Copycat

I can't think of anything to write right now, so I'm stealing a questionnaire from Dancing Brave and UltraTart, which are both excellent sites. So here we go;

What to wear: Hmmm. I'd have to say, there are a few things I think are important. One, the clothes should fit. Two, a nice top can make an outfit. And three, if you have really, really good hair, no one will care what you're wearing.

What NOT to wear: Ponchos. I will never never like ponchos. Also shirts that are too short. I have a long torso, and understand that sometimes the tee and the jeans just can't meet, but seriousoly people, there's a difference between one inch and three.

What to shoe: I have to admit, I suck with heels. I can't walk properly, they make my feet hurt, and they're just too expensive for me to buy, when I only wear them Out. So, I'd have to say either runners, or my Aldo clogs, which are pretty standard, but go with everything.

Biggest Shopping Splurge: I just bought a new coat from Jacob, and a new watch from Guess, so...you pick. Before that? I guess my prom and grad dresses. I really don't spend much on single items of clothing.

Fashion Security Blanket: Good hair and a fitted classy coat. They ensure that even if you randomly run into someone while on your way to the grocery store, you still look good.

Favorite Historical Period: Um...I know pretty much nothing about history. Also, as a biracial person, my existence would have been far more difficult in any other era than now. So...I got nothing

What to see (movie): Incredibles. And Bridget Jones 2. And Garden State, because my viewing of that was unfortunately postponed.

Favorite Bad Movie: Hmmm. Fast and the Furious? Sad, but kinda true. I'm sure there're more. Possibly 10 Things I Hate About You and Legally Blonde, but I personally don't think they're bad, so I'm not sure if they count.

What to listen to: There are a lot of good songs. Such Great Heights (Postal Service), Across the Universe (Fiona Apple version), I really can't list them all.

What to eat: Sushi, panini's, my mom's cooking, lobster, seafood in general.

Where to eat it: Sushi can be found almost anywhere in Vancouver. They did a survey recently, and there are almost as many sushi places in Vancouver as there are Starbucks's. Panini's can be found at the Citrus Cafe, on Georgia and Bute (down Bute). My mom's cooking you have at my house, with my mom. Lobster and seafood...really, just look it up yourself.

Morning Person or Night Owl?: Kinda neither. I like the middle of the day best, and nighttime only when I have a good book to read.

Worst Vice: Picking at my eyelashes, and rubbing my eyes. Also, touching my hair.

Most Thrilling Famous Person Meeting: I've never actually met a famous person. So sad.

Color That Best Represents Your Personality: I don't know...can one colour really represent you?

Latest Obsession: Getting new shoes and a new bag (I feel like my backpack damages my pretty, pretty new coat). Also, learning to kayak. I will get lessons, dammit!

A Recurring Dream: I don't really have any. As a kid, I used to have recurring dreams where I'd walk to the top of my stairs, and then jump down to the bottom, over and over. That was weird, and I think the source of my fear of the sensation of falling. Ech.

Now I Get It

So, I think I may have hit on the reason I've been feeling so up-and-down these past two days. Before I elaborate on that, any squeamish boys or extremely polite girls, please read on at your own risk. This entry concerns *ahem*, women's troubles.

Okay, now that I'm left with those of you who are less delicately built, I don't have to use euphemisms and metaphors for everything. Basically, PMS has decided that my emotional stability is enemy numero uno, and that it will not rest until I'm alone, in bed, sobbing like a pathetic thirteen-year-old who's just found out Orlando Bloom is engaged. Normally, PMS is not nearly as much of an issue. I'll concede that I probably get a little more emotional than my normal state, but to be honest, I don't even notice it. It definitely doesn't make me feel like this. It's bizarre. I've learned that when I'm like this, being alone is very, very bad. When I'm alone, I mope, and pine, and then write in my journal until I write something that makes me cry, at which point I stop, because my journal is really, really pretty, and the hell am I getting tears on it. And thus beings the cycle. Write, cry, write, cry, etc. That was the first two waking hours of my day today. Bloody PMS. On the bright side, after this is over, I'm totally going to laugh at myself, because...yikes. But for now, PMS is kicking my ass.

I've said it before, but it's especially pertinent right now, so go read The Menstrual Chronicles. Menstrual Girl? That's me. Except without the hapless boyfriend. Or the cat.

House Of Stars

Last night, a bunch of the ADPi's, including myself, volunteered for the Ronald McDonald House House of Stars Gala, at the Fairmont Waterfront. It was a lot of fun, and I now have a white feather boa for my troubles! It was a really cool event. There was a silent auction, a live auction, dinner, dancing, and a raffle. The decor was really nice too; white chairs, tables, and each chair had a feather boa tied arond the back, which was gorgeous, but meant that all the guests had little feathers all over their clothes. They didn't seem to mind, though; most of the women took their boas home with them, and some had more than one as they were walking out the door! There were also feather lamps in the middle of each table, which were really pretty; I think I may make one.

The one drawback to the event was that I wore heels, and my feet hate me quite a lot right now. It's definitely time for me to go back to the comfy shoes. I guess my inability to wear heels for any period of time pretty much rules out any possibility of me being a socialite. Oh well.

He's Baaack!

The doorbell just rang, and as my mom seemed uninclined to get it, I went to open the door. At the door was Greg. Greg who is supposed to be in Cuba for another week. Heh.

So he ran out of money, and is back home, apparently a little lighter, both in weight, and possessions (boy got robbed). He is however the proud new owner of cigars and rum, authentic from Cuba, and also a really weird straw hat that he was wearing at the door, which made it even harder for contact lens-less me to recognize him. My mom I think is a little stunned. My dad isn't home yet, but I'm not sure how happy he's going to be when he finds out his camera was among the things stolen.

Yep, things are all back to normal, here.

Say It With Me Now: Focus On The Upside

So, the past two days have been...varied, at least as far as my emotions go. So, in the spirit of ignoring that which sucks/is confusing in an angsty way, I will tell you about the good stuff that happened.

Last night, I went to T's, and we watched ANTM and Queer Eye. It was fun (as always), and I've come to the conclusion that pretty much everyone on ANTM is a little...touched. My favourite part was when Tyra talks about how one of the contestants, Nicole, is kind of anonymous and lacking in memorability. Now, T, Tessa and I have all noticed that Nicole has been getting the editing shaft throughout this season, to the point where no one really knows anything about her. I mean, her presence in the show is entirely limited to the photo shoots, to the point where sometimes I wonder if she even lives in the same suite as everyone else. Anyway, Tyra says her line about forgetting Nicole, and we're all "Psst! Tyra! It's because of your editors".

Anyway, so last night was cool, and then this morning, at, you guessed it, 8:30, we had soccer! Now, when I went to bed last night, it was pouring. And when I woke up? Pouring. A couple of weeks ago, it was a beautiful day, and yet the games were canceled because they didn't want to damage the fields. Today,the games were on, and let me tell you, the fields had turned into marshes. These were not healthy fields. But we played anyway. Oh well, it was fun, and I only bailed once, which isn't to bad, for running around in a mud-patch without cleats.

Anyway, gotta get going; I have studying to do! Atleast I don't have to worry about wishing I was outside. Still raining up a storm out there.

Night of a Thousand Dinners

So last night I attended The Night of a Thousand Dinners, an event for the UN's Adopt-A-Minefield Campaign. It was put on by my friend Claire, who did an excellent job, as she does at everything. It was very informative, and enlightening, if not uplifting. If you don't know about landmines, then you should; click on the link, or google 'landmines'. They are a particularly vindictive and long-lasting form of weaponry, and someone is injured or killed by a landmine every thirty minutes.

The dinner (well, dessert, but that's the best part of dinner anyway) was really nice; I met a lot of cool people, ate some good food (and took some home! There were leftovers), and bid on a couple of items in the silent auction. I even won something! A portrait done by this company. So that was pretty cool.

On the walk home, I saw four raccoons (which are so, so cute) across the street from my house, so my parents stories about seeing raccoons lately are probably true, and not indicative of some psychological disorder. Phew!

Freak Out

Has anyone other than me realized how soon Christmas (or the winter holiday of your choice) is? It suddenly crashed down on me this morning, and I'm now (metaphorically) hiding in a corner in the fetal position, because I have so much to do. Forget the presents and decorating, I still have midterms and papers, and that doesn't even count finals! And I have no money with which to buy presents! And there's all this socializing to be done around Christmas, and where am I possibly going to find the time, when my every moment will be absorbed by my attempts to make Christmas presents for everyone?

Granted, this fear will probably go away. I love Christmas. It's my favourite holiday, in fact. I have to say, Christmas Day actually isn't that huge of a deal for me, but the surrounding half-month, as a whole, is awesome. Plus, Christmas means Christmas TV specials, like Charlie Brown, the Grinch, and the recently discovered Yogi Bear's First Christmas. Christmas also means Ferrero Rocher chocolates, which are amazing. Yay! Now I'm excited again!

Heh. I may need some sort of mood-stabilizer. On the Christmas List it goes!

Not Mentioning the Election

Except for in that title. Ugh. Everyone needs to go buy a shirt, like now.

Other than that, my day has been pretty good. I talked to girly, went to class, meeting, and now am finally back home, eating dinner before I drop into bed.

Speaking of bed, and therefore sleep, I actually fell asleep in class today, for the first time in my life. It was really weird. I was writing notes of what the prof was saying with my eyes shut, borderline conscious at best, and it was like my brain blinked. My head fell forward, and apparently so did the rest of my body, because I woke up literally 3 milliseconds after, and there was this random line from my pen moving when my body rocked forward. So weird.

And, as I'm about to do that all over again, I'm signing off. Definitely time for bed. 'night!

One Hundred

According to Blogger, this is post one hundred for me. Woo one hundred! Next big milestone; five hundred.

I spent today with Shakey, helping get a mass mailing done. We actually got quite a bit done, which was impressive; it was a difficult day. We only had one big screw-up; we thought postage was $3.20, instead of 98 cents, which is what it was supposed to be. To be fair, the envelopes we were mailing were big, and the price-chart is confusing. Anyhow, our mix-up led to the postage machine running out of money in like two minutes. Oops.

