Get Inside My Head

::gasp::

Nineteen days...before...I...have to...go back...to...school...

::clawing at the air::

save meeeeee...

posted by Candace Pau 8/31/2000 02:44:52 PM

That was my lesser-known serious side coming out to play.

posted by Candace Pau 8/30/2000 05:24:54 PM

Can I ask you something? Do you watch your cholesterol? Your blood pressure? Your weight? Do you hope for a cure for cancer? For AIDS? For MS or diabetes or Alzheimer's? Do you take Tylenol when you have a headache? How about aspirin? Advil? Do you take antibiotics when you have an infection?

If your answer to any of these questions is yes, then you, my friend, are a direct beneficiary of animal research. The knowledge you act upon everyday, most likely without even realizing it, comes from decades and decades of hard work by dedicated scientists, whose only hope is to help mankind live longer, healthier, and happier. The cures and preventions you hope we will someday find and the remedies that you use today--these are all products of animal research.

Animal research saves lives. It may save the lives of your children, and your children's children.

Igorance is the bane of society. Those who champion the discontinuation of animal research fail to realize or understand that the services it provides are essential to civilization as we know it. Case in point: Shirley MacLaine is a well-known celebrity. Her "charitable" work includes calling for the shutdown of animal research facilities, in addition to fighting for a cure for juvenile diabetes. Unless she is volunteering her own body for research--and can find a million or so other such volunteers--these causes directly contradict one another. There is no way around it: the progress we have made in medicine thus far comes from animal research, and if we make any more progress in the future, it, too, will come from animal research. To shut down laboratories that use animals would be akin to killing the man who saved your life, for, indeed, if animal research hasn't saved you, it has at least given you longevity and the information we now regard as common knowledge to lead a safe and quality life.

So to those who protest, who harass, who send bombs to scientists' homes: stop and think. THINK. Yes, protecting our animals is a noble cause--if and ONLY IF it is applied in the right direction. Yes, save endangered species. Yes, halt the demolition of the rainforests. But DON'T fight the life-saving research that has given us so much.

You may fight those who wear fur by saying there are many alternative clothing materials. You may even fight those who eat meat (although animal researchers seem to be a higher priority target) by offering vegetarianism as an option. But there are NO other methods for medical research. NONE.

Life is short. If you want it any shorter, go ahead and stop animal research.

For more information on life-saving research in progress, go here.

posted by Candace Pau 8/30/2000 12:09:30 PM

I'm still recovering from yesterday's nightmare of a day. Not only did my sandwich turn out to be moldy AFTER I ALREADY ATE HALF OF IT, but my Adissage sandals, which normally give me no grief whatsoever, suddenly decide to attack my feet. This, of course, left me feeling like my appendages had just had a not-so-pleasant encounter with a meat tenderizer. Then, this morning, I forgot to clock in at work until I had already been here 45 minutes. That's something like $6.00 I'm missing out on here. (Yeah, I'll take what I can get, okay?)

posted by Candace Pau 8/30/2000 11:08:41 AM

Currently stuck in my head: Britney Spears, "Lucky"...lord knows why.

Can't think of anything witty to say right now.

posted by Candace Pau 8/27/2000 01:13:25 PM

Finally thought about redoing my Jet Li page. It's been something like a year and a half since I've done anything with it and the people who signed up for my e-mail list are starting to get really pissed that I haven't sent anything out (if they even remember that they're on the list, that is). The only problem is that my computer is having a breakdown and needs to be rebooted veeeeeery soon, or it'll crash on me...I can feel it. Unfortunately, I have, like 7 Napster downloads in progress, so I'm sort of stuck. Damned ethernet-less house.

posted by Candace Pau 8/26/2000 01:54:32 AM

Currently stuck in my head: Wheatus, "Teenage Dirtbag".

