It's been a very long time since I updated. It's finally the weekend, and it's finally warm. Right now, I'm at Ben's place and and trying to keep his dog from nibbling my toes off.
I see doom looming in the horizon for several reasons. One is that I have two big papers due in a couple weeks that I'm not prepared for. Another reason, though it's not entirely a bad thing, is due to my portfolios class.
It's sort of turned into Project: Runway - the portfolios class that is. A while back, five of us were picked to design the templates for student work. I got the joy of doing that for the third year. Then, this Wednesday, we go to the lab for what is supposed to be an InDesign tutorial. After a quick overview, our teacher tells us that she sent us a file that needs to be turned into a postcard. We had one hour to do it and whoever was picked in a faculty review would revise it and the postcard would get sent out to over 2200 people. I can just hear Heidi Klum saying, "One of you will be een, and one of you will be out."
Well, I made a nice little design inspired by something I saw at FIT which involved Impact style font and a calendar, since the postcard was an announcement of events to come. Lo-and-behold, when I went to my meeting with Steve Lee today about the template, he mentioned that I got another project to do as well, with a rush on the job. There's a faculty candidate series going on and I have to get posters made for each and every one of them. I don't know if I get to make the postcard thing, but I got something out of it still. Yippee for me!
Friday, March 31, 2006
Perfectionism
Fun OKCupid test I saw on a lot of peoples' blogs:
| the Perfectionist Test finished! | ||
you chose CZ - your Enneagram type is ONE. "I do everything the right way"Perfectionists are realistic, conscientious, and principled. They strive to live up to their high ideals. How to Get Along with Me
What I Like About Being a One
What's Hard About Being a One
Ones as Children Often
Ones as Parents
Renee Baron & Elizabeth Wagele The Enneagram Made Easy
You are not completely happy with the result?! You chose CZ Would you rather have chosen: | ||
 | ||
My test tracked 2 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:
|
| Link: The Quick and Painless ENNEAGRAM Test written by felk on Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test |
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Schenley Farms is the happiest place on earth
Today my classmate Andrew and I went to Oakland to do research for our history mid-semester exam. For the exam, we're to wander around Pittsburgh and get examples of particular types of architecture such as art deco, queen anne and things along those lines.
We started at a church on 5th Ave and we first took photos of the exterior. Then, we went and rang the bell asking to take a look around inside. While working my camera, I couldn't figure something out so I said loudly, "Goddammit!" not realizing we were in the house of God. Then, upon realizing what I said, I followed it up by an "Omigod!" Things weren't going well. Thank gosh Andrew's Jewish. After that, we went to the office and talked with Verl the secretary for a while and she lent us an antique book from really long ago about the church.
After that, we saw a nice house across the street, and started taking photos of it. The owner drove out on his way back to work and we told him that we were architecture students looking at his house and he told us a little about it and gave us his business card and his permission to go around the property to take photos. While we were busy snapping away, his wife came out and let us in and showed us around. The interior is comparable to a mini Newport Mansion.
After that, we wandered up Bayard and ended up in front of a nice looking house that I thought was Arts and Crafts. While Andrew and I were arguing, the owner jogged by and also invited us in for a tour. They showed us everything from top to bottom. It was quite nice - the owner had a do-it-yourself approach to things and worked very hard with keeping the house in shape.
As nice as it was to go into all those houses, imagine our relief when we saw a photographable house that was abandoned.
After that, we found a reasonable Queen Anne that had been converted into an Indian Restaurant. The owner told us all about that place too, and let us run around and take tons of photos.
Aren't Pittsburghers nice?
We started at a church on 5th Ave and we first took photos of the exterior. Then, we went and rang the bell asking to take a look around inside. While working my camera, I couldn't figure something out so I said loudly, "Goddammit!" not realizing we were in the house of God. Then, upon realizing what I said, I followed it up by an "Omigod!" Things weren't going well. Thank gosh Andrew's Jewish. After that, we went to the office and talked with Verl the secretary for a while and she lent us an antique book from really long ago about the church.
After that, we saw a nice house across the street, and started taking photos of it. The owner drove out on his way back to work and we told him that we were architecture students looking at his house and he told us a little about it and gave us his business card and his permission to go around the property to take photos. While we were busy snapping away, his wife came out and let us in and showed us around. The interior is comparable to a mini Newport Mansion.
