up.

1. had a long day today. woke up early for the conference and did that for several hours. talked to/met a lot of people and it seemed to all go pretty well. 
2. spent the rest of the day walking up and down fifth, shopping some (didn't buy much), and then spent some time in central park. 
3. ate dinner out (table for 1) and then just headed back to the hotel. i am very tired and have a migraine and need to get some sleep for tomorrow's travels/festivities. 

i had a good day today. all went well and i enjoyed being in the city. it was a good trip overall, minus some hassles in the beginning. i am ready to get back to my apartment and see my friends and celebrate halloween! soon after that is thanksgiving and i get to be back home again with all my family. here's to safe, terrorism-free travels tomorrow.

empire state of mind part 2

1. somehow...somehow, i successfully made it to nyc today...only three hours later than i was supposed to. my flight was delayed forever for "testy winds" which turned out to be code for TERRORIST THREAT and then i got to the city right at rush hour traffic time and the drive was stop-start and interminable. 
2. however, i checked into my hotel, which is actually pretty nice (just hope it's bedbug-free!) and unwound a little bit before heading out for dinner. went to rino trattoria and ate two (2) dinners. well..ate most of one pasta dinner and half of a pizza...took the rest to go. i had a coupon and everything!
3. walked around times square for awhile and took pictures and just enjoyed the night life of the city. went to forever 21 and browsed, then came back to the hotel since i was in platform high heels and they were starting to hurt!

i realized that i started out the first few days of this blog in NYC and now i'm here again! i didn't think this would happen, but it's pretty exciting. i love the city but it's weird being here alone. i am definitely not a city girl and it's funny how i feel like i stick out like a sore thumb in this place. i say "excuse me" on the streets and i speak with a soft voice compared to other people (and that's saying something). i stand around just looking up and i walk pretty slow on the streets. parents, don't take this to mean that i don't have my wits about me because i do, at all times. i just don't look like the average new yorker. i suppose i am that tourist right now, but i guess we all just have to learn to accept that tourism helps make this world go 'round. getting to bed relatively early tonight and then waking up relatively early tomorrow. big day! need lots of rest. wish me luck...

do it!

1. my week is finally almost over. i have an italian quiz tomorrow and then it's off to nyc! i can't wait but i'm also pretty nervous...
2. chilled out this afternoon and it was just what i needed. packed some stuff for nyc and talked to my boyfriend before his trip this weekend and relaxed/attempted to organize. 
3. went to target tonight for halloween supplies! we all had fun shopping and then hung out with friends before heading back so i can finally SLEEP.

most of the time, the talking about my day part is easier than the actual blog part. did i mention that i voted on wednesday? because i did! i voted for all the offices i felt educated enough to vote on and i did my civic duty. i hope the people i voted for win! they deserve it. some people see politics and voting as choosing the lesser of two evils but i've never really felt that way. politics is just more upfront about the corruption that is apparent in everyday life. EVERYONE GO VOTE. and if you know people who are too lazy or are unable, help them out and encourage them to go make a difference. every vote is counted, therefore every vote counts! count this as my pre-official election day voting spiel. the first time i ever voted it was in the obama election...how cool is that?! i stayed up all night partying with people on my campus and it was awesome. this one isn't as exciting but it's still a big damn deal. so...

the sleepgoer

1. i have to wake up so early tomorrow. how early? 5:30 early. i have to go to high school to collect data for one of my labs. yippee? 
2. got my poster today for this weekend! i am pretty overwhelmed by everything...i hope i manage to figure out everything.
3. trying to finish up the book due by 11 am tomorrow (won't read the essay in time, i'm sure) but i also need to sleep. we'll see how much sleep i actually end up getting. this week is almost over...

i am glad/relieved that today went well. i was nervous for most of the day, but things turned out okay. now starts the long and arduous process of healing. i hope and pray that all continues to go well.

sicky

1. bad day. not a good day at all. and it just got worse and worse as the day went on...
2. had a midterm today. started the book that was supposed to be due today at 11. no one likes the protagonist so we'll see how i end up feeling about him.
3. had a sugar-filled night with two friends in the attempt to have a study break/cheer me up/talk about life. it was nice.

i think i'm getting sick. this is the worst. i cannot, cannot, cannot be sick for this upcoming weekend. i am considering skipping italian since we are just reviewing for a quiz, but i also need to do some work in the lab anyway so i'll probably end up going. but going to bed early tomorrow night is a must. it will be boxing and then shower and then bed. which is where i'm headed now...i need to sleep off this day.

