Little 5 week is here!!

Little 5 week is here. 

 

For anybody who isn’t aware, it is a week where everybody drinks on campus nonstop . Google it and you’ll definitely find out that it also is about a bike race, but the main theme is obviously partying. 

 

I am finally exposing a clear view of my face … so now you have a clear view of what I look like!! Im the guy with the black glasses. I where them on and off. The pictures are from a Little 5 party a couple days ago. 

Wait until my birthday on May 10, those should be hilarious. 

 

Of course, I am doing well in my classes to, don’t worry, college is much more than just partying. BUT this week definitely made me run for my money and let me relax. 

 

Oh man, I miss Chicago though!

Procrastination – the deadliest form of cancer

One more hour on this fuckin' paper and I'm walking out of the computer lab looking like this bitch

 

So I’m writing an extremely dumbass paper on media studies. Boooorrring. I cannot stand it, and am simply procrastinating as it’s due tomorrow at 8:00am. It’s 3:30am right now, and I should be fucking sleeping. God, sometimes I wish I was schitzo and had an imaginary voice inside my head telling me what to do all the time.

A little history of ‘ol Frankie

 

Lafayette, Indiana. Okay, okay.....it looks like shit, and Purdue sucks. But it is more peaceful than Chicago!

I was born in May of 1987 in Lafayette, Indiana. Do you know where that is? It’s about 10 minutes south of Purdue! It’s in north central Indiana. I lived in the town for 13 years before moving north to The Region, a.k.a, Northwest Indiana. I lived in the city of St. John, Indiana until I was 15, where I moved  to Skokie, Illinois.

Skokie was quite different from Indiana. For starters, in Indiana, you’re either white, mexican, or black. There aren’t that many asians at all. When i got to Skokie, I noticed that half the city was asian, which was quite an experience. On top of that, I got introduced to a lot of Jewish people. The city is very diverse, and it really opened up my eyes to me (however, nowadays Indiana is getting a lot of immigrants straight from Asia and Mexico looking for farmwork).

Then, I got introduced to the lovely city of Chicago. The life that city had just amazed me. Granted, I always visited Chicago frequently when I lived in Indiana, but I never got the front seat experience of actually living close by it! I tried to go to the city as much as I could. Being under 18, the most I could do was go to Sox games and Blackhawks games (which are usually played in Wrigley Field or the United Center no less), but still loved the city. Now, I go to IU down in Southern Indiana (don’t kid yourselves, the winters are just as cold, but end a couple of weeks earlier), and live in the city of Chicago over the summer where i rent an apartment with a couple of friends of mine. I study Telecommunications and Business at IU and honestly don’t know what the fuck to do with my life. 

 

Now being 21, I tend to do the typical things Chicagoans are drink, party, talk shit, get wasted, add nausium. Rinse, lather, get up, work, and repeat (not necessarily in any order). However, beneath the ‘meathead’ that you may view me as lies a heart and soul who contributes to meaningful discussions. I’m getting shit for some stupid comment I made to the Princess about people in Europe interacting with one another, as though Lost has actually been there before. I’m sure he feels like he doesn’t need to go anywhere else because he’s from New York. 

 

But just because I’m from a blue collar background and from Indiana does not mean shit about how much I know. Hey, I’m only 21. I only pay half the rent for my apartment. I’m still supported by my parents! I’ve experienced plenty enough to talk, but maybe not enough to actually be an expert. 

 

No, Lost, this is not a surrender. You can go fuck yourself for all I care. It’s more of a message that despite my smartass attitude I display on Ness’s board, lies a very semi-intellectual individual who likes giving himself and others a chance at  life. Now, breathe. Did any of that make any sense?

To ‘Lost in Chicago’: Get Over Yourself! Chicago Ain’t New York!

The Loop: Downtown Chicago

So, over at my good friend Vanessa’s (Ness) blog, there is a particular member that irks the fuck out of me. He/she calls themselves ‘Lost in Chicago’, a clever title judging by the fact that he/she knows nothing of what they’re talking about. I will not wreak havoc at Vanessa’s page. She’s nice to me, and I owe her and her friends time to vent about how they hate the city of Chicago.

