[	DAZED	|	lazy	]
[	Tori Amos	|	'Light up' Snow Patrol	]

Sorry I haven't written in AGES...I have been sehr busy.  I am getting a bit screwed over at work...working as a social work assistant for £10,850/year, but hopefully that situation will be rectified very soon!  Gareth is going his show tonight in Builth Wells and it is very lonely without him.  I get so BORED...I should be studying- I am taking the K100 and it's alright.  It is amazing how quickly you forget how to study after you graduate and how difficult it is to get back into the swing of things.  So, that kinda sucks, but hopefully it will be worth it in the long run.  We get letters from Chris in Iraq, which is cool- he's keeping out of trouble.  Going home in 10 days for XMas- that'll be weird.  It is strange to think that I haven't been back to the states in a year and a half.  I wonder how it'll feel, how it'll smell.  I should be more excited to go up to Ohio, but believe it or not, I am really stoked to go to SC.  I haven't seen Jessy in so very long...she isn't interested in visiting over here.  Hell, she won't even fly up to Ohio to meet us there for the first leg of our trip!  How depressing.  Waffle House, here I come!  Haven't heard from Lindsay since she didn't bother to come to the blessing.  I keep thinking about writing her but then I think, why hasn't she written me?  So much for best friends, huh?  New Tori album and book out in Feb, just in time for my birthday!  Can't wait.  Had Dutch XMas 4 Dec. 04 with my friends from work.  Liesbeth's daughter Emma took me for a walk in the old graveyard pissed in the dark- they live in an old rectory in Machynlleth.  That was wicked cool!  I was screened for a stomach ulcer with that h.pilori breath test- it came back inconclusive, so I'll have to have an endoscopy, which is terrifying. 

Things'll work out alright though, i know.  Hopefully, with the new year, I'll be officially the Referral and Information Officer on a higher rate of pay- you know, Jane fucked me over a lot.  I can't beleive it- I am the lowest paid admin in all of Powys- she actually got into trouble with Personnel for starting people off at a higher band than they are supposed to be on.  I am still at the bottom a year and a half later and I have the most responsibility!  What a fucking joke...I really can't believe how naive I am sometimes.  Del is pissing me off major- all she does in winge.  She doesn't do a damn thing, just tezt on her phone and ring her friends, plan her next holiday online.  Of course she's pissed off that I have gone on to the other team- I am not there to do her work.  What a lazy cow.  Grandma has lost her mind, I think- even moreso than when she met Howard online and then married him and then sold the house In Ohio and moved to Arizona.  She's not right- she sends me such weird stuff in my email.  She bought a hairless cat for almost $200 and set out her old computer, all of this skiing equiptment, furnature from the house, and other odds and ends in the front yard with a sign on it stating 'Take what you want.'  That doesn't make sense, now does it??  Speaking of people in my family who don't make sense, Rachel has left home after being picked up by the cops multiple times and lying to them, to Uncle Tom and Anita, to people at her works, etc.  She's saying now she was 1) raped and has been to the police about it (which has been looked into and she hasn't) and 2) she was in the house when Aunt Buck shot herself.  What a crock- she's now living with her boyfriend.  She canjust piss off for all I care considering the pain she's put uncle Tom through.  It isn't fair- sometimes the nicest, kindest people end up with the shortest end of the stick.  At least he's strong.  It'll be so nice to see him.  I hope mum doesn't talk incessantly about herself.  It does tire me.  Eric is back in school and is sticking it out this time, it would seem, which is fab.  His self esteem has really shot up since he came over here to visit.  He actually got a girl's phone number the other day- I am so proud!  And that's about it, at the moment.  Hopefully I will write soon.  stay bright, my little star..

What were ya THINKIN'?!?!?!

From www.thecarolinachannel.com:

Stink Growing Over Dave Matthews Band Accusations

CHICAGO -- The stink is growing over the Dave Matthews Band bus and a load of human waste dumped from a bridge onto a tour boat in the Chicago River.

AP Image Dave Matthews Band: Stefan Lessard, Carter Beauford, Dave Matthews, Boyd Tinsley and LeRoi Moore

The state has already sued the band and the bus driver; now they may be criminally charged as well.

Police say surveillance tapes show it was the band bus that let fly as it crossed the grated bridge Aug. 8, discharging hundreds of gallons of liquid human waste through the grating.

The state accuses driver Stefan Wohl and the band of violating water pollution and public nuisance laws. The civil suit seeks $70,000 in penalties.

Police said the driver admits crossing the bridge about that time, but doesn't admit dumping. A band spokesman said it's waiting to see the tapes before making a judgment.

Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed

[	DAZED	|	excited	]
[	Tori Amos	|	Neil Young 'Keep on Rockin' in the Free World' baby	]

Next year, we are going to Africa.