Want an example of too much of a good thing? Well, I really like creamsicles...you know, those orange popsicles with the cream on the inside? So today, at work, I stop by the vending machine, and lo and behold, I see this bright orange package that says "Creamsicle" on it. Apparently, they're these new orange and cream candy twists (sort of like Twizzlers, only creamsicle flavored). I look more closely, and there, inside the package, are these fat, gorgeous ropes of orange laced with white. This just about sets me drooling, so I grab 60 cents and buy a pack. Now, here I am, delighted at having discovered so wonderful and ingenious a treat (okay, so I am easily amused). I pull out a fluorescent orange and white strand and take a bite...only to discover that, instead of orange and cream, it tastes more like orange-flavored cough syrup and cottage cheese. The thing was nasty. The aftertaste is still lingering inside my mouth. Ugh. I was very, very disappointed.

posted by Candace Pau 8/25/2000 09:16:16 PM

Hey, wouldja look at that...the damn thing is publishing again. Yay.

posted by Candace Pau 8/24/2000 02:12:17 PM

Oof. Good lord...this must be what it feels like to have hot embers injected into your knuckles...

I've just been through a good 45 minutes of continuous pipetting--not normal pipetting, mind you, but the kind where you use a little plastic transfer pipet to wash out two six well plates while trying not to suck up 50 pieces of tiny floating tissue. I hurt. A lot. And, guess what? I get to do it all again in about 40 minutes.

posted by Candace Pau 8/24/2000 02:04:23 PM

Well, I just watched the season finale of Survivor. Why? Because I'm a mindless, ovine, jump-on-the-bandwagon kinda gal, that's why. No, seriously, I just had the urge to find out what all the fuss was about. And, yes, it was strangely addicting. Then again, this is coming from a person who can plop down in front of the tube and start watching just about anything with complete interest and attention, never matter if it's the ninth season and I've never even heard of the show or the actors. Some might call me a freak--I prefer to say that I am a quick learner.

Anyway, I am writing all of this under the assumption that Freeservers or Blogger or whatever the hell is preventing me from transfering this page to my site is someday going to rectify the situation. Otherwise, this is just one big fat waste of time, isn't it? But again, time management has never been one of my strong suits.

posted by Candace Pau 8/23/2000 10:22:10 PM

A picture for you...just because it's been a while since I've put one up...gotta keep things lively around here, you know?

posted by Candace Pau 8/23/2000 05:53:28 PM

Blimey...this damn thing still isn't working. The thought of all these brilliant postings never being read by adoring eyes...it's just more than I can bear...

posted by Candace Pau 8/23/2000 01:57:25 PM

At home sick today. I feel like crap (which is probably why I'm at home sick...).

Not as though you needed extra evidence to prove it, but I, indeed, am the world's stupidest person. I was having this dream that I was eating Gardetto's snack mix, when suddenly I began to choke, and I woke myself up coughing. This is ridiculous. Don't suppose I could sue Gardetto's....haha.

posted by Candace Pau 8/23/2000 12:16:07 PM

Auuughhh...Freeservers must be on the fritz...I can't get this damn thing to publish, no matter what I do.

posted by Candace Pau 8/23/2000 12:36:55 AM

I think I have a fever. And no, I don't mean in terms of sD (but yeah, that too). I think I'm physically sick. Besides the fact that my head feels like it's been stuck in a kiln for several hours, my bad hand (good lord, I sound pathetic) is giving me much grief and my throat hurts like hell.

Anyway, I just watched the Teen Choice Awards on TV. I don't know what possessed me to do that (except, maybe, that BB Mak performed), but it did make me realize that I am gettin' on in years...I'm almost not a teenager anymore, which is rather freaky. Not that I particularly enjoyed being categorized, labeled and branded as a teenager (since there's a certain stigma attached to that name in the adult world), but I ain't got no beef with being young, know what I mean? ;)

But moving along...watching the Teen Choice Awards also made me realize something else: Enrique Iglesias is so NOT (let me emphasize here--NOT) hot. I don't know why women supposedly find him so appealing. He sang like he had peas shoved up his nose, and for cryin' out loud, guys who think they're all that and a side of fries are major turn-offs. And his video for Be With You--you know, the one where he's all feelin' himself up...yeah, that's just disgusting.

