Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in 'nia's LiveJournal:

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Tuesday, December 28th, 2004
11:36 am	When the boss is away, the nia will play This station rocks!  Man, it's a small world :) I wrote to one of my favorite djs, and here's what happened:   Hi Mahonia..........   Hey, I'm outdoors-type person, which National Monument in Utah are you near?  Do you work there?  National Park Service?  Rainbow Bridge?  Hovenweep?  Natural Bridges?  One of the newer BLM monuments, perhaps?  I do some volunteer trail and plant work for Cabrillo here in San Diego and the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area north of L.A.   So do tell, and THANKS for enjoying our station on-line!     Tommy   From: Mahonia Frantz [mailto:xlyph@yahoo.com] Sent: Tue 12/28/2004 10:11 AM To: Tommy Hough Subject: Thanks a bunch Hey, I just wanted to drop an e-mail and let you know that your station rocks.  I love your show.  I live and work in the middle of nowhere... literally, very rural southeastern Utah in a small National Monument. There's a devastating lack of music around here --- thank you so much for putting your station online so I can at least have good music while I work! Current Mood: dorky Current Music: 94.9 KBZT (3 Comments |Comment on this)
8:44 am	Wow Hey, Thanks for everyone who posted, it's kind of cool that even though I completely suck at keeping in touch, people still remember who I am and actually responded. Thanks guys! :) Not much is new in my life. Two of my best friends from high school, Jayme and Kari, are both pregnant and are due within three weeks of each other (oddly enough, they also got married within three weeks of each other about a year and a half ago). Bizarre. As for me, I'm just hanging with Todd and Moki (my even-more-insane-than-Tilly cat). I'm getting ready to go back to school... well, hopefully. I just found out that even though I went summer session as a resident of Utah, I have now been classified as an "alien" and have to petition to become a resident again (I think the people figured out I worked for the Feds. :)). So, I'm fighting with them on that. I hope I win, otherwise my application for nursing school will become null and void. :(. Stupid mormons. No, just kidding :). Life in Blanding is, well, as you'd expect in a town named Blanding. I affectionally call its lack of culture or any interesting qualities, "bland-tastic." It's about 95% mormon and most of these people have lived there for generations. It's an interesting study in anthropology, for sure. As my friend, Chris, says, "the tree doesn't really branch, but there is the occasional 2" twig." Work is going well... I'm working at Natural Bridges National Monument now. Todd's at Hovenweep. I saw Shawna last summer, kind of randomly as I was leaving the visitor center. That was pretty cool. I work on the computer most of the time, in programs with great acronyms: FMSS, PMDS, GPRA, AFS3, PMIS, etc. Ah, government. So I'm doing stuff like trying to figure out how to keep the two monuments open all year and actually staff them with the budget we receive. You know, really fun stuff. I won't go into a political diatribe, but I'll just say that I'm going back to school for nursing because I don't know how much longer there will be funding in the NPS. :( We bought a house. It's nice and spacious inside and has a small deck, shed and grape arbor in the back. I'm learning a lot about gardening and home projects. So, that's my life in a nutshell. Not extremely interesting and desperately lacking in culture (I crave it like I crave dark chocolate), but happy and good nonetheless. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and that you're planning something fabulous for New Years. Todd and I are going to go out of town to find some fun, since mormons don't even drink caffeine, let alone alcohol! (A fact which makes any LDS person who drops by slightly gasp when they see my shrine-to-coffee kitchen.) Speaking of which... it's time for a refill. :) (Comment on this)
Monday, July 7th, 2003
10:04 pm	I've been thinking about college a lot lately. I think about how different life is right now and how I feel like I've changed so much that it's weird to read people's journals and/or emails. Maybe that's what my problem is. I get so damn nostalgic about things and I feel so bad about not keeping in touch that I put it off further. That doesn't make any sense. Besides that I've been riding me bike in 102 degree weather because that's how I'm supposed to acclimated to the heat so I can spend more time outside with the visitors. How did my life end up like this? I like it, but wow, I never thought I'd be here. Current Mood: nostalgic (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, May 13th, 2003