I am going to be chillin' with these folks:

 And it is gonna rock.  I think it is something that needs to be planned for a while- immunisations, look into local politics and where is considered unsafe for whiteys.  It'll be good, though.

You know why we are going to Africa?  1) Because I think that, if you are going to do 3rd world countries, best do them when you are young and resilliant, and 2) because GARETH GOT THE JOB which means he gets PTO like yours truly!  YAY!  I am so proud of him! 

Yep, I think Africa is definitely the way to go...

And then, in 2006, India.  Rock.

I completely forgot, but something just reminded me to the sickest thing that I have ever eaten and that it isn't on my Thailand list.  It is so vile that simply the thought of it makes bile rise in my gullet:

HOTDOG SUSHI

That's right, folks, I ate that.  And shark, but the shark was really nice, b-b-q'd with a smokey fishy taste and the texture of chicken.  But hotdog sushi...it was at a Korean Barbeque in Bangkok and we didn't realise that that meant that you have to cook your own food and we couldn't be bothered, so we ordered what we thought was sushi from the picture on the menu so that we lazy bastards would'nt have to cook, and it was hotdog sushi.  And the worst part was the smell from Gareth's ass the next day.  Oh how rank. 

I just didn't want to forget that.

Oh, the paranoia continues!

Right, so Del and Gwynie talked me into going to the doctor about my legs today.  They are still purple and look bruised and sore although they don't feel bad at all.  So, I am off work early (thank God for flexi) and off to the doctor.  I have to register- it is going to take forever I know.  What a pain in the arse.  They do look pretty bad though- 3 weeks ago today, in fact, I fell asleep on that boat.  It feels like ages ago. 

Work goes on and on.  What a day- started out with the showerhead breaking off (again) and whacking me in the foot, which made me double over in pain, and then the water from the hose of it was scalding and I burnt my back.  What a dumbass!  Good way to start the day.  I feel a lot better about life now, though.

I am on my fruit and water diet.  Not that that is all that I eat, but I have cut out a lot of my dairy and chocolate and pop.  I feel a lot better and everyone has told me that I have lost weight.  Don't worry- pretty soon I will be back on the caffiene, nicotine, and cocoa diet.  Mmm...cocoa....  Anyway, the fruit is good and I am going to try to stick with it for as long as I can.  Can't hurt.

I desperately need a hair cut and some dye.  My roots are starting to show, and some of them are GREY!  GASP!  Shock horror!  Can't afford it at the moment, though, so it'll have to wait until the end of the month.  How sad is that?  I'll be walking around looking like a dork for another 2 weeks yet.  ::sigh:: 

Next weekend is V2004!  That is something exciting.  Apparently, an outdoor camping music festival weekend is the definitive British youth experience.  To be honest, though, the majority of the bands suck ass.  Dido?  Who gives a toss!  It'll be fun, though- hopefully Trev will tap off.  Either that or he and Gareth may end up having a domestic!

...it occurred to me that I never looked this up.  I found this backdated on www.thecarolinachannel.com:

Clemson Student Killed Trying To Stop Fight

Man, 21, Charged With Murder After Stabbing Death

A Clemson University student was stabbed to death while trying to break up a fight at his house early Saturday morning.

Family Members, Friends Talk About 'Axel'

Clemson police have charged 21-year-old James Joseph Capazzi of Anderson with murder in the death of Richard Axel Gillis, also 21.

Gillis died at Anderson County Medical Center shortly after he was stabbed outside a house on Stoney Creek Drive in Clemson.

Police say that Gillis jumped into the middle of a fight between his roommate and Capazzi. The fight began inside the house and then moved outside to the driveway, police said.

'He Was A Peaceful Person'

Gillis' friends said that he was popular student who dreamed of becoming a stock broker.

"It's just a tremendous loss for this family, this community and I'm sure the Clemson community," family friend Chuck Allen told WYFF News 4's Marjani Coffey. "I'm sure it's a loss on campus for the university because Axel just had such a positive impact upon anybody and everybody he came in contact with."

Gillis' uncle, Stuart Wright says those noble qualities may have cost his nephew his life.

"He was a good person. He was a peaceful person. He was the epitome of the word gentleman," Wright told News 4. "Even in his death he provided a noble activity, in trying to break up a fight. ... He insisted that he be an organ donor so that others may live."

Allen was a volunteer coach at Anderson's T.L. Hanna High School, where Gillis played football.

"Axel had a spirit of never giving up," Allen told News 4.

