Una vuelta a la civilizacion

So, kids. Guess who's finally arreglado su internet?

That would be Beccaniles.

Lo cual significa que no tengo que separarme de Livingstone.

Wonderful.

Ah - and Merry Christmas.

So yes. This means that once again, for the small fee of 27 euros, I have successfully shed my 3rd world status and reconnected with the almighty force of knowledge, communication (...i.e. facebook) and free downloads.

I would like to think that my internet-less existence has led to a more creative, motivated and focused lifestyle; but that simply is not the case.

Apart from perhaps, honing the guitar and cooking skills, let's be honest - none of that homework got finished.

Or started.

10 points for blame-elimination of the passive voice. Makes me sound a little less guilty.

Though I'm pretty sure Blue Man from the Picasso painting, who is staring at me, is still judging me.

Judge this, Blue Man. At least I get out.

So you just sit there in your frame. That's fine.

So I'll leave you all here. I now have unlimited access to deh interwebs...so I'll write later.

Beccaniles

Deh interwebs

Playlist: Turn the Page - Bob Seger

Medley Jack and Neal - Tom Waits

Don't Stop Believin' - Journey

Tunnel of Love - Dire Straits

Peace of Mind - Boston

Layla (acoustic) - Eric Clapton

White Man in Hammersmith Palais - The Clash

Sound System - Operation Ivy

Let's talk about deh interwebs.

As many of you have probably seen via the scarce and inconsistent updates on facebook, mi ordenador (Livingstone) es una mierda - y el internet solamente funciona cuando le apetece.

That's wonderful. I would like to think after our relationship of cerca de 3 years, we had finally reached a good place, Livingstone and I.

When we first met, my senior year of high school, Livingstone and I hit it right off. He's a great multi-tasker and musician, stored whatever I threw at him. I treated him well; I thought we would live happily forever. Hell. He even followed me to Bloomington and then to Madrid.

However, due to the fact that I am always pushing his buttons and he's not really one for confrontation (or any sort of dialogue, really), Livingstone, I believe has reached the end of his rope. I understand that living in a foreign country is always difficult; nevertheless, I thought he had been adjusting rather well to the language and format change.

So, as in any relationship, Livingstone and I are finding ourselves at a pivotal crossroads.

Do we go see someone who can fix our problem? Or do we just keep on ignoring it until he gets his act together or I find...someone new?

Input would be appreciated here.

Ah well. I do have one message for you, my one technological love.

In the words of Dandy Livingstone (after whom you are named) ,

"Stop your messin' around.

Better think of your future.

It's time you straightened right out.

Else you'll wind up in jail.

A message to you, Rudy."

This existential grammar analysis brought to you (indirectly) by Chomsky, Malinowski, Nietzsche and Dostoevsky

Right now, I should be studying for a not-really-syntax midterm tomorrow.

Let's be completely honest, without the proper motivation, that was just not going to happen.

So, blogosphere, I choose you to focus my not-really-syntactic powers.

Playlist to be blasted: Especially in Michigan - Red Hot Chilipeppers

Jumper - Third Eye Blind

Disposable Teens - Manson

Maybellene - Chuck Berry

Sleep Now in the Fire - Rage Against the Machine

Mandrake Root - Bedouin Soundclash

Natural Right - " " " "

Whistlin' Past the Graveyard - Tom Waits

Behind the Mask - Goldfinger (hate the message, but it has a good beat)

Spirit of the Radio - Rush

Longshot Kick De Bucket - The Pioneers

Once again, if you don't have these tracks: grooveshark.com

Yeah. It's gonna be a long night.

Study item #1

Adjetivos - ingles y espanol.

Right. English. I think I got those.

Spanish - two different categories,

los especificativos que son necesarios - antes del sustantivo

los explicativos que consiste en informacion extra - despues del sustantivo

I think I preferred "studying" for the philosophy midterm. Por lo menos, I got to play around with the existence of my immortal soul.

Interestingly enough, los explicativos can appear in the form of epitetos and also serve to clear up ambiguity.

Know what else clears up ambiguity? Some good old fashioned x-bar theory.

...or an eraser.

That's what I'm talking about.

Syntax.

Not this grammar jazz.

Is it useful? Yes.

Am I still un poco decepcionada by the misnomer of the class?

Ciertamente.

Study Item # 2:

Proposiciones adjetivas o de relativo - ingles y espanol. uy.

Once again. English. Got it.

Spanish: el que, la que, que, (dentro de/mediante/según) el cual, la cual, los/las cuales, lo cual, cuyo/a/s, donde

yeah. got it.

Relativos. Relative. Yes. It is all relative.

