And you call yourself a scientist...

I found these studies on a blog on NY Times...hilarious!

"Duh! for recent findings that never seemed in doubt in the first place:
- Toddlers become irritable when prevented from napping.
- Cats make humans do what they want by purring.

And Huh? for research whose point is elusive, like these recent findings:
- Men are better than women at hammering in the dark.
- The more abdominal hair, the more belly-button lint."

Let's Be Friends

Friendship. Withstanding my family, my friends are the single most important thing in my life. No job, no amount of cash in bank, no luxury vehicle will do what friends do. Friends are the people who will crack a joke when you are stressed out and really need to laugh, they are the ones who will take care of you when you're sick, and have a few drinks whenever you want. Friends know you're story. One of my favorite things about friends is that I get to pick them. These people are not forced upon you. Nope, you get to choose who you want to surround yourself with. What I have learned in my 22 years is that these are some of the most important life-choices you will ever, ever make. Your friends are an extension of yourself, and I think you can tell alot by a person based on two things. 1) How clean their shoes are, and 2) Who their friends are. Take my word.

Now that you know how much I love my friends, let's talk about social networking. Did you know that "de-friend" was put into Webster's Dictionary this year? Unfamiliar with that term? Let me use it in a sentence..."This girl I know totally a madeout with my ex-boyfriend, so I de-friended her on Facebook." Zing! Way to go fictional girl, you really socked it to her.

Social networking Web sites like Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, Bebo (the Euro version of Facebook), LinkedIn, etc. have taken over. These sites are virtual playgrounds for everyone from the very young to my grandmother (who does, indeed, have a Facebook AND is my Facebook friend). In this day and age, instead of throwing bark chips at the boy or girl you like, you can "Poke" them. Instead of sending out real invites to your next birthday party, just create a Facebook event, it's way more efficient. I think that social networking is a great resource to get in touch with old friends or just to write on your BFF's wall.

I know the argument that our new electronic lifestyle is actually pushing us farther apart because we are losing the face-to-face, one-on-one connection. But I don't buy it. As long as you aren't obsessed with checking your news feed every hour and you're a normal human being, I would just like to go on record saying that Facebook has kept me more in touch with alot of people I would probably never spoken to again after high school, and I see my friends all the time in person. Clearly, an email is not the same as a real conversation, and a "poke" is not the same as a...well, you get what I'm saying.

I know for a fact that even though the TV show "Friends" has been off the air for about six years, Monica, Rachel, Phoebe, Chandler, Joey and Ross would all be facebookers, and their friendship would be better for it. So thanks, Mark Zuckerberg!!

What a Snow-Stopper!

In case you hadn't heard, it snowed in the Portland-metro area yesterday afternoon. After about 2 hours and 1-3 inches of snow, what ensued was traffic chaos. Oregonians are not equipped to drive in this kind of weather. Most of us haven't had that much experience with it, and don't have the right kind of cars to drive in it safely. Hence the massive amount of cars abandoned on the side of the road as drivers stopped and just started trekin' by foot. At around 4:15, my boss told everyone to get out of the office and head home as to beat the traffic. Well, this was not an original idea as it seems every Portlander was doing the exact same thing. In my estimation, it wasn't the actual roads that were so bad but the amount of people on them!

It took me about an hour to go what usually takes me about 15 minutes. But that's nothing compared to those of you who braved I-5 and I-84! Then there are my parents, who are in the desert state of Arizona right now. Congrats, Mom and Dad!

Thanks Mother Nature, for that lovely farewell to 2009...

(Pictures provided by the Oregonian)

361 Down, 4 To Go.

As 2009 comes to a rapid end, here are a few of my "Top 9" for the year. What are yours?

