Good morning!
So, back at work today!
On Tuesday, my Marketing group told me that they'd be meeting at noon on Wednesday (when I had repeatedly told them I couldn't meet then because I had work - and one of them knows that because she comes to the library then). Then they said they would have another meeting Friday at 8pm at The Royal Dynasty in Webster, NY - half an hour away. I don't have a car, this is a Chinese buffet (why are we meeting at a restaurant?? especially one you have to pay to enter??), and on a FRIDAY NIGHT???!!!!
And the worst part is I probably won't be able to eat anything there....
I told them I'd have to talk with my bosses and my friends for a night off and a ride. Technically I don't work then, but that's normally when I do office stuff for my other job. Meh, it will all work itself out.
Tuesday night, I worked my butt off for this Honors COS trip that's in the works - and at around 11pm, I decided I needed to sleep. I hadn't gotten restful sleep the past few days, so I was desperate. Like, popping pills desperate.
So I took a sleeping pill.
Bad idea.
Here's a tip - if you've never taken sleeping medication and haven't taken any other medicine for months, you probably shouldn't pop a pill and expect to wake up functional at 6am. In fact, I was still woozy by noon, and that made class and work a bit more obnoxious than usual. I had to constantly snap a rubber band against my wrist to keep me awake.
I didn't get much done. But I feel very good today.
I spent hours working in the afternoon to make up for the stuff I didn't do in the morning. Then I decided to take the evening off - as in crawl into bed after eating frozen veggie potstickers. I did answer some emails and stuff - but it was small things.
So, now I am REALLY behind, and my main focus right now is to study for my Spec ID test today - that's the one that I made a 51 and a 56% in earlier. We have this test today, two presentations, and a take-home final left. So I am gonna do that test today and work on the material for the first presentation - on Tuesday.
And I have to do my Marketing stuff too... Hopefully my teammates will email me what they've done so I know what I need to do. I've asked them for the info they've done, but I haven't heard anything from them yet.
Why does this whole post sound like homework whining?
Hmm... let's see...
Nah, I don't have anything else to say....
Have a great day! And make sure you are awake during your classes!!!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
January 25, 2011 8:50 AM
Good morning everyone!
Wednesday, I called my little brother and talked to him on the phone for his birthday. He got a cell phone - his very first! I know that most people have cellphones by the time they are seventeen, but in our family, it's something you get when you are legally allowed to drive. Otherwise, it's expected that you will be around a friend or have some change for a pay phone.
I held a meeting that night to teach Honors students about the service requirement they have to fulfill to remain in the program (and keep getting that scholarship). Not many students showed, and those who did were more interested in the pizza than the information - but I got paid for it and I can tell them later that they had their chance to find out about it if they get removed from the program.
On Thursday, I went to work and grilled my co-workers about ways to stay awake in class - recently, I haven't been able to keep my eyes open during two of my four classes - and those just happen to be the ones that I'm not doing so well in... One of them suggested drinking cold water, and another said to wear a rubber band around my wrist and to snap it against my skin if I feel myself really, really drifting off.
Both ideas worked, though Jersey was a bit worried about the red marks on my wrist - eventually they faded, but I'll probably get some more today. I got back a decent score in my Marketing class (the one that the professor graded me low in because I don't talk in class), but in my Spec ID of Organic Compounds class, I got two pretty bad grades back - one of which was dropped (fortunately). But this still means I will have a rough time getting my grades up in both of these classes.
I did attempt to 'amp up' my participation in the Marketing class - the professor makes a lot of 'tech gadget' comments, relating something to the iPhone or the Jawbone headset. I sorta understand the stuff, but I don't know what to say when he starts talking about that sort of thing. And if someone else asks what a certain product is - like the Jawbone - he simply responds with "Oh, it's a new Bluetooth" and returns to his lecture. I attempted to talk twice - once when he was talking about tax rates in different states (yay, I knew something!) and once when he said something I didn't understand (I don't think he heard me because he never answered my question - that, or he was just ignoring me).
