WE'VE MOVED. http://soundslikebells.tumblr.com

And by we, I mean "I". I'm not schizophrenic.

Yet.

(See, this kind of mini-post only works on tumblr - hence the move.)

Once again:

http://soundslikebells.tumblr.com

See you there!

Procrastination: Let's deal with it...tomorrow.

Yay! I'm not dead!

Although, if civilization were to have ended anytime between the beginning of February and exactly 3 minutes ago and the only way to trace human activity was through blog posts, one might think otherwise.

Wow. Clearly I have been watching way too much Doctor Who. In fact, here is an account of what exactly happened to divert me from studying for finals until now.

Came back from California -> Read a magazine -> Saw a cool ad for "Doctor Who" in said magazine -> Started watching "Doctor" from the beginning (it's on its 5th season now) -> Became slightly obsessed with David Tennant through DW -> Watched bits and pieces of almost everything Tennant has been in (thank you, Youtube) -> Caught up through 4 seasons of Doctor Who -> Felt bad about myself -> Got on computer to study for Personal Finance exam -> Decided to write this blog post instead.

There you go. That's pretty much a complete picture of my life in the past two weeks; just throw in a couple of Facebook visits, eating occasionally, and maybe a tiny bit of schoolwork, and you've got my life on paper.

Here's the saddest and most disturbing part: each episode of DW is about an hour long. I watched all season 2,3, and 4 episodes and specials and six episodes of season 1. All in all, that is (drumroll, please!)..............

54 hours of television.

I watched, in two weeks, the equivalent of over two straight days of television. I think I worked on finals/schoolwork for a total of 5 hours in the past two weeks, and it's finals week right now.

So what have we learned from this seemingly pointless, rambling blog post?

1. Angele is probably going to fail her final exams.
2. Doctor Who has got to be one freaking amazing show.
3. Seriously, it's amazing. Watch it so I can have nerdy conversations about it with you and we can freak out over how unconventionally and ridiculously sexy David Tennant is.
4. What else? Oh yeah, Angele will do almost anything to procrastinate from her inevitable failure, including posting on a blog she'd abandoned for three months.

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CONCLUSION: Perhaps since Angele loves TV so much, Angele should work on or with something related to television (copy editor, maybe), because her life will probably be a shambles otherwise. Hopefully she can get through three more years of school to do so.

Also, perhaps Angele should marry David Tennant (forget age differences, this is the 21st century) and have beautiful, Scottish babies with him. Then Angele and David and their babies could all speak about themselves in the third person, because clearly Angele enjoys that.
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Truly fascinating stuff, folks. I think this could possibly qualify for my undergraduate research project. But now I really have to go study for my exams....REALLY.

Or, you know, I could go get a sandwich first. I'm kind of hungry.

Ah, well. Allons-y!

TT4NYRTIWLFTFTOOTTANYAFA! (or Why Should 2010 Be Any Different?)

Anyone who knows me knows that I have a penchant for making lists.

It's one of my absolute favorite things to do to pass the time...and few things bring me greater joy than checking something off of a list. Whenever I hear a great new song, I add it to my music to buy (or, you know, "buy") list. Just 2 minutes ago I was in the middle of creating a list of groceries/things to buy for when I head back to the dorms. And then there is, of course, my life list- various activities and goals that I create to remind myself to count, as Abraham Lincoln put it, not the years in my life but "the life in [my] years."

Of course, to every positive, there is a negative. Not all lists can consist of good things. And so, seeing it as fit for the times, I present to you:

The Top 4 New Year's Resolutions That I Will Likely Fail to Follow Through On, Only To Try Again Next Year (And Fail, Again)

1. Read all of those classic books that everyone is supposed to read.

Everyone likes to seem smart. God knows I do. That's why I spend countless hours on Wikipedia (or as I like to call it, "The Brain Trust for Common Folk"). But free information on a literary work, compiled by a 15 year old from Wisconsin with too much time on their hands, will only take you so far. Sometimes it's not enough to seem. Sometimes you have to be- and that requires effort.

Now, I'm quite the bookworm; however, something about "the classics" generally rubs me the wrong way. To Jane Eyre I say, "Bah." To The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, "Pshaw." And I'm almost sure that I'd rather be swallowed whole by a whale than take another stab at Moby Dick.

There are exceptions. I adored The Great Gatsby. Brave New World is one of my favorite books. But both of these books were ones that I got around to thanks to school assignments- no more of those in college. And for every Gatsby there is a Moby Dick- that's enough to discourage me from delving into the unknown on my own, without a semester grade at stake.

So just like all of the years before, I will go at this with great fervor. That is, until I head to the library only to discover that I owe $21.98 in fines. After all, I'm broke.....and Wikipedia is free.

