An achievement that was a long time coming

I can't help but announce it....for the first time EVER, I got all A's! Not a single A-, AB, B, or other wacky grade getting between me and a perfect 4.0. I am extremely excited, especially since my courses were difficult and I worked really hard at a university known for being difficult to achieve this!

Yes!!

On Love

Whenever I watch a romantic movie, I can't help but reflect on how wonderfully lucky I am to have met Ronnie. In this case, I just finished watch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (a Christmas gift from Mom and Dad!).

It is sometimes hard to take a step back and really appreciate everything that we have, especially when we are fortunate enough to see each other for several days at a time, such as it is now. He is an incredible man and even though we have been together for more than 6 1/2 years, there are always things he says and does that surprise me. I sincerely hope that in the near future we will see each other more often than once or twice a month, since Ronnie works only weekends and I work during the week. It is worth the wait to see him every time I come back home. I wouldn't trade what we have for anything, and I can only hope that we will be able to spend even more of our lives together. I think that few people are lucky enough to find themselves so much in love.

My Silly Family

I'm not sure if elsewhere in this blog I have taken the time to mention how hilarious my family can be. If I haven't yet, surely my family's idea of how the holidays should be celebrated will.

Tomorrow, Christmas Eve, is typically filled with tradition: wake up early and open one present each, stay in for most of the day and be lazy, and have a nice dinner at home. This year, however, my parents have decided that we should go out for a nice dinner. Plus, I don't think my mom wants to cook since everyone here is picky. Knowing that my dad is a "meat n' potatoes" kind of guy, and that my mom secretly always wants the family to go out for Mexican food, I had a good feeling that like always, despite individual tastes, we would head over to our normal fish fry Friday place in Racine, Chart Room Charlie's, or that we would order in pizza, etc. from DeRango's. However, I was mistaken. I could just about imagine the chicken tenders and the large serving of fries which accompany them at Charlie's when my dad said, "Why don't we go to the Golden Corral?" I looked at my mom, sure that she would laugh with me, since the "Corral" is not formal at all, and seems ridiculous replacement for an at-home meal with its buffet-style dining. Instead, she agreed wholeheartedly that it would be perfect. In no way do I mean to make fun of my family, but seriously, it is outright silly to think that the Golden Corral beat out The Olive Garden, DeRango's, DiCarlo's, Outback, and every other restaurant that Milwaukee County has to offer. Gosh I love my parents for being okay with dining at 1pm because, due to the holiday, the Corral closes at 4pm and we need to make sure we are all packed full of various types of meat and potato products before we even think about leaving.

Additionally, less weird, but still funny is the Christmas tradition of going to see a movie as a family (probably the one event everyone is here for each year). This year, though, instead of doing a fancy dinner as usual, we will be full from popcorn and other snacks at the theater, and will come home to consume an ice cream cake. Haha I fit in well with this family: popcorn = delicious, ice cream cake = omg super delicious.

Additionally, let it be known that I got an "A" in Latin! Only three more grades to receive...and my professor for my Peru Class told me that my paper was well-written (this was the 20-pager from hell...). Woo-Hoo!!

My Christmas List

This is a copy of the list I'm sending to my mom to help with ideas :)

• Curious Case of Benjamin Button DVD
• The Nightmare Before Christmas DVD
• Elf DVD
• #1s - Destiny's Child CD
  
• humidifier
• Harrius Potter 
• Emily Post's Etiquette book 
• Warm slippers

The end of fall semester

Wow. I cannot believe that I am only a five page paper and a Latin final away from being done with my final fall semester here at UW. In a little less than two weeks, Beth will be moving away to Chicago and Katie E might be moving in sooner than the date we had initially planned (January 15th). Caitlyn is also back from studying abroad and will be moving back in soon, which also means that Allison, perhaps the best subletter ever, will be leaving us. It is crazy to think that Beth is moving on to the real world in less than a month - I am really happy for her since it sounds like she got a job she wanted and will have her housing situation worked out soon!

As for me, I'm going home for break on Saturday and will return on January 3rd so that I can begin work as Sales and Marketing Manager for Mirabel and Muir Heights Apartments! I will have two full weeks of work before school starts, which will definitely help pay the bills :)

Only one semester left!

My last day being 21 years old

Today has been filled with ups and downs. Most of the downs are related to the awful weather which is set to outdo even last year's blizzard on my birthday.

9:30: Got ready and left for class. Of course, I made it to Latin only to find out that I couldn't find the translation I had written out for homework :(
11:30: Began work. There were a ton of postings, so it went by quickly. Rather than eating a junk food snack, I made a point to bring a healthy snack which is good!
2:00: Caught the 85 to class. It wasn't my favorite driver, but he was nice nonetheless. Also, overheard a girl complaining that her professor was making her exam a take-home essay due Dec 21st. She was saying that she was going to refuse to take it because it wasn't multiple choice. Ridiculous!
2:30: Went to Sami class. We finally did course evaluations, and the professor asked all of the seniors graduating in December to stand up and be recognized. What a nice guy; I'm going to miss this class! We watched a movie that we will finish Thursday. Yes!!!
3:40: Got our papers back...I got an AB! Not bad for a paper I hated writing.
4:45: Met up with Trent and saw 2012. We were about the only people crazy enough to be on the road. Apparently at Star Cinema you get free refills on any-sized popcorn! What a deal! lol I love things like this!
8:00: Went to Macy's and bought new snow boots and a cute sweater dress to wear out for my birthday. Unsurprisingly, I was the only person shopping at Macy's. Apparently they don't close until midnight, which is unfortunate for all of the employees since the weather is so awful.
9:00: Made it home, realized that the woman gave me the wrong pair of boots. Guess I have to go back tomorrow :(
10:00: Ticketed cars in the underground garage. Came back to find people throwing snowballs in the courtyard - most of which have been hitting the windows since. Kind of annoying :/

Let me say it now...If this year's birthday is a repeat of last year's....I will be really hurt. I only asked some of my closest friends to come to dinner (not even drinks), but it looks like since school was canceled tomorrow (for the first time that I can remember), this birthday may have similar results. I pray that at least my roommates can come. What a yucky day for a birthday...again.

Causes for Smiling

• The sound of rain
• Freshly-baked bread - both the smell and the taste!
  
• The scratchy feeling when a cat licks your hand
• Naughty Latin poems
• The sound of a chapstick cap being removed
• Christmas music
• Faux fur blankets
• Cream puffs
• Candles that smell like ginger, apples, and cinnamon
• The smell of old books
• Nighttime in the city - all of the lights!
• Apple cider
• Puppies and when they cuddle
• Towns that have little shops on streets with old fashioned street lamps
• Reflecting on childhood things once loved 
• Sitting by a fire
• Feeling grown up
  

Most especially:

• Having someone in my life that truly understands me and my quirkiness, and loves me no matter how silly I am
• My friends - they are amazing and I will be sad when everyone moves away
• My parents - no matter how goofy they are, I know they love me and will always be there for me
  

Ch-ch-ch-changes

The new photo atop my blog and the yellow background make me happy. :) Te gustan?

Overwhelmed and preoccupied

I am in the midst of researching human sacrifice in the Andes for my religion and power class and could not be more unenthusiastic. There is a plethora of information, but so much so that I hardly knew where to begin a few hours ago. I now find myself periodically checking my email and more often my facebook account to see if anything exciting has changed since my last check. I am fortunate enough to now find myself sitting in the Greek and Latin Reading Room (my secret study paradise on the 4th floor of Memorial Library) enjoying the room to myself, finally. I have been through all the stacks, searched endlessly for books regarding my topic, and come up short. Most are in Spanish, which though I fancy myself conversational, is no good for a well-written research paper. I have gone so far as to do my Ovid homework (Latin translations) rather than continue researching this horrendously broad topic. I cannot help but feel like even after a semester of learning about pre-Columbian societies, I am starting from scratch. Whereas my knowledge of ancient Greece is admirable, what I have taken away from this course has been unfortunately little.

