sylvanseen's Xanga

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Tue, 18 Sep 2007 04:26:08 GMT

Xanga schmanga. Gosh, I haven't posted since july.

Summer pictures!

picasaweb.google.com/joey.silva

More later, maybe.

We are gaining speed, I can barely breath.

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 19:30:04 GMT

Listening to Mae. =)

A belated entry...

Past Few Weeks:

Nationals was fun and disappointing and the same time.

Fun: Debating cool teams. (Escobar/Nichols, Craig/Douglas, Brown/Hand)

Disappointing: Not breaking. But it's alright. I think we learned a lot about debate, and it was our first out of CA tourney, and our first year at nationals. We'll try again. =)

Fun: Meeting peoples, and hanging out with buddies.

Disappointing: Not doing the above enough.

Pictures:
http://picasaweb.google.com/joey.silva/Nationals

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Since we got back from nats, we replaced our deck, which was rather fun, and I made some nice $$ to boot.

(Pictures soon)

I can't believe a month of summer has already expired. =/ It has been well spent so far though.

Present:

We had an awesome time at the Kauks. (Happy Birthday Brady!)
We played soccer (w00t! I'm way outta shape though).
Went swimming. =D
Played moosic.

I am now preparing myself for future activities, by running occasionally, some weights sometimes, and reading lots of fishing books. =)

Earthquake! http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/nc51183708.php#details

Next Few Weeks:

We'll be trying to fit in a couple yosemite trips this month, backpacking as well as car camping, which should be awesome.

Next will be Maryland. =)

-------

(Say anything, but say what you mean.)

Update: Joey's Life Currently = Debate

Sun, 03 Jun 2007 04:31:51 GMT

Waah, debate is taking over my summer.

Nationals will be awesome though, of course.

well, toodles.

Thursday, May 10, 2007

Thu, 10 May 2007 23:54:24 GMT

To make up for my lousy xanga participation, I have decided to post some comix.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 01:16:40 GMT

Biola:
Quite fun.
I'm glad to be home.
(I wonder if I want to qualify in extemp.)
There are still really good debate teams who haven't qualified.
Monterey/CHAT is coming up way too soon... Looking forward to seeing ya'll there though.

Pictures:

http://picasaweb.google.com/joey.silva/BiolaTournament

Thats all for now.

Random Post-age

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 16:30:49 GMT

Whilst I was extemporaneously occupied, I chanced upon some rather excellent articles, et cetera.
---------------
I knew iPods had ultimately important functions...


1. Soldier Saved: iPod Stops A Bullet In Iraq (Strangely, this headline reminds me of a palindrome, courtesy of Tommy: "Repaid: a stinker reknits a diaper". )

2007-04-06 10:35:20

A great and harrowing story was just posted, along with photos, of a combat incident in Tikrit during which an iPod saved a soldier from an enemy's bullet.

"My wife's uncle works in a military hospital and told me about this. Its pretty amazing. Kevin Garrad (3rd Infantry Division) was on a street patrol in Iraq (Tikrit I believe) and as he rounded the corner of a building an armed (AK-47) insurgent came from the other side.

The two of them were within just a few feet of each other when they opened fire. The insurgent was killed and Kevin was hit in the left chest where his IPod was in his jacket pocket. It slowed the bullet down enough that it did not completely penetrate his body armor. Fortunately, Kevin suffered no wound."

A little too close for comfort. This brings to mind the stories of pocket bibles with metal covers saving lives during World War I and II.

Apparently Apple, upon hearing the story, is moving to replace Kevin's iPod, gratis.

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2. Want a promotion? Treat Mom well
BEIJING (Reuters) - A county in central China plans in-depth checks on how its officials' treat their parents, with those who are nice to their mom and dad first in line for promotion

and last but definitely not least...
3. A Sudanese Love Affair
(Story by a journalist name Opheera McDoom. hawhaw, a great name for a journalist. "she describes the elaborate rituals that marked her wedding in Khartoum last week and how they exemplify the rich and varied mix of traditions of a country associated usually with conflict.")

During the "jirtik" ritual, the boss of the home is prophesied by whether the bride or groom first spits milk in the other's face.

The bride has to dance for the women in both families. Shake it like Shakira I thought -- great fun -- until I discovered it entailed learning some 75 different tribal dances, including Ethiopian shoulder shaking.

