I have come to my decision. Drum roll, please.
I'm taking this semester off and going back to Texas to stay with Boyfriend. There has been a lot of stress in my home, family and life in the past year, and I think that I need time away in order to process it all and to return to school refreshed. I can still have my internship abroad this summer, and nothing which I now hold is jeopardized in any way. At this rate I probably won't graduate until I have grandchildren, but at least I will graduate sane.
I'm going to leave in a week or two and return for good in May. I anticipate two trips home before then, and at the end of May, I'm off, hopefully to Venice :)
I will still have access to the internet so I can blog.
Sunday, January 29, 2006
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Drive My Car
Happy HNT! This is a picture Boyfriend took of me while we were in the car. (I forced him to take all kinds of crazy pictures, including outside-while-it's-freezing ones. He's so agreeable.)
I have a big post to write because I have some big news to disclose, and will do that soon, perhaps even later on today. While you wait, here's one of the outside-while-it's-freezing photos I forced Boyfriend to take with me :)
I have a big post to write because I have some big news to disclose, and will do that soon, perhaps even later on today. While you wait, here's one of the outside-while-it's-freezing photos I forced Boyfriend to take with me :)
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Reconnect
Goodness, it has been so hard to blog lately! My internet connection has been acting up. Sometimes it doesn't work, and when it does, it is so slow that I don't have the patience (or the faith in Blogger) to attempt it. I have also not had the energy to sit down and write, even though I love to do it. I am now in the nearly empty HC Lounge waiting for some people I need to meet with to get back to their offices, so I finally have the time, quiet, and efficient internet connection to post.
On Friday night, I went to my old neighborhood and saw three great friends of mine: Cynic, High School Friend, and Childhood Friend. It was wonderful to see them, wonderful with a capital W. I rarely see them, but we go way back (I met Cynic and High School Friend when I was 13-14, and Childhood Friend when I was 6). First, Cynic and I spent an hour or two walking around and then getting pizza. As we were walking, I absentmindedly dropped one of my pink gloves (I wasn't wearing them, just holding them), and when I discovered that it was gone, we had to retrace our footsteps. We eventually found it, after having first been thrown off by another glove, one that was similar in color and size but extremely dirty. Mine looked pristine compared to that one, but then again, it hadn't been missing for very long.
Afterwards, we went to a cafe and had coffee with High School Friend. She looked lovely; she had done something new with her hair since the last time I saw her. That got us started talking about hair, then eyebrows, and before you know it, poor Cynic was rolling his eyes at us and looking uncomfortable. Childhood Friend came soon after, and the four of us had a lot of fun catching up.
After everyone had gone, it was just Childhood Friend and I. We drove down by the water where our old high school is and walked and talked for a while. Regarding her and Best Friend, I have found that while we don't see each other often, we still have a bond from years and years of friendship that resurfaces instantly. I find myself telling them things freely that I struggle to tell others, and they seem to do the same with me. I love that about them. I love them.
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Sweet Baby
This is my HNT photo, up a day early because I wanted to write about the good news and I figured it would be okay to cheat, just this once. No, she's not my baby - she belongs to my mother. I am now the eldest in a family of five girls. (That's a lot of estrogen, I know.)
Some of you may be confused for several reasons:
a) I continually complain about the depression accompanying my father's debilitating accident, as well as my mother getting on my case about visiting him, but I never mentioned the fact that they have not been together for years.
b) I neglected to mention that my mother was pregnant at all.
But... as of Friday the 13th (yeesh), she is here... and she is gorgeous :)
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Stay Tuned
My blog is being neglected because of major - MAJOR - recent events in my life. I'll be back as soon as I regain my energy and can process coherent thoughts again.
And it's nothing bad, so don't be worried ;)
And it's nothing bad, so don't be worried ;)
Saturday, January 07, 2006
Featuring Some of Your Favorite Words
Andi did this, and it looked fun, so I did it. These are the opening lines from each month of 2005 on my blog.
February: Me: One confused chick.
March: Okay, so I'm reading The Problem of Pain and loving it.
April: Last night was my book group meeting.
May: It's interesting how things always manage to tie in to each other.
June: Gone until the weekend. Ciao!
July: I just finished watching my new favorite show, 30 Days.
August: I got a postcard from Prague this morning.
September: Happy HNT!
October: I'm alive! That's always a good thing :)
November: Well, I made up for eating that Halloween candy by getting sick and losing my appetite.
December: It was too cold to be half nekkid yesterday. Sorry friends.
February: Me: One confused chick.
March: Okay, so I'm reading The Problem of Pain and loving it.
April: Last night was my book group meeting.
May: It's interesting how things always manage to tie in to each other.
June: Gone until the weekend. Ciao!
July: I just finished watching my new favorite show, 30 Days.
August: I got a postcard from Prague this morning.
September: Happy HNT!