After that, we wandered up Bayard and ended up in front of a nice looking house that I thought was Arts and Crafts. While Andrew and I were arguing, the owner jogged by and also invited us in for a tour. They showed us everything from top to bottom. It was quite nice - the owner had a do-it-yourself approach to things and worked very hard with keeping the house in shape.
As nice as it was to go into all those houses, imagine our relief when we saw a photographable house that was abandoned.
After that, we found a reasonable Queen Anne that had been converted into an Indian Restaurant. The owner told us all about that place too, and let us run around and take tons of photos.
Aren't Pittsburghers nice?
Monday, March 06, 2006
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Beaux Arts Ball
Last night was the Beaux-Arts Ball. After spending $80 on tickets and $100 on supplies for costumes and a whole entire day on sewing, I have to say - it wasn't worth it. The music was so loud we couldn't talk, most of the place was closed off and once you walked outside you couldn't walk back in, and there wasn't much to drink besides alcohol, red bull and coffee. Let's just say it wasn't my scene.
Not to mention, by the time I finished the costume, the ball was already 2/3 of the way through. By the time we got there, most people had left, including Waz and Josh. So sad, I wanted them to see my costume. Though if what was there earlier was more crowded, I'm kind of glad we were late, because Ben and I had a hell of a time trying to walk around. On the upside, my friend Kiko told me my dress come out awesome. I'll admit there were definitely a few kinks in the design, but I executed what I set out to do so I'm happy. Photos of the costume to be posted shortly.
Not to mention, by the time I finished the costume, the ball was already 2/3 of the way through. By the time we got there, most people had left, including Waz and Josh. So sad, I wanted them to see my costume. Though if what was there earlier was more crowded, I'm kind of glad we were late, because Ben and I had a hell of a time trying to walk around. On the upside, my friend Kiko told me my dress come out awesome. I'll admit there were definitely a few kinks in the design, but I executed what I set out to do so I'm happy. Photos of the costume to be posted shortly.
Friday, March 03, 2006
So Cold
I pulled a super all-nighter tonight, or day. Whatever. This was after a regular all-nighter the night before. I think I'll be sleeping late tonight as well.
Post Lunar Gala includes a lot of catching up on the classes. There's a big project due in studio as well as the costumes I'm making for Benny-bean and myself for the Beaux-Arts Ball.
Which reminds me, I dragged Ben to Union Grill the other day for dinner and it was delicious, as usual. While we were there, we saw Jared and Josh. Josh kept mentioning going to studio to pitch a tent and apparently he was the only one who didn't realize the connotations (in reality I think he was referring to his housing situation). In anycase, they got to meet my Ben (yay!). I also realized as we were leaving that Dee and Laura Lee were at the bar right next to us, so I said hello and talked to them a bit too. It seems that Union Grill is incredibly popular. I think when my family comes by next, I'll take them there for dinner. So far it's the only place I've been to that has consistently good food.
On a side note, I'm starting to like my studio project.
Post Lunar Gala includes a lot of catching up on the classes. There's a big project due in studio as well as the costumes I'm making for Benny-bean and myself for the Beaux-Arts Ball.
Which reminds me, I dragged Ben to Union Grill the other day for dinner and it was delicious, as usual. While we were there, we saw Jared and Josh. Josh kept mentioning going to studio to pitch a tent and apparently he was the only one who didn't realize the connotations (in reality I think he was referring to his housing situation). In anycase, they got to meet my Ben (yay!). I also realized as we were leaving that Dee and Laura Lee were at the bar right next to us, so I said hello and talked to them a bit too. It seems that Union Grill is incredibly popular. I think when my family comes by next, I'll take them there for dinner. So far it's the only place I've been to that has consistently good food.
On a side note, I'm starting to like my studio project.
Saturday, February 25, 2006
Lunar Gala
It was amazing! Tonight was Lunar Gala, the annual fashion show. Tickets were sold out, police were saying we had a fire hazard - over a thousand people showed up, including Adam Sandler who hid back stage (I was dancing into the backstage area and he yelled "Wooo, yahh!" at me).
I did my dance thing - I really wished we had more. I think most people agree, because when I was in studio afterwards, my classmates told me that they enjoyed the dancing part the most. As nice as fashion is, it really is just people walking. There's glamour to it, but not much entertainment. I agree, dancing is where it's at, and we can eat. We burn it all off anyway. I was dying for some water after we got off stage.
I compensated by getting a strawberry banana shake. Anyhoo, I say the photographers taking lots of photos of me, so pictures coming soon!
