Remember when I used to blog?

Yeah, me too. Barely. Life has been interesting lately. Lots of downs, but the ups are much more abundant. And more important.
I finally got out to Austin to visit my sister. It was a short trip, but one of the funnest I have had! Drunken bar games, secret beaches and generally causing mayhem. I love her and I miss her everyday. But I am still incredibly proud of her for living her dream.
Life in the SLC has been a whirlwind. I spend a lot of time with Stef and Traci which is so good for me. Dunno where I would be without those two. Found a best friend in the least likely of places, in Brenda. She's been a huge strength for me and its nice to have someone who thinks on my level.. Example in this conversation: "Ky, we have not gone to a drive in or bowling once this summer." "By that I hope you mean drunken bowling.." "Is there any other kind?" Haha. I also bought a bike. She's a beauty. I named her Naya. She and I tear up the town! Reconnected with the exex girlfriend as well. I can honestly say I didn't ever see that happening. Now that it has, I can't imagine it not. We've both grown a lot. Its nice that we can be friends without our past being much of an issue. I like her friends a lot. I like her confidence even more. I am glad we can be grown ups. She gets me, and its nice to have that.
I like the people I surround myself with. Feeling like they actually want ME around is refreshing.
I have seen some amazing concerts in the last six months. Arcade Fire & Local Natives, Deftones again (such an amazing show), Coheed and Cambria again (that show came right when I needed it), Explosions in the Sky, the Decemberists, Edward Sharpe, and this past Sunday was Adele. Real talk, that shit was like a religious experience. And Wilson Philips on Sept 9th! Hold on for one more day!!
I am headed to Austin in September for Austin City Limits. I have never been to a big music festival like that before, so I am stoked!
I suppose that is all for now...until next time (most likely 6 months from now)...

Used to be one of the rotten ones and I liked you for that.

Oh hey, internet. Long time, eh? Well I think I will more than make up for it with this post. Sometimes I forget how much I like Broken Social Scene. Silly thing to say but its true. Well yesterday thanks to a ridiculous cough I can't seem to shake, I spent most of the day in bed. I was looking on demand for a movie to watch but in the background I heard Broken Social Scene. They were advertising a movie called "This Movie Is Broken". One of the best movies I've seen in a while! I'm not going to review it here or anything. It just got me reflecting on the last few years of my life, and back listening to an amazing band. My life feels a little up in the air right now, but I've got good people around me and I'm thankful for that. I'm doing my best to see the silver lining here, if you will, and I'm feeling optimistic.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.7

So I'm a little late...

I’ve been writing this blog for a few days now partly because I’ve been super swamped with work, gym, and just life in general. Also partly because it’s taken me a while to work through my feelings and emotions, internet blogs, news stories, interviews, and everything else relating to this topic.



I work for Comcast dispatch and deal with our technicians in Utah and we also handle our techs in Tucson, AZ. On January 8th around 11 o’clock, we had a few tech supervisors call and advise us that they were dealing with a shooting, so it would affect the tech routes. I had no idea what had really happened and watched in horror with our dispatch department as more and more information was released. I’m sure that most of you are aware of what happened, if not all of you, so just a quick overview:

U.S Rep from Arizona Gabrielle Giffords was holding a constituent meeting at a Safeway in Tucson when 22 year old Jared Lee Loughner opened fire shortly after 10 AM. 19 people in total were shot, 6 of them fatally wounded. Included in the victims was Rep. Giffords (shot in the head, underwent surgery, and according to doctors is on her way to a miracle recovery), Chief Judge John Roll (deceased), and Christina-Taylor Green (deceased) a 9 year old little girl who was born on September 11th 2001. Before I get into the meat and potatoes of this blog, I would just like to say that I am so sorry to the victims and their families in this tragedy. And I think it’s important that we remember that the family of the shooter are also victims, as they have lost a member of their family as well. Because of his selfish, senseless actions, families have been ripped apart and these people’s lives will never be the same.



A few hours after the shooting, the internet was abuzz with a picture that had been posted on Sarah Palin’s facebook page in November. The picture, posted here, is pretty self explanatory.