I emailed him to ask for a one-on-one meeting (giving a suggested date and time), and he told me he would email me back about it. He never did. I emailed the night before we were supposed to meet again. I checked my email all day long, and finally went to sit in the coffee shop where we were supposed to meet. Halfway through that hour, I got an email saying he was in a meeting and wouldn't be able to come. It was sent from his iPhone.
I responded with a list off all the times/days I would be free for the next week.
He hasn't gotten back to me yet.
On Thursday, I went out to dinner with Mike, Laura, and Nancie! Yup, the Korean restaurant! How on earth did you know?! We had a great time, and I really enjoyed seeing the waiter's face when Nancie ordered a million dollars and a pony.
On Friday, I did the aforementioned waiting and went to more meetings. In the evening, I dressed up in my PJs and went to the Honors Quarterly Dinner - for 'breakfast for dinner'! And, for the FIRST TIME since I have been at RIT, they prepared a vegan entree - oatmeal! No more will I have to sit and watch all my friends eat! Though they did take their sweet time doing it....
Can't complain too much - it was paid for by the Honors Program.
After dinner, I went over to the guys' place to hang out before heading to Urug's for a game night/party. I had a decent time, and Matt and Jersey walked me home afterward. When I got home, Margie was watching the old Batman Returns movie, and I sat around with her for a bit before heading off to bed.
Saturday, we had made plans to get a big group to go the the Public Market with us - but everyone canceled except for Tony and me. So we went together, and ended up not buying anything except breakfast. It was a bit too cold to enjoy ourselves too much, but the people at the Polish place we go to were happy that we were there (and tipping them).
Saturday evening, I went over to the guys' place again, and I ate some of the pie that Matt had baked during the day. We watched the Wedding Singer, and then I went home. Yeah, pretty uninteresting, but oh well!
Sunday, I went to church and then worked on my take-home Fin. Acc. exam - which was long and dull, but I got it all done. I then finished up my homework for that class too - and decided that I'd spend the rest of the day/night watching TV and avoiding anything else I had to do. Which seemed like a great idea at the time - and it probably was (though I may have a mental break-down tomorrow).
Monday, I went to my one class, two meetings, and then decided that I did have some homework that needed to be done - and I did it! I made myself food instead of eating toast for dinner, and I cleaned my room too! Like a good little girl! (But I still need to do laundry...)
Today (Tuesday) is off to an OK start - I woke up sore and with a terrible headache - which sorta disappated with my shower. Both of my roommates were awake and relatively incoherent, and I think Annie was very confused as to why I left the apartment before 7am. I don't think she's even aware that I have get up, shower, eat, and leave before 7am whenever I have work. I don't even think she knows that I work.
I've been planning my classes for next quarter - and it looks like I'm going to try to take Stellar Astronomy (at a friend's request), Buyer Behavior, Environmental Chemistry, Nutrition: Alternative Medicine, and either Wines of the World or Beers of the World (probably Wines). A few of my friends were trying to talk me into taking both Beers and Wines and not taking Environmental Chem - but I'm a chem major and probably should take a chem-related class in my last quarter here at RIT.
Besides, taking two alcohol-related hospitality classes in my last quarter makes me look like a douche with senior-itis. Can't say that's how I want my employers to view me... Oh, and you don't have to be drinking age for these classes; the servings are tiny and you are supposed to swish it around in your mouth before spitting it out - perfectly legal.
Tomorrow is gonna be a bit of a hell day, so I'll probably get up ~5:30am again to get a head start and a good breakfast. Lord knows I'll need it.
And I didn't pack a lunch and packed my camera accidentally instead of my wallet. I'm sorta hoping one of my friends will drop by and buy me a bagel before I get off work and go to class. Otherwise, there will be five times the amount of red marks on my arm than last week, and they may actually leave bruises today. (I get sleepy when my body is running low on food.)
Live long and prosper! (no, I have never watched Star Trek, but it's a good saying!)
Wednesday, I called my little brother and talked to him on the phone for his birthday. He got a cell phone - his very first! I know that most people have cellphones by the time they are seventeen, but in our family, it's something you get when you are legally allowed to drive. Otherwise, it's expected that you will be around a friend or have some change for a pay phone.