Proposiciones gramaticales, class titles, time, space, the motives behind Raskolnikov's killing spree, consciousness, midterms...the grades one receives on said midterms

In the words of Jay Malinowski, "what's your natural right, if it's all relative to mine?"

...he later said, "no, we won't make no bread."

Which is quite indicative of my future situation if I don't pass my midterms.

I won't be makin NO bread.

Or - mejor dicho - it perfectly sums up my thoughts on this not-really-syntax final.

No, not-really-syntax. I won't make no bread (i.e. play along with your grammar under guise and disregard my love of descriptive grammar).

Prescriptivism is dead.

Prescriptivism remains dead.

And we have killed it.

(That one's dedicated to you, Michael Ewing)

Study Item #3

Facebook.

Brb. <--How you like THAT one, prescriptivists?!

Study Item #4

Traduccion - ingles a espanol

Well. Guess I either know that or I don't.

I'm going to be banking on the steel trap for this section.

Study Item #5 (addendum per beccaniles)

Two words (depending on which linguist you talk to):

X-BAR

THEORY

1) adjective placement and ambiguity...check

2) proposiciones de relativo: placement, meaning, ambiguity - all resolved

3) translation...two more words: Universal Grammar.

So.

Examen parcial de sintaxis comparada ingles-espanol

answers: existence is relative

prescriptivism is dead

X-bar theory

I think I've got this in the bag.

Buenas,

beccaniles

El circulo entero

Playlist for this entry: 'Walk of Life' - Dire Straits, 'What it is' - Mark Knopfler, 'What goes around comes around' - Catch 22, 'Drive' - Dispatch

I would first like to apologize to Khrista Watson for not posting something sooner, as I promised her I would.

However, I hope the following will suffice as an excuse.

...and the previously mentioned promised entry.

I'm always amazed at the irony that is my life. El titulo de este blog surge de mi primer experiencia en Madrid, i.e. once upon a time in a metro...somebody jacked my money and bank cards, leaving me stranded were it not for the wonderful lifesaving presence of Laura. It seems as though now, we've come full circle.

Many of you already know the story; nevertheless, I would like at this point to recapitulate in bullet form what has happened in order to prove beyond a resonable doubt that I have at some point in my short life, angered the cosmos.

-8 hour bus ride to Barcelona from Madrid

-2 days of fun running around the entirety of Barcelona

-botelloning con Laura in the entrance of parc guell because we were too tired to actually see the park after climbing the mountain to reach it.

-sitting near the beach with blistered feet before catching the bus back to Madrid

- backpack (complete with 120 gig Zune, clothing, passport, camera, residency papers, phone, turkey sandwich, ultrasound picture of future niece/nephew, bank cards, flashdrive, homework, book for philosophy class, jar of nutella, bit of queso manchego, Complutense student id, apartment keys, toothbrush, shower items, you get the picture) jacked by man asking directions

- running to police station to file report

- running from police station to internet locutorio to print off a new bus ticket

- ending up at bus station

- boarding bus and returning to Madrid with only the shirt and pants I was currently wearing, newly opened foot blisters, money on loan from Laura and enough life examining thoughts to fill the 8 hour bus ride...almost.

So. What can we extract from this experience?

1) there is no absolutely no geographical reason it should take 8 hours to reach Madrid from Barcelona (and vice versa)

2) Barcelona is the Miami of Spain.

3) certain distractions in life (i.e. music, phone, literature) /are/ necessary for maintaining one's sanity. when those all suddenly disappear - along with the basic necessities of life, it's amazing how quickly ones hypothetical thoughts turn from topics such as:

- midterms looming in the near future

-a list of sacrifices one would make in order to have a 10 minute conversation with Dostoevsky or Borges

-"what color is that man's shirt? seriously. I don't think there's a name for that."

to:

"that hut over there on the field looks abandoned. I could probably sleep there without being noticed...and it's far enough away from the highway and closest town that I wouldn't have to worry about being murdered in my sleep...though, if I were to be shot or stabbed or something, i have two shirts on. I could use the outer shirt to bandage my wound, while grabbing that rock and hurling it at my pursuer...and I'm wearing my keds. I can run pretty easily in my keds...not to mention, I now have no backpack...so without all of that weight, I could move and hide more easily. is that wheat? i could eat that for a while."

4) travelling with Laura Ferguson tends to follow the strict pattern of:

1 - fun, new, exciting experiences

2 - loss of (my) personal possessions

3 - owing my existence and next paycheck to Fergs

...decide for yourself whether this seems a little...suspicious. :) but seriously, thanks, Fergs.

5) Seeing la iglesia de La Sagrada Familia in person was absolutely breathtaking.