wishful thinking

1. first day back of classes and it was so hard to pay attention to the day--i just wanted to be back at home or at least be in the apartment and be lazy. 
2. my presentation for my genocide class went really well, on a high note. i turned in my book report and final project proposal, too. 
3. skipped boxing club to study for my english midterm and read a book for my 11 class. i know it's not good to skip working out, but sometimes i don't have two hours to spare. 

pretty busy night so i don't have much to talk about. we'll see how tomorrow goes with my classes but after that i should have a relatively free week. i have some preparations to make for this weekend, but everything should turn out well. the monday after fall break is a crappy day for everyone...

happy place

1. i. am. so. tired. i have to go to bed soon. physically and mentally exhausted describes my state. wasn't i supposed to feel rested after fall break?
2. i still have a lot of work but it was so nice having a family day today. and the ride back was fun because i had a friend along. 
3. 10 weeeeks.

finding my happy place. that is what i try to do when i'm feeling down. my home helps, as does being around my family. being organized and on top of my school work makes me feel happy. as does relaxing but those are not happening right now! i am about to just go to bed and sleep as late as i can before class tomorrow. and then prepare to work all day tomorrow. and boxing club tomorrow night (if i have time) will suck! it's been over a week since i've gone...get ready for soreness! hope everyone had a good weekend. bucket list item: make christmas cards for people.

f@#$ing football

1. did homework most of the day, but took some breaks to do random stuff. finished my book for my presentation on monday but i am still pretty covered up with work. and lose all day tomorrow, which is not good at all.
2. NOT A GOOD FOOTBALL DAY. so far. and it only looks to stay that way. 
3. i am sad that i am going to miss the rest of fall at home. going back to school tomorrow is not what i want to be doing. i wish i could stay at home and actually relax.

ahhh i'm so angry at my football teams right now. i can't even write a coherent thought. i just want to go to bed and sleep and forget about the embarrassment. but i have more work to do tonight and still have to shower. SO FRUSTRATING! this has not been a very relaxing fall break by any means. and just gearing up for a super stressful beginning of the week. and next weekend, too! ahhh, stress.

"friend me"

1. i'm really tired today/tonight for some reason. too much homework i guess. 
2. went to visit people, saw the social network, ate dinner with my parents. good day!
3. i am looking forward to all day homework tomorrow, paired with some football and some relaxation. 

the social network was crazy! it was really fast-paced and sometimes hard to follow but i like how they filmed the movie. i won't talk about it too much because i don't want to give it away. but the underhandedness to the whole scheme was somewhat shocking. i never knew facebook was born because of such dirty deeds! and the way he behaves with his friend is the most upsetting. but greed drives most every person on this planet, so i guess it was an inevitable process. it was a good movie and i definitely recommend it, especially for all rabid facebookers, but i also recommend reading up on the material and seeing how reality differs from hollywood.

where am i?

1. did homework most of the day, but i did take some time to procrastinate. i baked oatmeal cookies and took pictures outside and talked to people and watched grey's anatomy. good and relaxing day overall. 
2. found out that one of the books i thought i had to have read by tuesday is not really due until the following tuesday! whew, that's a nice lift off my shoulders. 
3. tomorrow should be a good day. not much time for homework but a break will be nice...and i get to see people and the social network! and eat a yummy italian dinner...

so i was looking today at these really cool pictures online from the nikon small world gallery. apparently, there is a whole field of photography that specializes in microscopic images that are then photographically altered. they were so beautiful and interesting and most were just random, everyday things. the one that struck me the most was the photo of the dividing cancer cells. it was freaky but it was a very pretty picture. it's strange how much of the world we can't see, or, how much of it we cannot see with the naked eye. perspective is so relative. i always wonder what insects or animals think when they look around--stuff must look HUGE. things that seem astronomical in size for us, like a redwood tree, think how that must feel for an ant. i guess it's different, though, because the frame of reference would be so skewed that the redwood tree would be all you see...it would be your home base. it's kind of like how humans feel about the ground i guess. well, now that is skewed since we can travel so easily, but it must have seemed that way in our history. i think it is ignorant and arrogant to assume that we are the only intelligent beings in existence. to think, historically humans must have thought that all there was to the world was the little plot of land that the eye could perceive. it progressed to thinking that the edge of the ocean was the end of the world, then that everything revolved around the earth. now we are shocked when we discover other things out in space--but why? we just tend to have a very self-centered view of our existence and i am eager for the day when people look back and say "they used to think that only their planet could support life!" and yes, it seems hard to imagine...but think about how our ancestors felt when contemplating that the world was round. it's all about perspective.