But this person really needs to be put in their place, and, while they STILL will come up with lame excuses to refute everything I say, I must get this off my chest. Chicago ain’t New York! It never was New York, it never will be New York, it doesn’t WANT to be New York! I’ve heard the New York-Chicago comparisons and I’m sick of it. They’re two completely different cities, full of mostly completely different people, with mostly different vibes. Sure, they both have massive downtowns (although New York’s is twice as big), and they both have big buildings, great senses of urbanity, and high density, but they truly aren’t one in the same.

Lost complains about Chicago’s lack of “culture”, which they never clearly define. Judging by Lost’s posts, Im guessing they mean things having to do with arts and theatre, based on their overall disapproval of Chicago’s hardcore drinking and nightlife scene. Okay, so New York leads Chicago in nearly every category, but does that make Chicago’s arts scene bad? Not in the slightest! Chicago has tons of art festivals and galleries, as well as arguably the second best theatre scene in the nation. And since Lost loves using Wiki, it has it’s own section devoted to it!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theatre_in_Chicago

Chicago has fantastic sightseeing, daytime concerts in the summer, food, and nightlife. It’s full of stuff to do, but Lost (an NYU student) just can’t seem to get themselves out of their apartment to enjoy it (If I and others are having fun… who’s word are you going to take… Lost’s or the majority). Besides Lost contradicts everything he/she says. Lost says Chicagoans judge New Yorkers and hate New York due to jealousy, and the only evidence he uses to back himself up is the fact they decided to live in Chicago over New York! What??? I’ve been to New York twice and I loved it! It’s a fantastic fun city that does beat Chicago in many aspects, but Chicago gives me 80% of what I’d find in New York for 40% of the price.

What really annoys me about Lost is their judgement on the Midwest and Midwesterners as a whole. He/she accuses us of judging while Lost judges the most. He basically says that because I’m from Indiana, I wouldn’t know any better, and that I’d think a boring city would actually be fun because I’m from a town with five theaters that treats that celebrates the opening of a mall, or something like that. Give me a break! You must be arrogant to judge people like that, and Indiana is not all farms. Why don’t you go to a place before you judge it! Come to think of it, you probably don’t LIVE in Chicago. You probably are a New Yorker who has some insecure view of their city. What’s there to be insecure about? Everybody loves New York!

This is just a rant I needed to get off my chest, and I really want to hear from this guy about what he thinks.

Why I am voting for Obama!

As none of you probably know, I am neither a Democrat nor Republican. I am neither liberal nor conservative, and I pretty much can give a hoot about politics. According to my good friends Ness and J.R., proof of that is the fact that I live in the Second City (Chicago) and love it! But I digress. I have decided that I am going to vote for Obama. Here are some issues I am basing my decision off of.

If he's a Muslim so be it. Maybe he'll gain us some allies for once!

The Economy: The most important issue for me is the economy. Republicans have had their chance to fix it, and they failed… miserably. I have seen no improvement over the last couple of years. In fact, things now are worse than ever. The economy is so bad, that I’m probably going to live in Indiana for an extra year or so to make enough money to be able to afford to live in Chicago on my own. In addition to that, the job market EVERYWHERE sucks! I am with the Dems on the bailout plan too. I don’t think WE should have to bail those greedy corporate assholes out of the gutter. They should do the work.

Iraq War: Get us OUT of Iraq NOW. I know a couple of guys serving there right now… and god bless their souls they are serving our country well. But I just don’t see the point of going to war in the first place. What have we gained? Enemies? Record coffin production for fallen soldiers? If it was a war that was to protect America I would support it, but I think it was simply for oil. I want my friends back home in bed with their girlfriends/boyfriends/husbands/wives where they belong!

Immigration: Immigration should be reduced. This country is growing way to fast, and while I have sympathy for the needy worldwide, there should be a line that people have to wait in and a certain quota of people who come in per year. It’s in the interest of ALL Americans, regardless of skin color, to keep the population of the country under control so it doesn’t become third world. Global Warming believers take note: The more people in this country, the more energy, food, water, and shit we need to provide them, which harms the environment and adds to Global Warming. And who’s one of the top producers of pollution in the world?