I did my dance thing - I really wished we had more. I think most people agree, because when I was in studio afterwards, my classmates told me that they enjoyed the dancing part the most. As nice as fashion is, it really is just people walking. There's glamour to it, but not much entertainment. I agree, dancing is where it's at, and we can eat. We burn it all off anyway. I was dying for some water after we got off stage.
I compensated by getting a strawberry banana shake. Anyhoo, I say the photographers taking lots of photos of me, so pictures coming soon!
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Communication Design
Before this semester started, I thought I was pretty good at the whole communication design thing. Now, I look at the portfolio I used for job interviews and think it's horrifically ugly.
Generally, my work is ignored, which I suppose is better than getting it shot down. Last week, I made a general layout for the third year site studio and Burns basically shot it down saying it was too green, too much, too heavy, too repetitive, blah blah blah. Today we looked at it again and Laura Lee basically says it's perfect, that in that one diagonal line, I have the entire site studio summed up. I think she said she loved it, but I might be interpolating to make myself feel better about my horrid design skills. Still, I had a big grin on my face. Hah to you, Burns!
Generally, my work is ignored, which I suppose is better than getting it shot down. Last week, I made a general layout for the third year site studio and Burns basically shot it down saying it was too green, too much, too heavy, too repetitive, blah blah blah. Today we looked at it again and Laura Lee basically says it's perfect, that in that one diagonal line, I have the entire site studio summed up. I think she said she loved it, but I might be interpolating to make myself feel better about my horrid design skills. Still, I had a big grin on my face. Hah to you, Burns!
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Lurv
Happy post-Valentine's Day everyone! In the past I was usually the angry one because I didn't have anyone, but this time I can celebrate. Actually, this is the first time I ever celebrated. Last year, I had to cancel on Benny-bean because of the horror that is studio, and found out later that he bought me a cute fuzzy bear that had a heart that says "I Love You" on it. Awww (It's sitting with my dolly at home in Connecticut).
This year, I refused to let anything get in the way of me enjoying Vday with my boyfriend, so I made sure to get everything out of the way early. I cooked a nice chinese dinner (Beef and bell pepper and also eggs with tomato - so far the best for both of the dishes) and we watched the Corpse Bride. I'm not one for romantic things, but I must say that I really enjoyed it. And this year, Ben got me four bars of dark chocolate (WOO!). I brought a bar with me to studio today and devoured it. It was delicious.
I love you, Ben! (Nobody laugh)
This year, I refused to let anything get in the way of me enjoying Vday with my boyfriend, so I made sure to get everything out of the way early. I cooked a nice chinese dinner (Beef and bell pepper and also eggs with tomato - so far the best for both of the dishes) and we watched the Corpse Bride. I'm not one for romantic things, but I must say that I really enjoyed it. And this year, Ben got me four bars of dark chocolate (WOO!). I brought a bar with me to studio today and devoured it. It was delicious.
I love you, Ben! (Nobody laugh)
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Fever
I haven't been this sick since high school.
It makes sense that I got sick since I sit to the left and right of Josh and Bill, and across from Danny, all three of whom were so sick yesterday that they couldn't go to studio. I'm pretty horrible right now, I have a very sore throat and a fever. I can't sleep because I cough when I lie down and I'm too cold even with my comforter over me. The room shifts from side to side when I walk. Not good at all. I hope I'm better tomorrow so I can go to class, though I haven't done any of my homework...
It makes sense that I got sick since I sit to the left and right of Josh and Bill, and across from Danny, all three of whom were so sick yesterday that they couldn't go to studio. I'm pretty horrible right now, I have a very sore throat and a fever. I can't sleep because I cough when I lie down and I'm too cold even with my comforter over me. The room shifts from side to side when I walk. Not good at all. I hope I'm better tomorrow so I can go to class, though I haven't done any of my homework...
Sunday, January 29, 2006
Friday, January 27, 2006
DS
I watched the Dancer's Symposium DVD.
I'm a HORRIBLE dancer.
How did this elude me?
How exactly am I supposed to improve?
I need some private lessons...
I'm a HORRIBLE dancer.
How did this elude me?
How exactly am I supposed to improve?
I need some private lessons...
Monday, January 23, 2006
Depressed
So I'm back at CMU and things are starting to pick up again. I started with eight classes, but after attending one of them (a StuCO) and realized that for a dance class it was sort of a joke, I am now down to seven. In studio, they immediately tossed us into a five day charette that I actually decided to give a shit about and am, yet again, met with disappointment - which, of course, is my cue to slack off for the semester.
