What?!?! That rocks my world...

So, today I found out two things:

1- The killer whale is also known as an orca (I thought they were different...)

2- The killer whale is in the DOLPHIN family! First I saw that on Wikipedia, and I'm like "no way. silly, silly Wikipedia," but I decided to check and see with a more reputable source. So I went to National Geographic, and sure enough, it's a dolphin! The largest dolphin, but a dolphin nonetheless. Proof! Did you know that it was not a whale, but a dolphin? I'm not sure what the difference is...but still. Hmm. Have you ever realized how many animals are not what their name implies? For example, a koala bear is not a bear. So why did they put "bear" in the name? Who knows. To confuse people...to play a biologist joke on the world...because they kinda look like bears? I'll give them a little slack because killer whales do kinda look like whales...and the "killer" part is right (apparently, they can *eat* whales, among other things)...I don't know. I wish that they'd put what it really is in the name of the animal (in the real name, not just the Latin name, which I'm assuming has the right animal family). Anyways, a killer whale is a dolphin. Rocks my world.

...despite the whole danger thing, they are very pretty animals, though. If I had to choose a whale...or rather...dolphin to be, I might just choose to be a killer whale. Although, who doesn't like Flipper?

******NEWS*******

A dolphin IS a whale! Wow, that too rocks my world. Did not know that. Thank you, Sea World's Ask Shamu section, for being educational. The Q&A is as follows:

Are whales related to dolphins?

Yes, dolphins are a kind of whale, so all dolphins are whales, but not all whales are dolphins. Other kinds of whales (that are not dolphins) include baleen whales (like gray whales and humpbacks), sperm whales, porpoises, river dolphins, beluga whales and narwhals, and beaked whales.

So, I am relieved that a killer whale is still a whale, but still surprised that it's a dolphin. Does that make sense? Hmmm... so is a river dolphin NOT a dolphin? (after all, it's included in the "other kinds of whales" list) Does my point still stand?!?!

Vocab word of the day: Indelible

1) that cannot be removed, washed away or erased; making marks that cannot be easily removed

2)lasting, unforgettable, memorable

California vs. Vermont

So, I hear that it's Girl Scout season. It was a Twitter topic, there was an article about how someone was pretending to be a girl scout and took fake orders, and there's Girl Scout Cookie ice cream in the grocery store (and I bought the Thin Mint one. It seems like it'll make a good ice cream. I'll try some tonight...). But have I seen any girl scouts? NO! And I even went to the grocery store. There were none to be found. This is really weird for me because in California, there are girl scouts at pretty much every grocery store every time I go for the entire cookie season. Which leads me to a conclusion: We Californians have good business sense and see the opportunity that grocery stores offer. Either that, or the Vermont troops are simply lazy or afraid of a little snow (but seriously. They're Vermonters. Suck it up and get out there, girls!). I have only ever seen girl scouts once here (in my 3 years of being here during cookie season), and that one time they were in front of the hardware store...the hardware store?!?! Maybe here it's the men that buy the cookies? Well, for us normal Californians, it's the moms. And me. I'm known to buy like 8 boxes because I originally started out with 2 or 3 boxes (I LOVE Samoas. The best cookies ever. But there are others I like, so I generally buy 2-4 boxes to start off with), and then the cute little Girl Scouts get me every time I go to the grocery store, so I end up with several boxes. These Vermont Girl Scouts...slacking off and not noticing the selling potential of being at a grocery store on a Saturday morning. On their SWOT analysis, they're super high on the W, low on the S, and have not yet learned about the O. There are few threats, I guess, as no one else can sell the cookies...if anyone knows some Girl Scouts, I'm in the market for some Samoas...

Ain't no thaaang but a chicken waaang

Serious munchies: Police say armed bandits rob Georgia delivery man of $36 in chicken wings

02-24-2010 02:49 PM PST

COLUMBUS, Ga. (Associated Press) --

Police in Georgia are searching for a pair of hungry bandits who stole an order of chicken wings from a pizza delivery driver. Columbus Police say the 19-year-old Domino's driver was approached outside a home Tuesday night by two men who asked for money. One of the men pointed a chrome pistol.

