stinkier in central illinois

Congratulations Paul & Caragh! (Continued)

2009-01-12T22:03:00.003-06:00

(click to embiggen!)

Paul and Caragh's video on the Pantagraph official website was featured on the front page of Ebaumsworld!! Go Paul and Caragh!

Here's the video, for your viewing pleasure:

Enjoy!

-Stinkier, excited to know someone whose video is on Ebaumsworld.

EDIT: Apparently, this story was also on CNN and Paul just said that the CBS Early Show is flying him and Caragh to New York for an interview! Remember us little people when you're famous, Paul! :)

Bowling, Drinks, and a Taco Bell Wedding

2009-01-11T11:00:00.013-06:00

(To read the picture caption and the article, click to embiggen!)

Friday night was one of those adventures that seem to happen when I'm around. *bows* Thank you, thank you, it's a talent. :)

It started off with bowling at Circle Lanes with Dana and Jim, the two coolest coworkers a girl could have. Mind you, I am the world's worst bowler. We bowled three games and my scores were: 104, 83, and 65. Yeah, I get progressively worse the more games I play. Didn't help that I was drinking and laughing; mostly, it was the laughing that made me chuck my ball into the gutter. I stand by my theory that booze improves my aim. :)

Our names:
Jim: "SETHSVOICE"
*Jim's voice sounds almost exactly like Seth Rogen, it's freaky. Jim's personality is pretty close to his, as well, which makes for a good time.
Kristine: "NUPRIN"
*Little. Yellow. Different.
Dana: "CHASEBANK"
*Apparently, she has a side business at Chase Bank providing services to her own clientele. Haha, I don't know. :)

We then continued on to Maggie Miley's in "Uptown Normal" where we continued our boozy evening. Upon sitting, we noticed a girl wandering around in a dress that can best be described Prom Dress 2005. It was hot pink/fuschia with a v-neck that had a rhinestone embellishment at the end. The hem was like an upside down V with a flounce-y, ruffled hem. She was then dubbed "The Girl in the Slutty Red Dress".

Dana next ran into a friend who told us that she just came back from a wedding at Taco Bell! The media was all over this story, with both WEEK 25 doing a news feature and Pantagraph having a story in their paper the next day (see above). Jim, Dana, and I thought this was way cool and loved the story; random dude at the bar thought this was the worst idea ever. Fucker. His idea of a good time is probably sitting at home with a cup of real decaf while watching the U.S. House of Representatives channel.

I also ran into my buddy, Raleigh, who was still nattily dressed from his shift at Bachrach. Of course, he was en route to a group of girls. ;)

Next up was the one. The only. Mr. Paul Brooks! *applause, screams*. I worked with Paul at Hobby Lobby and the first memory I have of him is him asking me to be in his zombie movie. Because I only met the guy two days before, I politely declined. This movie later became the totally awesome Late Afternoon of the Living Dead. It has made the rounds in various indie film festivals and is incredibly well done. Watch it and be forever changed. :)

Anyways, it turns out, Jim knew Paul from high school. Paul is, as Jim put it, "his hero in high school" and hadn't seen him since then. It was a grand ol' reunion. :)

Paul then told us he just got married that day. At Taco Bell!!!! So now Dana has a connection to Paul as well! I'm not surprised. I'm convinced that everyone in B-N is somehow connected to Paul Brooks. :) This is a small world we are living in, friends.

He then proceeds to say "Meet my new wife. Wow, it's still weird to say!" and gestures toward a blond girl behind him. Which turns out to be the girl whom we had dubbed "The Girl with the Slutty Red Dress". Jim, Dana, and I all looked at each other with the same expression: "Holy crap" and "Wow, I feel really bad". :)

Caragh (pronounced "KAH-RAH") turned out to be this really sweet girl who moved from Australia and met Paul through an internet dating site (not eHarmony :)). She has the coolest accent, of course. :)

Our evening commenced with more drinking, PrimeTime Pizza for Dana, and Jim serenading us with "Hard to Handle" by the Black Crowes. Awesome.

Best. Night. Ever. Can't wait to do it again.

-Stinkier, happy.

P.S. - Click here to see the article plus the picture in color on the official Pantagraph website.

2-8

2009-01-05T18:25:00.001-06:00

All I'm going to say is, I do not feel like a 28 year old.

I feel like the Age Council is going to swoop in at any minute and declare me a fraud while hereby revealing that I am, in fact, only 17 years old.

:)

-Stinkier, older, but definitely not wiser. :)

The House on Hovey

2008-12-31T12:49:00.004-06:00

House from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

Here in Bloomington, during every Christmas season, there is a house on Hovey Street that truly goes above and beyond simply stringing a few lights around some winter-saddened tree branches. In Bloomington, one merely has to say "The House on Hovey" to immediately know exactly which crazy, light-bedecked, plastic-figurine-laden home he or she is speaking of.

I have seen this house almost every winter for the past ten years I've lived in B-N. And every year, I forget to bring my camera to capture this house in all its glory. This year, I was determined to get a picture of it. So, Tony and I bundled up and started the 20 minute drive across town....only to discover they had taken it down!! AUGH!!!!! I thought all houses took down their Christmas decorations after the new year!

I was very sad. :( Next year, I'm going to succeed in getting that picture!

Couple notes on the house:

-There used to be another house across the street that would do the exact same thing. I don't know if the intent was humorous or evil, but it was funny to imagine that the two houses were in competition with each other to have the most lit-up house on the street.

-The house is very small. So small that I wonder where all the decorations go after each year. They have got to have a separate storage facility where they keep everything because there is no way all those decorations would fit in that house.

-Stinkier, bummed, but optimistic.

Happy Birthday Hannah!

2008-12-29T14:12:00.004-06:00

Above: Hannah and I at her sister's wedding
Below: Hannah, circa 1996? 1997?

I first met Hannah at Asbury United Methodist Church (now defunct) during Sunday school. She and I had the same 80s permed hair, it was awesome. Oh man, if I had a picture of us with permed hair, I would totally scan it in.

