The Ponder Point

people's is coming backis

it appears that school is starting back up soon, as people are actually looking at my site again. i've been on hiatus for over a month, when i realized no one was paying attention. now that people are back, i may start writing again. or not.

Posted at 10:38PM Aug 21, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

part IV with TWO pages since i was absent last night.

i doubt anyone is reading this, but here's an extra page since i didn't put anything up last night. She didn’t get back that night until a little after midnight, a bag of cheap fast food in her hand. Studying had been a bust, just as eating at a reasonable hour had been. Judging by the strew undergarments littering the floor; Jess’ night had been considerably better than hers. _______________________________________ Nikki woke up the next morning amongst a pile of used taco bell wrappers, and a soda cup dripping onto her sheets. All she could remember was the crap chuck had pulled, her note cards, and sore shoulders. Everything else was lost amongst a flurry of colors and grease. She could hear that the coffee maker was on, and little rays of sunlight were scattered through the room. That was a very good sign, though the lack of panty’s or jockeys anywhere on the floor was even better. Maybe today something good would happen. Mitch and Jess were feeding each other breakfast in one of their nauseating displays of post (hopefully not pre) humping glows. They lived together in an on campus apartment style housing unit. Mitch was more like a permanent house guest who paid rent in, well, she didn’t really want to know. It worked okay though, she thought the guy was a skeeve, but there were worse people to have as roommates. She grabbed some of the leftover breakfast, surprised that there was any left and joined them. “Guess what we’re doing this mahnin’ Nickers,” Jess asked. “Oh come on, not you too, I haven’t had…” “We’re going apartment hunting!” She exclaimed, holding up a copy of the seven days. She had even taken the liberty of circling certain prospects. Nikki hated the fact that she was impressed by this, but god help it, she was. “We’ve looked and found a couple of great places in the west part of Burlington, and a few downtown.” “Can we afford any of these?” “That’s the great thing, we CAN! Look, they’re all in our price range, some even cheaper!” That’s what worried her. Still, she figured living in a shack beat being homeless. “Okay then, what time do you want to leave? Um, is Mitch coming too, or…?” With his tattoos, face rings and everything else she didn’t think he would make a good impression. She liked him okay enough, but this was zero hour, and sacrifices would have to be made. “Sorry, but my ever endearing and charming presence will be elsewheres todae,” She could swear he misspelled day, when he said it… no that’s just crazy. “Todae’s the big rally downtown; we’re finally going to bring Vermont’s form of environmentalism to the rest of the country.” “Overpriced organics and Birkenstock hippies?” Oh crap, she did it now! He hated being called a hippie, most hippies do. In fact, that’s the best way to determine if a person’s a hippie or not. Nikki grabbed the listings and Jess’ hand and bolted out the door as Mitch started ranting. _______________________________________________________ “That was really mean. You know how much Mitch hates the H-word.” “If he wasn’t a damn filthy hippie, I wouldn’t have called him one.” “He’s not a hippie! He’s just very passionate about the environment and” “’The capitalist infrastructure imposing it’s will on the working man and subverting him to meet its twisted needs.’” Jess gave Nikki her shut the hell up look, her gaze piercing through Nikki’s mind as though it was a thin veil. “What’s got your panty’s bunched up today?” Nikki was going to counter by pointing out that she actually wore them, when they came across the first apartment on the list. It wasn’t hard to see why the rent in this area was so low. It was the bad part of Burlington, which meant it was still more expensive than some of the best neighborhoods in Missouri. The neighborhood seemed to be in a continuous state of disrepair. The lawn was already becoming shaggy and unkempt, despite the barely being in the growing season. Old toys many of which were metal were strewn throughout the yard, already rusted and ready to cause tetanus. “Well, some new paint some tender loving care and this place would look pretty good.” Jess said this, and Nikki gave a noncommittal grunt, but neither of them really believed. Looks could be deceiving of course, they, more than anyone had known that, but saying that this place looked like crap would be a drastic understatement. Cautiously, they knocked on the door, unsure of what to expect. Would the inside be as horrific as the outside, where they could now see mice emerging from a crack in the corner of the building? A woman emerged from inside, brandishing a smile both of them immediately thought of as fake as a college term paper. “Are you two the girls who called about the apartment?” She spread her smile to the far corners of her face, and gestured them in. “Boy, no wonder there are so many abstract painters in this part of town,” Nikki mused. “Picasso would have loved her; either that or he would have sued her for copyright infringement.” She chuckled at her joke as they followed the woman upstairs. “What’s gotten into you nick… Nikki? This isn’t like you, well, it is, but usually it’s spread out over a more manageable timeframe.” Nikki was going to take the bait and fight, she wanted to in fact. They were both the type to fight, just for different reasons. Jess was oft described, usually by herself, as more of a lover than a fighter, and the thin walls sadly would test to that. “We need to make sure the walls here are thicker than the old place,” Nikki announced, the thought suddenly popping into her head. She still felt like fighting, but felt even more like a nap. While a good argument, or even what her mother tactfully called “bitch-fests” were a wonderful source of entertainment, now they just seemed tiresome. “Here we are apartment 42. It’s a cozy little space, perfect for the college student on a budget. It’s wonderfully ventilated, no need for air conditioning in the summer, a bit chilly in the winter, but you’ll be moving back into campus then anyway. Pets are allowed, even recommended, and the city noise is completely drowned out.” They went in, and their mouth’s dropped ever so slightly.

