Update

So I transferred to OSU successfully, but I didn't change my major to what I thought I would. I chose to major in Dietetics, since I'm able to use most of my upper division science creds towards completing my degree, woot. It doesn't hurt that I'll be able to find an f-in' job when I graduate too.

Anyways, I look forward to learning about how the environment affects the human body, and then passing on the information to educate the masses, or rather the few people who may stumble upon my humble little blog.

Go, educate yourself, and skip the fries.

I Heart Green Tea

Oh, green tea, how I love thee. Even your name is appealing.

Jasmine green tea has been my recent obsession, or anything containing jasmine in it, really. I found an excellent company, through my local food co-op, that sells fair trade coffees and teas from all over the world. I love them.

Here's the link:
PrimaCafe'

Mmmmm. Num nums.

Kurt Vonnegut Rest in Peace

This is the illustration that is posted on the late satirest's official website. I only recently discovered the art and literary work of Kurt Vonnegut, and I'm very sad that he has died. He was a clever, comic genius, and his work will continue to educate and amuse generations to come.

"Oh a lion hunter
in the jungle dark,
And a sleeping drunkard
up in central park,
and a Chinese dentist
and a British Queen
all fit togeter
in the same machine
nice, nice
such very different
people in the same
device!"

GO SEE FAST FOOD NATION

Yesterday was movie day for me and Dustin. We rented two movies, "The Doors" and "Fast Food Nation", and I had never returned Mother Theresa, so I bought it, but we didn't watch it. So, "The Doors" was long and depressing. It was really good, but watching someone in a downward spiral for three hours isn't my favorite thing to do. "Fast Food Nation" was my favorite of the two, and is the best movie I'd seen in a while. I had never realized how aweful the fast food industry. In the movie they show everthing that happens in the hamburger processing, as well as the sad existance that illegal imagrants endure who end up working in one of the processing plants. So, in short, GO F-ING SEE IT!

Go, and be educated, and skip the McDonalds:

The Meatrix
McLibel
Do You Want Lies With That?
I Heart PETA
Backward Hamburger
Food Coop Directory

Late Night Thoughts on God

I'm supposed to be studying for a Biochem Test, but instead I'm blogging at 3:00 in the morning. I just finished a chapter and I'm "cleansing my pallete" so to speak.

Anyways, I was just thinking about my boyfriend's friend who is considering getting tested for STDs (because he will bone anything with a heartbeat and tits) and it made me think of all those mislead (to put it nicely) Christians who think that God put AIDs and HPV and teenage mothers on this planet to spite the wicked. This kind of thinking drives me f***ing crazy. I'll admit that in my less enlightened days, these kind of thoughts crossed my mind, but now I realize that it is this kind of mind-set that makes God look like a big douche-bag in the sky. What people fail to remember is that God is love, and that anything that God says is out of love for God's people (I know, the sentence structure is awkward, but I'm still on the fence about the appropriate pronoun, but that's a whole different rabbit hole). God didn't create pain as a punishment sin, God created guidelines to prevent people from getting hurt. God knew, even when there was no earthly knowledge on the subject, that evolution had created some nasty little creatures, and because of this knowledge, God set guidlines to prevent people from getting them (think Old Testament: clean vs. unclean. Consider every rule in the Old Testament. They are all designed to protect us from our own brand of self-destruction. Don't abuse alcohol, don't have promiscuous sex, don't eat pork, these are all behaviors that are self-destructive, just by their vary nature. Some rules in the OT may sound weird, but that is mostly do to misinterpretation and our lack of knowledge of culture at that time.

In short, God is not some heavenly kill-joy, just a concerned, loving mother, who happens to know better than we do.

PVC = Bad News Bears

I did not know this. I had heard rumors, but I had never taken the time to do the research and sift the fact from the fiction. Bottom line is that PVC (polyvinyl chloride) is bad bad bad. Here are some reasons:

Thalates: Thalates are additives that are added to PVC to plasticize it, or to make it softer. PVC is often used to make children's toys, and it is suspected that thalates have leached out and been introduced to children. Studies have found a correlation in the amount of thalates in pregnant mother's urine, and shortness (or feminisation) of male babies genitals at birth. "According to some medical studies, the plasticizers added to PVC may cause chronic conditions such as scleroderma, cholangiocarcinoma, angiosarcoma, brain cancer, and acroosteolysis."--Wikipedia

Dioxins:dioxins are a common byproduct of the production of PVC. This is what it looks like:



According to my instrumental analysis teacher, dioxin is one of the most dangerous carcenogens. Also Wikipedia say: "At very low levels, near those to which the general population is exposed, dioxins have been linked to immune system suppression, reproductive disorders, a variety of cancers, and endometriosis."

