happened to be into martial arts. Strangely enough, Andy and I used to practice judo together during the latter part of elementary school. Guess I figured he was too big to fight, and he figured I was too fast to fight, so we decided to practice together.
First big trip: Only trip with my mom which was across the US from California to Port Arthur, Ontario.
First musician you remember hearing in your house: AC/DC


LASTS:
Last cigarette: tried once as a kid but didn't like it so didn't even finish the first one
Last car ride:Today, to school and the Herald office.
Last kiss: Marisha (kind of Sally as well, but she really wasn't into kissing except for little pecks on the cheek, so that probably doesn't count)
Last library book:about 30 of them in my house. Trojan Odyssey by Clive Cussler a few days ago
Last movie seen: Lord of the Rings Part 3
Last beverage drank: Faygo diet root beer
Last food consumed: pistacchio nuts
Last time showered: this morning
Last shoes worn: running shoes
Last CD played: Up! by Shania Twain
Last item bought: sketch pad
Last annoyance: don't honestly remember
Last disappointment:BA in Poverty class
Last time wanting to die: rather not answer. I'm a writer; we get strange that way sometimes.
Last time scolded: 6 years ago from Sally. Seemed to be a major part of our relationship. :0
Last shirt worn: a new semi fancy shirt I bought from Mr. B's a few days ago.
Last website visited: Melanie's

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The scandal breaks!
I'm not sure how they got this photo, but I swear I have not been seeing Ann Coulter! Her evil liberal-bashing ways have NOT drawn me over to the dark side.

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Today's Western Herald articles by me
Today is the first official day that I am the Opinion Editor at the Western Herald, so here is what I did today.

The editorial
The Western Herald - Political Fatigue

The article
We must stop selling Mom on Mother's Day

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