Global Warming: It’s true, and it’s happening now. Republicans really could give a shit, which is another reason why they piss me off.

Abortion/Gay Marriage: Fuck that shit. I have gay friends and think they should get married if they want to, and am not homophobic at all (what you do with your cock is your choice). But there are way more important issues at stake here, and these shouldn’t even be being discussed right now.

Affirmative Action: Stupid. Put it to an end. My friend with a 3.6 GPA got denied over a guy with a 3.1 due to skin color and his last name. That’s not fair. If anything, the system should be modified to fit income levels rather than race.

And there you have it. Much of my reasoning all summed up. I’d like to hear from all of you who read my blog what you think.

Long time no post…. huh?

Well, i’ve been having a great time here at school. I’ve been down here for a month now and, while I miss my dear home of Chicago greatly, I’m happy to be reunited here with all of my friends again. I am going to post a political piece soon on who I plan on voting for for this coming ‘08 election and why. It will be part of an assignment I have to do at school, so it will pretty much be an essay. Feel free to comment on whatever you want (‘Ness, JR, etc). See you soon!

Bombs Away—- Gustav hits the Gulf Coast

Let me make one thing clear right now: it’s not the appropriate time for city bashing. Currently, Hurricane Gustav is heading towards the western Gulf Coast as a category 5 storm, which is the most powerful category for a hurricane. This means that Gustav could be WORSE than Katrina! Hurricane Gustav is threatening cities from Mississippi to Texas– and that includes Houston!

So, as I am still busy unpacking my things and going through the lame ass moving process, let me make it clear that my heart goes out to all those affected currently by this natural disaster. Mankind should apologize- we are the ones who likely created this storm by making global warming worse!

Summer reflections… Back to IU!!!

IU's logo

Well, summer’s basically over. I am leaving my wonderful apartment in Lakeview and heading off to Bloomington, Indiana to start another exciting semester of college. I’m going to be a junior this year (I took a few semesters off), and while I’m extremely depressed to be temporarily leaving the exciting city of Chicago, I’m happy to be reunited with my buds at school that I haven’t seen in a while.

The good news is that many of the guys I live with go to IU with me. The bad news is some of them don’t. Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention how next year I might actually stay in Bloomington over the summer. I do love the big city, but I also do like small town country life (hell, I was born in a small Indiana town called Evansville). I always want to live in a big city, but I like taking advantage of the fact that I go to school in a small town, so as long as I’m enrolled in school, I might as well stay in the city.

So, what does me starting school mean about my blog?
1. Relax assholes, it isn’t going anywhere. Ness, I’ll still be poppin’ into your blog and let you have it frequently.
2. Updates will sometimes be regular, and sometimes be less. I’m going to be more busy with classes!
3. Everyone will have to keep me up to date on Chicago news. I can still argue with you guys about the city even though I’m not currently there!
4. You’ll actually see a lot of pictures of me. I take pictures of all the shit that I do when I’m at school. It’ll be pretty sweet.

So, don’t worry, I’m still here. I just won’t physically be here, if you know what I mean. Here are some lovely pictures of Bloomington to leave you hanging.

IU's campus

The rolling hills on the outskirts of town

Drinking age 18 for college kids?

Every day, I go to MSNBC.com to check out the latest news stories around the world. Today, I fumbled upon an article that peaked my interest. The article discussed how Presidents from some of the countries most prestigious university now endorse the drinking age being lowered from 21 to 18. For what reason? To reduce binge drinking among the underage.

Me and my friends tailgating outside the Bears stadium last Sunday, haha

So, how do I feel about this? Of course it’s a good idea, but could it have come at a worse fuckin’ time! I turned 21 half a year ago, and now little puny fucks who I should be laughing at because they’re underage are going to be able to legally buy a drink. I guess that’s just how the cookie crumbles, but it still pisses me off. The reason why lowering the drinking age WILL reduce binge drinking among college students is because drinking is held in dangerous environments either on or off campus.

Drinks are made by dumbasses who could easily slip roofies into them, rather than bartenders who are paid to serve people drinks. Kids drink in frat houses or regular small houses that are crowded, dirty, and dangerous due to the little security that is provided at them (remember, they have to be covered up, so cops cannot help anyone at the party if they get raped and shit because the people who own the house will get busted).

