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arts and crafts!

So I was home alone and a little bored after work today so I decided to embark on an art project! I wish I had taken step-by-step pictures, but it was so simple and happened so fast that I didn't even think about it until I was done.

I had a world map kicking around that I had hung on my wall just for fun, but I decided it would be fun to jazz it up a little. I went to the crafts store and bought some inch-thick foam board and some straight pins, and then I came home and used an Elmer's glue and water mixture to laminate it to the foam board. Then I used the straight pins to pinpoint all the places I've been on the map! It's kinda inspiring because there are so many blank parts that I want to travel to!

I still have to paint the raw edges of the foam board (I'm thinking either silver or gold?) but this is a close-up of the basically finished project. Wouldn't it be amazing to have pins sticking up from all over the map?

5.5.10

Randomly drinking margaritas and eating tacos and listening to country music with the best friends in the world. I am so content and nostalgic and want to stay in this moment forever. Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Mr. Clemens

I love Mark Twain, I've been looking for a good biography to read on him. I just found this thing that he wrote that is amazing and it makes me want to seize the day and travel and frolic in a field.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

PS here is a picture from when I drove out and saw the wildflowers.

lace 'em up

Even though American Apparel is exorbitantly priced and anyone who tries to buy something there is instantly labelled either a hipster or a wannabe-hipster, I can't deny that I am attracted to their new lace line. This dress is pure sexxxxxxxxxxx. (Even though I hate it with the white tights/leggings.)

city life

Another reason I want to move to New York? Amazing art exhibits everywhere, like this one, that focuses specifically on NYC. Love this picture of the girls flashing cars on the FDR.

Photo "FDR" by Cass Bird via NYTimes.com

day dreaming

I know it probably makes more sense to find a job before I start looking at apartments, but it's so much easier and more fun to browse apartment listings on Craigslist than find jobs to apply for.

I want more than anything to live in an apartment in New York with exposed brick and hardwood floors and tons of light like this place in Brooklyn. Ugh maybe someday.

rumi

"Forget safety, live where you fear to live, destroy your reputation, be notorious."

I read this on Rumi's blog, but ironically (or probably not at all) it is accredited to the 13th century Persian philosopher Mawlana Jalal-al-Din Rumi.

Point is, I kinda want to live by this mantra from now on. It's pretty bad-ass.



Also what the heck, it just got SO WINDY. Like, hurricane force gusts. If it was raining, it would be raining sideways.

vimvimvimeeeeooo

Ah it's so early, (haha ok it's not that early I guess) but I can't fall back to sleep so I've been getting lost in Vimeo land for like an hour! It's seriously the best place to pass the time. This video is amazing, and I'm sure it took hours of work to construct all the stop-motion figures, but I'm pretty sure the best part are the sound effects. They're perfect!

Skateboardanimation from Tilles Singer on Vimeo.

Also check out this website, it's a crew of taggers from Israel. There is a really sweet video towards the bottom of the page that you should check out.

Ok back to bed for a little while hopefully, then lunch with my grandma and aunt. Woo gonna be a blast!

blergh

For lack of anything more exciting to write about, I'm just going to list off some really nerdy things I've done lately:

-watched The Sound of Music

-typed in to Google: "how to type the sound of a wookie" (then watched about 29 clips of wookies on youtube)

-looked up how to hack into a soda vending machine

Shoot I can't think of any more, but I know there have been a ton lately. I'm house-sitting for my parents all week. It's super weird being home alone, I actually can't remember the last time I've stayed at my parent's house when they haven't been here. It's kinda cool though, I've just been hanging out with our chocolate lab and chasing my mom's chickens around the yard.

My parents left me an empty fridge and some grocery money, so I took advantage of that today and bought wine, cheese, pizza, chips, and tequila at the store. The checker thought I was a crazy drunk. I also checked out the movie The Hurt Locker at the Redbox. It was pretty good, there was a ton of hype I think from the Academy Awards, but I enjoyed it. After the movie I took a bath and finished a book, and now I'm curled up in bed.

Funny story about the Redbox that MC just reminded me of...one time my sister and I told my mom we were going to the Redbox and she thought we were going to some cool club, not a DVD dispenser that resembles a soda vending machine.

Soooo tomorrow I am planning on tracking down some wildflowers and working on my tan. My mom is redecorating the upstairs of our house, and she hinted that if I had any spare time this week, I could perhaps help her paint all the doors upstairs, so it looks like I'll be doing some painting in my near future.