Yikes. My mom is cooking crab, and she bought live ones from Chinatown. One of them is obviously a little more alive than the others, and just pinched the hell out of her finger. I've never heard her yelp like that. The crabs are smallish, too. That one was clearly the badass crab, though; the rest are all kind of sluggish, while this one's dancing around like Sebastian in The Little Mermaid. I shall call him Chauncy, because I like how "Chauncy the Crab" sounds Heh. Chauncy. I'm apparently about to be treated to quite the amazing dinner; in addition to the crab, my mom is also making her dumplings. Mmm, dumplings.

I'm going to go contemplate my food now.

Resolutions and Calculations

So the fury has abated. It was addressed and resolved, and I feel much better. Still not perfect, but at least not like my insides are boiling, so that's good. While I'm still on the theme of goodness, I got 90% on my Psychology of Language midterm! I'm pretty excited.

On the not-so-good side of things, I did some financial calculations, and while I'm still in the positive numbers, it's a little too close for comfort. So...more spending-control is going to be put in place.

I hate unsettling financial news. But 90%! Yay!

I Have The Best Friends

So, I've been swinging on the rope of moods all day, which I guess makes sense; my friends kept me so busy yesterday that I all but forgot my anger and hurt. Today of course, it's back, but I luckily have amazing friends, who have my back always.

This morning, I gave Tessa a call, and we chatted and caught up on each other's lives, which was, as always with her, awesome. She also commiserated with me about the joys of getting a long-desired piercing. The wise Tessa told me it's so satisfying because it's something you do purely for yourself; it's entirely selfish, and that makes it even better. And it's true. It's like when I got my hair cut. It made me happy because it was all for me. I think I lost some of that when I was still a 'girlfriend'. I lost some of my autonomy. That was entirely my fault, he never asked me to give it up, and I would never imply it was his idea. It is very nice to have it back though, so i think next time I start dating someone, I'm going to have to make sure I keep it.

I also talked to Jo, who was a wonderful listening ear, and didn't give much advice, which is exactly what I needed. I feel much better now, less anxious and sick. I really do have beautiful friends. They're always there to listen or help, and I love them for it.

Guess What I Did...

So, yesterday ended up being a wicked day. After the soccer game, me and T were going to go to the library, but we decided since it was beautiful outside, we were obligated to enjoy the sun. So we went shopping instead.

We headed down to Robson, met with another friend, and the three of us just wandered around. We actually did have a mission in mind; I, for one, need a pair of shoes. The only wearable shoes I have right now is a pair of Aldo clogs that are really comfortable and nice, but what with the lack of a heel, are not useful when it rains. All my other shoes have holes in them, one pair to the point that you can see my socks when I wear them! I also wanted to find a winter coat, to cash in on my birthday present from my parents. T wanted a bunch of stuff (shoes, hoodies, etc.) and our friend was just along for the ride. We looked at shoes first, and I've decided that not only are shoes vastly overpriced, but most of them make my feet look weird. T did find shoes, but sadly, I'm still in the market. I did find a completely elegant watch in Guess?. I tried to find a picture of it online, but I got nothin, so I'll have to try to describe it. It's a really classy, timeless watch (forgive the pun), silver link strap, round face with a slightly pearlized white-gray face and silver hands. It's beautiful and I love it, and as an added bonus came with a ten-year warranty.

Now, T, for years, has gone earring-less. She'd been talking about how she wanted to get them pierced, so I suggested she do it while we were downtown. T was wavering in indecision, while we (us other two) kept trying to ascertain if she wanted to. And admittedly, try to convince her to, because we both knew it'd be really flattering for her. She finally came to the conclusion that she was just scared, so she should do it. Unfortunately, our friend had to leave to work, but T and I headed to Claire's Accessories to get it done.

While she was looking at the various earring options, I started to think about how I'd always wanted to have a second earring in one ear (I think you're possibly seeing where this is going now). I've wanted one ever since somewhere around grade 9, which means for the past seven years, but I never mentioned it to anyone. I think I had some weird delusion about the earring, my image, and how much people would like me (remember highschool, everyone?). But I've always wanted it, and I thought "well, seven years is a pretty long time to have not gotten over this. I may as well get it." So I did. And I love it. It's not as noticeable as T's, as she had no piercings, but it's there, a tiny little cubic zirconia, and it's really pretty. T looks utterly lovely with her little zirconias; we were both left wondering why the hell she hadn't gotten it done earlier. Judging from her reaction yesterday, she'll spend some time at the mirror marveling at the pretty, and some of it trying to assure herself they aren't off-center (T, they are not off-center. That's why it took you twenty five minutes of dot-placement before you actually let her pierce the ears). Mine, I sometimes barely notice, and that's exactly how I wanted it. I really really like it, and I'm still so glad I got it. That'll probably be it, piercing-wise though. I may consider getting an analogous one on my other ear, but I'm not too into the whole bodypiercing thing.

Anyhow, we moved on from Claire's all excited about our new jewelry, right into Jacob, where I found The Coat. Jacob has no online store at all, so there can be no link to my beautful coat. It's black, very nicely cut, and it has I guess what you could call a soldier's collar; not like a suit or button-up shirt, it goes around my neck. I tried it on, and loved it, and therefore The Coat (which was most reasonably-priced) became My Coat.

Awesome day. Bet you wouldn't have guessed about the earring!

P.S. Happy Halloween everyone!

We Won!

We won our excruciatingly early soccer game today, and by quite a margin too! It even managed to distract me from the anger for quite some time, which is pretty impressive. The game was actually a lot of fun; we had a full team, with a sub, and we were all a little more relaxed because of it. The field was mud from goal line to goal line, with a nice little 'lake' on one side of it. We all managed to stay standing, except Hilary, who can now say she has taken her first soccer mud bath (way to go, Hil!). JJ was awesome, as always, scoring all but two of our goals, and it was truly a lot of fun.

Anyway, I have to go study now, so I'm off to the library with T!

Anger

I am so, so angry right now. Angry and hurt. I understand that some of this is inevitable, but...don't lie to me. And don't ever ask my friends to lie to me. They'll decide what to tell me and what not to, in my best interests; don't ever try to get them to work in yours. Lying's the fastest way to invalidate everything before, and it hurts so much. Funny how the one thing I asked wasn't possible. Now I'm just angry, and hurt, and wanting to hurt something back, anything. Why did you do this? How did you possibly think it was a good idea? You betrayed me when I thought it wasn't supposed to be possible anymore. I feel like it's August again, and it sucks.

Ah, Correspondence

So I just got a couple emails from my brother in Cuba. Big surprise, the boy needs money. I love how he wants me to ask my parents for him. Ech.

You know what I really enjoy about halloween candy? The serving size. While I am sometimes kind of in the mood for a large amount of candy, I find that after the first two or three bites, the flavour stops being quite so amazingly good. It's like my tongue stops being all excited and sending a million signals to the brain, and starts slacking off with more of a 'repeat previous function' sort of signal. With halloween candy, there really only is two or three bites, max, and therefore it seems like flavour perfection every time. Kind of makes me realize the truth of the 'smaller protions is better' thing. Except when it comes to pumpkin pie. Pumpkin pie is always good.

Reunions, Panini, And Other Such Ramblings

This morning I got to see Shakey, an alumnae sister who is incredible. Honestly, a ridiculously amazing woman. And an extremely good listener, to boot. It was great seeing her after so long (she was living in China for a while), but I wish she wasn't leaving again.

We went to lunch at the Citrus Cafe, a tiny little place on Bute St. It was really good! I had a turkey panini, with spinach, pesto and mozzarella. Paninis are amazing. Other sandwiches wept the day paninis arrived. And I don't mean the fastfood imitation, either. I mean the kind that are made with the incredible fresh bread, melted cheese oozing out, and veggies inside that are still crisp. It was delicious. And extremely filling.

After seeing Shakey, I went to class. I have to say, so far I'm not a huge fan of speech perception. I'm one of the few people I know that actually likes my Language Psyc course, but we've just started the speech perception part of the course, and I don't find it nearly as interesting as the previous sections. Oh well, maybe it'll grow on me.

Definitely time for me to go get dessert. My mummy baked cinnamon buns! Mmmm.

Arguments For Pinata-Making.

A good friend of mine, who is awesome, was recently having boy-trouble. Unfortunately, it wasn't the 'talk to him and it'll get better' kind of boy trouble, it was the 'this sucks' kind. So we were discussing the problem, and I gave her two possible solutions, which I might add could be used for any situation in someone is being a total ass (we will call this figure 'the annoyance' from now on);

1. Kick him. Hard.
2. Make a pinata of his head, fill it with candy, hang it from a tree, and beat it with a stick. This is an older idea of mine, but it is very versatile in its possible applications.

There are several advantages to the pinata plan. One, when you beat a pinata, it is not a crime. This is in direct contrast to beating a person, which is most definitely a crime. Two, the venting of the rage can not only be done without the annoyance's presence, but without his/her knowledge. And finally, were you to beat the annoyance, would candy fall out, rewarding you for your exertions? I didn't think so.

I rest my case.

Fire Alarm, Anyone?

So, for the second time this year, my Psychology of Language class was interrupted by a fire alarm. Generally, there are two reasons for a fire alarm going off at UBC.

1. There's a fire. (doesn't happen often, except in the chemistry building)
2. Someone has an exam they want canceled, and they think pulling a fire alarm is a good way to make that happen.

The first time the alarm went off, it was the third day of class. The third day. No one has an exam on the third day of class! The third day there are still some profs going through the syllabus. My prof was so confused by the fire alarm that we all stayed in the room for a few minutes while he was deciding what to do. Luckily it was pretty nice out, so I ran into friends outside and we chatted.

