Where Have I Been?

Wow! It's been forever. There has been a lot of drama going on around here. I've been reading some really good books lately, though. I finished Eyes in the Mirror and am reading The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. I'll hopefully get around to posting reviews of them. But for now I've got papers to write and stuff to do!

The Namesake Review

Movie Poster & Tie-in cover

Original US Publication Cover

 

 

 

The Namesake is the story of the Ganguli family and their lives in two worlds, one in the modern United States and the other in India. Two worlds also play a major part in the story of Gogol, the son in the book, who changes his name to Nikhil because he is ashamed of the name Gogol. He is named after a Russian author who is father favored, despite the fact that Indian custom dictates that he be named an traditional Indian name. The story is a follow up to author Jhumpa Lahiri's acclaimed debut novel The Interpreter of Maladies.

My thoughts:
I bought the book for two reasons, one it was on sale and two I loved The Interpreter of Maladies which I read during the summer before senior year of high school. Almost four years later I feel the same way about this book. I am not sure what it is that makes Lahiri's writing style so captivating. Perhaps it is the frankness of it all. Perhaps it is because Lahari, like Gogol, was raised in the US (though she was born in Britain) to Indian immigrants. Whatever the reason, even those (like me) who do not understand the difference between good names and pet names or know what foods the Ganguli family is eating can relate to the plight of at least one character. We have all felt lost at some point in time or felt as if we don't belong with everyone else. I challenge anyone to read this book and not have some thoughts about their own lives and exactly where in the world they fit.

Come Down to Me

I've become obsessed with their songs lately. Saving Jane is best known for the songs  "Girl Next Door" and "Supergirl." Supergirl became popular in 2008 after US Gymnast Nastia Lukin performed to the song for various events and her exhibition routine. Girl Next Door was released in 20045 and was a major hit with high school aged girls.

Today was rather non-eventful. I craftied a little bit and tried to do some homework. But that did not go very well. At all. And now I want to sleep.

Boy Scouts Saturday

Dealing with 30 screaming boys after getting less than 4 hours of sleep? It is interesting to say the least. After 3 hours of memory games and basketball I was ready for lunch and a nap. An hour of sleep later (I really dislike sleeping when other people are awake, I've decided) I tried to get some homework done. Eventually I just decided on reading and fell asleep watching Holes on Disney Channel. Seriously, that movie is always on Disney. Too bad the nap made sure I wasn't able to fall asleep until about 1 Sunday morning. I can't say if me hermit-ing in my room and not talking to anyone until lunch on Sunday was sad and depressing or not. I think after the week I had it was exactly what I needed.

Fabulous Friday

Given my post about Thursday, it should be no surprise we just needed time to rant/chill on Friday. I just wanted to get out of class as soon as possible on Friday. MIS was a waste of my time because I had already done the lab we were working on. The only upside of this particular class was that I got 5 points extra credit for helping people with the work. Maybe. And I need it after that test grade. Senior Sem was less a waste of my time, at least. I mean, we spent half of the class ranting about security issues  on campus. (Ranting will be the theme of the day). Lunch, homework, and chilling. Then I hung out with my big and my twin for a while after dinner. We don't do that enough so it was interesting. Went up to S's with the twin, V, T, & A to relax. And talk. And hang out. Too bad we didn't get to sleep until 4 in the morning and had to be up at 8 for APhiO stuff... the life of a college student.

My Own Worst Enemy

That's pretty much how I felt on Thursday. Classes and some very angry poetry later I still am not sure exactly that I've worked it all out. I mean really, really angry poetry. Do you something like poetry that makes you feel better? Helps get everything out? It isn't usually poetry for me, but whatever works, works I guess.

Kindly Unspoken

Wednesday. Wednesday, Wednesday. Certainly a day I will never forget. For one, it was raining again. Why exactly must it rain so much at school? It seems to only rain this much here. And we can't handle any more rain between all of the construction (I would like my campus back, thankyouverymuch) and the fact that there is nowhere for the rain to go so it all just floods.  In MIS we were working on Chapter 4 some more. I feel like we never get anything done in that class. Like we've been doing the same stuff forever. And in Senior Sem we are reading an article about media consumption and the perceptions of the police. I feel like it would have been more interesting if they had found something groundbreaking and not the stuff that people always seem to find. 