I have been thinking about Greece a lot lately. I recently finished a book, borrowed from Kelli (of Iklaina - the excavation I participated in this summer): And Only to Deceive (Tasha Alexander). It was a short read (necessary for me to have begun it, given the burden of this term paper!) and mentioned Greece several times. It barely delved into ancient Greek history and myth, but it was enough to make me smile in recognition of the facts that were mentioned in passing. For the past few nights I have enjoyed dreams of Athens where I remember every street and dog, and also of Pylos, where I spent so much time with Lauren and Kelli (my closest friends during the dig). For the readers' enjoyment, here is a selection of some pictures from my travels this summer (more will follow soon, once school has ended, I hope!):

Temple of Apollo at Corinth

Mask of Agamemnon from National Archaeological Museum, Athens

A small dog waits on a rooftop for the sun to set in Oia, Santorini

Looking out toward an island from the edge of the Temple of Poseidon, Sounio

Lexie, Ethan, and I being statuesque at the sanctuary of Athena Pronaia, Delphi

Giving a column some love at Olympia

Ilyssa, Kate, Lauren, and I digging away at some Cyclopian architecture at Iklaina (IKAP)

 

Honey - fresh from the comb! It was brought to the site by local farmers!

If you are anxious to see more pictures, hold your horses! I have nearly twelve hundred. Ideally, I will post them when I find the time :)

My thoughts on work

I truly do love my job. Of course, being well past the initial fear of showing apartments to total strangers when I may or may not have even been in a certain model or unit, certainly helps. I guess that I was kind of surprised to find out that one of our leasing consultants is no longer with the company as of today. This is the third person to quit in two weeks. I completely understand if one doesn't like the job - I mean, you really do need to be outgoing and enjoy sales. But, on the other hand, when you decide to take a job here when you have another job in the works...why bother taking this job? I am not going to discuss the merits of working at JSM versus other institutions, but it seems like a huge waste of time to train someone who may be intending to take another job offer.

Also, something was said at work that I disagree with completely. It was, "Yeah, well, it's each family's choice to decide [if it wants to pay for college or make their kids pay for it themselves]." I could not disagree more! Trust me, if it were my family's choice, I know my mom and dad would want to help out. But, because there really isn't a choice, finance school myself, with (a ton of) help from my scholarship. I guess that I thought it was a ridiculous thing to say, since not everyone comes from a wealthy background, and also not something to say in front of a group whose backgrounds are diverse.

One step closer to graduation!

Today I signed up for classes for my final semester an undergrad! I only have two required Anthropology courses left to take and then a three credit Anthropology course of my choice. I am still waiting on my credit for my field school and elective credit to come through from this summer, which makes me nervous. I'm still counting on those six credits so that I don't have to take any more Anthro than I have to! I secretly dislike the major because it is so hard to find courses that actually interest me here at UW. Many of them are about American Indians and South American archaeology, which is really not my thing. Anyway, here is what I'm taking:

*Anthro 322 - Required - Origins of Civilization: Global archaeological survey of the origins of pristine civilizations beginning with the development of food production and ending with the emergence of the world's first civilizations. Focus of attention: Near East, Egypt, the Indus Valley, North China, Mesoamerica, and Peru.

*Anthro 490 - Required - Seminar: Archaeology and Cultural Heritage: No official course description, but I am very sure that it will be about Indians. :(

*Anthro 696 - Archaeological Methods of Curation: Practicum in the curation of prehistoric stone, bone, and ceramics. Involves handling materials, identification of artifacts, conservation techinques, preparation of materials for storage or display.

*Latin 204 - Introduction to Latin Literature: Translation of easy prose; analysis of English derivatives.

*Physical Education 132 - Weight Training: Basic knowledge and principles relevant to physiology of strength, power, and muscle endurance considered to achieve specific goals. Specialization permitted after eight weeks of program.

No use crying over burned lasagna

So I thought that I would be adventurous and make lasagna that would be ready to eat before the new show "V" was over. I did everything right: I went to the store on Sunday to get everything, I layered the sauce, ricotta, mozzarella, and lasagna noodles as the directions explained. I had the oven preheated to 375 degree, double-checked that the noodles didn't need to be boiled, and set the timer for 90 minutes. Allison opened the oven with 40 minutes left and told me to check it because it looked burned. I did, and lo and behold, it was burned to a crisp. I tried to take a bite, and was extremely disappointed to find that my labor had been in vain: it was inedible. The sauce was likely was moistened the noodles since there was no sauce in any of it, except for the top, where it was burned along with the uppermost layer of cheese. It is hard not to feel stupid when you work hard to make something delicious and you fail. :(

In better news, the pilot of V has been good so far.

Gettin hot in Helen C.

Today was a very long day! After work I came home and ate dinner before heading to APO. I may not have mentioned it here, but I have an online chat session every Monday from 7-8pm, which is incredibly inconvenient given that APO runs from 7:30-8:30pm. I simply bring my lappy to the meeting, which may seem rude, but it's the best compromise I could come up with. Anyway, after APO I went to the Big-Little Party where we had to essentially play The Newlywed Game with our littles. Oops. Maybe I should have met with them prior to this. Needless to say, it did not go very well and I ended up looking silly. I probably should not have allowed myself to be given two littles whose schedules are completely opposite mine. At least they understand. To return to the point, I have been at good ol' Helen C. since the rootbeer float social that was our Big-Little Party.

I am very frustrated. I was "elected" to drive to Duluth for APO. I found out tonight who would be in my car, and what do you know, it was all people I have said no more than a few words to since their joining APO. Awesome. I managed to convince Hilary to change it around a little so that the 6 1/3 hour car drive would not be completely silent, but I don't think she was happy about it. I was already unhappy about being volunteered to drive and being assigned people to be in my car, and so when I was told that we would not be assigning rooms prior to leaving, that was it. As thrilled as I am to drive immediately after working 9-5 and arriving around midnight, I will get last choice of rooms. All I want is to get as much homework done as I possibly can before Monday. As fun as it will be to meet all of the people from the other chapters, I need to keep on top of my homework and readings and not fall behind. So when the list of people going was snatched from my hand when I admitted that I was looking for those who might also want to enjoy a quiet room free of partying, I was upset. I understand that we should bond and perhaps room with members who we might not know that well. I believe, however, that if I want to get homework done (since I obviously can't while driving), then it seems logical to find people who have a similar goal and share a room with them, rather than showing up and filling in the spaces of empty beds/the floor. APO has been more than frustrating this semester, and I think that I will go associate next semester simply because I will be even busier than I am now (if that is even possible).

I need to get just a little more homework done to call this library trip a success... :)

Not Forgotten

Thought it has been a long while since anything has been written here, I must admit that I have not forgotten or purposely neglected it. Rather, I have been holding my cards tight to my chest. As graduation nears, I wonder if it is a good idea to continue to allow my blog to be public, or if I should make it private. Should you one day log on to see that you must ask permission to read it, I appologize now. There are simply too many people nowadays who abuse information (like that contained in my blog) for personal gain.

That being said, I am excited to go to the pumpkin patch this weekend with the roomies! Yesterday Allison and I went and saw a late-night showing of The Hangover. It was nice to get out and doing something. Plus, I'm always up for movie theater popcorn. :) We are going to the same farm that Katie and I have gone to for the past two years. It's too bad that she's in Costa Rica, but Liz and I are working on a little package to send her way. I'm also sending Cait (who is currently in Peru) a "pumpkinito." I have no idea what the Spanish word for pumpkin is, other than remembering that it sounded something like "cabeza." Oh well - I like pumpkinito (little pumpkin) better.