8:11 am	Last night I had the weirdest dreams and couldn't sleep at all. There were people chasing me and trying to kill me and everytime they'd get near I'd wake up. Unfortunately as soon as I went back to sleep they were there again. I hope this isn't a sign. This morning when I got to work there was a baby tarantula next to the door so I was trying to communicate with it. Tarantulas don't speak English, Spanish, Navajo or sign language. In case anyone was wondering. See, I still don't make sense. Current Mood: sleepy Current Music: NPR the morning edition (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, April 26th, 2003
6:46 pm	Collared Lizards are so awesome. They're bright teal-green with a yellow head and black stripes around their necks. Today I spent part of the day convincing a guy that he was disobeying federal law and that I did have authority to do something about it. Sometimes being short and youngish has its disadvantages. p.s. thanks to everyone who sent me messages! :) (Comment on this)
Friday, April 25th, 2003
6:45 pm	Wow, it's been 1.5 years since I've written an entry I am very unsure of everything right now, I think. I live in the middle of nowhere again without my husband. I have a husband and that's weird in itself. I miss my friends and wonder about them..... but! I finally have reasonable internet access and maybe some of them will forgive me for dropping off the face of the earth for so long. By the way, I realize I am a bad person for my relationship woes and I feel horrible about it. I'm sorry. (8 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, October 4th, 2001
4:32 pm	Today I drove a government vehicle for the first time... hahahahahahahahahaha *maniacal laughter* It was a Ford Bronco... and they trusted me! You know, they haven't asked for any forms of ID yet.... I've been here since Monday. Pretty sketchy. I don't have much time online right now, so I'd better go! IT's been GREAT!!!!!! Current Mood: devious Current Music: Video Killed the Radio Star (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Thursday, September 27th, 2001
11:14 pm	New Bike!!! Today I got my birthday present: a new Trek mountain bike! :) I'm so excited! I mean, it's an 820, so it's not like those really expensive ones, but it actually fits me and has gears and everything! It's pretty-- silver, black and blue! :) It took a while to convince the salesperson that I was a complete novice and that I'm super wussy and probably won't need super shocks or anything.. as long as I could ride it and it would go and it didn't need to be only on the road... after "trying on" the bikes for size, he finally realized that the women's frame was the only one my short little legs could fit on! hehe.. it was pretty funny though. Then, this older Harley guy hit on my mom.... heheheheh. Well, this may be my last entry for a while.. I'm not sure if I'll get a chance to get on the internet or not at Hovenweep (I hope so though!!). Current Mood: cheerful Current Music: 94.7 NRK (my favorite radio station!!!) (2 Comments |Comment on this)
2:47 pm	Well, I don't know if you can see it, but here's a lil' pic of me with my purple streaked, short hair. I'm off to Hovenweep!!! :) Current Mood: anxious Current Music: Camera One - Josh Joplin Group (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, September 17th, 2001
10:11 pm	Things that make you go hmmm... Today I got a letter from my grandmother that expressed deep concern over my "short, blue hair" -- um, it is short, but it's got 2 purple streaks.. it's not what she thinks! Anyway, she thinks I'm going insane and that I need the Lord in my life. So many people have told me this and I was planning on going off about why exactly I don't belong to any certain church, but I don't think I will right now. I'm getting nearer the end of my painting job. That's good. Today I spent a couple of hours perched atop a rickety 20+ foot scaffold standing on my tiptoes so I could reach the underside of the eave at the peak of the roof.... eep! It was kind of scary. Everytime I looked down I got dizzy. Who knows if I'll ever be able to climb! :( My lil' sis is going to come over tomorrow to help me paint (yay!). Then my older sis (maybe even sisters) will be coming this weekend so we can celebrate our birthdays (Sep. 20, Oct. 3, Oct. 9). Sun is good. I'm eating the best blackberry ice cream! MMMMMMM... :) I love and miss my friends and am secretly plotting to kidnap all of them.. *oops!*... Current Mood: full Current Music: American Pie - Don McLean (Comment on this)
Saturday, September 15th, 2001
