"She works hard for the money" and other stuff too

So here I am at work, right after work.
Sound weird?

Well, that's been the whole semester really. I talked about how it felt: confusing and hard at first, fun and interesting second. But I haven't talked about work yet. I have two jobs- the first is a run-of the-mill work-study in the architecture branch of the library, my other job is teaching Zumba classes as a fitness instructor here at school. Both time consuming, both fun in their separate ways- both pay crap.

But that's where I sit- watching the Giant's game in live feed, sitting at the Library desk, doing nothing really except trying to explain to some poor first year kid how to sign up for a printing account in the print lab that's not even in the library, but in the other part of the building... I know it's intimidating to go here and not know how to use anything, but common sense is good too. Believe me, you'll need that.

This has been a ridiculously long day- its all I can think about! I've been up and going since 7:30 a.m. I won't be done until at least 11:30pm. I guess that's bad planning on my part, but that's just how it worked out I guess. I will almost definitely pass out at 11:15 right when I get home, even though I should do at least a little homework. We'll see- last time I fell asleep on the couch within 10 minutes of getting home. Life is rough!

To be completely honest- life is wonderful. Somedays it's a lot, but that's a good thing right? To feel, to breathe. If nothing were difficult- it wouldn't be worth living, we'd have nothing to work for- no reason to try. Sure, it's nice to have easy days- but the hard days are the ones that make the easy ones seem so nice.
I'm incredibly blessed to be at an institution studying one of the oldest arts in existence, looking at it in new way, discovering. There are days when nothing can replace that. I spend every day around people- helping them, talking to them, having intelligent conversations, debates. People I love, and it adds something to my day- even just to watch, to figure out how they work, how they interact with the world and each other. When I think about it- this probably is the best time of my life. I guess it's just hard to remember that when you've got two projects and a couple quizzes breathing down your neck when you realize that you're going home this weekend and you won't have time to do anything... whoops- again with the bad planning.

Note to self: Buy a Planner

At least the Giants won. Poor Daddy, he's a Redskin's fan. We normally have an epic standoff/football watching extravaganza for the NY/WASH game. This year I was at school- at work even, so it was all I could do to watch it online. Bummer. Good thing Eli was on top of the game tonight- Love you "Baby Blue"!

At least I've spared the old man the embarrassment of losing... again.

Vampires, Football, and The Rest of Them

Whoops.
I have been remiss in my attentions to you, dear blog.
Though I have to admit, I've never been good at keeping journals for long periods of time- or being consistent in the frequency of the entries. I wonder what that says about me?
If it says commitment issues... I wouldn't be the least bit surprised.
Enough apologies and explanations. It's recap time.

I'm absolutely one of those fad people. I realized that recently, upon completion of the "Twightlight" series. Yes, I read it. Not only did I read all four books within one week- I loved them. When I was younger, it was so important to me to resist pop culture; to cling fiercely to my individuality. It's why I refused to read Harry Potter until way after the trend got out of control. It's why I wouldn't admit to owning an N*sync CD. Only recently have I been able to admit to myself that I love trends. I can proudly admit, that along with a good chunk of my generation, I love Grey's Anatomy, I love Scrubs, I love Twighlight, and I love the Lord of the Rings. I also love flavored iced teas, fast cars, and good design. Pop culture is incredibly important. Not only for those who love it- but Ironically, it's important to those who hate it. Pop culture moves us. Based on what is popular, you either love it, or you hate it. This could be simply becuase it's popular. The never-ending cycle that makes up poular culture begins and ends with the cusp- the edge. The Trendsetters- whether they wish to be or not.
I can honestly say that I love that. I love the dynamic aspects of our culture- that moving, breathing passion that so many people take for granted. Sure, maybe some of that passion could be redirected into things other than what level of crazy Britney is this month- but think of how awful our world would be if no one cared about... anything at all.

Main point: Read the Twighlight series; it's fabulous.

I'm back at school now. First week done. Work over. No more pirate kids. I'm completely moved in, and I almost have everything I need for classes. Although I really, really think I need an upgrade for my brain. All the new programs are running a little slow right now...
The first half of the week was hard- I almost didn't make it through Wednesday- I have a brutal schedule, and for some reason, meeting new people seemed really difficult this year. I guess I normally end up in classes with really friendly people- or maybe now everyone is just so focused on what we're doing that they don't have time for silly things like introductions or smiles. Architecture is apparently too serious for that. Why do I love this major again? Oh, wait- up until thursday I totally forgot why. Thankfully, it's not about the people (who I'm sure will actually turn out to be awesome after the ice thaws), it's about the stuff. It's about mass, bodies, spaces, feelings, and metaphores. Ideas that start as something so vague and become so real and concrete (literally!). Anyways, it's good to be back... now.