Now that the semester is in full swing, I am desperately trying to keep caught up in all of my classes. I have done well so far, but since all of my classes are essay rather than exam-based, it means I have a LOT of reading. We were already warned that although we do not have Pompeii class on Wednesday, we have to essentially read the rest of one of our two text books. Gulp.

I received a book in the mail from Lauren, who I met on the dig in Pylos, Greece. She got it from Kelli, who was also on the dig. We set up a sort of book exchange, and once I finish this book, I get to send it back to Kelli along with a book of my choosing. I love it. Now let's just see if I have the time for it!

Tonight we are having a few people over before we go out and celebrate the end of the week. I have decided to make delicious jell-o shots. Orange jell-o? Check. Malibu? Check!

Quiet Time Fun

Today I am out at Muir Heights for an open house. I worked here Monday and Tuesday before classes began on Wednesday, and I am closing out the week in this sweet mini-office. For the sake of having unlimited time on my hands, I feel the urge to describe how my classes went.

Wednesday, 9:55am, Latin
-Being excited for a new round of Latin learnin' I showed up and sat down next to Ashley M, friend and apartment neighbor, and now table neighbor. I looked around and realized that I probably should have signed up for the other section since Blaise and the nice girl whose name I can't recall ended up TA Matt's section. Unlike their meager 15 person class this semester, mine is full and comprised of random people who I do not yet know, which is frustrating when it comes time for partner work since each of them already knows each other. Latin, overall, was brief and not too painful.

Wednesday, 4pm, Pompeii (Art History 505)
-Walked in to find that this class was held in a conference room. Interesting. A lot of art history majors (go figure) who probably expected to learn art were there. As Cahill announced after one girl introduced herself and her enthusiasm for learning about the art history of Pompeii and Herculaneum, "There won't be much of that here." This class is primarily about archaeology, which is why I took it. Not to mention that there are no exams :) This is a two hour course with more people than chairs. Oh boy.

Thursday, 9:55am, Latin
-Much of the same. I met with Professor Beneker at the Union prior to class which, paired with the construction behind the Education building, caused my tardiness. I ended up grabbing the last chair. I noticed that everyone sat in completely different seats than those they had sat in on Wednesday. It irked me.

Thursday, 2:30pm, Sami Class (Scandinavian Studies 443)
-This class was packed when I arrived at 2:20pm. So the first day always is, and as the semester progresses I need not worry about having to make five people stand up so I can get to the middle seat of a row, which is the only variety of seat remaining. Natalie M is in this class. She brought her laptop and made me long for mine - my ten cent Target notebook looked so....old-fashioned compared to her laptop with keyboard silencer. I'll get over it. I wonder if reindeer tastes like venison.

Thursday, 5pm, Peru Class (Anthro 310: Power and Religion in Pre-Colombian Andes)
-I had the unfortunate luck of having this class in the same room as my Sami Class. Let's just say that after an hour and fifteen minutes of sitting alone in the classroom I was chilly and anticipating the start of this class. At five minutes to five, I noticed that there were only four other students sitting in the room. Finally, by 5pm the entire class was there - all thirteen of us. The two hour lecture dragged on, and by the end only five of us remained. Again, no exams, which is excellent. I have no intention to drop this class.

Well, there it is. My first week in a nutshell. I have no class on Friday which is why I'm out here at Muir Heights replacing air fresheners, playing on facebook, bloggin', showing apartments, and cleaning toilets. Good times. Now I'll do what I have been planning to do since noon: study for the GRE! Only 16 hours away!

Terrace before Turnover

Tonight Beth and Liz and I went to the Terrace after curb shopping for furniture. It was one of the first times since the three of us have been here that we all went out. Curb shopping meant driving around near Breese, Mifflin, Doty, and Gorham looking for furniture which would not be gross or potentially bed bug infested. Needless to say, we found none which suited our high standards.

We ended our journey by driving down Langdon figuring that coasties would have good stuff to put on the curb, but were disappointed and ended up at the Terrace. A pint of Strongbow and a smal bag of popcorn later, and we met up with Megan and some of her friends. One of them is about to go to Costa Rica, on the same trip Katie E. is taking. I'm really going to miss her (Katie E).

We decided after slightly more than an hour and a half that having been poorly nourished by the small bag of popcorn I consumed and Liz and Beth having had nothing to eat, that McDonalds would be a delicious decision. Nugs it was! It was very nice of the tallest man working there to offer Liz and I a free vanilla shake and a carmel sundae. We were grateful, and Beth was not disappointed, having herself ordered a sundae. Overall, the night was wonderful, but would have been made better by Ronnie having graced us with his presence (though driving from Milwaukee to come out for only but a short while is much more than I would expect, especially having given no previous notice).

Finals Week: not as bad as I make it out to be

I only have two finals so I shouldn't complain about being stressed. But I am. Right now. I've had so much due this week that I am almost numb. I wrote two huge papers and gave a presentation on X-Ray Fluorescence and how I used it at the Chazen to analyze the composition of Roman coins. If I were a Roman history expert, this paper would have been a breeze. Alas, I am not, and I spent the last few days this week learning about Constantine I, Gratian, Constantius II, Arcadius, Honorius, Valentinian, etc. Also, because it seems to happen to me whenever I go to Memorial Library and visit the secret 4th floor study area that requires a key, it rained.

Ronnie made me feel really good today and yesterday. It was nice to have him offer to help me any way that he could with my huge paper on coins, and also have him appologize for not putting my checks in the bank and offer to do it tomorrow. Warmness and fuzziness burgeon within me when he is so sweet.

I am getting extremely excited to go to Greece. In about two weeks I'll be in Athens! Woot!!

We had our Classics Reception on Thursday where I was formally awarded my scholarship (the Gertrude E. Slaughter Fellowship for Study Abroad). There will be pictures to follow!

This is also breaking news: I got an iPod Touch! I've been saving up all of the Target gift cards I've gotten all year at work and used them to buy the 16g model. How much did it cost me out of pocket? $1.49. Amazing.

I cleaned my room, finished A Thousand Splendid Suns (which I found less interesting than the Kite Runner though I like the character development), and am planning to leave the living room in general disarray by means of library books everywhere. It's been a pretty good day. Cait's dad stopped by. It was nice seeing him again - he is hilarious and reminds me a lot of my own dad.

MYOD

American Apparel is now offering a dress that you can customize to look six different ways, using different colored straps (sold separately).

I thought that sounded interesting since since of the pictures of the dress looked like pieces of fabric were missing, but the dress was able to be switched into different "looks." I guess this is how is works:

1) Pay $38 for the "Le Sac" Dress - the name gives it away
2) Like the photos on the left and right, take a marker and decide where you want it to end. Then, using a scissors cut the dress.
3) After you've done that, wear it and hope that it doesn't look like you bought the fabric at JoAnn's and spent five minutes cutting and sewing it at will.
4) Buy it in different colors, at $38 each. And then buy a three pack of straps for $24.

Here is the website:
http://store.americanapparel.net/rsa0300.html

Happy 1st Anniversary, Blog!

Sometime around now marks the one year anniversary of my blog. Yay! To celebrate, here is a random grouping of stories:

*Today I was awarded an $800 scholarship by the UW Classics Department! It is the Gertrude E. Slaughter Scholarship, and it will be formally awarded on May 7th at the End of Year Reception held at the University Club. I'm extremely excited!