Now if you want hot, all you have to do is check out sD...hahaha...but I'll spare you the agony.

posted by Candace Pau 8/22/2000 10:43:08 PM

So I've been waiting for today, the 22nd of August, 2000, ever since I first discovered soulDecision some two months ago. See, today is the release date for their album, No One Does It Better, in the US. First chance I get, I make a quick trip from work to Target, hoping to pick up a copy. Once in the store, I make a beeline for the New Releases section of their music department, and find...nothing. There's some Eminem, some Britney, a few copies of Totally Music Volume 2, but NO, that's right, NO soulDecision. Anywhere. I find this slightly irritating, mainly because Target had advertised the release of No One Does It Better in their Sunday newspaper ad insert. I quote: "In stores Tuesday, August 22. Check out our low prices!" Um, yeah. Maybe if you actually had some of them in stock. So I track down a sales rep and have the following interaction:

Me: Excuse me, do you have the soulDecision CD in stock?
Sales Rep: Um, I don't think so...is that the name of the group?
Me: Yeah, it was in your advertisement...
Sales Rep: Oh, wait, I think we may have it. Lemme check.
::rifles through some boxes::
Sales Rep: Let me check in the back room.
::leaves to check back room::
Me: ::wanders around music department for what feels like 20 or 30 minutes::
Sales Rep: ::emerging from back room:: Um, we only have it in tape.
Me: ::now able to recite the entire stock of Target's CDs in order by shelf location:: Uh, thanks.

So, CD-less, I get back in my car and drive over to Wherehouse, which I should have figured would definitely have it to begin with. I walk through the door, and straight in front of me is a New Arrivals rack, and there, on the second shelf, on the left hand side, is a stack of beautiful, new soulDecision CDs.

::glowing light bathes CD rack as a chorus sings Hallelujah in the background::

I grab my copy, pay, and leave, clutching my prize in my grubby little hands like I had a winning lottery ticket.

By now, I've listened to it over and over again, like 20 times (but this is really less because I'm an obsessed freak--although I am--and more because I was doing a long-ass immunocytochemistry experiment and I put the CD player on repeat). The thing is amazing. I can't say enough about how incredible the album is. Not since matchbox twenty's Yourself or Someone Like You and Mad Season or Vertical Horizon's Everything You Want have I found a CD on which I like every single song. Gotta go home and listen some more. :-)

posted by Candace Pau 8/22/2000 05:52:25 PM

Holy shiznet...I just realized that I'm outta here and back in school in less than a month. There's a creepy thought.

posted by Candace Pau 8/21/2000 10:35:39 PM

Although I hate to admit it, this whole sD obsession thing makes me feel rather silly at times. I mean, good lord...I'm a college sophomore and acting like a pre-teen ::cringe:: teeny-bopper. For heaven's sake, I actually screamed (audibly!) once when I heard them come on the radio in BC. I think I'm certifiably insane. The really sad thing is that, as my mom commented a couple days ago, I seem to be much more excited at having met the boys of sD than at having met President Clinton (no offense, Bill). This is a very puzzling and somewhat frightening thought. I'm attempting to rationalize by putting the two instances in different categories. Meeting the president was, of course, an honor, and I value it for what it symbolizes. Meeting sD, on the other hand...well, they're just so damn cute.

Crap. I just can't get around the fact that I'm mad obsessed. At one point, I even contemplated driving to Spokane to see another show, but I figured that I probably wouldn't be able to explain my sudden need to take an 8 hour (one-way, no less) drive to my parents, who, thankfully, are not aware of the full extent of my sD fever. Anyway, I'm still waffling on the Eugene show, too. I dunno if I'd make the trip by myself if I can't find someone to go with...but I also don't wanna miss another opportunity to see sD in action...sigh...dilemmas.

posted by Candace Pau 8/21/2000 09:40:04 PM

One day until No One Does It Better is released in the States...