Posted at 11:47PM Jun 19, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

part III title coming shortly

This time she caught the bus on time. Her uniform was on over her clothes by the time the bus arrived at Fryin' Fred’s Finger-lickin Hut. It wasn't one of the best places to work or eat or breathe or... or really do much of anything, but it's all there was. Without work study none of the businesses affiliated the school would hire her. Nikki clocked in, ignoring the annoyed looks from Chuck, the fry cook. He always watched the clock to see who came in late. It was a habit she found more abrasive as she started coming in later and later. She was on time today, but just barely, that's what got up his ass the most. There weren't that many customers today. The lunch rush was over and the dinner rush had yet to begin so she put on her "thinking cap." It was a device she created to help her study when time was tight. It was a regular work cap, an ugly thing with a chicken frying up its own wing on the front. That was on the surface; underneath was a holding case and dispenser for note cards. By merely touching the top of the cap, a card was popped out at the base of the lid, hanging in front of her eyes. With exams a mere two days away (all of which were on the same day!) and Jess being a class A bitch, every second not studying was a wasted one. Waiting and clearing tables was a bit harder and took a little longer, but these were desperate times. People were starting to notice though, she was sure of it; she could tell by the way they were looking at her. Especially Chuck, he was giving her his "sinner" look. The little perve was giving her his sinner look! Her! She had seen the peephole he built between the men’s and women's room. Hell, she even tried to cover it up a couple of times, but it kept coming back barely noticeable. Oh well, that wasn't her problem. Her problem was figuring out how get a passing grade in electronic journalism without dying. This was one of the quieter nights. No big rush, just a steady stream of unenthused customers, the occasional tip over a dollar, and the heat of the grill. It wasn't that surprising really; the place had been going degrading both in reputation and quality for time out of place. Besides the fact that there were better restaurants opening up all around them, Fryin' Fred was a cheap sob. They hadn't used quality chicken since she worked there. Fred had long since paid off the health inspectors, making roaches a common sight and Chuck wasn't the only vermin common in the bathroom. Still, a job was a job and she had enough to eat tonight (anywhere else) and hopefully pay the rent. "Done for the night?" Chuck asked, not quite looking her in the eye. She hated that twisted little grin of his. "Ten o'clock isn't it?" The less she spoke to him, the better. "Ayup, tis." God damn that fake Yankee accent. He was just as much a yank as she, or Larry the cable guy was. "I just thought it was your week to lock up." "No, that was last week." She grabbed a schedule, and shoved it into his hand. "This is your week, oh and it's your turn to clean out the grease traps. Have fun." She maneuvered towards the door, which he kicked shut. Nikki turned to leave through the back, but he maneuvered in front of her. "The schedule was a misprint," he grabbed her cap off and played with it. "This is your week to lock up, mine was last week. In fact, I think the old fat man was talking about delegating more responsibility. I think it'll be your turn to lock up every day. Unless of course..." he waved the cap in front of her. She yanked her cap back and put on some gloves. As he left, that pervy smirk was still on his greasy face. she flipped him off. _________________________________________

