Prime-Time TV

So my skimming of YES! Magazine today informed me that the average American watches 4.5 hrs of TV each day. I am almost POSITIVE that my semester total was under 10 hours, but today I decided to be as close to average as possible.

Thus, I just watched 2 hours of "Sing-Off" and .5 hours of "Scrubs" and these are the best lines of the night from US Prime Time:

Some girl from SoCals: "And so when we go out there, we wanna just...rock everybody's faces off."
(I only like this one because I said in my last post that I was going to be "journaling my face off." I think this means that random chica reads DGCW regularly...)

JDurk (the sum of JD + Turk): "Ka-BAM-- we just dropped a KNOWLEDGE BOMB on your asses!"
You can count on me employing that phrase sooner rather than later.

That's all. Only 100 pgs left in book #1 of break, so I'm hoping to cruise through it tonight! ;)

So Gangster, I'm So Thug; You're the Only One I'm Dreamin' Of

Welcome back, Cotter!!!!! (I'm going to go watch that Scrubs episode as SOON as I finish this post....)

So it's been a while. I quit when the going got tough, and then once again, the men of apt212 inspired me to get back on my horse. (katelyn's desperate cry for help on my facebook wall also worked in this way)

It's WINTER BREAK!!!!!!!!! It feels soooo good. Only 1 semester left. Looking forward to that. So in the spirit of list-making (Santa, Kate, and apt212 are all doing it), I have a list of things I am planning on doing over the next 4 weeks of down time:
-Reading 5+ books
-DM QT, including lunch with Shep
-NYE in Chicago
-Looking at summer internships
-Looking at full-time jobs
-Prowling for a 3rd roomie
-OASC coffee talks with old friends
-Luchita's margarita's with M. Smola
-Journaling my face off
-SEEING MY OLDEST SISTER FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 1.5 YEARS!!!!!!!!
-Missing Loyolacappella like mad (youtube channel-- check it out)
-Writing all my overdue penpal replies (thanks for your patience, yall!)
-Re-learning French by conversing with Ed, reading books en francais, & buffing up on my vocab

Pretty ambitious break when it comes to tackling leisurely activities. I am so up for the challenge.

Quick thought of the day:
There is no wilderness so terrible,
so beautiful, so arid and so fruitful
as the wilderness of compassion.
It is the only desert that shall
truly flourish like the lily. --Thomas Merton

It feels so good to be back, friends.
Peace and love!

To wear leggins' as pants: appropriate or not?

so today i changed my facebook default to be a picture of Firefly luciferase because it looks cool. and because it's what makes them light up, which not only makes the structure cool but the function cooler. i'm not sure if this is a side effect of finals week or i'm losing friends...or both.

so is it appropriate to walk around with what essentially is just a pair of tight long johns? i once thought: "do not do this, you are obnoxious, you are either too skinny or have much too much to love to be wearing that" but then i bought a pair of leggins' for halloween (to be the bottoms of my tetris block) and i put them on this morning. shawn was not impressed, but he was also in a terrible mood so i wrote that one off. two girls looked at me sort of weird, but one of them couldn't get her car door unlocked so who's the real idiot? basically, i think i'm making a poor ensamble decision, but they are bright purple and they are on and they aren't coming off until to(night)/(morrow). i just didn't know if other people had opinions about this topic. am i the only one that is reading this anyway? is anyone out there???

i know you were totally wondering about my saturday night...i crumbled under peer pressure and went out to a christmas party (and then to kami's). and i only ordered water at the bar (added to my coolness, see "firefly luciferase" at the top) so i woke up feeling great! glad i did that, little stressed now, but at least i can remember latoya spilling chocolate syrup down her face trying to take one of those ridiculous peppermint-mouth-shots instead of my desk chair and butt together.

g'bye!

reasons why I have no business going out the saturday before finals:

1. the girl that was going to "keep me in check"'s self control just kicked in and she is no longer going out.

2. i have $5 to last me for 6 days, and i have no: milk, bread, peanut butter, crackers, little coffee, and i know this isn't a food product but i only have 1 pair of clean socks left.

3. i have not showered nor do i have a weather-appropriate outfit (even by sorority girl's standards it is too cold to wear simply a black-north-face-fleece to power walk uptown)

4. i had a dream i was on the disney channel's original t.v. show "bug juice" last night so i woke up exhausted from being a camper. (See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bug_juice)

5. i will be the last person to shower tonight, therefore i will have no warm water.