Copyright 2002 by TheCarolinaChannel. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

On a brighter note, I found this:

Radio (2003) Starring Cuba Gooding Jr., Ed Harris, Debra Winger, Alfre Woodard based on the December 16, 1996 Sports Illustrated Article "Someone to Lean On" by Gary Smith
Reel Face:	Real Face:
Cuba Gooding Jr. Born: January 2, 1968 Birthplace: The Bronx, New York, USA	James Robert Kennedy (Radio) Born: October 14, 1946 Birthplace: Anderson, South Carolina, USA
Ed Harris Born: November 28, 1950 Birthplace: Englewood, New Jersey, USA	Harold Jones Born: ? Birthplace: ?

"It doesn't matter how bad your day is going, he comes up and gives you a hug and says 'I love you' and the bad day is washed away." - Allison Boozer, 2002 (Teacher of Special Education, T.L. Hanna High School) Questioning the Story: Over what exact period of time does the film's story take place? In real life, Coach Harold Jones first lured Radio onto the field with a bottle of soda (not a water bottle) in 1964. The film's story was condensed to take place over the course of one year from 1976 to 1977. Director Michael Tollin explained, "What we decided to do was to take a year right in the middle of this sweeping four decades, and show the convergence of events that led to Radio becoming an integral part of society in this small town. We intentionally wanted to be vague about it because the film is loosely inspired by Radio's story, which has gone on for so many years and continues to this day. That gives it a timeless quality and allowed us to focus more on the development of the relationship between the two central characters. Rather than make a biography, I see Radio as a story about two very different men who are united by their humanity." -SonyPictures.com Who gave James Robert Kennedy the nickname 'Radio'? The folks in his hometown gave him this nickname because of his fascination with the device that he took everywhere with him since he was a little boy. Each year, coach Harold Jones buys him a new radio for Christmas. Like in the film, coach Jones delivers Radio's many Christmas and birthday presents to him using the bed of his pickup truck. Did some of the boys on the team really tie Radio up and lock him in a small storage room next to the field? No, this likely did not happen. It is however, a variation on equally cruel pranks that some of the students pulled on Radio. Perhaps even worse was the real occasion when a group of kids pulled down Radio's pants and painted his lower backside with paint thinner, which burned him rather severely. On another occasion, they told him to pull the lever on a fire alarm, which resulted in him being hulled off to jail. -Sports Illustrated What is really wrong with Radio? As his mother in the film, actress Sharon Epatha Merkerson, stated, there is no name for what is wrong with Radio. It is almost certainly a genetic disorder, because both his father and his younger brother, Cool Rock (George Allan Kennedy), share the same defect. Cool Rock, who is two years younger than Radio and shares a bedroom with him, still can't be understood when he attempts to speak. Although, unlike Radio, he hasn't been loved and cared for by an entire school for over 30 years. In the film, is coach Jones' story about the boy kept locked under a house true? During an emotional moment in the film, coach Harold Jones (Ed Harris) told his daughter, Mary Helen, about a mentally handicapped young boy who was kept locked in an open area under a house. He said that he would see the boy when he was delivering newspapers many years earlier. In the "making of the film" on the Radio DVD, screenwriter Mike Rich explained that he and coach Jones had a conversation about the boy. Director Michael Tollin also stated on the DVD that it was in fact true, and that it took coach Jones years to open up about what he had witnessed. So, what made coach Harold Jones invite Radio into his life and into the lives of those at T.L. Hanna? When coach Jones was growing up in Anderson, S.C., a mentally disabled boy lived across the street. Jones defended the boy from anyone who picked on him. Also, while working at his grandfather's theater, it was Jones who would sneak in a retarded man and give him a box of popcorn. -Sports Illustrated Who has looked out for Radio's health and physical well being? In the Sports Illustrated article, assistant coach Honeycutt remarked, "Radio would be dead by now if not for coach Jones." It was coach Jones who took Radio to the doctor every year, modifying Radio's diet when his blood pressure and cholesterol readings were far too high, in addition to making sure his medical and dental bills were paid. Did Radio really get left behind for a road game, having to stand and watch as the bus pulled away? This did happen. It was in 1974 when coach Jones was only an assistant (he did not make head coach of varsity until the 1980s). However, it wasn't the principal who forbid him from going. It was coach Fraser, the head coach then, who decided that the bus was too crowded for Radio to make the journey to Northwestern High. The team lost the game 27-20. After that day, Radio was taken to every game, and the T.L. Hanna Yellow Jackets went all the way to the state final that year. -Sports Illustrated When did Radio's mother actually pass away in real life? Although the depiction of the day that Radio's mother died is accurate, in real life she did not pass away until August of 1994. Upset with grief, Radio smashed two holes in a wall of his house. Police came to restrain him. With the absence of his mother, Radio would have no one to be with him in the evenings. Fortunately, Radio's brother Walter and his wife Pat began taking care of him after school. Hanna and coach Jones did the rest. -Sports Illustrated Did coach Harold Jones really quit coaching football to spend more time with his family? This is more than likely an element of fiction created to emphasize Radio's effect on the coach in the film. In reality, I found no record of coach Harold Jones quitting coaching for any period of time. In 1998, principal Mike Sams asked the athletic director and head football coach of 14 years to step down from his position. "I just decided after looking at everything over the last couple of years that it was time to go in a different direction," said Sams. Coach Jones, upset by the news, responded by saying, "I was asked to resign or retire, and I refused, so I guess you have to say I was fired." Sams said that they wanted to hire someone who had more experience dealing with other sports. -independentmail.com How did Cuba Gooding Jr. feel about playing Radio? After viewing footage of the real Radio, Cuba Gooding Jr. made the following observance, "The man has an abundance of energy, but different from the kind of energy I had in movies like Jerry Maguire. In a very open and uncensored way, he demonstrated a great joy in being alive, and that pleasure was infectious to all those around him. I couldn't wait to get into that mindset." What inspired director Michael Tollin to turn the story of Radio into a feature film? While on a ski vacation in Aspen, Colorado in 1996, director/producer Michael Tollin picked up an issue of Sports Illustrated, in which he read Gary Smith's article on James Robert Kennedy (Radio) titled "Someone to Lean On." It was the springboard that inspired him to obtain the rights and to begin working on getting a film version to the screen. Perhaps what encouraged him most was his previous work with the mentally challenged. In 1990, Michael Tollin led a group of 12 Special Olympians on a trek up Mt. Kilimanjaro, and through the expedition, he came to fully realize the remarkable potential of such individuals. Tollin, a sports enthusiast, was also nominated for an Academy Award for his documentary Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream, for which he won a Peabody Award. He has created other sports-themed films, including Hardball and Varsity Blues. -SonyPictures.com   Link to Learn More: RADIO / ChasingtheFrog's Review T.L. Hanna High School Web Site 1996 Sports Illustrated Article by Gary Smith Official Sony Pictures Radio Movie Site

