"Take no heed of her...She reads a lot of books."
~Jasper Fforde


Friday, August 31, 2012

A Date....ish?

So, do you guys remember the cynical Russian guy I was obsessed with?  Well, we were talking online the other day, and he ended up asking me to join him for coffee and chess at the local hipster coffee shop.  I'm nervous and excited all at once.  I'm not sure if this is a date or not, so that puts a bit of pressure on me, since I'm not really in a place right now where I'm looking for a boyfriend....plus, we would totally kill each other if we ever tried to date.  Still, I don't want to hurt his feelings.  I think for now, I'll just treat this like a "two friends hanging out" sort of thing and see what happens.  Either way, wish me luck! :D

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Back on Campus

Senior year is about to start, and I'm so excited!  The past couple of weeks building up to this point were difficult, but I was pleased as punch to discover that just getting back on campus totally helped me readjust; and living in the same dorm as last year makes it feel like I never actually left.
 
I know I've already amazed and thrilled (or perhaps bored) all of you with details of my class schedule and the books I'll be reading, so I won't subject you to that now.  However, I will bring up some other interesting news...
 
I applied for a job in one of the on-campus coffee shops.  I'm actually just hanging out during the interview process right now.  I was the first to be interviewed, and now, I'm just waiting for our little "training" session.  Ironically, we'll be trained before we're told if we have the job or not.  I'm just hoping I'll get a chance to go to the second level of interviews....Working at a coffee shop would be a lot of fun, plus the hours aren't that bad.  And I could always add this to a resume when I apply for a summer job at Starbucks, lol.  But seriously, I would love to work in a coffee shop.  What could be more fun than sharing my favorite brews with my fellow students?
 
I think the interview went well...but I can't say much more about it at this point.  I'll be sure to keep y'all posted if anything happens.
 
In the meantime, I'm reading Tristram Shandy for pleasure, and waiting to see which books I'll be reading first for classes...and I'm totally eavesdropping on some girls talking about very many things, such as:
 
  • The extreme hickeys Girl A's bf gave her (resulting in scarves on a hot day, and tons of concealer)
  • The possibility of selling one's first born in exchange for text books ("it's cheaper and they will probably accept it")
Oh, the things you hear when people don't realize you're listening...

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Beautiful Weather, Good Food, and the End of the Summer

I cannot even begin to describe how beautiful it is outside today!  The weather is simply glorious.  The sun is shining, the sky is a perfect shade of blue, peppered with big, white, fluffy clouds, and the breeze is just glorious.  I wish every day of summer could be just like this one.

Summer is almost over, and while I'm excited to start back at school is just over a week, I'm also somewhat sad.  Going back to school means the end of so many things here....like riding my bike, hanging out with my wonderful friends from home (although, I'll be able to see more friends from school), and, perhaps surprisingly, shopping for fruits and vegetables at the local roadside stands.

There's one stand in particular where we always make it appoint to go at least once a week, all summer (and sometimes, into the fall).  There is something wonderful about stocking up on fresh fruits and veggies that could very easily have been picked that day.  Peppers, eggplant, okra, peaches, tomatoes, blueberries, potatoes, zucchini, watermelon, even fresh-cut flowers.  Going there is always a treat, and one which I will certainly miss.

We had a tomato salad today; all heirloom tomatoes-- six different sizes and varieties.  I've found that heirloom tomatoes tend to be avoided because of their strange shapes and colors, but I thought they were delicious.  We just chopped up the tomatoes and mixed them up with some sweet Italian dressing.  It was a delightful treat.

Sometimes, I wish summer would last forever.  It means spending quality time with my family and always trying new things.  And I love both of those things very much.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Owwwww!

So, I was trying to use a new workout video yesterday.  And....well, I don't work out too much.  But, even so, I've never had a problem before.  I think I must have done something wrong this time around, though, since my lower back, butt, and upper legs seemed sore by about mid-day, and by the time night rolled around, I was in considerable discomfort.