6. see #5

7. see #2, section 6: "little coffee" (this will soon prove to be a problem)

the fun has arrrriiivvveeedddd (thank you, thank you very much)

well, after spending the evening shopping at the toledo mall i have come to a couple of realizations! there is a lot of blogging material wandering around a shopping mall at this time of the year. and ironically enough, they don't even know how blog-worthy they are. the little kids on leashes that don't know they are tagging along getting presents bought right under their very eyes, the mom jeans, the tweens, the little boys that be thinkin' they thugs. it was a very fun night though! my roommates (andrea, katie, latoya, + a friend molly) piled into the jetta and we spent a few hours buying presents and eating!! finally starting to feel a little more like christmas time and a little less like 40 mph winds with no snow to show for itself.

finals week is here! i'm not sure why bowling green is so behind everywhere else, but i'll be done thursday and then i have to brew coffee (no one is getting starbucks on friday morning at 7 am when i have to get there...) and then i'm going back to the e! everyone is going to a party tonight (it's saturday). do they know that it's finals week? who am i kidding, i'll probably go and regret it while i'm there and regret it more tomorrow. pray for my self-control to kick in at any time here.

genetics is the worst class i have ever taken in my life. so i fill out my evaluation and i actually give the teacher bad scores (which i never do) and then she announces "well, some people read these but i've been on tenure for the past 15 years so what's it really matter." i hate her!!!! whyyyy are you wasting my time? you can't tell me about hardy weinberg or post-translational modifications a eukaryotic cell makes, AANNNDD you aren't even going to read my evaluation!?!? that was a lot of complaining, SIGH! maybe she's a good person. i better get an A.

g'bye for now! i did not proofread!

Where I'm From

The class I T.A. in for my Social Justice Living Learning Community had a really cool assignment the 2nd week of class called the "Where I'm From" poem; all of us wrote poems that involved smells, memories, loved ones, descriptions, phrases, etc. from our childhoods that we felt described where we come from and what we've experienced. I've been sitting on mine for a while, waiting to put it on here, and I finally decided (at 1:30am) that I should put it on for everyone to enjoy.

I'm also planning on sending this out via email with "instructions" to everyone about the process of writing them, so if you want to get those directions so you can write one and send it back to me, I'd be happy to add you to my list! :)


Where I'm From

I'm from hose water.
I'm from family bike rides, an old-fashioned popcorn-popper, and hand-me-down Barbies,
from Christmas Eve sleepovers with my big sisters on bunk beds with bunny sheets.

See, I'm from the North side-- no, no, NOT the West side-- the land of minivans and postcards, where winning games of T.V. tag was so important that the tips of our tongues would poke from our mouths as we tried to graze anyone with our fingertips.

I'm from frozen grapes and cinnamon toast,
the anticipation of snow day announcements from that little black portable radio,
from the salty taste of homemade green Playdough and a sanctuary lined with stained glass and welcoming handshakes.

I hail from a decade-sized performance stage with fluffy, stuffed audience members always begging me for an encore.
(Jelly bracelets, anyone?)
I'm from buckets at a summer camp that forever altered the isolating, self-interested woman I could have become...

I'm from educators with high expectations who owe the respect I gave them to my parents-- my first teachers.

"Please always remember and never forget..." [ILOVEYOU]

I'm from sisters...genetic or not. From two undiscussed divorces. From abandoned piano lessons and gymnastics.
Check the bottom right cupboard near the stove, right next to the raw spaghetti noodles that make great snacks.

I'm from a house-- no, a home-- full of staircase belly sliding or firefly catching and tears that come from laughing.
Or maybe from white Easter gloves and videotaped swim lessons (who rewatches those, anyway?!).

I come from red and yellow tulips, and fragrant grasshopper-green bars of soap in Grandma's downstairs bathroom,
from a momma who still cries when I give her a Mother's Day card, a daddy who sees his "peanut" as the building, wrestling tomboy-of-a-son he never had.

I'm from limitless encouragement splashed with a lack of understanding.
From an unquenchable thirst for something bigger than THIS-- than just a complacent, quiet cul-de-sac, complete with annual block parties.

I come from a twin bed in which I said a prayer each and every night:
Make those who are sad feel happy,
Make those who are sick feel better,
Help those who are homeless find a home.