Now, pulling a fire alarm today would theoretically have made more sense. After all, this is high midterm season. But (and you know there's always a but) whoever pulled it did it 15 minutes before class ended. I don't understand this at all. Say you pulled it during your midterm. Clearly, you weren't in class at the time. Do you really think, that after an entire class has been writing their midterm for over an hour, your professor is going to 'cancel' the midterm because of 15 minutes? They'll scale it, numbskull. Alternatively, let's assume that the miscreant pulled the fire alarm before he was to write the exam. Half an hour is plenty of time for the fire department to sweep the building and deactivate the alarm, buddy. As was shown today, when everyone's 3:30 pm class went ahead as scheduled. Honestly, if you were just smarter, you'd know when to pull the fire alarm. Of course, you possibly would be smart enough to just write the exam too.

I actually find it interesting when a fire alarm goes off. Considering what fire alarms are supposed to be warning us of (ie. a blazing inferno of death), the general reaction is remarkably apathetic (again, except in the chemistry building. There, a fire alarm goes off and people are bodysurfing down the stairs to avoid the toxic death that would result form a fire in a building full of poisons that go boom in especially colourful ways). What do you think when you hear a fire alarm? Long gone are the days when I think 'Fire!'. I don't even remember those days. Now, I think 'God, I hope it isn't raining', and 'did you ever think about studying? Just a thought'.

And fire alarms are actually the more innocuous illegal method of exam-avoidance I've seen. At the end of one of my chemistry finals in second year, we were all confronted by police officers with a tape recorder, asking us to identify a (modulated) voice on a recording that had placed a bomb threat on our exact room at the exact time of the exam. While we did not in fact blow up, I find it not terribly reassuring that they didn't tell us of the threat until afterward. Of course, it may have had to do with the phrasing of the threat, which was so remarkably stupid that I still remember it;

"Hi,...I'm calling to say...the people in Chem 150 on Tuesday the 17th at 3 pm had better watch it...or else they'll blow sky high...while I watch them from upstairs...(click)"

I'm sorry, he was going to 'blow me sky high' while he was watching upstairs? And this guy was in a chemistry class? Did he not want to write the final because he was now invincible?

How is it, that when it's so hard to get into university, so many idiots are here?

I'd Better Not Be Psychic

Have you ever had creepy, overly-relevant dreams? I was having a pretty restless sleep, and I kept having really vivid dreams, one of which is a little too on-topic for me. See, I wouldn't even be home right now, except that my parents have finally purchased a new washer/dryer set, and I have to be home so that it can be delivered. That's fine; it gives me an excuse to sleep in. But I had the most bizarre dream, where the delivery men tried to knock me out with ether, and then rob my house, but I held my breath (to counteract the ether) and bit one of them (for self-defense, I assume). I'm not too concerned, because the laundry room in my dream was a bout the size of my entire house, but still, it's weird. I just got the call from the delivery people; the set is coming in the next twenty minutes.

Crazy dreams...I've got to stop snacking before going to bed.

I Love Dressing Up

Last night was POP, otherwise known as Pride of Panhellenic, a huge formal for all the sororities. It was at Science World this year, and it was a lot of fun. I got to get all dressed up, and I felt gorgeous, for which I must thank Karen for the (gold!) dress, Steph for the earrings, and T for doing my makeup. Also, I'd like to thank my ingenuity for solving my slippery-shoe problem. Are your feet slipping right off your strappy shoes? Spray the bottom of the shoes with hairspray! It works.

So, it turns out Science World can be pretty swank-looking, with the right lighting. I wasn't too sure how it would turn out, but it was a definite improvement over the warehouse-venue of my first year. It was fun to see everyone all dressed up, and to dance with all my girls. Also, it was T's birthday yesterday, so happy birthday T! Your present will come later. I pretended it was my birthday, because that pretty much was my fancy-dress-up party. It was a great time, and now I am exhausted, and must study for a midterm. Sigh.

Oh! And I got my birthday presents back, so yay!

Yesterday (and Today, Too)

Other than the exam, I had an awesome birthday yesterday. People came over, and we just chilled, talked, and ate cake. I got some very pretty birthday cards (thanks Anna, Mo, Evi, Jessie, Jo, and Girly!), a gorgeous pair of earrings (thanks Alex!), and a giraffe and toucan. That first is a stuffed animal, and the second is a balloon, those metallic kinds that stay inflated forever (thanks Girly!). The giraffe doesn't have a name yet, but he is awesome, and a perfect size to sleep with. Karen and Tiff came by, and Karen brought me a gorgeous gold dress (it really is pretty, but if I try to describe it it will sound like horror, so you'll just have to take my word for it) that I'm going to wear to POP tomorrow!

Today, I woke up with that dry chapped feeling in my throat. I am NOT keen on getting sick, and therefore not terribly impressed. However, I got to have lunch with Girly (mmm...all you can eat sushi/dim sum), and got a new journal, and a new shirt that is pink, and pretty.

Tonight, Jo and Tamara gave me a birthday present, and it's really pretty! It's an adorable little writing set, to put on my desk. I also got a birthday card from Hilary, but I didn't get a chance to read it, because it got cleaned up by some of the girls (sorority event tonight), and I have no idea where the card, or the present, went! I'm actually a little upset. I'm sure they'll pop up, but I want my birthday presents!

Heh, I'm a whiner.

TWENTY-ONE!

Yep, I am officially twenty-one. I'm still awake because I was studying my ass off. I'm going to bed once I finish writing this. I unfortunately lost some study time today, what with meeting, and the Ghost Train (in Stanley Park; it is possibly one of the funniest 15-minute rides you'll ever have the chance to go on). However, I think I'll be okay so long as I get up tomorrow morning and continue the hitting of the books.

But it's my birthday! And you know what is awesome about my birthday? I've been twenty-one for less than an hour, and I've already gotten 2 e-cards! And they were cute! Also, as a birthday treat, I think I'll go buy the new Martha Stewart Weddings magazine. But for now, I've decided to spend a good 7 hours of my birthday sleeping. 'night all.

Twenty-one.

Only One Sleep!

This is the last day I'm twenty. Yay! I'm actually not excited about being twenty-one (drinking age in BC is 19, and I don't even drink), but I am excited for my birthday! Yay!

I'm not terribly for my midterm tomorrow though. Oh well, necessary evil, right? On the bright side, I went to go see my TA about the other midterm, and she'd mismarked one of the questions, so my mark went up a little. Not a lot, but enough to make a difference. Alright, time for me to go do some more reading.

Almost there!

2 Sleeps!

In not so exciting news, I got one of my midterm marks back, and it was not what I was expecting. Ech. Anyway, I'm definitely going to see my exam for that one.

I also got a flu-shot today, so that I may continue working with the elderly at the seniors' residence. It's been a while since I've gotten a shot, and Ihave to say, I'm not a huge fan. But I suppose it's better than getting sick all the time, so I'll grin and bear it, with the help of a trusty bandaid.

Time to go to class, and study for my next midterm. The hell I'm getting a low mark on that one.

Countdown! 3 Sleeps!

Til my BIRTHDAY! In three days, I will be twenty-one. Woo! Unfortunately, I will also be writing a midterm on my birthday, which I can assure you is far less 'woo!' and far more 'ech'. But whatever. Twenty-one!

Today went pretty well, although class alternated between boring and depressing. The topic of the day was suicide in my abnormal psychology class, which in general is not a very uplifting topic. But it was interesting, and apparently, since I'm neither male, nor white, I've managed to dodge two big risk factors. I believe our next topic is eating disorders, so as a female college student, I get to fall under the 'high-risk' bracket for that one.

So excited for the birthday! But til then, I have some journal articles to read. And by 'some', I mean 'lots'. Wish me luck!

Nice To See You Too

So my parents just got home. Literally 39 seconds after they got in, my mom started deeming our upkeep of the house inadequate. And Greg isn't even here, so I get to hear about it all, which is especially irritating, because I actually did most of the stuff that got done. Greg kept saying he'd do things, but then didn't. Honestly, I'm so glad I don't live alone with him. He's ridiculously lazy.

Anyhow, I've got to get studying/trying to appease my mom before she explodes into a jet-lagged nova of crankiness. Yep, good times ahead for me.

One

That was the name of the restaurant we went to for Alex's birthday. It was pretty good, a little pricey, but definitely a cool atmosphere. You can find out about it here.

Today was quite full of emotional activity. T had to say good bye to her boyfriend, who was visiting from Holland. I had a couple random encounters. Alex, as I mentioned before, had a birthday celebration. All in all, I'd say my day went pretty well. The birthday dinner was really fun; good people, and good conversations. It's actually kind of nice to go out with a group of people that you don't know too well, but really like. Oddly, I find it easier to do it if I don't have a really good friend accompanying me. I think maybe I lean on them too much when I have the opportunity. My best friends are also a lot more outgoing than I am, as a rule, so I guess it makes it even easier to just let them do the talking. Anyway, it was a good night, and I'm glad I went. But now I am exhausted, and I'm going to sleep! Finally!

Up And At 'Em

Well, got up at seven today to play soccer. Seven. Needless to say, I'm pretty tired. Next week I have midterms again, and I haven't been studying nearly enough, which is scaring me. I'd fix this, but somehow,in a weekend where practically nothing is happening, I'm swamped. Teas, soccer games, birthdays...it's insanity. And that isn't even counting the fact that my parents get home tomorrow, and the house is not ready for their arrival. Aie.

In better news, I had a pretty good night last night. I went to the Ronald McDonald House to drop off some cookies, and then hung out with two of our adorable new ADPi girls. I love them! And this morning was okay, soccer was fun, except we once again had the bare minimum of players, while the other team had two and half times the people necessary. I know I'm not terribly physically fit, but sprinting for 40 minutes straight? Difficult! Thank god I had water.

All right, I'm just procrastinating now. Gotta go get some work done. But first, I will read The Onion.

Do You Know What Is Super Fun?

Roller Skating! Seriously. We had a roller-skating exchange last night, and it was awesome. And this from a girl that is notoriously bad at anything skate-related (I'm not allowed to rollerblade. I become a national hazard). The lack of the ice cold rink, the improved stability of the wheels, the fact that pretty much everyone is awful at it, they all add up to a great time. Plus, the rink is painted all funky, and they play oldschool music.

If only the rink wasn't all the way out in Surrey...

But I still totally recommend it.