I also had the fun of tutoring 3 people in the course of 4 hours. Two psychology students who had a test Thursday and one Finance student. It is REALLY confusing to switch between the subjects. Like really. And I was just so tired of everything. And I couldn't even hide it, everyone knew. And then I had to go to ice breakers. And even just mentioning it makes my blood boil. It had all been coming to a head, and it isn't so much the not getting twins so much as it was the way I was told that I couldn't and then told that I wasn't around to rant to people about it. Who the hell thinks they can tell me what and what not to do or who or who not to talk to? And that is all I will say on that matter. Except that a friend and I did have an hour long rant session about everything right afterward.

Grace

Tuesday. I'm not sure I remember much of Tuesday. Ice breakers again. The "I'm Special"/ Shoe Game again. Grr. I really dislike this game. Notes and more notes in both my classes. I really dislike taking notes. Like really. The entire littles thing is just getting out of control. I don't really enjoy spending half of my day ranting about one topic. To everyone. I just can't handle it anymore.

Now Remember to Put Your Weight Behind It

Monday, there is a reason I hate Mondays. I'm not exactly sure what it was that went wrong. My classes were both ok. Notes and a presentation in MIS and notes as well as discussion in Senior Seminar. We did get new chairs for Senior Sem. They are brightly colored, white, orange, and green, they roll, and the desks swivel (not enough to be truly "left-haneded" unfortunately).

But anyway,  I was all good until lunch and then asked one simple question. Just one, out of curiosity. Who gets twins if people said they would take littles if they needed? Does anyone. It's Thursday and at this point I either want to drop letters to escape it all or just curl up in a ball and ignore the world.

Breakeven

The Script is one of my favorite bands. I absolutely love them. And they also happen to be Irish which just makes everything better. (Note: I'm not Irish, just love it for no discernible reason)

I'm on to Sunday now. I finally got to skype with C for half an hour for the first time in two weeks which was really great. I also did a lot of homework. I finally finished the critique of the article for senior seminar (great relief) I had such a hard time writing it for some reason. And there is another one coming up in November which is just great. I also had an APhiO meeting which seemed to last forever (which may be because I was getting dizzy and lightheaded). I want twin littles though so I really wanted to go. I really hope I get twins (two littles) because I'm really excited! At least now (Tuesday) the cold/flu is starting to go away and I can breathe again!

The Fleur de Lis and Pottermore

This isn't a song title if you were really worried about that. Would be an interesting song I bet. I was pretty sure I was getting sick yesterday (as of today I know I was). Worked on some homework and went to lunch (can it be lunch at 10:45?) with K. Did some laundry too, which is really hard because we are down another washing machine. There was water all over the floor and my socks got very wet. I was quite sad. And the dryers don't ever work either. Not sure why maintenance is slacking, but they better get it fixed soon. 

In the afternoon I went shopping with S & A for Halloween costumers and fabric/crafties for our littles. Well my littes and S's littles. A found this really cute costume. I've decided to go as Nancy Drew. Who wears a REALLY short skirt. That she's had since about 8th grade. A found me this really cute fleur de lis fabric to make letters out of at Joann's. I'm really excited. Now I just need heat bond and stencils and a sewing machine, and you know, coordination. We went to dinner with M & J. Then we went back to the dorm to do homework, but of course got distracted by Pottermore. I really have not been on, but managed to hold my own in the conversation. I wish I had more time to go explore. Stupid school work. Which I clearly didn't get done because I was talking about Pottermore. Good thing inspiration struck when I went back to my room or I would have been screwed.

Courtesy of the Red White and Blue

Toby Keith. I may not always agree with his politics, but he sings (writes?) great patriotic songs. This song is actually kind of fitting for the topic of this post. Friday was the AGON (literary magazine) coffeehouse. There were some very raunchy topics (Michael Ian Black monologues) and some very uncomfortable moments (creepy kid with a poem about princes and princesses), but where do we draw the line? Was it ok that a kid and his mom walked through the campus center during the Michael Ian Black monologue? Was it ok that every female looked uncomfortable while that kid was reciting his poem?