The prayer of where I'm from seems naive, yes, and dismisses the complexity of this world.
I eternally blame it for my unshakeable, unconditional, unfailing optimism that makes me feel like we CAN do that-- all in time to get a good night's sleep for our next battle.

The Lone Poster.

(That's me!)

I've given up hope that anyone else will carry this, but as long as I have access to internet and a long list of things to do that I am putting off, I will not lower my standards to meet those drooping (dead?) blog standards of the other DMs here at DGCW.

Reading: Riding the Bus with my Sister, The Most Beautiful Book in the World, & ALL-- yes, that's right-- of my homework. (?!)
Listening: to loyolacauditions. (budump CHING!)
Watching: gleeeeee! I actually like Fox for that hour of every week. Oh, and giraffes.
Wearing: my heart on my sleeve. and lots of baby fluids on my clothes because of little michael.
Wanting: contemplation time?

Remember me bragging about my summer reading list? Ironically enough, I stopped reading mid-July. Regardless, my book total reached a whopping 13 by the end of the summer, not counting the several books I began but haven't yet gotten through. Here's my list:
1. This I Believe-- an AWESOME, AWESOME compilation of very short (talking 350 words) essays written by extraordinary "ordinary," as well as famous, people; the topic of every essay was the central belief in that person's life. It's based on an NPR program that started in the 50s. Check out the website: http://www.thisibelieve.org.
2. Einstein's Dreams-- this is a VERY quick read that imagines what kind of dreams and scenarios were running through Einstein's head just before his theory of relativity came out. Mind-boggling yet colored with emotion and personal stories!
3. Code Orange-- Caroline B. Cooney was one of my favorite authors back when I was a teeny-bopper (ha), so I thought I'd check out one of her newer books that my mom brought home from work (she works in a library, fyi). It's about some kid getting smallpox. I wanted to burn the book for, like, the first half, but the end is excellently cool.
4. A Thousand Splendid Suns-- I couldn't find enough words for this one if I tried. AWESOME. INCREDIBLE. PHENOMENAL. HEART-WRENCHING. yes, yes, yes. I am always blown away when a male author can so eloquently and accurately write about challenges of women in the world.
5. The Alchemist-- Oh, come on-- you all know how I feel about this. It's also an easy read (read it in a few hours, so seriously, it is) and it's loaded with wisdom for people attempting to make important life (and perhaps lifeSTYLE) choices. I eat this shit up.
6. The Laramie Project-- This one is my all-time favorite play, so I figured reading the book would vividly bring it back for me. It features real interviews from townspeople of Laramie, Wyoming right after Matthew Shepard (a gay college student) was murdered in a hate crime. (Is all murder hate crime, to some extent?)
7. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim-- David Sedaris. Need I say more?
8. How to Be a Pirate-- This little ditty was a beginner's chapter book that my mom nabbed for me a few years ago to humor my obsession with pirates. It was ok. The best part of the story is the main character discovered he was left-handed, and we ALL know (or should know after this sentence!) how I feel about left-handed people...if you are left-handed, I like you more than I liked the presumed-right-handed you.
9. The 101 Most Influential People Who Never Lived-- I recommend this book to anyone and everyone, ever, in the history of the world. I learned so much, I chuckled frequently, and each name is fairly short so you can read them with 5-10 extra minutes here and there. What a lovely presence in my life.
10. My Only Story-- I didn't have high expectations for this book because I paid for it entirely in coins from LUC's bookstore's bargain books section. It was SO touching, SO sad, but was all about personal growth and knowing oneself...It was the perfect time for me to read it. :)
11. The Glass Castle-- Oh my GOSH I loved this book. It is beautifully written, has a lot of very interesting undercurrents about education, healthcare and poverty, and it also stands as a counterexample to the horrible stereotypes that plague people living in poverty. I saw so much strength in this author and her family...And I still wonder about the glass castle, too. :)
12. Running With Scissors-- Augusten Burroughs, ladies and gentlemen! I hold him in an even higher esteem than I do David Sedaris, so that says a lot. This book was great, but I must confess I see short stories as his forte after reading this one. Enjoyable, regardless.
13. The Midwife's Apprentice-- The final book completed this summer was also a short one. It was a cute little tale, though, and of COURSE it was about following one's heart to do what makes one happy, and facing challenges that try to keep us from those passions we chase. Like I said, I'm such a sucker.

Anyone even get to the bottom of this?!