Who isn't stressed?
But honestly, stress sucks. And I've had more than enough lately. I was grumpy today for no real reason that I could think of. I was okay with the sprinkly rain and with moving at a more relaxed pace, but I suppose the latter just wasn't in the cards. I'm tired. Tired of so many things and just wanting other issues to be solved. It can all be overcome, it is just a process of getting to that point that is nerve-wracking and stress-inducing and I can't shake the glumness that is put on me as a result. I think today was just destined to be that day.
It didn't help that I relieve stress sometimes via a game on my phone (Jewels, or Bejeweled, or whatever it is called) which was dead practically all weekend. Oh well. Now I've got it charging again and that's all that matters really. I should really find other ways to relieve stress than relying on an electronic game. I should also find a different method for time keeping. Or I suppose I could give that up entirely. Well, maybe not all the way. Maybe I could just care less about what time it is as long as I am moving forward and making progress on my goals that I have. Yeah, that sounds like a good plan.
For now, I am too tired to continue to write anything else that is either relevant or coherent so I'm done for now. And no, I won't be reading Frankenstein before bed as I'm too tired and too preoccupied to really focus on the language. I love you Mary Shelley, but dang girl. You gotta let up on your reader sometimes.
Until the next blip--
Monday, June 4, 2012
Saturday, June 2, 2012
#58--Six Months Later
So as it turns out, I never update this thing, and friends like Jason get upset because I haven't been posting all semester. For this I apologize sincerely. Spring was a very busy time for me, what with graduate school and all. I met new people, learned to leave things in the past, and generally speaking had a good spring semester. I did great in my classes and my classes that I taught did pretty well too. Most recently, I have attended graduation and celebrated with friends, congratulated others on jobs they've accepted, and mainly been working on various projects I have for myself this summer.
I have been intending to work on my thesis over this summer, and I suppose you can say I've been making progress as far as that goes. I've been reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which is the main literature I'm focusing on for my thesis. I have learned that I shouldn't read it before I sleep, not because it is scary (which it isn't, exactly) but because I end up having really WEIRD dreams afterwards. I am mostly done with it now even though I'll end up re-reading it several times. This particular story is also a prime example of (again) how movies and different interpretations of a piece of work cannot be trusted. People might say that books aren't important, but without them, no one would know the full story as it was originally written.
I've dyed my hair a couple of times this year to attempt a darker hair color overall. I like the darker colors, but it fades more quickly than I'd like for it to. (Random)
I realize that I don't care about my transitions as I write this post and I guess that's okay. Because really, who needs transitions in informal writing anyway? I think I am just tired of writing infrequently on this thing, and then ending up writing summaries of my life for the last several months or year. I think this summer will be difficult since I'm broke, but it does allow a lot of opportunity and time to work on those things that I want to achieve.
So I mentioned my thesis already but I didn't give the topic and that's okay too because I'm slightly paranoid about people stealing my ideas. Having influences is one thing, but I'd rather not set myself up for a hassle later if I can avoid it. I'd rather keep some of these awesome ideas to myself so that I might actually craft them into the gloriousness that I know I can make them. And this tells me that "gloriousness" is spelled incorrectly, but what does blogspot know? It even says that blogspot is incorrect. Whatever.
Another project I have is more along the creative lines, and that's going to stay on the down-low until I have more to present. Not only that but I'd like to emphasize my slight paranoia at this point. I suppose though that it isn't so much me worrying about my ideas being used by others as having too much initial feedback and people's opinions interfering with what I'm trying to do. I understand that I am not the Almighty Writer, but I can pretend at least until I'm done and thus not have to worry about what other people think.
I had intended to go through all of my music files and organize them, which I successfully accomplished this week! Hooray completed goals! Now I just have to put everything back into iTunes and then double check my files with the cds that I have to make sure I didn't miss anything. After that I'll be able to update my iPad with new songs and I won't have to listen to the same old music anytime Alex & I decide to go anywhere. I already know that I lost my Supertramp files that were on my computer, but I still have the disc so that will be the first thing that I re-save to my computer, whenever I get around to putting all those cds worth of music on... which will likely be next week at the earliest. I don't see myself getting to that before Tuesday.
Today though, Alex had the day off, and between numerous phone calls and visits to our house by the landlord, etc., it was a long day. However, we did get some down-time in the afternoon when all we did was sit and enjoy each other's company...as we both played on our individual laptops. Alex stumbled and I played Sims on Facebook, because I'm ultra classy like that.
It was too bad though that it was cold and rainy today, because it would have been nice to go on a long walk with Alex and the dogs. Perhaps that will have to be another day. It doesn't help that the light bulb in our living room burned out and we have to use the table lamps (gasp! first-world problem) so that makes it pretty dark in the living room. Oh well. Not like it matters much.
Otherwise, the summer shall be interesting and promises lots of visits among friends and lots of time management opportunities in balancing social aspects and projects. (I also need to organize all my files from this last year, including textbooks and supplies that I can use again next year). I am okay with striking this balance though, as it will be crucial to get into a sort of routine so that I can actually accomplish that which I have listed out for myself. Thesis and the other writing project (previously alluded to) are both large projects, and the filing project will take at least a day or two, depending on my level of sloth. However, I feel like I can accomplish quite a bit this summer... I just have to do it.
In any case, this week has been unexpectedly hectic yet fun, and I anticipate next week to be .... much calmer. I am hoping also to submit some work to various journals (which will require research unless anyone has any current ideas?) and contests. Publication is what it is all about.
On a final note for today, it is late and we're going to Buzz Beach Ball tomorrow with friends so we will have an early start. Ciao!