To continue, the doctors tell me that there's something wrong with me so I have to get a second opinion tomorrow and apparently it involves getting a biopsy and spending a lot of money. Mom and I doubt the school health center made a correct diagnosis, but whatever.
Then there's the fact that I had high hopes about getting to spend lots of time with my Benny-bean, and that doesn't seem to be the case, what with dance and Lunar Gala and all the work I have to do. It's only been a week and I've already pulled two all-nighters.
People have also been bitching in studio about the fact that I complain all the time, but mostly it's due to the above several reasons. The anxiety that I might be seriously sick just eats away at a person. I really doubt it's anything, but still, you never know.
Yesterday I had dance auditions and I completely screwed up. My brain was completely clogged so I couldn't really learn the dance. I've never had so much trouble learning a dance, not since ninth grade. I might have gotten into one dance, but yet again, I doubt it's one I really want to be in.
And now one of my classmates is talking about how wonderful his project is and even though I want to be gracious and all that crap, I'm feeling really down about how I can't ever seem to get anything right and I wonder if I should just give up and go and do engineering even though I'll be depressed for the rest of my life.
It's been overall a pretty crappy week.
On the upside, Ben's brother had a baby and we went and got to see her. We were there for three hours and she wouldn't wake up, but she was still absolutely adorable and tiny!
To continue, the doctors tell me that there's something wrong with me so I have to get a second opinion tomorrow and apparently it involves getting a biopsy and spending a lot of money. Mom and I doubt the school health center made a correct diagnosis, but whatever.
Then there's the fact that I had high hopes about getting to spend lots of time with my Benny-bean, and that doesn't seem to be the case, what with dance and Lunar Gala and all the work I have to do. It's only been a week and I've already pulled two all-nighters.
People have also been bitching in studio about the fact that I complain all the time, but mostly it's due to the above several reasons. The anxiety that I might be seriously sick just eats away at a person. I really doubt it's anything, but still, you never know.
Yesterday I had dance auditions and I completely screwed up. My brain was completely clogged so I couldn't really learn the dance. I've never had so much trouble learning a dance, not since ninth grade. I might have gotten into one dance, but yet again, I doubt it's one I really want to be in.
And now one of my classmates is talking about how wonderful his project is and even though I want to be gracious and all that crap, I'm feeling really down about how I can't ever seem to get anything right and I wonder if I should just give up and go and do engineering even though I'll be depressed for the rest of my life.
It's been overall a pretty crappy week.
On the upside, Ben's brother had a baby and we went and got to see her. We were there for three hours and she wouldn't wake up, but she was still absolutely adorable and tiny!
Monday, January 16, 2006
The Big Taiwan Update
I'm back in the states, barely recovered from jetlag and its now time for the big update! For organizational purposes, I'm going to go day by day:
Day one (12/27/06):
We left for the airport. Fortunately that morning I had an appointment with the dentist so my teeth were squeaky clean and ready for the 20 hour flight. The flight itself was pretty boring, I slept throught the first three movies, but I watched "The Island." The final verdict is that while Ewan Mcgregor is gorgeous, the movie was still only so-so. I had trouble getting comfortable since the seats were so small and the engine was so loud and the fact that all other noises just seemed muffled. We landed in the airport at 6:30am on 12/29. My ears oddly didn't have any problems with pressure. Mom's on the otherhand were so screwed up she was deaf for 3 hours. It was a little odd having to yell in her ears. We were whisked through baggage claim and customs and were picked up by a taxi my aunt called for us. One thing May and I forgot was how badly people drove in Taiwan. At one point, the taxi had to change lanes and he did so by literally driving onto the white line and literally forcing other cars out of the way. I looked out the window and the neighboring car was just a few inches away from the glass. It makes me fervently appreciate American roads and traffic laws.
Day two (12/29/06):
So my time thing is a little off, but when we traveled all the way across, we jumped really far ahead in time.
