This hotel is full of some pretty creepy people. Around the corner is a room full of Indian guys who always have their door open when I walk by. Usually there’s one of them smoking outside, putting his ashes into a plastic cup. It’s kind of weird.
The other night someone started blasting Metallica at 2 a.m. I thought about getting up but decided to just fall back asleep. I haven't had this much fun since the dorms. My room's kind of ghetto. The thermostat doesn’t work so I have to manually turn the heat on and off. The shower curtain WILL NOT stay in the right place when I take a shower. Oh, it’s annoying.
OK, enough ranting. Things are really not too bad. And when I get really pissed, I just think “it’s only three months, it’s only three months…”
In other news, Smallville was really good tonight. I had to call my Smallville-buddy (you know who you are!) and discuss. I was really sad Jonathan Kent died, but it was kind of predicatable. We knew he was having heart problems. There were all kinds of foreshadowing hints lately. I wasn’t really surprised Lana died at the beginning, considering Clark told here everything about him. But I didn’t think she’d stay dead long…she’s too big of a character. OK, I’m a dork who has parasocial relationships. But I’m in Wyoming people!!! TV is all I have!!!!
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Military.
I’m guessing on this, but I think nearly half of all the people in Cheyenne are somehow connected to the military. I see Department of Defense stickers everywhere. Camouflage, uniforms and “support the troops” signs are everywhere. There is a large Air Force base, which explains this presence. But I don’t think I’ve lived anywhere with such a large military presence before. If the base left, this town would come close to dying, I think.
The girl at the bank who helped me set up a checking account—her husband is in the military. The girl who helped me at Wal-Mart (more on that later)—her husband is in Iraq. The girl at the gym—yep, husband is military. Most of these women are younger than me. Meeting these people really makes the Iraq war seem more real. I’ve been in a bubble most of my life with very little contact with people in the military. They’re all nice and I almost feel sorry for them. Many of them are far away from home and would not be here if it weren’t for the military.
Oh yes, Wal-Mart. It’s weird living in a town with a SuperCenter again. It’s basically the only place to shop. After living in Lawrence for 2 1/2 years I became accustomed to SuperTarget and shopping at many non-chain stores. SuperCenters are in a class by themselves. They’re just simply HUGE! And there’s stuff everywhere. The new thing (compared to when I used to go them in Springfield) is that you can order McDonald’s at the checkout line. Hello, obesity! There are some pluses to SuperCenters. The main one is that you can get everything you possibly could ever want for a cheap price. But the amount of stuff also makes them severely annoying. I walked up and down a million aisles this evening trying to find forks. And the people with “the May I help you” on the back of their jackets really aren’t that helpful. Maybe it’s because they’re not getting their healthcare paid, being sexually harassed and being forced to stay after their shifts are over. I guess that’s the “liberal” coming out in me.
I’ve been listening to Fox News. I don’t really know why. I guess it's because I think it’s important to listen to what everyone has to say. Oh, yeah, also because I'm in a REALLY red state and it's on a bunch of the radio stations and always on TV when I'm going around and about. Bill O’Reilly was talking about journalism schools this morning. He basically called them places for liberal indoctrination. His main argument was that when you ask a journalism student what they want to do, they answer, “I want to change the world.” Well, that’s not your job, Mr. O’Reilly says. I don’t think journalists can necessarily change the world, but you definitely have to have some kind of drive. It’s not an easy profession. You’re going to get yelled at from a variety of different angles. You’ve got to have tough skin. Oh, and you don’t get paid very much. So something’s go to motivate you. I think at first it is that desire to really be involved in what’s going on in the world. Is that really such a bad thing? Should journalists just be completely apathetic? If Mr. O’Reilly considers himself a journalist, isn’t what he’s doing is “trying to change the world”? He would never admit to that. Just say that he’s being “fair and balanced” and telling the truth. But anyone with half a brain can tell O’Reilly is also trying to change the world.
In other news, I think I may have pink eye. It’s that or my allergies are severely acting up. My left eye feels like it has glass in it. I keep picking at it, which is just making it more red and puffy. I went and got some eye drops tonight (found those relatively easy at Wally World), so hopefully they’ll help.
The girl at the bank who helped me set up a checking account—her husband is in the military. The girl who helped me at Wal-Mart (more on that later)—her husband is in Iraq. The girl at the gym—yep, husband is military. Most of these women are younger than me. Meeting these people really makes the Iraq war seem more real. I’ve been in a bubble most of my life with very little contact with people in the military. They’re all nice and I almost feel sorry for them. Many of them are far away from home and would not be here if it weren’t for the military.