I held a meeting that night to teach Honors students about the service requirement they have to fulfill to remain in the program (and keep getting that scholarship). Not many students showed, and those who did were more interested in the pizza than the information - but I got paid for it and I can tell them later that they had their chance to find out about it if they get removed from the program.
On Thursday, I went to work and grilled my co-workers about ways to stay awake in class - recently, I haven't been able to keep my eyes open during two of my four classes - and those just happen to be the ones that I'm not doing so well in... One of them suggested drinking cold water, and another said to wear a rubber band around my wrist and to snap it against my skin if I feel myself really, really drifting off.
Both ideas worked, though Jersey was a bit worried about the red marks on my wrist - eventually they faded, but I'll probably get some more today. I got back a decent score in my Marketing class (the one that the professor graded me low in because I don't talk in class), but in my Spec ID of Organic Compounds class, I got two pretty bad grades back - one of which was dropped (fortunately). But this still means I will have a rough time getting my grades up in both of these classes.
I did attempt to 'amp up' my participation in the Marketing class - the professor makes a lot of 'tech gadget' comments, relating something to the iPhone or the Jawbone headset. I sorta understand the stuff, but I don't know what to say when he starts talking about that sort of thing. And if someone else asks what a certain product is - like the Jawbone - he simply responds with "Oh, it's a new Bluetooth" and returns to his lecture. I attempted to talk twice - once when he was talking about tax rates in different states (yay, I knew something!) and once when he said something I didn't understand (I don't think he heard me because he never answered my question - that, or he was just ignoring me).
I emailed him to ask for a one-on-one meeting (giving a suggested date and time), and he told me he would email me back about it. He never did. I emailed the night before we were supposed to meet again. I checked my email all day long, and finally went to sit in the coffee shop where we were supposed to meet. Halfway through that hour, I got an email saying he was in a meeting and wouldn't be able to come. It was sent from his iPhone.
I responded with a list off all the times/days I would be free for the next week.
He hasn't gotten back to me yet.
On Thursday, I went out to dinner with Mike, Laura, and Nancie! Yup, the Korean restaurant! How on earth did you know?! We had a great time, and I really enjoyed seeing the waiter's face when Nancie ordered a million dollars and a pony.
On Friday, I did the aforementioned waiting and went to more meetings. In the evening, I dressed up in my PJs and went to the Honors Quarterly Dinner - for 'breakfast for dinner'! And, for the FIRST TIME since I have been at RIT, they prepared a vegan entree - oatmeal! No more will I have to sit and watch all my friends eat! Though they did take their sweet time doing it....
Can't complain too much - it was paid for by the Honors Program.
After dinner, I went over to the guys' place to hang out before heading to Urug's for a game night/party. I had a decent time, and Matt and Jersey walked me home afterward. When I got home, Margie was watching the old Batman Returns movie, and I sat around with her for a bit before heading off to bed.
Saturday, we had made plans to get a big group to go the the Public Market with us - but everyone canceled except for Tony and me. So we went together, and ended up not buying anything except breakfast. It was a bit too cold to enjoy ourselves too much, but the people at the Polish place we go to were happy that we were there (and tipping them).
Saturday evening, I went over to the guys' place again, and I ate some of the pie that Matt had baked during the day. We watched the Wedding Singer, and then I went home. Yeah, pretty uninteresting, but oh well!
Sunday, I went to church and then worked on my take-home Fin. Acc. exam - which was long and dull, but I got it all done. I then finished up my homework for that class too - and decided that I'd spend the rest of the day/night watching TV and avoiding anything else I had to do. Which seemed like a great idea at the time - and it probably was (though I may have a mental break-down tomorrow).
Monday, I went to my one class, two meetings, and then decided that I did have some homework that needed to be done - and I did it! I made myself food instead of eating toast for dinner, and I cleaned my room too! Like a good little girl! (But I still need to do laundry...)