Nevertheless, though I am currently an individual in patriotic limbo (no passport or papers), I have by now obtained a new phone, residency card, set of apartment keys, pen, copy of Del sentimiento tragico de la vida, and am borrowing an extra ipod from un hombre buenisssssimo que se llama Cole.

Though strangely enough, my thoughts still revolve around self-preservation tactics...though the hypothetical situations demanding my self-preservation have once again returned to the realm of the extraordinary.

Never know what's gonna happen in Espain. Hell. I never thought I'd get substantially robbed 2 veces en 3 meses, ergo a sudden apocolyptic degeneration of society isn't really all that fantastical.

That said, let's count the blessings here. Upon returning to my apartment in Madrid, my computer, guitar, a half-used package of Natural American Spirit (con aviso en espanol, por supuesto) and a bottle of horrendous scottish whiskey graciously welcomed me.

Thank you, Jesus.

On a totally unrelated note, seeing the completely un-metropolitanized pueblos entre Madrid y Barcelona really sparked my curiosity and spirit of adventure. I would very much like at some point to take a little excursion alone or with a few people to a few of these towns on foot.

...with only photocopies of my important documents. Screw legality. This is getting to be un rollo.

Anyone currently in Espain interested, hit me up on facebook and we'll work something out.

Finally, while I wish I could have provided vosotros con fotos de la excursion a Barcelona, mi cámara ahora es propiedad de otra persona. Lo siento.

Buenas noches,

Becca Niles

When the past comes a-knockin'

A friend of mine recently sent me, via email, a copy of a paper I had written in high school, which she had just rediscovered in her inbox. I had all but forgotten this paper; though, given the current governmental situation in America, it seems to have regained a bit of validity. Thus, I present to you a ballsy little composition from my junior year of high school.

Que disfrutéis mucho de ella.

Becca Niles

AP English 11-6

Mr. Antey

13 March 2006

A Modest Proposal Approach to Political Correctness Civic Decorum…

It has come to pass over the recent decades that the American society, or rather the conglomeration of societies (all unique and individual in their own right) that form America, have found themselves oppressed by not only the Euro-descendant majority, but by the English language itself- or rather, the distinct American dialect of English. As a result of this verbal oppression, the minorities* of the united, individual societies of the United States of America have created, excuse me, adapted and evolved a certain euphemistic guide to public speech known as “Political Correctness.” This method emphasizes the intentional verbal omission of all subjects relating to traditional Western ideology and Caucasian ancestry also known as, the “majority.” Americans take great pride in Political Correctness because the key to a truly successful democratic republic lies in the complete disregard of the “popular majority.” While this method has proven extremely effective in social equalizing, it still contains one significant restriction- its name.

Consequently, my goal is to determine a new title for Political Correctness. First, the term “political” could potentially** imply that a “polity” and even a “government” are the only acceptable means of existence. To those who wish to remain outside of a nation and those who denounce government, or “anarchists,” this term may appear slightly offensive. Also, the term “correctness” could presumably imply that one’s goal in life should be to be “correct,” thereby implying that to be “not correct” is in fact incorrect and frowned upon by society…and those who choose to remain outside society- which is not incorrect. Also, if one were to oppose the “correct” party, the opposer would proceed to be incorrect thereby either disproving the “correct” party or affirming the existence of an absolute truth, both of which are completely irrelevant. Furthermore, the adapted acronym, “PC,” is the same as that of “personal computers,” which are not readily available to those who are not of an immense monetary status.

Thus, seeing no other option, I had elected (or appointed, depending on personal governmental views) the phrase “Civic Decorum.” However, after a review by Harvard sociologists, the majority voted to keep the name. Therefore, because of one sociologist’s aversion to Hondas and another’s profound distaste for cubist art of the 1920’s and rum, I changed the terminology to “The Dogmatic Repression of Progressivism.” This time, the phrase successfully received one affirmative vote out of a possible 348. May the democratic American spirit live on in the name of the Dogmatic Repression of Progressivism.

*In no way am I suggesting or condoning inferiority by the term “minority.”

** I apologize to those who harbor a hatred for physics or merely prefer kinetic energy to potential energy. By using “potentially” I am in no way endorsing one energy or the other.

Varias tonterías

First, I would suggest putting on the Avett Brothers' cd "Emotionalism" as some background music for this blog - with an emphasis on the songs "salina," "paranoia in b-flat major," and "will you return?" you can find them all at grooveshark.com.

That said,

Mañana es mi cumpleaños - 21. Oi.

Tontería numero 1) birthdays

Once again, here's the link to freetranslation.com...

Y porque es probable que no vaya a escribir nada mañana, I would like to take this opportunity to thank my mother for birthing me, both my parents for raising me and enduring my bullshit, and my brother, friends, and guitarra for keeping me sane - or at least facilitating and accepting my insanity.