Oh yes, Wal-Mart. It’s weird living in a town with a SuperCenter again. It’s basically the only place to shop. After living in Lawrence for 2 1/2 years I became accustomed to SuperTarget and shopping at many non-chain stores. SuperCenters are in a class by themselves. They’re just simply HUGE! And there’s stuff everywhere. The new thing (compared to when I used to go them in Springfield) is that you can order McDonald’s at the checkout line. Hello, obesity! There are some pluses to SuperCenters. The main one is that you can get everything you possibly could ever want for a cheap price. But the amount of stuff also makes them severely annoying. I walked up and down a million aisles this evening trying to find forks. And the people with “the May I help you” on the back of their jackets really aren’t that helpful. Maybe it’s because they’re not getting their healthcare paid, being sexually harassed and being forced to stay after their shifts are over. I guess that’s the “liberal” coming out in me.
I’ve been listening to Fox News. I don’t really know why. I guess it's because I think it’s important to listen to what everyone has to say. Oh, yeah, also because I'm in a REALLY red state and it's on a bunch of the radio stations and always on TV when I'm going around and about. Bill O’Reilly was talking about journalism schools this morning. He basically called them places for liberal indoctrination. His main argument was that when you ask a journalism student what they want to do, they answer, “I want to change the world.” Well, that’s not your job, Mr. O’Reilly says. I don’t think journalists can necessarily change the world, but you definitely have to have some kind of drive. It’s not an easy profession. You’re going to get yelled at from a variety of different angles. You’ve got to have tough skin. Oh, and you don’t get paid very much. So something’s go to motivate you. I think at first it is that desire to really be involved in what’s going on in the world. Is that really such a bad thing? Should journalists just be completely apathetic? If Mr. O’Reilly considers himself a journalist, isn’t what he’s doing is “trying to change the world”? He would never admit to that. Just say that he’s being “fair and balanced” and telling the truth. But anyone with half a brain can tell O’Reilly is also trying to change the world.
In other news, I think I may have pink eye. It’s that or my allergies are severely acting up. My left eye feels like it has glass in it. I keep picking at it, which is just making it more red and puffy. I went and got some eye drops tonight (found those relatively easy at Wally World), so hopefully they’ll help.
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
10 minutes or less
The nicest thing about Cheyenne is that you can get pretty much everywhere in 10 minutes or less. The roads are good and I haven't been stuck in a traffic jam once! This least-populated state in the country thing definitely has some advantages.
Sunday, January 22, 2006
Trucks
This town is full of trucks. A lot of big, loud trucks. I thought there were a lot of trucks in Springfield, but it doesn't really compare. It's especially annoying when they drive up and down the street outside my hotel. Jeez...shut up people!!!
Friday, January 20, 2006
Made it!!!
After a nice snowstorm and eight hours of driving (at least) I finally made it to Wyoming. I took off from Topeka at 7:45 a.m. and arrived around 5 p.m. (CST). As soon as I made it to Colorado the weather cleared, which made the drive much easier. As I approached the Rockies, the scenery was beautiful. There was a light dusting of snow and I kind of felt like I was in one of those Coors beer commercials. I just kept imagining Pete Coors sitting in a rocking chair on the side of the road.
The toll road around Denver was weird. I had to stop three times to pay $2 (definitely higher tolls than Kansas). Couldn't they just ask for $6 at the end? Oh well. Above is a picture of the semi-seedy hotel I'm staying at. Really, it's not too bad. The wireless Internet, cable and heat work--so I'm happy. Plus, the bed is comfy. I haven't taken a shower yet though...
Everyone has been (in the words of Sam Alito) "super-duper" nice so far. I'm excited to look around some more tomorrow and Sunday before starting work Monday. I'll try to post some pictures tomorrow.
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
Happy 2006!!!
2005 hasn't been a great year. It started with a devastating tsunami, several people died in the London bombings, hurricanes killed hundreds and shamed the entire nation. Problems in Iraq worsened. On a personal level, I left Washington D.C.--a place I love--at the end of 2004 and have spent 2005 mainly in Kansas. I ran into several problems trying to finish up grad school and had a couple mental break downs. But I'm confident 2006 is going to be better. As I sit surrounded by boxes in my apartment, all I can think of are all the great people I've met in the past 2 1/2 years. I'm going to miss my friends in Kansas (I'm getting ready to move to Wyoming.) And I've come to this grand life conclusion: No matter where you are or what you're doing, it's the people who matter. I'm so grateful for everyone in my life. No matter how bad or good things get, we (as human beings) have to remember to always look out for each other. Kindness is what matters.
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