posted by Candace Pau 8/21/2000 02:38:47 AM

It's done. I've just scanned, doctored, and uploaded something like 30 pictures. Do I have too much time on my hands? Nope. I just have no time management skills, that's all. (Hell, who needs sleep when you can crop pictures? Whoohoo!!) Think of it this way...better that I've done all this crap now, while I'm not back at school yet, so I'll be able to waste time in better ways once class starts. Yeah. Great logic.

posted by Candace Pau 8/21/2000 02:31:20 AM

Bloody hell!! I think I permanently damaged something in my hand. Ever since my ill-fated motorcycle class (wherein I spent 5 consecutive hours with my poor tiny hand stretched to its physical limit in a feeble attempt to cover the clutch), every time I make a fist or try to grasp something, I experience waves of sharp stabbing pain in the palm of my left hand. This is definitely not normal.

posted by Candace Pau 8/20/2000 11:02:54 PM

Just returned from my BC trip--it was a nice little vacation...a tad on the short side, though. =) Got stuck in customs for 2 hours coming back--freakin' huge line. So I ended up spending scads of time behind the wheel. Apparently, however, this is still not enough to convince my mom that I am capable of driving down to school. The thought of yet another year of severely impaired mobility is rather grim.

In the meantime, yes, I finally did get my pictures back from The Bite. They turned out okay...some are a bit fuzzy, but for the most part, they're pretty nice. Go here to check them out (that is, if I've gotten around to scanning them in, which I'm about to do).

posted by Candace Pau 8/20/2000 10:58:34 PM

I had this terrible, terrible scare at Safeway (#%$^#8@* store) today. See, I took two rolls of film in for developing on Monday (8/14): one was just random pics from school, the other was my roll of soulDecision pics from The Bite. So, today, I go in to ask for the photos, and the guy could only find one roll. OF COURSE, they just happened to lose the soulDecision roll. And then the guy tells me, "Well, usually, we only have missing film when there's a problem developing it." At which point, I completely lose it. I managed to control myself until I got back in the car, and then I went into a ten minute hissy fit, during which I managed to use probably every single expletive I know.

Thankfully, according to the developing center, it seems that there wasn't a problem with the developing--it was just a day late getting to the store, so I'm praying that everything is okay.

Good lord...this kind of stress is not good for my health.

posted by Candace Pau 8/17/2000 10:27:43 PM

Eh, so much for motorcycling. For the time being anyway. Apparently I have a terrible learning curve, because this whole gee-let's-learn-how-to-handle-a-600-pound-piece-of-heavy-machinery-in-four-hours approach just didn't cut it for me. Suffice to say that I am hurtin'. All over. I think this will work better if I can finagle a moped or a 50cc and practice on my own before straddling a lethal monster bike and attempting sharp turns while downshifting a mere two hours after I sat on one for the first time. Eeesh.

Anyway, it's off to B.C. tomorrow...that is, if I am able to walk.

posted by Candace Pau 8/17/2000 12:40:18 PM

AAUUUUUUUGGGHHH!!!!!! I lost my freaking entry!!! I wrote a goddamn novel!

Eh, well, it might actually be a good thing that it's gone, since it was all a bunch of mush about sD anyway. ;)

But to briefly recap what was in the lost post:

1) Saw The Full Monty again last night...that movie is hysterical.
2) Bought tickets to Z100's Last Chance Summer Dance just now.
3) Five paragraphs of mind-numbing drooling over soulDecision (something to that effect, anyway)
4) Contemplating whether to get tickets to a show in Eugene, also featuring soulDecision, the day after Last Chance Summer Dance.
5) Wondering if it would freak out the band to see a rabid fan at their concerts 2 days in a row.
6) More gushing about sD.
7) Gushing continues.

At this point, having become slightly embarrassed at the amount of gushing I've done, I go to press the publish button...only to find that, on Netscape, the place where the publish button used to be on Explorer is now occupied by the Blogger Home button. I realize my mistake immediately, but not quick enough, sadly. I press the back button to no avail--only a blank text box greets my return. Damn, that's tragedy for you.

posted by Candace Pau 8/15/2000 11:48:24 AM

Eh, life is pretty much back to normal around here. Got about 5 hours of sleep last night (which is 5 hours too few); if that don't put a damper on a good mood, I dunno what will. Seriously, without adequate (and by adequate, I mean >9 hrs) sleep, I am definitely not a happy camper. This does not bode well for my impending return to dorm life.