mountain mood

1. slept in later than normal today, finished up packing, got my italian midterm grade (94!), and drove home to fall in the mountains!
2. my shuffle on my ipod today was great! almost every single song was just what i wanted to hear. the music gods read my mind on a day when it definitely needed to be read.
3. family dinner and halloween episode of chopped! i need to get on deciding what my costume will be...tomorrow is a homework- and clothing-filled day. 

fall break is never really a break. there is always so much work to do! this week was actually set up to be a pretty easy week but i have to be a discussion leader for my three hour genocide class, so that requires a lot of prep, and i have to read two novels by next thursday (on top of the book i am presenting for monday). and i have an english midterm on tuesday! and i have a book report due on monday! yiiiikes. okay. i need to be very focused/structured on this fall break. and i essentially lose all day sunday since i have a lot going on that day with family/church/driving home. okay, i just got kind of overwhelmed. so i am going to get to bed early tonight in preparation for a long day of work tomorrow. interesting blog topic: semantics.

not in the mood

1. had classes today but got to watch a movie in one of them and talk about a movie in another, so it was overall not a very bad class day. 
2. got back from class and chilled out all afternoon. watched two online episodes and took a quick nap and packed/cleaned. 
3. ate german chocolate cake (made from scratch by my guy friends) and hung out for the night. saved up some of my day's calories just for the decadent dessert!

i keep procrastinating about blogging. part of me really just wants to take a break for awhile but i'm not going to do that. tomorrow i promise i'll have a better post. just not tonight. i'm definitely not in the blogging mood tonight. but i'm driving home tomorrow for fall break so it'll nice to be there for a few days and get to see my family!

crash into me

1. had italian today and found out that my class on wednesday is canceled! that means i can sleep in and leave whenever i want to for fall break--yippee!
2. rented crash from the library and watched it with my roommate. did the response and read the assigned article for it too...i love getting work done on time, haha. 
3. had my oral report in history today and contributed a lot to the discussion. also, i created an event online for spring break--can't wait!

crash is one of my favorite movies. of course the article i read had so many issues with the movie and raised so many problems, blah blah blah. not all movies are perfect commentaries on society! but the fact that the movie exposes so many hot-button issues for societal examination and conversation is important. the part of the movie that affects me the most is when the little girl jumps in her dad's arms and gets shot at with the blanks in the gun. i FREAKED OUT the first time i watched the movie. i was sobbing and unbelievably upset. i didn't know what blanks were, either, so i was even more upset! another powerful part is when the movie producer's wife is pulled from the burning car by the cop who molested her. the whole movie is not very hopeful and ends in the same way that it starts, reinforcing the message that there is not much hope for change. but maybe i am just looking at the movie with pessimistic glasses. let me know what y'all think!

B is for busy

1. had a lovely brunch with my family this morning and then got back on the road for school. i was stuck in traffic for a long time but still got back in time to get some homework done before crashing. 
2. i have a lot of work for tomorrow and i'm not sure when it's all going to get done! i think if i manage my time well and if i get a little bit lucky, it can all get done and i can still go to boxing club. 
3. 11 is a nice lucky number...maybe that is fortuitous! and 3 is also a good number and that's how many days until my fall break starts!!!

short post tonight because i don't have much to say because not much happened to me today! being stuck in traffic is DA WORST and it only makes me really angry and insane. and i am also getting stressed out thinking about all the packing i have to do for fall break and the cleaning, too! ahhh. okay, getting overwhelmed. checklists are good things and something i tend to use since i was raised in an organized family. i knew that october would be a busy month and that is turning out to be the truth! but november should be just as busy, and then december is busy for everyone because it's holiday season...my favorite. so fall break, halloween, NYC, sister visit, thanksgiving, exams, christmas, new years...2011. wowza.
bucket list item: find time for photography...and buy a new camera soon!

wedding bells.

1. woke up early this morning and drove home!!! the fall colors here are beautiful. 
2. hung out with family, got ready, went to the wedding!
3. it was so much fun. i had a great time and cried several times and it was just perfect. 

the wedding was beautiful. the ceremony was so sweet and very personal. i had a great time seeing a lot of people who i knew and enjoyed meeting new people as well. the reception was so well done. everything was very classy and in good taste, as i expected. i danced and lot with my family and it was so fun! i didn't miss college for a minute, except to wish that my friends could have been with me. but it's been a long day and i'm very tired and also think that i may be getting sick. for all of these reasons, i am now going to bed!

life planning.