We got to my aunt's apartment and slept for a couple hours. We got up and then came some unpacking and figuring out her apartment on our own since she was in the US. She is an antique collector so her house has tons of them squished in (orderly fashion though, other than the fact that there needed to be a good extra foot of space between everything, the arrangement was quite lovely). It took us a bit of deliberating to figure out whether or not we could actually sit on the antique furniture. In the end we decided we could, and I actually spent most of my evenings sitting on an antique bench thingy than on the actual couch. Her apartment also had one of those moving door/wall panels that looks really cool, but for the life of me, I can't figure out what the point of it was. I suppose it just goes against my archie sensibilities. After mosying around the house a bit, we ventured out to explore. We went on South FuXing Rd and searched for a bank to exchange bills. None of the banks seem to want to take US currency anymore. Or at least, they wouldn't take specific serial numbers. Some wouldn't take travelers checks either - which, in my mind, defeats the purpose of having them. We walked a good 10 or so blocks to find a Bank of Taiwan which was supposedly the only bank that would take the abhorred US currency and when we got there after all the searching, they wouldn't take most of the bills either. It didn't help either that the weather was much hotter than we anticipated and we were sweating quite a bit despite the fact that there were Taiwanese citizens happily walking around in long winter trenchcoats. But then, 60 degrees is pretty cool by their standards.
(to be continued)
Day one (12/27/06):
We left for the airport. Fortunately that morning I had an appointment with the dentist so my teeth were squeaky clean and ready for the 20 hour flight. The flight itself was pretty boring, I slept throught the first three movies, but I watched "The Island." The final verdict is that while Ewan Mcgregor is gorgeous, the movie was still only so-so. I had trouble getting comfortable since the seats were so small and the engine was so loud and the fact that all other noises just seemed muffled. We landed in the airport at 6:30am on 12/29. My ears oddly didn't have any problems with pressure. Mom's on the otherhand were so screwed up she was deaf for 3 hours. It was a little odd having to yell in her ears. We were whisked through baggage claim and customs and were picked up by a taxi my aunt called for us. One thing May and I forgot was how badly people drove in Taiwan. At one point, the taxi had to change lanes and he did so by literally driving onto the white line and literally forcing other cars out of the way. I looked out the window and the neighboring car was just a few inches away from the glass. It makes me fervently appreciate American roads and traffic laws.
Day two (12/29/06):
So my time thing is a little off, but when we traveled all the way across, we jumped really far ahead in time.
We got to my aunt's apartment and slept for a couple hours. We got up and then came some unpacking and figuring out her apartment on our own since she was in the US. She is an antique collector so her house has tons of them squished in (orderly fashion though, other than the fact that there needed to be a good extra foot of space between everything, the arrangement was quite lovely). It took us a bit of deliberating to figure out whether or not we could actually sit on the antique furniture. In the end we decided we could, and I actually spent most of my evenings sitting on an antique bench thingy than on the actual couch. Her apartment also had one of those moving door/wall panels that looks really cool, but for the life of me, I can't figure out what the point of it was. I suppose it just goes against my archie sensibilities. After mosying around the house a bit, we ventured out to explore. We went on South FuXing Rd and searched for a bank to exchange bills. None of the banks seem to want to take US currency anymore. Or at least, they wouldn't take specific serial numbers. Some wouldn't take travelers checks either - which, in my mind, defeats the purpose of having them. We walked a good 10 or so blocks to find a Bank of Taiwan which was supposedly the only bank that would take the abhorred US currency and when we got there after all the searching, they wouldn't take most of the bills either. It didn't help either that the weather was much hotter than we anticipated and we were sweating quite a bit despite the fact that there were Taiwanese citizens happily walking around in long winter trenchcoats. But then, 60 degrees is pretty cool by their standards.
(to be continued)
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
TAIWAN
What's really awesome is that everything on the screen is in Chinese, well, other than what I'm typing.
We've been in Taipei for a few days now and after going for just a week without internet, I've been going crazy. Upon checking my email, I found 128 messages in my comcast mailbox, none in gmail and 23 in my school mail. Absolutely amazing, and almost all of it was junk mail.
I figured I'd just let everyone know where I was in case they were wondering what the heck happened to me. Alive and well, just on the other side of the planet. Eating. Lots of eating. YUM!
We've been in Taipei for a few days now and after going for just a week without internet, I've been going crazy. Upon checking my email, I found 128 messages in my comcast mailbox, none in gmail and 23 in my school mail. Absolutely amazing, and almost all of it was junk mail.
I figured I'd just let everyone know where I was in case they were wondering what the heck happened to me. Alive and well, just on the other side of the planet. Eating. Lots of eating. YUM!