Police say one of the men then said, "give me the wings." They fled the scene with the $36 order.

No cash was taken and the driver was not injured.

___

Information from: Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, http://www.ledger-enquirer.com

Winter Wonderland

When I woke up yesterday, there was almost no snow on the ground. I could see the grass and the ground and everything. When I woke up today, I woke up to this:

Bummer. No, really. Lots of snow is fine in December and January, but not in February after a while of no snow and warm-ish weather. So waking up to this Winter Wonderland was not fun. On that subject, is a winter wonderland I good thing? As I walked back from Spanish class last night in the snow, I was thinking about "wonderland." I don't know about you, but "wonderland" evokes the idea of Alice in Wonderland. Let's talk about this wonderland. Alice is in this very weird world with all these weird hallucination-like animals and worlds and a queen trying to chop off her head and a mischievous cat...I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want to be in Wonderland. So why is a Winter Wonderland a desirable place to be? For you West Coasters, I'll tell you that it's NOT. At least not at the end of February...with days of straight snow...unless tomorrow becomes a snow day too. Then I will love snow forever.

My friend, Kirsten, has sometimes blogged on the ads that facebook gives you that are supposed to be based on information you've put in your profile or things you've written or something like that. Anyways, here's what I got yesterday:

So...what? Facebook thinks I'm superficial? Because I'm from Orange County? So stereotypical.

Now I remember...

So I just finished watching Dumbo (which is out of the vault, BTW). I remember why I didn't really watch it: it's SO SAD. Everyone is so mean to poor little Dumbo. Like incredibly mean. First, the matronly elephants all insult and laugh at him and name him Dumbo (I thought that was always his name, but no. His original name was Jumbo Jr. The other elephants nicknamed him Dumbo. So mean). And then at the circus this group of adolescent boys are making fun of him and playing with his ears and harassing him so his mom steps in to try and protect him and the circus master is whipping her and they finally get control of her and put her in this cage-like thing. The other elephants keep being mean to him...poor little thing. It's especially sad because he's such a sweet little elephant! I think he's adorable. I want one.

Side note, does the elephant with the blue hat-thing sound A LOT like Minnie Mouse to anyone else...?

Did you know...?

Did you know that Nickelodeon is an actual word, not just a channel? I ran across it in a book I'm reading (a for fun book. You'd be surprised at how much vocab you can learn reading leisure books. Often more than regular school books, for me anyways). Nickelodeon = 1) an early movie theater to which admission usually costs five cents; 2) jukebox. Interesting, isn't it?

I just came back from dinner with my MiddCore class. It was a reunion dinner (voluntary) of sorts, and payed for by our class (aka, free for us!)...awesome.

About to watch Dumbo. I have little memory of ever seeing it, but maybe I'll remember it as I go along...

No wonder my eyelid twitches...

My eyelid twitches. A lot. Or, at least a lot when I'm at school because the twitching is related to eye strain, apparently. So it's no surprise, really, that it is currently twitching almost 24/7. Here was my weekend homework (done, because I don't do work on Sundays):

Italian: A few exercises, write a dialogue. Not very time consuming. (Have I ever told you how much I LOVE Italian. Practically no homework compared to my other classes)

French 1: Read 63 pages. At the end of this reading, there is a pretty graphic scene of genocide in Rwanda. Thank you, French. Write a 1-2 page paper on the film and conference that we had to attend (not included in class hours, by the way). Read a 9 page article.

French 2: Read 75 pages. Not all that interesting. There are like 3 separate stories going on during this reading. (I really prefer if there's really only one main plot line. I don't really like when there are like 6 main characters. 2 is perfect for romance, 1 is fine for everything else. Keep it simple....). Write a page about a character.

Spanish: Read 178 pages. Many of which are these never-ending somewhat repetitive (in theme if not in exact words) letters the main character writes in her madness. Read an article.