I woke up this morning, and my back was so stiff and sore that I couldn't even get out of bed without considerable effort.  Every time I bend down or move my torso at all, these muscles just scream at me.

I moved a few of my things into my dorm today (the same room I shared with Italia, but will now be sharing with The Roomie from Freshman and Sophomore year).  And I decided to put sheets on my bed for the year.  That was not a good idea, either.  Maneuvering a large, heavy, cumbersome mattress ALONE can cause a lot of frustration.  And if you already have irritated, inflamed muscles, it only causes them MORE pain.

I'm fine as long as I'm sitting or standing. Any attempts to MOVE hurts like hell.

Will someone bring me tea and a comic book to make me feel better?

Fall 2012 School Reading List

Hi, guys!  So, this update is mostly for Robby (who said he would like to see what I'm reading for class), but of course, same as before, anyone can read along with me.  I'm taking three English classes this year (one is a writing class, the other two are literature).  And while I don't have nearly as many books as last time, I still have a nice list for everyone.  I would love it if you would be interested in reading along with me.  I'll try and be better about posting updates this year.

  • The Awakening (Chopin)
  • Scarlet Letter and Other Writings (Hawthorne)
  • Moby Dick  (Melville)
  • Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Twain)
  • Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (Jacobs)
  • Final Harvest (Emily Dickenson)
  • Turn of the Screw (James)
  • Selected Writings (Poe)
  • The Dubliners (Joyce)

...And a few extra books, such as criticisms and backgrounds.

Looking forward to reading with you guys :)

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Summer Reading Blip

So....Summer is almost over.  I have like two weeks left, and that means I will NOT be able to finish the entire LOTR series (and I'll be honest, I only got through The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring).  There were just so many other books that caught my attention!  And as for these other books...yeah, I was NOT very good about posting updates on them.  Not at all.  In fact, of the 19 books I read (Wow!  That's better than I thought, haha!) I only recorded records for 9.  The rest can be found, of course on my Goodreads account, but I didn't record them here.

So, that being said, I hope to be able to start posting more things online once school starts.  I spend a bit more time in front of a computer, and have more time to write and post.  So, please stick with me just a little while longer.

On a slightly related note, if anyone is interested, I'll post my reading list for classes this semester.  Just let me know in the comments :)  (This time around, I'll try to actually read everything cover to cover, instead of skimming).

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Almost-Autumn Weather

The weather today, as compared to the past few months, is so cool that I almost feel like I could call it autumn.  And the moisture in the air from the impending rain, makes it feel so delightfully brisk.  I wish the weather would last like this forever.

I can't wait until fall comes.  Until I can spend countless hours on a weekend sitting outside in the crisp fall air, reading books until my fingers become too cold to turn the pages, pulling my hoodie closer around my chilled frame.

I become the most alive in the fall.

I cannot wait to come back to life again.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

The Cactus Con

As some of you already know, I have a lucky bamboo plant that I call Bertram.  It may sound silly, but since my dorm does not really support most pets, keeping a plant is the next best thing.  And so, a year this past March, I've been taking care of a rapidly growing houseplant.  This is the first time I've had a plant and it's lasted more than a few weeks.

Today, I finally decided it might be fun to get another plant.  I thought it might brighten up my dorm room for this coming school year.  And, since the local drug store was carrying tiny cacti (for only $1.99!) I thought that might be a fun plant to start with (either that, or one of the $5.00 orchids I found at the grocery store).

So, I was checking out the cacti (all tiny and cute-- some with little flowers on top).  And that's when I discovered a clever, if not distasteful deception.

There was something funky about the base of the flowers.  As I leaned in to get a closer look, I realized that these were not natural flowers (well, they might be real flowers, but they weren't naturally a part of the cactus.  They were fixed on with a hot glue gun.  And it wouldn't have been so bad if the workmanship weren't so shoddy; you could actually see the opaque strands of glue where the flower was attached!

Needless to say, I didn't buy a cactus.