I have been intending to work on my thesis over this summer, and I suppose you can say I've been making progress as far as that goes. I've been reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which is the main literature I'm focusing on for my thesis. I have learned that I shouldn't read it before I sleep, not because it is scary (which it isn't, exactly) but because I end up having really WEIRD dreams afterwards. I am mostly done with it now even though I'll end up re-reading it several times. This particular story is also a prime example of (again) how movies and different interpretations of a piece of work cannot be trusted. People might say that books aren't important, but without them, no one would know the full story as it was originally written.
I've dyed my hair a couple of times this year to attempt a darker hair color overall. I like the darker colors, but it fades more quickly than I'd like for it to. (Random)
I realize that I don't care about my transitions as I write this post and I guess that's okay. Because really, who needs transitions in informal writing anyway? I think I am just tired of writing infrequently on this thing, and then ending up writing summaries of my life for the last several months or year. I think this summer will be difficult since I'm broke, but it does allow a lot of opportunity and time to work on those things that I want to achieve.
So I mentioned my thesis already but I didn't give the topic and that's okay too because I'm slightly paranoid about people stealing my ideas. Having influences is one thing, but I'd rather not set myself up for a hassle later if I can avoid it. I'd rather keep some of these awesome ideas to myself so that I might actually craft them into the gloriousness that I know I can make them. And this tells me that "gloriousness" is spelled incorrectly, but what does blogspot know? It even says that blogspot is incorrect. Whatever.
Another project I have is more along the creative lines, and that's going to stay on the down-low until I have more to present. Not only that but I'd like to emphasize my slight paranoia at this point. I suppose though that it isn't so much me worrying about my ideas being used by others as having too much initial feedback and people's opinions interfering with what I'm trying to do. I understand that I am not the Almighty Writer, but I can pretend at least until I'm done and thus not have to worry about what other people think.
I had intended to go through all of my music files and organize them, which I successfully accomplished this week! Hooray completed goals! Now I just have to put everything back into iTunes and then double check my files with the cds that I have to make sure I didn't miss anything. After that I'll be able to update my iPad with new songs and I won't have to listen to the same old music anytime Alex & I decide to go anywhere. I already know that I lost my Supertramp files that were on my computer, but I still have the disc so that will be the first thing that I re-save to my computer, whenever I get around to putting all those cds worth of music on... which will likely be next week at the earliest. I don't see myself getting to that before Tuesday.
Today though, Alex had the day off, and between numerous phone calls and visits to our house by the landlord, etc., it was a long day. However, we did get some down-time in the afternoon when all we did was sit and enjoy each other's company...as we both played on our individual laptops. Alex stumbled and I played Sims on Facebook, because I'm ultra classy like that.
It was too bad though that it was cold and rainy today, because it would have been nice to go on a long walk with Alex and the dogs. Perhaps that will have to be another day. It doesn't help that the light bulb in our living room burned out and we have to use the table lamps (gasp! first-world problem) so that makes it pretty dark in the living room. Oh well. Not like it matters much.
Otherwise, the summer shall be interesting and promises lots of visits among friends and lots of time management opportunities in balancing social aspects and projects. (I also need to organize all my files from this last year, including textbooks and supplies that I can use again next year). I am okay with striking this balance though, as it will be crucial to get into a sort of routine so that I can actually accomplish that which I have listed out for myself. Thesis and the other writing project (previously alluded to) are both large projects, and the filing project will take at least a day or two, depending on my level of sloth. However, I feel like I can accomplish quite a bit this summer... I just have to do it.
In any case, this week has been unexpectedly hectic yet fun, and I anticipate next week to be .... much calmer. I am hoping also to submit some work to various journals (which will require research unless anyone has any current ideas?) and contests. Publication is what it is all about.
On a final note for today, it is late and we're going to Buzz Beach Ball tomorrow with friends so we will have an early start. Ciao!
Sunday, January 1, 2012
#57--Reflecting on 2011
2011 was an interesting year. A lot happened--some of it good, and some of it not so good. I'll start at the beginning.
In January Alex and I were living in KC with our friend Evan, and our dog Sydney, and Evan's dog Albert. It was a nice little place to live. I was jobless at the time, going a bit crazy trying to get interviews and then job offers following. I had a series of successful interviews at an insurance agency, and would have been inclined to take the job if it were not required that I drive my own vehicle to people's houses to talk about insurance and investments. I am a good salesman when it comes down to it, but me and my poor little Saturn would not have made it.
I finally found a job in late February working as an assistant editor at a literary magazine. That was perfect and I had fun doing it, and it was close to my apartment so driving to and from work was not an issue. After a time, I was unable to continue as they were unable to pay me the contracted rate. I stayed on for some time for a collaborative project, but eventually had to give that up to due to the location change and driving distance. After that I found a job at a BBQ restaurant as a waitress, and I did really well there. During this time I had an interview with career services at ESU to talk about my degree and how I was struggling in the job market. After his advice, I applied for graduate school at ESU, my alma mater. In the meantime, working at the BBQ place was fun, and the people were great. Toward the end of my time there, my father in law had a heart attack and was sent to the hospital. He eventually went through a quadruple bypass surgery. It was a tough time for everyone.
During all of that adventure and excitement, I learned that a friend of mine (one of my bridesmaids at my wedding, not six months before) had been mean, negative, annoying, and downright disrespectful to me and my husband by breaking glasses, spilling drinks on other people, being rude, talking about how her upcoming wedding would be better than mine, while her fiance harassed my family members and challenged a retired air force uncle. He even insulted our best man. I was furious when I found out these little details of things that were happening. When I found out that she (the perpetrator and now ex-friend) had invited my maid of honor to her wedding but not me, I was enraged. I called her out on it, to no avail. She pretended to care but didn't really. I removed her from my facebook friends, just to see if she'd notice or say anything to me, and she didn't. Later, when I returned to ESU for grad school, I saw her on campus. She had the nerve to talk to me like nothing was wrong, and then proceeded to tell her other friend about business of mine that was not business either one of them needed to know. I was furious. I saw her again a few more times and she walked right past me as if she hadn't seen me at all (when she looked right at me). But whatever--sometimes you lose people you thought were your friends.