Do you see why I love Italian? I finished my homework for Italian in under an hour (and that while watching JAG, so my attention was even then somewhat split. French 1 took at least 2 hours to read, about an hour to write the paper, and if we include the film and conference part, let's tack on another 2.5 hours...for a total of 5.5 hours for the weekend. French 2 took about 2-3 hours and then the paper didn't take very long. Let's say 45 minutes. Spanish, wow. I started reading that book sometime between 11 & 12, and ended at almost 4. That was rough. If I'd literally read every word, I might still be reading! I admit to some skimming near the end because of the letters (and sometimes in literature, I get the main points and the main plot better by skimming because I'm less bogged down with all the unnecessary fluff that's often in literary books. No, seriously. I also had to read an article about the book, and many critics think that that portion that I skimmed is what kept the novel from being a great novel. So you see, I have good instincts). wheeeeeeew. At least it's done. For now. Looking at my next week's schedule, SO much MORE reading. Especially for my French (French 2) class -74 pages for Thursday. I sound so complainy! It's not so much that I mind doing the readings, but that there's so much of it all at once. My advisor warned us freshman year that taking more than 1 literature class is a bad idea. I just finished week 2 and I can already see how bad this is going to be. I couldn't really help it though; that's the nature of being a language double major. As a joint major I'd be pretty much done now...just chillin'....=D So, yeah. Have I told you how much I love Italian?

2 movies and 100 days!!!

So, this weekend I watched two classics:

1) The Fox and the Hound

It was a cute movie, but on the sad side. It definitely has that "classic" feel (vs. Oliver & Company and also the Rescuers -more later). But it's such a sad, doomed friendship. I don't know about you, but I so totally side with Tod. He's so completely innocent in the whole thing. He just wants to play with his friend like they used to and to be best friends forever. Copper's the one that goes to the dark side! In the scene where Copper is trying to fight off a bear and is pretty much losing, you see Tod turn back and decide to help. I'm saying "No Tod! Keep running! Run away! Don't help Copper!" Now, before you say "wow. you're such a bad friend!" let's take a look at the situation before, in case it's been a while since you've seen the movie:

*Copper comes back and says they can't be friends any more.

*Copper's mentor (so to speak), Chief, gets injured because he's chasing poor Tod who has done nothing wrong except try to go see his friend Copper. But who is Copper mad at? Tod! In my opinion, Chief got himself hurt. He's so obsessed with trying to be a better hunter than Copper, that he loses all common sense. But anyways...Copper says something along the lines of "I'm gonna get you, Tod, if it's the last thing I do!" Seriously. Some friend. (I'll only give him marginal points for having found Tod and pretending like he didn't to the hunter. But very few points because he did it in such a mean way, all the same)

*Then, because he's being chased and the hunter threatens to kill him, poor Tod, who's been living in an elderly lady's house, he is taken to a preserve by himself (by the lady) -no longer has the only mom he's known (his real mom was killed by the hunter thanks to Chief), the only home he's ever known, forced to fend for himself in the wild. Just for wanting to be friends with Copper.

*Copper hunts Tod viciously, chasing him and his girlfriend fox and allowing them to be smoked out and biting at them and all.

After this last scene, where Tod has been hunting and threatening Tod (& his girlfriend)'s life, Tod goes back and nearly gets himself killed defending Copper. He is such a nice friend. Copper does not deserve him. Yes, right after that, Copper stands over/guards Tod so that the hunter won't shoot him, but I think that's more of a "you saved my life, so I'll save yours...this once..." gesture. So I'm so not a fan of Copper. Which is weird, because I'm a dog person. Maybe I'm a fox person too. Tod is WAY cuter than Copper and so much nicer, just in general. But yeah, there you go.

I found the entire scene, here goes: Watch Me! (well, it starts when Copper and the hunter start chasing Tod and ends sometime after Copper saves Tod)

2) The Rescuers. I just finished watching it. It was cute, but I don't know. Not much to say about it. I think that I like the ones with more depth, where the characters are real and you get really into it. The Fox and the Hound, while sad (and if you know me, I'm not much of a not-happy movie person. With the exception of Bridge to Terabithia which I LOVE for some unknown reason - both the book & the movie. But I digress...), had that. The characters and their relationships and everything were so much more real...there was more drama and more tension and more...interest. Maybe the original book just had more of that anyways (wow. I read a summary of the original story in Mouse Under Glass, and it's the SADDEST thing I've ever read. Well, maybe. But it's definitely in the top 5. I for sure could not make it through that book....if you thought Copper was a bad friend before...). But yeah, it missed that. I think the classics that people still watch a lot and remember and everything have that...or are princesses. Not sure if the original princesses had a whole lot of real drama and intrigue, but you love them anyways. That's just the nature of royalty...=D