All of us Sunday school girls were friends and stuck together. We were all total nerds and decided to form a book club. We called it 'CHIBYY' which was an acronym of the first letters of our last names stuck together. We were the coolest! :) We also all came up with our own personal symbol and penned this into the books that we lent each other. I was apparently technologically advanced because my symbol was the "@" symbol back in 1992. :) I didn't even know how to pronounce it; I remember just calling it a swirly A.

Anyways, I digress...

Hannah is always a fun girl to be around. From learning how to properly throw a football to learning how to do the H.O.T.-"Candy" dance, she taught me so much about life and friendship while growing up. I, in turn, have had the joy of watching her grow into a mature young woman while still being the tomboy that I remember from Sunday school. I imagine that she is now a fantastic teacher whom all her students adore. :)

One interesting (well, I find it interesting :)) fact about Hannah is that she played basketball in high school even though she is about the same height as the rest of us vertically gifted Korean girls. I always thought that was the coolest thing ever and totally awesome that she showed everyone that you don't need to be a giant to play a giant's sport.

So, happy birthday, Hannah! I hope that this year gives you many blessings and happiness!

-Stinkier, with love.

Pigeon Walking

2008-12-28T13:34:00.002-06:00

I somehow messed up my back on Friday. It started out as a dull pain that flared up only when I bent over, but by the end of the night, it hurt to even walk. Funny thing is, I have NO idea how it happened. My personal theory is that Tony gave it to me (since we all know back pain is contagious), because he's been nursing a bad back for the past three weeks. The pain is located right at the base of the spine so, being the big baby that I am, I simultaneously curse and cry whenever I move the slightest inch.

Tony's been really sweet, though. Since his pain is not as severe, he's taken over the household duties and letting me watch the entire third season of Arrested Development. And, we've been playing "old people tag" throughout our "enormous" apartment; it's basically chasing each other at the pace of old people. Funny and painful all at once.

I also walk like a pigeon. I've been wishing I could walk differently then my normal walk for a really long time. The phrase "Be care what you wish for" has never rung truer. I now shuffle along super slowly while carefully placing one foot six inches directly in front of where it previously was. For some reason, this causes me to bob my head like a pigeon. This is probably because my torso is remaining completely stationary but, since I'm not keeping my neck stiff, my head moves around at its own leisure.

I look mighty ridiculous walking around.

So, I'm still sitting on this couch with the heating pad shoved directly above my bum and taking Excedrin every few hours. I think I'm getting bedsores and creating a permanent divet in the cushion. The pain is gradually decreasing, so I'm hoping that I'll be fully recovered in a few more days.

-Stinkier, in pain. >:-(

Happy Birthday Abby and Nathan

2008-12-27T18:01:00.005-06:00

When I was younger and an attention whore, I loved birthdays. Me, me, me. I loved being the center of attention and people noticing me on my special day. Now that I'm a little bit older, a little bit wiser, and quite a bit shyer, I like to focus attention on others instead. :)

So first up is my friend, Abby. Hi Abby! Her birthday was actually yesterday, but I couldn't find pictures to scan until today. The one on the left is from Cedar Campus my sophomore year, and on the right, she is the head of the horse. What, you can't tell that's her? :)

I met Abby at InterVarsity my sophomore year. The first time I noticed her, she was putting on a sock puppet show during an IV gathering with my future husband (I didn't know he was going to be my future husband at the time). My first impression of Abby was of an extremely caring woman who was always enthusiastic about the people and things she loved and, I'm happy to say, that this impression rings true to this day. Even though life has taken both of us into different directions that causes us to have difficulty in finding time to get together, I know that she is always there to listen if I need a friend.

My favorite memory of Abby is probably when I saw her as that horse during Halloween my senior year. I was having an awful day and had decided to stay in and study instead of partying away with my friends or making out with my fairly new boyfriend. ;) As I settled down with my stack of books and stack of Oreos, someone knocked at my door. I opened up and in walks Abby and Cassie as this horse. At first, I thought that these were people that knew my roommate and not me, but then I hear Abby and Cassie say "Hi Kristine!" I was laughing so hard I could barely take the picture at the top. After staying and chatting for a few minutes, they trotted away with perfect precision, not knowing how much they cheered me up. (Well, now they know :)).

One interesting fact about Abby is that she and her mom made all (about a million; okay, more like around 400) the chair covers for her wedding and now they rent them out to people. Can you imagine how much time and fabric that must have taken?! As someone who got married fairly recently and who also sews, it boggles my mind.

So, happy belated birthday, Abby! Hope that this following year brings you plenty of joy and many happy moments with Jason. :)

Today is Nathan's birthday. Obviously, (or maybe not) that picture is of Bret McKenzie of Flight of the Conchords. I don't have a picture of NBG. When Nathan doesn't cut his hair or shave, he kind of looks like him. Kind of. I think Bret looks kind of homeless sometimes. Anyway...

I met Nathan my first day of History of India at ISU. He's probably the first friend I made on campus. Our professor launched into a lecture on that first day and Nathan was scribbling away on two 3x5 index cards. I felt bad for him and offered him some paper, which he accepted. I like to joke around and say that he only passed that class because I lent him my (extensive) notes before the final exam; I never missed a class so they were pretty awesome, if I do say so myself.

Nathan is a very kind person, as the following story entails. My first apartment as an ISU student was not that far from campus. A bit of a walk, sure, but completely doable. So, I decided that one day, I was going to walk instead of drive; you know, be environmentally friendly and all. After classes were over, I hoisted my bag until my shoulders and trudged home. About halfway there, I started inwardly cursing. It had gotten hotter by the afternoon and the walk that was so pleasant that morning was now miserable, akin to what I bet the Trail of Tears was like. This car pulls up next to the sidewalk I was on, so I prepare to run. Or scream. I hadn't yet seen the driver so I was completely sure that this was some lunatic trying to steal my virtue. But, it turned out to just be Nathan, and he very graciously drove me the rest of the way back. I never attempted to just walk back and forth from campus ever again.

Hmm...interesting fact about Nathan...if he could, he would live during the 1800s. Or any time period that was a simpler time. He is probably the least materialistic person I know, and moves around with his only possessions being his computer, a desk chair, and clothes. As a person who probably owns too much, this impresses me.

Hope you enjoyed this first installment of friends' birthdays. Keep your eyes peeled, because I could be writing about you on your birthday. ;)

-Stinkier, with love.