At this point, it was May. I had traded in my little Saturn for a Dodge Caliber. It was a great deal at the time--until we found out that we couldn't take the Caliber on the highway without it having to stop from the engine overheating. That was a whole new mess all to itself, consuming most of the summer. The dealer I got it from said there was nothing wrong with it, but there obviously was (and is). He turned out to be a pain in our side, and we found we could do nothing legally regarding the sale of the car when it knowingly had a problem. We couldn't be protected by the lemon law because we bought the vehicle used. Very frustrating. We found out later (months later) that we needed a new transmission in it. That's still on the to-do list.
Our lease expired at the KC apartment, and Evan stayed because his schooling was in that area. I had been accepted into graduate school and so we moved back to ESU the same night as that terrible tornado devastated Reading. It was dark as we were driving on the highway, so it was impossible to see anything regarding funnel clouds and the like. We made it safely. We had rented a place with another couple--two friends of ours, Jordan and Carol. We moved in, started the semester and were having a pretty good time. Alex was able to transfer his job to the location down here, so that was an easy transition for him--except that he went from driver to parts counter, so he did have to learn the computer system.
The first semester of graduate school and teaching Comp I was very interesting and a lot of fun. I found out how difficult it is to keep up or to regain your footing once you have fallen behind in your work (to all those undergrads out there: it gets worse when you procrastinate. Don't do it!) but I really enjoyed working with my students and they certainly kept class lively.
In October we celebrated Alex's birthday, our 1 year anniversary and my birthday as well. We went to Santa Fe over fall break as our belated honeymoon, and it was a lot of fun. We drove all the way there and back in Alex's big truck, and we had fun walking around, trying the food and seeing the Contemporary Art Museum as well as the Farmer's Market (which was HUGE!). We made it a tradition to buy a bottle of wine every year that we save and open the next year on our anniversary. Since we took our trip over fall break, we celebrated differently on the actual date of our anniversary by cooking dinner (all me) and having a romantic evening with our Barefoot Bubbly (thank you Erica!) a dinner of chicken alfredo (which was the first meal I ever cooked for him, in 2007), and by taking pictures on a disposable camera.
We traveled to my mom's house the weekend after fall break for a day, and I came home with a birthday puppy. He is a mini schnauzer and his name is Alfonz Doogie von Schnauzer. His mother was Victoria and his father was Buddy. He is brothers with Evan's dog, Albert Schnitzel von Schnauzer. We call him Fonz or Fonzie, and he is totally my little cuddle bug! He's still in the puppy stages now, but I don't think he's going to get much bigger. He's currently losing teeth left and right. I found one the other day stuck to Sydney's black fur. It was possibly the smallest tooth I've ever seen.
In October we went to a Halloween party at a friend's house. Alex, Ray and Lisa even went and got me an ice cream cake from Walmart. It was the first ice cream cake I'd ever had for my birthday, and they sang to me also. It was very fun. There were costumes, drinking, and game playing to be had at that party. Halloween was a bit of a turning point for several of us, and we have since found different paths. Halloween and the week after led to a whole slew of events that changed friendships and relationships to the point of no return. Our roommates broke up, Carol moved out, and Jordan said he'd be leaving too so we started looking for places. For awhile we thought it would be neat (and that we'd be able to afford) to buy a house. We toured through two houses that were fairly cheap considering their condition, location and the like, but we were unable to afford the downpayment, even with loans and other assistance. It was nearly heartbreaking because the house we found was gorgeous with all wood floors (pine) and original wood trim, leaded windows, a foyer, a staircase with a carpet runner glued down, and an attic space that looked like it walked right out of Edward Scissorhands. Not to mention a fireplace on the main level, new stone tile counter tops and range in the kitchen, and a claw foot tub upstairs, a spacious yard with a privacy fence, a one-car garage, off street parking, a porch and a covered balcony on the upstairs master bedroom.
Once we discovered we would be unable to buy, we started looking for rentals. Jordan said he would be moved out by December 1, so we needed to find a place pretty quickly. We weren't having much luck. Then one day I went to the basement to change the laundry. Alex was upstairs. I got to the basement and heard a voice talking. I shrugged it off as the tv sound echoing through the air vents. But then I remembered that the tv wasn't on. Then I thought maybe it was Alex on the phone, but after a moment or two, it did not sound like Alex's voice. So I paused and listened. Then the person (male) who was apparently having a conversation over the phone, went up the stairs behind me and into the kitchen. I did not turn around to look at them. I calmly finished changing the laundry, filled the basket with the dry stuff, and returned upstairs to where Alex was sitting. I told him someone was in the house. He went to check it out, and found Riley, a friend of Jordan's, that Alex and I had only met briefly once before. Riley apologized, explaining that he thought no one was home, and proceeded to wait in the living room for Jordan to arrive. This all occurred around midnight. Alex then took the dogs outside at my request since I didn't want to walk them. That's when a few more random guys showed up on our front porch and were entering the house. Alex asked them to wait and told them Jordan wasn't home yet, but they responded with "It's okay, Riley's home." Only Riley doesn't live here either. I was about to call the cops (and really, Alex should have let me). I was so mad at Jordan. While Alex finished walking the dogs, I heard other voices as they all went downstairs, calling Alex an asshole. I was beyond pissed, and told Alex what I heard as he came in. I took the dogs upstairs while he went to the basement to talk to those guys. There were now 5 random people in our basement and Jordan still wasn't home. Two of them were apologetic and three were being rude, but none of them would wait outside. Finally when Jordan got home around 1 a.m., Alex let him have it, and we knew it was time for us to leave. Jordan apologized but I didn't believe it and it didn't sound sincere (yes I was eavesdropping). Then Jordan and his buddies boxed until about 3 a.m., even though it was a weeknight and we told them we both had to get up early and that the basement sounds resonate clear up into our bedroom on the second floor. A few days later, Alex told me to look seriously for new places to live, so I went driving around on Saturday Dec 3 for new places. Monday we gave our notice to the landlord and Wednesday we were moving out. Longer story short, we kept telling Jordan he needed to put utilities in his name and we were leaving, which he ignored, and it ended up being a whole big mess with the landlord, who decided to yell at me for Jordan's slacking. I straight up told the landlord that I was not Jordan's mother and therefore not responsible for his action or lack thereof. And yes I used big words, lol. Alex and I found a cute little place several blocks away and have settled in nicely, though not everything is put away quite yet. We finished out the fall semester in the new place, and had Christmas and a small New Year's party here as well.
