Lights, camera, action

So, I think its high time I talk about something I love and that is movies and sometimes television. There are several movies that are on my must go to the theatre and see list and those two are Sex and the City and The Dark Knight(Batman). It is about time the Sex movie came out. I'm glad Kim Catrall(sp?) finally agreed to do it. Saturday two of my friends spent an entire day watching the last season to catch up for the movie, making us that more excited about it. It was by far one of the best shows on television. Speaking of television, I usually never get to watch all of the shows that people rave about because I work from 2:30 pm to 11. So one day at a Shenandoah Movie Gallery they had a closing sale. Here I found season 1 and 3 of Desperate Housewives for around 8 bucks. So, I decided that I would give it a go. Big mistake! I'm addicted now. I ran out and bought season two and my friend and I literally watch a season in a week. It is dramarific.

Back to The Dark Knight. I grew up loving the Batman movies (though the 4th was a little rough). It was the only comic book character that I had to watch. So when they started talking about who would play the new Batman I was even more thrilled to find out they chose Christian Bale. The man is talented and is truly dedicated to his work. My favorite movie is American Psycho and he scares the crap out of me in this film. The book and movie force you to take a look at who people really are past their apperance/job/how they live. Plus he's definitly not bad to look at. The day The Dark Knight comes out I will be one of the first in line waiting for my ticket.

I'm going to force myself to make a top ten. This is hard for me because I absolutley love movies and its tough but here it goes. Top ten in no particular order

American Psycho

Trainspotting

Pulp Fiction

High Fidelity

Fight Club

Wizard of Oz

Seven

A Christmas Story

Romeo & Juliet/Moulin Rouge

Interview with the Vampire

Others that were hard for me to not put on here are: Big Fish, The Departed, Edward Scissorhands, American History X, American Beauty, The Fifth Element, Witches of Eastwick, and Requiem for a Dream. And I'm sure I will post this and then say damn I forgot...

Anyways thanks for reading

~Amanda

Money doesn't grow on trees or in my checkbook

Let's state the obvious...being broke sucks. I'm 25 and I have already had to go through debt counseling and credit fun and so on. I thought a couple of years ago that buying a house was a good idea and I was wrong again. Before anyone buys a home, they should be required to go through some sort of class lesson on what everything means. Our person told us we had a fixed rate...but come to find out, that was only for two years. Now its adjustable and that means pretty much increasing every few months. I went from a mortgage payment of low 500's and now its 750 and August it goes up again. Americans are facing huge problems with foreclosing and I don't want to be another one of those numbers.
Continuing with the money issue, everything is going up except wages. Gas is way up and since gas is so high, groceries are going up; so what's next? I am a supervisor at my job with about 7 years experience in management and I make 8.50 an hour. How are Americans suppose to live off of that? And lets not forget that I will have lots of college debt starting six months after December. And the stimulus checks that are suppose to help our economy isn't really going to do anything for us but more for China, Japan and so on. Come on and face it, when people get extra money they buy crap. Video game systems, camcorders, tvs and so on...and who makes those? Mine however, is going to bills; including over 500 that I have to pay for a hot water heater to be put in the crappy house that I'm trying to save from foreclosing. Too bad money doesnt grow on trees because I would be planting a damn forrest in my yard.

Political mumbojumbo

So this morning I decided to peruse the internet news and what to my wandering eyes should appear but an article on how McCain says that the U.S. can win the war in Iraq...in four more years. I guess I'm just to much of a free spirited tree-hugging hippie to be happy about this news. I haven't wanted us to be in this war from the start and that feeling grows more each day we are there. 4 more years of it?! In the article entitled U.S can win Iraq within four years from msnbc news it states that McCain says that we can indeed win within four years and this will allow MOST of our troops to come home. Most? We have lost enough brave men and women already and so many have been gone from home long enough.

Since I'm on the subject of political dealings I must say that if I hear anymore about Obama and Clinton I just may lose it. They are just tearing each other apart and making people ignore their messages. If the democrats don't figure out a solution quickly; they will just hand the presidency to the Republicans.

It is far to early in the morning for political talk so I am done.

Thanks for reading
~Amanda Nelson

classes, resumes & jobs oh my

College is suppose to be the best time of your life...of course after high school. Well I thought the these are the best years of your life was a crock then and I still think it is now. Apparently, who ever thought that up didn't consider the time, work and money that you have to put into going to school. I swear that if I don't find a great job when I'm done with this hussle and bussle, then I'm going to the university's door and demanding my money and life back. To find a job you need a resume and to build a resume you gotta have the classes and organizations and volunteer work and so on and so on(but fit it on a page) So I'm sweating the resume because do to my situation I may not have what everyone else has. Plus I didn't go intern at some great PR firm. Here is what I have been doing and will be doing in the fall...first though I must say that I have other obligations on top of school. I am married, mortgage and house, two dogs and both my husband and I work and go to school full time. In the fall I will be in PRSA, honorary fraternity for the department, editorial board for The Heartland View and will be in The Vagina Monologues for my third year. Is this enough though?? Had I had the means I would have done so much more in college.
Speaking of means. Where's the funding? I have been on academic honor roll since my return in '06 and my husband and I make less that 30,000 combined and yet we get no pell grant. Between the two of us we will own another house in school debt by the time we are done. Thank you President Bush for cutting educational funding.
So this may sound like a rant and a rave but it is nerves. This fall I will be done and I have no idea what lies ahead for me and if what I've done will be enough. Here is hoping.
Thanks for reading
~Amanda Nelson