Monday, July 28, 2008

Some days seem so organized, yet so unproductive

Here's a look at my day so far:

Called Ticketmaster for a ticket refund for tickets we bought my mom for Mother's Day. The concert was canceled and we were told to call for a refund. Refund will be issued.
Time spent on phone: 45 minutes

E-mailed and called the man who sold me my car about why I haven't received any payment information on it. The first payment is due in 2 weeks. The man does not work today.
Time spent: 5 minutes

Tried to divulge information from my dad to plan a trip to Indiana/Kentucky to see the guys in his army unit. No car rental or hotel booked yet.
Time spent: all morning

Cleaned the kitchen (loaded dishwasher and wiped down the stove)
Time spent: 10 minutes

Still need to:

Burn my iTunes library onto CD for a friend
Estimated time: 4 hours

Go to Smart & Final for popcicles
cost $20.00

the gym
what I have to show: nothing, the internal pain

Target for a case for my iPhone
cost $25.00-$30.00

I guess for what I am going to do I'll have my bank statement in a few days to show for all the money I spent.

Friday, July 25, 2008

How can you not love Miley?

Her lyrics are just so cute- she is so pure and wholesome. She has no DUI's, she has had no traffic accidents, and she hasn't been out all night partying out on the town. She comes from a loving home and it doesn't seem to get much more country and down home than Billy Ray Cyrus. Her songs are so true- "7 things I hate about you," and I'm sure I'm not the only one who has felt the pressure when I messed up when I met someone new as she does in "See You Again." She sings about real life issues.

Hopefully this never happens!

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Other "deep" country thoughts

"Home" by Blake Shelton sounds like a whining hillbilly. Leave that one to Michael Buble.



Equally as bad is girlfriend Miranda Lambert's song "Gunpowder and Lead"- knew there was a reason or two I didn't like her- the whiney voice and secondly she thinks she is capable of taking on any man. I just don't find that hot. The image of a woman going home to load her shotgun, standing by the door and lighting a cigarette is just not hot. She reminds me of a man. Nasty. Next thing she'll be out plowing the fields with her man.

I can't forget about my dear Taylor Swift. Taylor, dear, what were you thinking on the CMA Awards? Vocal abilities? Whining ability, yes. Trying to sing at 10 different ranges- not attractive for a supposed talented singer. I can do just as well, I think. Her whining and range problem is a perpetual problem in all of her songs. I am tired of it. She seems to have more boy problems than anyone I know. And the boy out fit? The boy Taylor Swift? Yes. I saw the jeans and the hoodie- I'm confused about the outfit. Because you didn't say no I turned into a boy? I also noticed Taylor still has that hella annoying duck waddle when she walks. And the rain in the end? Get out of the rain, stupid! It looked like stage desperation as opposed to talent. Personally I think she "should've said no" to performing at the awards show and singing that song.



Toby Keith- "She Never Cried in Front of Me"- Anything Toby does goes on the bad list. "Beer For My Horses" or "Angry American" were just too much.

I am not having a "good time" listening to Alan Jackson's "Good Time." Is there some rule that just because Alan Jackson has been around in country music so long that his song has to be played 2-3 times every hour? The video bothers me- the whole reporter thing- since when is a country line dance "breaking news?" Secondly, the reporters in that song are terrible and Jackson does terrible PR promoting his record when he is in such a hurry to leave the scene. I think having real reporters could have added a dimension of reality.

"Come on Over" by Jessica Simpson, hun, your career is over; once you left Nick it was done. In fact, it was done prior to that. Your records were never successful and your droning voice doesn't help. Sorry Joe.


Now who in country gets props?


Josh Turner and Trisha Yearwood in "Another Try"
Trisha is always classy, has an amazing voice, and her duet with Josh is really neat, especially since their voices are so different. This is just so much more appealing than the droning "Long Black Train."


Josh Gracin- "We Weren't Crazy"
Nice story, modern country, great voice.


Montgomery Gentry- "Back When I Knew It All"
In your face, two very different voices, the genuine country sound

Luke Bryan- "Country Man"
Fun, upbeat, and who else could make salt curing a ham and other things country men do sound so cool? Great voice.

Jimmy Wayne- "So Do You Believe Me Now?"
Good sound, a little mainstream sounding, but it surprises me to admit Jimmy Wayne actually has a good hit.

Lady Antebelum- "Looking For a Good Time"
The lead singer has a great voice and the girl in the band's vocals provide an interesting sound.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Suddenly running over your girlfriend became romantic

I was listening to Christy McLeap on KFROG this afternoon. This gal has a few screws loose. She seems very sadistic. She was talking about how romantic the new Bucky Covington song "I'll Walk" was. Romantic? I wanted, and probably should have picked up my cell phone to call and tell her I disagreed.

Sappy? Yes. Romantic? No. Whiney and grating on the nerves? Yes. Pitiful? Yes.

So here we have the big questions to ponder...
Since when did a girlfriend getting run over because she wanted to leave you because she was upset with you become romantic?
Is your girlfriend getting run over romantic?
Is the fact she might not be able to walk the same romantic?
Is being an idiot romantic? Shouldn't your senses, Mr. Bucky Covington have stepped in and realized the dangers of your girlfriend out walking at night, all alone? Isn't that romantic? All alone, in the dark, at night? Shouldn't you have been the voice of reason when your girlfriend was upset and not listened to avoid ending up in this romantic mess?
Is a fight romantic?
Is driving to the hospital to see your mangled girlfriend romantic?