Ugh sorry my blog has been lame lately, hopefully it will get more exciting this week. (Although that is highly doubtful, so don't hold your breath).

boo

For some reason, I have become disenchanted with life. I need to go somewhere exciting or simply be inspired. I am bored, and I feel like nothing here has the ability to spark my imagination. I need to get out, go somewhere big, see something great.

If you have any suggestions, let me know. I'm desperate.

sun-kissed

Wow I know it's been about two weeks since my last post, but I have been so busy I feel like I haven't had a minute to spare to even say hello here. I whipped through my last finals week of college and somehow managed to write thirty-three pages of papers in about a week.

Last Saturday I was fortunate enough to visit one of my dearest friends before he left for an internship in Washington DC. We strolled around UCLA campus and munched on peanut M&Ms and I had such a wonderful time catching up. We hadn't seen each other in over a year! It had been way too long. He is already off traipsing around the East Coast (including NYC!!) and I'm looking forward to hearing about his adventures.

Sunday I was swooped up by MC and her family and we sped off to Vegas. I was spoiled rotten for a couple of days and enjoyed a magical show by David Copperfield and an extraordinary Cirque du Soleil show too. We ate at fancy restaurants and sipped on margaritas the whole time. The week in Vegas was topped off with MC and me somehow getting on the VIP list of the "hottest nightclub in Vegas" called Pure (thanks to MC's mom, who has magical connections).

I bounced up to the central coast to spend the weekend at my parent's house. All my besties are in town for the tail-end of spring break, and we're heading out to the beach in about 20 minutes. My favorite! Tonight there is a bbq out at a friend's house, and I know there will be some beer pong and a bonfire, so I'm looking forward to that.

It's been an amazing couple of weeks, and I'm looking forward to all of spring being pretty spectacular because I am done with school. I'll be more diligent in keeping up with my blog now that I have more time. I've missed it!

with you

So of course I'm in the library again, which somehow means I'm looking up random bands instead of writing papers. Listen to this song called With You by the band Stars of Track and Field. It's so sweet.

simple little beauty

This is my absolute most favorite song to listen to when I've been trapped in the library all day.

Librarian by My Morning Jacket

Image via vi.sualize.us)

windy

I was just going to write something maybe meaningful or though-provoking but I'm all alone in the living room and it's late and the huge gusts of wind outside are giving me the creeps, so I think I'll go curl up in bed instead.

I want someone to cuddle with.

viva las vegas?

So my completely empty week of spring break just went from a level of zero excitement to a level of yayayyaaay wow fun excitement! Here is what I'm up to:

-Saturday: down to the 'Vine to hang with MC (bathing suit shopping?)
-Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday: Vegas, Valley of Fire state park, laying out by big pools, shows (Cirque du Soleil, The Lion King, and Penn and Teller?)
-Thursday: back in the 'Vine, 1,000 steps beach (+ beer?)
-Friday: drive up to Atown, reunion with long-lost lovers all weekend

Wowowwww I'm so excited. I'm hoping it's sunny and warm the whole time (come on Cali, you can do it!!) Gonna get my tan and my reading on.

oasis

I'm pretty sure I should be banned from the Internet during dead week and finals week. I have been so unproductive today! I have two papers due on Friday and the most I got done was a little outlining. I did go to the gym and did a bit of reading today, but I've also done a lot of lazing about.

I did however decide that at some point in my life I would love to live in a building with a cool rooftop.Whether it has a fantastic view, like this one in NYC,
(image via wandermelon.com)

or a modern, relaxing feel like this one,
(also in Manhattan, image via inhabitat.com)

or an exotic vibe, like this one in Marrakesh, Morocco.
(That's me!)

I love this picture, it reminds me of such a dreamy experience I had when I was in Morocco. My tiny, adorable hostel had this rooftop oasis that I escaped to on my first day in Marrakesh. I was tired and dusty and culturally shocked, and I simply needed a quiet place to relax. I lazed on that couch all afternoon and wrote in my journal, and the owner of the hostel brought up a tray with fresh, homemade Moroccan mint tea served in the most ornate tea set. She also gave me a little bowl full of semi-sweet crumbly biscuits that tasted like heaven. I watched a beautiful sunset and as a hush fell over the incredibly loud and chaotic city, the eerie, mysterious prayer call in Arabic echoed through a PA system across the entire city. The prayer call must have lasted for about five minutes, and the whole time I was sitting in the near dark with tiny lanterns lit all around me, and goosebumps on my skin. The whole experience was magical and I cherish it as one of the most profound during my entire time abroad.

Ahh I just got kinda sad thinking about that for some reason. It's really windy here, I hate the wind for some reason, and it makes all the windows in this old house rattle like crazy, which puts me on edge. I'm going to go make a tuna melt. Hope you all had a wonderful and relaxing weekend. Back to the daily grind tomorrow.

hold your horses!