PVC releases dioxins into the environment as it is incinerated in landfills, and as it is being produced. It can travel far distances, and thus is a global threat.

So why is it so widely used? Economics. It is used for almost any purpose under the sun. And it is cheap. Bottom line.

So, what can we do? Minimize vinyl usage. The recycle sign on the plastic bottle will have a 3 in the middle. Also, don't send your vinyl items to the landfill. Reuse it. The dioxins are released from being incinerated, and from sitting in the sun.

Educate yourself:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyvinyl_chloride

http://www.besafenet.com/pvc/

http://www.besafenet.com/pvc/samsuds/index.htm

Recycle Recycle Recycle

A list of recycling centers in Oklahoma are provided here: http://www.thecityofoklahomacity.com/recycling/index.html

And to get a "little blue" recycling can in the state of OK call:

(405) 297-2833

If you're not from OK then this site is for you:

http://www.webdirectory.com/Recycling

And for "GrassRoots Recycling Network" information go here:
"http://www.grrn.org/

Don't Come to Class Stoned

So, I'm watching this presentation, and one of the presenters is clearly stoned. It's pretty funny. This is the same class with you-know-who. Ugh, nausea setting in. Next week, I'm changing seats. I hate being such a bitch, but I seriously can't deal with it.
Anyways, I'm went to WalMart yesterday...I feel kinda of guilty. It's the same guilt that I feel when I like the smell of cooking meat. Usually I try to go to Crest, which is a local grocery store, which is actually cheaper than WalMart, but not open at ten o'clock at night, and they don't have a very good selection of organic food.
There's a press conference with the director of titanic today, who is apparently going to change Christianity as we know it. Unlikely, but we'll see. Christianity needs a little termoil once in a while to keep it on it's toes.
Heres a picture of my baby, I mean cat:

Hygiene is Important

It's true. The way that you take care of yourself is reflective of the respect that you have for yourself. Also, the sense of smell is the strongest sense that is attached to the memory. I sit next to this kid in class that doesn't seem to think so. I don't mean just a little light b.o. I can seriously smell him walk into the classroom. This is probably the bitchiest thing I've ever thought outloud (or in writing) but when you have to sit next to someone who's body odor is nauseating everyday, you can't help getting frustrated. The moral of the story is don't be that kid. The shower is your friend. Soap and water are cheap. Now go wash yourself. The butt too.



nataliedee.com

We're Off to See the Wizard...

In modern American culture, there are hundreds of cultural sub-groups with hundreds upon hundreds of agendas. So how do we, in a whirlwind of opinions, find a comprimise between the radical far leftest groups, and the corporate monsters. We have to recognize that not everybody can be happy all the time, and that what is right for some is not right for everybody, and, furthermore, some things are just not right at all. For instance, the American consumption of natural resources, and our output of waste has clearly gotten completely out of hand. But the solution to these problems is not to ignore them, and it is also not to shut down Starbucks and Krispy Kreme. In order come up with a solution, both sides of the equation need to come to a cease-fire, and work out a treaty that will have the most positive outcome. The problem comes from the hostility emminating from both ends of the spectrum. What most "radicals" today don't realize is that the revolutions that made the greatest impact on today's culture were nonaggressive. If you really want the corporate world to change, organize boycotts, and educate consumers; don't just "preach to the choir."
As consumers, we must educate ourselves, and make desisions based on what is right, rather than what is convenient. Some suggestions: work closer to home, in order to use less energy; ride your bike instead of drive your car (people do it all over the world); make an effort to recycle; be conscious of your energy consumption (refrigerators and dryers use up the most energy in a typical household); eat out less, and eat less processed foods (this is both healthier and more energy-efficient); watch less TV. These are just a few lifestyle changes that can add up to a lot of energy conservation.
Positive living is the key to making change in our society. Real revolutions happen when people are ready to demand a better way of living. We, as consumers, must demand that the corporations that support our economy operate in such a way that the best life is possible for ourselves and for generations to come.