Yes, those are graphics of a target, as you would see through a scope on a gun. And yes, that is a target over the state of Arizona, aimed towards Rep. Giffords. And if that message wasn’t clear enough, that is her name 4 lines down. The first thing about this picture I heard was “blame Sarah Palin! It’s all her fault.” If you know me, or have been reading this blog since the first post, you will know that I am an Obama supporter. I am a registered democrat, living in Salt Lake City which makes me close to a liberal around these parts. I am a bisexual mixed race woman and in order to be true to myself, could never be a supporter of what Sarah Palin stands for. I believe in stronger gun control, I believe in a woman’s right to choose, and I believe that love is love and whatever goes on between 2 CONSENTING ADULTS is none of my business. But, against all that, I tried my hardest not to blame Sarah Palin for this. I don’t want to be a democrat that just goes against the republicans for the sake of the argument. So I’ve put a lot of thought into this and here is my conclusion, for those of you who care. (Hi Heather!)



What responsibility does Sarah Palin hold in this tragedy? She didn’t pull the trigger. That is what we first need to remember. She does not hold full responsibility. The shooter is responsible for his actions. But what role does she play in this? For as long as I can remember, rappers, actors, directors, video game developers, and Hollywood as a whole has been blamed for countless situations just like this one. A few years ago, a boy killed his little brother and when asked why said that he wanted to be like Dexter, a fictional character on the Showtime series of the same name. I remember that during the Columbine shooting, parents, teachers, and the media were blaming the music of Marilyn Manson. But I’ve always been a firm believer that video games, music, TV, and movies should not be blamed for violence. Those things are here for our ENTERTAINMENT. It is not real. And if someone does not understand the difference between real life and entertainment, there is something wrong with them. It is not fair to blame the entertainers. So shouldn’t the same hold with Sarah Palin and this disgusting picture posted on her website? So I sat with that for a bit. But my answer is no. She is absolutely responsible. Besides the fact that she obviously feels guilty because within hours the image was removed. Sarah Palin is a real life person pushing a real life agenda. She is in the public eye because she wants people to see things from her view point. She wants people to support her political stance. She, as with every other politician, is trying to make the American people see things her way, because she believes she can better our nation. And I am not here to bash that. Politics always has been and always will be about different viewpoints and opinions and everyone is free to have their own. But she is real. Slim Shady is not a real person. It is Eminem’s alter ego, who is actually another alter ego of the real person Marshall Mathers. So when Marshall raps as Slim Shady or even Eminem about hitting women, killing his wife, or shooting Dr. Dre, that is fiction. When Sarah Palin creates and posts this image on the internet with the caption “Don’t retreat, reload!”, that is real life. Now while I get that she wasn’t literally saying “Let’s go shoot these bitches because they voted for ‘Obamacare’” posting that photo was irresponsible.



Again, I am not saying that this shooting was all Sarah Palin’s fault. What I am saying is that someone who is aiming for a chance to run this country should really think about the message they are sending. You never know who is listening.

Just as free....

...free as we'll ever be.



If you've not listened to Free by the Zac Brown Band, you really should. Tender business.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Laptop blues

Dear laptop,
Why you gotta make that crazy noise all the time, girl? Snap out of it!
Love, Kylee.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

<] (•)... That is supposed to be a diamond and an eye...

My favorite Deftones album has always been White Pony. It was always an album I could listen to all the way through without having to skip songs. Diamond Eyes is exactly the same for me. This whole album is so amazing and everytime I listen to it, I find something else to love. If you still haven't listened to this, do yourself the service and get this album!!!!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Like a dog without a bone...

And a girl without a home to call her own, because she lives at home. Yup. That's right, I'm back at my mom's house, because I am that awesome! :) Actually, I would like to go back to school someone in this century. So that's what I'm doing. It's not bad at all. I like hanging out with my mom and she pretty much leaves me alone to do my own thing. I certainly miss living with Manda, but we make it work.
I can't believe its already November! I'm looking forward to the holidays this year. Especially because Heather is coming home! I hope she has an accent. Haha. Well I suppose I don't have as much to day as I thought, but now that I've got this on my phone, maybe I'll update more regularly...don't hold your breath.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Oh Dear...