99 Days to graduation!!! (15 days of February, 31 days of March, 30 days of April, & 23 days of May!!!). I mention this because last night was the 100 days party. I went. It was somewhat fun, I guess. Not as fun as reading a book, but oh well. They did have chocolate fondue with strawberries & marshmallows and pineapple though. And champagne. But no, don't go thinking it was classy. I'm being selective about what I mention, but it WAS a school sponsored dance, so don't imagine the worst either. Think: not high class, but not a beer brawl, and you're there =D

P.S. You should totally rent movies from iTunes. It's easy, as you don't have to go to the movie rental store or worry about mailing things. It's quick, it doesn't take long at all to download so you get your movie right away. It's inexpensive, at least compared to the movie rental place in Middlebury. It's nifty, you can watch it on your computer or on your iPod...or both! So yeah, I'm enjoying it. I'd never used it before this weekend, and I am so a fan.

Downside: 1) it's not on DVD, so you can't watch a movie and play the Sims (or, do other multi-tasking things with the computer) at the same time...unless you put it on your iPod but then it's small...unless you have a TV and the iPod connecter thing...but if all you have is your computer, iPod, and a portable DVD player, you can't play the Sims at the same time. 2) the time limit. The time limit isn't actually a problem for me. I generally watch movies when I have time to watch the whole thing at once, anyways. But if you plan to watch it more than once or watch it in segments, you have 24 hours from when you start it to finish it. So if that's a problem for you, that's a downside.

"It's newspaper burritos for breakfast again, man"

Where's that from?

Name the movie!

Oh fine, I'll tell you. It's from the next movie in my re-discovery of Disney classics series:

I just finished watching it, and I really don't think I'd ever seen it before. It was...interesting. I really don't have much to say about it. It's not a great movie, but it's passable. It has it's cute moments and it's funny moments. The animation, though. It seemed so...generic, I don't know. If I didn't know it was a Disney movie, I wouldn't have necessarily thought it was.

That is all.

Hopes are up for tomorrow's film (am deciding between The Rescuers and The Fox and the Hound. Or maybe the Great Mouse Detective. I guess it depends on what I feel like watching...but as those three are rentable on iTunes, it'll be one of those 3)

Hot potato, hot potato...

Hot potato: Russian farmer convicted of planting explosives to protect crop

02-12-2010 08:31 AM PST

MOSCOW (Associated Press) --

A farmer in Russia's Far East has been handed a suspended prison sentence for planting explosives in his field to ward off potato thieves.

The RIA Novosti news agency says 73-year-old Alexander Skopintsev made three tripwire-tethered explosives loaded with salt to ward off trespassers after several spud-snatchings in June 2009.

A neighbor suffered a lip injury after triggering one of the devices at the farm in the Primorye region.

The news agency says Skopintsev pleaded guilty to the illegal storage and production of explosives, but complained that the neighbor should not have stepped onto his land.

Update: Not much

I'm writing because, hey, why not. But I'll try and keep it short.

1- my ears are still not clear. bummerooski.

2- I watched Snow White yesterday. Yeah, still not a fan. I just realized what I don't like about her voice. It's like when adults (esp. women) talk to little kids. Their voices get higher and child-like. It's one of those sounds that drive me crazy. Why can't people talk to kids like people? Why must we resort to that super annoying voice? Anyways, that's how she sounds. And she totally looks 12. Maybe she has the same problem as I do. People often think I'm 14, and I'm 22! Princesses are generally about 16, I gather, so I'm assuming that's Snow White's age. But she totally looks 12. And like a porcelain doll. I think it's her child-like face and her headband with the bow on it:

But she's a super housekeeper!!! =D hehehe. And I was SO right. Prince Charming is such a dud. No character at all. I was SO amused by how, in the end, he comes, kisses a cadaver (well, they thought she was dead. So he totally thought he was kissing a dead Snow White) then whisks her off. Doesn't say like anything at all. D-U-D. I'm glad my dear Aurora, who meets her prince in a similar way and gets awaken by the prince in the same way, at least has a prince with more character! (not a whole lot more, but more nonetheless)

3- I just realized that I can rent several Disney classics on iTunes!!! This is great because now I don't have to walk to the video rental store in town to get & then to return the DVDs. I can do it from the comfort of my own room...cheaper! Yesssssssss My weekend is set.

