Tell me something happy!

I’m having a long day. Week. Semester. Between the club, grad school preparations, class, and work, I’m pretty much ready to crack. If you’re subscribed to comments and have been watching me pour fire on the flame war, I’m sorry – I usually ignore annoying comments, but it’s just one of those days.

So here’s a random fun post to get my mind off things. Tell me something happy for a change! All I usually get from you guys are links about people doing/saying painfully stupid things. What random cool, upbeat thing happened to you today, this week, or whenever?

My happy moment of the day: I got my genotyping results back, and they worked! Woo! Science, it works…sometimes.

I am now a PUBLISHED twitterer, thank you very much

If you’re from Purdue, a Lady Gaga fan, or follow me on Twitter, you know about the drama that went down last night. Lady Gaga was set to perform a sold out, super anticipated concert at Purdue, and after her two opening acts, she canceled the show. Apparently the whole day she was dizzy from exhaustion and dehydration and had even passed out at some point, and she wasn’t allowed to perform because the show had too many potentially dangerous mechanics.

I didn’t get tickets (thanks to all the assholes who bought 6 just to resell for $400 dollars), so I wasn’t as upset as everyone who was there. Actually, I’m kind of glad I wasn’t there, because there’s no rage worse than a gay rage. Purdue students were anywhere from pissed to depressed, and the newspapers were probably creaming their pants.

That’s not the interesting part, though. One of my sarcastic tweets got published in the student newspaper:
Ahahaha! This totally cracks me up. I almost missed it because I didn’t pick up a copy today, but my friend told me about it. Yeah, I’ve made the big time, guys. My tweets are getting published. I can just smell that book deal around the corner.

…Shhh, let me have my delusions of grandeur.

PZ Myers dominates the Other category for Most Influential Female Atheist

I don’t know if I’ll ever “officially close” the Most Influential Female Atheist of 2009 poll, but this much is clear: PZ Myers is clearly dominating the “Other” category (though he’s still near the bottom overall). Or should I say, Ms. Paula Z. Myers. What I find most amusing is that he specifically asked Pharyngulites to not write his name in – seems like he doesn’t have complete control of his followers, after all. Our twitter conversation amused me greatly:

Me: @pzmyers is currently winning the “Other” category for Most Influential Female Atheist. Oh pharyngulites
PZ: I told them not to! RT @jennifurret: @pzmyers is currently winning the “Other” category for Most Influential Female Atheist.
PZ: So, @jennifurret , if I win…I don’t have to get That Operation, do I?
Me: @pzmyers Yes, yes you do. You better get control of your minions quickly, or I’ll be waiting for a photo of you in a dress
Me: @pzmyers Is still winning “Other” for Most Influential Female Atheist. When do I get the photo of him in a dress?
PZ: I think my mom has one. I’ll see if I can find it when I visit late this month RT @jennifurret: When do I get the photo of him in a dress?

And my favorite comment over at Pharyngula:

I’m not sure which is more intriguing: How Jen makes Little Pee Zed do it, or (assuming she succeeds) What Little Pee Zed then looks like. On the other hand, I’m not entirely certain I want to see pictures of either the convincing or the result…

The former will remain a mystery (insert evil cackling here). But joshing gets a million internet points for giving us a sneak preview of the latter:Excellent choice of dress, if I do say so myself!

Blag Hag: A Year in Review

It’s December, which means every blog is somewhat required to pump out Top Ten lists looking back at the past year. I feel a bit haughty doing one about myself, seeing as this blog didn’t even exist for all of 2009 – but a couple of you guys requested it, so here you go. This also may be a nice little review for some of my newer readers who haven’t dug through all of my archived posts (I don’t blame you!). Here are my top 10 posts, determined by an unscientific mash up of my personal opinion and Google Analytics.

10. Comic (amazed this didn’t get me lynched)

9. Oh noes, atheists are taking over teh internets!!11!one!!

8. Darwin finds the best evidence against his theory (comic)

7. Purdue professor: Gays wasting our money on AIDS research

6. Natural Sexuality

5. Creation Museum Review: Start at part 1

4. Book Review: The Professor and the Dominatrix

3. You know what else is an abomination, Maine? Lobster

2. Anti-porn event – emotional appeals and dangerous information

1. What atheists wish would happen at the Creation Museum

Is there a favorite post of yours thank you think belongs in the top ten?

An eerie resemblance

Brought to you by the same relatives who produced the best blasphemous birthday gifts, I now show you my new awesome Christmas gift:Look familiar? I’ll help you out:Yep. Chris and Erin got me the same awesome, soft, cuddly, adorable octopus plushie from the PZ photo. And it wasn’t a coincidence – they got it because they know I love PZ’s blog and would know the photo.