And what about the bitches who say that lowering the drinking age will make DUI’s more prevalent! Not true! If they are legal, 18 year olds will not be afraid to call up their parents for a ride home, and colleges will be able to offer late night services to assist party goers who need to get back to their homes. Think about it people! Since it’s illegal to drink anyway, colleges can’t provide services to assist underage drinkers in getting home! So what’s the only option? Taking your chances and driving home drunk!

I swear, nobody listens this day and age, especially to people under 21.

The Sun Belt Myth —-No crime, like the Midwest or Northeast, eh?

The utopia called Houston

The Sunbelt right now is booming, like nobody can believe. It’s seems like people are flocking all over the country to live in cities like Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, and Phoenix. They are coming from cities like New York, Chicago, and even Los Angeles (mostly to escape the California taxes), and many people are claiming that sunbelt cities will overtake the #3 and #2 position (over Los Angeles and Chicago) due to the fact that they supposedly have less crime, are cleaner, and offer a great urban experience.

Well, unfortunately, the Sunbelt has MORE crime than most cities in the northeast and the midwest. In fact, most of the big cities in the sunbelt are listed as the most dangerous cities in the country today.

http://www.morganquitno.com/cit07pop.htm#25

In terms of metropolitan areas, Las Vegas is #4, Miami is #11, Charlotte is right behind at #12, Tucson is #18, Phoenix is #21, and Houston is #22.

In terms of the cities themselves, Houston, Dallas, and Charlotte have all made the top ten for cities over 500,000 people. The rankings were based off violent crimes for every 100,000 people.

Now, why what is the point of me posting these statistics? Well, for one, I am sick and tired of people complaining that Chicago is too crime infested, and then saying that cities like Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta aren’t. Many of these anti-Chicagoans blindly claim that crime that exists in Chicago exists in a much smaller level in those cities. Well, technically they are right. It exists on a much smaller level, because they are much smaller cities. But in terms of crime per ever 100,000 people that live in those cities, it happens much more frequently in those cities than it does in Chicago.

Lets look at Houston for instance. Many anti-Chicagoans love the city of Houston (I infact like Houston a lot, it’s a great city). But their claims for Houston being superior to Chicago in terms of crime are not correct. Unfortunately, the case against Houston is pretty big.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/jun/10/number-2-with-a-bullet/

In 2005, Houston was the 10th most violent city. In 2007, that position was bumped up to the 8th position. This is 2 YEARS after Katrina, after many of the violent criminals left the city. Dallas was in the #10 position.

According to this article, the position of Houston may actually need to be even higher in the list, as Houston Police may actually be undercounting murders.

http://blogs.wsj.com/numbersguy/is-houston-undercounting-murders-360/

Now, look at those lists that I posted. And search on the internet yourself for the most violent cities lists since 2005. Do you see Chicago anywhere on the top 10, or even 25? Not only is the city of Chicago absent from those lists, the entire metro is absent from those lists.

Is my point to scare people away from moving to Houston? No! My point is, is that people who live in Houston and claim it’s a crime free place obviously aren’t opening their eyes to what lays beyond their front lawn (apparently, they have big homes in the city limits there). Crime is in the eye of the beholder. Meaning, if you make smart decisions, it is likely not to effect you. The people living in Houston seem to be doing fine, despite their city being one of the most violent in the country. And so are the people in Chicago. Much of the crime is isolated and does not affect ordinary people.

The same goes for Houston. Now there are much needed improvements that Chicago must take to reduce crime, but it seems as though Houston has MUCH more work to do than Chicago does. So, lets all move to the utopian cities down South, where crime, urban problems, and unfriendliness are non-existent! Give me a break, asswipes.

UPDATE: For those of you thinking of moving to Jacksonville to escape Chicago crime, looks like you may be in for a rude awakening!

http://www.click2houston.com/news/16991820/detail.html

Oh my god, has Johnny finally woken up and realized that crime will follow him no matter what city he moves to? Well, there’s always San Jose, but damn, those California taxes sure do reek!