Monday, December 26, 2005
End of the Year Update
Well, it's been quite a while since I have updated. Yes, as usual, there's been a lot lot lot going on. After classes ended I thought that there would be a break. O how wrong I was. So I spent the next few days working on enviro and cleaning up the apartment and trying to find time to spend with Ben. When the weekend rolled around, I ended up working on that damn enviro project instead of really spending quality time with my boyfriend. Enviro sucks. All that effort got me a stupid B. At least I got 4 As as well as the lowest grade I've ever had in studio ever (C) which pulled my GPA so low that despite having what was otherwise the best report card ever, I still don't make dean's list. I hate you, Sheldon. Anyhoo, first semester's never good for me. Second semester should be better, what with my whopping 8-class schedule, it should be great even with a C in studio. Fortunately Dad doesn't seem to mind the C, though he made fun of me quite a bit. (I hate you, Daddy)
My last night in Pittsburgh I spent cleaning the apartment some more and cooking a simple pasta dinner for my Ben-bean. We also had popcorn and watched "Robots" until 11-ish. I was going to go to Josh's end of the semester party, but after Ben left I was feeling really down and I felt that walking in the cold dark all alone and going to a party where only depressants were served (AKA alcohol) would not make me feel any better. So I packed up as much as I could and went to sleep.
Next day was last minute packing and I managed to make it to the airport exactly on time - I had half an hour to spare so I had a little lunch, walked leisurely down to the gate and just as I sat down, they started to call up the zones. Woohoo, how awesome am I?
After a very comfortable ride with two seats all to myself, I arrived in Hartford where May picked me up. We got back home after an hour and a half of Audioslave, Gackt and Bucktick (those last two are Japanese, for those who aren't J-rock inclined) and had a nice dinner with the parents and Gramma - Gramma who kept bothering me about not dressing warm enough the whole time she was there. Interestingly, she told me and May that our second cousin (he looks a little like Casey for all you archies who are wondering) is going to be playing a Chinese bodyguard/pirate in Pirates of the Carribbean III. Nifty, no?
Mostly sat around for the week, it was nice.
On Friday I had a doctors appointment which was...interesting. Can you imagine drinking three bottles of water in half an hour and having to hold it for two? It was horrifically uncomfortable... After the doctor's appointment, I wrapped up all the presents - this year's theme was MOMA. Being on the environmentally friendly green design binge, we got my cousin Sylvia a Luisa Ceverse ipod bag which is made of industrial waste, how nifty is that? In return I got a book titled "Green Architecture!"
For Christmas Eve we went to our cousins' place. When we got out of the car, we heard some wierd yiping noise. I said, "What is that?", turned around, and saw the tiniest little terrier yipping at us with all the strength it could muster. Very amusing. I thought about petting it and then wondered if it might try to bite me. That would not be a merry Christmas. It was a fun day, we played a game of chess, Texas Hold 'em poker, had lots and lots of food including the Citrus Chiffon Pie we made that was declared a success.
Christmas Day was just us sitting around the house, just the four of us. And today was Mom going insane packing for the trip tomorrow. Tomorrow? Hygeinist in the morning and right afterwards, we're hopping on the plane and going to Taiwan. Can't wait to hang out with Waz! Warm weather, here I come!
My last night in Pittsburgh I spent cleaning the apartment some more and cooking a simple pasta dinner for my Ben-bean. We also had popcorn and watched "Robots" until 11-ish. I was going to go to Josh's end of the semester party, but after Ben left I was feeling really down and I felt that walking in the cold dark all alone and going to a party where only depressants were served (AKA alcohol) would not make me feel any better. So I packed up as much as I could and went to sleep.
Next day was last minute packing and I managed to make it to the airport exactly on time - I had half an hour to spare so I had a little lunch, walked leisurely down to the gate and just as I sat down, they started to call up the zones. Woohoo, how awesome am I?
After a very comfortable ride with two seats all to myself, I arrived in Hartford where May picked me up. We got back home after an hour and a half of Audioslave, Gackt and Bucktick (those last two are Japanese, for those who aren't J-rock inclined) and had a nice dinner with the parents and Gramma - Gramma who kept bothering me about not dressing warm enough the whole time she was there. Interestingly, she told me and May that our second cousin (he looks a little like Casey for all you archies who are wondering) is going to be playing a Chinese bodyguard/pirate in Pirates of the Carribbean III. Nifty, no?
Mostly sat around for the week, it was nice.