Posted at 10:54PM Jun 17, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

part II

Jess's car was parked outside nectar's when she got off the bus that had to be a good sign. A feeling of hope and triumph filled her once she went in. Jess was sitting there with two plates of burgers and gravy fries. Then the feeling slipped through her just as fast as it had come. "Hey there jiggly Juggs, I didn’t know you were coming." "Neither did I?" Nikki replied through clenched teeth. Jess bringing her boyfriend Mitch was not something she had anticipated. Though now that she thought about it, it made sense, especially considering that both plates of food had been picked over. "Jiggly-jugs, that's new, I thought it was Nickers. Kudos for the alliteration, though. Just so you know, it's supposed to be hyphenated." She went back to order some food then joined them. "So, have you looked at any apartments yet?" Nikki picked up a seven days that was lying on the table and opened it to the listings. Class ends in a few days and we still don't have a place to live yet." "Sorry nick, we've been too busy to look for apartments, but four days is plenty of time to..." "Two days." "What-ev. It’s plenty of time to find a place." "No it's not." "Besides, we can stay with Mitchell if we don't find a place." Nikki’s eye twitched and she ate a cough drop from her pocket, both with realizing it. "Yes, that's... an option. Another option is that we hit the pavement and find a place tonight! There’s got to be hundreds of good apartment listings in here!" Popping another cough drop, she started going through the listings, holding a little sharpie with her pinkie and thumb. After ten minutes, she looked up in frustration. She hadn't even bothered to remove the pen's cap. Jess and Mitch were reading something and giggling to each other like middle school students who had seen their first boobs. "We’re going to be homeless in two days and you're reading the comics? We don't have time for this!" She exclaimed, trying her best not to draw attention from other patrons. "We’re not readin the comics; we're reading hot to trot." Jess replied in a matter of fact tone. Mitch then explained why they were reading it, but Nikki covered her ears and sang pinball wizard. "Tommy’s got nothing’ on Keith Richard’s, Jiggly. Now, how about you take these and go find my succulent Sweetass an apartment." Nikki gaped at him for a moment, and then as they made out, realized her time would be better spent doing something, ANYTHING else. _______________________________________________________

Posted at 11:20PM Jun 16, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

something new, STORY TIME! part 1, part two tommorrow

I’m trying something new here, writing and posting a short(?) story on the blog. it's only a first draft, so feel free to include constructive criticism. hope it doesn't suck :). Let one fact be known, before anything else is said: the buses in Burlington are always on time. Sadly this fact was lost on Nikki as she chased the fluorescent green bus down the street, swearing at the top of her lungs. There were a lot of things she didn't need, and this was not on the top of her list. Finals week at the University of Vermont had hit her, and had hit her hard. Sleep had been reduced to a mere luxury, she counted herself blessed to get more than six hours a night. the workers at the library who she was already a little closer than was normal, were now used to seeing her more than their own children. Despite this, she was sure she had failed her first two exams. Nikki rarely used the bus; everything around campus was easily walkable, if you weren’t adverse to a little exercise and fresh air. Today however, there wasn't time, she only had a half hour to talk about summer housing arrangements with her roommate and that time was slipping away faster than the bus. They were supposed to make arrangements months ago, but all jess procrastinated with this task like everything else she did. "Stop the ever loving bus," Nikki exclaimed, throwing a copy of the weekly alternative rag they published in town. It hit the back of the bus, and she was almost positive that some of the people were laughing at her. The bus kept going. "Crappity, crappity, crappity," she continued to exclaim, her legs feeling heavier with each step she took. had she left from campus, instead of the mall, it wouldn't matter, by the time she caught the bus, she would have already be in town, but from the mall, it would be another 40 minutes. The bus, as per its schedule, switched lanes. Right as Nikki was thinking about quitting and seeing if she could reschedule, the light turned red. With that little morale boost, she took in a deep breath and caught up to the bus. At first it wouldn't open, and then she started banging on it with a fury that would make a rottweiler think twice about challenging her. "Thanks... for stopping," she grunted under her breath, when the driver let her on. After sitting down, she suddenly wished she had her seven days, but that was flapping outside the bus. It made her feel even worse that she had littered, but at least the bus stopped. Their plans for the summer, were pretty much set, they just needed to iron out the details. They were going to rent an apartment on campus, (which would be easier to find if she still had her seven days) then they would work and share the rent and utilities for the summer. The only problem is that they still didn't have an apartment. Or a down payment, any place to live before finding an apartment a car, or even a welcome mat. Nikki was hoping they would be able to at least get a list of apartments to look at, and maybe find some place to stay while they waited. Though considering how engaged jess had been, she doubted it.

Posted at 12:18AM Jun 16, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

too close to call

exit polls suggest a close race, with obama doing better amongst white voters, and white male voters. it still doesn't look like a win, but he might have a chance. results probably won't start coming in until 7:30 CST. a double digit victory looks difficult, though i could be wrong. there is also a mississippi house race going on now, here's a link with more information. http://www.swingstateproject.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=1806

Posted at 07:08PM Apr 22, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

penn primary about to close

prediciton. clinton 52 obama 46 other 2. they won't announce in the first few minutes because of ratings, regardlessof how close the race is. exit polling shows that oama is doing better amongst white men, african american voters and voters over 60 than he did in new jersey and ohio, two states he lost by 10%.