I am so restless right now! I was semi-unproductive today: I didn't have work and I only had a couple hours of classes and I skipped the gym. I also don't have any new books at home (not that I should be starting a book right before finals week) which means there has been a lot of exploring the web today. I feel like I'm about a page away from coming to "the end" of the Internet. I've looked at international job listings, opportunities to teach English in foreign countries, watched a thousand viral videos, and clicked through about 300 pictures from the Selby (which makes me romanticize my life in awful ways).

Anyways the best thing I found was this music video by the Franco-American band Hold Your Horses! The band members re-create famous/historical paintings in a rather creative and silly way in the video. I tried to research them more but they're pretty of the wall so I didn't find much. I bet they'll blow up in about 6 months though. Enjoy!

PS here is the myspace page for that band. (Do people still use myspace? It seems so "7th grade" to me...)

the phantom menace

This is what I look like after I go to class when it's bright and sunny (so naturally I don't bring an umbrella) and then I have to ride my bike home in the (torrential) rain. Rogue thunder showers are such a menace. So much for blow drying my hair today.

muzak

Ok so one more post here...

Check out the band/couple called Pomplamoose. In the past couple of days I stumbled across their name twice, so I figured it was high time I checked them out. I did a little research (aka wikipedia'd) them, and found out that they're a couple who are primarily youtube based, and they create "videosongs" which I guess entails that what you see is what you hear, and if you hear it, at some point you see it. (That is straight off wikipedia, sorry.) Basically they perform all their own music, vocals, instruments, etc, (with a little help from friends) and they show you (the viewer) what they're playing/singing, etc in their vids.

Turns out they're pretty cool/cute/quirky. I like the girl's voice, and they do some fun covers of random songs (anything from Simon & Garfunkel to Aerosmith to Beyonce). Plus their name is extremely similar to my favorite French word, "pamplemousse" which I'll give you a dollar if you can guess what it means. Ok not really. It means grapefruit. So random. (More trivia...red grapefruit is my favorite fruit!)

Anyways FINALLY here's their youtube link.

Sunday drive

Even though it rained all day Friday and Saturday, my parents and I lucked out with the weather on Sunday. Does anyone else use the expression "the fog was as thick as pea soup"? It might just be a family thing. Anyways, on Sunday morning the fog was as thick as pea soup in Atascadero, but the trusty Cayucos beach cam informed us that it was sunny on the coast, so we drove out to Cambria and got brunch at the Moonstone Beach Bar and Grill. I got my favorite eggs benedict of course. I love when it's served on a flaky croissant!

After brunch we drove up the road to a little nursery called Grow and wandered around like we always do. My dad bought this sweet succulent (you know, like, something that looks like an aloe plant, often mistaken for a cactus?) that was all silvery in the middle and then the edges of it were pinky-red. (Apparently the genus is an echeveria subrigida and they look like this.) And my mom bought this neat antiquey stoneware pot/vase thingy that I swear we have in every color at home. But the one she bought was a really delicate pastel greeny/blue color.

Here are some pictures from the day.

Grow Nursery: I love the weathered wood that is contrasted with the turquoise and orange window/door frames. Also how great is it that the orange paint matches the blossoms on the plants out front? (PS I'm pretty sure all the buildings in Cambria are made with that same wood; because Cambria gets pretty foggy I think it just gives everything that same semi-distressed look.)

This is the view literally across the street from Grow. And by street I mean tiny lane, there is nothing else out there. The road in the picture is actually Highway 1 that leads up to Hearst Castle and then Big Sur.

As you can see, this is the same picture as my new blogger heading. I figured I should have something up there that is my own! I also just realized that this is a succulent, and it is the same color as that vase my mom bought. Connections....yay! Oh also if you were wondering, that is indeed a tiny water droplet being suspended in the middle of the plant. I'm pretty sure it was just waiting there for a tiny garden fairy to come take a drink out of. It was crystal clear.

Happy March!

So I have about 12 different things I want to write right now so I'm just going to space them out into 3 or 4 different posts. So sorry for the onslaught, but here goes!

I can't believe it's March already! I officially have 8 more school days of my college career (not including finals week! I guess I'm not entirely dismissing grad school either...) So I guess I should say I have 8 more days of undergraduate classes. I know I should savor them, but I can't wait for spring and sunshine and (near) freedom. (I guess I do have to work and apply to internships, but I'm still looking forward to it!)

