Double Depression

Columbia rejected me.
So did Harvard.
I really don't know what to think now.
I was so convinced I'd get into one of those schools.
And I was waitlisted at my other top choice.
So.
I cried, threw stuff around, watched some Babylon 5, went for a 2 and a half mile run, and made a depressing (but pretty wallpaper).
I feel a bit better now.  The only thing I can keep telling myself is "You couldn't have done anything different, or anything better."  If those schools don't want me, I guess I don't belong there.  It just makes me so mad that they love talking about "fit" and whatnot, and I'm obviously such a good fit!  I guess there's six thousand equally as qualified people out there who are good fits too.
It's not like I don't have choices.  I've gotten into colleges most people only dream of.  But I'm still really upset.

Anyway, enough with my whining.  Here's the wallpaper I made.  It's Margaret "Racetrack" Edmondson from Battlestar Galactica, aka my new favorite person.  Made to celebrate me (finally!) finishing BSG Season 3 and because I wanted to do something with my loads of new screencaps (oh, and for the BSG-literate out here: Didi Cassidy?  She is so the future me.)

Hm, so, in other news, the lineup for this year's Ballyshannon Folk Festival is up.  Fidil, Eilidh Patterson, Lunasa, Eleanor McEvoy, The Dave Matthews Band, Andy Irvine, and Solas.  Not the best it's been in recent years . . . I might end up at a different festival if I do go to Ireland this summer.  Although, I have possible plans to meet up with some friends in Hong Kong, so that may happen instead.

I suppose I just have to remember that things happen for a reason.  No matter where I end up -- for this summer, for college, for life -- I just have to remember to take every moment and make the best of it.

An Intense Love-Hate Relationship

I can never quite figure out how I feel about the month of March.  On one hand, it's St. Patrick's Day season, so it's dance dance dance never ending . . . but at the same time, that dance means I am overloaded with schoolwork and constantly tired and sore.  Would I trade it for anything?  Nope!  Do I wish I had more time to sleep?  Ohhhh heck yeah.

Anyway, that's why I've been gone for most of March.  I've kept up mildly better with mine and Ashley's politics blog (then again, I have her constantly pestering me to update that).  But I do have two movie reviews to post, and a recap of Battlestar Galactica's Season 3, which I just finished.  Also upcoming: A Racetrack-based wallpaper, and a completed Minstralian Alliance story over at my website.

It's hard to cover a whole month of politics in a single post, but I'll try to hit the major points (to the non-politicos among my readers, you may breath a sigh of relief :P)

• Jim Bunning filibustered a jobless benefits extension bill.  He accomplished little except making a fool out of himself, flipping off a reporter, and providing me with excellent material for a mini-essay about the faults of the filibuster over at Double A Politics.
• President Obama signed the healthcare bill, after the House passed the Senate version.  Joe Biden became notorious for calling the bill "a big f***ing deal", and Wait Wait Don't Tell Me had a ton of fun pretending that America turned into a communist state.
• The Joint Chiefs of Staff commissioned a study to look into the effects of repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell and have made it harder to enforce.

What else happened in March?  Well, my English teacher lost a couple of my assignments and blamed me for it . . . that was pleasant.  I've decided that The Sound and the Fury is one of the best books ever written, but is most definitely the worst movie of all time.  I'm heartily sick of my name after making 4 letterhead/business card/envelope sets as part of our corporate identity unit in Yearbook.  I've been promised a Nexus by my dad if I write apps for it.  Oh, and of course, I got into college!  Not sure where I'm going yet, since I'm still waiting on a few decisions, but I'm really happy with where I've gotten in so far.

That's all for now . . . I'm going to try to steal some sleep now!

Battlestar Música

Apparently senioritis doesn't care if you want it around or not, it comes to visit anyway.  But school has been pretty tame lately as second semester picks up, and I've been spending my days listening to music and catching up on TV shows, as well as cleaning the garage (yikes.  you find straaaaaaaaaaaaange stuff in there!) and, yes, keeping up with schoolwork.

I suppose it's because it's been so awesomely rainy lately that I've been in a strange mood, musically at least, lately.  I've been listening to four albums practically nonstop: Moya Brennan's Misty Eyed Adventures Sarah Brightman's Harem, The Corrs' In Blue, and Sinead O'Connor's Faith and Courage.  Why?  I'm not quite sure.  They make me happy, I suppose.  Make me want to go out and travel the world, get on a train & just see where I'll end up.  I highly recommend all three of these albums.