The Two-Minutes-Before-I-Have-Class-Entry

Yeah, so I'm on campus. Last night I tried to post, but my laptop decided at the very last second that it hated blogger. Arrgh. Anyhow, the post wasn't terribly interesting, so I'm not too concerned.

My first class is the boring one. Luckily, the lovely Jordan is in my class, but it honestly is painful. "How To Think Straight About Psychology". Ech. But my other two classes today are much better, and after meeting tonight, we're going roller skating! So that's awesome. Plus, it's on a rink, so there're no opportunities for me to uproot an entire bed of tulips or anything. Not that I've ever done that, of course. Ahem.

Tessa came over last night, and we watched Queer Eye. We would have watched ANTM, too, but my tape sucks, and didn't tape it. Stupid tape. I've got to go to class, but you can all get through the rest of your day knowing that you, too, are cosmeceutical.

Cosmeceuticals

My new favourite word. When something sucks, it isn't cosmeceutical enough. When something is awesome, it is so cosmeceutical. The best part about the word? I have no idea if I'm even spelling it right!

In other news, my cell phone is found! Woo! Props to Giselle, who found it in her car. Thank god it's found; now I don't have to have my parents come home to a lost cell phone, on top of the half-painted disaster area that will be my house, unless Greg gets on his ass and finishes the painting job. Ech.

I need to get to bed before I pass out. It's only Tuesday, after a long weekend, and I'm already exhausted. Pathetic.

What The Reeves Taught Me

Christopher Reeve passed away on Sunday. It's sad, having someone so iconic, someone who's remained so iconic after so much, pass away. I'll mention that he was a relentless fighter in the battle for stem cell research, and that without him, many programs would never have been started, or given the funding to be completed, but that isn't what I really want to talk about. What I want to talk about is his marriage.

His wife, Dana, stuck with him through it all. And while I believe the 'til death do us part' is the essence of what the love in a marriage should be, that doesn't make what she did any less admirable. In interviews all down the years, it was very clear through body language and how they spoke that this was a couple very much in love. More in love than many. For one partner, after a horrible accident that has permanently damaged their love's body, to say 'it's still you, and I love you', is amazing. To follow through on it is incredible. Because yes, I do believe that that is as it should be in all partnerships, but I know enough not to believe that most are like this. But they did have this; not once was there the air of a martyr in her, nothe spirit of one pitied in him. Their love was still pure, even after a horrible accident.

That's the kind of love I want. Sometimes I feel like I shouldn't expect so much from love, but I do. I guess it's just nice to know that it can and does exist. I know that demanding that from love carries some risks, not the least of which being me ending up alone; after all, how many guys are there out there looking for the same thing? But I'd rather be alone, I think, than be in a lesser relationship. I'd always be looking for more. The good news is, I know now that I can love like that. I just need to find someone who can love back the same way.

How Was Your Thanksgiving?

Mine was awesome. One, there was more food than I can possibly describe, including the all-important pumpkin pie, and I wasn't forced to eat any brussel sprouts. Also, great conversation and not an awkward moment in the mix. And lord, was I full.

A brief sampling of the happenings;

Gail: Oh no, the middle of the grape-cake didn't get cooked properly!
Alec: Gail, I love the middle of the cake!

Jaman:...And then she was like "I'm only telling you because you can relate", and I was like "I can't relate!"

There was lots more, but the tryptophans made me forget.

Thanksgiving Checklist

1. Invitation - Check. Thank GOD.

2. Dinner
a) Turkey - Check
b) Cranberries - Check
c) Stuffing - Check
d) Yams - Most Likely
e) Vegetables - Check
f) Potatoes - Check
g) Brussels Sprouts - Inconsequential. They're gross.

3. Dessert
a) Pumpkin Pie - Check
b) Who cares? There's pumpkin pie.

4. Good Company - Best there is!

5. Well-prepared stomach - I've been training all my life.

6. Mental Mindset - "Bring it ON"

Quote of the Week

"I awoke this morning with devout thanksgiving for my friends, the old and the new."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Happy Thanksgiving weekend, all.

Makeovers!

So, went to MAC for the makeovers. Can I just say that that store is so much fun!? And that it is horribly dangerous? I really need to stop spending money. Like, really. All the bank cards are now staying home. Cause I'm getting out of control.

But on to more positive things. The lady who was making me over/helping me was super good at what she does, and did an excellent job, to the point that I actually bought stuff, which was weird for me, because I'm so not a makeup person. But anyway, I bought stuff, and their makeup is super expensive, so now I'm so not buying anything again, ever. Especially since a quality, non-archaic hairdryer was on sale, so I went and bought that too. All of which makes Jan a beautiful but poor girl.

So today was a great day of luxury for me, with zero work done and lots of relaxing, but I think tomorrow, it's time to get back down to work, a bit with the studying, but lots more with the consumption of turkey. Wish me luck, all!

Laundry Day

This morning, having finally gotten my head out of the psychology midterm vortex, I realized that I have basically no clean clothing. See, normally my mom does the laundry, not because I wouldn't do it on my own, but because when I try, I'm told "It's a waste to do just your laundry. Do everyone's at once, don't waste time or water." And then when I do actually get to do the laundry, I hear "You're doing it wrong. Move over."

But my parents are still in Austria. And what with the mad studying, I haven't been at all keeping track of my clothing supply. So, this morning, I've been doing laundry. Lots of it. Which in itself is not a problem. However, the day my parents left, our dryer broke. So, while I have lots of clean clothes, I have no dry clothes. And our house looks a lot like that scene in Beauty and the Beast where the wardrobe explodes while attacking the village mob. Clothes drying everywhere.

Which, incidentally, isn't actually all that unusual, as my mom generally considers our dryer to also be 'a waste'. She did however, use the dryer for sheets, towels, and socks, which get a weird stiff feeling if they don't dry while being agitated. I personally would use them for my jeans too, but they don't pass the dryer-necessity test (possibly because my mom doesn't wear jeans), but the one time I can do my own laundry, putting my jeans in the dryer isn't even an option. So, no dry clothes for me. Which is a shame, because I have this M.A.C. girls' night thing where I get a makeover, and then we're going for drinks, and dammit, I'm going to take advantage of the hotness!

Gotta find me some clothes...

What A Week

Ew ew ew. Thank god this week is over. I finished my three midterms (woo!), went to the Cheer-Off (which is way more fun than it sounds), and now, finally, I am home. And at 1:30 in the morning, writing a post on the blog. I did lose my cell phone somewhere at the cheer off. I'm hoping that turns up.

I would first like to say that I love my girls. I love them for distracting me and squeezing my arm or giving me a hug whenever they think I might be not having the best time, and for listening to me when I'm not having the best time. You help me remember that I will be okay, and that generally, I am okay. You are amazing, and I love you all.

I'm also really excited to go to Girly's for Thanksgiving dinner, because I will get turkey, and pumpkin pie, and there will be no mention of any sadness, because it is the house of 'eat, drink, and be merry'. And I shall. Especially the pumpkin pie. Mmmm.

Theft is Bad.

Someone stole my umbrella today. And I know someone stole it, because I put it on a desk in one of my classes, and two minutes later, it was gone. I was quite angry. After all, I lose enough umbrellas already without having them stolen from right under my nose. Plus, it was absolutely pouring outside, and if it hadn't been for the generosity of the lovely Steph, I would have been drenched. Plus, it meant I had to go buy another umbrella. Down another $9.15 because of a thief. I have this to say to you, thief; my new umbrella is shiny, and has a different colour on the inside than the outside. My new umbrella is better. And my old umbrella? It had a pin that always stuck out on the handle, and I hope it stabs you.

Bloody umbrella thief.

Mish-Mash of Information

I spent much of today studying. It was boring, but nice to actually get some work done. I still have to go back to the library later tonight though, I have midterms this week, and I'm somewhat behind. Ah, school; now I remember what I didn't miss about you.

My GST refund came in the mail today! That's $56.00 in the bank, people! Wooo! Yep, it's good times. I actually really do need the money, so the pleasure of getting that surprise cheque in the mail was even bigger than usual. Now I can pay off (part of) my visa bill!

Greg and I have nothing to eat that's actually in a food group, not that this comes as a surprise after looking at our shopping list, so we have to go to Safeway and get some food. We suck at Home Ec. On the bright side, the bank is next to Safeway, so I can deposit my cheque. We did actually have a healthy dinner last night, when we baked a lasagna my mom had left for us in the freezer. It was so good. I think I may be getting malnourished.

And finally, I forgot to mention that on Saturday, I bought three gorgeous white shadow boxes, and I am now having way too much fun organizing them. I'm going to take down all the little frames I have in my room, and just focus on the really great pictures and momentoes. So excited!

Gotta go, we're off to buy some edibles. Can't wait for real food! It feels like it's been so long!

Superstore Seduction

That should so be the title of a romance novel. My story however, holds no romance whatsoever. Except for the eternal romance between myself and brie cheese. My parents, as I previously mentioned, are in Austria, and Greg and I have exhausted our house's supply of food, so we decided to go to The Great Canadian Superstore. Let's just say that when Greg and I grow up and have families, will not be responsible for the family grocery shopping. This was our haul;

655 g sour patch kids
645 g sour keys
495 g fuzzy peaches
2 boxes lemon tea
toiletpaper
2 bottle 'POM' pomegranate juice (I am a Queer Eye WHORE, people)
5 cans 'pulp-free' orange concentrate (my brother rebelling against the pulp)
1 bag Lays chips (Greg's)
2 bags Miss Vickies chips (mine, sadly)
1 wheel brie cheese (we do battle over this one, but it is an entire wheel)
16 bottles koala springs soft drink
20 bottles IRN-BRU soft drink (if you don't know what it is, you're missing out)
5 bottles assorted soft drinks we've never actually had, but thought we'd try 'just for the heck of it'
Goat cheese
Swiss cheese
3.78L Ocean Spray Ruby Red Cocktail (amazingly good, and I can pretend it's healthy)
1 jar Nutella (again, if you don't know it, check it out and learn to love it)
1 O Magazine (mine)
1 InStyle Magazine (mine too)
1 'Laughs' Archie and Friends Double Digest (Greg's. Heh.)