Today (Tuesday) is off to an OK start - I woke up sore and with a terrible headache - which sorta disappated with my shower. Both of my roommates were awake and relatively incoherent, and I think Annie was very confused as to why I left the apartment before 7am. I don't think she's even aware that I have get up, shower, eat, and leave before 7am whenever I have work. I don't even think she knows that I work.
I've been planning my classes for next quarter - and it looks like I'm going to try to take Stellar Astronomy (at a friend's request), Buyer Behavior, Environmental Chemistry, Nutrition: Alternative Medicine, and either Wines of the World or Beers of the World (probably Wines). A few of my friends were trying to talk me into taking both Beers and Wines and not taking Environmental Chem - but I'm a chem major and probably should take a chem-related class in my last quarter here at RIT.
Besides, taking two alcohol-related hospitality classes in my last quarter makes me look like a douche with senior-itis. Can't say that's how I want my employers to view me... Oh, and you don't have to be drinking age for these classes; the servings are tiny and you are supposed to swish it around in your mouth before spitting it out - perfectly legal.
Tomorrow is gonna be a bit of a hell day, so I'll probably get up ~5:30am again to get a head start and a good breakfast. Lord knows I'll need it.
And I didn't pack a lunch and packed my camera accidentally instead of my wallet. I'm sorta hoping one of my friends will drop by and buy me a bagel before I get off work and go to class. Otherwise, there will be five times the amount of red marks on my arm than last week, and they may actually leave bruises today. (I get sleepy when my body is running low on food.)
Live long and prosper! (no, I have never watched Star Trek, but it's a good saying!)
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
January 19, 2011 9:49 AM
OK, so my roomies just woke up, and after hearing a string of curse words from both of them (in regards to each other), I made myself some mint tea.
They both tried to get me involved (again), and I didn't say a thing. Hopefully, they won't restart the argument next time they see each other. Or for the rest of the year.
*Sigh*
It's a little twisted that I actually like them when they are like this.
And now Annie is getting on me about Margie, and I should probably turn off my laptop before it dies on me (aka it just warned me that I've got 10 minutes before it bites the dust).
I'm definitely skipping my 10 AM in favor of some peace and quiet. If you need me, I'll be in my room.
If you want some coupons, I've got some clippings and stuff.
They both tried to get me involved (again), and I didn't say a thing. Hopefully, they won't restart the argument next time they see each other. Or for the rest of the year.
*Sigh*
It's a little twisted that I actually like them when they are like this.
And now Annie is getting on me about Margie, and I should probably turn off my laptop before it dies on me (aka it just warned me that I've got 10 minutes before it bites the dust).
I'm definitely skipping my 10 AM in favor of some peace and quiet. If you need me, I'll be in my room.
If you want some coupons, I've got some clippings and stuff.
January 19, 2011 8:37 AM
Last post was January 12th, so I'm not falling too far behind! Yay!
Happy Birthday, little brother!!! I didn't get you anything this year (oops!), but hopefully you can live without another board game, card game, cookbook, or gift card (which are probably the things I would have gotten you anyways). Maybe I'll send you a card in the mail...
Right now I am uploading a ton of pictures to my computer from the holidays - and maybe I'll post a thing or two on this blog! I mean, I don't quite understand what to do, but it could be fun to figure out.
Last Wednesday (12th), there were a few meetings I had to go to (boo) and a lot of homework to catch up on. I seem to be spending the weekends goofing off and the evenings of the week doing everything I can to catch up (and then goofing off).
I don't remember much about Thursday, so it couldn't have been bad or anything. Same with Friday except for the evening. Jersey was shaving his girlfriend's head, then shaved mine and I shaved his. Then I passed out on their couch covered in little bits of hair. When we awoke, I went to shower (since I felt gross) and wore Tony's clothes for the rest of the day - which was spent at the Strong Museum of Play (a ton of fun - you should totally go!).
I got mad at a little kid in the butterfly exhibit because he was hurting them, and afterwards I felt like such a vegan hippy (in baggy clothes arguing about how the animals had feelings) that I wanted to hide under a rock! It was really embarrassing to think that if I had run across myself then, I would have been weirded out (to say the least)! But my friends were nice and understanding.