Here's the lyrics...:

We were 18, it was prom night.
We had our first big fight.
She said "Pull this car over".
I did and then I told her, "I don't know what you are crying for".
I grabbed her hand, as she reached for the door.

She said, I'll walk.
Let go of my hand.
Right now I'm hurt, and you don't understand.
So just be quiet.
And later we will talk.
Just leave, don't worry.
I'll walk.

It was a dark night, a black dress.
Driver never saw her, around the bend.
I never will forget the call, or driving to the hospital
when they said her legs still wouldn't move.
I cried, when I walked into her room.
"I'll walk
Please come and hold my hand
Right now I hurt
And I don't understand
Let's just be quiet
And later we can talk
Please stay, don't worry
I'll walk"

I held her hand through everything
The weeks and months of therapy
And I held her hand and asked her to be my bride
She's dreamed from a little girl
To have her daddy bring her down the aisle
So from her wheelchair she looks up at him and smiles
and says. . .

"I'll walk
Please hold my hand
I know that this will hurt
I know you understand
Please, Daddy don't cry
This is already hard
Let's go, don't worry
I'll walk"



All I'm saying is please don't run me over and call it romantic!

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

B to the U to the S to the Y

That spells BUSY.
That's what I've been.
So what have I done?

- I have been dealing with family stuff.

- I bought a car. Pictures can be found on my myspace.

Me loves my new car. Waiting for so long definitely helped build the anticipation. I have saved every paycheck since I started working to buy this car. That's 3 years of paychecks!!! I still owe about $1,200 on it, but am going to work hard to pay it off ASAP. I had to finance $7,500 to get the college student rebate. I plan to pay $6,300 of that off in the next 2-3 months. The $1,200 will come when I get back to working on a more consistent basis. It was hard for me to buy it, especially when I'm so frugal with money, and the thought of having a payment. It was a $20,000 car that I got for $16,700 OUT THE DOOR (including taxes) after rebates.

I got a great deal though- tint added for free, the Bluetooth handsfree phone system, and a no key ignition. You turn a dial to start the car and the "key" is a keypad like you'd have on your keychain to open and lock the doors. It has a built in Bluetooth system so I can talk without an annoying earpiece. The Bluetooth system is neat, but the voice training has been annoying. Since when did "home" sound like "Iris?" I called my aunt a couple times because I told the phone to call home and it thought I said Iris. Same situation for words like Brad and Chad. I just need to enunciate more and reprogram the car. Think I have the system figured out- the volume button was the main culprit.


This is what the key for my car looks like- except it has a Nissan logo



- I've been struggling, taking a linguistics class. I guess I'm doing ok. My grade on the midterm was a 91.5%. That is well earned after several hours of reading, practicing, and struggling. Part of my problem is my allergies, so my voice is more nasalized and the words sound like they're coming from my nose rather than my voicebox.

- I have been helping my parents house hunt.

- I have been mourning the marriage of Mariah Carey to Nick Cannon

- I've been hanging out with my friend Gaby. She is a riot and so fun. We never have time to hang out because of her work schedule, but this summer we have made it a priority to see each other. We have gone out to lunch at the Mexican Kitchen twice this summer. We met each other back in elementary school, hated each other, she teased me in a nice way in 9th grade, then when we started working together we became great friends. She is one of the few friends who knows everything about me and I know everything about her.

- I made a demo tape in Spanish and English so I can apply to be a radio station traffic reporter. My friend John used his computer expertise to help me out.

- I have been doing sit ups- 100 a day, that's my goal. 6 pack is somewhat noticeable.

- I bought an iPhone. There were significant sacrifices to be made including giving my dad my old iPod and buying a battery for it for him, among other things.

- I have been playing around with iMovie on my Mac and learned to make an movie using old photos.

- Now I'm saving up for rims for the car. I am completely out of money. Dang. I haven't subbed in almost a month because it is summer, so I won't have a paycheck until October.

- I got a speeding ticket, which I don't think I deserved because there was no way I could have been going that fast after just turning on the street. My mom was in the car and can vouch for me. The police didn't even flash his radar gun at me. Now I have to do traffic school so the ticket won't end up on my record. I have never got a ticket before. Dang.

- I went to Disneyland with 2 of my cousins the other day. OMG. It was fun hanging with my cousins and catching up in their lives, but I loathe that Disneyland is so crowded and so expensive. A 1 day ticket was $91.00!!! I bought an annual pass for $129. My cousin was interesting though. I hadn't seen her in a year or so due to family disagreements. Throughout the whole day she told me I was anorexic and needed a good meal. She kept asking me if I was hungry and wanted an ice cream or to go eat. I kept looking at her thinking Chayna, you need a good meal, not me. You're 5'5'', 105lbs, and you lost 30 pounds recently. Please, don't tell me I need a good meal. You look emaciated.

- I feel I have lost a part of my masculinity. I went tanning today. There was a special at a place ($5.00) and I was without a friend and it was kind of like "why not?" Let's see what the hype is about. Went and am still as pale. They say it takes 24 hours to kick in. We shall see. Actually I'm not that worried about my masculinity. Who cares what others think? I'm from California- land of fake chests, breasts, and botox. Besides, I know plenty of guys who do that. It is the California thing to do. We gotta look our best!