Christian Bale: Dr. Batman?

2008-12-26T23:25:00.006-06:00

Christian Bale as Sam

Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne

I just finished rereading Julie & Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously, by Julie Powell. It's really good, I highly recommend it. Anyway, she mentioned that one of her favorite movies is Laurel Canyon.

I looked up the freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes and one of the reviews written when it was first released jumped out at me:

No matter how many times she pushes her specs up her nose Beckinsale is never going to be believable as a nerd. Bale as a psychiatrist: it’s easier to envisage him as Batman.
~Annette Dasey, Teletext. 11/14/03

I bet it's easy to picture him as a psychiatrist now.

-Stinkier, amused.

Happy One Year Blog Anniversary!

2008-12-24T10:10:00.006-06:00

I just realized that I started my blog one year ago. I was at work on Christmas Eve day and bored out of my skull so, I decided to share with the world how bored I was. And here I am again, one year later, bored at work on Christmas Eve day, writing in my blog. Life just always comes full circle. :)

So yay! Happy one year blog anniversary to me!

I have a friend who is obsessed with Man Vs. Wild. He is always watching it whenever I see him and I think he may secretly be in love with Bear Grylls. Who doesn't love a man with an ironic name, since he is the furthest thing from looking like a bear.

So I text him to let him know that Discovery was running a marathon of his show today (what says Christmas Eve more than a man trying to survive in the wild?:)) starting at 11. His response?

"no way! thank you! merry christmas!"

I think he's pretty excited. He might have been sarcastic, but I honestly don't think so. :)

-Stinkier, bored. But happy she could make someone else happy.

I Like Presents...

2008-12-22T15:56:00.003-06:00

...and Portillo's. If you would like to get me a present for Christmas (December 25) or my birthday (January 5), I suggest this tank top, in a size small. In case you're wondering, it is encrusted with clear and red Swarovski crystals. It's on sale for $23.99+S/H!

I know, I know, it's not the classiest shirt out there, but I love it. :) And!! I get to proudly display my love of their hot dogs, beef and cheddar croissants, and crinkle cut french fries.

Okay, now I want a beef and cheddar croissant really badly.

-Stinkier, hungry.

Christmas with the Walkers

2008-12-21T19:54:00.005-06:00

Riley and Harrison, engrossed in Harrison's Game Boy Advance

Yesterday, Tony and I spent the day at his grandparents' house in Georgetown, IL, home of the Georgetown buffalo, Gross's Pizza, and the first nighttime high school football game (in Illinois? In the United States?). This is advertised proudly on a sign right when you enter their fine town.

I love his grandparents, especially his Grandma Walker. She's one of those people that says things that are hysterical when she's not meaning to be. The entire evening was full of crazy comments, many contributed by her. Observe:

(everyone is downstairs talking near the foot of the stairs)

*thump, thump, thump* (plant lazily bounces down the stairs)
(everyone stops talking and looks up. Harrison and Riley peer cautiously around the corner, Riley with a giant, sheepish grin on his face)

Harrison: I didn't do it!
Riley: I didn't do it, either!
(Harrison has a shirt on that says "Dear Santa, it wasn't me!")
Megan: Harrison, that's why you're wearing that shirt, right?
Harrison: Yeah!
(Riley and Harrison run back up the stairs after grabbing the plant).
As they run away, we hear Riley saying to Harrison: Can I borrow that shirt?

Grandma W: Oh, while we were in the hospital for Grandpa, there was a really nice intern there. He was really handsome!
(We all wonder where she's going with this)
Grandma W (continues): And he was dark!

Now, I am not really clear what she meant by "dark". If she meant African American, who says "dark" anymore? Tony thinks that she meant tan.

Grandma W upon opening a gift of Taboo: "Tuh...Tuh-BOO."
Jim, innocently: What was that, Mom?
Grandma W (proudly): Tuh-Boo!
Jim grins and rolls his eyes.

(Riley sticks a bow on his head)
Riley: Open me next, Harrison!

Grandma W: I tell ya, our governor Blah-go-ja-vich...
Terri: Bla-GOY-a-vich.
Grandma W, tries again: Blah-jo-ja-vich
Terri: Bla-GOY-a-vich.
Grandma W: Blah-go-ja-vich.
(this continues a couple more times, until she finally pronounces it correctly)

It was a lot of fun! We all chipped in to purchase Tony's grandparents a new counter and sink because everything in their kitchen is still from the 1950s. Now, there is a sink in their yard with a sign that says "Free Sink" so, if you're in the market for an old sink, head on over to Georgetown and help yourself. :)

Four more days til Christmas...so crazy...

-Stinkier, out.

Korean Churches

2008-12-16T16:27:00.003-06:00

While rooting through some old CDs in my collection, I found a 3 1/2 floppy disk. I got really excited because hey, what could be on this disk? The last time I used a floppy was while I was at Wesleyan, so it's gotta be old and entertaining. I found the following document that I had written randomly when I was bored one day back in January 2004:

My family and I had grown up with the Christian church. Both of my parents grew up with some sort of Christian related background, and so they continued their beliefs when they set foot on foreign soil during those turbulent 70s. Living in Chicago, approximately fifteen minutes away from “Koreatown”, or “Koreastreet”, as I prefer to call it, (the whole of "Koreatown" in those days was on Lawrence Avenue; I think it has gotten larger) they had the support of fellow Koreans, from emotional, to food-related, to religion. When they moved into the suburbs, Naperville was still sparsely populated with Koreans, and Asians in general. So, unless they wanted to be cloistered from the rest of Korean society, they got involved with a Korean church. I think that’s why most Koreans became Christians in those days. It was either become friends with whites and “forget your heritage” or become Christian, attend church, and immerse yourself in the Korean culture.
I was okay with this. I mean, I loathed the “mandatory” Korean language class I had to take every Sunday morning and hated the fact that while all my white friends were done with church in about an hour, I could be stuck at church from about 9:00AM until 3:00PM. Along with the other Korean language school I was forced to attend every Saturday, I never got a chance to sleep in, or wake up to Saturday morning cartoons. I resented my culture throughout my entire childhood because of these two reasons. Most people hate being of a different race because of the fact that they look different, are treated differently/with dislike, but I hated the fact that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were on while I was learning about how pertinent it was to maintain proper spacing between Korean characters. Without it, a sentence can go from stating "My dad is in the room" to "My dad is in the bookbag".