Oh, and on Friday night I ordered 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, and a bowl of soup from a Chinese place and still haven't paid Jersey back the $30 I owe him. Hmm.... maybe I should get to that....
Sunday I went to church like a good little girl and then did nothing the rest of the day except for an excursion to Wegmans for groceries and then lying around like a tool at the guys' place.
Monday I took a Biochemistry exam (I got a 95) and decided that I wasn't going to do my homework anyways - but to cover up my guilt, I cleaned the kitchen, did my laundry, and picked up the floor.
Tuesday I had forgotten that I had a Marketing quiz, so it didn't go as great as it would have if I had had ten minutes to study. Then I had two Spec ID tests - H NMR and C13 NMR - which went pretty well except for a problem on the proton NMR test (which I couldn't remember at all). I spent some time with Urug and Jersey having tea before heading home to work on my Financial Accounting homework.
I managed to get a problem and a little bit done before my Fin Acc class started, and he didn't collect the homework because he knew that no one had done it. (Honestly, each problem says 'expected time to finish - 90 mins', and we had four chapters worth due - come on!) He asked the class if we had any questions and who had looked at the study guide (only me and some other kid). So then he went over the study guide in like 5 minutes and handed out our take-home exams and the study guide answer key. Then we went through the exams and realized that it was the study guide with different numbers, and everyone left.
I didn't do any homework and stayed up until 12:30 AM. I set my alarm for 6:30 AM so I could make myself some pancakes and store the leftovers in the fridge for tomorrow morning.
Instead of making pancakes, I made an "East meets West" kinda breakfast:
- scrambled tofu with mushrooms, garlic, onions, cayenne, and sage
- slice of 'artificial butter' toast
- bowl of miso soup with wakame
- cup of lemongrass tea
It took half an hour to make, but I was very pleased with the results. Normally, I just have the soup and the tea before running out the door, so my stomach was un-used to the idea of solid food in the morning. Well, that's a lie - occasionally I have an apple or an orange. But so much food was good, very good.
I have Biochemistry at 10 AM (why on earth did I think I'd have to get up at 6:30 AM when my first class is at 10 AM??!!), and I'm just passing the time peacefully avoiding my homework. I don't want to go to class today because our regular professor won't be there and the sub is a prof I really can't stand. So I think I might skip and just go into work at 11 AM. Maybe catch up on a few blogs that I'm following and upload some pictures onto Facebook...
Take care today, and keep an eye out for shifty strangers!
mmmmm.... breakfast.....
Happy Birthday, little brother!!! I didn't get you anything this year (oops!), but hopefully you can live without another board game, card game, cookbook, or gift card (which are probably the things I would have gotten you anyways). Maybe I'll send you a card in the mail...
Right now I am uploading a ton of pictures to my computer from the holidays - and maybe I'll post a thing or two on this blog! I mean, I don't quite understand what to do, but it could be fun to figure out.
Last Wednesday (12th), there were a few meetings I had to go to (boo) and a lot of homework to catch up on. I seem to be spending the weekends goofing off and the evenings of the week doing everything I can to catch up (and then goofing off).
I don't remember much about Thursday, so it couldn't have been bad or anything. Same with Friday except for the evening. Jersey was shaving his girlfriend's head, then shaved mine and I shaved his. Then I passed out on their couch covered in little bits of hair. When we awoke, I went to shower (since I felt gross) and wore Tony's clothes for the rest of the day - which was spent at the Strong Museum of Play (a ton of fun - you should totally go!).
I got mad at a little kid in the butterfly exhibit because he was hurting them, and afterwards I felt like such a vegan hippy (in baggy clothes arguing about how the animals had feelings) that I wanted to hide under a rock! It was really embarrassing to think that if I had run across myself then, I would have been weirded out (to say the least)! But my friends were nice and understanding.
Oh, and on Friday night I ordered 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, and a bowl of soup from a Chinese place and still haven't paid Jersey back the $30 I owe him. Hmm.... maybe I should get to that....