Yep, we're a healthy pair, the two of us. We must be genetic freaks.

In other news, I clobbered the hell out of my head this morning. Walked outside into the corner of an open window. There was a visible dent in my forehead, but it started bleeding, and the scab covered it entirely. Super attractive, I know. Hurt like hell too. Ech, I hate pointless injuries that result from my own stupidity. Luckily I can go drown my sorrows in IRN-BRU, Koala, and sour keys. Woo!

Heh. All that shopping, and we still have nothing for dinner.

Friday!

Woo! It's Friday! This would be far more exciting if I didn't have three midterms next week. Ech. At least I can get them out of the way. But, along with being Friday, it's now October! And 20 days to my birthday! Tessa tells me it's my champagne birthday, as I am turning 21 on the 21st, but I have no idea what that's supposed to mean, so I'm just going to focus on the birthday part. Wooo!

Babysitting was long last night. The parents went to a dinner party, and they didn't get back until 12:30! I fell asleep (oops). But they did make me dinner, and it was homemade macaroni and cheese, and it was really, really good.

So excited, after school I get to see Girly again! Yay! Not sure what we'll be doing, another friend wants to go to Daiso, the Asian store in Richmond where everything is $2 ($2!), and then catch a movie, so we'll see what happens. Hope everyone's had a good week, and has an even better weekend. Later!

Frivolity, And Then Politics

My horrible day did improve, yesterday, after a rough start. If the dreams weren't bad enough, the beginning of the day was pretty crappy too, though helped by some of my girls (thanks!). Anyway, I went to 49th and Fraser to get some stuff done, and then, on the bus back, Girly got on! So we went and had lunch at Granville Sushi (mmmm), and then I went back to class. That's the perfect kind of bus encounter. It was definitely the highlight of my day.

In other news, this weeks Maclean's magazine came today. Apparently, FOX news is planning on coming to Canada. Spare me, please. Also, did you know the FOX News' slogan is "fair and balanced"? The hell is that? What really gets me, though, is that their newscasts are so, so right-wing, (Bill O'Reilly? Please learn to shut up. And when you get that down, please use your hard-earned new skill), and yet FOX has so many shows (reality and otherwise) that I'm sure Conservatives would consider "morally reprehensible". I find them morally reprehensible, and I'm a liberal! That 70's Show? Always stoned. Family Guy? Amazingly politically incorrect. I watch them both occasionally, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't flow with the Republican dream.

One Bill O'Reilly quote from Maclean's particularly caught my eye. On April 30th, he had this to say to the Canadian Press;
"I got nothing against the Canadian people, but in the last few years you've swung dramatically to the left. And we in America have some questions about that."

This one little quote is quite telling, for me. One, it holds an interesting note of you are accountable" in it, which is interesting. Bill O'Reilly spends considerable (almost all) of his time doing what I assume he would call "holding the Democrats and other Liberals accountable" (others would have less polite phrases in mind), and has now decided to hold us, as Canadians, accountable. What jumps out at me is that Bush and his administration have spent a hell of a lot of effort trying to avoid all accountability. They very much have the attitude "This is what we're doing." Without wanting to reason, explain, or discuss. O'Reilly doesn't seem to be spending any time holding Bush accountable. In fact, he skipped all the way over Bush to Canada.

I am, I'll admit, a huge fan of The Daily Show. As such, I don't even try to suggest that Jon Stewart is completely objective. But the difference for me is that when a Democrat makes a mistake, or does something stupid, the show will still call them on it. Did O'Reilly mention the fact that Bush mispronounced the name of Abu Ghraib during the prison scandal to something I can only attempt to spell 'Abu Gharef'? I can't be completely sure, as I don't wach his show often, but I would doubt it.

The other part of the quote that interests me is purely philosophical. O'Reilly seems to have entirely disregarded the idea of perspective. Status quo, politically, is non-existent. What he sees as Canada swinging to the left, I in Canada see more as the US swinging dramatically to the right. To me, the granting of the right to gay marriage seemed like a natural progression into a more enlightened society. I thought that judge in Alabama with the 10 commandments monument was a yahoo. But I understand that to others, gay marriage is an abomination that grants the 'evil' of homosexuality credence. I completely disagree, but I know that that feeling does exist, even in Canada. The US, right now, is having an extremely difficult time with the rest of the world, and with many of its constituents. As many Americans have noted, it's been a long time since America has been so disliked, internationally. We can all say it's due to foreign policy, or the detriment of women's rights, and I wouldn't disagree. But I think that Bush, and many others, have forgotten that perspective is individual. I voted, in Canada's federal election, for the party that best reflected my views. There isn't one that exactly reflects my views, but that's to be expected. What I was concerned about was whether, even while disagreeing with a party, I could understand and even agree with part of their reasoning in what they wanted to do. I need the part I'm supporting to let the country and the world hold it accountable. I'm not saying that the Bush administration doesn't hold itself at all accountable, but it would do well for them to realize that being accountable behind closed doors is quite different from answering the world's questions of why, and listening to what they have to say afterwards.

The Little Jan's In My Head Hate Me

The title will only make sense if you're a Calvin and Hobbes fan (and if you aren't, you're dead to me). Basically, I had two long, detailed dreams last night, and they both sucked. They made me sad, worried, and anxious, and now have me wondering what the hell they mean, and questioning a lot of things I'd thought I knew. I've never been a fan of this type of dream, and yet, the tiny little Jan's of my subconscious decided those were the two movies of the night. If they didnt have such a strong union, I'd fire them all. As it is, I'd settle for a strike.

I have class. Maybe it'll distract me from the stupid dream-induced thoughts that keep circling my head. Here's to hope!

Quote of the Week

"After he left, I cried for a week. And then I realized I do have faith: faith in myself, faith that I would one day meet someone who would be sure that I was the one."
-Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City

I'm not in the 'I love everything Sex and the City' fan club, but this quote is oddly similar to what I've been dealing with, and feeling, lately. It's part of what I was trying to say earlier, about my ridiculous, but ever-present faith in the world. And I guess in myself too, now that I think about it.

What Have I Been Doing?

Seriously, it's been crazy. My weekend was insanely busy (HAPPY BIRTHDAY GIRLY!), and I've been sleeping pretty much all the time since then. I have midterms next week! Eek! But all of recruitment is over now, finally, so I can start studying. Which I will have to do a lot of. Also, my parents left about an hour ago, for their 3 week sojourn to Austria (so...jealous....). Me an Greg are therefore left to fend for ourselves in the food department, which should be interesting (read: frightening), but my mom did leave us with some pre-prepared meals, because she knows us well. Just to make it even more fun, Greg is painting certain rooms of our house while they're gone, so the house will be full of paint fumes too.

Anyhow,the past few days I've been in a bit of a funk, but I'm hoping that I've bounced back (it's one of those things that lurks in the background and makes unwanted surprise entrances). Time, as always, will tell. But I have to go, cause dinner is ready. Mmmm. Later, all.

I Just Want To Sleep

Busiest weekend ever. More details later, I'm going to be late for school.

A Night of Television, Recaptured

America's Next Top Model

Tessa: The hell is Tyra wearing?
T: I kinda like it.
J-Bird: The colours?!
T: No, not the colours. The colours are ugly.
J-Bird: How do you pick a dress that clashes with your skin?!
T: Tyra Banks has a huge forehead.
Tessa: Yes, yes she does. And you'd think she'd have a hairstylist that knew better than to emphasize that.
J-Bird: Why are there girls kowtowing to Tyra Banks?
T: They're kissing ass to try to make it on the actual show.
Tessa: That, or Tyra is their GOD.
J-Bird: Girls need a new role model.

(super skinny girl walks into 'interview' with Tyra, Jay and J.)
J-Bird, Tessa, and T: Augh, god!
J-Bird: Did you see her pelvis?
Tessa: It was like something out of an anatomy textbook.
T: Ew!

(skinnier girl walks in to interview)
J-Bird, Tessa and T: (unintelligible sounds of disgust and horror)
Tyra Banks: I do think you're too thin...
Tessa: Even Tyra thinks you're too skinny, girl.
T: Oh my god, she needs professional help, like right now.
J-Bird: And food.

('plus sized' model walks into interview)
T: Oh my god, her boobs are gigantic!
Tessa: So that's what they mean by 'plus sized'.
J-Bird: They're actually each bigger than Tyra's head. And Miss Tyra has a huge forehead.

(Miss Tyra blathers onscreen)
J-Bird: Whose genius idea was it to bluescreen her infront of palm trees?
Tessa: Realism, by UPN.
T: I love this show!

Queer Eye For the Straight Guy

T: Wow, he's hot.
Tessa: Definitely in the running for 'hottest made-over straight guy'.
T: Aw, he's proposing!
Carson, to the couple: This is where we thought you were gonna say no! (Note: she says yes)
J-Bird: I think I'm in love with the fab five.
Tessa: Too bad you aren't a man.
J-Bird: Two words, missy. Rupert Everett.
Tessa: Shut up.

Kai: I know spa treatments are expensive, but you know what's more expensive? Divorce.

T: This show is so good!
J-Bird: I really can't believe you've never seen this before.
Tessa: We've liberated her from Queer Eye deprivation.
J-Bird: We are truly excellent people.
Tessa: We're horribly shallow, aren't we?
J-Bird: Only once a week.

Yeagh.

Ech, last night was weird. And by weird, I mean bad. It was just all-around unpleasant. So, should I ever be in a parallel situation next year (god I hope I'm not), please do not let me go to wet rush. Ech.

On the bright side, I think most people had fun. Some had a little too much fun. Heh. But I haven't heard of anyone else so far that had a bad night. To be fair, the night wasn't all bad. There was a period in the beginning, and another at the end, that weren't entirely unpleasant. But I was once again reminded why I have always preferred to be with drunk people I know, rather than drunk strangers who are creepy and weird. Also, that there are certain people I should just avoid when they're drunk, because they get weird. On the bright side, I wasn't drunk, which I honestly think helped avert about a bajillion disasters. So wooo sober (as always) me!