*I ate a Milky Way for the first time ever today and hated it.

*I often think about the awful headlines given to stories in the Badger Herald and feel superior
(examples today: "Over 18,000 brave storms for Crazylegs" which lacks a subject, and "OK Go rock in finale of All -Campus Party" which makes the band seem plural).

*I had an amazing weekend, which I will elaborate on later this week when I do not feel rushed

*I really want Hilary to win president of APO tonight. She deserves it!!

*Tonight is Caroline's birthday so I'm meeting her at the Nitty! :)

I did it

I talked to Ronnie about "us."

I voiced all of my concerns about being in a relationship that, if we stay together, might leave me feeling lonely. He stressed to me that he had known this was coming for a long time, and that he is okay with it, though surprised that it took me so long to figure out that things just weren't the way they used to be. My problem is that I am an eternal optimist and never thought realistically about the potentially married "us." I plan on traveling, going on family road trips, and going to new places. He seems to be more of a homebody and is perfectly content staying in, and would prefer it over "wasting" money on a trip. It seemed like even if our relationship reached fruition, we would still be different people wanting different things.

So here I am now, officially not in a relationship, not seeing anyone, and trying hard not to look back and regret telling him that I'm just not in it anymore. I know it is for the best, for both of us. I want to be in a whole relationship. Not somewhere between "it's complicated" and "we're kind of together, but not dating." I want the romance, the love, and the companionship. I want someone who will kiss me all the time and miss me when I'm gone. In no way do I mean any slight against Ronnie. I think that what we had was incredible, but it petered out, and we have been left trying to balance long-distance with all of the changes that come with growing older.

He asked if we should consider dating other people and I said yes. The prospect of dating other people is daunting, but I think that good will come of it.

Caitlyn and I are headed to a movie to help me get my mind off of it.

April seems to have flown by

What a crazy, busy month this has been! I have been working my normal schedule at JSM, plus I decided to play bass guitar again for Humorology. We began practicing a bit later than we did last year, which means that the barrage of lengthy Humo practices seemed to blindside me. For the past few days I have been trying my best to do my homework during practices, since I have been waking up for class, then going to work, coming home to change, and then going to Humo until 11 or midnight. I am definitely looking forward to just hanging out tomorrow and doing nothing. I plan to sit down by the lakeshore path and get a nice tan, watch the boats, and maybe even go on a little canoe trip. We'll see. It's nearly 4:30am and I have Humo in about 25 hours. It will be the final show, so I might even go buy a new shirt to wear. We'll see.

I also had Relay for Life tonight, which made the night seem extremely long. I stayed until about 3am or so, because by then everyone else from APO had been gone for almost forty-five minutes or more.

I've been really thinking about Ronnie and I lately and what we "are." Techincally we're not dating, but we're not-not dating, so I guess you could say we're on a break. But what's a break? I'm not sure that I could define a break, since neither Ronnie nor I seem to be able to define it well. I've been trying to picture myself doing the things I like to do and aspire to do, and lately I'm having a hard time picturing him even wanting to do any of those things. Like going to the beach, hanging out at a bookstore or library, dancing, going out on the town, going on vacation, taking a road trip, and going to concerts/movies/performaces. It's not to say that we haven't done some of these things before, but we don't do them together nearly as often as I'd like. I guess that I'm just trying to be realistic. It's just taking a lot of time to sort everything out for myself, and I don't want to do anything rash just because I'm feeling lonely. Gosh I wish he'd come up!

Why I get up each morning

I thought I would share with you all the things I look forward to each day (literally). Here goes:

Monday

• Nothing in particular as Monday is a crumby day
• Facebook, playing Food Friendzy and Fish Wrangler (a new game I've decided I like)
  

Tuesday

• Latin lecture with the unforgettable Professor McKeown
  
• Watching "The Biggest Loser" and rooting for whoever seems to be the nicest and most sincere
• Classics Society meetings (bi-weekly) which are always interesting...!
• Knowing that I can stay up late (past 11pm, if I'm feeling particularly reckless)
• Facebook, playing Food Friendzy and Fish Wrangler (see a recurring theme?)
  

Wednesday

• The one hour break I get between two of my classes
• Being able to sleep in
• The potential to get out of class before 5pm
• Facebook, playing Food Friendzy and Fish Wrangler
  

Thursday

• Having the weekend in sight!
• One word: Survivor
• Going out/catching up with friends
• Work
• Not having Latin homework due
• Facebook, playing Food Friendzy and Fish Wrangler
  

Friday

• Friday ipse!
• Not having Italian
• Again, not having Italian. It's a lot of work and meets four times a week.
• Work
• Being able to relax
• Facebook, playing Food Friendzy and Fish Wrangler

Saturday

• Sleeping in
• Perhaps going to a movie and eating delicious movie theater popcorn
• Catching up on readings
• Reading for pleasure
• Facebook, playing Food Friendzy and Fish Wrangler
  

Sunday

• Doing nothing, usually
• Being able to go on an extended bike ride
• Facebook, playing Food Friendzy and Fish Wrangler

It doesn't take a lot to get me excited about the day, as you can see!

Top 25 Gaming Hunks

I thought I would share this with you all since it is perhaps the worst list I've ever seen. Some of the more ridiculous characters include:

#13 - Kratos from God of War

Sexy? Probably not.


#11 - Brett Favre
Um...isn't he IRL?


#2 - Zac Efron??
He's not even in a game!

So who was lucky number one? Captain Jack Sparrow, which is apparently in a Pirates of the Carribean game. Quite a disappointing list. I mean, if we're going to pull from images of characters that aren't in games, where was Yami Yugi? I was glad to see that Squall made the list. That was about the only thing I was happy to see when reviewing this list. They even put Link on there, comparing him to Legolas since "women love elves." And the Master Chief...I've never seen him out of his armor - how can he even be on the list?!

I would say that you shouldn't spend your time reading this list, but it is so ridiculous that you have to! Now!

Stuff I just couldn't leave out

I just realized that the every-handsome Justin Berfield is younger than Frankie Muniz. For those who were not obsessed like I was, the former played Reese on Malcolm in the Middle, and the latter played Malcolm. There's a two year age difference between them. Crazy!

I want to meet The Ataris some day. When I was in high school, I went to Down on Haley, which used to be their official store. I bought some guitar picks while there, but even cooler than that was getting one of their actual drumsticks for myself and for Katie K. According to IMDB, "The Ataris used to run a record store in Santa Barbara called 'Down on Haley'." Notice the past tense? I'm guessing it doesn't exist anymore.

Finally, I just have to point out how ugly leggings paired with a short shirt can be. I thought it was a faux pas last year, but apparently it's ok now. I'm tired of seeing the outline of vags all day. This article explains it all perfectly. I'll put up some pictures if I can find any, though I personally wouldn't want to be caught wearing leggings as pants...

April - here comes the rain?

I cannot believe that it is about to snow again. I thought that we were always told to expect showers, which would eventually bring flowers. I guess not.

On April 1st I managed to find a houseplant that suitably replaces my long-dead banana plant. I don't actually mean to say that my plant produced bananas, but rather, its leaves were long and spotted with yellow. It was a Croton, and on my most recent trip to Sentry I managed to find a similar Croton. So I bought it and repotted it yesterday with glee.

The first picture on the left is a perfect example of my "banana plant" which I had to finally get the strength to throw away (it died sometime during Thanksgiving Break because I didn't water it before I left). The second on the left is a decent example of my new plant, but the rich, colorful lines in the picture are unlike the bright, unmistakable mottled leaves on mine. Like I told Beth, it was an April Fool's Day miracle that I found a plant that was similar to my banana plant. I also found out that these are some of the most difficult houseplants to maintain....we'll see how long this one lasts!