Posted at 06:59PM Apr 22, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

Introduction to Hilrithmatic

Introduction to Hilrithmatic POLS 666 Course description: Hilrithmatic (I officially claim credit in coining Hilrithmatic unless someone can prove it was created by them before today) is a very complicated subset of mathematics, more unrealistic than Huckamath, and with a stranger name than Obamath. To understand the twin aspects of Hilrithmatic requires an ability to suspend belief, logic and clear thinking. Those without the ability to see all ten sides of a square should drop out of this course now and get a full refund. Required materials: TI-83 calculator A loose record of accounting My Life by Bill Clinton It takes a Village Living History by Hillary Clinton The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli Making crime pay, the Lori Beth Denburg way. A south park “you will respect my Authori-tay” t-shirt. 2+2=5? It can, If you REALLY want it to. Schedule: The first half of the semester will be dealt with the primary aspect of Hilrithmatic, counting what isn’t there. Hilrithmatic is based on the idea that 1500>1630. While this is not mathematically correct, it is Hilrithmatically correct, because it is the conclusion Hillary wants. Covered in this part of the course is which states count, and which are irrelevant wastes of space occupied by hippies, elitists, “proud African Americans” caucuses, leftists, rightists, and people who don’t need a president. If it helps your studying, the answer is that the states Hillary wins are those that count. We will also cover how Obama’s pledged delegates are not really pledged while hers are, and why the super delegates should overturn the will of the people. The second half will deal with the transitive property, an important aspect of Hilrithmatic. The transitive property of Hilrithmatic states that everything any Clinton does is immediately transferred to Hillary, unless it is something bad. Bill Clinton was a good president, thus Hillary is too. Many people growing up in the nineties had a crush on Chelsea, so they also have a crush on Hillary. Socks is a very nice and clean cat, and so is Hillary. Anything bad that a Clinton does (even if it’s Hillary) is not her fault, it’s someone else’s. Her healthcare plan failed, it was bills fault. People don’t like her, it’s a vast right… left… middle? Conspiracy. Cheating Policy: If anyone is caught cheating on their exams they will receive a zero, unless their names start with an “M” or an “F.” In this case the students will either be given the scores they first received, or will be allowed to take the exam again. They will also be given extra time and resources in order to make sure that the teacher (me) looks good by you getting high scores. I will not be helping anyone who is not in my class, and can help me look good in any way shape or form. Hilrithmatic is a very difficult subject to understand and takes years to fully master, but has innumerable benefits. The ability to ignore reality and take what you want because you believe it’s owed to you will get you many places in life. But have a nice Anglo-Saxon name, or you may find yourself in jail.

Posted at 06:38PM Apr 14, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

And we're back

the break is over as of tomorrow, and people have already started returning. while I enjoyed sleeping in until one in the afternoon, I would like to say: thank god. staying on campus is far too boring, and now it is only six weeks and five days until school is officially over for the semester! (my last exam is on Friday, of course, so I can't leave until Saturday, go figure). just a lit review, a few exams, a paper or two, and finals, and I’m done for the year. How about you readers, how does it look for you, coming into the last six and a half weeks of classes? Also, how's summer looking? For me, it looks like unemployment, as usual, but hey you never know. 42

Posted at 12:44PM Mar 24, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[5]

staying on campus over break

dear lord, i'm actually staying here for the next week and a half, and i'm already bored out of my skull. for anyone who has ever thought of staying here over break, i would not recommend it. you'll find there is little to do, other than walk to wal-mart or hyvee, and write boring blog posts no one would (or should) read. classes may be hard and frustrating (curse you math!!!) but at least it's something to do, now there's nothing to do, but watch the couds float by... oh, it's going to rain all week. i'm going to go back to sleep now (whimper)

Posted at 12:00AM Mar 16, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[2]

Polls going to close soon

prediction 63% obama 37% clinton.