Today, realizing the fact that my birthday is tomorrow, I was struck with my first bout of considerable nostalgia.

Tontería numero 2) nostalgia

This nostalgia seemed a bit strange to me, considering

1) I've been here over a month and this was my first attack.

2) I am never nostalgic. Period.

3) Nostalgia is an utterly INÚTIL (useless) mental state.

I suppose it was just brought on by the fact that I have always been able to spend the day of my emergence from the womb with my closest friends eating, drinking (which is now legal for me, en los Estados Unidos...), driving around listening and singing to ungodly loud music, and being rambunctious youth.

Ah well. I'm in Espain.

This birthday will be celebrated with different friends, food, more legal drinking (which, in Espain, I could do before this birthday), listening to semi-loud music - so as not to disturb the Romanians, and being angsty young adults - since 21ers can no longer really be considered "rambunctious youth."

Not to many differences on paper, eh?

Still. It's a strange feeling. Not a bad one. Not a depressing one. Solamente diferente. Hell, after college, things are going to change all over again; and the changes in my life are no different from the changes people undergo every day.

At least at that point, my guitar and I will have reunited.

Which leads me to:

Tontería numero 3) shipping costs.

Screw you, international postage. I want my guitar.

I would also like to say that CONTRARY to the schpiel of the campus shrink that we all had to attend, this is NOT my "honeymoon" stage of living en otro país wearing off. I am still quite enamorado de Madrid (and always will be) - and I wouldn't leave right now for anything (barring catastrophes).

Nonetheless, do I wish that I could directly share this experience with those closest to me?

Without a doubt.

Por lo menos tengo el Señor Camel y buenísima gente.

Nevertheless, to prove that some things will simply never change, I would like to provide you with a set of notes from my Literatura Espanola (siglos XI-XVII) class:

Yes. These notes are from two days of class.

Please note the ridiculous amount of doodling surrounding the severely disproportionate amount of written information - which I wrote just in case the professor decided to walk around the room and happened to see that I had written absolutely nothing.

I suppose, in the first paragraph, I should have also thanked my father for endowing me with his unwavering attention span.

So dad, if you managed to read this far without wandering off to do something else, thanks.

Tontería numero 4) Attention spans. So overrated.

Beccaniles

Estados TONTOS de America... ¡¿PORQUE?!

I´m typing on a spanish keyboard right now, so you´re going to have to ignore the obvious accent marks as apostrophes. Sorry.

First, I recently scored a job with an international consultant agency teaching english. 10 pts for an income.
Second, classes are spectacular.
Third, perhaps I´ll type more about that later; because right now, I have an agenda.

Let´s talk about this Cyber Security Act of 2009 - backed by none other than the democrat from Indiana, Evan Bayh.
I´m not going to summarize the bill for you, because honestly, you should form your own opinions rather than accept mine. Before reading on, here are some informational links:

http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-s773/show
http://www.circleid.com/posts/20090413_cybersecurity_act_of_2009/#
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/04/cybersecurity-act

The first link is a direct link to the actual bill in congress. Interesting how they give you an obscenely optimistic and fallacious overview before requiring you to sign in and give yourself over to governmental screening before reading the ENTIRE bill - freedom of information, what? Nevertheless, the bill is in various other places online.

All I have to say is it´s a good thing I am on an international server. Though, if this bill is passed, it is very likely that this server could be blocked, you know, because of possible "misinformation" and such...
This takes me back to a wonderful time in the 20th century involving a certain soviet nation and a little thing we like to call the iron curtain.
Comrade Obama, why are you doing this to the last free nation in the world?
First off, people WILL find a way to get around these ridiculous guidelines.
Second, exactly how much of our crisis money are you pumping in to this anti-freedom crusade?
Third, I second Steve Bellovin (of the second link) in questioning 1) what exactly defines an "emergency" and 2) how on earth do you plan to obtain replacement parts for "compromised" servers without internet access?! Unless, of course, the internet is still accessible to a select few government officials...
Hmm...a society where only the government is privied to certain rights...

This obvious historical cycle of fascist blunders makes perfect sense to me after taking a few classes over here. No, I am not favoring one form of education over another here, nor am I flaunting international experience. I´m merely stating an observation.
However, when the liberal arts, politics, and the like are consistently taught from a historically critical point of view, rather than the American introspective point view, the obvious trends in governmental and philosophical mistakes become apparent. If the United States put more of an emphasis on world history, this blatant disregard of personal freedoms would be a little more apparent to the masses.

And now I have to go to class.
I hope this post makes it across the Atlantic without being censored.

beccaniles