One and a half generation meant that you were born in Korea, but you moved to America, and became an American citizen…eventually. Second generation meant that you were born in America. There are some who are so stuck on “KP” that you’ll have difficulty prying their green cards from their dead, cold, stiff hands. “KP” is the term scrawled across Korean American high schoolers’ backpacks, notebooks, purses, hands, you name it, and shouted at random in public places. It stands for “Korea Power” and also the sudden pride second generation Korea-Americans have in their culture. I admit I was sucked in during high school: wearing baggy pants, listening to Korean pop music, wanting to be called by my Korean name, and associating myself with Korean friends, not the band nerds I usually hung around. This behavior led to a widening chasm between me and my white friends, a confusion on who I was and whether my culture was what would make or break me, and constantly dirty pant hems. It may have been stylish, but you were never quite clean when one of your pant legs was wide enough to fit both your legs.

Korean churches are strange breeding grounds for one and a half and second generation Korean-Americans. Like typical youth groups, they seem cultish or cliquey, but also occasionally frightening. We always attracted some stares…of course, that could partially have been the result of my former youth pastor’s Mozart-like laugh.

But I’m veering off topic. I don’t think us Korean-Americans really understood what being a Christian was about despite the countless sermons, retreats, and

And that's where it stopped. I should continue it. I did a lot of reflecting on Korean churches after I spent four years as a member of InterVarsity. They really are strange, fascinating places that I didn't think were strange or fascinating until I started worshipping with non-Koreans. Things such as "homodo", ALWAYS eating lunch at church, and personal experiences (my former Korean school teacher is convicted of shooting a man in California; I also played at his wedding) didn't strike me as out of the ordinary until I told non-Koreans.

Yeah, I'm going to continue this when the holiday madness is over.

-Stinkier, thoughtful.

P.S. - I decided to Google "Korean" and put up the first image I could find. The first one was of a half-naked Korean man, and the second was a chart of the Korean alphabet (boring) so, this was the winner. :)

I Love...

2008-12-11T22:29:00.004-06:00

The chest press machine at the gym. The weights are in 5 pound increments, so instead of the normal two weights that go up and down, I'm lifting five weights. This makes me feel like the Hulk.

Also, I feel rather puny when just those two, lonely weights go up and down. Those extra three weights do wonders for my self-esteem. :)

-Stinkier, STRONG!!

Christmas Shopping with Kristine and Tony

2008-12-10T21:19:00.004-06:00

At Sears...

T: Okay, Nick wants one of these two hammers (points at two).
K: You should get that one (points at one).
T: Why?
K: Because there's only one left. That means it's gotta be good.
(He does end up buying that one)

At Toys R Us:

(Looking at the Pirates themed Lego sets)

K: I had an Island set once.
T: Wasn't that just Pirates?
K: (sputters) NO! It was Island!

later...

K: Are you sure we should get that for Harrison?
T: Yes, that's what he wrote.
K: But, that age is for 7+.
T: Well, that's what he wants!
K: Yes, he is very mature for his age. (No, he's a typical 5 year old).

At Borders:

(Upon seeing a gigantic (seriously, it was like two feet high) book titled "Baby Animals")

T: You would love that.
K: Why?
T: Because it's giant pictures of baby animals
(He was right; I think I didn't stop squealing for five minutes)

--Stinkier, finished with holiday shopping!

ADD At Its Best

2008-12-10T10:33:00.002-06:00

I have about five half-written posts. I'll hopefully get around to finishing and posting ONE!!! by the end of today.

This is a great example of my undiagnosed, mild case of ADD.

-Stinkier, distracted.

Ho Ho Ho

2008-12-07T12:42:00.009-06:00

It's the holiday season, so it's time for holiday cards. Here are a few created by the ever hilarious Anne Taintor. Enjoy!

--Stinkier, in the holiday spirit

Corpses, Being a Korean Female, and Turkey: Just Another Choi Family Holiday

2008-12-02T12:43:00.006-06:00

Thanksgiving was a lot of fun, as usual. I'll write more about that craziness later. The biggest news that day was that the South Korean government is giving our family money! How, you ask? Well, to start off with, Korea is a pretty tiny country. If you look at it on a map, it's the size of my thumb. :)

Anyways, since the population is growing and available land is shrinking, South Korea is resorting to drastic measures to build housing. One of the ways is to exhume bodies from cemetaries, cremate them, and use this land for apartment buildings and such. Pretty morbid, huh? My mom's dad had already gone through this process a couple of years back, so we knew it was a matter of time before the Choi family plot would undergo the same type of procedure.

Well, the time has come! Because these bodies are held in burial plots owned by families, the government is paying these families the price of the land. Tony asked if we had a choice in this matter, and I don't think we do...in any case, Koreans are very proud of their country and are willing to help out in any way. Plus, hey, free money.

So, that day, I received the news that because I am two generations removed from my grandfather and married, I will not be getting anything. Stupid, patriarchal society *grumble*.

But, there is a happy ending. I received an email from my dad today. Grammar mistakes are all left intact for humor purposes. :) :

I think this is a good news!

Dad

----------------------------------

Hi Choi Families,


One thing should be corrected.


All the women of "Sun"-generation aged 18 or above will receive
2,500,000 won each, regardless of their marriage.


Thanks Joonggi-Hyung  for finding this important mistake.


Have nice days


--Hangki

Yes, I am of the "Sun" generation. It's because I am a shining beacon of light...j/k. Koreans have a few "name beginnings" they tack on to Korean names that are rotated every generation. All of my cousins have names beginning with "Sun". Except me. My mom liked "Eun-young" too much; she thought it was pretty. :)

Oh! And my dad is "Joonggi hyung" which means "Joonggi big brother". Go Dad!! Way to stand up for your favorite (only) daughter! :)

-Stinkier, proud to be a Korean female.

