Don't play with it

I saw flurries today. Yippee.. I'm lazy to type so I'll post pics. I promise an update before the week is up...

I got back my results for my exams. Yay...or Boo...

I got an A on the Bio quiz on Monday. I'm not sure how I did on Wednesday, I have a sneaky suspicion I messed up the "write numbers in order" question. I should've written it out full. Oh well, I know better for next time.

Now... for those who said I should be optimistic about exams...

And.... Poli Sci.... Umm... to make myself feel good I shall split the results into two - 30 Multiple Choice questions at 2.5 points each (75%) and an essay worth 25 points (25%). On the essay, I made a couple errors on one of my points but I still did ok, I got 22/25. But, I got full marks on the last essay so I know I could've done better. And then.... -.- ... Along came multiple choice. I took my time, there were only about 6 that I was unsure about. I left the exam optimistic and nervous but by the end of Tuesday my confidence grew... And..... I got 11 wrong. -.- ... 11 * 2.5 = 27.5.. Fortunately the professor gave us a 6 point curve which brought me up from the 60s to a 76. Last time I got 15 M.C. wrong and full marks for my essay.

She made the point that if we're doing poorly we're probably not studying or probably misreading. I think, in my case, I'm just horrible at multiple choice... I mean after doing poorly at M.C. for 5 years that's the only theory I could come up with. After she went through the answers, it seemed obvious... and I felt silly because I knew the right answer for like 8 or 9 of them. I just missed the wording. The other 3 or so, were just facts that I glossed over that I thought I knew but couldn't recall perfect in the exam. Still an excuse is an excuse... and it doesn't change anything... It's just one class. Once I'm done with it I won't have to do it again... Hopefully between my late attendance and C grade average thus far, I don't do too horribly... But I'm learning about optimism and politics - they don't go hand in hand.

I'll study harder... Next exam, the last exam, I will do better. Yes, I will.


***

Now time for my best trick yet. (lol) My-oh -so - interesting- post.

We are doing the lungs now in Biology. Fun stuff. I'm really loving that class.

Firstly, my unrelated note, having an allergy is like having a cold - mucus build up leading to increase in sinus pressure leading to sinus headaches, watery eyes, etc etc. Everything that occurs with a cold because of irritations. So, for all of us who go "no I don't have the cold, it's just allergies", we're right. So tell those cynics, no you don't have the cold it's really just allergies.

So air gets into your body through your nose, or mouth (whichever you're inhaling with at the time). **Breathing through the mouth can result in a sore throat because you are drying out the cells along in an effort to moisturize the air. The air has to to saturated with water. So folks, you really shouldn't breathe through your mouth, lest necessary.** It passes down your trachea, to your bronchi, then to your bronchioles. The bronchioles are surrounded by muscle.

This muscle is needed as a defense mechanism, which automatically contracts (which would prevent toxic gases from being absorbed into the body by contracting around and closing off the bronchioles before gas gets to the aveoli..I think...I need to check it).

Now for the fun stuff. For people with asthma, this muscle contracts the bronchiole, so air carbon dioxide(CO2) gets trapped in the lungs. This results in a build up of carbon dioxide in your blood, and your brain sends a message to your heart saying to pump more blood to get rid of the high level of carbon dioxide in the blood... which is all fine and dandy except for one problem, the CO2 isn't leaving the body, and oxygen isn't entering the body since everything is closed off. This process keeps on going, getting worse and worse. When the carbon dioxide and water mix it creates carbonic acid and your body goes into respiratory acidosis. Your heart keeps speeding up, the levels of carbon dioxide keep increasing, leading to an eventual heart attack.

The asthma inhaler dilates the air passages, so you could breathe again.

On a good note, the professor told us that should someone we know have breathing difficulties generally or go into an attack and we're there - give them caffeine aka caffeinated tea, coffee, etc (not decaf, must be caffeine) because the caffeine dilates the muscles in the lungs, and soon enough the person shall continue breathing normally.

That's enough for tonight. My next post shall be about "People who smoke have a death wish."

***

Shellll-ayyyy out.

I know I promised a post... I know I promised myself an awesome post... BUT I got caught up painting and I've been super tired. I had two Biology quizzes (Monday and today), a Political Science exam (yesterday), and a Business exam coming up on Friday. It's been hectic...

However, I will make a special concerted effort to write my post that I wanted to do today, tomorrow before the ideas leave my mind.

Oh. I found the most blissful song by Dido. It's called 'See you when you're 40'. I shall post the lyrics and the video at the end of this post, if you're so interested in hearing/reading the lyrics. It's calming and self-explanatory. It's one of those post-event songs where she realizes and sees for the first time all the real flaws that existed, without the hopeful glasses altering her vision.

It made me smile. Dido was tonight's inspirational painting music.

My progress thus far...