Cox's best invention: Strange News

This is one of the BEST strange news stories that I have come across:

Now that's cold! NYC mugger steals doggie coat from mild-mannered terrier

02-10-2010 02:00 PM PST

NEW YORK (Associated Press) --

A Brooklyn woman said a mugger stole a doggie coat right off the back of her mild-mannered terrier. Donna McPherson said she tied up Lexie, her 10-year-old Westie, outside a Park Slope supermarket "for two minutes" while she bought milk. She heard a "funny bark." When McPherson went outside, she found the little white dog shivering. His green wool coat, with leather trim and belt, were nowhere in sight.

McPherson said the dog coat was worth $25. She said that, fortunately, Lexie wasn't wearing his pricier Burberry.

Information from: New York Post,http://www.nypost.com

P.S. You should totally read some of these adorable entries about Romantic Moments at Disneyland: Read Some!

Staring blankly

Staring blankly. That is what I did in class. Why? Because my hearing issues continue, and my right ear blocked up again just in time for class. And the teacher of this class spoke rather quietly and very quickly. I estimate that I fully heard & understood maybe...30-50% of all she said. And I tried SO HARD to focus on what she said. But sometimes she was facing away from me, and so there was simply no hope. Did what I could. But I HOPE and PRAY that I can hear perfectly by next class (which I only have once a week, so odds are good).

This last semester will be...interesting. I have a RIDICULOUS amount of reading. Don't believe me, well I'll prove it.

Those are the books I had to buy (therefore, have to read) for my classes. Add two more that hadn't arrived yet. And let's not forget the many many articles & critiques that I will have to read. Oh, and did I forget about the additional texts that the teachers will email me later to read? Yeah. That's right. Now do you see why I'll have a ridiculous amount of reading this semester? Yuck. Freshman year, my advisor told us not to take 2 lit classes at a time. As a language major, there's not much I could do about it, but I TOTALLY see why. If I'd seen all this as a freshman, I would have totally switched majors! (Well, maybe not. I was SO decided to be a French & Spanish double major and I like very few other subjects. I might have become a psych major. I REALLY enjoyed Psyc 101...anyways. off topic.) So, so sad. On the upside, having readings as homework is great because it's easy to transport and therefore can be easily done in Burlington with a frappuccino! =D

If you aren't following me on Twitter and you aren't my mom ( =D ), then you may not know about my re-discovery of Disney classics series. After reading Mouse under Glass, I decided to see some of the classics again so as to remember them. And so I am slowly buying them (starting with the ones that aren't in the vault, obviously) and watching them. Here are the four I've recently purchased:

Snow White is the only one I remember, and even then I'm sure there's a lot that I have forgotten because it's the one princess movie that bugs me. Snow White's super high voice (or that's how I remember it) drove me crazy (in general, I'm not a fan of high squeaky voices, like high sopranos. Seriously hurts my ears. My mom insists that I've never liked high noises. And in truth, I don't. Sounds that bother me are more often than not high (or that incredibly annoying noise my iHome makes when the volume is on but there's no song playing! I think it's because my iHome is so old). ). But I'm still kinda excited to re-watch it. That's the next movie on the list. Currently I'm watching the Sword in the Stone (I really don't think that I ever saw this one. It's not ringing any bells at all). On the screen right now is Ward/Arthur as a squirrel running away from a love-struck female squirrel. Pretty funny....