Overall, 2011 was a stressful year. The good things we've got from this was we got to keep Alex's dad around (he had a pacemaker put in the day before Thanksgiving), we found out who our friends really were, and Alex and I have been able to move into our own place, just us and the pups, no roommates or close neighbors. Today is only the first day of 2012, but since 2010 was a year of gain, and 2011 a year of loss, 2012 should be pretty awesome. :)
Until next time--
In January Alex and I were living in KC with our friend Evan, and our dog Sydney, and Evan's dog Albert. It was a nice little place to live. I was jobless at the time, going a bit crazy trying to get interviews and then job offers following. I had a series of successful interviews at an insurance agency, and would have been inclined to take the job if it were not required that I drive my own vehicle to people's houses to talk about insurance and investments. I am a good salesman when it comes down to it, but me and my poor little Saturn would not have made it.
I finally found a job in late February working as an assistant editor at a literary magazine. That was perfect and I had fun doing it, and it was close to my apartment so driving to and from work was not an issue. After a time, I was unable to continue as they were unable to pay me the contracted rate. I stayed on for some time for a collaborative project, but eventually had to give that up to due to the location change and driving distance. After that I found a job at a BBQ restaurant as a waitress, and I did really well there. During this time I had an interview with career services at ESU to talk about my degree and how I was struggling in the job market. After his advice, I applied for graduate school at ESU, my alma mater. In the meantime, working at the BBQ place was fun, and the people were great. Toward the end of my time there, my father in law had a heart attack and was sent to the hospital. He eventually went through a quadruple bypass surgery. It was a tough time for everyone.
During all of that adventure and excitement, I learned that a friend of mine (one of my bridesmaids at my wedding, not six months before) had been mean, negative, annoying, and downright disrespectful to me and my husband by breaking glasses, spilling drinks on other people, being rude, talking about how her upcoming wedding would be better than mine, while her fiance harassed my family members and challenged a retired air force uncle. He even insulted our best man. I was furious when I found out these little details of things that were happening. When I found out that she (the perpetrator and now ex-friend) had invited my maid of honor to her wedding but not me, I was enraged. I called her out on it, to no avail. She pretended to care but didn't really. I removed her from my facebook friends, just to see if she'd notice or say anything to me, and she didn't. Later, when I returned to ESU for grad school, I saw her on campus. She had the nerve to talk to me like nothing was wrong, and then proceeded to tell her other friend about business of mine that was not business either one of them needed to know. I was furious. I saw her again a few more times and she walked right past me as if she hadn't seen me at all (when she looked right at me). But whatever--sometimes you lose people you thought were your friends.
At this point, it was May. I had traded in my little Saturn for a Dodge Caliber. It was a great deal at the time--until we found out that we couldn't take the Caliber on the highway without it having to stop from the engine overheating. That was a whole new mess all to itself, consuming most of the summer. The dealer I got it from said there was nothing wrong with it, but there obviously was (and is). He turned out to be a pain in our side, and we found we could do nothing legally regarding the sale of the car when it knowingly had a problem. We couldn't be protected by the lemon law because we bought the vehicle used. Very frustrating. We found out later (months later) that we needed a new transmission in it. That's still on the to-do list.
Our lease expired at the KC apartment, and Evan stayed because his schooling was in that area. I had been accepted into graduate school and so we moved back to ESU the same night as that terrible tornado devastated Reading. It was dark as we were driving on the highway, so it was impossible to see anything regarding funnel clouds and the like. We made it safely. We had rented a place with another couple--two friends of ours, Jordan and Carol. We moved in, started the semester and were having a pretty good time. Alex was able to transfer his job to the location down here, so that was an easy transition for him--except that he went from driver to parts counter, so he did have to learn the computer system.
The first semester of graduate school and teaching Comp I was very interesting and a lot of fun. I found out how difficult it is to keep up or to regain your footing once you have fallen behind in your work (to all those undergrads out there: it gets worse when you procrastinate. Don't do it!) but I really enjoyed working with my students and they certainly kept class lively.
In October we celebrated Alex's birthday, our 1 year anniversary and my birthday as well. We went to Santa Fe over fall break as our belated honeymoon, and it was a lot of fun. We drove all the way there and back in Alex's big truck, and we had fun walking around, trying the food and seeing the Contemporary Art Museum as well as the Farmer's Market (which was HUGE!). We made it a tradition to buy a bottle of wine every year that we save and open the next year on our anniversary. Since we took our trip over fall break, we celebrated differently on the actual date of our anniversary by cooking dinner (all me) and having a romantic evening with our Barefoot Bubbly (thank you Erica!) a dinner of chicken alfredo (which was the first meal I ever cooked for him, in 2007), and by taking pictures on a disposable camera.