Was it ok  that I was mad that it rained all day? Thank goodness for the rain boots my parents bought me a few weeks ago when they were out. I would have been even wetter than I already was. And even less productive. Classes were ok, test in MIS and discussions in Senior Seminar. Went to SB & S after the coffeehouse. I was planning on getting work done, but clearly that wasn't going to happen. Not even sure what we actually did. Talk and stuff? At some point they ordered pizza... typical friday night I suppose.

Already Over

This song is one of my favorite songs by Rie Sinclare. Who also happens to write the music for some of my General Hospital couples, including Jason and Sam. Who apparently were getting married. I wouldn't know. I have no time to watch at school. Thursday was especially fun. I was super busy. IDS was actually really interesting and not completely freezing! We're still talking about the Soviet rocket program and the beginning of the Cold War. For once International Management was interesting as well. We got to hear about some of the study abroad and internship resources here on campus. Which was great, but made me realize that I should really look into that soon. Crap. Real life sucks sometimes. Returning tutor meeting however was not so much fun. An hour of having to deal with people treating you kind of like idiots (well as specific someone, but I was trying not to be mean). Went up with V to S & SB afterward before letter making activity for APhiO. Stupid left-handedness I couldn't really do anything. At least I got fellowship credit! And homework. That was my night.

Who We Are

Lifehouse. Wednesday. MIS lab day. And we didn't do anything. Surprise. Even prep for the test on Friday. Go figure. Senior Sem was more notes, but my professor complimented me on being so detail oriented! I think that might also be code for annal retentive, but I'll take it. Tutored again for psych for the first time since finals week last year. It is amazing what I still remember after 2 years. More ice breakers tonight. Played the I'm Special game. I really dislike that game a lot. I actually don't like any games that we play at ice breakers. And I missed the Criminal Minds premiere. With AJ Cook tweeting live. I was really sad. But, I watched at 11 when I finally got back! It was amazing! I love this cast more than words. And Paget Brewster's Emily reciting the FBI oath at the end practically had me in tears! Soooo good and I'm so happy the team is back together!!!!!

You're Innoncent When You Dream

I'm getting really bad at the whole blogging thing. I'm almost a week behind! The title is a song reference again to a song sung my Jill Hennessy in the episode "As If By Fate" from Crossing Jordan. So I think I am up to Tuesday now. I had an international management test that I really should have studied more for. I doubt that I did very well at all. Hopefully I did better than I thought, but (of course) I froze and forgot two of the answers for the question worth the most points. In IDS we've moved on to the Soviet rocket program which is actually pretty interesting. More ice breakers (everybody's favorite game "I'm Special"). That would be sarcasm, by the way. We're up to 20 pledges now. I'm pretty sure that I will have to take twins. Better start craftying now. I don't even have the energy to find an interesting story from the day to share.

She Walked Away

I'm not a particularly religious person at all, but I absolutely love this song by BarlowGirl. It is one of my favorites. It is vaguely religious (it does ask him for help) but it doesn't necessarily have to be taken that way.
Saturday was an interesting day. I got to see my mom and dad for the first time since I've been back at school (and they got to skype with C, which was good). We went to the JA Scholars Brunch. It (luckily) wasn't nearly embarrassing as I thought it would be. I don't know how some people can just have the confidence to stand up and speak to a room full of people like that. Not me. I got a pretty little key chain too. The nice thing was that my parents got to meet S, A, & J who I talk about ALL the time. Which was nice. Put a name to a face and all. We walked around campus for a while, skyped with C and made a Boscovs run. I got pretty new rain boots that are pink & green plaid which is good since it is supposed to rain again. And a blanket because my roommate loves to keep the air on at night... and I don't.

After my parents left I went up to S's to watch Harry Potter. Not that we actually WATCHED Harry Potter. We discussed Harry Potter, did our nails, looked at wedding dresses, went on Pottermore and basically did everything but watch the freaking movie. And I loved it :-)

Bleed Red

My favorite Ronnie Dunn song ever. I LOVE it. So much.