I like the Jungle Book, although Mowglie is a pretty annoying character because he does not accept the wisdom of the two people (or rather...the panther and the bear) that are trying to help him and he naively follows anyone who seems interesting and has no care for safety or anything. I know, he's a child, but...well, isn't he like 11 or 12 or something? Did his foster wolf parents not teach him anything?!?! Wolves are pretty astute, aren't they? After all, wolves wear sheep's clothing to fool people right? ; )

I somewhat remembered Robin Hood and it was actually really cute. I liked it a lot. I like how Robin Hood is so super nice and thoughtful and not cocky at all. New favorite prince. (Seriously, if he can be called a "prince," he totally is one of the best. SO many of the princes have zero character. Really, let's do a run through. And be honest. (Snow White) Prince Charming: what's so special about him? (Sleeping Beauty) Prince Phillip: mmm..not much better. (Cinderella) Prince Charming: are YOU seeing much improvement? (The Little Mermaid) Prince Eric: he's so slow. why didn't he just kiss the girl? I mean seriously, all of nature was singing that to him. and Ariel was SO obvious. he's simply not too bright. After that, the princes get more character (the Beast, Aladdin). In retrospect, Robin Hood is a lot like Aladdin. They're both super nice and compassionate. But you see the general trend. The first few princes...not quite up to par. Their whole purpose is to make a princess at heart into a real legit princess. That's it. What a sad existence...) Wow. what was I talking about before my prince tirade? Yeah, I like Robin Hood.

This is a long post....I'm being so productive. Not yet in school mode, I guess (+ I only have Italian tomorrow because my French class was rescheduled to Friday for this week, so I've done all my homework that's due tomorrow...and therefore am totally on top of things. =D )

Right into the hands of Justice

More Strange News:

Authorities say Wyoming shoplifting suspect mistakenly flees into police station

02-06-2010 10:58 AM PST

RIVERTON, Wyo. (Associated Press) --

Police say a man suspected of stealing a bottle of Schnapps from a Wyoming grocery store didn't have the best escape route planned.

Riverton police say the 26-year-old ran out of the store after grabbing the bottle of booze and a package of cough drops Wednesday and hid in a nearby building, which happened to be the police station.

Police say the man then ran out of the police station, but not before a dispatcher had spied him on the station's surveillance camera and alerted officers.

The man, who police say was drunk, was caught soon after. He was taken into custody on preliminary charges of resisting arrest and shoplifting.

Information from: KTAK-FM,http://www.ktakradio.com

HUH?!?!

You know how sometimes on an airplane you get pressure in your ears but after swallowing a lot or holding your nose and blowing that it normally pops and you can hear normally again? Well, that is not the case for me. The last part, at least. My ears got plugged up during my first flight on Saturday, and my ears still haven't popped...and it's very annoying. Why, you ask? Or rather, you really shouldn't be asking "why" because it's so super obvious that if you think before you ask questions, you wouldn't ask that one. But even still...

Unless I'm looking at people and expecting them to be talking to me, I miss what they're saying to me completely. So once I figure out that they're talking to me, I have to ask "Huh?" and seem like I'm totally in another world, which I suppose I am. All sounds are muffled. I was trying to watch a TV show on my computer, and to hear it well I had to blast the sound AND put my head near my computer (never before had I needed speakers for my computer SO much!). When I'm chewing something (especially something crunchy like the Goldfish I'm currently eating), I really can't hear anything other than chewing. Definitely not people talking. So I have been pretty anti-social the past two days because I can't hear people well.

But that anti-social-ness had to end today because I had class. That was tough. Really tough. Partly because all my classes are in foreign languages and therefore require even more attention to sound than classes in English, but for other reasons too. In Italian, the teacher paired us off into 2 to speak in Italian (talk about vacation, answer questions, etc). of course, my conversation partner is to my left! Why is this a problem? Well, my right ear is mostly clear, but my left ear is much the same as ever. Therefore, it's especially hard to hear things that are close to my left ear. I had to use every power of focus that I have in order to hear her (especially as there are people talking all around the room, and closest to my right ear). In my French class, my teacher is not super loud and talks somewhat quickly...AND at the other end of the room. (In retrospect, I should have sat closer to the front. But I always sit in that one seat when I have class in that room. Every time. Old habits die hard). This was made worse by a horrible headache that hit me maybe halfway through the class. What a sob story I have!