My Foray into Stardom

2008-11-26T13:03:00.006-06:00

A couple months back, I was invited to participate in a music video by a local group here in town called Oh! Alchemy. Tony played keyboard with them during one of their recording sessions, and one of my coworkers plays bass with them occasionally. So, without further ado, here is the world premiere of "Capsized", for your viewing pleasure!

Enjoy!:

-Stinkier, starlet in training.

P.S. - I hate seeing myself in videos, so I will admit....I haven't seen it yet. I will, though!! I swear! Someday.......

P.P.S. - My coworker didn't make it to the video shoot. When I asked him why, he replied:

T: Well, I missed the turn to get to the house.
K: How? You take one road out of town and turn at the only light you see. There's a gas station at the corner too.
T: Yeah, I don't know how, but I missed it on the way there. A few miles past that intersection, I realized I must have passed it. I turned around and finally made it to the house but, when I did, I realized the shoot was well under way.
K: You still could have come! I was looking forward to seeing you there!
T: Yeah, I know, but I didn't want to mess things up. So I just got back in my car, headed to Kohl's, and bought a pair of pants.

Korean Music

2008-11-25T09:12:00.003-06:00

In high school, I went through a phase where I completely embraced my Korean-ness. As an Asian teenager, this meant pretty much acting black. At the time, I thought it was completely normal, but looking back on it, I find it quite odd. It seems like Asians wanted to be known for being tough since the stereotype is having thick glasses, being a math whiz, and eating cats. Or dogs. So, us Asian teenagers wore baggy clothes, break danced (or attempted), and listened to rap/hip-hop.

Besides rap/hip-hop, there was a whole sub-genre of Korean music in that category. They had the most hilarious names like:

H.O.T. - 'High Five of Teenagers'
FinK.L - 'Fine Killing Liberty'
Drunken Tiger
1Tym
Sechs Kies - 'Six Kids' in German, I believe (I don't know why)

Hahaha! I kind of want to listen to them again! I wonder if I would like them or think that they were any good after all these years...kind of like watching He-Man or Thundercats as an adult; as a kid, I personally loved those shows, but watching them again...well, they're not quite as awesome as I remember. :)

So yeah, when I go home this Thursday, I might dig out my Korean music and wax nostalgic on the days when my pants were wide and my music funky.

-Stinkier, nostalgic.

Kit and Kaboodle

2008-11-19T13:40:00.003-06:00

So yesterday, I saw the term "kit and kaboodle" for the very first time in print. For the past 27 years of my life, I thought this term was spelled out "kitten kaboodle".

Oops. :)

-Stinkier, embarrassed.

UPS Truck Myth

2008-11-14T15:37:00.002-06:00

So you know how UPS trucks supposedly only make right turns? I thought this myth was confirmed during my traffic school visit when my instructor told us that he asked a UPS truck driver in his class if this was true. The guy said YES.

When I went to work today, I was in the left hand turn lane and what was in front of me? A UPS truck turning LEFT!! I tried to take a picture but, the light changed before I could grab my camera.

I'm speechless! This must have been one of those once in a lifetime moments!

-Stinkier, amazed.

Want a job with Obama?

2008-11-13T16:11:00.003-06:00

Then head on over to his newest website and select the "Jobs" link!

Doesn't say what specific job you can apply for and it only asks for the bare minimum information from you. After all, as with any job, it's not what you know, but who you know. So even if you do apply, chances are, you're not going to hear from them. ;)

I think I might apply for fun....

-Stinkier, changely (can't think of an '--ly' word that incorporates the word 'change' so I'm making up my own!)

Next Book On My Reading List

2008-10-15T22:07:00.002-05:00

Marvel Zombies

Nothing more needs to be said.

-Stinkier, excited.

The Binary Hat

2008-10-15T17:16:00.003-05:00

Colder weather is upon us, which means that it's time for me to break out the ol' knitting needles. I've discovered three yarn stores here in town. The bigger crafty chains here in town have yarn aimed at the younger demographic such as Yarn Bee and all those fluffy eyelash yarns. I'm more into the regular wool, worsted-weight, cashmere, angora types so that you can knit fun patterns.

The three I found are:

Ewe Knit
Village Stitches
Fiber Shop

Anyways, I am searching for a hat pattern to knit for my brother and came across this:

Binary Hat !

It says 'hat' in binary, how cool is that?! *squashes geeky joy*

I am so going to make that hat for myself or someone else.

-Stinkier, geeked out.

Highlight of My Weekend

2008-10-14T12:43:00.002-05:00

Ohhhh I wish I were an Oscar Meyer weiner!

Unfortunately, I did not have my camera on me. :( I loved that the license plate is 'YUMMY'.

And yes, I have been wanting to see the Wienermobile for a really long time so, this was awesome.

-Stinkier, happy.

Slightly befuddled and amused...

2008-10-13T23:48:00.002-05:00

I bit the bullet and joined the Facebook revolution. So far, I updated my profile, deleted things from the Wall about ten times, and found a few old friends...well, I should say they found me. You see, I set up a Facebook account about a year ago to see if I could find somebody and it's been dormant ever since then.

Well, people kept adding me as a friend for the past few months and since I have a growing-moldier-by-the-minute Myspace account, I wasn't too interested in doing anything with my Facebook one. I just kept apologizing to people, letting them know that by no means did I not consider them a friend just because I did not accept them as one; I simply was just a lazy friend.

To say the least, I am still pretty confused (can you tell by the fact that I mentioned I deleted things from the Wall ten times?). Amongst other things, what the heck is a bumper sticker? What is the purpose of "poking" people? Why is Tony's picture so huge? Why are there a million ads touting LC's weight loss via drinking berry juice?

Oh well, I'm sure I'll figure these things out in due time and if not...well, I'm going to be asking YOU all my questions. ;)

-Stinkier, confused.

Happy One Year Anniversary!

2008-10-13T16:02:00.004-05:00

Love you!

I can't believe one year has passed! It's been a fun and crazy ride!

Hell Has Officially Frozen Over

2008-10-06T21:46:00.000-05:00

I am sending in my Voter Registration Application. The deadline is tomorrow (which I wasn't aware of until yesterday) so I don't know if I made the cut-off to vote next month but, I wanted to at least try.

It is time.

-Stinkier.

Oh WEIRD!!