11:42 am	Weird Night Well, I thought I'd go out last night so I could get my mind on something else. Two of my friends, Jerod and Aaron, are in a band with a guy named Kris. So, I went to see them play at a local tavern called the Dutch Mill. I got there around 9:30pm when they just finished their acoustic set (dammit!). The lighting was weird, so they didn't notice my purple hair, just the fact that it was all cut off. So I get a Mike's and chill at this little table in the dead tavern watching the TV's show prayers and things. Of course, there were candles going and all. Their music is a bit on the metal side, but with some good rhythms and interesting bass lines and drum beats in it. All in all, they're getting a lot better (I've known them for 8 years!). Anyway, the place starts filling up with "locals". Keep in mind that this is a small town and everyone who wants to do something basically has to drink because everything else is closed. So, the whole place is crowded with everyone from age 21 (some probably younger) to 65 or so. People were really drunk for the most part and dancing and having a great time. It was so full that many people had to stand outside. Of course, there were the usual bar fights and stuff. Ah, what I miss out on when I'm away... hehehe. So, I see people I used to work with and everything, but don't recognize any of the younger crowd (perhaps because I'm in North County and all the people I know are from South County). So, my former co-workers kept buying me drinks. Then, I was like, "okay, I'm done," and this guy named Rusty comes over with another (#5) Mikes for me. By this time it's 1am or so and I'm talking with this guy... I'm thinking, "he's nice," and that's about all. So, he tells me in detail about his favorite secret surfing spots ("promise me you won't tell anyone!") and what he does to uninvited people to run them off -- don't mess with surfers' addiction dude! He also tells me about some golf tournament he's in tomorrow (today) where they begin drinking bloody maries at 7am. Also, he's a counselor/activities director at Juvie. Fun. :) So, we're just chattin' and stuff and he's like, "yeah, we should hang out sometime!" and gave me his phone number. Okay... I was kind of laughing.. like I'm going to call him! This guy is a typical looking surfer... about as tall as I am (maybe 2" taller) and fairly stocky with the little tuft of hair under his lip and that kind of vacant look in his eyes that's only quenched when he's out in the ocean. I'm like, "uh... all right." What can I say? I don't know if it's just a friendly thing or if he's interested (ha!)... I doubt he'd remember me (not that I particularly care... but I could score some surf time, since I don't have my own board and this dude's practically my size and has several varieties.. I do have my own wetsuit though!). Then he got called out to break up a fight... so that was the end of that. Weird. Plus, this older lady who swore that I was only 12, kept telling everyone that me and Aaron (the drummer) were an item... great... he's the single one, so I felt kind of bad for him-- not that there were many girls he would have been interested in there, but he doesn't need the rumor that he has a girlfriend! Then they turned on the lights around 2:30am and everyone started staring at me because they finally realized that I have purple in my hair. This one guy was like, "hey you! You have purple in your hair!" over and over..... argh. :) Like I said.. small town. Not much diversity. So, I stayed out and talked to them (Jerod and Aaron) until 5am... and now.. I'm here. Ready for another cloudy day of painting. Current Mood: lazy Current Music: Don't Worry With Me - Luminescent Toadstools (Comment on this)
Thursday, September 13th, 2001
10:07 pm	Weird E-mail Odd events this week: 1) My cousin, Kelly, gets rearended by a lady. Her car's totalled and she has whiplash (She already had scoliosis [Error: Irreparable invalid markup ('<sp?>') in entry. Owner must fix manually. Raw contents below.] Odd events this week: 1) My cousin, Kelly, gets rearended by a lady. Her car's totalled and she has whiplash (She already had scoliosis <sp?>). (Thursday) 2) My friend, Kari, has pneumonia and is in the hospital. (Thursday) 3) I'm let in on the *family secret* -- interesting, appalling and it still hasn't sunk in yet. (Saturday) 4) September 11, 2001 and the aftermath. (Tuesday...) 