October: I'm alive! That's always a good thing :)
November: Well, I made up for eating that Halloween candy by getting sick and losing my appetite.
December: It was too cold to be half nekkid yesterday. Sorry friends.
Friday, January 06, 2006
Old Lady
Okay, now I will write about my birthday celebrations :)
On New Years Day, my family, Boyfriend and I went out to a Japanese restaurant. It's the kind of place where they cook on the table right in front of you. It was fun. We had gone once before, for Sister's Boyfriend's birthday, and they sang to him and embarassed him and gave him a Buddha drinking glass, which he gave to me. They did the same for me: a cake was brought out with a solitary sparkler in it, and a chef came over, grabbed my arms, and waved them back and forth. "Happy Birthday Mama San!" he sang. I wanted a Geisha drinking glass, but they were all out, so I got a Ninja. *Sigh*
Then a few days later, Boyfriend threw me a birthday party. No, it wasn't a surprise party, but I say he threw it for me because he really did. He did everything. Bought the drinks, cooked the food, compiled the music... He even did this:
On New Years Day, my family, Boyfriend and I went out to a Japanese restaurant. It's the kind of place where they cook on the table right in front of you. It was fun. We had gone once before, for Sister's Boyfriend's birthday, and they sang to him and embarassed him and gave him a Buddha drinking glass, which he gave to me. They did the same for me: a cake was brought out with a solitary sparkler in it, and a chef came over, grabbed my arms, and waved them back and forth. "Happy Birthday Mama San!" he sang. I wanted a Geisha drinking glass, but they were all out, so I got a Ninja. *Sigh*
Then a few days later, Boyfriend threw me a birthday party. No, it wasn't a surprise party, but I say he threw it for me because he really did. He did everything. Bought the drinks, cooked the food, compiled the music... He even did this:
What a cutie he is.
Anyway, the party was so much fun. Sister and her boyfriend came, as did Skeptic, Fellow Seeker, Veteran Seeker, three of the fellows and one of their SO's. We ate, drank, talked, and did karaoke. I was also coerced into adhering to the ritual of smearing my name on the cake and then putting the icing on my nose. I also put some on Boyfriend's nose because his birthday was fairly recent as well. He was like, "You could have given me some warning." Hee hee.
Thursday, January 05, 2006
Planet of Women
I have some good New Years/Birthday Party stuff to write about, but will wait until I can get pictures up on here to share those yummy details.
It is 4:00 a.m. and I'm sitting here with a big bowl of Cheerios. I didn't have any kind of dinner, and I fell asleep at around 10:30 p.m., which explains for this late-night foray into blogging that hasn't occurred in quite some time.
Tonight was my monthly book club meeting. I have been a member of this particular book club since April 2004. I have also been an inconsistent member for that long. It was never this bad, though. At first, I went every month, maybe missing one once in a while. But in the last year it has come down to going every few months. I am both a literature major and a slow reader, so I just can't find the time to read books in addition to whichever ones are on my current syllabi. I feel badly about this, because the group is made up of a good bunch of 20-something women (I am the youngest) and we have not only read good books, but also frequented good restaurants and shared good conversation. I really like them.
The last meeting I went to was last May. Seriously. How wrong is that? I felt terribly guilty for neglecting them for so long, but I did not do it on purpose. Anyway, we began instituting this new policy in which members take turns choosing what we read. Last month, they were gracious enough to give me a turn, and I chose Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress by Susan Jane Gilman.
Boyfriend asked me a few questions about my book club; namely, do we only talk about the book? (my answer: no) and if not, what do we talk about? men? (my answer: rarely). After having told him that (mis)information, the meeting was surprising.
I arrived a little late after having gotten lost. (Bad directions: saying walk against traffic while meaning walk with it.) Five women were there (different ones make it each time, I think we have a total of eight members, after some having left because of being too busy, like myself!): I will call them K, M, K2, J, and I. I had never met J and I before, so we were introduced. M, K2, and I (uh, I as in me) once went to a fabulous multi-author reading together, and K is the group leader, so I know the three of them "well."
I awkwardly sipped Diet Coke and listened to the five of them talk. I was the George Harrison of the group when it was first formed, but eventually I felt comfortable enough to be more vocal around them. Time away, it seems, leads to regression, so I quietly listened to everyone else converse. It brought about new revelations. I didn't know K had a boyfriend, or worked for a magazine. When did M begin law school? No kidding? I felt very sorry that I had no idea about any of these details, and they had no idea about my recent stuff.