The funny part is when I walked in and saw an octopus plushie under the tree I exclaimed, “Man, I want that!” thinking it was for my nephews (since 99% of the presents were for them, naturally). At the time I didn’t recognize exactly which exact plushie it was, since it was upside down and half buried by the twins’ toys. Later on I was telling Erin how awesome it was, and she went “Well good, because it’s for you!” Yaaaay!

Nothing makes a better pillow than a cephalopod. Well, maybe a kangaroo rat…

Thanks

Hey guys,

I just wanted to sincerely say thank you to everyone who left such nice uplifting comments on my last post. I promise I’m not quitting the club or blog or converting or anything. I’ve just been having a stressful week (which is an understatement*) and those letters were the final straw, you know? Much of what was said is exactly what I’ve repeatedly told friends and members, but I think I needed to hear it from someone else to make sure I wasn’t just deluding myself.

Now, off to go finish our poster for Blasphemy Day! I’ll give you an update later, assuming I don’t get lynched before the day is over.**

Also, I will hold you all to your offers of buying me drinks.

*So far I’ve had two presentations (one of which I woke up 10 minutes before I was supposed to be there), a big exam, teaching, organizing our Richard Dawkins trip, I lost both my debit and credit card, I got triple charged printing BD flyers because I’m an idiot, I had to beg people to volunteer for BD…and I still have 3 scientific papers to read in the next couple hours, BD itself, trying to finish my research paper for my lab, a genetics presentation Thursday worth half of my grade, my Physics lab report, and my final paper for my laboratory class which is also worth half my grade. I actually have had about 3 different blog posts I’ve wanted to make, but I think you can understand why I haven’t yet.
** The way this week is going, I wouldn’t be surprised.

One thousand and one atheist blogs

Nope, not Dalmatians! The Atheist Blogroll, “a community building service provided free of charge to Atheist bloggers from around the world” that’s run by Mojoey over at Deep Thoughts, has finally grown to more than a thousand blogs! Who was the lucky number 1000? …Me! I say lucky because Martinpribble actually signed up before me, but forgot his url, so go check out his blog too (looks like he has some awesome rock climbing photos over there, if you’re into that).

I think I may possibly get new people stopping by, so let me awkwardly introduce myself. I’m a nerdy biology-loving chick trapped in Indiana and the president of my university’s student group for atheists. I like to draw silly comics, talk about sex (a lot), cringe at atheists behaving badly, behave masochisticly by visiting religious things like the Creation Museum, and of course (and predominantly), ramble about atheism and religion.

So…uh…hello blogosphere, interwebs, etc!

Dear Pastor Tom

Hey there! How’s it going? Oh, don’t seem surprised – I know you’re subscribed to my blog since twice now you’ve written a rebuttal to my posts within 24 hours of my original posts. I just want to say it’s incredibly cute how you’re too afraid to mention my name or link to my blog lest someone read an alternative opinion and make their own decisions. I mean, we don’t want people thinking or coming to their own conclusions, do we? I giggle every time you make up a new excuse to not name me, like:

“Many atheist bloggers have expressed joy over this, but it’s not worth taking the time to tell you about any more of them.”

and

“because I don’t subscribe to the language and advertising on the blogs that are defending pornography, I’m not going to give any links, and will not permit any to be posted on this blog.”

But please don’t stop. I get a certain amount of glee knowing someone feels so intimidated by my arguments – must mean I’m explaining my points really well! And what an honor that you’ll mention Pharyngula and Friendly Atheist all the time, but Blag Hag is just too much of a threat! I am a little disappointed, though, that you didn’t come up with some witty pun of my blog to put under your “Evil Sites” links like PharyTales or Hateful Atheist. Can I suggest “She Who Must Not Be Named?”

Your favorite atheist blogger,
Jen

I’ve reached an odd level of fame

Keep in mind this all took place with us screaming and not being able to hear because of loud dance music.

Me: *dancing somewhat drunkenly on the dance floor with a sea of people*
Gal I don’t know: Hey! Uh, I have a random question, sorry.
Me: Uh, what?
Gal: Do you know Josh [last name]?
Me: Yeah, he’s like one of my best friends
Gal: Oh my god, I think I read your blog!
Me: …Blag Hag?
Gal: YEAH! That’s so weird! I totally wanted to join your club too
Me: *attempts to explain the next date and website while mildly inebriated, probably failed*

…It’s one thing for people to recognize me at the Secular Student Alliance conference, but at a dance club/bar? I…am sort of in awe.

It was also around this point that a swarm of cute guys appeared on the dance floor and were actually dancing with me. Then I recognized a couple of them and realized they were all coming from the Queer Student Union’s callout. I shake my fist at you, cute gay guys getting my hopes up!