For at least a month before the wedding, a Sudanese bride is locked up at home, scrubbed daily with concoctions of turmeric, coffee, crushed almonds, rice and sandalwood. She is then placed aloft over a pit of burning perfumed wood to give the skin a beautiful color and scent.

(Heathens!)
Wow. It sure is tough to get be a woman and get married over there. Difficulties are as follows:
1. Find someone fascinating etc. who hasn't been killed yet
2. Learn the Ethiopian shoulder shake, and 75 other equally wacky tribal dances.
3. Get scrubbed with coffee 'n' almonds and be toasted over a fire. o.O
4. Be prepared to get milk spit in your face. And c'mon, your husband will hold it over your head for the rest of your life! "Do the dishes! Remember, I'm a better milk spitter than you".
---------------

Ah well. More later I suppose.

People change, and forget to tell each other.

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 04:16:34 GMT

A post!
Don't take this lightly-- it may not happen again for some time!

-------------
"I read the news today, (oh boy)."
-The Beatles
Iran is going to free the sailor peoples. Ahmedinnerjacket calls it a "pardon", and "an Easter gift to the British people".
How quaint and touching of him.
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The Clash Tournament seems like a long time ago. (Like, at least a week!) And now its hardly a week until the Biola tournament. O.O

Santa Rosa was just a couple days ago, and thus merits some post-age.
# Great weather, great friends, and great times. My original reason for undertaking speech events was that I would be able to attend more tournaments... (Which is an excellent reason!) My respect for IEs has grown though.
# I love Extemp! It's like debate, only with a new topic all the time, and it's much lower stress. (And go Brady for qualifying! You deserved it, and don't forget I predicted it. )
# Impromptu is decent.
# Touche holds awesome tournaments. Any tournament with a Basketball game, a Snickerdoodle competition, and a chocolate fountain has to be pretty cool.
# Yay for all you awesome people who did well!
# Last year at SR I lost my ipod
# This year, I lost my camera.
# Luckily, both times, they were found by the Wiemeyers (y'all rock!). I promise to post pictures both of Clash and of the Touche tournament *and* of Biola when I get my camera back. =)

And w00t for all the Texas peoples.
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Vacation:
I love being able to wake up late and decide what to do with the day.

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Some cool quotations:

"A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out."

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards".

"Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday".

"I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a word that I am saying".

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Chance Observation:
Xanga is a delicate balance between too much information, and too little. :-/

more later,

-Joey.

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Sat, 10 Mar 2007 20:53:38 GMT

Hmm... In case you haven't noticed, I'm rather lazy when it comes to posting.

Things I'm Doing:
1) Enjoying an early spring.
2) Reading Les Miserables (And Flannery).
3) Playing knock-out with siblings. (Don't get any scary ideas... its a basketball game).
4) Listening to Music. (Of course)
a. Jars of Clay
b. Anberlin
c. Dave Matthews Band (Under the Table and Dreaming)
d. Dredg
e. TOTO
f. FIF
g. Beach Boys
h. Dire Straits
i. The Monkees
j. Elton John
(et alii).

Things I should be Doing:
1) Civ. and Latin and Math
2) Playing Soccer
3) Debate

Things I'm Looking Forward To:
1) The Clash Tourny
2) Santa Rosa! I am officially going to do extemp and impromptu
3) Summer (And thus the termination of school)

So that = The Status of Joey's Life Right Now, (Pretty Much). Wow, my posts are getting quite boring, and very structured. Maybe some time I'll actually write something really fascinating and interesting! But all of us will have to wait patiently until that time comes.

End of Saturday Update// -- I feel like I've gotten so much done. (Not school, mind you. None of that!)

Not a scrap of homework, but I've leaf-blowed the property, trimmed bushes and trees, tested/diagnosed/calibrated the sprinkler systems, worked with/groomed/exercised the horses, tidied the corral and set up fly traps, and cleaned my room. W00t for Saturdays.

Joe-hari

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 18:12:49 GMT

Tell me the good and the bad.

http://kevan.org/johari?name=Joester

http://kevan.org/nohari?name=Joester

O lny srmat poelpe can raed tihs.

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 06:06:19 GMT

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The
phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy,

it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm.

Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! if
you can raed tihs psas it on.

(PS: Congratulations to all you Seattle people... California had another awesome Open. I'd name names, but there are too many).