At one point, M asked me, "So what have you been up to lately?" I gave them the usual B.S. about how school is and how it keeps me busy and how sorry I feel that I haven't been there in so long (like I'm more busy than a married woman in law school *rolls eyes at self*). When I first arrived, they had asked me how long it took to get there (I live far) and I explained that I had been with Boyfriend not too far away so I hadn't come all the way from home. They pressed me for details now. "How long have you had a boyfriend?" "Where is he from?" "What is he like?" "Tell us everything!" So I gave them some basic background information, and they wanted to see a picture. I had a couple of the two of us on my cell phone, and they cooed, "He's cute!" It was so stereotypically girly that I had to laugh, especially since the book we had read for this meeting was a memoir by a woman who is totally feminist and counterculture. I also talked a little bit about my possible job in Venice for the summer, and M smiled and said, "I feel like we see you every four months, and every time we do, we are all so jealous of your life!" I kinda scratched my head over that one; they are all involved in activities that are equal to, if not greater, than mine.
There was pizza and wine and salad and spinach quiche (supplied by me), but I didn't touch a thing but the Diet Coke. Didn't feel like eating, in fact, felt a little faint but toughed it out for two hours because I am already the delinquent member. It was fun to catch up, I suppose, but I felt like such an outsider. It's my fault, and I hate to have regrets concerning missed opportunities, so it was kind of sad. But, what can I do? Perhaps I will make it to more meetings in the future. Next month's read: The Tropic of Cancer.
I am in another book club, one that was put together for the fellows in my program (it is 99% English majors, hee hee!), and am now reading Angels in America for that. I'm in love with it. In love!
It is 4:00 a.m. and I'm sitting here with a big bowl of Cheerios. I didn't have any kind of dinner, and I fell asleep at around 10:30 p.m., which explains for this late-night foray into blogging that hasn't occurred in quite some time.
Tonight was my monthly book club meeting. I have been a member of this particular book club since April 2004. I have also been an inconsistent member for that long. It was never this bad, though. At first, I went every month, maybe missing one once in a while. But in the last year it has come down to going every few months. I am both a literature major and a slow reader, so I just can't find the time to read books in addition to whichever ones are on my current syllabi. I feel badly about this, because the group is made up of a good bunch of 20-something women (I am the youngest) and we have not only read good books, but also frequented good restaurants and shared good conversation. I really like them.
The last meeting I went to was last May. Seriously. How wrong is that? I felt terribly guilty for neglecting them for so long, but I did not do it on purpose. Anyway, we began instituting this new policy in which members take turns choosing what we read. Last month, they were gracious enough to give me a turn, and I chose Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress by Susan Jane Gilman.
Boyfriend asked me a few questions about my book club; namely, do we only talk about the book? (my answer: no) and if not, what do we talk about? men? (my answer: rarely). After having told him that (mis)information, the meeting was surprising.
I arrived a little late after having gotten lost. (Bad directions: saying walk against traffic while meaning walk with it.) Five women were there (different ones make it each time, I think we have a total of eight members, after some having left because of being too busy, like myself!): I will call them K, M, K2, J, and I. I had never met J and I before, so we were introduced. M, K2, and I (uh, I as in me) once went to a fabulous multi-author reading together, and K is the group leader, so I know the three of them "well."
I awkwardly sipped Diet Coke and listened to the five of them talk. I was the George Harrison of the group when it was first formed, but eventually I felt comfortable enough to be more vocal around them. Time away, it seems, leads to regression, so I quietly listened to everyone else converse. It brought about new revelations. I didn't know K had a boyfriend, or worked for a magazine. When did M begin law school? No kidding? I felt very sorry that I had no idea about any of these details, and they had no idea about my recent stuff.
At one point, M asked me, "So what have you been up to lately?" I gave them the usual B.S. about how school is and how it keeps me busy and how sorry I feel that I haven't been there in so long (like I'm more busy than a married woman in law school *rolls eyes at self*). When I first arrived, they had asked me how long it took to get there (I live far) and I explained that I had been with Boyfriend not too far away so I hadn't come all the way from home. They pressed me for details now. "How long have you had a boyfriend?" "Where is he from?" "What is he like?" "Tell us everything!" So I gave them some basic background information, and they wanted to see a picture. I had a couple of the two of us on my cell phone, and they cooed, "He's cute!" It was so stereotypically girly that I had to laugh, especially since the book we had read for this meeting was a memoir by a woman who is totally feminist and counterculture. I also talked a little bit about my possible job in Venice for the summer, and M smiled and said, "I feel like we see you every four months, and every time we do, we are all so jealous of your life!" I kinda scratched my head over that one; they are all involved in activities that are equal to, if not greater, than mine.
There was pizza and wine and salad and spinach quiche (supplied by me), but I didn't touch a thing but the Diet Coke. Didn't feel like eating, in fact, felt a little faint but toughed it out for two hours because I am already the delinquent member. It was fun to catch up, I suppose, but I felt like such an outsider. It's my fault, and I hate to have regrets concerning missed opportunities, so it was kind of sad. But, what can I do? Perhaps I will make it to more meetings in the future. Next month's read: The Tropic of Cancer.
I am in another book club, one that was put together for the fellows in my program (it is 99% English majors, hee hee!), and am now reading Angels in America for that. I'm in love with it. In love!
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