Unfortunately classes weren't the only thing to dissappoint in the beginning of the year. First football game today: Total crap. I'm not going into details because it was painful. Just know that I think Sean Glennon is a trash bag. But he's still the quarterback (for now) and I respect him. Most of the time. Well... in the first half.

I guess this shall lead into the rest of the semester... and I guess that at this point, all I can say is: "Bring it on, baby."

Hopefully I start a fad.

Sore Wrists and Communists

The summer is seriously close to ending.

My last day of work is the fourteenth and I can't say that I'm completely bummed about it. I have fun, but it's a lot of heavy lifting. Seriously.
Even though I move back down to school on the 20th-- I had to go switch apartments on August 8th. Which meant I was moving three persons worth of stuff... with two people?
See, originally, I was going to bring down several people to help me out. That wouldn't be hard- not a problem, right? Wrong. And only because people are naturally busy/flaky. You do it- I do it. We say that we'll help out with something-- and all of our sincere intent is to follow through with that, but then: something comes up. And somethings honestly do just come up. Situations change all the time- as do relationships and, well, life really.
So four leads to three leads to two, and Bleighton and I were on our way south to move a house.

We get there early, and all together I think it took us about 6 or 7 hours. The moving out was the hardest part, and we filled up the van about 6 times as well. That's a lot of junk.
At the end of the night, we were exhausted, but the new place looked pretty damn good. There are still a couple of things to smooth out- and still some stuff to bring down. But that can be in the next trip. I'm still sore from moving everything.
And I felt it at work; I went to lift a 24 pack of canned tomatoes and all I felt was pain shooting up through my wrist- A couple people later and I was lifting a pack of Gatorade G-something when my back practically yelped. Lift from the knees, lift from the knees.




Little blurb = unfinished post: started in August. I just found this and thought it was funny- I'm not going to finish it, because it doesn't really have relevance for me right now, but I thought I'd share it anyways. Enjoy it!

Again with the Pirates...

I want some heelys.
They are probably the singularly most amazing fad to sweep children ages 14 and younger.
Lately every other kid at work has been gliding around in these ingenious inventions.
I wonder how long it would be before I broke something- either myself or any object within close proximity.
What I do know is that the fact that I seriously want to own and wear a pair of these, means I officially still have one leg very firmly planted in the land of childhood. Or immaturity. The question is, is this OK? I mean, we're talking regular occurrences. Is it OK to want to have built in rollerblades so that I can roll around at will?
Secret Admission: At work, when I close- I take a quick jog and then hop on the back of the carts, riding them all the way down the aisle.
So we can draw the conclusion that I am basically still ridiculous in some aspects, such as movement and impulse. What about the other stuff? the stuff that matters?
I guess there is no definite answer for that. I'm sure that I still have a lot of growing up to do, and in a lot of aspects of life, but the most I can hope for, I suppose, is that I don't hurt too many people along the way. An unfortunate side effect of immaturity, hurting others most often occurs when we think just of ourselves. And usually, being selfish goes hand in hand with being immature.

The Daily Oddity for Today:

Child Pretending to be a Pirate: (in child-like piercing shriek) I'm a pirate!!
Me: Really? That's a pretty cool eye patch and telescope... Helping Mommy find treasure?
CPTBP: I love Treasure!! I'm finding it!!
Me: Where's your map? All Pirates have Treasure maps...
CPTBP: I'm a Pirate! (waves Telescope) Are you Pirates?
Me: I'm not. (hands CPTBP the receipt) But I can give you this treasure map- hold on tight to it!
CPTBP: (Clutching Receipt)MOM! Treasure Map! Find the Treasure!
Mother: (Leaving) The Lady at the Door needs the receipt, honey.
CPTBP: No! It's my map!
Me: ...whoops. Ahoy!

The other day and older gentleman looked at me and said softly, "You have gorgeous eyes." He had been quite the whole time he and his wife were checking out, and she just smiled at me, and they left. He had no reason to say that- but he did. And that made the rest of my day better. I guess when you get old enough to get over being embarrassed you find it easier to say what you're thinking. I wish I could have told him just how much that his compliment meant to me.
Or at least had a second to say a decent "Thank You."

I guess he has matured far enough past the selfish, immature point. I wonder if he'd like heelys...