We traveled to my mom's house the weekend after fall break for a day, and I came home with a birthday puppy. He is a mini schnauzer and his name is Alfonz Doogie von Schnauzer. His mother was Victoria and his father was Buddy. He is brothers with Evan's dog, Albert Schnitzel von Schnauzer. We call him Fonz or Fonzie, and he is totally my little cuddle bug! He's still in the puppy stages now, but I don't think he's going to get much bigger. He's currently losing teeth left and right. I found one the other day stuck to Sydney's black fur. It was possibly the smallest tooth I've ever seen.
In October we went to a Halloween party at a friend's house. Alex, Ray and Lisa even went and got me an ice cream cake from Walmart. It was the first ice cream cake I'd ever had for my birthday, and they sang to me also. It was very fun. There were costumes, drinking, and game playing to be had at that party. Halloween was a bit of a turning point for several of us, and we have since found different paths. Halloween and the week after led to a whole slew of events that changed friendships and relationships to the point of no return. Our roommates broke up, Carol moved out, and Jordan said he'd be leaving too so we started looking for places. For awhile we thought it would be neat (and that we'd be able to afford) to buy a house. We toured through two houses that were fairly cheap considering their condition, location and the like, but we were unable to afford the downpayment, even with loans and other assistance. It was nearly heartbreaking because the house we found was gorgeous with all wood floors (pine) and original wood trim, leaded windows, a foyer, a staircase with a carpet runner glued down, and an attic space that looked like it walked right out of Edward Scissorhands. Not to mention a fireplace on the main level, new stone tile counter tops and range in the kitchen, and a claw foot tub upstairs, a spacious yard with a privacy fence, a one-car garage, off street parking, a porch and a covered balcony on the upstairs master bedroom.
Once we discovered we would be unable to buy, we started looking for rentals. Jordan said he would be moved out by December 1, so we needed to find a place pretty quickly. We weren't having much luck. Then one day I went to the basement to change the laundry. Alex was upstairs. I got to the basement and heard a voice talking. I shrugged it off as the tv sound echoing through the air vents. But then I remembered that the tv wasn't on. Then I thought maybe it was Alex on the phone, but after a moment or two, it did not sound like Alex's voice. So I paused and listened. Then the person (male) who was apparently having a conversation over the phone, went up the stairs behind me and into the kitchen. I did not turn around to look at them. I calmly finished changing the laundry, filled the basket with the dry stuff, and returned upstairs to where Alex was sitting. I told him someone was in the house. He went to check it out, and found Riley, a friend of Jordan's, that Alex and I had only met briefly once before. Riley apologized, explaining that he thought no one was home, and proceeded to wait in the living room for Jordan to arrive. This all occurred around midnight. Alex then took the dogs outside at my request since I didn't want to walk them. That's when a few more random guys showed up on our front porch and were entering the house. Alex asked them to wait and told them Jordan wasn't home yet, but they responded with "It's okay, Riley's home." Only Riley doesn't live here either. I was about to call the cops (and really, Alex should have let me). I was so mad at Jordan. While Alex finished walking the dogs, I heard other voices as they all went downstairs, calling Alex an asshole. I was beyond pissed, and told Alex what I heard as he came in. I took the dogs upstairs while he went to the basement to talk to those guys. There were now 5 random people in our basement and Jordan still wasn't home. Two of them were apologetic and three were being rude, but none of them would wait outside. Finally when Jordan got home around 1 a.m., Alex let him have it, and we knew it was time for us to leave. Jordan apologized but I didn't believe it and it didn't sound sincere (yes I was eavesdropping). Then Jordan and his buddies boxed until about 3 a.m., even though it was a weeknight and we told them we both had to get up early and that the basement sounds resonate clear up into our bedroom on the second floor. A few days later, Alex told me to look seriously for new places to live, so I went driving around on Saturday Dec 3 for new places. Monday we gave our notice to the landlord and Wednesday we were moving out. Longer story short, we kept telling Jordan he needed to put utilities in his name and we were leaving, which he ignored, and it ended up being a whole big mess with the landlord, who decided to yell at me for Jordan's slacking. I straight up told the landlord that I was not Jordan's mother and therefore not responsible for his action or lack thereof. And yes I used big words, lol. Alex and I found a cute little place several blocks away and have settled in nicely, though not everything is put away quite yet. We finished out the fall semester in the new place, and had Christmas and a small New Year's party here as well.
Overall, 2011 was a stressful year. The good things we've got from this was we got to keep Alex's dad around (he had a pacemaker put in the day before Thanksgiving), we found out who our friends really were, and Alex and I have been able to move into our own place, just us and the pups, no roommates or close neighbors. Today is only the first day of 2012, but since 2010 was a year of gain, and 2011 a year of loss, 2012 should be pretty awesome. :)
Until next time--
Friday, December 30, 2011
#56--Pondering Thesis Ideas
I'm torn. I can't decide if I want to do a Creative Writing thesis or a Non-Creative Thesis.
There are pros and cons to each side. Let's start with the Creative Thesis.
Creative Pros:
I am very creative.
I currently have a ton of ideas to pull from/work with.
I would have a blast writing a creative thesis.
I would easily be able to relate my own work with a field of writing (like magical realism or that "everyday horror").
I would be challenged, but maybe not as much as a non-creative thesis.
Creative Cons:
I would be challenged, but maybe not as much as a non-creative thesis.
It might be too easy.
I may not fully relate it to the area of writing.
A creative thesis may not open many doors for me career (or continued education) -wise.