On Friday I had a doctors appointment which was...interesting. Can you imagine drinking three bottles of water in half an hour and having to hold it for two? It was horrifically uncomfortable... After the doctor's appointment, I wrapped up all the presents - this year's theme was MOMA. Being on the environmentally friendly green design binge, we got my cousin Sylvia a Luisa Ceverse ipod bag which is made of industrial waste, how nifty is that? In return I got a book titled "Green Architecture!"
For Christmas Eve we went to our cousins' place. When we got out of the car, we heard some wierd yiping noise. I said, "What is that?", turned around, and saw the tiniest little terrier yipping at us with all the strength it could muster. Very amusing. I thought about petting it and then wondered if it might try to bite me. That would not be a merry Christmas. It was a fun day, we played a game of chess, Texas Hold 'em poker, had lots and lots of food including the Citrus Chiffon Pie we made that was declared a success.
Christmas Day was just us sitting around the house, just the four of us. And today was Mom going insane packing for the trip tomorrow. Tomorrow? Hygeinist in the morning and right afterwards, we're hopping on the plane and going to Taiwan. Can't wait to hang out with Waz! Warm weather, here I come!
Monday, December 12, 2005
Light at the End
Every single time I think about the future I always think, "This hell I'm in will all be over soon." Somehow that never seems to be the case. So Dancer's Symposium is finally over - it was awesome, I didn't mess up on Saturday. Classes are finally over.
So why do I feel like I still have a crapload of work to do? I have to do enviro still, of course. I also have to grade the last batch of statics homework.
I finished my research project for History of Clothing last night at 3 am. It really shouldn't haven taken so long, but I got distracted by reading about Henry VIII and his six wives, quite fascinating really. Did you know that that middle aged letch married a girl who was only 15? A 15 year old who was already experienced in that way since the age of 12? A little gross, don't you think? But then, most of them only lived to be 40 years old when they died, and most of them were really sickly (Bloody Mary had a tumor in her stomach). O yes, and the only one of his wives that modern people would consider particularly attractive was the one that Henry VIII divorced because she was too ugly (Ugly meaning that she was tall and thin, kind of like a supermodel).
But yes, I was up till 3 am, and now I have to hand in the project and work in studio until god knows when, meet with Sheldon to receive the C I'm probably getting in studio and then going to help my student with a statics crash course review. Fun!
So why do I feel like I still have a crapload of work to do? I have to do enviro still, of course. I also have to grade the last batch of statics homework.
I finished my research project for History of Clothing last night at 3 am. It really shouldn't haven taken so long, but I got distracted by reading about Henry VIII and his six wives, quite fascinating really. Did you know that that middle aged letch married a girl who was only 15? A 15 year old who was already experienced in that way since the age of 12? A little gross, don't you think? But then, most of them only lived to be 40 years old when they died, and most of them were really sickly (Bloody Mary had a tumor in her stomach). O yes, and the only one of his wives that modern people would consider particularly attractive was the one that Henry VIII divorced because she was too ugly (Ugly meaning that she was tall and thin, kind of like a supermodel).
But yes, I was up till 3 am, and now I have to hand in the project and work in studio until god knows when, meet with Sheldon to receive the C I'm probably getting in studio and then going to help my student with a statics crash course review. Fun!
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Hour of Pi
I don't know what time it will be when I finish this post, but my clock currently says 3.14, so I will call it the hour of pi.
I waited outside Maggie Mo for 40 minutes for the escort to pick me up. I think I just missed the one I was aiming for, so I danced around outside (I learned the choreography for some song in Hairspray and also some stuff for Lunar Gala today) until 3:05 when I finally got picked up. I was in a pretty bad mood until I got back to the building. I saw the doorman sitting in one of those uncomfortable looking cushion chairs you see in the homes of American grandmothers, and he was dozing slumped in the chair. It looked really funny and he kind of reminded me of what a grandpa would look like, so that cheered me up. Now I have to write 6 more pages of my paper...
I waited outside Maggie Mo for 40 minutes for the escort to pick me up. I think I just missed the one I was aiming for, so I danced around outside (I learned the choreography for some song in Hairspray and also some stuff for Lunar Gala today) until 3:05 when I finally got picked up. I was in a pretty bad mood until I got back to the building. I saw the doorman sitting in one of those uncomfortable looking cushion chairs you see in the homes of American grandmothers, and he was dozing slumped in the chair. It looked really funny and he kind of reminded me of what a grandpa would look like, so that cheered me up. Now I have to write 6 more pages of my paper...