2008-10-01T15:04:00.000-05:00

So I was totally kidding when I posted the picture of the Partridge Family earlier today but check out the following article. According to MSNBC, NBC picked up a remake of the original show:

"The Partridge Family" is headed for a return to the small screen. NBC has picked up a contemporary single-camera take on the classic ABC sitcom.
The show's writer, Jeff Rake, is a fan of the 1970s series who plans to "turn the premise on its head."
"In the original, the kids actually recruited their mom to front the band, which I can't see happening in any family on this planet," he said.
"The new version will reflect what seems to me to be the more realistic family band scenario these days: a struggling, sort of well-meaning mom pimping her kids in order to create a wholesome-slash-sexy cash cow."

It's just really weird for this to happen. Maybe I should think about Arrested Development. Think that will bring it back on the air? :)

Traffic School

2008-10-01T11:42:00.000-05:00

I have traffic school this Saturday for four hours. Since this is probably the worst way to spend a Saturday, I'm going to think of topics to think about while I am in class:

Ziplining.

Candy.

Shoes.

These guys .

I can tell it's going to be a very long Saturday. And yes, I am bored and being incredibly unproductive at work.

-Stinkier, over and out.

Trying out the new layout

2008-09-29T19:57:00.001-05:00

I'm thinking that this new layout will help me stay motivated to keep updating. :) The last template was....uninspiring. :)

Before anyone says anything, I know that "Busca" is in the search button! I am currently working on getting that changed. Although I will get a license plate that says "LATINA" someday, my blog shall remain in English.

Ahhhh!

2008-04-08T17:41:00.001-05:00

Hehehe. :)

Crocs

2008-04-03T15:50:00.001-05:00

Okay, I think everyone who knows me knows that I am not a Crocs fan. On little kids, it's cute but on adults, I think they look ridiculous. So, you can see how I was less than thrilled when my mom told me that she bought a pair for my dad. But, she explained that it was because it gets really hot at the dry cleaners during the summer (understandable, and it really does; it feels like a brick oven back there) and they keep his feet cool and ventilated because of the holes. So, I forgave her because I know having hot, sweaty feet (especially during the summer) is the pits.

Anyways, they are a neutral steel gray color and when he was ringing up a customer one day, she said "Oh! I have those same exact Crocs!"

My dad's response?

Gives her a discount coupon for any future dry cleaning service.

*Giggle* Go Dad.

Stinkier.

Thank-you for the card and money

2008-04-03T15:41:00.000-05:00

This is the subject line of the email my dad had sent me. His birthday was on March 29 and I sent him a card with some money to buy shoes. He calls me all excited and says, "Kristine, I sent you an email, go read it." Me, being the dutiful daughter that I am, go and check my hotmail account and find the following:

Hi Kristine and Tony,

Thank you very much for the card and money!!!

I will use very usefully.

I took pictures of the card.

Thanks again,

Dad

My first thought: Oh no he didn't.

scrolling down Oh yes he did!

My dad's so funny. He gets so excited about things and wants to make sure that you know exactly how excited he is. Go Dad.

Stinkier, out.

My Weekend

2008-04-03T15:25:00.000-05:00

I know it's almost time for the weekend, but I haven't wrote about this past weekend, and it deserves mentioning. :)

Tony and I drove over to Indianapolis (well, Noblesville) to visit Nathan and Chrissy. (Hi Nathan and Chrissy!) Some highlights:

1. Eating at a concrete Chick Fil A for the first time. Mmm...waffle fries...
2. Eating Indian food for the first time. It was pretty good! I like naan.
3. Going to an extremely well organized Goodwill. I was sorely tempted to buy a Microsoft WordPerfect program or the 50 year commemorative tin for Oreos. Chrissy said that they get a lot of things in bulk and one time, there were a whole bunch of unwrapped PSPs. Sheesh, I wish I was there!
4. Watching the "controversial" alternate ending to I Am Legend. Didn't seem all that controversial to me, but I liked it better than the regular theatrical ending.
5. Seeing about 20 puppies at Uncle Bill's Pet Center. There were two Yorkies there that I wanted to steal.
6. Losing an hour driving back to Illinois, woohoo!
7. Meeting Ollie, their cat.
8. Being scared by a photograph of a raccoon when I went downstairs in the morning. It looked real and life-sized!
9. Sticking a whole spoonful of White Chocolate Peanut Butter in my mouth and being rendered completely speechless for about two minutes...it might have been due to the fact that my mouth was stuck together by the peanut butter. :) It was good, and I think everyone should try sticking a spoonful in their mouths.
10. Introducing Tony to Smartfood.

It was a very good weekend, and I'm looking forward to our next mini-trip at the end of this month to St. Louis!

Stinkier.

Tim Gunn? Or Max Headroom with glasses?

2008-04-02T14:04:00.000-05:00

You decide!

Stinkier, out.

Happy April Fool's!

2008-04-01T21:23:00.000-05:00

Some of my coworkers and I decided to post it our boss's office and we hung up a sign that was supposed to say "April Fools!". We had each letter on a separate sheet of paper attached to some ribbon.

Unfortunately, in assembling the sign, I attach the letters backwards. :(

!SLOOF LIRPA

Anyways, my boss said we were sweet to do it (haha, she's so funny) and she plans on leaving it up for as long as possible. She's telling people she likes that her walls are like yellow tiles now. :)

Worst. Karaoke. Session. Ever.

2008-03-31T14:16:00.000-05:00

Worst Karaoke Session Ever - Watch more free videos

Watch for Grandpa's cameo at 3:15. :)

Oh Mom...

2008-03-27T21:15:00.000-05:00

(Monday night...)

*Ring ring*

Me: Hello?
Mom: Kristine...are you okay?
Me: Yeeeeeah...
Mom: Oh. Is Tony okay?
Me:....yeeeeeah.
Mom: So you're both okay?
Me: YES. Why?
Mom: Oh, I was just wondering because you usually call on my major holidays and you didn't call yesterday (Easter) so, I was worried.

*sigh*...mothers....:)

Mario Lopez

2008-03-26T20:05:00.000-05:00

So at work today.....

*Ring ring*

Me: Hello?
Dulsey: Hey, did you ever meet Mario Lopez?
Me: .....no. Why?
Dulsey: (laughing) I know one of my friends met Mario Lopez and it seemed like the kind of random story you would have!