At the end, it's going to be two lily flowers in a pond/swamp. The motivation for this piece is based on some ideas I've been posting recently, ie, life is but a swamp with lilies. Or rather, we should aspire to be like lilies in this life. A lily grows despite the ugliness that surrounds it and blossoms into a beautiful flower. We too, like the lily, should make an effort to not bend to the world's evil ways, and strive to be good, and blossom like the lily despite the adversities faced on this journey.

This piece has been taking longer than expected. I started it over the weekend, and I didn't like how it was coming out. However, for the mere fact that I'm doing it on canvas, and I don't want to "waste" a whole canvas sheet... I decided to slow down and take my time. It's not a race...right?

When finished it's going to be my largest oil painting thus far (18 x 24) and also my first painting, oil or acrylic, on canvas since I've been in the States. I have a few oil pieces on canva-paper... and I've been trying to make a special effort to diligently upload pics of my work.

Check it out if you get a chance... My artwork collection blog is called 'I Hope You Take a Piece of Me with You..." and I'm willing to do commissions... If you know someone or you personally would like something done... don't hesitate to email me or something. ( shell.e@gmail.com)

Well, before this post becomes much longer than initially intended and its length registers in my brain... and I start to rationalize typing my original post at this ridiculous hour... I shall depart.

Muah.
G'nite NY & Grenada... and where ever else my readers are from.
Shelli out.



"See you when you're 40" Dido

I've driven round in circles for three hours
It was bound to happen that I'd end up at your
I temporarily forgot there's better days to come
I thought that I would give it just one more chance

Cos' I want, tonight, what I've been waiting for
But I found, tonight, what I'd been warned about

You think that you are complicated, deep mystery to all
Well it's taken me a while to see, you're not so special
All energy no meaning, with a lot of words
So paper thin that one real feeling, could knock you down

And I've seen, tonight, what I'd been warned about
I'm gonna leave, tonight, before I change my mind

So see me when your 40, lost and all alone
being comforted by strangers you'll never need to know
not sad because you lost me
but sad because you thought it was cool to be sad

You think misery will make you stand apart from the crowd
well if you had walked past me today I wouldn't have picked you out
I wouldn't have picked you out

now I've seen, tonight, how I could waste my time
and I'll be on my way, and I won't be back
cos I've seen, tonight, what I've been warned about
your just a boy, not a man, and I'm not coming back

Today was chill.

I'm still super busy with school work. Yes I know, how depressing.

***

On the plus side.... Funny pics

Canada Press

Grenada Cops arrest an American man for celebrating Obama's win.
ST. GEORGE'S, Grenada — A New York man's noisy celebration of Barack Obama's victory landed him in a Caribbean jail.
Police in Grenada say Roy Coutain was honking his horn and relentlessly shouting, "Obama! Obama!" as he drove through the streets of the capital in a car covered with U.S. flags.
He wore an Obama T-shirt - in case his allegiance was in doubt.
Island police arrested Coutain and charged him with disorderly behaviour, obscene language and resisting arrest.
Coutain is from Grenada but has lived in New York state and is a U.S. citizen.
Coutain was recorded on video telling police: "The entire world is excited and you don't want me to celebrate! I voted and I have a right to celebrate!"

Now should you click on the link... you'd see they went so far as to show us the location of Grenada on a map.

Of all the things for us to make news with, we just couldn't help ourselves.

***

Maya sent me some delightfully funny links... I'll post my fave pics below and the corresponding links.

Now I have been super busy recently. Turns out being a student is disastrous to the rest of your social life. I lay on my bed each night with the lingering thoughts, "...I will get up and paint in a moment..." I wake up the next morning. -.-

***

Moving along. Turns out Tuesday was a remarkable day. One that must be marked off on calenders. One that must be entered into updated textbooks.

Here was I moaning and groaning (to myself of course) that all the eventful stuff happened in other eras, nothing good is happening in mine. I was alive to experience the first hurricane to hit Grenada since Janet 50 years back. I am alive to see the huge economic crash that's going on...

My mind flutters back to Tupac's 'Changes' - "...And although it seems heaven sent, we ain't ready yet to see a black president....It ain't a secret don't conceal the fact, the penitentiary's packed, and it's filled with blacks...But some things will never change..."

I guess he was right, up til Tuesday. Of course, the prison situation hasn't changed....BUT Rome wasn't built in a day. America now has a black president. Maybe now that there is a black role model that just proved 'yes you can' do it, we'll see some changes. Pun intended.

***

On Election Day itself... I must be living in one of the 'boring-est' places in NY, that is Wakefield Bx, because nothing happened. Or rather nothing seemed to happen. I woke up late to the sound of my phone alarming. I got up, trudged around the house...got ready for school and left...

...It was warm outside. I saw the occasional person walking along the streets but not much...not even that much traffic. Then again, it was past midday. But the polling station was supposedly right next door in the school.