But, at any rate, I am back at work, making my measly $7.50 an hour. Tomorrow I start my motorcycle lessons, so if I never write again, I've probably splattered my innards all over the training course, or some gruesome thing like that. (Mmm...doesn't that make you hungry? ::ducks:: Sorry. I concede, that was in very bad taste.) Anyway, if all goes well, by Friday I should have my motorcycle endorsement, and then I'll be ready to terrorize the streets like never before. MWA HAHAHAAHAHA...

Legal Notice: The publishing party hereby declares that the above statement was written solely for entertainment purposes and is devoid of any malicious intent whatsoever. The aforementioned party is not liable for any damages caused as a result of above statement.

Just so ya know.

posted by Candace Pau 8/14/2000 04:19:38 PM

ARRRGGGGHHHH...what the hell is wrong with my Stanford e-mail????

posted by Candace Pau 8/14/2000 12:54:37 AM

Damn, the picture quality isn't all that great. Ah well. If I'm in the mood, maybe I'll put up the actual photographs I took at the show whenever I get them developed. Stay tuned.

posted by Candace Pau 8/14/2000 12:20:58 AM

Oh yeah, here it is in all its glory: my autographed Faded single...

posted by Candace Pau 8/14/2000 12:08:19 AM

If you'll excuse me, I must take the liberty of sounding like a complete idiot and gushing like a moron today, for, you see, a most extraordinary thing has happened. (This is not to say that I am normally the pillar of intellect; I am only warning you that this posting--and perhaps the next few to follow--will be even less sane than usual...God save us.) The most extraordinary thing that I refer to involves myself, a hot August day, and three guys named Dave, Trevor, and Ken. In other words--yes, it's true--I met soulDecision.

I saw them perform this afternoon at The Bite of Portland--it was simply amazing. They sound terrific live; great harmonies, great style (gotta love the leather pants), and great music, of course. And I got their autographs. I'll save you the swooning and drooling, since lord knows I've done quite enough of that today. Instead, I'll give you the rundown of the brief conversation I had with them:

Trevor: How are you doing?
Me: Good! Are you guys going to be in Portland long? (yeah, real creative, I know)
Trevor: What's that?
Me: ::having complete mental blockage:: Uh, are you guys here long?
The Band: something something something something (inability to interpret and permanent amnesia a result of excessive staring and hitting myself over the head repeatedly for not coming up with something witty and original to say)

So there you have it. My encounter with soulDecision... Now I'm going to have to go to Z100's Last Chance Summer Dance...heh.

posted by Candace Pau 8/13/2000 11:48:35 PM

Dude. I say the word "dude" entirely too much.

posted by Candace Pau 8/11/2000 11:38:51 PM

Dude. I haven't written in this thing for more than a month. Whoa.

Not that anyone has missed me, I'm sure. Anyway, let's see what exciting news I have to report. I got a CD burner...yay for copyright infringement!! Um, just kidding. Really. Don't put me away please. My motorcycle class is next week. Just a few days until I can get my license, yippee! What else...oh, I fell in love with this really great band, soulDecision; go check them out--they're fabulous. And they're cute, too. What are the odds on that?

I have this monstrous headache right now which is bugging the crap out of me.

Ooh...I got contacts. ::insert collective oohing and aahing here:: Yeah, they're seriously the shit. Dude, I can actually SEE, like, with my own eyes. Okay, if that sentence didn't prove that I'm a blithering moron, I don't know what will. Sorry, I just get so carried away by the power of these two little sight-enabling discs. And speaking of small, I almost lost the damn thing down the sink this morning. Honestly, people as uncoordinated as me should be provided with personal bodyservants, lest we kill ourselves trying to brush our teeth or something.

Alrighty, enough blabbering for a day. Come back tomorrow for more. You know you want it.

posted by Candace Pau 8/11/2000 11:30:31 PM