2. Eat healthier, and get some exercise.

This goal gets more difficult with every passing year. Now that I'm in college, I have a multitude of excuses for why I cannot complete this goal. "I'm poor- I can't afford healthy food." "I'm too busy studying (haha) to find time to exercise!" "All I have is a microwave and a mini-fridge - how can I cook healthily with just that?" "Everyone expects the freshman 15, so it's no big deal."

The truth is that I'm just lazy, and I really enjoy both sitting on my ass and consuming the junkiest of foods.

However, I don't enjoy the feeling of that extra 5 pounds I can feel slowly creeping its way onto my frame. So I will muster up some optimism and try this one again. That grocery list I talked about earlier was one to help me work at this goal. Let's hope it helps.

3. Stop procrastinating

This entire post is about how I'll probably put all of these goals off until next year. 'Nuff said.

4. Sleep like a normal person

It's 5:27 AM as I type this- so technically I've failed just three days in. But, think of this way- had I gone to sleep, my many (two or three) loyal readers would never have gotten to experience the joy of this post. You see the sacrifices I make for you? And I ask for nothing in return. Guess I can check "be more selfless" off of the list.

So, yes, this list may be negative. But I, the eternal optimist, refuse to let it get me down. I will try my hardest to follow through with these seemingly elusive resolutions. And if I don't?

Well, hey- there's always next year, right?

Bitch&Moan: Commercials that make me squirm.

Hey there, kids! It's time for Bitch&Moan, where I rant for approximately 500 words about something that bothers me. It's guaranteed to be 100% frivolous, 97.637% of the time.

This week: Awful commercials

Sometimes gifts come in strange packaging....like ideas (or some other strange, slightly nonsensical proverb).

My gift came today while I was watching an episdode of 'Community' on NBC, wrapped in the finest of squirmy commercial badness. As soon as I saw it, I knew: "I must write about this so my friend/adopted twin Madison can maybe read about it one day when she's bored!" And so "Bitch&Moan" was born.

The Offenders:

1. Target

Picture this: a family gathered around a living room floor opening Christmas presents! Mom opens a giant present only to find.....a big, brand-new flat screen TV! Hooray? Not quite. The mom and dad then proceed to have a strained, thinly veiled argument about finances right in front of the kids, complete with creepy, forced smiles and all. Some people have pointed out that the commercial is realistic. Yes, because that's what we all rely on commercials for: to paint a scathing picture of society's flaws and expose us for what we really are.



Seriously, Target? Yeah, I get it, we all get: we're in a recession. Don't need to be reminded every four and a half minutes by your depressing failure of a commercial. This is especially disappointing coming from you, my bulls-eye beloved, as I'm a fan of your store and all of your other cutesy commercial sets.

2. Levi's Jeans

Every time this commercial comes on, I have to turn away. Why? Because I fear that if I watch the whole thing, I'll wake up in the morning and have a strange desire to join an obscure, new-age cult. If this thing isn't loaded with subliminal messages, I don't know what is.




I heard somewhere that one of the commercials has an original wax recording of Walt Whitman's voice. Very cool? Yes. Appropriate for a jeans commercial? Not one bit. It's not like this company hasn't produced good commercials, either- I was kind of in love with their "501 First Time" commercial. I'm not quite sure what they were aiming for with the "Pioneer" set, but this surely missed the mark.


3. Secret Deodorant

This commercial has a modern woman walking around the city, doing what modern women do....which is apparently smelling their pits and annoying the crap out of good, hard working cityfolk. Observe.




Thank God this isn't on TV anymore. I cannot begin to tell you how genuinely angry this commercial makes me. I especially feel for that poor taxi driver, who stops, probably thinking, "Hey, maybe this is a long distance trip! Maybe I'll make a little extra to bring home for my family tonight!" Nope. Sorry, man. Apparently she stopped you to let you know that she feels her two legs are superior to your transportation services.

Hey, Mr. Taxi Man- I've got a secret for you. This lady is a d-bag.

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Well, folks- that's it for this edition of B&M! I think we all learned a lot today.

Namely, that I watch FAR too much television.

Back in business....

It's been a slow day.

Then again, getting back into swing is difficult after such a pleasant Thanksgiving break. I like to quell the guilt that stems from my procrastination by working on projects that are maybe not as pressing as studying for my sociology exam next week, but equally as important in the grand scheme of things.

For example, my acting pursuits. If I'm looking to get back on board with it, I know I have to get serious. And that is why I have spent the day looking up Orlando/Tampa Bay based headshot photographers, remodeling my website (that's http://www.angelemaraj.co.nr ......in case you kids were curious), and working on setting up an appointment with Professor John Shafer to talk about adding on Theater Studies as a double major.

Whew, right? I figured I deserved a break from all of my "substitution work" and so treated myself to the ultimate dinner: PB&J with Earl Grey Tea, followed by a Warm Delights mini-brownie which I will make for myself now.