5) My stepcousin has tuberculosis. (Today) 6) I find out interesting/shocking things about some friends. (Today) 7) One of my buddies from Starbucks has gone to Colorado due to bad events happening in his life. (Today) 8) I got a birthday card from my grandmother (my birthday's not until next month). She did this last year too and then sent me another one on my actual birthday. (Today) Did I mention that one of my sister's is jobless and homeless as well and we don't really know where she is? Something else... I got this e-mail today: "Nostradamus 1654: 'In the year of the new century and nine months, From the sky will come a great King of Terror...The sky will burn at forty-five degrees. Fire approaches the great new city... 'In the city of York there will be a great collapse, 2 twin brothers torn apart by chaos while the fortress falls the great leader will succumb third big war will begin when the big city is burning.'" I wonder what the ellipses are for and what they left out. Coincidence? Conveniently edited? True? Dunno... kind of a chilling e-mail to get though.. especially when you don't know who it's from. Current Mood: contemplative Current Music: Closer to Fine - Indigo Girls (4 Comments |Comment on this)
8:16 am	Wow... So, I finally agree with something Bush says. His little speech about Muslims and Immigrants being American and loving it as much as we do! I know, I know, it won't stop many, but at least it was said by the leader (well respected by many of these people) of our country. I do also have to admit that I'm not sure Gore could cope with what's going on right now either. So, I guess Bush is as good a choice as any we had last election day... as far as this goes. I'm not saying I'm a huge Bush supporter (well, you guys already know my views on that), but at least he has competent (I hope) people around him. I'm terrified. Last night I went to bed thinking about the end of the world and this morning all I wanted to do was see my friends and family and Seth. What I wouldn't give to have everyone together. I miss everyone so much. I know, I know... emotional break down. It's just that I have always been told that WWIII meant the end of the world. And everyone's saying this is the beginning of WWIII and so... How selfish am I? I just want to see those I love. There are thousands of people dead and I'm relieved it's no one I know. I can't even fathom how many people are actually dead. It seems unreal. I can't even mourn because it seems so distant. I do cry every time they have an eye witness account or see the photos of the plane going through the buildings (that were, by the way, designed so a plane would go right through them and only hurt one or two floors... unfortunately, they were built in the 1970's and didn't account for the size of the planes now). I think I'm still in shock. But, it won't stop my from saying this often: I love you all. I don't know if you'll ever realize how much you mean to me. Current Mood: irate Current Music: Shame on You - Indigo Girls (Comment on this)
Tuesday, September 11th, 2001
8:26 pm	It seems so surreal... I mean, I keep thinking that I'll wake up tomorrow and CNN will be reporting on the newest FDA approval or something with the world trade center in the background of someone on location in NY. I just hope this is the extent of it for now. I mean, so much damage has already been done.. so many lives lost. This week has been very shocking and devastating. However, the problems and issues I was dealing with before today seem so trivial now. I have to wonder if it's, as I have been reminded many times, a "blessing in disguise." Will it bring the American public back together? Perhaps some of the more trivial shit that's been going on lately will come to a decline and people will start respecting each other and our country more. Maybe people will forget about suing someone because their dog looked at them funny and think about life and their fellow human beings. I know, I know.. I'm being idealistic; but really... someone told me that surviving through abuse/tragedy can be a blessing in disguise because it shows you (your nation/etc.) what you're really made of.... true inner strength... you know? I hope, like Lauren suggested in an e-mail today, that people try to help out in whatever way is possible. Positivity.. something surprisingly evident in news footage of the survivors/witnesses/etc. of the events today. I sure hope that if they decide to go after the Afghan government and maybe even the Pakistan government, that they are truly the perpetrators. I'm so freaked out that the evidence might be so strong, they don't consider other alternatives.. and then, if they're wrong.. who knows what. I dunno, though, it seems pretty unlikely.... What do you think? Current Mood: numb Current Music: Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding (Comment on this)