So both of my classes today are too big. My Italian class has 20 people (which they'll allow, but would prefer if there were fewer people but, seriously, who wants to switch to the 8 am class even if there are only 7 people? Not I, says the fly!) and my French class had 23 people show up today (for a final total of at best 19 but preferably 18. Fortunately, my spot is secure because I am officially registered and I am a senior so I get seniority). But I think it's funny how 20 or 23 people is WAY too many here, but would likely be small at many other colleges and universities...

This, that and the other

This blog post is on random, un-related things...

First, we Californians often have to inform people that California cannot fit into a single box the way many other states can. Northern California's culture, people and landscape is very different from those of Southern California. In all truth, we'd make more sense as two separate states (except financially maybe. I really don't know about that part, but in the more visible ways, we could totally be 2 states). But generally as we're one state other states see California as one until they meet people from there or go there or something. (which makes sense. If you're from, say, Vermont of New Hampshire or something there really aren't major differences from the north part of the state to the southern part or east to west or anything like that. Small states don't always get this. New York has the city people and the other people, but it's just not really the same. ). All this to say, I was on a website today, and look what I found:

They separates Northern California from Southern California! I like this idea because I don't always know where cities are if they aren't cities I'm familiar with. Anyways, it's very interesting...

Secondly, after my computer crashes last year, I've been much better about backing up my hard drive. So I have iCal remind me to do it once a month. But I just noticed something...I last backed-up my computer on January 29th, and so I set it to remind me every month. It makes perfect sense, then, that it would remind me every month on the 29th. Little did I realize that it would not set up this "event" for February. The thought didn't even cross my mind. I guess that I would assume that if there was no 29th day, it would set it for the 28th or the 1st or something, but no. Good thing I caught it. If I hadn't, I GUARANTEE that my computer would have died on March 1st, just because. Seriously.

Me: At Home

Well, I just got a smaller SD reader (also good because my other card reader can't read them anymore...at least with my computer), so I have some pictures so I can blog with pix!

1) Mix-Up

So, apparently, what I thought was the Seaside Inn (remember? it was one of the top 10 dirtiest hotels in the US) was actually not the SeaSide Inn. This is a very hastily taken photo of part of the Inn that's actually on the list:

(Hastily taken because I was in the car). So, yeah. This was not the one I was thinking of. I think that I thought the Riviera Beach hotel was the Seaside (it has somewhat better ratings, but still not great. ). The actual Seaside does look somewhat sketch....

2) Intro to SoCal

Some of you readers are people who do not live in SoCal and do not seem to understand where I live, so...here we go.

The above to pics are of San Clemente from a look-out point (it was raining then, so sorry about the gray-ness and low visibility). This isn't even all of it. It extends pretty far to the right of the pictures as well as pretty far behind where I was. It covers 2 zip codes. So you see, it isn't really a "small town" compared to "small towns" in rural areas like Vermont, but it's not a city either.

These are our freeways. Now do you see why I think Route 7 is more of a road? It's one lane each way! That is NOT what I think of as a highway or a freeway. That is a road. THESE are freeways.

One of my main shopping centers (as in, for groceries & Starbucks. The Starbucks is behind me and I thought it might be weird to take a picture of it as people were sitting outside and everything....). Oh, the palm trees. I miss them so much when I'm in Vermont. "Regular trees" just don't measure up.

Ahhh....home. =D

Capo Beach is not actually in San Clemente, but close enough. (This is where those previously mentioned hotels are. They're on PCH which runs right by this beach)

Don't you wish you could be in CA right now instead of in VT where it's too cold to snow?!?

3) Stuff

For Christmas my super-awesome sister got my one of the reusable cold cups from Starbucks. It's the greatest thing ever. If ever they go on sale again, and you like cold drinks, get one! =D

I tried the Jamba Juice oatmeal today. It's actually pretty good. It took a while to get there though. On Wednesday, they have a $1 oatmeal promotion. So I tried to go on Wednesday. All out. So I decide to go on Thursday. All out. They apparently make the oatmeal in pretty small batches. Dear Jamba Juice, you should consider making LARGER batches because not all people would try for a THIRD time. Most other people would simply accept the fact that it will always be out and will simply get a blueberry oat bar when they're at Starbucks getting their morning chai (which would have been the case for me if they'd been out today too).