Yesterday I took myself to a movie at Market Square. Katie and Trent went there earlier this week and mentioned that it was cheap - and it was! It was only $3 to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I wish I would have read the book since the story was captivating. I loved it. I can't help but find myself looking for stories that will have such a profound effect on me as this movie did. Here is what is in my Amazon.com shopping cart: A Separate Peace (John Knowles), The Wedding (Nicholas Sparks), and A Thousand Splendid Suns (Khaled Hosseini).

I am behind on keeping up with John Grisham, since I have spent the last few years catching up on books I have always meant to read. In case you were previously unaware, I have been trying my best to keep an updated list of every book I have ever read. To date, I have 208 books on the list. I have tried to think back and remember the books I read when I was younger, an some of them are on this list too. One day, I hope to read The Count of Monte Cristo, which is still one of the best movies I have ever seen.

A while back, my mom's coworker mentioned the website ColorQuiz.com. I kind of forgot about it, but took the quiz today. I never do these things or take them seriously, but this one was freakishly accurate. Oh how I love to procrastinate! It is so much better than writing an Italian paper! Here were the results:

Your Existing Situation

"Creative and emotional, looking for ways to further expand those qualities. Looking for a partner who enjoys the same activities. Seeking adventure and new and unusual activities."

Your Stress Sources

"Feels empty and isolated from others and wishes to overcome this feeling. Believes life has more to offer her than what she was experienced thus far, and doesn't want to miss out on anything. she purses all her goals and dreams, fearful that any missed opportunity will cause her to miss out on even more. Quickly becomes an expert in any field she pursues and can sometimes come off as overbearing and nosy."

Your Restrained Characteristics

Current events leave her feeling forced into compromise in order to avoid being cut off from affection or future cooperation.

"Current situation makes her feel unable to prove herself, but tries to make the best of things."

"Insists her hopes and ideas are realistic and achievable, but needs encouragement and support. Her self-centeredness can cause her to take things too personally."

Your Desired Objective

"Highly optimistic and outgoing personality. Loves to learn new and exciting things, and craves new interests. Looking for a well-rounded life full of success and new experiences. Does not allow herself to be overcome with negative thoughts or self-doubt. Takes life head on, with enthusiasm. "

Your Actual Problem

Is afraid she will be held back from obtaining the things she wants leading her to act out with a hectic intensity.

Your Actual Problem #2

"Fights resistance or limitations, and insists she is free to develop in her own way. Rewarded by accomplishing things on her own, with little to no help from others."

Woot defines me

So today marks the start of my second-ever Woot-off. I have to admit that with all of the work I have to do, I am slightly less enthusiastic about impulsively spending my money on things I "need." Regardless, the HP touchscreen portable desktop (no, it's not a laptop) which is best described as "the giant mutant freak of iPhones" had a description that I feel fits me well:

"Are you like me? My home office isn’t an office at all. It’s just my favorite end of the couch in the common room, where the light’s good and the cushion’s broken in to fit my sittin’ parts."

Yeah. I like working in the living room. Is it because my room is messy? Probably. Is it because I never grew up with a desk in my room, have not once done homework in my room (with the exception of the dorms), and am really not used to it? Most likely. Thought I would share that.

I am in the midst of reading "High Noon" by Nora Roberts. An enthralling story, it has begun to wear on me. It is written in tiny font and has over 450 pages. If it were a movie, it would have to be divided into parts to get everything in. But, I guess, if it were a movie, most of the details would be left out anyway.

Today I posted showing notices with Cait (who came with to better learn the Mansion Hill area, despite not having to work today), and we stopped at Pinkus McBride Deli to get sodas. We were both excited to see that they offered a soda fountain, and I proceeded to fill my 32 oz. cup with Pepsi. Cait, however, went to get Mountain Dew and the fountain went crazy! None of the sodas worked! We thought that they might need to restock their carbonated water, and were surprised to learn that as a result of the city shutting of the water on that block, their machine would not function properly. I took this to mean that it must use tap water to mix with the soda syrup and create delicious fountain beverages. Trust me, Madison tap water will leave a film on anything, and I like to think that my stomach is ulcer-proof as a result of the protective coating of calcium it has established.

I think that when I graduate I would like to move somewhere warm. I love the southwest, and would love to live there (assuming I could find employment in such a location), but I still want to be near water. I love being able to ride my bike and go to the pretty, albeit stinky, lake. I guess what I'm saying is that I am tired of the cold.

Mashed Potatoes Fail

I guess I just stink at making mashed potatoes, and must come to accept it. Rather than using heavy whipping cream like several recipes online suggested, I went with milk, like my mom insisted I use the last time I made them. Again, they tasted weird. They still tasted like cream, rather than potatoes. Since milk makes me feel icky, I know that I didn't use too much. This time around, I think I let them get too soggy. They even smell funny. I just let Cait have a taste and she loves them.

Not "Boogerface"? Yeah, ok...

For the longest time I thought that Lady Gaga was singing about a booger face. Apparently all this time she has been singing about a poker face. Here are the lyrics below, which are easy to mishear.

P-p-p-poker face, p-p-poker face
(Mum mum mum mah)
P-p-p-poker face, p-p-poker face
(Mum mum mum mah)

I'm not a fan, so I have found every radio-aired song of hers annoying thus far. For a while though, I did find myself turning up the volume to make sure I was hearing correctly. Apparently I wasn't!

I'm really excited about having orientation for my Athens program on Friday! I already know a bunch of people going, so it will be nice to see everyone else who I've not yet met!

Bike, Hike, and The Game

Right now, President Obama is on 60 minutes talking about the economy. Like I've told Ronnie time and time again, most of economic policy is so far above my head that I find little of it interesting. I made sure to clean the apartment, pick up my stuff in the bathroom before Cait gets back, and start hanging my clothes up so that I could watch the Amazing Race. I'm addicted to game shows, and in a way it is like a game show. How? I don't know, but it is. Maybe this makes me a bad American, but I'd really like it if Obama could stop talking about the financial crisis so that I could enjoy tv. I know, I'm terrible. But I cleaned to watch it! Someone call him and tell him the Amzing Race is on! EDIT: It turns out that I'm lame and did not realize that the entire CBS schedule got pushed back on account of the NCAA games. I'm out of it, apparently.

Today I woke up at 10am, read one of my books for Anthro 300, and decided to check my email/facebook/cnn.com/fmylife.com/failblog. About an hour later (I always get sucked in when I go online) I found myself putting on my new old navy shorts and shirt and tieing my brown shoes before getting on my bike. I packed a backpack with a jacket and my phone, keys, and ID in it, just in case. I even wore a helmet since I knew I would be crossing Regent St and possibly other busy thuroughfares.

I began my journey by heading south down the bike path. I was surprised to find that no one else was wearing shorts. What can I say? I'm simply excited about spring. I passed an old man with two beagles that barked at everyone who passed them, including a little boy who subsequently fell off his bike. The man walked with his back bent, offered to help him up, and seemed truly sorry that the boy fell. After slight hesitation and brushing off his pants, the boy was back on his bike and pedaling quickly down the path. I continued on without interruption until I decided to veer off the trail and head down to Lake Wingra, like Steph and I did freshman year. I managed to find my favorite little "village" off of Monroe, just the other side of Edgewood, and delighted in all of the families and people that were milling about. It is fun to see kids having fun and watching them revel in the new opportunities Spring ushers in. I rode down to the same pier that Steph and I stopped to take pictures near, and discovered a hidden foottrail. I took off my helmet, locked up my bike, and started down the path.

