July 3, 2008 at 1:12 pm (just for fun, skepticism)
Tags: Daniel Loxton, George Hrab, JREF, Phil Plait, Robert Lancaster, Soccer Girl, TAM, TAM6, The Amazing Meeting
O.k. I know I said I’d do a post about The Amazing Meeting 6, which was fun, but not in the same, life-changing-meet-new-friends-and-the person-I’ll-run-away-to-Australia-for-and-marry, kind of way.
This isn’t that post.
However, it is the post in which I mention that I met Soccer Girl. She’s probably the cutest chick in the world. She has a very funny vodcast and she filmed me (very drunk) on Friday night doing my double jointed arm trick. See it here.
She and George Hrab were pretty much in each other’s hip pockets for the entire conference. Whether they’re a couple or not, I can’t say, but if they are a couple, they may be the sexiest pair of people I’ve ever met. Though Daniel Loxton (of Junior Skeptic) and his lovely wife are a close second. What is it about intelligence that makes people so darn hot?
Oh yeah, and did I mention that I’m a cover girl (hint : 2009 back cover)? It was a little weird having Phil Plait chase me down to get me to sign his copy of my picture. And by weird, I mean awesome. I have no shame at being a cover girl, since I share the honor of cover-personhood with Robert S. Lancaster.
I promise I will write a thorough, thought provoking post about The Amazing Meeting 6 in which I will cover all of the things about it that I feel totally suck in spite of it being a really great time, and in which I discuss my hangups about being a female in the skeptical movement and how I feel that the some girls in the movement get attention only if they act as cheerleaders for the men instead of actually doing meaningful work on their own (it’s like how in basketball, people go to the men’s games and leer at the cheerleaders, but the women’s league can’t get any respect, at least in America) and how I worry that I might be just another one of those cheerleaders… You get the idea.
I’ll do a full Good Things/Bad Things post. I promise.
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July 3, 2008 at 4:37 am (just for fun)
Tags: 4th of July, America
Independence Day, or The Fourth of July is a celebration of America’s independence from Britain.
It’s not the day we defeated them, but the day a bunch of sweaty, wigged lawyers got together and declared the Colonies to be an independent nation.
It’s the day with the most flag waving, red, white and blue, patriotic Americana.
And yet…
America, the only country to format its dates thusly: mm/dd/yyyy, commonly calls its most patriotic holiday, dd/mm.
Fourth of July, the only day of the year that Americans format the date like the rest of the world.
Also, yesterday I almost bought a little resin statue at my local Dollar Plus type store that was a Bald Eagle sitting atop the Liberty Bell. I have no idea what it was doing in Australia, but I thought perhaps it was there for my fellow American ex-pats, feeling the Spirit of ‘76.
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July 2, 2008 at 12:56 am (rant)
Tags: christmas, winter
So, I made this amazing, life changing decision to move from California to Australia to be with the man I love.
I moved in July, sacrificing half of my summer and all of my fall to jump straight into winter. It didn’t really matter that much to me, I like winter.
But now I’m experiencing my second winter down under and a something is really starting to get to me, namely, no holidays.
Winter is the time of year that more people die. It’s depressing and cold and you have to stay inside.
Thanksgiving and Christmas and all those other stupid holidays that I used to bitch about at least broke the cold, dull, aching monotony that is winter. Thanksgiving comes just as you have to start wearing more layers when you go outside. At Christmas, you hang lights all around, eat lots of cookies and candy and drink eggnog. You spend a day with your family eating and drinking and sitting around the fire. New Year’s, you dress up, play music loud and stay up late drinking Champagne and sneaking late night Christmas leftovers. And then there’s Valentine’s Day. Actually, my Valentine’s Days almost always suck, but at least there’s usually chocolate to make me feel better.
What holidays are there in June and July and August here in Australia? Zip. Nada. Nuthin.
It’s cold and blustery and all the leaves are brown and the sky is grey (but if I were in California, I’d be on fire).
I think I understand Christmas a little better now that I’m experiencing a winter without it.
This calls for a big fake Christmas. I’ll call it Wintermas (or just the traditional “Christmas in July”) and I’ll invite friends over for hot buttered rum and roasted chestnuts and maybe a large roast bird of some kind.
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