Top 9 News Stories:
1. Obama Administration Begins Its Work
2. David Letterman/Tiger Woods Sex Scandal
3. The Fall of Bernie Madoff and General Electric Goes Bankrupt
4. Swine Flu Outbreak
5. The Twitter Revolution
6. Captain Sully Sullenberger Saves the Day on the Hudson
7. Kanye West Doesn't Let Taylor Swift Finish her VMA Speech
8. Michael Jackson Dies
9. Release of Euna Lee and Laura Ling from North Korea

Top 9 Movies:
1. The Hangover
2. The Hurt Locker
3. Inglorious Basterds
4. Coraline 3D
5. The Proposal
6. New York, I Love You
7. Men Who Stare At Goats
8. 500 Days of Summer
9. Sherlock Holmes

"Fruit...Fly...Scare"

Christmas Eve has to be one of my favorite nights of the year. Not because of the presents or the anticipation of Santa, but because I know what's in store...The Batlan/Saiki Christmas Eve tradition. I could not love these people more, and every year someone inevitibly says something that they will never, ever live down. This year, Mr. Clyde Saiki was this special someone. Congrats Clyde-o, ODOT is lucky to have you.


Per the Saiki/Batlan Christmas Eve, it is tradition to play a game on this night. These games have gone from everything to your run of the mill board game to flip cup. The inagural year of flip cup was 2006 I believe, however, I'm not sure if that is actually the right year because I was so drunk off my ass I couldn't remember if we were celebrating Christmas or Easter. All I remember was singing Celine Dion in our garage and drinking more Coors Light than I think I have since. Yes, these were the best of times. But I disgress.


This year was no different. We ate some grub and played a game that fostered our competitive nature and gave all of us some good amo to continue to lovingly make fun of each other for years to come. Another fantastic Christmas Eve with the wonderful people I call my family.

60-39 on the Party-Line and Doin' it for Ted

At 7:05am the United States Senate passed a bill that will overhaul the nation's inefficient and costly health care system. The passage of this bill, which is similar to the bill passed in the other chamber last month, will now open the airways for negotiation with House of Reps to finally get a bill into a law and bring the health care to tens of millions of Americans.

Senator Robert C. Byrd, the 92-year-old Democrat from West Virginia, deviated slightly from the protocol during roll call.

“This is for my friend Ted Kennedy,” Mr. Byrd said. “Aye!”

If the two chambers can come up with an agreement, the role of the federal government will be vastly expanded. Quick overview (though this bill is pretty damn complicated): 15 million people added to the Medicaid program and subsidizing private coverage for low- and middle-income people, at a cost to the government of $871 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Talk about times a changin'.

Clearly, there are members of Congress and citizens alike who are opposed to this piece of legislation as it will incur new taxes and fees on the American people. Senator Olympia Snowe, who has been a key moderate Republican in the health care debate, had problems with the fact that once the Dems locked up 60 votes in their Caucus, there could be no negotiations or amendments to the bill. I say, don't you freight Sen. Snowe, I'm sure that negotiations will still be had. For instance, whether or not to include abortion coverage is still an issue that needs to be discussed. Now that'd be a debate I'd like to watch with a bucket-o-popcorn and some Sno-Caps. Let's start the show!

To find out more about the Senate health care bill go here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/25/health/policy/25health.html?hp

If this bill becomes law, it would be historic for our country and help the millions of Americans who are uninsured,struggle with medical bills, and use the emergency room as their doctor's office. The phrase "socialized medicine" has been demonized by the Republican Party and to many, indicates the downfall of the free market and the basic economic principles our country was built on.

But in my opinion, we need this reform. I know that everyone has been affected by this recession from the super-wealthy to those who live well below the poverty line. There are millions of people in our country who lack insurance and are unemployed, and who must decide each month whether to buy groceries or pay their utility bills. I understand no one likes to pay more in taxes, agreed. Sometimes I think "Why the hell is a third of my paycheck gone!? This sucks" Then I look at the roads I am driving on and the classrooms I was educated in remember why we pay taxes. It is the responsibility of those of us who can, at a reasonable degree, to pay a little more for those who can't. And that's why I'm a Democrat. If you don't agree, go get your own blog.