Sunday I went to church like a good little girl and then did nothing the rest of the day except for an excursion to Wegmans for groceries and then lying around like a tool at the guys' place.
Monday I took a Biochemistry exam (I got a 95) and decided that I wasn't going to do my homework anyways - but to cover up my guilt, I cleaned the kitchen, did my laundry, and picked up the floor.
Tuesday I had forgotten that I had a Marketing quiz, so it didn't go as great as it would have if I had had ten minutes to study. Then I had two Spec ID tests - H NMR and C13 NMR - which went pretty well except for a problem on the proton NMR test (which I couldn't remember at all). I spent some time with Urug and Jersey having tea before heading home to work on my Financial Accounting homework.
I managed to get a problem and a little bit done before my Fin Acc class started, and he didn't collect the homework because he knew that no one had done it. (Honestly, each problem says 'expected time to finish - 90 mins', and we had four chapters worth due - come on!) He asked the class if we had any questions and who had looked at the study guide (only me and some other kid). So then he went over the study guide in like 5 minutes and handed out our take-home exams and the study guide answer key. Then we went through the exams and realized that it was the study guide with different numbers, and everyone left.
I didn't do any homework and stayed up until 12:30 AM. I set my alarm for 6:30 AM so I could make myself some pancakes and store the leftovers in the fridge for tomorrow morning.
Instead of making pancakes, I made an "East meets West" kinda breakfast:
- scrambled tofu with mushrooms, garlic, onions, cayenne, and sage
- slice of 'artificial butter' toast
- bowl of miso soup with wakame
- cup of lemongrass tea
It took half an hour to make, but I was very pleased with the results. Normally, I just have the soup and the tea before running out the door, so my stomach was un-used to the idea of solid food in the morning. Well, that's a lie - occasionally I have an apple or an orange. But so much food was good, very good.
I have Biochemistry at 10 AM (why on earth did I think I'd have to get up at 6:30 AM when my first class is at 10 AM??!!), and I'm just passing the time peacefully avoiding my homework. I don't want to go to class today because our regular professor won't be there and the sub is a prof I really can't stand. So I think I might skip and just go into work at 11 AM. Maybe catch up on a few blogs that I'm following and upload some pictures onto Facebook...
Take care today, and keep an eye out for shifty strangers!
mmmmm.... breakfast.....
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
January 12, 2011 5:35 PM
Good afternoon!
So, I'm attempting to catch up again - the last post was written on Tuesday December 28th...
Since then, I had New Years - which was celebrated with chocolate almond milk with added peppermint extract and really long flights across the US back to Rochester. My marketing group made me want to kill them again (they switched our project from diesel to Jett Heated Vests and half of the project was due today), and I had to run an event (which had a last minute room change that the woman sending it to me accidentally sent to herself instead which lead to mass panic and confusion).
But the past couple days have been calmer - so those are the ones that I will touch on now!
On Friday, our merry little band went to the Korean restaurant for some grub - and they have new employees! We didn't see 'our waiter', so we called him. Turns out he has the night off but is meeting a few friends there anyways. When he arrived, he came and sat at our table chatting for a bit before heading off to his own Friday night plans. We really enjoyed that.
I ended up crashing on the guys' couch on Friday night which made our trip to the Public Market much easier to coordinate! That's right! We're back in action! We had a great time - I ate some vegan potato pancakes and bought two radishes and drew on their 'faces'.
Sunday I went to church! Oh wow! That's right, I went on January 2 too! Twice in a row! Excellent way to start off the New Year! I got a few odd remarks and some questions, but I told them that I had to graduate this year and had fallen behind in a few classes (true).
Sunday evening, we got together a group of 10 people to go to Wok With You - but my mouth had blisters again! So I didn't eat anything too spicy :( but I still had a great time.
I've got a meeting in half an hour-ish, but it's across campus and I'm sort of running the thing... so maybe I should cut this short (even though it is really short as is).
Love you guys so much, and Happy New Year!!!
So, I'm attempting to catch up again - the last post was written on Tuesday December 28th...