And, my other current obsession: Battlestar Galactica.  I'm 8 episodes into season 3 and have never loved it more!  There's so much more intrigue now, so many battles (between ships and people).  Everything is so intense, after the failed harmony experiment of New Caprica.  I'm kind of wishing Baltar is a Cylon, just so I don't have to think that a human would betray his own race so horridly TWICE.  Laura Roslin is reminding me why she's my favorite character (not that I need reminding) but ohhhhh boy, she does have ice water in her veins sometimes!  I'm starting to like Sharon Agathon -- Athena -- more now, and Racetrack is epic pilot win, as usual.  Tory is awesome even if she's a psychotic Cylon later on, Apollo is soooo much cuter now that he lost all that weight, I am so not surprised Ellen was a collaborator on New Caprica, Tigh as a drunk is supremely unattractive.  Oh, and I hate all the Threes because Lucy Lawless is such a good actress she makes me feel sorry for them.

Oh, yeah, and I went to this store in Hollywood called "It's a Wrap" that gets all sorts of costumes/props from movies/tv shows/whatever, annnnnnnnnnnnd ......... I found outfits from BSG!!!!  Soooooo excited ... I'm going to be watching all the episodes super closely looking for my new clothes :P

I am in love with the BSG soundtrack.  Endofstory.

I downloaded the first half of the pilot for Caprica.
Ugh.
I swore I wouldn't get it/watch it.
But it was free on iTunes and I'm a sucker for free stuff.
I comfort myself by knowing that just because I have it, doesn't mean I like it.

So, take all the sex, drugs, and violence of Vegas, multiply it by a few thousands, and you have "V-World".  Ew.  I get the point -- the colonies are in love with themselves and headed toward destruction.  And yeah, sex and violence sells in our pathetic little American TV culture.  But really.  The most interesting parts were the FX and the creepy priestess lady.  I think I might have to watch the second half of the pilot, but not the rest of the series.

Women Who are Positively Portrayed in the Media

So.  Either I'm being whiny and sleep deprived (entirely possible), or this list is my rebuttal against the entire concept of the Women's Studies class (also totally possible).

From The X-Files

• Dana Scully
• Margaret Scully
• Teena Mulder
• Marita Covarrubias
• Monica Reyes
• Dakota Whitney

From Babylon 5

• Susan Ivanova
• Talia Winters
• Delenn
• Lyta Alexander
• Elizabeth Lochley
• Na'Toth

From CSI and CSI: Miami

• Sara Sidle
• Catherine Willows
• Terri Miller
• Sofia Curtis
• Calleigh Duquesne
• Wendy Simms
• Natalia Boa Vista
• Alexx Woods

From Buffy the Vampire Slayer

• Buffy Summers
• Willow Rosenberg
• Faith
• Kendra
• Jenny Calendar
• Cordelia Chase

From Warehouse 13

• Myka Bering
• Claudia Donovan
• Leena
• Mrs. Irene Frederic

From Fringe

• Olivia Dunham
• Nina Sharp
• Astrid Farnsworth
• Amy Jessup

From Roswell

• Liz Parker
• Maria de Luca
• Isabel Evans

From NCIS

• Abby Sciuto
• Caitlin Todd
• Ziva David

From Law & Order and Law & Order: SVU

• Olivia Benson
• Alexandra Cabot
• Abbie Carmichael
• Elizabeth Donnelly
• Casey Novak
• Jill Hennessey
• Serena Southerlyn
• Connie Rubirosa
• Alexandra Borgia
• Claire Kincaid
• Monique Jefferies
• Kim Greylek
• Melinda Warner

From Battlestar Galactica

• Laura Roslin
• Tory Foster
• Kara "Starbuck" Thrace
• Anastasia Dualla
• D'Anna Beirs / The Rest of the Threes
• Sharon Agathon / The Rest of the Eights
• Gina Inviere/ The Rest of the Sixes
• Helena Cain
• Kendra Shaw
• Margaret "Racetrack" Edmonson
• Diana "Hardball" Seelix
• Louanne "Kat" Katraine
• Erin Matthias
• Jean Barolay

From Stargate (SG-1, Atlantis, and Universe)

• Samantha Carter
• Janet Frasier
• Vala Mal Doran
• Elizabeth Weir
• Teyla Emmagen
• Kate Heightmeyer
• Jennifer Keller
• Laura Cadman
• Katie Brown
• Chaya
• Helia
• Alicia Vega
• Camille Wray
• Tamara Johansen
• Jeannie Miller

Some of them are evil, sure, but they're all strong, complex characters who would never let men make them feel bad about themselves.

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Watch Out World, Anya's Bored!

Semester break = time for me to catch up on all those wallpapers I promised people for Christmas and then never got around to.  Ahem.

The Dark Knight.  Batman.  For 'Drea :)

Alice (The SyFy Miniseries).  Alice.  For Toria :)

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.  Greg Sanders.  For Marina :)

Battlestar Galactica.  Laura Roslin & Tory Foster.  For Laura :)

Mad Men.  Don Draper.  For Ashley :)

So . . . I know everyone whom I've dedicated these to have seen them already, but I thought I'd post them here so you all could see a wider sampling of my artwork.   As always, full-size versions and detailed explanations of the thought processes behind all of these can be found at my website: http://www.anyaprynn.com/artwork.html.