True, true. :)

Blast from the Past!

2008-03-26T19:26:00.000-05:00

As many of you may or may not know, I am a huge fan of the celebrity gossip site, Pink is the New Blog. It's kind of like Perez Hilton in that Trent (the blog's author) writes about celebrity gossip, but he's actually funny and kind in his repartee, unlike Perez's often scathing, juvenile reviews.

Anyways, Trent always blogs about his daily whereabouts at the end of the day's posts, and yesterday had posted a bunch of pictures of him at The Hills MTV premiere. One of the pictures was of him and his friend "Mo"/Monique. She looked exactly like a girl I went to high school with, except her hair had been curly back then.

Sooo...because I am really curious, I decide to drop him an email asking him if she is from Naperville, Illinois and he was incredibly prompt! He sent the following email an hour later:

thank you for the kind compliment ... i'm glad you like :)

yes, my Mo is Monique Masghati and she is fabulous ... I will forward your email to her and maybe you two can catch up :)

xoxoxo

trent

So sweet! And crazy!! I had mentioned in the email I loved his blog and got Dulsey hooked on it as well. :) Haha, I don't know if she'll really remember me because we had mutual friends, but I think I only spoke with her 2-3 times and we might have had Spanish I together. But, that'll be cool if she does email back, even if it's just because she's curious. :)

I was so flattered he wrote back also because he's a minor celebrity; he hangs out with a bunch of them and is always at this or that premiere and interviewing various actors/actresses. So, if I use the six degrees (of Kevin Bacon, hehehe), I am connected to Monique, who is connected to Trent, who is connected to [insert celebrity name here I will put in Milo's]. :)

Stinkier, out!

Cars

2008-03-25T22:20:00.000-05:00

Tony asked me what car I would want to purchase if I had all the money in the world.

My response?

A Yaris.

I have very low standards.

Ray Boltz

2008-03-24T15:13:00.000-05:00

...Is alive!!

Apparently, Megan thought he was dead.

One of my friends once had a dream that Mary Lou Retton died and was convinced that this was real. When she woke up, she was really concerned and told her roommate, "Sarah, Mary Lou Retton died." Sarah did not believe her so they looked it up and saw that she was in fact, alive. Ever since then, whenever we see Mary Lou Retton on TV, or in the news, we say, "Jenny, Mary Lou Retton is still alive!"

Anyways, back to Ray Boltz.

Tony spent part of his post-college career playing piano for a church in Eureka, Illinois. Playing for the church meant also accompanying any singers, including one notable soloist whom decided to sing "Thank You" by Ray Boltz. Poor guy was hopelessly tone-deaf and sounded sort of sleepy, like he was yawning half the lyrics. I never knew the singer's name until today. Check out the before and after pictures:

I think he looks like a slightly chubby Yanni in the first picture and Howie Mandel's evil twin in the second. You can't tell in the second picture, but his eyes are a really bright, disturbing blue that follows you around the room when the picture's enlarged.

Oh well, I've killed enough time for today.

Stinker, out.

The Hobos

2008-03-24T15:04:00.001-05:00

Behind Chestnut Health Systems, there is a large, muddy pond. If you squint from my window, you'll see this white, plastic looking thing that appears to be floating on the other end.

When Jason saw this, his comment was "Maybe it's a tent with some hobos living in it."

KOREAN

2008-03-21T10:39:00.000-05:00

Someone was really proud of their heritage and printed that onto their license plate. I bet he/she is a FOB and decided to put that on their plate because they were excited about being able to customize it and knew few other English words. It's kind of like naming a child "Rainbow", putting the word "Haircut" above a salon, or only serving Thousand Island dressing. (Yes, these are all true).

So random because I would expect to see that in the Chicagoland area, not central Illinois. I mean, how many Koreans live in Bloomington? Dulsey had seen this plate and I asked if she got a good look at the driver because it would have been even funnier if he/she was white.

I'm going to get a license plate that says LATINA.

Stinker

Car Update!

2008-03-21T10:35:00.000-05:00

The Tank is back in action! A&B Automotive did a fabulous job and my brakes aren't squishy anymore! Go Ed and team!

Stinkier.

P.S. - That's what The Tank looked like when it was first brought home. Sadly, Tank suffers from battle wounds. :( What a trooper.

Josh Barnett

2008-03-20T16:10:00.000-05:00

Josh is a friend of mine who married my college friend, Jenny. Anyways, I know he had a blog so I decided to see if I could find it through Google. I love googling people because you know that there are other people out there with the same name as the people you know and the search results are interesting!

In any case, I found out that there is a UFC fighter named Josh Barnett who is nicknamed the 'Babyfaced Assasin'.

Babyface?

I can see the Assasin part; definitely not a guy I want to piss off.

Stinkier, over and out.

I Would Make....

2008-03-20T13:27:00.000-05:00

A great midwife, according to my officemate and 3rd workwife, Megan.

She explained that it was because she could picture me being very encouraging when a woman was in labor. I would exclaim, "Push, push, you can do it! Almost there!" in a very positive manner.

Probably one of the stranger professions that someone said they could picture me doing. But, I don't mind it so much. It seems more exciting than a librarian, which is what my cousin told me he could see me doing for a career.

Stinkier, out.

Monster Car

2008-03-20T07:57:00.000-05:00

My car's in the repair shop because there's a monster living in the brakes. I call him Harry. He makes growling noises whenever I stop and occasionally shakes my car to express his anger. To get rid of him, I took The Tank (my car) to A&B Automotive here in Bloomington. I initially was going to take him to the dealership here in town but, the earliest they could get me in was next Monday and I wanted to get rid of Harry beforehand. He's a nice enough monster but, my car ain't big enough for the both of us and I'm the bigger monster.

Anyways, I highly recommend this repair shop if you are in the Bloomington area and are in need of repairs. They were super friendly and quite reasonable. For front brake pads, rotors, and two sway bars, they charged me $366, which was right about what I was expecting to pay. When I took my car to the dealership two years ago, they charged me about $600 for front and back brake pads and rotors. Yeah, quite a rip-off.