After class I asked a couple of my classmates what were their views on the election and whom they voted for. To no surprise, my classmates that I asked that I asked all voted Democrat. One of the girls had voted absentee due to originally being from Connecticut and not having had the chance to re-register. I asked them why they voted Democrat, most of them replied that they voted based on the basis of being very liberal. However, two made the point of their parents being Democrats, and having grown up in a Democratic household they just never thought to question it. I met one Asian guy who did not vote because he said he wasn't really that interested in politics, nor was he really following what was going on. I think that's a bit strange, it's almost as if one would have to put in an extra concerted effort not to be even remotely cognizant of the strong campaigning that was happening. It was on tv, the internet - especially Facebook, newspapers, etc... at risk of being cliché, it was what "all the buzz was about" in the media. Anyway, different strokes for different folks, right? One of my male classmates who is Democrat made mention of one of his friends that's just plain out controversial and was overly passionate about Obama for just that one reason. I mean, he said his friend made the occasional valid point, but for the most he was just loving the controversy of it all.

One of my closest friends, Joe, from upstate (Rochester), said he didn't vote because he doesn't think the electoral college is very democratic... However if he was to, he would've voted for Obama hands down because he, my friend, is liberal and "it scares the bejesus out of him, the idea of Palin being a heart attack away from being president." *shudders* Palin would have surely made America the laughing stock of the world. Another friend of mine, Ryan, from Virginia, who was a diehard Republican voted Democrat. He refuses to see this as jumping ship... and me being me, I can't help but relentlessly tease him about his lack of party loyalty. His rationale was that, he wasn't concerned with most of the policies either party was dealing like health care and so forth because it doesn't affect him. He also rationalized that both parties, regardless of who becomes president will have dealing with the economy of their main agendas and are aware of public scrutiny with how it is handled. His deal breaker was that Obama would help to change the perception of Americans outside of the US. America is diverse and open-minded enough to have a black president. He also thought Obama has a more charismatic, soothing persona amidst everything that is happening.

Well.. Obama won... by a landslide. With, not surprisingly, record breaking turn outs from the youths... who said the youths don't vote? :P

Anyways, being an international student and not American I couldn't vote.

My aunt who was Republican, didn't vote. I personally don't believe she was pleased with either candidate, but her rationale was a discrepancy in her address and registration since her recent change of residence.

The street was quiet. Our house was quiet. My aunt was flicking between channels and then eventually went to sleep early.

At that point, I near forgot it was Election day. I remember being in my room Tuesday night trying to study for my Biology lecture midterms the next day, when my dad called me from Grenada all excitedly, around 10-11 pm shouting happily over the phone "Obama won Obama won...! It's not official but he's winning...!" For someone who wasn't American, nor even living in the country, he's been following the campaigning very closely. As have many of my friends from back home. One of which called merely 5-10 minutes after my dad to make a similar announcement. Then my other aunt upstairs called and announced that Obama was president and everyone got up and gathered around the tv waiting for the speech. I walked with my laptop and signed onto Facebook while I waited. All my friends from back home were changing their statuses every 5 minutes like they couldn't decide which words revealed the true intensity of what they were feeling... Overall, everyone seemed so excited at the promise of a change with Obama and that this change would renew the hope with the state of the economy, and its transcending global effects.

I have a friend that came up from Grenada over the weekend that was staying in Brooklyn. She was telling me how crazy it was down there. It looked like there was a carnival going on like we were back home. People in the streets, black, white, latino, etc all making noise and shouting and screaming happily. On the TV, I got to witness the celebrations going on in Time Square... I thought it was touching to see how teary-eyed people were in the crowds. It was one of those "Wow" moments. One random woman told a brief story that touched my heart. It brings me back to my quote from Tupac. She said a couple years ago her young black nephew said he wanted to be the President of the United States when he grew up. She said she didn't want to shatter his dream, but nuntheless she didn't want to tell him how absurd a notion it was from her perception of America and who is considered eligible race-wise for certain positions... She says it brought tears to her eyes to see Obama win. She never thought she would see it in her lifetime and her was the proof. Her nephew isn't dreaming the impossible dream.

So... yea... Tupac was wrong.. we are ready. Let's just hope they give him a fair chance to do his job.


Shelli out.

Barack won!!!!!

It sucks not being able to paste multitudes of emoticons here...!

Today is Election Day in the US.


Although I haven't stepped foot outside as yet, nor so much as put on a t.v., I feel as if it's my duty to write a pre-post entry on such a momentous day.

What are my views? Who do I want to win?

Now, sad to say, I haven't been following the election that closely nor did I really care for it that much. However, I do believe it's time for a change. Obviously Republicanism is not working too righteously, therefore give the Democrats a chance. I fail to see how the situation could get worse... Well, that's a lie. If the Republicans remain, that's a sure fire way to dig the hole a little deeper into middle Earth. Reach new unimaginable depths.

Anyways, I must depart for school.
Joyful, joyful.
Perhaps I shall walk with my camera and capture a couple moments.

hmm....
Shelli out.