1. had italian today. learned how to conjugate -ere and -ire verbs, and got an A- on the composition i got back! i was really tired, though, so i was glad class got out early. 
2. had an appointment with my academic adviser. we talked about classes for spring and graduation requirements and all that fun stuff. i have three semesters to complete 29 hours! and my history minor is finished. 
3. driving home tomorrow for a wedding, can't wait! had a fun night but i'm ready to go to sleep.

this wedding is about to be crazy. i am excited to blog about it tomorrow night. i have a long drive ahead of me, though, and need to get some sleep. 

fun fun fun. bed bed bed.

1. got my english midterm back today--A-...i'm happy with that!
2. got out early of classes today but then realized i'd left my keys at home this morning and was locked out : (
3. had a fun night with friends but now i'm really tired.

i just want to nap tomorrow. but i have to go to an advising appointment. and italian class! of course. oh well..i can just nap like i said.

awareness.

1. italian midterm today! i feel pretty good about it. i think i missed a few things but i'll find out for sure next week sometime. 
2. had a meeting with one of my lab mentors today. it was very helpful and helped me feel better about where i'm going...to an extent, anyway.
3. boxing club was so hard tonight. we had our fitness test--run two miles in 14 minutes (did not happen), do 60 situps in two minutes (did not happen--did 45), and do 30 regular pushups in two minutes (did not happen--did 25). SO, haha. the point is to assess where we are mid-semester and then reassess at the end of the semester. 

i've been reading my book, machete season, for my history book report on the rwandan genocide. it's very hard to read but also really captivating. it's essentially just interviews with perpetrators of the rwandan genocide. some of the most concentrated tutsi massacres were in the nyamta area and this is where the author pulled her sources from. they are all in prison at the time she writes the book, but she has nine or so killers she interviews about every stage of the genocide--before,during, and after. she also provides commentary along the way to help with the historical context and the facts from that time period. like i said, it's so hard to read and even harder to comprehend how it all happened, but the book makes some excellent points. i'm not finished with it yet, but should be pretty soon. also, she wrote a book before this one interviewing survivors of the genocide. i am not required to read that one but may read it just because sometime over a break. i am glad that i picked a book that is interesting and that is relatively short (only 251 pages). also, next week is fall break so i have some time to finish the actual book report during that break. the oral report is due monday, the actual report is due the 25th. but i'm also presenting for the readings for that week on the 25th so i need to be properly prepared for that. anyway, that's my blurb about the book! maybe this post will help me write my report for monday.

do un esame domani.

1. only had two classes today; one was canceled because of university day. i got to sleep in and take my time getting ready for my day. such a nice feeling. 
2. studied for my italian midterm tomorrow, took a short little nap, made some dinner, started a new book for my genocide class. 
3. had friends over for APPLE PIE that my roommate made. YUM. 

i want to just write things in italian for my blog post. sono C. sono di U.S.A. sono americana. sono bionda. this is how to conjugate -are verbs: -o, -i, -a, -iamo, -ate, -ano. irregular verbs: andare (to go): vado, vai, va, andiamo, andate, vanno. essere (to be (perm.)): sono, sei, e, siamo, siete, sono. avere (to have): ho, hai, ha, abbiamo, avete, hanno. singular-->plural (m and f): e-->i, a-->e. indefinite articles: un, uno, un', una, un' definite articles: il, lo, l', la, l'. i know a bunch of vocabulary words. i also learned several -are verbs. i learned questo and quello (this and that). that's pretty much all that's going to be on my test! i learned some basic things like greetings, numbers, the alphabet, etc. earlier in the semester, but those shouldn't be on my midterm. wish me luck!

tootsypoo.

1. italian class today! got out early, of course. spent the rest of the school day watching american gangster for a class and then going to my three hour class. 
2. came back, ate a small dinner, did some more reading. went to boxing club!
3. had a fun night after that eating a small dinner (part two) at qdoba with friends, hanging out at the apartment with other friends, and having a semi-sleepover with our third roommate!

i just looked at all these old pics of myself to show my roommate what i looked like when i was younger. they were so funny! i had such a cool haircut...not. haha. it was pretty entertaining to see all these old photos. my early class is canceled tomorrow due to university day! i'm excited that my classes don't start until two--yippee!