Alright, I'm all done now, hopefully I haven't offended anyone too much.
Merry Christmas Eve everyone!!! Go drink a bunch of egg nog, laugh with your friends and family, and whatever you do, don't think about your taxes tonight.

Paula Deen and Olympic Dreams

My domesticity levels went through the roof last night, and boy was my kitchen not prepared for it.

As I am still the newbie at the office, I decided to do some good old-fashioned sucking up to my co-workers around the holiday season. Last night, this brown-nosing materialized into making each of my co-workers a mini gingerbread loaf for Christmas.

Never having made gingerbread before, I had no idea that I would be working with molasses. I'm sure to some of you baking professionals, this ingredient may seem like child's play. I, however, would call myself more of a baking amateur.

The baking process began harmlessly enough. Added some sugar, a dash of baking soda...all in all, I'm doing an outstanding job of mixing together the dry ingredients. In fact, I was even thinking I should keep my amateur status title in case baking ever becomes an Olympic sport and my country needs me. My confidence was palpable as I was thinking in my head "Oh Paula Deen, you're such a sucker, anyone can do this!I should have my own cooking show." (For those of you who may not know, Paula Deen has a cooking show on the Food Network titled "Paula's Home Cooking." On her show, each and every one of her recipes, which she recites in the warmest Southern drawl you'll ever hear, include at least 2 sticks of butter, a cup of lard, and a shot of rum.



Then...came the molasses. Word to the wise: Do not spill a lot of this little bitch of an ingredient on your stove and/or floor and/or in your hair. The slow-moving sugar, which I accidentally knocked over with the cap off, proceeded to spill onto a counter with sugar/ground ginger/cinnamon and flour droppings on it. The molasses then acted as a glue-type agent, creating a paste of sorts that stuck to everything. Then, don't ask me why I did this, but I brushed my hair out of my face with my molasses covered hands. GREAT. My hair had been compromised in this molasses attack and I could take no prisoners! After my brief moment of panic that I would end up with a pixie haircut, I went into problem-solving mode until most of it was cleaned up and the evidence was gone (from the kitchen and the hair). I didn't want my roommate to know that I had made a huge mess of the kitchen and also possibly gotten my molasses paste concoction in the crevices of the stove plates.

Needless to say, my dream of a potential Olympic baking medal was crushed and I was this close to having to cut a chunk of hair out, but the gingerbread loaves turned out pretty well! Feast your eyes on these little beauties.





Learn more about Paula Deen by clicking here: www.foodnetwork.com/paulas-home-cooking/index.html.

Gimme Five....Or Don't.

Yesterday I was watching the NCAA volleyball semi-finals between Penn State and Hawaii on TV. I played volleyball competitively for eight years, and still played for fun in intermural teams in college (DYNASTY Back-to-Back Champs).

Watching the match yesterday, I was struck by the ridiculous amounts of high-fives and/or low-fives that were given. These sweet little physical signs of "good job" or "congratulations" were doled out in huge amounts after EVERY SINGLE PLAY. You get a kill? High-fives all around (possibly even a butt slap). You miss a serve? High-fives everywhere. The ball goes right through the setter's hands and hits her in the face? Gimme five sister!!!

Here's a Q: Why?? I mean, isn't a high-five supposed to mean you did something good? I am by no means suggesting that a player gets the cold shoulder from his or her teammates if she isn't having a stellar game, but come on...let's earn those high-fives and butt slaps girls. Now, I was guilty of this high-five frenzy when I was a volleyball player as well. I lived in ignorant bliss of how ridiculous it looked to go around and give every player on the team a high-five after every single play. Mind you, a rally in volleyball probably lasts an average of 10 seconds, which means one is giving about 30 high-fives a minute. There is one word for this and it is the same word I would use to describe G.W. Bush's vacation days when he was in office: Excessive.



So I wondered, what does this ohenomenon stem from? At first I thought "Oh it's probably just because we are girls." Girl Power (circa Spice Girls '99), Solidarity Sister Suffragette.