10:05 am	it's been a while... Well, it's pretty freaky what's going on in our country right now. Huge rates of unemployment, failing economy and now terrorism. Great, what's next? My life's all right right now, but I miss all my friends and now I'm wondering what's going to happen to everyone. I'm still trying to catch up on old live journals, as I haven't been on for a month! Current Mood: shocked Current Music: CNN (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, August 6th, 2001
1:34 am	Da Funk Well.... everyone's leaving. There's this air of permanence in departure and it's driving me insane as well as throwing me into bouts of depression. Argh! I went out last night with Christine and Kalman, but made them take me home after we finished the movie later that night because I couldn't stand to sleep over there without Seth being around.. His absence was so felt. I've missed him since the minute I woke up on Thursday, and though I'm not crying as much now, I'm still fairly oblivious to what's going on around me. I know, I know.. I'm blubbery. I burst into tears at work because someone asked me why I didn't look so good (I worked Thursday afternoon/evening)... it was really embarrassing. But.... Seth's called me a bunch of times already..... yay! (We both hate talking on the phone, so this is incredible) Anyway... So, Starbucks. I'm taking a leave of absence. I'm not exactly happy with work right now, because I feel as though I'm being taken advantage of.. perhaps this is the way my life is telling me that I need to grow a spine.... but it still sucks. I'm planning on moving out next week (well, I have to.. Ashley and Mary Evelyn are coming back)... I think I'm leaving Memphis on the 16th to go to Atlanta and then stop again on my way westward. I'm kind of scared, but excited too. This is one of the only times I've actually listened to my intuition when it told me to do something I wouldn't usually consider. The first was going to college in Memphis. Okay, so hopefully this won't have quite such a hellish initiation to the experience. I want to go to Atlanta. My whole family is saying that I shouldn't give up what I have just because I'm scared of suffocating him (I feel like a stalker.. following him to a city I've never even been to!). Oh well.. I'm going to visit it, then go home and see how life progresses from there. I know one thing though.. if the pain persists as it has been, I'm not wasting any time. So many things to consider... I don't have a job there, I don't know anyone there, and Seth will be busy. I've been told this is a horrible idea because it'll put too much strain on the relationship. Hmmmm.... I just don't know what to think. Current Mood: drained Current Music: Everybody Hurts.... - REM (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 2nd, 2001
9:54 am	It's that day... I never thought it was going to be so hard... to watch him get in his car and drive away. We both decided it would be better for me not to go to Atlanta right away, but..... I had no idea how difficult it would be to just let him go like that. I want to be with him and I didn't even realize how badly I wanted that until now. Current Mood: sad Current Music: "Here's to goodbye, tomorrow's gonna come too soon" - Eve 6 (Comment on this)
Monday, July 23rd, 2001
4:42 pm	On protesting and TIME's little story about it So I was reading this article in TIME entitled: "Chaos Incorporated: TIME tracks the groups getting ready to rumble when Bush and other leaders meet in Genoa." An editorial attached to this article was entitled, "In Oregon, Anarchists Act Locally." First of all, I'm not really media or news savvy, but TIME seems very conservative in its views. (Of course, I'm what many people would call a "bleeding heart liberal" or something of that sort, so this is going to be quite biased.) Anyway... the article had a good point, that protest movements have gotten a bit violent and the protestors and movement organizers should reevaluate their tactics; however, it also seemed to be pushing the view that protests and "anticapitalist" movements are unecessary. I thought it was interesting that the article did not address exactly what the protestors were disagreeing with beyond the terms "anticapitalist," and globalization. It seems to me that the protestors are not coming up with the violence by themselves. I feel like they're being provoked by the police/officials that tear gas them, etc. It was inferred that peaceful protests cannot exist, but I have to wonder if they could exist if those who were trying to 'stop the protesting' would just leave them alone. Perhaps not. As TIME points out, many demonstrators feel violence is necessary. TIME quotes Jan Kensky, a spokesman for the Czech branch of the Anti-Fascist Accommon affiliation as saying, "If