I have been cut off from everyone back home.  No one told me that any of this was going on.  I wasn't close to him- it isn't like it was with Axel and Hayden (who died on the same road, if I remember correctly- King's Rd. was always horrible, you'd think the pricks who run Anderson would do something about it), but it is still upsetting to lost an aquaintance, someone so young and full of promise.  It's like what Erin said- if we keep going this rate, we'll have to have a reunion quick or else no one will be left.

I was looking back for more details of what happened and I found this in the Charleston Post and Courier:

Story last updated at 6:52 a.m. Sunday, December 28, 2003

I found this in the Anderson Independent this morning:

PRINT THIS STORY | E-MAIL THIS STORY December crash claims second victim By Charmaine Smith Independent-Mail July 20, 2004 A car crash on Kings Road in December has torn Kathy Avant’s world apart. It dealt another blow Tuesday morning when her 23-year-old son Joshua Avant died from injuries he suffered in the collision seven months ago. "He never walked again. He never talked again," Ms. Avant said about her son, who had been in a coma since the Dec. 26 wreck that killed his friend and fellow U.S. Marine, Nathan Dodd. Another third friend, Jordan Treadway, died two weeks after the wreck in another collision as he traveled to Anderson to visit Mr. Avant. The tragic twist of events unfolded after Mr. Avant, Mr. Dodd and Mr. Treadway decided to spend Christmas in Anderson. Mr. Avant had just finished a six-month tour of duty in Japan. Because Mr. Dodd and Mr. Treadway’s family lived so far away, they decided to join the Avant family, continuing a tradition the three had of spending vacations together. They all arrived on Dec. 23. Three days later, at about 5 a.m., Mr. Avant and Mr. Dodd were riding in a 1999 yellow Ford Mustang when it flipped into a ditch on Kings Road. Mr. Dodd died at the scene. Mr. Avant’s friend since junior high school, Kevin Campbell, who was driving the car, has been charged with two counts of felony driving under the influence. Mr. Treadway died on Jan. 11 as he traveled along S.C. 28. He had returned to Anderson from a U.S. Marine Corps base in Cherry Point, N.C., to visit Mr. Avant. Another man faces a charge of driving under the influence in that crash. "They were all my boys," Ms. Avant said. A native of Anderson, Mr. Avant was a 1998 graduate of T.L. Hanna High School. He is survived by his younger sister, 18-year-old Jessica Avant. He had served four years in the U.S. Marines and had advanced to corporal, repairing aircrafts. Described as a "nut," Mr. Avant loved to play with children and stayed in touch with all of the friends he had made throughout his life. He also loved sports. After high school, he took computer science classes at Tri-County Technical College but soon decided to join the U.S. Marine Corps. "He knew that was the best," Ms. Avant said. "He wanted to get the training, and go to college. He wanted to go to the University of Tennessee and play football." Charmaine Smith can be reached at (864) 260-1269 or by e-mail at smithca@IndependentMail.com.