Since then, I had New Years - which was celebrated with chocolate almond milk with added peppermint extract and really long flights across the US back to Rochester. My marketing group made me want to kill them again (they switched our project from diesel to Jett Heated Vests and half of the project was due today), and I had to run an event (which had a last minute room change that the woman sending it to me accidentally sent to herself instead which lead to mass panic and confusion).
But the past couple days have been calmer - so those are the ones that I will touch on now!
On Friday, our merry little band went to the Korean restaurant for some grub - and they have new employees! We didn't see 'our waiter', so we called him. Turns out he has the night off but is meeting a few friends there anyways. When he arrived, he came and sat at our table chatting for a bit before heading off to his own Friday night plans. We really enjoyed that.
I ended up crashing on the guys' couch on Friday night which made our trip to the Public Market much easier to coordinate! That's right! We're back in action! We had a great time - I ate some vegan potato pancakes and bought two radishes and drew on their 'faces'.
Sunday I went to church! Oh wow! That's right, I went on January 2 too! Twice in a row! Excellent way to start off the New Year! I got a few odd remarks and some questions, but I told them that I had to graduate this year and had fallen behind in a few classes (true).
Sunday evening, we got together a group of 10 people to go to Wok With You - but my mouth had blisters again! So I didn't eat anything too spicy :( but I still had a great time.
I've got a meeting in half an hour-ish, but it's across campus and I'm sort of running the thing... so maybe I should cut this short (even though it is really short as is).
Love you guys so much, and Happy New Year!!!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
January 5, 2011 9:25 AM Rochester Time
Alright, so here’s my next update (yeah, still behind, but I think I’m catching up).
On Thursday the 16th, I went to a holiday party with Margie. Jersey, Tony, Urug, and the rest were there, in addition to many Physics majors I know. Margie and I took pictures in front of the Christmas tree they had there since we didn’t have a big one in our apartment. Their tree was decorated with shiny ornaments and candy canes, and we pretended that it was ours, posing accordingly. This made the hostesses laugh a bit.
Friday, most everyone went home. After acing my Biochemistry test, I took care of a few club activities and made a ‘nest’ on the couch in the living room. At four o’clock, the boys dropped by to say farewell before they headed home. After that, it was pretty uneventful. I watched TV and ate.
Saturday and Sunday were spent watching TV and eating (except for a small section of Sunday when I cleaned the apartment and packed my suitcase). On Monday, I got up and cleaned the apartment once last time after breakfast. I went to work, and a co-worker drove me to the airport after work.
I arrived home (Houston, Texas) at around 10pm local time, and I was exhausted. I spent most of Tuesday lying around the apartment and going shopping for food with my mother.
Over the next few days, I went to more grocery stores, had a dentist appointment, a doctor’s appointment, and went to the library. I got to eat dinner with my family every night – last year I prepared separate vegan meals. This year, my mom has made vegan food every night – with the option of meat for the others.
On Christmas Eve, we spent the day preparing food and relaxing. Christmas Eve dinner is called kucios (spelling varies, though there should be a line above the u and an upside down ^ over the c). It’s a meatless day (abstinence and fasting happens the day before a religious holiday), and there are generally 13 dishes for dinner, including smoked fish, cooked fish, beets, poppy seed milk, boiled potatoes, and the ‘host’ bread they serve at church.
Our menu this year included (with a * denoting vegan options):
Smoked Salmon (I had a piece about half the size of a credit card – it was very salty)
Hummus with Homemade Tortilla Chips (not salted)*
Grilled Korean Eel (I had two pieces totaling to about the size of a credit card – it was very good!)
Boiled Potatoes*
Bread Balls with Poppy Seed Milk (vegan since no milk is used in the process)*
Pickled Herring (I had a piece about half the size of a credit card – very vinegar-y)
Lithuanian Bread – Dark Rye, Pumpernickel, and Rye with Nuts (all were vegan)*
Baked Mahi-Mahi
Tossed Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette*
Sliced Cheese (a variety)
Mushrooms Sauteed with Onions and Garlic*
Whitefish Salad (comprised of a creamy sauce, cabbage, and a lot of whitefish)
Potato and Apple Salad (traditionally made with sour cream sauce, but vinegar was used instead)*
Fruit Compote (boiled down fruits seasoned with spices like cardamom and cinnamon)*
Dinner was superb, and I could tell my family really went out of their way to make sure I would have ‘enough’ to eat – you know, since everyone has to over-eat like crazy on kucios.