Friday. Yay! It was a no pressure day. Turned in my senior seminar paper and went to classes and didn't care about a thing. I probably should have though. I did spend like an hour looking for my camera charger, though. I can't find the dang thing. I am almost positive that I packed it to bring back to school. Pretty positive. And I can't find it anywhere. Or my change purse. Though that is slightly less important. I really want to do a thank you post for all of the books I've been lucky enough to receive. I am so excited to read all of them. They are a great stress relief and escape from the pressures of college. Hopefully I can find it soon. Other than that the night was spent at Gamers Guild, attempting my homework, and quality bonding time with the twin.

Fight Agains the Hours

Lena Martin, and  I actually think it is a rather fitting title to what Thursday was like. I felt like I was running everywhere and getting nowhere. I spent all morning trying to take notes and learn for International Business and feel like I didn't get anywhere! Went to IDS and talked more about rockets and STRUGGLED to stay awake during the documentary we were watching. It was just so dark and easy to fall asleep. Lunch was as crazy and hectic as ever. And the food isn't getting any better which really stinks. I'm really not into either eating pizza or grilled cheese ever day. International Management was a review day which meant that we got out early because no one wanted to ask questions. Fine by me. More time to work on my Senior Seminar paper which felt like it would never get done. Tutored after class and then went back to my room and never left. Just locked myself in. Upside, I finished my paper! The angels should have started singing. I'm about halfway through The Namesake again and I think I am more into it this time then when I read it the first time. Hopefully I can finish and review it soon!

Brave Face

Delta Goodrem is an Australian pop artist and singer-songwriter. I am kind of obsessed with her music (hence the title of the blog post). I needed once of those brave faces today. It was just a rough day. I just didn't want to get up. Probably stayed up too late reading (again). Went to MIS and had to present about Netflix (which, while not difficult, not easy when you want to curl up and sleep). Senior Seminar was spent talking about what should be in our papers which isn't making me any less nervous about getting it done by Friday. See, rush has been keeping me kind of busy. Tye-dye rush was interesting. At least I got to see both my big and my twin! And we got a huge rain storm with flashes of lightening that light up the entire sky. It was very pretty, but also very loud. Also working on reading more of the Von Braun biography and attempting to learn all the definitions for International Management. More Namesake and hopefully a better day ahead tomorrow!

Honey Bee

Blake Shelton this time. It rained again today. I'm getting quite tired of it, actually. Especially all this humidity, it's just gross. Two more classes today. Things really start to blend together after a while. IDS was interesting. We finally got into talking about Van Braun and the German rocket program. The Neufeld biography is actually pretty interesting. Some parts of it are really dry, probably because it is about science which isn't really my thing, but they aren't too bad and those sections don't really last long. I'm actually really interested in seeing what this guy is like when we meet him in November. International Management is still a strange class. At least I actually took notes today, along with writing some Castle fanfiction. It's really bad, but it was better than being bored out of my mind during class.

Castle Cast Photo Season 4

Milk and cookies rush. I really wish more people had actually shown up, but at least I got to know one girl a little better, which is good. Homework is always interesting these days. Working on the introduction for my lit review in senior seminar. Reading all these research journals really makes me miss my novels and escapist literature. Probably why I started reading The Namesake again. At least it's better than the 20 page journals that just give me a headache.

This Love Is Ours

Taylor Swift. If you wanted to know where that came from. It's on. Sue me. What to tell you about my Monday? It was actually relatively productive. Learned how to do a mail merge in MIS in word (which despite doing everything else in word I had never done before). Senior sem & freaking out about my outline which was due Friday. Good times. I've really got to learn to let go. 

Game night rush is always interesting. And there is always bound to be one giant game of Apples to Apples. Always. And you know what? I'm not even that big of a fan of the game. It has to be the right group of people or I just can't play. I think we had a grand total of like 5 potentials. I guess that's better than it has been. Oh well. Worked on my senior seminar introduction some more & talked to C. Always good to get to talk with the little sister. 

Good things about yesterday? I got 4 (two prizes) from my giveaway spree. The three books in the Unbound series and The Namesake. Very happy. More should be here soon. I hope. Short post for tonight. Mondays are never that interesting anyway.