Anyway, it's Queer Eye Thursday, today, with the added bonus of America's Next Top Model Thursday! Greg taped everything for me last night, and a whole gang of people are coming to watch. So give me a call if you're interested!

PS To Evi and Amanda: Sometimes change is good, and we've all changed, in little and/or big ways. Of course cynical J-Bird is still here, otherwise the whole 'logic' thing would fly out the window, and I'd probably have ugly blonde highlights in my hair and chew bubblegum all the time or something. The difference is that cynical J-Bird doesn't really talk as much, and even when she does, I don't listen very often. She cowers in the spatial reasoning part of my brain, and wonders where her megaphone went. As you can probably tell, it was stolen by insane metaphor-happy J-Bird, who is quite at large, and reigning with an iron fist. But not actually. Heh.

Quote of the Week

"Isn't it splendid to think of all the things there are to find out about? It just makes me feel glad to be alive--it's such an interesting world. It wouldn't be half so interesting if we know all about everything, would it? There'd be no scope for imagination then, would there?"
-Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Something Less Trivial, More Philosophical

Is it possible to actually regress to yourself, in an earlier time period? I'm finding that I pretty much feel the same about life and the world as I did about two years ago. Things happen that make me upset, or that I find sad, but I still very much believe that everyone really is a good person, that everything will be okay in the end, and that to hurt another person or animal in any way is the highest crime that can be committed. Granted, I still believed all that stuff during the 'gap' between two years ago and now, when I had a boyfriend, but being single seems to have emphasized it all in my mind. Maybe it's just the contrast to the awfulness that was my mindset right after the breakup that's making me notice my positivity more.

The whole fact that I have this basic (and totally ungrounded) faith in the Universe confuses me, though. I'm a very logical, by-the-numbers person. And God only knows I had a very sarcastic, cynical phase, and that it wasn't a terribly brief one either. So when did I switch over? And what started it all? While I believe that hormones and neurotransmitters do have an effect on our thoughts and actions, I don't believe they determine everything. I feel like there should be at least some series of events that turned me around, and I'd really like to know what it was, and who were responsible. Mostly so I could say thank you. The pain I've experienced in the past few months is nothing compared to the load some bear, but I don't think I would have been strong enough to get where I am without believing everything will be okay in the end. I know a good deal of it is due to my friends and family, so a big thanks goes out to all of them (you). I get the feeling that a lot of it was due to people I no longer have contact with, and to total strangers, and I want to thank them too, even though they'll probably never know it.

Heh. The sarcastic, cynical me would make so much fun of present me.

Buzzing Like a Bee

A busy bee! It seems like Tuesday mornings are the only free time I'm going to get. Oh well, such is life. Started tutoring again yesterday, first session of the year! And the family's dog remembered me, which I thought was kinda cool, since I never got a special greeting before, in the previous four years I've been tutoring there. The cool factor was lowered a little by the fact that this dog is a german shepherd the size of a horse, but he's a sweetie, regardless of his size.

Anyhow, I'm going to miss my bus, so I'm going to have to take my leave of you all. But belive me, I will be back!

(Bwa ha ha ha)

This Is So Exciting!

Sorry I didn't post last night at all, it's been a ridiculous weekend, but recruitment is over, and our new girls are amazing! I'm so excited, we got the BEST group, and we're going to have a soccer team (YAY!), and there're two girls who I absolutely adore and everything is just AWESOME!

Now that I've said that, I'm really, really tired now, and I'm going to go to bed. I kno it's only 10:30, but I was up til 1:30 last night cooking, and I had to get up early this morning, and I haven't had a break all day, so there!

I'm SO excited!

Oddities

I went to Girly's house last nightm and on the way, a number of weird things happened/were observed. Here's a bit of a list.

1. On the bus, an unkempt, middle aged (UMA) man standing next to me kept trying to catch my eye. As I was kind of put off by his persistent regard, I tried my best to ignore him. After about 3 minutes, he forcefully poked me, and asked me if I was 'from Taiwan' (for those of you who don't know, no I am not. My mother is from Taiwan, while my father is as white as wonderbread. I'm from Toronto, birth-wise). At this point, the lady next to me (from Holland) decided to ask me for directions to every destination she planned on visiting on her two-week stay here (she was however quite charming, so it wasn't odd in an uncomfortable way, just unexpected), which had the bonus of giving me an excuse to not talk with UMA guy (I'm kind of a bitch, aren't I?). Then another guy on the bus asked me where the hostel was. As a result of all this, when the bus got to my stop, three perfect strangers said "So nice talking to you!" as I walked off. I'm thinking the universe may be trying to tell me to pursue a career in tourism.

2. While walking from the bus stop to Girly's house, random people I'd never before seen kept smiling at me. A couple of them even waved. Maybe this is normal for other people, but that never really happens to me, so...weird.

3. Normally, if walking down Robson St. in Vancouver, you'll see all the bikers sitting in one of the Starbucks' on Thurlow (yeah, there're two on the same corner. Welcome to Vancouver). Today, they were parked outside of Buffalo. The jeans store. And all sitting outside the store, just...hanging. I'm still confused.

4. There's a little plaze-type thing near Girly's house, that's a no-car zone (which is pretty obvious). As I'm walking through, some guy drives through the thing. Someone needs a refresher on his street-signs.

Anyway, it was an odd day. God, I'm tired.

Quote of the Week

"There is one other reason for dressing well, namely that dogs respect it, and will not attack you in good clothes."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Change-O Weather

So, Vancouver is meteorologically insane. Yesterday it poured for most of the day, and then got mildly sunny later on. Today, I woke up to sunshine, but a massive wall of gray is quickly approaching. On the bright side, I have a new umbrella (hopefully of higher quality than the last), so I'm prepared.

My computer at home has a virus, apparently. It keeps restarting itself, which is always fun. As a result of computer-deprivation last night, I watched TV. Yep, I have really productive nights. I'd write more, but I have a lot of reading to do, and am determined to use my library time to the fullest. I'm sure I'll be back though. Course reading is a little boring.

The clouds outside are huge.

This is Awesome!

Heh. If you saw Queer Eye last night, you know what I'm talking about. And by the way, the show really is awesome!

I got tons done this morning, which was really nice. I managed to refill a prescription, get some readings done, find white shoes that I need for Sunday, and have lunch with some friends, all before my first class! I skipped the Tuesday-Thursday Oprah ritual, but I'd already seen the last half yesterday, so I'm not too concerned.

The white shoes are really cute, and they were on sale, so they were only $24, with tax! They have thong-style straps, with little rhinestones on them, and there're pictures of Marilyn Monroe on the bottoms (where my feet will go). They have a tiny bit of a heel, which makes them both pretty and easy to walk in, the best of both worlds. I tried to find a picture on the web, but really, I got nothing.

On a not-so-great note, my umbrella broke. Which I'm not terribly upset about, as it was $4, but still, it's inconvenient. Especially since it's raining pretty hard outside. I decided to go to this library (there are lots on campus) because it's closest to my next class, after which I'll have to figure out how to get to the bus loop without getting too soaked. Ah, Vancouver rain. Welcome back.

Welcome to Queer Eye Wednesday!

I just got home from meeting, via Ariko who kindly gave me a ride, and then very kindly talked with me for 20 minutes in front of my house. Thanks for the ride Ariko, and for the talk. It's always nice to know you aren't actually alone.

I'd also like to note that I now have photo capability! Woo! Not sure what I'll post first, but I promise it will be exciting and innovating. Or at least photographic in nature. That's right, I lifted you up high, and dropped you all the way down.

I have to go, Tessa is on her way. She's bringing maple cookies, I'm supplying the ice cream and the TV, because it's Queer Eye Wednesday! All awesome, all the time.

So...How's It Been With You?

Wow, the past 24 hours have seemed like 24 days. Nonstop activity. Recruitment was super long (but went so, so well. Felt so much better than last time!), and I've just been buzzing all over the city today. It's really all quite tiring. Now I've just got to get past two more meetings, and if all goes to plan, I'll have a break from recruitment 'til the weekend! I live in hope.

But even if I don't get a break, I still get to look forward to watching Queer Eye for the Straight Guy with Tessa tonight! Wooo! Cannot wait. It's going to be faaaabulous!

You knew I had to say it.

Goddamn HTML

Hey everyone, I'm sorry if you were on the site last night, while I was experiencing some technical difficulties. I was trying to change something on my site, but it didn't work, and made it so all archived posts were...pretty much nonexistent. Good times. Big huzzah out to Jason, who spent 45 minutes trying to figure out what the hell was going on for me (not hairstylist Jason, this is 3D animator Jason! Go watch his demo, it's cool!). I hope to figure this out in the next few days, but in the meantime, you're stuck with the same old setup.

World Cup Final is today! Canada vs. Finland! Kiprusoff's going down. I can't actually watch the game, as I'll be in recruitment again, but Go Canada! Watch the game, it'll be good times.

I Love It When That Happens

My day got so much better as it went on. First class was kind of boring, but it's about the scientific method as it pertains to psychology, which inceidentally is almost, if not completely, identical to how it pertains to other sciences, including chemistry, which I studied for two and a half years. Basically, it's old news. But it happens, whatever, it's all good. Later on, I ran into Amanda and Sean (hi Amanda and Sean!), and some of the girls, who are awesome, and generally everywhere.

You know, I'm really not sure why my day improved so much over time. I suppose the cloud of sad that was hanging over me in the morning could've dissolved in all the rain as the day went on. Or maybe it's because my afternoon classes are really interesting. Whatever the reason, I'm all for it. I'm going to sign off though, it's time to print some class notes!

Um, What Happened?

So yesterday, while I was cooped up inside, it was a beautiful, sunny day. I wake up this morning? It's gray, cold, and drizzly. Which oddly is a pretty accurate reflection of my mood; I woke up in a total funk, which I'm still trying to shake. I'm not a fan, however. I don't need my negative moods reinforced by the weather. It's uncalled for. I want the sun back! I have to walk all over campus today! Gotta go whip out the umbrella.