Christmas morning, I went to church with my parents, and then we emptied our stockings on the floor. I had quite a few peanuts and small pieces of candy. I also got a small bag in the shape of Totoro – an animated fuzzy character from one of my favorite children’s movies My Neighbor Totoro, which is about Japanese children playing with forest spirits. I got some fancy vegan dark chocolate, a large apple, and an orange. There was a sketch pad and three varieties of tea.
Then we made breakfast (a tradition in our household is to drink hot chocolate before the stockings and eat breakfast before the actual presents), and I scrambled some tofu and ate it with salsa in tortillas. Everyone took a little of my tofu to taste it, and I didn’t mind since I had made an awful lot. They agreed that it had the texture of eggs, but tasted more like a spiced sausage. And it kinda smelled like cheese.
I’m not going to run through all of my presents, but I did get two watches, some clothes, and a stuffed weasel. Everyone seemed to be pleased with the presents I got them, though my parents were a bit put off when they saw what I got them (mostly they were worried about the price I had paid). But I think it was worth it to make up for refusing to come home the past year. And I haven’t gotten them birthday presents in forever.
I have spent most of my time reading recipe books and in the kitchen. My mom has mentioned several times that I am addicted to food, and its kinda true. Well, food and fantasy. I started reading some of my old stories that I wrote in high school – some of them are better than I remembered. I started to write a new one, but didn’t get far before writer’s block popped up. I ended up rewriting an old story instead for several hours on Monday.
I couldn’t find half of the old stories I had, which is a bit worrisome because they were the terrible ones. I probably threw them out in a rage a year ago or something, but I can’t remember doing that. I did manage to find some old papers I wrote for school, and my senior year of high school, we had to write something every week about ourselves and turn it in. Most of them were just about my favorite songs, pictures, etc, and I started reading those. I don’t remember writing half of them, so it was like reading someone else’s work and thinking – man, I could really relate to this girl!
One of the poems I wrote was supposed to be about a trial I had to go through and overcome. I wrote about auditioning for Region Orchestra (which was quite competitive in my district since we had three of the top fifty high school orchestras in my region – one of which was mine). Here’s a few excerpts:
Daughter of ***** and ****, sister of *****,
I come before you to play this most challenging piece.
This sorrowful, sweet Mazas etude
Decreed by these fair judges to be
The audition material on which the decision comes
On which lowly soul will be honored with
Making Region Orchestra.
……(skip to the next part)….
It is the fruit of
Seven years of toil on this auburn viola.
My partner and sole companion, bought by a
Mother’s love and a Father’s paycheck,
Is the instrument on which I will
Play these treacherous pieces for you;
And no other will suit me.
……(skip ahead)…..
In short, Auburn, for that is what I have named this
Mellow bringer of song and sorrow,
Will be the weapon I choose to
Play this piece for you.
And without any further ado,
Mazas I will bring to you.
It was a completion grade and had to be over thirty? Forty? Fifty? lines long. I have no recollection of writing this, but it clearly has my name at the top – dated October 4, 2007. It’s not even that long ago… wait, that’s over three years. Man, how time flies!
Right now (Tuesday December 28?), I’m typing this on my laptop to save. I don’t have Internet right now, so I’ll probably add onto another post later about the days that will happen between when I post this and now. Basically, I’m either reading cookbooks, making my own recipes, or reading old things I wrote years ago. Or food shopping with my mom – I’ve been in grocery stores at least 6 times in the past week.
I hope you’ve spent your holidays relaxing and avoiding your homework like me! (Actually, I’ve done about half of my take-home exam, but I don’t want to finish ‘cause I left the hard stuff for the end).
Take good care of your body, and eat some nuts and dried fruit!
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