Posted at 06:58PM Mar 11, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

Mississippi preview

tonight is the Mississippi primary, the last primary before Pennsylvania. There seems to be little tension or suspense over who will win (so little, that I’m planning on going to the comedian at tonight at 8, and hour after the polls close.) Obama will, baring a huge change, win tonight, and add many delegates to his coffers. there are however, a few questions about what might happen tonight. it's an open primary, and with the republican race over, will many of them cross over, and for whom? will they vote for Hillary because they like her, or to keep the race going? or rather Obama because they like him, or don't like Hillary? also, how will he do in the white vote? as it is the south, Obama will most likely do quite poorly with the white vote, but will he do better? In the south he usually gets about ¼ of the white vote, if he can get low thirties or more it could mean he’s doing better. Another question is why Hillary’s not trying in Mississippi. One, it might help her in the delegate race, and even more than that, it would have given her a chance to try out a new strategy and see if it worked. This rather inept campaigning on her part is actually rather sad considering she was supposed to be such a powerful campaigner. I’ll be posting a bit more later tonight, until then, see ya later.

Posted at 04:40PM Mar 11, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

michigan and florida thinking about do-over

Only a few days after being compared to the SGA, Michigan and Florida, horrible embarrassed at this comparison, have declared they’re thinking about a do-over vote. Aside from proving that the ponder point is that the most influential blog on the internet (take that Blitzer!) it could dramatically shake up the election. There’s no set date for this, should it happen, but will most likely occur after Pennsylvania, and before June seventh the last possible day for a primary/caucus. New polls from Rasmussen shows Hillary winning handily in Florida, by margins she always wins by before Obama starts campaigning, and a tie in Michigan. Were Obama to win Michigan and/or Florida, it would deal pretty bad blows to the Clinton campaign, and were she to win, it would reinforce the “he can’t win big states” meme. Either way, this will help Obama, as it’s unlikely she could win by the same margins as before considering she was the only person on the ballot in Michigan, and no one was allowed to campaign in Florida.

Posted at 04:09PM Mar 07, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

South Dakota a blue state on a map that's not on the weather channel?

Two new polls out of Rasmussen are showing that south Dakota may not be as red as believed. First off, as this poll shows: http://rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/south_dakota/south_dakota_presidential_election McCain is only leading Obama by ten points, and Hillary by 12. While it is still quite early, if McCain is only leading by ten points, it’s possible that either democrat could if not win, at least make it somewhat competitive. With Obama and Hillary raising a combined total of 90 million dollars in one month, compared to McCain’s 12 million, every dollar McCain has to spend in south Dakota is one dollar less to spend elsewhere. Surveyusa meanwhile, shows Obama with a four point LEAD over McCain in North Dakota. If both Dakota’s are in play in 2008, it certainly won’t help a cash starved republican candidate. On the senate side, this poll shows that Johnson is heavily favored for re-election. http://rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_senate_elections/election_2008_south_dakota_senate He leads former lite governor Kirby by thirty points, and Joel Dykstra by 35 points. While the election will most likely tighten up, incumbents are normally only in danger if polls show them hovering around, or under the 50% mark. Johnson is no where near that. Baring a maccaca moment, or governor rounds jumping in, Johnson looks quite safe.

Posted at 12:38PM Mar 07, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]

The Edwards dilemma

With the election changing, the media will soon go back to an old question, who will John Edwards endorse. Before march 4th it seemed unlikely that he would endorse anyone, there was little to gain. If he endorsed Obama and Obama won, he would just be jumping on the bandwagon. If he endorsed Clinton, and she lost, if would have been worthless. Now that the race is more even, there’s a good reason to endorse either, or neither. With Hillary, he may like the fact that she seems more like a fighter, a trait that he himself praises. As both politicians take an offensive, man against the machine belief, he may find himself more attuned with her. The problem, is that if he were to endorse her, he would just be one of MANY people she owed. He would be at the back of the line behind Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, Indiana senator and former governor Evan Bayh, Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell, Ohio rep Tubbs-Jones, and countless others. More importantly is that he wouldn’t have as much to bring, as she is already doing well amongst many of the Edwards voters, the working poor. While Obama does not appear to be a fighter, Edwards may realize that Hillary was a fighter, and failed in 1994 to get universal health care, then just spent the next 14 years ignoring it. He might decide that Hillary is all talk, or that another tactic is needed. More importantly, Edwards has more to offer, as his appeal to blue-collar workers would help Obama far more than Clinton. There is also the fact that Obama will have fewer dogs at his heal, begging for scraps. Since Edwards offers more, and has less competition, tacitly speaking, it would be best for him to endorse Obama, but as we’ve seen so far, there seem to be few rules in this election season that stick.

Posted at 04:01PM Mar 06, 2008 by Taylor Garvey Poro in General  |  Comments[0]