I also want to note that a friend of mine was attacked outside of a bar last week, which is scary and uncool. Whoever did this, I suggest you avoid me. Nobody hurts my friends! Unfortunately, we don't even know who did it, but seriously people, stop with the fighting. It's stupid and unnecessary.

Quote of the Previous Week

I forgot to post the quote of the week last week. Here it is!

"The best is yet to be!"
-Robert Browning

Voiceless

Well, almost. A raspy croaking noise does come out of my mouth, but I think there are tiny little Vancouver City workers marching around my vocal cords, with signs that say STOP and DETOUR, making my voice a little below standard.

Recruitment went well today, I think. It's such a tiring process, and none of us brought food, which was a big mistake (no food for nine hours is bad), but all in all it went well. I blow-dried my hair, for the first time in ages (my hair dries pretty straight in the summer), but more importantly for the first time since it was cut, and while it doesn't look exactly like it did when I walked out of the salon, the reproduction is very acceptable. Especially since I don't blow-dry my hair very often, so I really don't know much about the technique of it all. One thing I'm excited about is the fact that my hair takes about 30 minutes less to dry than it did before it was cut. Also, our hairdryer weighs a ton (it's from like the 70's), so any reduction in time is well-appreciated by my feeble arms.

I feel like I've dropped off the Earth this past week. I haven't really had time to talk to anyone, and I don't like it. The first week of school is supposed to be the easy, relaxed part of it all. What happened!? I'll have to investigate.

Revitalize by Water

Sleep is a wonderful, beautiful thing. I'm not really feeling any more healthy than I was last night, but I no longer feel like my head wants to implode, which is a big step forward.

I woke up at eight this morning, and couldn't fall back asleep. Since I have tons to do this morning (recruitment starts today, ack!), I got up and treated myself to a long hot shower.

I'm sure everyone has their own little rituals for the perfect shower. Some of you may even involve things like candles and incense. My bathroom isn't really big enough to safely accommodate flame, so I'm a little limited in that sense, but it's still a huge indulgence for me. There're a few improvements I can think of, like better lighting in the shower. It's kinda dark in there. And a stereo, so that I can have pretty music playing. Maybe candle-capability. But all in all, it's quite perfect, and for a half hour of relaxation that I don't even have to leave the house for, it can't be beat. It's my form of meditation, I think.

I'd like to note that I don't do this every time I have a shower. Generally, my showers are of a more mundane, speedy nature. This type of shower is a luxury, for when I'm stressed out or upset, or occassionally when I have the time and feel like treating myself. I don't plan on ever doing this for every shower. For one thing, it would use far too much water to be reasonable.

Before anything else, I turn on a little electric space heater and shut the door, so that the bathroom isn't cold at all, even for the beginning of the shower. I go get my huge fluffy pink towel (it's 6 feet long, 4 feet wide. It is so fantastic, it deserves a title. I'll think of one soon.) and my slightly smaller (but thinner and therefore lighter) hair towel. I get my comb, my body wash, and my big loofah, and then enter the heated bathroom.

I then shower in perfect (perfect) temperature water. Not hot, but more than warm. I wash my hair first, really thoroughly, kinda like they do in hair salons, except without the benefit of having someone else (who is professionally trained) do it for you. When I've rinsed my hair out (which used to take way longer, before the culling of the bottom 10 inches) I soap up the loofah, and go through an incredibly long massage/exfoliation session. It's bliss. So much so that I never ever want to leave. However, I generally have other plans for the rest of the day, so eventually I will force myself out of the shower, out of the bathroom, out of my tiny, perfect little world.

Rock A Bye Janni

On the tree top...When the wind blows...

I am so tired. Retreat was long today. And now I'm at home, printing page upon page. I don't actually mind printing at all, but I wish I could go to bed. I'm sick, and I've entirely lost my voice, and I have an awful headache right now. I really want to write in my journal (the paper version) before going to sleep too. argh.

Haven't really been up to too much lately. Saw Girly last night, who has fabulous hair (also done by Jason). I've totally missed out on sleep lately, due to buses and other things that I hadn't planned for (like this printing. Argh.). Even when I do sleep, I can't seem to sleep very well. Oh well. Work now, rest later, right?

Yeah, right.

Pathogens Suck

I'm sick. I have some sort of fluey, fevery cough thing, and I am not impressed. It makes me dizzy, and I can't figure out what to wear, since I alternate between boiling hot and freezing cold, and I can't take off/put on the layers fast enough. So frustrating. I (like most people, I would guess) hate being sick, and having some stupid germ attack me on the first week of school is uncalled for. Anyway, I have to eat something, and try to balance my inner ear, so I can make it to the bus stop. How does one balance their inner ear?

Recruitment, Anyone?

I got to sleep in today. It was beautiful. After watching yesterday's Oprah (re-broadcast this morning) with a mug of tea, I am back to the relaxed state I was in before school started up again. Definitely going to be part of my routine this year.

One thing I do heartily enjoy about the beginning of the school year is the plethora of free stuff we're given. I have enough coupons to eat for half price for the next three months, which is always exciting to a food addict like myself. I was also given coupons for a tanning salon, photocopying center, and 50% off hair colour, but I gave those away, as they aren't really useful to me. It's really all about the food.

I am however feeling the pinch money-wise. My Visa bill has exploded in the past few days, due to textbooks (vastly over-priced), so I've got to pay that off sometime soon. Luckily, I won't have time to spend any money in the near future, as my schedule has been predetermined for me by others. Care to hear? Of course you do. Here goes;

Today: Lunch, class, friend's birthday tonight.
Tomorrow: Class, then I get to see Girly!
Saturday: Sorority Retreat, from 11 am onward.
Sunday: First day of Formal Recruitment (eek!).
Tuesday: Recruitment
Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday: Recruitment, recruitment, recruitment, recruitment.

Yeah, lots of recruitment. I am going to be so tired. More on that another time.

(Note: Any girls at UBC interested in seeing what sororities are all about, check out ubcsororities.com. You may be pleasantly surprised. Oh, and guys should check out ubcgreeks.com.)

Hello Doesn't Like Me

And now I don't like it, either. Hello is the program I'm supposed to be able to use to upload pictures, and therefore show you my hair. But it for some reason doesn't like me or my computer at all, so I can't. Very annoying. For all you know, I could be lying about the hair. It could be an elaborate ruse, to trick you into thinking...I have hot hair. Seriously though. I want to post pictures!

So the second day back at school went well. My classes seem all right, and so far I know at least one person in every one (just one more to go, we'll see!). It'd be nice to get that five-for-five, but it isn't a huge deal, since I study best on my own anyway (I'm very particular with how I study).

We had our first meeting at the new Panhellenic (Panhel) House in our chapter room, today. It was nice not being in a classroom; the seats were a lot more comfortable. Also, the room looks awesome, which is always nice. A couple of the girls have put in hours getting it ready, and it totally shows. I think UBC is really happy we have our own rooms, since we were apparently a huge problem for them, booking empty rooms on Wednesday nights (a little bit of sarcasm should be traken with every meal. Or in my case, every breath).

Other than that, really not too much happening. Talked to Tessa and Girly today, who are always fun, and read a tiny, tiny bit of assigned readings, making me one of four people on campus who've actually started studying on this, the second day of term. So, I'm officially a geek. One who cannot figure out how to post pictures on her website. Sigh.

Well, at least my hair is still pretty.

HOT

is what my hair is. I got my hair cut (by Jason at Strutters, you need to be there!), and it is amazing. I'll try to post a picture later this week, when I figure out how. In other news, my class today was pretty good, and I went to a bar party at VODA, and saw lots of cool people I hadn't seen in months. Plus, I have really amazingly hot hair. But I'm going to bed now, because my hot hair and I need our rest.

Note: I actually wrote this last night, but blogger ate my post three times, at which point I exploded into a rage of epic proportions, thus delaying the actual post until now. I'm going to learn how to post pictures now, so I can show you my hair. And I've noticed that Tessa is once again a step ahead of me, with her first picture already posted. Damn you Tessa! One day I shall be the innovator!

Day of Randomness

So, today was the first day of the new school year. I started the whole day by going to get my hair cut, by Jason, at Strutters, who I recommend to everyone in Vancouver, because my hair is HOT. I'll try to figure out how to post a picture later this week. It's shorter than it's been in years, and it swishes and I love it.

I had one class today, Psychology of Language, which looks to be pretty interesting, even though the midterm is on my birthday. Also went to VODA, a nightclub, that was having a party for charity tonight. As you can tell, I'm already at home; I headed in pretty early. I'm tired, and my amazingly hot hair and I need our rest. 'night all.

HOT

is what my hair is. I got my hair cut (by Jason at Strutters, you need to be there!), and it is amazing. I'll try to post a picture later this week, when I figure out how. In other news, my class today was pretty good, and I went to a bar party at VODA, and saw lots of cool people I hadn't seen in months. Plus, I have really amazingly hot hair. But I'm going to bed now, because my hot hair and I need our rest.

Busy Busy...

And yet not nearly as busy as I will be next week.

Went to dim sum today, it was every bit as good as anticipated. For anyone who has never had dim sum, you're missing out. I will gladly take you and show you the ropes. Call me. We were at dim sum with family friends of ours, and I got to see my friend C again, after far too long (hi C! Call me, we'll chill). In summary, good food and good company make an excellent brunch.

After dim sum, Greg and I went to Metrotown. I've com to the conclusion that when I ask people if they want to go shopping with me, they always end up spending more money than I do. Greg got a t-shirt and a sweater, both by Versace and therefore both pricey. I ended up paying for them on my Visa, 'cause Greg can't withdraw that much (yeeesh) from his account in a day. I did however go get the Jacob Connexion tee that I'd been coveting since Saturday. It's adorable, and for waiting two days, I got a $3 discount! Patience is not only a virtue, it pays off. In cash.

It still hasn't hit me that school starts up again tomorrow. I think big events knock my brain out of keeping time properly. Oh well, back to the routine I go.