Non-Creative Pros:
I am very interested in language learning/acquisition as well as linguistics and rhetoric.
With this thesis and background, I could travel more for work.
I may have a bigger job market or greater opportunities (education included).
I would be challenged a lot.
I would learn something.
I would more easily be able to become part of the academia in a particular field.
I could publish my works/findings/research and become more well known/have even more opportunities come my way.
I could eventually (or do this with my thesis) link the impact linguistics/language has on writing whether it is creative or not, and how these ties influence authors/readers/researchers on multiple levels.
Non-Creative Cons:
I would be challenged a LOT.
I might get burned out.
I may not like it as much as I thought.
Dr. Storm would probably be my committee chair for my thesis defense. (EEP!)
What do you think?
There are pros and cons to each side. Let's start with the Creative Thesis.
Creative Pros:
I am very creative.
I currently have a ton of ideas to pull from/work with.
I would have a blast writing a creative thesis.
I would easily be able to relate my own work with a field of writing (like magical realism or that "everyday horror").
I would be challenged, but maybe not as much as a non-creative thesis.
Creative Cons:
I would be challenged, but maybe not as much as a non-creative thesis.
It might be too easy.
I may not fully relate it to the area of writing.
A creative thesis may not open many doors for me career (or continued education) -wise.
Non-Creative Pros:
I am very interested in language learning/acquisition as well as linguistics and rhetoric.
With this thesis and background, I could travel more for work.
I may have a bigger job market or greater opportunities (education included).
I would be challenged a lot.
I would learn something.
I would more easily be able to become part of the academia in a particular field.
I could publish my works/findings/research and become more well known/have even more opportunities come my way.
I could eventually (or do this with my thesis) link the impact linguistics/language has on writing whether it is creative or not, and how these ties influence authors/readers/researchers on multiple levels.
Non-Creative Cons:
I would be challenged a LOT.
I might get burned out.
I may not like it as much as I thought.
Dr. Storm would probably be my committee chair for my thesis defense. (EEP!)
What do you think?
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
#55--End of the Semester Giddyness
First things first--the semester is done! I posted grades today for my students and was able to view my own grades as well.
We moved recently out of a house and a bad situation. We are renting our own place now and are much happier. While the drama is not completely done and packed away, it has reduced to almost nothing. The only thing left for us to do is to clean up our old place, but that will likely be difficult given that our former roommate still lives there. Hopefully we will be able to go over and clean without running into him or even having to speak to him really. BLAH!
I got a puppy for my birthday and his name is Alfonz. We call him Fonz or Fonzie. He is a mini-schnauzer that we got from my mom. He's pretty mellow for the most part, loves to play and loves to cuddle. His favorite things are chewing on rawhides and chasing bugs.
This holiday season has been rough on everyone. We chose to move at a time that was not the best for us financially, but we were able to come out in the green for this month anyway. This will make next month feel pretty awesome, since we won't have to pay extra fees associated with moving.
As break has officially begun, I am quite excited to be able to do a whole lot of nothing for a day or two, then get back into the swing of writing or I might read a book for fun--not for a class. Strange I know.
Today we did some Christmas shopping and I had more fun doing it than I thought/remembered. I am looking forward to Christmas this year, even though money has been tight. Maybe the government will get its stuff sorted out and then the whole nation will be better off. But that may never happen since this nation as a whole is so money-oriented. At the same time, the whole world is tripped out on money, so that complicates things even further.
Ah, oh well. At the moment, these are things I have no way of fixing, and so rather than stress myself out about them, I will set them aside (not ignore them, because that doesn't solve anything) for now and return to them later when some of my brain power has been returned.
In the meantime, I am trying to think of what to do for my thesis. I really have no idea. I wanted originally to do something with the elements of resistance and submission of victims in vampire fiction, but that seems awfully broad and potentially overdone. Then I thought of doing something regarding the use of laughter as a literary tool, specifically maniacal laughter. However, this topic may be too difficult to research. Then I thought of something regarding linguistics or language acquisition. Those are definitely fields that I could easily become a part of, and likely have a career set out before me for the rest of my life. With additional studies I am sure that it would be a fulfilling career too. However, none of this means that I have given up on my dream of writing creative fiction and being a published author. Teaching is also a viable career option, and not out of the question. However, if I do teach, I would like to teach an upper level kind of class in a collegiate or university setting. While community colleges are great, they are not exactly a place I dream of teaching at.
While I feel like I have a lot more to say since the last time I posted, most of it is stuff that has either been resolved or no longer matters that much.
Ciao for now.
We moved recently out of a house and a bad situation. We are renting our own place now and are much happier. While the drama is not completely done and packed away, it has reduced to almost nothing. The only thing left for us to do is to clean up our old place, but that will likely be difficult given that our former roommate still lives there. Hopefully we will be able to go over and clean without running into him or even having to speak to him really. BLAH!
I got a puppy for my birthday and his name is Alfonz. We call him Fonz or Fonzie. He is a mini-schnauzer that we got from my mom. He's pretty mellow for the most part, loves to play and loves to cuddle. His favorite things are chewing on rawhides and chasing bugs.
This holiday season has been rough on everyone. We chose to move at a time that was not the best for us financially, but we were able to come out in the green for this month anyway. This will make next month feel pretty awesome, since we won't have to pay extra fees associated with moving.
As break has officially begun, I am quite excited to be able to do a whole lot of nothing for a day or two, then get back into the swing of writing or I might read a book for fun--not for a class. Strange I know.
Today we did some Christmas shopping and I had more fun doing it than I thought/remembered. I am looking forward to Christmas this year, even though money has been tight. Maybe the government will get its stuff sorted out and then the whole nation will be better off. But that may never happen since this nation as a whole is so money-oriented. At the same time, the whole world is tripped out on money, so that complicates things even further.