I've been needing some new music. I feel like I've been listening to the same stuff over and over. I don't have an ipod still (sad face!!) so when I listen to anything, it's whatever is on my itunes, on Manda's ipod, or on the radio. Over it. HOPEFULLY I will be getting a new ipod soon and this band will for sure make the cut : ) Although I plan on getting the 160gb, so there will be no cut to make. Ha! Thumbs up and enjoyyyyyyy!

It's not all that ironic, it's really just unfortunate.

So a few days ago, I was reminded about how much I LOVE the Jagged Little Pill album. I remember sleeping over at my grandma and Papa's and I was listening to it and reading the words out of the booklet, trying to memorize how she said every word. Don't even worry that I listened to the entire album the other day at work, and just couldn't even help myself from singing along. There has been an argument about the song "Ironic" for as long as I can remember. Critics say that nothing she says is really ironic, it's just bad luck. Here, read this:

it is ironic, isn't it? (1996)
Alanis Morissette has taken more than her share of hits for the song "Ironic." Critics have argued that she doesn't really understand the meaning of the word, and that the examples of irony she gives are simply not ironic. To be perfectly honest, I'm more surprised that there are music critics who do know what "ironic" means than I am that there are 21 year-old pop singers who don't. But that's a whole other essay.

It's not an easy word to define. Not even language scholars agree on whether a certain situation is "ironic" or not. For instance, if Alanis and Moose (Alanis's childhood costar cum nemesis) both moved independently to LA from Ontario and later became lovers, some would argue that this situation by itself constitutes irony. On the other hand, if Alanis and Moose each moved because they individually were convinced that Ontario was devoid of potential mates, and then met each other at a bar in LA, that would be ironic. So in the interest of fairness, and erring generously in her favor, I took the time to examine the lyrics of Alanis's song, and discover for myself what was truly ironic and what wasn't. Results are tallied below:

1. "An old man turned ninety-eight/He won the lottery and died the next day."
While an amusing (if morbid) coincidence, there is nothing particularly ironic about the death. It is certainly an awe-inspiring sequence of events -- the gentleman celebrating his 98th birthday, winning the lottery, and dying all in a two day period. What kind of shitty luck is that? The ineffective slant rhyme, btw, is a little jarring, too.

2. "It's a black fly in your Chardonnay."
The irony here is that there is nothing remotely ironic about this line. In perhaps her one sweet moment of unadulterated genius, Alanis has shown us the true meaning of irony by giving an example of it that isn't ironic at all! Get it? It's a deliberate contrast between apparent and intended meaning: the textbook definition of irony!

3. "It's a death row pardon two minutes too late."
This one's kind of a coin toss, and really depends on the context. Imagine the following situation: Jimmy is black and has allegedly murdered fifteen people in Texas, with malice aforethought. No doubt he's going to fry, right? All the while, his pretty young Public Defender facing obstacles both legal and societal, struggles to overturn Jimmy's conviction. The actual killer, as it happens, was the son of a cattle rancher whom Jimmy'd stripped of a football to make the winning play at the cattle rancher's son's homecoming game. The pretty young Public Defender, after years of searching, finally discovers the blood-stained sand wedge the cattle rancher's son used in the murders, covered up and down with his incriminating fingerprints. The PYPD races to the aid of Jimmy, with whom she's fallen in love and doesn't care who knows, and receives a stay of execution for her wrongly-accused beloved. But irony of ironies: the pretty young Public Defender forgot to set her clock forward for daylight savings time, and Jimmy's already been dead for two minutes while she's breathing a sigh of relief in the Governor's office as the Governor, bewildered, makes the phone call only to discover to every one's dismay that Jimmy's already toast and now he has to break the news to the pretty young Public Defender, who isn't going to take this little zigzag of kismet well, one suspects. Now, that's ironic. That was so easy, there's no way I'm giving Miss Thing credit for it.

4. "It's like rain on your wedding day."
Nope.