What Happened One Tuesday Morning?

 

We are the 9/11 Generation and 10 years ago we learned lessons we shouldn't of had to understand, but can never forget

It is the question that my children will ask me as part of school history projects: Where was I on September 11, 2001. Where was I that bright, sunny, warm day in September? I was sitting in my 5th grade class when my principle came on the loundspeaker and told the teachers to turn on the tv, but only for 5-10 minutes. In 5th grade it isn't that strange to actually watch tv in class, but I was confused about the time limit. So, my teacher turned on the tv and there it was - the North Tower of the World Trade Center engulfed in flames. Now I am not a native New Yorker, nor had I actually been to the city, so the true icon status of the Trade Centers didn't mean much to me at the time. Little did I know that those towers would change my entire world.

We didn't really know what to think, especially in all of the confusion about what had happened. And then we saw it, the second plane crash into the South Tower. It was clearly a plane, there wasn't any doubt. The dust and fire clouds to this day bring tears to my eyes. What did it mean? I didn't know. Soon the towers had both collapsed less than two hours since it had all begun. How was this even possible? I had no idea. All I know is that we watched the footage all day. We watched people jump from those towers and the haunting images of paper swirling around and the firefighters rushing towards WTC plaza to help the wounded and dead. 

That day we also learned about what had happened at the Pentagon and in Shanksville.

Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Somehow that made everything so much more real, more concrete. I didn't actually know where Shanksville was, but this huge crisis had affected MY state, MY life. It was an eerie day as parents came to pick up their children. My parents both work in the medical field, so they were on high alert, and while I understand that now it was hard to grapple with at 10 years old. I remember feeling so cold and scared and uncertain. Our small group of fiercely independent 5th graders was now afraid to walk the 50 feet to the bathrooms by themselves. Our cafeteria was glassed-in, forget it. We sat at lunch, quiet, scared, barely eating. The footage kept playing out as those people I had watched on tv my entire life tried to fight back tears and the city they loved burned and fell into chaos. 

At home, I didn't know what to do. My sister was only in 3rd grade and the entire thing (rightfully) scared the crap out of her. But me, I was so hungry for knowledge, for a way to make sense of everything, that I wanted to keep watching. It would be days before we'd have any concrete information, and 10 years later I'm not sure I've managed to make sense out of it. 

Is this the story I tell my children? Do I tell them it was almost a week before I heard from my uncle who lives in Port Washington on Long Island? Do I tell my children of his friend who almost didn't make it out of the towers? Do I tell them of the passengers of Flight 93 who fought to save our lives? And what do I tell them about Mark Bingham, the fourth person on Flight 93 who is never mentioned because he was gay? 10 years later I grapple with these questions. I wonder, will I ever get answers. 

So, on this 10th anniversary of 9/11 I give my whole-hearted thank yous to the the firefighters, police officers, EMTs, doctors, nurses, civilians, government officials, and friends and families of 9/11 victims and survivors for ensuring that everything was done that day and we never forget what our freedom means. And it's costs.

My 9/11 Playlist:

The National Anthem - Martina McBride
Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning? - Alan Jackson
God Bless the US - Lee Greenwood
Angels on the Moon - Thriving Ivory Taps
Tuesday Morning - Melissa Etheridge   
God Bless America - Martina McBride
Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue - Toby Keith America the Beautiful - Ray Charles
The Rising - Bruce Springsteen

Finally the Weekend- Friday & Saturday

Friday! And it wasn't raining! The two thoughts I had when I got up. Turned in my first Senior Seminar assignment (complete with nervous breakdown). MIS presentations still feel like a waste of my time, but at least it might be a grade booster. Let's hope. Senior Seminar always makes me laugh. Maybe its because it stresses me out so much, but I always find at least one thing that is absolutely hysterical. Hanging out with SB, S & J afterward helps too. Best part was we got to get off campus and actually go out and not eat dorm food! Albeit, its dinner food, but anything is better than dorm food at this point. First tutoring session (that was interesting) and gamers guild. I find that watching people play Killer Bunnies is actually much more interesting than actually playing. The sociologist in me likes watching people's reactions to things.