My friend, Dulsey, recommended them to me and when I asked her for the phone number for the place, she wrote the following:

ok I am pretty sure it is A & B Automotive 452-9092. I know it sounds
silly but when you call I would ask if they are located behind Steak N Shake :-) Good luck! If they aren't located behind steak n shake let me know :-P

Hehehe, she's so funny!

I'll update later with how the car does.

Stinkier, out.

P.S. - When I was waiting in the little waiting area, I picked up Motor to perhaps flip through while I waited. After looking through the entire magazine in about ten seconds, I set it down. Noticing this, Ed, (the older gentleman behind the counter) leans over and hands me Harper's Bazaar, saying, "Here, this might be more interesting for you." It was even the most current issue and not three years old! Awww, thanks, Ed!

F*** You Do Me

2008-03-19T09:48:00.000-05:00

I feel really bad for the new Cubs player. His name just looks bad:

Fukudome

I know it's pronounced Foo-koo-DOH-meh but, it just looks like it reads in a different way.

Or maybe it's just me. :)

To Be a Lady

2008-01-04T22:57:00.003-06:00

Last night, Tony and I went to Circuit City. Before going in, I let out an almighty belch in the car, similar to the one you might hear from this guy:

After killing the engine, Tony sighs, looks at me, and says "You're not very ladylike are you?"

Took him long enough to realize that. ;) Hahaha.

Don't worry, he followed it up very quickly with "But, I love you anyway." Awww...most girls require flowers, chocolates, and teddy bears, but I just need statements like that to make me happy.

Stinkier, out.

The Golden Compass

2008-01-02T23:15:00.000-06:00

...was fabulous. The book, that is. There's a bear fight, which sounds really funny when you say it out loud. Try it.

BEAR FIGHT.

See? I can tell you're laughing. :)

"The Subtle Knife" is turning out to be pretty fabulous, as well.

At New Year's, I consumed the following:

-1 Bud Light
-1 glass of Martini & Rossi Asti
-1 Italian beef sandwich
-a gallon of Chex Mix
-about a quarter of a loaf of beer bread with dip
-10 crackers with dip
-white chocolate popcorn
-1 Excedrin
-breakfast casserole (in the morning)
-more Chex Mix

So, I had a pretty bad stomachache all of New Year's Day...I couldn't see that coming from 100 miles away.

I hope your New Year was full of joy and happy stomaches!

Stinkier, signing off.

Vagina Dentata

2007-12-28T10:57:00.000-06:00

My birthday is coming up in about a week. Tony said he'd take me to see any movie I wish to see, including Enchanted. Haha, I do want to see it, but I'm going to be nice and not subject him to it.

I wanted to see what movies will be playing during my birthday, so I went to Yahoo! Movies to check it out. There, I noticed that on January 18, a movie called Teeth will be released in a limited number of theatres.

It sounds like a real winner:

"High school student Dawn works hard at suppressing her budding sexuality by being the local chastity group's most active participant. Her task is made even more difficult by her bad boy stepbrother Brad's increasingly provocative behavior at home. A stranger to her own body, innocent Dawn discovers she has a toothed vagina when she becomes the object of violence. As she struggles to comprehend her anatomical uniqueness, Dawn experiences both the pitfalls and the power of being a living example of the vagina dentata myth." [Source]

Now, I had no idea there was this myth out there called "vagina dentata" so, I went to the ultimate source for information on the Internet.

Wikipedia had this to say:

"Vagina dentata is Latin for toothed vagina. The tale is frequently told as a cautionary tale warning of the dangers of sex with strange women."[Source]

This made me wonder if there was a dentata myth for men, so I tried to search for it in Wikipedia, but the closest thing I found was "penis removal". Which, I guess, could involve teeth? So maybe we can imply that strange men don't exist. ;)

"Teeth" won some awards so maybe it's not as hokey as it sounds. In any case, I don't think I'll be seeing it anytime soon.

One thing I thought was interesting that I found in that Wikipedia entry was that a someone invented an anti-rape female condom:

"In 2005, inventor Sonette Ehlers introduced The Rapex, an anti-rape female condom which can be inserted into the vaginal canal like a diaphragm. The product is lined with microscopic barbs which attach to a rapist's penis and which must be surgically removed. In an article about the Rapex, Ehlers stated that she was inspired to invent the device after meeting a victim who told her, 'If only I had teeth down there.' "

My only question is, how do you put it in beforehand? I mean, it's not like you can stop the guy and ask, hey, can you hang on one second while I take advantage of this device that will cause you immense pain?

Leaving work early today, so about 2 hours left for me, woohoo!

Stinkier, signing off.

Why I Will Never Watch "The Notebook"

2007-12-24T13:52:00.000-06:00

I was perusing through Blockbuster's website, adding to my list of movies I would like to see sometime in my lifetime (includes such noteworthy cinema as "Independence Day" and "The Aviator") and I stumbled across "The Notebook". Can someone please explain to me why this has become such a hit movie? The premise of the movie just sounds so....sad. I mean, you have this one woman choosing between two men. Someone is going to be hurt in all of this. I heard that some girls cried after watching this. Why would you want to make yourself cry?

Thinking of this reminded me of a series that I remember seeing in my junior high library. I couldn't remember what it was called, so I Googled "romance novels woman choose between two men" and I'll be darned, the first search entry was exactly what I was looking for. The series is called Sunfire:

The Sunfire books contained two themes: history and romance. Each book featured
a teenage girl who experienced a particular period or event in American history. At the same time, each girl was torn between two potential lovers. The cover art always featured the main character flanked by her two potential lovers, along with scenes from the historical event or period that was the setting for the book.

Check it out! Looks like Harlequin light...I guess they tried to start them off young. So sad it's out of print. ;)

Hope your Christmas season is joyous and festive.

Stinkier, signing off.

1:19PM

2007-12-21T13:19:00.001-06:00

At work and so bored. I'm leaving early so I really should be rushing to finish things before I leave, but since it's the weekend before Christmas, all I want to do is sit and read celebrity gossip online. But I told myself, 'Self, you should be productive. Create a blog.' Eh, who am I to argue with the little voices squabbling in my head? They've been very helpful thus far in my life.

Stinkier, over and out.