And now I'll treat you for reading......with this insanely cute video of a kitten. You're welcome.

A Cappell-ove

Ah, Hawaiian Chicken BBQ pizza....how I love you so. :) And of course there is some left over, which means: cold pizza for breakfast! If I'd done a top 6 of college foods, that would definitely be on there.

But how easily I am distracted. More to the point:

This past weekend I had the amazing opportunity of attending the SJACF at DU in NC with the UCF CAC (the SoJam A Cappella Festival at Duke University in North Carolina with the University of Central Florida Contemporary A Capella group. See how much simpler acronyms make everything seem?) It was an extremely enlightening weekend that not only allowed me to bond with my fellow CACers, but also gave me the opportunity to get more acquainted with the amazing a cappella world. Some noteable (tee-hee!) points that I urge you all to check out:

* Mouth Off!

- A weekly podcast that brings you all of the latest from the a capella world. Hosted by Dave Brown and Christopher Diaz (who I was able to take a movement workshop with- amazing!), it is, and I quote: "From news to reviews to personal views, Dave Brown and Christopher Diaz dish it out every week with characteristic sarcasm and wit. Don’t miss a single episode!" They said it all, folks. Get your podcast on.

* The House Jacks

-Oh. My. GOD. These guys are.....beyond amazing. I got to see them in concert- one of the perks of SoJam- and I can say that I did not mind missing out on T-Pain to get to see them instead one bit. The things that these men can do with their voices.....it's ridiculous, and ridiculously good. Please, please, please take the time to check them out. You won't regret it.

* Courtney Jensen

Okay, so she doesn't have a website (as far as I can tell), but that doesn't make her any less awesome. I took two workshops with Courtney: Vocal Percussion and LADY POWER!; that was all it took for me to decide that I basically wanted to be her. This girl....excuse me, woman- has the SICKEST beatboxing skills I have ever heard. She puts many, many men around the same age and experience level to shame. Even though she doesn't know it, her workshops have inspired me to take up beatboxing and add it to my life list. I will practice the hell out of it, mark my words. Look her up on Facebook and check out her super-helpful "percussing" videos. Courtney is a member of Brigham Young University's Noteworthy.

And, of course, here is the SoJam website:

http://www.sojam.net/

Ah. Alas, I'm tired. Seriously, though- check this stuff out! I promise you, it's more awesome than you can imagine.

More on something else later.

UCF: Unforgiving, Callous Foundation?

Okay, the F=Foundation is a stretch. But the only other F word I could think of that is appropriate to the situation is....let's put it this way- not one you'd find on cable TV.

Photo credit: Caitlin Bush, Central Florida Future

I read a story by Renita Frett in the Central Florida Future today that really bothered me. A UCF student by the name of Nick Szepelak has been put on academic probation as a result of....wait for it...... attending his mother's funeral. His mother passed away from Lou Gehrig's disease in the spring semester. While he managed to finish his spring courses, the funeral was planned for July 1st, and he was enrolled in two classes for the Summer C term. He had already passed the withdrawal date for Summer C, and when he let his professors know he was leaving for a week to be with his family, they "instructed him to try and keep up through e-mail." Understandably, it was difficult for him to do so during that time and he fell behind. He applied for late withdrawal, but since he wouldn't receive the decision until after the term was over, he tried to finish the courses and take his final.

His request for late withdrawal was denied, his appeal was denied because there was "no new evidence," and now he is facing academic probation because he had to use his grade forgiveness for the two courses he was not allowed to drop.

To quote from the article: "“No one has talked to me on a personal level about it. It all has been ‘Fill out this form,’” Szepelak said."

It is this kind of lack of compassion or understanding for personal situations that give state universities like UCF the bad reputation of being massive, faceless, and often ineffective bureaucracies. A coordinator for academic support claimed that he never came to ask them for advice- but during the time that this was happening, he was dealing with his mother's death and being shuffled around and told to fill out form after form. I don't exactly fault him for not running all over the place to ask for more advice when the advice he was already receiving from the university kept leading to dead ends.

The approach that the university has taken to this case is ridiculous and completely insensitive. Things don't even work like this in most professional situations: employees, in most (if not all) cases are given time off in the case of the death of a close family member.

Most disturbing to me is the idea that UCF did not want to let him drop the courses possibly because they did not want to refund him the money for those courses, even though the student said that a refund was not necessary.

This is a gross lack of compassion and empathy on the part of UCF's Admission and Standards committee, and I'm just glad to see that the Central Florida Future is using its front page to actually bring light to a legitimate injustice.

Here is a link to the article:

Student went to funeral, put on academic probation

...and a link to a well-written opinion piece on the subject:

Our Stance: Grief warrants grade forgiveness