Ah, oh well. At the moment, these are things I have no way of fixing, and so rather than stress myself out about them, I will set them aside (not ignore them, because that doesn't solve anything) for now and return to them later when some of my brain power has been returned.
In the meantime, I am trying to think of what to do for my thesis. I really have no idea. I wanted originally to do something with the elements of resistance and submission of victims in vampire fiction, but that seems awfully broad and potentially overdone. Then I thought of doing something regarding the use of laughter as a literary tool, specifically maniacal laughter. However, this topic may be too difficult to research. Then I thought of something regarding linguistics or language acquisition. Those are definitely fields that I could easily become a part of, and likely have a career set out before me for the rest of my life. With additional studies I am sure that it would be a fulfilling career too. However, none of this means that I have given up on my dream of writing creative fiction and being a published author. Teaching is also a viable career option, and not out of the question. However, if I do teach, I would like to teach an upper level kind of class in a collegiate or university setting. While community colleges are great, they are not exactly a place I dream of teaching at.
While I feel like I have a lot more to say since the last time I posted, most of it is stuff that has either been resolved or no longer matters that much.
Ciao for now.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
#54--A More In-Depth Study of the Fall Semester
When I started school this semester, I was pretty nervous about teaching. I didn't know if I would be any good, or if I would really even like it at all. As it turns out I enjoy teaching quite a lot, and after the mid-term evaluations, I think I'm doing pretty well.
I've met some cool people and been able to become more acquainted with others that I knew before. Kari is a fun character, frequently singing quietly (and quite well!). Kat and Josh are siblings that have entirely too much fun together for siblings, and are quite the tricky duo. Eric I knew from undergrad, and of course Lindsey as well. Overall it is a fun time.
As GTAs, we have a lot of fun. I have learned how to play the cauldron game. I am not much good at the game, however, but it is still great stress relief. We also had our office remodeled lately, and now that the renovations are finished, we are all moved back in. What was just an office for English GTAs is now an office for the English and History GTAs. The room is quite broken up, but seems more or less okay. Since the remodel, the center of the room has a sort of island of five desks and the printer area. As a result, one could run a circle around the island if they wished.
Let me insert a small story here. We moved the mini-fridge and the printer from Roosevelt back to Plumb yesterday, and we used a small rectangular cart (really just a plank of wood with four wheels screwed to it) to move the items over. The fridge was quite a challenge to get to the other building, but I think the printer went easier. The cart was in the new office, waiting to be returned to it's owner. Becca decided to lay on her back on the cart, just to be silly. I saw this as an opportunity for her and I to have a lovely adventure. So she pulled her knees up to her chest and I pushed on the bottom of her sneakers. We made one full tour of the room, and I'm sure we were quite bemusing to one of the history GTAs, Nigel. Becca was laughing so hard that she couldn't breathe very well, so it took her a little while to recover once we had reached back to the finish line. Lindsey thought we were crazy. Which is to be suspected. I'm sure I've been crazy for a long time now.
The actual teaching aspect is an adventure all in itself. On the first day I was quite nervous. I had no idea what my students would look like, even though I knew their names from the list I have on my teacher page. Every now and again I still get nervous about teaching, for no apparent reason. Mostly, it is a fun time, and I enjoy helping them learn how to do new things, or practice what they already know. I didn't think I would like teaching as much as I do, but it is pretty awesome.
On a very different note: My ex-friend has been making an appearance in my life, mostly in passing-by, which shouldn't bother me but it does. It isn't so much that she goes to school here still, or that she's around, but what bothers me is that she sees me, and pretends like everything is fine, like nothing ever happened. I could claim, "O! The injustice!" but it would be to no point. I don't care that she's chosen to make the decisions she has. I don't care if she's miserable for the rest of her life. The only thing that gets me is that she smacked me in the face, stabbed me in the back, and 1. I don't know why she chose to do that and 2. when she sees/speaks to me, she acts like there is nothing wrong. I don't think I can ever be her friend again, and I don't know that I want to be her friend, especially after the way she has treated me. If she ever decides to come crawling back to me, she can forget it. I'll have nothing to do with her. That is all I have to say on the subject.
Back to happier thoughts: My cousin is getting married this weekend, which is very nice. I would go except that I'll have a lot of work to do this weekend in terms of catching up on homework, making lesson plans, and celebrating my one-year anniversary on Sunday with Alex. (I mentioned in my last post that we'll be going to Santa Fe for the *real* celebration over fall break, and I will reiterate that I am very excited about this trip). I am disappointed that I will not be able to go to the wedding and remain productive over the weekend. Since I would have to leave tomorrow afternoon and wouldn't come back until Sunday, I would really be killing most of my weekend that way.
Coming up is Halloween, and my birthday just before. In November we're having a piano burning, which will be a ghastly but wonderful event all at the same time. I'm really looking forward to that, even though some folks will be sad at the death of the piano.
Because it is the fall season and the leaves are turning, the witchy part of me wants out, and so that means I need to fix my dress. It is a dress I got at the Renaissance Festival last year. The strap came undone where it attaches to the main part of the dress. However, I feel it is an easy fix (I only need to find my needle stash and my black thread). I am anxious to wear it. I feel I need to find a good amount of accessories to wear with it, and I'll go as a witch again for Halloween this year. I can't remember the last time I was a witch for Halloween, but I do know it has been a long time since I even dressed up.
But for now, I have to go, as Alex's homemade pizza is finished and I am hungry enough to eat a medium sized mammal.