But enough of that business. On to the main point of this post. I just read this article from National Geographic that says that scientists believe that the 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile on Saturday likely shifted the axis of the Earth by three inches, which in turn leads to a shortening of days (only by 1.26 millionths of a second, but STILL). I just can't believe that! Apparently the huge quake in Sumatra in '04 did the same thing. I just really like hearing about scientific discoveries like that I guess. Not to mention it boggles my mind that scientists can figure stuff like that out, and also that the Earth has so much power and force!

Moonstone Beach + Heart's Ease

Oh boy, I'm going home this weekend to finally celebrate my birthday with my parents! My Mom asked me if I wanted to do anything special, and I told her I wanted to go to Moonstone Beach! When I was growing up, my Grandmother lived in Cambria, this sleepy beachside community about 30 minutes up the coast from San Luis Obispo. We would always make trips up to Moonstone Beach, about 10 minutes from her house. It was this gorgeous little bay with a big meadow and low cliffs next to it, and it had the best and smoothest stones scattered all over the beach (hence the name?).

Anyways, there is this bar and grill there too (appropriately named Moonstone Bar and Grill) and I told my parents I want to go get brunch there and sit on the patio and watch the waves, and then go on a walk on the beach afterwards.

On the way home I know we'll make a stop at Heart's Ease in Cambria. It's this adorable little nursery/garden/herb + gift shop that my Grandmother used to work at. She was a phenomenal gardener and lover of the outdoors, and she passed that love onto my Dad, who in turn passed it to me. Whenever my sister and I stayed at my Grandma's house, she would take us to Heart's Ease and we would get pampered by all the regulars who came in. The best part was getting lost in the garden and playing hide and seek in the giant hollyhock flowers.

(Notice the huge pines that line the ridge behind the gardens.)

Images via heartseaseshop

key to my heart?

Image via PaPeR.cLiP

So in response to my last post about door knobs, I decided to make a post about old keys, which I think are equally as cool as door knobs, not to mention they go hand in hand (oh did I just make a pun?) Maybe I'll start collecting them, or find a tiny one to put on a chain to wear around my neck.

Image via italiangirlingeorgia

I guess the best part about old keys is that they're so mysterious. What do they unlock? Secret gardens? Treasure chests? Probably something really cool or romantic or exotic.

feeling knobby

So I was just thinking about how cool door knobs are. Not like the average random door knob, but like antique ones or really worn ones. There is this door knob in the English department at school and it's so worn down that it shines like a brand new penny, and I turn it every day and think about how long it's been there and how long it will be there after I leave UCSB.

My mom has a whole bunch of antique faceted glass door knobs that are really cool and I used to be obsessed with them when I was little. Something to do with the glass being exposed to the sun for a long time has turned them purple so they look like this.

Image via Robinson's Antiques

I guess I just like random old-looking things, like this old door knob fixture.

Image via fineartamerica

I'm pretty sure when (if?) I have a house, I'm going to outfit all the doors with sweet accessories.

Image via architecturalclassics

Clouds

Gosh the clouds today in Santa Barbara totally remind me of Bordeaux. For some reason France has way better clouds than California. They're always puffy and white like big cotton balls and no matter what you can always find pictures in them, like pirate ships and whales and mermaids. (Apparently everything ocean-themed?)

This was taken last year in the Jardin Publique in Bordeaux. My favorite place to just roll around in the grass and picnic with a baguette and some cheese and jam and sometimes a bottle of wine. I miss it.

Flashback!

Ooh looks like it's going to rain. Kinda a bummer because this week was so gorgeous, but at least all I have tonight is work. Just ate a huge burger and shared some fries with a roomy because we went on a little excursion to retrieve her car that was getting worked on at the shop. I haven't had a good charburger in so long and now I'm stuffed.

I was thinking my blog needs some more interesting stuff on it because all text gets kinda boring, so I'm thinking I'm going to try to include a picture or image of some sort into each blog. Gonna have to dust off my scanner because I'm thinking it might be fun to scan in some old pictures or some sketches. Also I want to start including links to cool websites because I'm always stumbling upon cool stuff on the interwebs. Oh also check out my "Listening to" section at the bottom of each post, I've been neglecting it lately but I'm going to try to keep it up!

To start off, here is a blog that is dedicated to sharing what New York is reading! Check it out! I like seeing books I've read and looking at all the different book covers.

Also I thought I'd include a picture that I took precisely a year ago when I was in Barcelona! The weather was so nice and I loved seeing all of Gaudi's architecture. I feel like he was so innovative and creative. (Not to mention the clubs in Barcelona were so fun.) Anyways this is a door from the outside of the Gaudi Apartments. I love the different pieces of glass and how perfectly clean and reflective they are.