5. "It's a free ride when you've already paid."
Sorry, no. Alanis seems to think that "irony" means "bad timing".

6. "It's the good advice that you just didn't take."
This is very close! Ignoring good advice is ironic, but only if the listener suffers some kind of befitting karmic punishment as a result. Alanis gets half a point for the setup, but because she only sketchily implies the irony, we cannot grant her full credit.

7. "Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to fly/ He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids good-bye/ He waited his whole damn life to take that flight/And as the plane crashed down he thought, Well, isn't this nice?"
This quatrain is truly a feather in Alanis's cap, because it contains not one, but two legitimate instances of actual, honest to God irony. A) It is, indeed, ironic that someone who is afraid of flying would die in a plane crash during his first flight; it's an unexpected disruption in the normal course of events that gives us insight into human folly. And B) said someone is being, you guessed it, ironic when he says, "Well, isn't this nice?" since we must presume that he is being sarcastic.

8. "It's a traffic jam when you're already late."
See No. 5. When Alanis finds a concept she likes, she runs with it.

9. "A no-smoking sign on your cigarette break."
Oh, come on. You were doing so well with the plane guy.

10. "It's like ten thousands spoons when all you need is a knife."
If the speaker is rifling through a silverware drawer which is known to contain knives, then this is ironic. If she's in a spoon factory, it isn't.

11. "It's meeting the man of my dreams/ And then meeting his beautiful wife."
The implied irony here is that Alanis has searched high and low for her soulmate, finds him only to discover that, wouldn't you know it?, he's married. Sheesh, all the good ones are taken, aren't they? But a moment's consideration will show that the situation is actually in no way ironic, since we would expect all the good ones to be taken. What would be ironic would be to meet some ugly, stupid, fat kid that Alanis spurned while a cast member of Nickelodeon's You Can't Do That on Television, and then meet his beautiful wife.


Final Tally
Attempts at describing irony: 11

Successful attempts: 2.5

Confusion of irony with "poor sense of timing": 6

Completely missing the term: 3

Now that you have the stats, you can wow your friends with your overwhelming command of both pop culture and the English language. The painful truth of the matter is that Alanis apparently did not quite center herself over the concept of irony before she and songwriting chum Glen Ballard sat down to compose the catchy ditty.

I believe, though, that we should not be so quick to judge. Winona Ryder's character in Reality Bites couldn't define "ironic" and had to have dopey Ethan Hawke explain it to her. And it took me longer than I'm comfortably prepared to admit to determine which of Ms. Morisettes vignettes were legit. So, Schoolhouse Rock it aint, but I'd like to see you do better with a song about assonance or hyperbole.


So is it luck? Is it irony? Is it just bad timing? Whichever way you look at it, I think you should watch Alanis perform with Crystal Bowersox from American Idol. I didn't watch even 1 single episode this season. But I did get recommended this little cutie on youtube because of my Jagged Little Pill playlist. Hella kudos for Crystal to hold her own on the stage with such a powerful talent. They both sound amazing, and the angsty little 10 year old inside of my heart got goosebumps, I'm not even trying to lie.

My saister is covered in moles.

Not really. If you know my sister, or if you have eyeballs, you know she's beautiful. I am lucky to be one of the people in the world that has a great relationship with my sister. Yeah when we were younger we fought and even now that we're adults we've had our...rough patches. Ha. But all in all I'd say we have a pretty good relationship. When one of us is acting like a jackass, the other has no problem pointing it out. Heather is a really great person. She's such the hostess. She's always taking care of people, making sure everyone is ok, and she has always put me before herself. Ever since we were little kids. She's always made sure that I'm taken care of before she worries about herself. She's super fun to be around (UNLESS SHE'S HAD HARD ALCOHOL. HEED MY WARNING PEOPLE haha jk sister) and we are always laughing together. She's smart, witty, and has a killer taste in music. She has a cute style. Trendy with her own unique twist. Whatever MAN is lucky enough to end up with her will have his hands full. But I swear he'll be one of the luckiest sonsabitches in the world. I love you sissy!