I've met some cool people and been able to become more acquainted with others that I knew before. Kari is a fun character, frequently singing quietly (and quite well!). Kat and Josh are siblings that have entirely too much fun together for siblings, and are quite the tricky duo. Eric I knew from undergrad, and of course Lindsey as well. Overall it is a fun time.
As GTAs, we have a lot of fun. I have learned how to play the cauldron game. I am not much good at the game, however, but it is still great stress relief. We also had our office remodeled lately, and now that the renovations are finished, we are all moved back in. What was just an office for English GTAs is now an office for the English and History GTAs. The room is quite broken up, but seems more or less okay. Since the remodel, the center of the room has a sort of island of five desks and the printer area. As a result, one could run a circle around the island if they wished.
Let me insert a small story here. We moved the mini-fridge and the printer from Roosevelt back to Plumb yesterday, and we used a small rectangular cart (really just a plank of wood with four wheels screwed to it) to move the items over. The fridge was quite a challenge to get to the other building, but I think the printer went easier. The cart was in the new office, waiting to be returned to it's owner. Becca decided to lay on her back on the cart, just to be silly. I saw this as an opportunity for her and I to have a lovely adventure. So she pulled her knees up to her chest and I pushed on the bottom of her sneakers. We made one full tour of the room, and I'm sure we were quite bemusing to one of the history GTAs, Nigel. Becca was laughing so hard that she couldn't breathe very well, so it took her a little while to recover once we had reached back to the finish line. Lindsey thought we were crazy. Which is to be suspected. I'm sure I've been crazy for a long time now.
The actual teaching aspect is an adventure all in itself. On the first day I was quite nervous. I had no idea what my students would look like, even though I knew their names from the list I have on my teacher page. Every now and again I still get nervous about teaching, for no apparent reason. Mostly, it is a fun time, and I enjoy helping them learn how to do new things, or practice what they already know. I didn't think I would like teaching as much as I do, but it is pretty awesome.
On a very different note: My ex-friend has been making an appearance in my life, mostly in passing-by, which shouldn't bother me but it does. It isn't so much that she goes to school here still, or that she's around, but what bothers me is that she sees me, and pretends like everything is fine, like nothing ever happened. I could claim, "O! The injustice!" but it would be to no point. I don't care that she's chosen to make the decisions she has. I don't care if she's miserable for the rest of her life. The only thing that gets me is that she smacked me in the face, stabbed me in the back, and 1. I don't know why she chose to do that and 2. when she sees/speaks to me, she acts like there is nothing wrong. I don't think I can ever be her friend again, and I don't know that I want to be her friend, especially after the way she has treated me. If she ever decides to come crawling back to me, she can forget it. I'll have nothing to do with her. That is all I have to say on the subject.
Back to happier thoughts: My cousin is getting married this weekend, which is very nice. I would go except that I'll have a lot of work to do this weekend in terms of catching up on homework, making lesson plans, and celebrating my one-year anniversary on Sunday with Alex. (I mentioned in my last post that we'll be going to Santa Fe for the *real* celebration over fall break, and I will reiterate that I am very excited about this trip). I am disappointed that I will not be able to go to the wedding and remain productive over the weekend. Since I would have to leave tomorrow afternoon and wouldn't come back until Sunday, I would really be killing most of my weekend that way.
Coming up is Halloween, and my birthday just before. In November we're having a piano burning, which will be a ghastly but wonderful event all at the same time. I'm really looking forward to that, even though some folks will be sad at the death of the piano.
Because it is the fall season and the leaves are turning, the witchy part of me wants out, and so that means I need to fix my dress. It is a dress I got at the Renaissance Festival last year. The strap came undone where it attaches to the main part of the dress. However, I feel it is an easy fix (I only need to find my needle stash and my black thread). I am anxious to wear it. I feel I need to find a good amount of accessories to wear with it, and I'll go as a witch again for Halloween this year. I can't remember the last time I was a witch for Halloween, but I do know it has been a long time since I even dressed up.
But for now, I have to go, as Alex's homemade pizza is finished and I am hungry enough to eat a medium sized mammal.
#53--Two Months Later, Three Days To Go
Well a lot has happened since July and my last post. Some things I was on top of then have fallen out of my higher priority list (KAFE being one of those, unfortunately).
As far as the lunch thing went from before, it was alright. Outside of that, the person has received quite an injury due to some negligence on the boss's part, and is laid up until who knows when. Maybe for quite a long time. There is nothing I can do about all that.
School has been quite an adventure so far... Between teaching and taking classes, there is a lot to be learned. I just had my mid-term evals the other day, and 99.9% of comments were positive reflections of my class times and efforts therein. I found this to be quite encouraging.
In three days it will have been a year since the wedding, and I am excited to achieve that milestone. We are going to Santa Fe next week to celebrate (during fall break). That trip should be quite lovely as well, since my bro-in-law says the weather down that way is beautiful.
That's as much of an update as I can give right now, since I need to run to the store for pizza toppings. That's right--homemade pizza by Alex. :-D It is always quite tasty.
Ciao!
As far as the lunch thing went from before, it was alright. Outside of that, the person has received quite an injury due to some negligence on the boss's part, and is laid up until who knows when. Maybe for quite a long time. There is nothing I can do about all that.
School has been quite an adventure so far... Between teaching and taking classes, there is a lot to be learned. I just had my mid-term evals the other day, and 99.9% of comments were positive reflections of my class times and efforts therein. I found this to be quite encouraging.
In three days it will have been a year since the wedding, and I am excited to achieve that milestone. We are going to Santa Fe next week to celebrate (during fall break). That trip should be quite lovely as well, since my bro-in-law says the weather down that way is beautiful.
That's as much of an update as I can give right now, since I need to run to the store for pizza toppings. That's right--homemade pizza by Alex. :-D It is always quite tasty.
Ciao!
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