But then I realized on my co-ed intermural teams at Linfield we also lived in high-five mania. So this could not be a "girl thing." This is just a "volleyball thing." It's unique to the sport. You don't see a girl's soccer team running around and giving every player a high-five after each dead ball. Soccer players are like "No way in hell am I running down this entire field to say 'Congrats on letting the other team score, you're a real star." But us volleyball players, we are on a pretty small court, don't have much personal space and we are nuts about congratulating each other, even when we look like complete dumbasses.

Now that I'm in Phase Four and I can look at this issue with unbiased eyes, I'm rather torn on how I feel about it. Part of me thinks the high-fives are overkill and most of the time undeserved. Nevertheless, the other part of me enjoys the team camaraderie. The jury is out on this issue.

But I do know one thing: When you are forced to perform physical activity in spandex briefs...you really gotta stick together.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Most people don't appreciate Salem for what it is. Though sometimes I am one of those people, I do know that Salem has some pretty cool stuff to offer. One being the Capitol...photos of it in all it's Christmas glory. I remember performing in holiday choir and orchestra concerts in the Rotunda. Good times!

Phase In...Phase Out...

Ahem. Here we have it. My very first, real live, grown-up blog. Though I'm sure I'll have little to no faithful readers (excluding my Mom, who I know will read this religiously) I am excited about my virtual writing adventure. Man...I sound like such a communications dork.

Why would you start a blog? One may ask. Well, I need an outlet. A place to put my views on current events, random wonderments, my friends, my family, my job, and anything else that may pop up out there.

Though I pondered keeping the explanation for my blog name drapped in mystery, I have decided to reveal its meaning (lucky you).

"Phase Four," is the proverbial tip of the hat to this exciting and scary phase of life I have recently entered. My best friend's/roommate's mom once gave us some sage advice on life. And it all had to do with phases. Phase One is blissful childhood, those years that you had no concept of money or bills and your biggest concern in life was making sure you could stay up to watch the TGIF television line-up, including but not limited to Boy Meets World, Full House, Family Matters, and Step by Step.

Phase Two is adolescence and high school, which I'm sure my parents would contend was the worst phase. I consider these years my shining rebel-without a cause years. I'll leave it at that!

Phase Three is the ever-beloved college years(and the phase in which I just left not but 6 months ago).

Phase Four however, is the post-grad years...the time when you enter "real world," as some MTV execs coined it. Leave behind: merriment of house parties, "studying" in Europe, college sweethearts, never getting enough sleep, homework, and staying in sweat pants on a Wednesday. Enter: bills, waking up when it's dark outside, and those really annoying things called taxes. After working my ass off during four years of college, my plan for Phase Four was simple: Graduate college, move to New York City, meet Regis Philbin, and become famous. In that order. Well, let's just say I don't live in New York City, and the closest thing to becoming famous that has happened this year is when my Dad actually did see Regis Philbin at the Notre Dame v. USC game...but did not put in a good word for me. What is that Dad...WHAT IS THAT.

Anyway. Living the life of a post-grad in 2009 has not been what every wide-eyed college graduate dreamt of. With some exceptions I'm sure, it hasn't full of opportunity, big first-year salaries and becoming famous. For most of us, it's been full of heading back to our childhood bedrooms, and having Monster.com and CareerBuilder.com be our homepages on our computers. Because we entered the "real world" in the deepest economic depression since the Great Depression and became a job-seeker in a god-awful job market where people with Master's degrees were taking jobs flipping burgers (alright, that may be a slight overstatement, but not by much).

Now to move away from the gloom and doom of 2009, I did fortunately find an amazing job a few months ago working for the Oregon Speaker of the House and I moved to Portland. I am just love, love, loving it so far (both the job and Portland). Though I've lived about an hour away from this city my whole life, I have yet to really explore it, which is part of my new plan for Phase Four. I'm not entirely sure what all is in store for my new Phase Four plan, but I know it's going to be great.

So here goes my blogging experience, I hope you find it (at leaset) somewhat entertaining.