Listening to: Cousins by Vampire Weekend (such a great music vid too!)

growing freckles

So I know it's not good for my skin, but my favorite past-time is growing freckles. This basically consists of sunbathing, going to the beach, reading in a lawn chair, swimming, playing croquet, or any other outdoor activity that lasts for an extended period of time in the sunshine. Due to the beautiful weather, this past weekend consisted of a lot of freckle growing, which makes me very happy.

I just bought new nail polish so it must be sandal-wearing weather too. I'm going to paint my toenails tonight, but I can't decide between seductive plum, mango-get 'em, or monsooner or later. What do you think? I'm pretty sure I'm going to make a career out of coming up with nail polish name colors. They're always so clever and cheeky.

Didn't do too much tonight. I picked out an online traffic school and schlepped through 10 miserable chapters of how to merge onto freeways and the importance of windshield wipers. I guess it's helpful but it seems like a lot of work for one measly speeding ticket. On the bright side I got new dry-erase markers so I re-wrote my schedule on my whiteboard calendar, and it's now color-coded!

Not too much planned for tomorrow besides school, swimming, and more traffic school (sarcastic "yay"). I'm pretty sure I'm getting a couple papers back tomorrow so keep your fingers crossed that I did well!

walking on sunshine

Hey hey heeey. Just got back from LA. I went down yesterday afternoon to see a play. I have a friend that lives in Sherman Oaks and so I got to his apartment at about 4 and then we headed down to Santa Monica. Without traffic it would normally take about 15 minutes to get from his place to Santa Monica but it was rush hour on a Friday afternoon of a three-day weekend, so it took almost an hour, but we just passed the time catching up and listening to good music and making funny faces at the other drivers on the 405.

When we got to Santa Monica we parked and walked down to the beach and the sun was just setting so it was really pretty. Then we walked back up to Main Street and ate dinner and got some beers at this pub called Finn McCool's. Some of our other friends met up with us and then we walked over to the theater. The play was really random and kinda awkward but overall I guess it was a good experience and fun to see an actual play. Everyone in the audience was about 50 years older than us which was funny. After the play we took the scenic route home and drove past UCLA and through Beverly Hills, and then down Hollywood Boulevard, which weirdly reminded me of Times Square in NYC.

Basically it was really cool to see LA, and I really loved Santa Monica. I can see myself working for some cute company there and living in a cute little apartment by the beach. I'm definitely keeping it in my sights for this summer/my future.

When we got back to Sherman Oaks we played a whole bunch of songs on my friend's piano and then passed out. I had to get up early this morning and drive home because I have work at 11, but luckily there wasn't any traffic and I stopped at a Starbucks to get some coffee. The drive home was actually really nice because it's super sunny today and I love driving up past Ventura when you get to that stretch where it's all ocean for like 15 minutes.

Anyways, not too much planned today, I have a split shift at work so I'm scheduled from 11-3 and then again from 5-9 which kinda sucks, but I'll probably get to go home early both times. Hope your day is as bright and sunny as mine!

snug harbor

I just opened my "stickies" application on my desktop which I sometimes do when I don't have a pen handy and don't feel like opening up a Word document and I want to make a note of something. I don't know why I had to explain all that. Anyways, the point is I don't use the application that often, but I never delete the old stickies. I just found one that says this:

arboreal necropolis

snug harbor

logging men and sailors

someone from liverpool

tavern

I have no idea why those words are all clumped together on one sticky. I can't figure out if I was going to write a poem or I was analyzing something for a paper but I really like the sound of all those words and phrases together. It makes me picture a little harbor town with maybe some snow and being all cozy and hearing the wild ocean. Anyways I guess maybe I'll write a poem now.

me oh my

Hey hey. Hope you like my new blog layout. Still boring but I felt like it needed a change. I feel guilty because it's a beautiful sunny (albeit not very warm) day outside and I'm curled up in bed about to take a nap. However my window is open so I can see blue skies and feel the breeze and I can hear the neighbor playing pretty songs on his acoustic guitar so that makes me feel better.

I had an awesome birthday on Monday and I got treated like a princess which is always nice. Bowling was a success even though I might be the worst bowler on the planet. I blame part of that on consuming too much alcohol though.

Anyways I mostly wanted to post a quote from this book I am reading called Age of Iron by JM Coetzee. I really like it and I feel like it explains for some reason why I keep up with this blog.

"In another world I would not need words. I would appear on your doorstep. 'I have come for a visit,' I would say, and that would be the end of words: I would embrace you and be embraced. But in this world, in this time, I must reach out to you in words."