I cannot begin to describe how beautiful the path was. I walked with my helmet clipped onto the right strap of my corduroy backpack, with it grazing the taller plants that stuck out onto the somewhat muddy path. I should have worn my old tennis shoes instead of my nice suede pair since the mud was black, and a lot like a black hole. Every few feet I would find myself looking for a safe place to step as my previous step slowly caved in. My favorite part of the entire path was when I encountered a small brook with stepping stones connecting the path. From then on, the majority of the path was planks slightly above the ground. I managed to only see one person on the path, which made me consider that walking by myself in the woods was probably not a brilliant idea, even during the day. I turned around after I stumbled across a seemingly dead end and started looking forward to the delicious custard that would be awaiting me back near Wingra Park. I did fear that my bike would not be there when I returned, though it was there, of course. Sometimes I'm a worrywart. I passed many of the same kite-flying kids and the couple sitting on the dock, oblivious to the wind that often comes along with being near a lake, and made my way to the stand. By then, my legs were starting to get chilly, so I opted to eat my Bavarian thin mint ice cream inside, secretly envying the families who thought to wear jeans.

On the ride back, I decided that it might be to my advantage to get my bike inspected before the triathlon in April. Upon doing so, the staff pointed out that the sidewalls on both tires were nearly done for. They were less than 10 miles away from having the tubes burst out. I ended up having both replaced, for $56. I had the bigger tires switched out for smaller ones, which made a huge difference even on the one block ride back to my apartment.

Beth and Caitlyn have not gotten back to me so I have no idea when either one will be here. Oh well. I kind of want to see The Game at the Majestic but I have a feeling that I would end up feeling out of place, and I don't really have $30 to drop on a concert ticket. :(

Saturday Night and Trees

Since I have had ample free time, I decided to explore my culinary expertise and make things from scratch. So what did I end up making? Homemade mashed potatoes and an alcoholic beverage, an "orangesicle." Neither one turned out, but that's ok. Here is the drink recipe - I think it needs to be tweaked a little to taste delicious:

1 1/2 oz Bacardi® orange rum
1 1/2 oz cream
1/2 oz orange juice

The mashed potatoes probably would have tasted better had I used milk instead of heavy cream, which the recipe suggested I use. The texture was perfect, but they tasted like cream. It was not so delicious, so I ended up throwing out an entire pot full of potatoes. So it goes.

I think that trees are really pretty and can add a lot to a home. That's why I think that everyone who owns a home should pay $10 and become a member of the Arbor Day Foundation. When you become a member, you get 10 free trees (or you can elect to have them donated to a park), as well as a discount on their other products. All of their trees ship for $5 flat, and few trees are more than $15 (even without a membership)! They are all generally 2'-4' high when shipped. You can even give trees as wedding favors! I got a tiny pine tree back in 4th grade and now it's 5' tall!

My 100th post

So I've been in Madison since late Wednesday night in order to work Thursday and Friday. It was actually a lot of fun filling in for Jenny, who had a class all week. It seems that I'm the only person in Madison, so I decided that Thursday night I would take myself to a movie. I've done it before, so it wasn't weird or anything. I went and saw Coraline and bought a popcorn and Coke. I had a lot of fun! Weird movie though...

Yesterday, Friday, I decided that I would take myself to dinner. I went to the ever-classy Pizza Hut bistro. I got breadsticks and cheese pan pizza. The servers gave out free samples of chocolate dippers, which is essentially chocolate spread onto pizza crust, which sounds not so delicious. It was amazing. I don't think I'll ever buy it, but it made for a nice appetizer before my food came! The only thing that made me pause was the first few seconds upon entering the restaurant - the hostess said, "Table for one?" and I kind of felt bad for myself, being alone. I realized though, that I am, and always have been, able to have fun by myself, and do not necessarily need someone with me to go out and do something (though it is nice to have company!!).

Here are the classes I'm thinking about taking next semester: third semester Latin, Anthro 490 (artifact recording and analysis), Anthro 321 (Emergence of Human Cuture), Art History 505 (Cities of Vesuvius: Ancient Pompeii & Herculaneum). It's only 13 credits, but I only need 12 to graduate. Since I'm on scholarship and applying to grad school, it is to my advantage to take the spring semester to get ahead in my studies before grad school. Hopefully that will be somewhere warm!

Here's what I really wanted to get to: There's something going on with my friends from high school, and I don't know what's happened. Here's the background: Jenny got engaged and now lives back in Oak Creek. Dianah lives near enough to Oak Creek that she often hangs out with Jen. Erica goes to Parkside and I assume lives at home. I understand that the three of them are close, but I have been trying to get a hold of Dianah for a while now, without success. I guess I just wonder what happened, and why my texts, phone calls, and fb messages haven't been returned. Living out in Madison makes me kind of distant, which is why I assume Dianah and I lost touch over the past year. It would just be nice to know what happened between us since I miss her.

I actually called Jenny's house today. Why? I don't have her cell number, and I'm worried that having not spoken to her, Erica, or Dianah for a while that it will look like I'm trying to "get in" on her wedding. I know that that's an awful thought, but it seems legitimate. I mean, think about it: talking to someone you haven't spoken to since high school, trying to hang out with you or one of your close friends (Dianah) after you've announced your engagement. Looking back it seems really dumb to worry about. If I don't hear back from either one, I'm going to stop worrying about trying to reconnect with D. :/

I really miss Liz!

Briefly...I should be writing a paper....

So I decided to take a break from researching so that I can write my paper for anthro 311 (archaeological chemistry). I will try to write fewer than ten words about each point of interest. Why? Because it sounds like a fun challenge, and if I'm taking a break, I should make it interesting.

• I began reading The Kite Runner last night - wow.
  
• I am slightly addicted to Survivor.
• I am slightly disappointed by this season's Apprentice - booorrring.
• My lab report is incomplete because I took poor notes.
• My paper is not finished because I am still conducting research.
• I am anxious to come home, but I love Madison.
• I do not like all of the changes Facebook makes.
• My shorter hair is hard to get used to.
• The Palermo's pizza I ate for dinner was not delicious.
  

Unrealistic expectations

I'm beginning to wonder whether or not I have unrealistic expectations about what love is and how romance should be. The book I'm reading now has really changed how I perceive what is right and acceptable by the standards of a culture versus how one feels and behaves. Maybe I need to lighten up and be more casual when it comes to being with Ronnie. I've been so concerned that "other people" might look down on me, that I've completely overlooked the fact that no matter what happens outside our relationship, I really want to be with him right now. It's been difficult lately because I often become obsessed with titles and what our status on facebook appears to be, which I know is petty.

I look back and remember coming home for winter break and how wonderful it was. It was more carefree because neither of us had the time to invest and we both admitted it. I feel like we were constantly holding hands and sneaking kisses behind every corner. We felt much closer then and nothing has really changed since then, other than my worry over titles. It was a lot of fun and I was much happier then than I am now. I guess that I will try my best to stop worrying about how other people see us and concentrate more on us. I want to be with him. No one else.

Exams, impending Spring Break, and a romance novel

That is what my life this week consists of. I am trying very hard to stop compulsively check my email and facebook in hopes that something new has changed, though the thought of this looming research paper is weighing down on me. I secretly enjoy writing papers, and always have, which is why I think I ended up on the humanities rather than the science side of college. I have a hard time beginning a lengthy paper because once it is started, I know that it won't be long (relatively) until it is over and I am without another paper ahead of me. On the other hand, for my cultural anthropology class I am required to study a cultural scene and write a huge paper for it, and I'm really excited to write that one. I chose to go to a Games Workshop type of place, but the one here in Madison has a variety of hobbies to pick up - I will primarily be studying those who play Dungeons and Dragons in the store. I will have to go back a couple of times, which is fine since I do have a car here. It's also nice not having to go to a random person's home to observe (some people in the course are studying people in situations that are just as intimate). My professor told me that I should consider picking up the hobby or at least learning the rules so that I can better observe. I told him that I would, tongue in cheek.