we engaged in peaceful protest, 80% of the public would ignore it" (35). Although this is cause for a bit of worry, it also illuminates something basic within our existence today. The world leaders can do almost anything they want and the public won't pay attention. It's only when something 'big' happens or something gets violent that people listen. While I don't agree in violence, I do agree that the public should be in-the-know about goings on in the world. I also believe that the leaders should know that what they decide does affect others and there are people who disagree with their decisions. Unfortunately, it seems like no one's really paying attention to what the protestors have to say; instead, people are only paying attention to the fact that they're saying it (and usually not even that except when it gets violent). One of TIME's arguments against protesting and demonstrations: "The violence at anticapitalist demonstrations can't be attributed solely to radical groups like AFA. Sebastian Stein, 19, of Bad Munstereifel, Germany, says he went to Sweden on a fishing trip and though the "Reclaim the City" rally in Goteborg would make for an exciting diversion. But when baton-wielding police moved in to break up the march, Stein shouted something and threw a rock at them; he was shot in the leg and arrested. He now faces up to three years in Swedish prison. 'Nothing was prepared here,' his lawyer, Claes Ostlund, says. 'That's a sobering lesson for the moderate forces who oppose globalizations and condemn violence but believe mass demonstrations are necessary to deliver their message. Stein was hardly a policial martyr; he acted, and was shot, for reasons that have nothing to do with structural adjustment programs or Third World debt" (35-36). Okay, no offense to this kid, but this seems like weak evidence that demonstrations are harmful to innocent bystanders. Yes, they can be, I believe; however, this is a poor illustration of how. Is it really the protestors' faults that this kid decided that not only would he go to a march against something that he apparently had no interest in and then threw a rock at the police? I understand that there's such a thing as mob mentality, but really... just because the guy was not using his common sense, what does this have to do with the protestors? Did they drag him kicking and screaming into the demonstration and then arm him with stones and hold a gun to his head while he threw his ammunition at the police? Yes, I know this entryh has been disjointed, but they were my first reactions to this piece. Actually, I read the Eugene story first and was most appalled at the fact that a guy who blew up 2 (new/still in the lot) SUVs when no one was around to get hurt gets 22 years and 8 months in prison, "not just for burning the SUVS but also for attempting to set fire to an empty oil tanker" (36), while a convicted rapist can get as short a sentence as a few months. It really shows American values, I suppose. All right.. off the soapbox. Current Mood: irritated Current Music: I'm a Survivor -- Destiny's Child (Comment on this)
Thursday, July 19th, 2001
4:29 pm	Bluch. I always feel sorry for myself. Dammit. I feel selfish, really, really damn selfish. For example, I get home and my roomies come in and say, "we got videos and pizza!" I love pizza, so I get kind of excited, but then I find out that they're not going to cook it until later .... well, I'll be at work. Oh well.... so, to myself I think, "what a tease!" Why do I do crap like that? Why is it that some people can be selfish and be liked but as I am selfish it gets pointed out to me and I feel like shit about it? What's up with that? Where is that fine line between talking about yourself too much and not? I'm just wondering because I feel like I talk about myself all the time, but when I ask people, they either say, "whatever," or "you're an egomaniac." IT'S SO FRUSTRATING! I definitely need to do some soul searching. Current Mood: annoyed Current Music: "Do you have the time to listen to me whine..." - Greenday (Comment on this)
Monday, July 16th, 2001
8:07 pm	George? Hm... After plenty of time to think while mindlessly cleaning, dusting and making coffee, I've begun to feel quite awful about my harsh comments .... unfelt, no, not at the time.. uncalled for.. yeah. Oh well, I guess this is who I am... I mean I do this... yeah, it's one of the things I want to change and need to work on.... so, with that said... Seriously considering taking the trip back to Oregon. Don't know. Mike offered to go with me to get my labrete pierced (yeah, it was a sloooowww morning!). Current Mood: worried Current Music: Wedding Singer soundtrack (Comment on this)