Just think about it; it makes so much sense. I wish I was able to write that eloquently, but I guess this will have to do.

birthday girl

So I'm celebrating my 22nd birthday today! I feel super lucky because having a February birthday usually means rain, but today it is super sunny and warm! I love birthdays because everyone is so nice! I got some really sweet gifts from my roommates. Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes! My day has been pretty laid back, I went to class, finished the crossword puzzle in the paper, and then got lunch from my favorite sandwich place with a friend. We took our sandwiches down to the beach and had a little picnic. It was so nice! I have to go back to class in a little bit and unfortunately I have to do a little work on a take-home midterm, but it should be pretty painless. Tonight I'm going bowling with a big group of friends. The local bowling alley has over 40 beers on tap. I love throwing heavy things around when I'm drunk!

It's weird to think of where I was a year ago on my birthday. I celebrated my 21st in Paris, and I had such a blast. I went with a big group of friends to a funky little fondue restaurant that served wine in baby bottles, then we went dancing at a club on the Seine. It was such a fun experience and I have such fond memories of my birthday abroad. Here are some pics from exactly a year ago that I love to look at. The Eiffel Tower never gets old.

time traveling?

I think I should get an A+ for this sentence I just typed to Marianne discussing how lame LA traffic is. Why did I ever become an English major? I should have just followed the mad scientist/loony inventor career path. Oh well...

"I wish there was like a rainbow freeway I could take that just let me fly over the top of LA. Or like a teleporter..."

I suck and need to go to bed but I think I'm going to start a book. Night night!

I feel like a million bucks

Man, I can't believe this week went so smoothly. It had absolute potential to be one of my worst weeks ever. But I think if I've learned anything in college it's the skill to balance procrastination and having fun. Although this week is a mega-example of a lame week, I ended up having a really good time. I worked on a paper all day Monday and Tuesday, got it turned in on Wednesday, crammed for an hour and passed a midterm with flying colors, then busted out another research paper, power point, and presentation for my Thursday class. Not to mention I made it to Old Town Tavern on Wednesday for a fun-filled night of dancing and drinking and horrible karaoke.

Anyways, I guess I'm saying I'm glad I'm done, but I'm also stoked I managed to have some fun in the midst of all the stress. I can't wait for this weekend, I'm heading down to the 'Vine to hang out with the lovely MC and celebrate her birthday. I'm pretty sure it will entail too much over-eating/drinking, because that is usually what we do. But no matter what it will be the perfect way to top off this week.

I'd better go, it looks like rain and I want to run some errands before it starts to pour!!

I feel ill

Literally, like my stomach hurts really bad. I don't know if it's nerves or too much coffee or food poisoning. UGH.

Only three more days of doom. I guess I'm one of those people that can see the light at the end of the tunnel, because even though I have to write two 6-page papers, take a midterm, make a powerpoint and then do a group presentation by Thursday, at least I know even if I get like 3 hours of sleep total, I'll get it all done, it will be decent work, and I'll be free on Thursday afternoon. (Even though I have work for 5 hours that night. And work and school the next day. AND a fieldtrip on Saturday, plus a quiz on Monday and a take-home midterm due Tuesday.)

Even though this week is eating my soul, I know everything will get done, and I can't explain how excited I am to sleep, catch up on reading, watch the superbowl, and have an awesome birthday.

roses are red, violets are blue

Ugh, I'm such a hopeless romantic/procrastinator it's disgusting. Instead of writing papers I explore blogs with wedding pictures and newly-bought houses and honeymoon ideas. What is wrong with me!? I'm meeting some kids in the library at 3 for a group presentation and I'm pretty sure I'm not going to have anything done because I'm such a slacker/creep. On the bright side I'm going with Brookie and Lauren downtown this evening because they both want their ears pierced, and apparently they consider me to be good at moral support. Maybe I'll surprise myself and get something pierced too. Nipples? Belly button? Tongue? Ahahahaha just kidding. Okay, back to work for now. (More like back to creeping on wedding blogs gaaah I'm hopeless.)

Sunshine

So it was finally sunny and warm today so I took advantage of the nice weather and sat outside and read a book for a while. It was weird looking at my arms; I'm pretty sure I haven't worn a t-shirt in about two months and I didn't even recognize my own limbs. I have some new freckles and I discovered a whitish scar that I can't remember the origin of. Anyways, it just makes me excited for summer and being able to wear short-sleeves more. I love being outside!

yesyesyesyesyes

Ah I'm so excited! Just got this e-mail from the Gaucho Online Data website. AKA the UCSB website that has all my scholarly info.