Here's the answer to the question most often heard on campus this week: Nothing. I am doing nothing for spring break. I am actually coming back to Madison early in order that I may work Thursday and possibly Friday for Jenny, who is the assistant property manager. At the least I will work one eight hour day, which will be nice. Though actually doing something for break, for once, would be nicer.

Sometimes I feel like the Latin I have learned has caused me to be even more critical of my own grammar, and sometimes leads to uncommon, though grammatically correct, sentences. I appologize if at any point my blog becomes unitelligable and causes major headaches. I cannot recall the last time I said "I forgot" as a response. Rather, I catch myself explaining that "it escaped me." O tempus fugit!

I have been reading before bed nearly every night, which is a nice return to the days when I was not so overwhelmed with schoolwork. I finished The Ghost (Danielle Steel) a while back and was hoping to pick up another historical fiction. I browsed and browsed and picked up and put down dozens of books until I finally found The Mistress Diaries (Julianne MacLean). I have read a fair amount of Danielle Steel - Wings, Lone Eagle, The House and most recently, The Ghost, but was very disappointed that the last two listed were very alike (same main character name, age, and appeal). I've read everything of John Grisham's work but for The Street Lawyer, The Appeal, and The Associate, though I tire of his works too. That's why I picked out a book and judged it by its cover, and picked an author with whom I am unfamiliar. So far this book is amazing, and I may consider reading more of her books.

ScribeFire

Okay so I'm a little nervous, but I'm finally using ScribeFire, which I downloaded quite a while ago so that my blog would be amazing. I guess I'll just continue as normal...

I'm feeling somewhat overwhelmed this week. I really shouldn't have gone home, but I did. I feel like Ronnie and I really needed to see each other, plus my mom was anxious to see me. This weekend is the start of Spring Break, so I guess I could have, and should have waited to go home. So it goes. Anyway, I have a huge research paper due (previously mentioned in an earlier post) and apparently the exam I thought was on Thursday got moved to tomorrow! Ah!

I also started receiving more information about the Athens trip! Katie and I will be roommates, which will be a relief. I don't mind rooming with someone random, but it's like a bonus getting to room with someone you know, and having shared a room with them before.

I'm still waiting for the official confirmation on Pylos. I don't know why I'm nervous about getting in, despite it being a first-come first-served program, but I am. I'm also nervous about coming up with the money for these trips. Without airfare I'm looking at about $8,000. Not to mention, I'll be paying rent in hopes that I'm able to come back in July and work for JSM (if there's work to be done). Fingers crossed!

Next year's housing situation is getting complicated [next year we are staying in the same apartment but two girls will be abroad in the fall and one might be gone in the spring]. For a brief time I considered moving in with Ashley, who lives next door and needs two more roommates, but I really can't afford $520/mo with just water included. With the plan I came up with for next year, I'll be paying $294/mo which is just fine with me, since I have to share a room. Trust me, next year might not be everything we hope it is since there were four of us last semester, three of us this semester, three and a sublettor next fall, and potentially five of us next spring, in a three bedroom apartment. We'll see...

JSM gets its 15 minutes!

The other day while distributing delicious candy-filled bags to potential residents on the corner of Charter and University for JSM, we were greeted by a company that sells shoes. Random, you say? Not exactly. Apparently the people that we met are traveling all over the world to get the word out about Tom's Shoes. They look to meet interesting people and take photos with them holding the Tom's Shoes shoebag and mini statuette (which they explained, but I cannot remember the significance of), and what could be more interesting than a giant red bird (Kelly), a duck (Jill), Kermit (Caitlyn), and his froggy lover (me)? Not much, I would argue. Here is the link to where we are featured on their blog. Below is the picture they took:

Snow - again??

I was just getting used to this lovely springtime weather when Mother Nature decided that she was just going to tease us all and bring back the snow. I am growing tired of the dreary mornings filled with snow on the ground, meaning that riding my bike is next to impossible. Even a few days ago when it was muddy I was happier. I guess I'm back to wearing my yucky winter shoes.

This weekend I went home. It was nice to be back - and I definitely surprised my parents when I was sitting at home reading when they got back from Sam's Club. My baby dog must have peed in the house about six times while I was home, which was naughty, but cute, since he only does that when he's really excited. My family and I went to Golden Corral on Saturday for lunch which was nice since I know my dad hasn't had much work lately. I swear we were served by Diego Luna. He had braces, but the Dirty Dancing charm was still there. Anyway, my dad was hilarious because he was the epitome of the "meat and potatoes" guy. He had chicken, catfish, steak, and cod, with a side of mashed potatoes and peach cobbler for dessert. Needless to say, I had a baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, a small salad (lettuce, lol) with Mandarin oranges, a small scoop of chocolate ice cream, four gummy bears, a packet of saltine crackers, spaghetti and sauce, pineapple tidbits, more Mandarin oranges, three onion rings, a tiny slice of apple pie, and a few tortilla chips. The mashed potatoes were amazing. They were probably my favorite part, unsurprisingly. Well, I guess that if you did not know that I began liking mashed potatoes this year, that would be surprising.

While home, I noticed that Mark Verhalen lost the primary for Oak Creek mayor, and Tommy didn't receive enough votes to move on to the election for alderman. I'm bummed about Tommy not making it, but it looks like he's going on a European tour, which will probably be more fun anyway! As far as the election for mayor goes, I really hope that Dick Bolender wins again. I can't stand what I've read of Dimity Grabowski through the common council minutes, and I think that Dick really has brought a lot of business into Oak Creek. (Not to mention a Sonic that has just been approved on Howell!). I just hope he wins the actual election!

I have a ton of stuff to do this week, including taking an exam for anthropology, writing a research paper on X-Ray fluorescence for my archaeological chemistry class, studying for a quiz on interesting case uses for Latin which is on Monday, and doing homework for Italian. I may not have mentioned it here, but I am taking Italian pass/fail so that I can better concentrate on my other three classes. I'm still getting an A in it (maybe I shouldn't have taken it pass/fail!) because it's not that bad after having ancient Greek, Spanish, and now Latin. But I think that if I stressed about making sure I did well in Italian, I would not be doing so well...really, I think so.

I'm really excited to watch the Amazing Race and the Apprentice tonight. I just hope that by 8pm tonight channel 15 (NBC) comes in. Gotta love digital....not.

P.S. My mom now has facebook. Updates will follow... ;)

Missouri - MI? MS? MO?

I know, I know, having been born in Missouri I should probably know the abbreviation for my own birth state. I just realized today that it is "MO," and thus I have now decided to finally commit it to memory. Today I turned in my application and $500 deposit for my Pylos program, which is run through the University of Missouri - St. Louis (UMSL). When it came to addressing the envelope I had to ask the mailperson what the appropriate abbreviation was, and that is why I now know it.

Along the same lines, Beth knew that she had once visited St. Louis, but did not realize that she had been to Missouri...:0

I forgot my love of Jessica McClintock dresses until Cait complemented me on my profile picture, which features me (when I was still a size zero!) in a beautiful JMC dress. Lovely!

I Can't Have it All...

I've noticed that in the last week or so, I've really become a slob. My stuff seems to be everywhere, which is ironic because that is one of my biggest pet peeves: clutter. I've done my best to pick up what I can, though that means throwing it in my room and letting it accumulate. I've never really kept a spotless room, but if anyone other than my roommates were to see my room in its current state, I would be highly embarrassed. Usually I clean on the weekends, but this past weekend was so weird that I never got around to it. A likely excuse, I know, but I just never came around to doing it. So it goes. I will clean it, however, next weekend...