Sloth, Or Doing Holidays Right

I am a firm believer that holidays should not be wasted. Holidays are beautiful things, days when even the government and businesses (with the exception of retail) say, relax, sleep in, have some fun. Now, I've pretty much been on holiday since April, but this, as an official holiday, is special. And I rang it in with admirable laziness.

So as Tessa already wrote, she came over to watch some TV last night. She had to work in the morning, so she left at 10. That's pretty much when the interesting television ends on a Sunday anyhow, so it worked out well. I walked her to the door, and promptly returned to the couch, where I started to doze off. Under other circumstances, I would have happily just slept on the couch (it's really comfortable), but I still had my contacts in, and I hate the gross sticky feeling of dry contacts, not to mention the pain that comes when you take the dry sticky contacts out. So upstairs I went.

My room was a disaster area. I'm still in the middle of the overhaul, so everything is in random 'piles' that supposedly reflect their category. Also, I finally vacuumed everything, which meant everything that was normally on the floor was now on my bed. The plan had been to finish the cleaning after the TV shows, but I was too tired, so I just moved everything back to the floor, brush teeth etc, and flopped into bed. At 10:20. And I just got up. I got twelve hours of sleep people! After almost a month of 4-5 hours, tops, twelve! So my new cure for insomnia? Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Not the original Extreme Makeover. That stuff makes nightmares.

So, I've slept in, I may go shopping later today, and I'm having dim sum in half an hour! Yay! I really need to get dressed. Happy Labor Day, y'all!

Ah, Politics

From IMDb News:
"Director Michael Moore has offered to take US Senator John McCain to see Fahrenheit 9/11, after the politician slammed his controversial film. At the Republican National Convention on Monday, guest speaker McCain prompted boos against Moore after denouncing the documentary, which attacked American President George W. Bush's handling of the September 11 terrorist attacks. McCain called Moore - who was covering the event at New York's Madison Square Garden for newspaper USA Today - "a disingenuous film-maker who would have us believe that Saddam (Hussein)'s Iraq was an oasis of peace". And Moore made an appearance on comedian David Letterman's chat show Wednesday night, where he encountered more boos - coupled with cheers - and offered to take McCain to the cinema. Moore told Letterman, "He hasn't seen it yet. I'll take him to the movies while he's here in New York. It's just playing down the street and if he doesn't like it, afterwards I'll let him pummel me like you suggested!" McCain, a booked guest on the show, later shot back, "I admire his skills as a movie maker and certainly admire his success at making money. Seems like he could afford a shave and a haircut!"

Did the Senator seriously just attack Michael Moore's appearance? One, Joan Rivers would probably be too ashamed to attack such an easy mark, and two, what the hell does his hair have to do with politics? I mean, when somebody says "Hey, come see my movie, then trash it!", the wittiest response is not "Yeah, well, you look like a hobo!"

Also, doesn't John McCain have a comb over? Glass houses everywhere, dude.

I Am So Proud of Myself!

Do you want to know why?

Because I went to Ikea today, with the lovely Tessa, and when we came out, I'd only bought the things I'd said I was going to buy. I have never gone to Ikea without being seduced by the cute little $1.50 candleholders, or pretty $4 pillows, or some other beautiful and cheap objects. But today, I went to buy nice storage things, like baskets and nice boxes, and that's all I came out with! I'm so impressed with myself. Also, I came out within budget. I had $52.81 in my wallet, and the bill? $52.62. It was awesome. And I have places to put things!

I was also planning to get these big baskets that could go under my bed, because they're covered, so dust would stay out, and they look nice. Then I measured the height under my bed. 12 cm. 12. Nothing fits in 12 cm! You need at least 15-16 cm. That was pretty frustrating. Then, angered, this horrible suspicion crept into my mind. So I went and measured the space under my parents' bed, and my brother's bed. They have 20 cm. I so got the shaft. Anyway, Amanda, Anna and I, at Girls' Games Night last night, hatched a plan to prop my bed frame up a little. So when I get on that, I can go back, and get the big under-bed baskets. And then, finally, I can take over the world.

You think I'm kidding, don't you?

Well That was Horrible Timing.

So, I'm shopping with Tessa, Evi, Amanda, Joan, Nina, and Anna (also known as supergirl), and it's all fun. I'm having, finally, a wonderful, sad-free day. Then, on a bus, I get a phone call. An awkward, karmically-uncalled for (unless I've done something awful that I've forgotten) phone call. And now I'm bitter, and sad, and a little angry. Not at the caller; it was entirely not his fault. But I wish he'd been told, so he'd known calling wasn't appropriate. Or even helpful, for him. Anyway, I'm sure I'll get past it. But seriously, why is it that timing seems to be bent on kicking me back down the second I get up these days?

This happens again, I'm going to fly into a freakin' RAGE.

I Wonder Why I'm So Tired?

Oh, that's right, it's because I didn't get home until 3:30 last night! Distinctly dizzy, likely from the shot of Jaggermeister we had at the bar. However, Mon had predicted I'd throw up, so I think dizzy is a good alternative. Happy Birthday Mon! Girl's night is the way to go, we had an awesome time. I'm definitely having a girl's night for my birthday, although it probably won't be quite the same. Of course, depending on the circumstances, T and Mon may not give me the choice.

Anyhow, I'm making pretty good progress with the editing. I've almost finished the first run through it all, so that's really not that bad. Today I'm going to go get my textbooks, and then I'm going shopping with some girls, including Tessa and Evi. Should be fun!

Excuse me, I really need some orange juice.

Quote of the Week

"It wasn't funny 'ha ha', it was more funny 'boo hoo, that totally sucked'."
- Phil Hartman, as Bill McNeal on Newsradio

Disclaimer and Update

I want to say that my comments on marriage are not meant to offend anyone in any way. I understand that some (most) people are more mature than I am, and ready to take that very big step. I, while applauding you, am definitely not one of them. My parents didn't get married until they were thirty, however, so maybe it's a genetic thing.

Editing has been slow today. I think there've been more modifications I've had to type in in the last fifteen chapters than the first 14. Fortunately, the story is pretty interesting, so I don't have to worry about losing consciousness or anything. I can't imagine editing a college textbook about grammar or something. Kudos to those who can edit writings lacking plot or intriguing subject matter.

Also, does anyone know where I can get the pretty red square photo album by Havoc Publishing? Tessa has it, and I 'secretly' covet it, but she bought it in Edmonton, which is useless to me.

Conversations with Tessa

Tessa: Hey
J-Bird: Hey, what's up?
Tessa: Not much, you?
J-Bird: meh, editing. How's your accordion folder?
Tessa: Wonderful. I usually keep all my loose papers in Manila envelopes. This is so much better!
J-Bird: I know! But now I'm on an organizing kick. I totally want something like this, only prettier, to put by my desk.
Tessa: Very nice.
J-Bird: I figure once I get all my stuff organized into accordion folders (I'm so getting more), I'll need somewhere to put them. Plus, I love the look of the wall...holder thingys. Seriously. I want everything from Ikea that can make my ugly piles of stuff look pretty.
Tessa: When you go to Ikea, you'd better bring me!
J-Bird: Noted.

* * * * *

J-Bird: ...You have a lot of friends getting married.
Tessa: I know, it's really weird.
J-Bird: Seriously. Is it an Alberta thing? I mean, I plan on getting married. In fact, I've planned my entire wedding. In detail. But it won't be for several years, and the groom in the picture is just a tux with no face
Tessa: Ditto.
J-Bird: Good. I don't want to be going to weddings yet, unless they're for people who're way older than us.

* * * * *

J-Bird: So, how goes the relaxing?

Tessa: All right. I did get bored and clean the kitchen though. You know, mopping and all. It took like half an hour.

J-Bird: Heh. You're pathetic.

Tessa: And it was gross. Yeah, I'm not good at this relaxing thing.

Tessa: I MUST BE PRODUCTIVE!

J-Bird: Freak. You're unnatural.

Tessa: Okay, I'm going back to cleaning.

J-Bird: What is WRONG with you?!

Tessa: See ya later

Jan: See ya.

* * * * *

Also, Girly's in Montreal, for the Montreal Film Festival! So if you're in Montreal, go see her short film, Flush. You won't regret it, trust me.

September 1st Means Cleaning!

So, once I started putting things in the accordion folder, I went on a bit of a cleaning rampage in my room. I've been trying to weed through all the stuff that's just been lying around. I've managed to throw a lot of papers out, and I found a lot of financial statements lying around, which is odd. Also found a lot of stuff to add to The Box. The finding of that sutff wasn't so much fun, but I'm glad that I won't find it later on.

I'm still not finished, unfortunately. I think I've gotten rid of everything that I don't want, which means that now I have to find room for everything that I need to keep. The biggest problems are coming from things of a bookish nature. Not just books, but old binders, photo albums, diaries, magazines etc. I have no idea what I'm going to do with them all. I hope I figure it out soon though, because I remember a couple years ago, I managed to clear almost everything out of my room, and it felt very liberating. Plus, my room is rather small, and I'd like to clear everything off the floor so that I can vacuum, paying special attention to the dust planets under my bed.

As for the accordion folder, it has already well earned it's (low) price. I've managed to put all sorts of weird little things in it, and I'm finally able to collect each type of thing into the same place! It's very satisfying to be organized.

Now, if only I wasn't too lazy to maintain it.

Classeur Extensible, Archivo Expandible

Or, in English, accordion file. Which I just bought. It is very simple, dark blue, and small. I'm excited because I have hundreds of little bits of paper with important stuff on them, all over my room, and I finally have somewhere to put them. Yay! I also got thumbtacks, so I can start with my next craft project.

Had lunch with Miss Anna today, at her place (thank you very much, it was tasty!). It was good times. I love hanging out with her, she's very chill, and can make anyone feel comfortable. It was also nice to go outside the house, after spending a few hours editing. The weather has been totally bizarre, with intermitting periods of hot summer sun and thunderstorms, complete with battering rain and lightning. I'm glad Miss Anna offered to give me a ride home, I was dressed more for the sun than the storm.

But for now, you'll have to excuse me, because I'm going to go through my room and put all my little papers into my Archivo Expandible. Woohoo!