This is to inform you that with satisfactory completion of work currently in progress for Winter 2010, as of the date which this message was sent to you, you will complete the requirements for your undergraduate (Bachelor) degree.

In other words, I'm going to be done with college in 7 weeks! So crazy.

I was in the library for 6 hours tonight trying to write a paper. Then I tried to pay for my speeding ticket and do traffic school but the DMV website hates me and won't take my money. I relieved my stress by going to Chinos to celebrate Taco Tuesday with Ashley. ($2 beers yay!)

OOF

So I failed at taking pictures this weekend, my bad. However, I did have a blast back in good ol' Atown. Ate and drank too much of course, but ended up getting a lot of reading done for school and spent some quality time with the whole fam too. The next two weeks coming up are going to slay me, and sadly when my mom asked me if I was excited for my birthday in two weeks, I told her no, because I know I'm just going to be exhausted from the three papers, two midterms, and huge group presentation I have coming up. Oh well. I'll figure something out to make it exciting.

I'm drinking a glass of wine and reading Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent right now. I accidently looked up a synopsis of it before I went to class today and kinda spoiled the whole thing for myself, because it turns out that after about five boring chapters at the beginning of the book, things start to get really interesting. (i.e. explosions, murders, love affairs, etc.) Oh well.

Just talked to some friends about going to the Coachella Music Festival in April. It turns out this year you have to buy the whole three day pass instead of just being about to buy single day passes. Sounds kinda overwhelming but kinda worth it. My dad said it might turn into a mini-Woodstock, which I guess could be cool. Anyways looks like we're planning on packing the car up and camping there for the weekend.

On a side note, my bike chain fell off today when I was riding home from class, and of course it made me late for work. I left my bike locked up on campus and walked the rest of the way home because I suck at getting the chain back on and I hate standing on the side of the bike path looking like a loser as everyone rides by. That always sucks.

Oh and the title of my post today reminds me of the above picture. Taken in the MoMA in NYC, featuring the lovely MC and the simple yet brilliant painting by Mr. Edward Ruscha.

Honey, I'm hoooome.

So I'm in Atascadero, drinking a beer, watching How It's Made on the science channel with my sister and her hyphy boyfriend. We're going to sushi tonight with my parents which I'm pretty stoked about. I'm teaching my mom how to put songs on her iPod. Tomorrow we're going out to the old Pozo Saloon with a huge group of people to celebrate my Dad's bday. Gonna be an awesome weekend. Wooo. I'll take some pictures tomorrow to upload and mix things upppp. Peace out homies.

Rainstorm, take me away from the norm...

Nothing new here, it is still rain-storming like crazy. For the first time in my life I got woken up by thunder this morning. I thought the sky was falling down, and then I just lazed in bed for a while listening to the rain/wind. After I got up I could actually see lightening too, and at one point the thunder kinda gave me a heart attack. The poor cats were freaked and hid under Jessica's bed all morning.

I eventually slogged my way to class and then decided to go sit in the hot tub at the rec center with Jessica and Lauren. We were the only ones at the entire pool complex besides the poor lifeguards huddled in their office. We finally got warmed up and decided to jump in the super-heated pool which was really fun. Riding my bike home in the rain wasn't even an issue because I was already soaking wet. I didn't avoid any of the puddles, which made things really fun. Made some soup for lunch and then luckily the rain let up for a little bit when I had to ride back onto campus for my second class.

Now I'm home finishing up a novel for one of my classes tomorrow. It's called Life and Times of Michael K by J.M. Coetzee, who is this South African guy who writes about semi-non-fictional apartheid events. He won the Nobel Prize in 2003. Anyways I'm taking an entire class on him, he's pretty cool and even though his work is super depressing (it's basically all about torture) it's also really moving.

Anyways, that's about it. I'm going home this weekend for my Dad's 60th birthday, maybe I'll try to take some pictures?


PS-I've had the worst heartburn the last 3 days. I think I've been drinking too much wine and coffee and eating too much tomato soup and chocolate. Time to mix up my eating habits.

It's raining, it's pouring...

Yay! I love the rain! I'm so cozy right now, curled up on the couch with a mug of tea and a pad of paper and some pens/paints. My curtains are thrown open so I can see the rain hammering down on the roof. Jude is enthralled by the rain. He's sitting on the window sill staring at the stream of water dumping from the gutter. I'm thankful tomorrow is MLK day...I don't have to think about braving the puddles on my bike ride to class. Somehow I never managed to buy a pair of rainboots, even though they would be infinitely helpful and make my feet happy/dry. UCSB wasn't made for rain: puddles seem to accumulate in mile-long stretches, and they're quite deceiving too...sometimes I think I can get away with making a quick dash through one, and then it turns out to be about two feet deep and suddenly I'm soaked up to my knees. Oh well, at least it makes life exciting. I just feel happy happy happy.