I recently signed up for the President's Challenge, a fitness program where you log hours and eventually complete the program, where you can order a certificate in the mail. I doubt that I'll actually go and buy the certificate, but the program is good incentive to train for the triathlon in April. I'm pretty excited. I even bought a new swimsuit! It's a black, full-piece, sexy little thing (right...) that will serve its purpose well, I hope.

I think I am too bossy sometimes. I can't help it and I'm really working on it.

I cannot fall asleep just yet. Ronnie and I have spent a good chunk of the past few days talking on the phone about "us." I think my earlier post upset him and so we again spoke this evening about where we are and what we are and why we should and should not be together. This is heavy stuff and it has been a long few days, though our conversations are full of wonderful things that remind me of how things used to be. Perhaps there is still hope...

What a week!

So I just spent about five minutes trying to name and then rename this post and it looks like it probably won't be titled. This post will be utterly random, and likely filled with tidbits of information from the past week. By the by, I am using a Mac, so I'd prefer to hurry and get this over with. ;)

I went and saw Slumdog Millionaire today. I was going to go by myself, but I was feeling lonely so I called a bunch of friends, and ultimately ended up going with Ashley M, one of my classics friends. It was probably one of the best movies I've ever seen. I'll leave the critique to the critics, but I know I'll be buying it on DVD (not blu-ray!).

After seeing the movie and eating delicious movie theater popcorn, I decided that I would continue copying files onto my external hard drive. I had to buy that last week because my computer has been lagging since November and I've tried everything I know to fix it. I still need to copy all of my game data and track down my Windows disc so that I don't lose all of the sweet terrains I made for AOE and AOM, or have to buy another copy of Windows. In no way should the poor performance of my computer reflect on PCs as a whole. I love my computer, and though (according to DoIT) the processor is running at half of it's normal speed, I am still more satisfied with it than I would be a Mac (sorry Ryan and Laura). Cait, who owns a PC, was reppin' Macs until she rented one from the library...lol I just truly prefer PCs and the ability to right-click normally.

On another note, I will be turning in an application on Monday to attend a field school in Pylos once the study abroad program in Athens (through the UW) has ended. I emailed the professor in charge, and once I turn in my application, I am good to go! I mean this literally, I am accepted once I turn in the paperwork. This means that I'll be in Greece from May 25th until about July 8th. I am extremely excited! Here's the link to the Pylos program: Iklaina Project

On Thursday night I went out for ice cream with the classics society and then we all went skating at the Shell. I forgot how awful I am when it comes to skating, and spent a majority of the time fixing my skates on the sidelines (which is better than on my butt on the ice!). I invited Antonia, who I met through Beth on Tuesday, and she really enjoyed getting ice cream with us. She is on exchange here from France, though she is orginally from Germany. She is extremely nice and easy to get along with, and reminds me a lot of my cousin, Liz. In fact, tonight Beth and I are meeting Antonia at the Saxony for a traditional German dinner. I'm not sure what I'll eat yet...but that's okay - I'm desperately in need of company :/

So on Tuesday (Mardi Gras) I decided that I wanted to go out, and convinced Beth to come out too. Blaise was supposed to come but was probably watching the X-Files, and didn't. Anyway, Beth invited Antonia, whom she has her Energy Economics class with, to come out too, and that is how we met. Dani came too which was wonderful since she is hilarious and I had not gotten to see her in a long time. I really enjoyed explaining American Mardi Gras to Antonia and seeing her face when I explained how beads were "earned."

Today has been kind of a weird day. I have been really bummed for a few days now. I feel like I've been mean to everyone, especially Cait. I'm not sure why, but I feel kind of lonely. I'm generally optimistic and happy, but I think that the situation with Ronnie is finally bearing down upon me. I realized today that he has not been treating me like the way I think he should be. This is not intended to be mean, so I appologize if it comes off that way. When he didn't get me anything for my birthday, I pretended not to care. When it came to Christmas and he again got me nothing, I acted like it was okay, and that I had expected nothing. I spent $40 making a sweet Valentine's Day gift that was orginal and heartfelt and walked away emptied-handed and broken-hearted once again. It's not material things that I care about, that's not the point. I guess that I wish to be appreciated and cared about and loved, and if I'm putting in but getting nothing out, then I'm done. I'm sick of hearing the excuse that he doesn't know what he wants in life, but still feels the need to string me along. I promised him several years ago that no matter what happened to us romantically, we would always remain friends. But even now, I call him looking for comfort and solace, and don't even get that. My friends here offer more support than he has lately. I am tired of being on the bottom of his priorities, and tired of him not wanting to come visit. I realize that the bus costs $44 round-trip, but when you truly want to see someone, you make the monetary sacrifice. It's clear to me that he has lost interest, and I think that I finally have too. He highly values material things as opposed to experiences, which has me confounded. I am completely the opposite and would much rather have a week long trip somewhere than a new gadget. I love doing things and going out, and he seems to be fine staying in more often than I like. I don't think he has put any effort into being together again, and I don't think he will.

I just want to be loved unconditionally, and I just don't think that's going to happen if we stay together. I have lost faith in love.

Shout-Out to being Shouted-Out

374. Thursday, Feb. 19, 2009 @ 2:09pm:

SO to the bunnies, reindeer and now elephants from JSM that have Bren giving out free food for the past few months. You have officially saved me from starvation. I hope your apartments stay empty so that you continue to feed me.

409. Thursday, Feb. 19, 2009 @ 5:44pm:

SO to upon seeing pink elephants on multiple street corners contemplating the probability of having accidentally dropped acid...

482. Friday, Feb. 20, 2009 @ 4:21pm:

SO to the person giant bunny on the corner of university and charter. how could i refuse you when you forced your bag of goodies into my hands?

And finally, this one might be about me and my unhealthy love of popcorn...

453. Friday, Feb. 20, 2009 @ 9:51am:

ASO to my roommate who uses a popcorn maker that is louder than the tv and vacuum cleaner combined! SO to her for being able to eat more popcorn than they produce at the movie theater.

Badger Herald - Madison, WI

APO Sectionals in Eau Claire

I feel like I've finally recovered from the drive back from Eau Claire! Not that it was especially long, but I'm tired from driving in general.

I kind of stayed low-key this time around with Sectionals simply because I had so much work to do (and I still have a lot to do!). I ended up driving A TON and I'm exhausted. Our chapter ended up winning a bunch of awards.



I'll add more to this post once I finish studying :)

My First Woot-Off

Well, today is the day I have been eagerly waiting for: my very first Woot-Off. I wanted very much to buy the Phillips Ipod Dock Speakers, alas my state was entered as "Alabama" rather than Wisconsin, so I missed out on that one. On the way to class I happened to miss out on headphones and a $5 HP webcam. Inevitably whenever I leave, an amazing new product that I could actually use goes up. Cait debated getting the $80 8gb IPod but missed out on it by the time she made up her mind. I really wanted the Digital Photo Frame for $50 but decided that I would do my best to hold out for a Bag of Crap. I have been patiently waiting for it. I can't really start my paper until another lame item shows up. So I will wait, hiding in the shadows until BOOM! I get what I want.

UPDATE: I managed to get a pair of Bluetooth headsets and an HP webcam. I got something else, too, but I can't say what it was since part of it is going to Liz when she gets back!

I am slightly depressed that Liz is not here to share this exciting event with me. On another note, Cait and I went out to Lake Mendota and took a picture with the giant Statue of Liberty.