Listening to: pitterpatterdripdripdroppitydrip

ugh.

Lame night. I'm annoyed.

vino

Wine night with my favorite housemate Jessica. Everyone else is going out tonight but we're just gonna take it easy and schmooze and watch SNL skits. Wow sounds exciting. Won't be up too late because I'm swimming in the morning. I'm excited!

Today was pretty relaxed, just went to my classes and bought a ton of books. I'm already behind on reading and it's only the 3rd day of school. How is that possible?

[EDIT] I ended up watching the movie Heights (here's the link to the trailer). It was so intense. I've been contemplating moving to New York City for a while now, but the movie just made me want to move there so much more. There is no "happy" ending or real resolution to the movie, but ahh it literally just makes my heart ache thinking about living in New York.

After that I just stayed up talking about my past and high school and tragic stories, and it made me sad to think about lost lives. At the same time it really made me thankful for my friends and what I have going for me in my life right now. I like looking at my future and having no idea what is in store. It makes me excited and anxious and motivated to be successful. Maybe I've had too much wine but I'm just happy and positive and even though I was thinking about how I have to write at least four 15-page papers this quarter, I'm not disappointed or even pessimistic. I just know I'll get past them and my future will always hold something new and different.

I want everyone to feel this way. I guess I'm lucky that I've always been able to get through things. Even though sometimes I may not be especially positive, I've always known that I'll survive and create something worthwhile. Ahhhh okay, for realzzzzz I'm going to bed right now! I'm going to kick some butt in the pool tomorrow, can't wait to dominate! I love life. Haha I'm so cheesy.

painting

I'm gonna go buy some water color paints today. I'm feeling artsy/experimental. Last night I went to my friend Ashley's house and she was painting faces on her dresser drawers. It inspired me to be more creative.

Just got done with my swimming class. My coach seems like he's going to be awesome and I'm actually excited to exercise!

I don't have class until 12:30 and there is a marathon of Cash Cab on so I'm pretty sure I'm posting up on the couch until about 12:23. Nothing else too exciting going on. Hope you're all doing well.

Whoa

Just realized it's been exactly a year since I arrived in France. My flight to Paris felt like it took days, and then this kindly young French man helped me all the way from Charles de Gaulle airport to the Gare Montparnasse (main train station in Paris). It was freakishly cold and snowing and I was terrified I was going to miss my train! I finally made it to Bordeaux and met my host family and had such great adventures. Can't believe it's been a year!!

video+blog=vlog

So this is kinda my attempt at vlogging. I tried just talking to the camera but it got boring really fast, so I thought a time-lapse of me cleaning my room was cooler.

Today was my last first day of school/college! Crazy to think about. I was thinking someone should have taken a picture of me with my backpack in front of my house like my mom used to do on the first day of school. Oh well. I'm going to celebrate by eating some In 'n Out and drinking some wine. I signed up for an intermediate swimming class, and the first session is tomorrow morning at 9. We'll see how it goes, I'm definitely a little rusty but hopefully I'll be fine. I'll keep you updated on everything that unfolds this week!




Listening to: Broken Horse by Freelance Whales

2010

Dang, I suck at this. But it's a new year, and I'm determined to keep this up! At least three posts a week. Think I can do it?

So it's 2010. There is a lot in store for me in the upcoming months. I start my last quarter of college in two days. I will celebrate my 22nd birthday in February. And I'm finishing up school on March 20! After that, I'm hoping to find an internship in the Santa Barbara/LA area to keep me busy for the next few months (March-June).

After graduation in June, I have no idea where I'm headed. I'm hoping to find some sort of job/internship/editing gig. I have been perusing Craigslist job offerings in NYC and San Diego. It makes me excited but I'm nervous at the same time. I could technically move anywhere in the world, nothing is holding me back! Except the lack of a job...

Anyways, on to more exciting things. Spent the holidays with my family, and then was back to Isla Vista to ring in the new year with my closest friends. Went on a couple hikes and saw Avatar and Sherlock Holmes. The weather in Santa Barbara has been awesome, it makes me excited for spring/summer.

New Years resolutions?
-go on a hike a week
-swim
-run on the beach
-keep up this dang blog!
-paint/draw more

Not too exciting I guess. Talk to you soon.


Listening to: Silence. (Seriously. It's 2:30 am. No one else is awake. I kinda like it.)