Saturday was ranting day. Not that it is a bad thing. Crafty/decorating trip with S to a bunch of different stores & lots of ranting is always entertaining. The one thing Saturday wasn't? Homework day... that may be a problem. Maybe.

It's Thursday and It is Still Raining

Thursday + rain = lack of motivation. Well, except to curl up with a good book. That's was what I wanted to do all day. Walked all the way to class only to find out it was canceled because all of the major roads were shut down due to flooding. What is it with flooding and us this year? And hurricanes and tropical storms in the Northeast? Second class wasn't canceled, but nothing particular ventured or gained in that class.

I spent most of the day trying to convince myself to do homework and looking at all of the flooding damage going on at home. As bad as it is here, I can get everywhere I need to go (admittedly not while I am dry, but I can get there). Both parents had road closures trying to get to and from work. And Hershey Park is under water! Granted, I am not Hershey Park's biggest fan, but it is amazing how much water there is. I hope everyone stays safe and doesn't do anything stupid in the water.

Gloriana - Wanna Take You Home

Tags: Wanna Take You Home, Gloriana, Gloriana Videos

Check Out the Video! Love it!

Wednesday Washout

It's raining as I type this (at 10:30 at night) and it has been raining ALL day. It rained yesterday too, and I am sick of it! The campus has legitimate rivers running through it and my sneakers are soaking wet.

New water feature on campus. Nice right? I haven't left my room since I got back at 2:30. I just couldn't even think about going out in rain tonight for dinner. Or rush. Not that I think a lot of people went. They've posted delays for a lot of the high schools around here & at home. Too bad I don't have class until 11 so it wouldn't affect me.

Speaking of class, not much to tell. Went to MIS. Took notes. Alura called me a bitch again before class (well she called karma a bitch, but in reference to me). It was loud. And hysterical. Went to senior sem. This outline makes me nervous. I have no idea if I am doing any of it right and it's due Friday morning. Oh well.

Giveaway updates: The Namesake & Unbound are in the mail! Won Samauri Zombie Hunters through librarything and an e-book of Children of Chance as well as In the Sea There are Crocodiles from A Bookish Affair. I'm a happy girl for that!

So Much I Never Said... About Pottermore

Tuesday I wasn't so happy to see you. Homework until 11 when I went to class. My IDS is actually very interesting, but the room is SO cold that I have trouble concentrating. We learned about rocket technology today. It was actually much more interesting than it sounded. Lunch was interesting. We had live music, which is great, except when you can't hear the person sitting next to you. International Management came next. I wish that was fun. We finished watching Gung Ho and I'm all for movies in class, but this one just seemed to drag on. And I feel like I haven't learned anything. We'll see how that goes. Maybe its why people say the class is so hard, because you have to teach yourself.

Now, the afternoon was MUCH better after I was done with classes. I won another e-book from Librarythings called Facing the Son, A Novel of Africa. And my last textbook for MIS. Which wasn't as cool, but at least I have it and don't have to worry. Also tonight? First APhiO Rush of the semester! We were watching Wall-E, but I was so distracted because I got my POTTERMORE LETTER. Ahh!!! I was so freaking psyched.

 

So, I rush downstairs (after telling my friend that I am no longer a Muggle) and log on. I anxiously race through the first few chapters to get to the sorting. And I am..... any guesses? 

Ravenclaw Welcome Banner

RAVENCLAW! So freaking excited! I knew that's what I HAD to be. It's nice to be right. I love all the graphics in Pottermore and the insights into J.K. Rowling's head, but the actual game itself leaves a little be desired. It doesn't seem as interactive as I thought it would be. Hopefully once the site fully opens in October it will have more content. Yet, I still can't wait for the rest of the books to open! Oh, and A thinks I'm a bitch because I got in. She screamed it at me actually. Good times.

Monday, Just Another Maic

I'm already really behind on blogging. And it was a holiday. Blame my college, the only one on the face of the planet to have class on Labor Day. Ok, not really, but still I would very much like to have off classes for things that aren't legitimate close-down-the-college-breaks.

Today all I really wanted to do was sleep in. Like passed my alarm not up until 8 (which is late for me) sleep in. My body knew it was a holiday. Went to MIS. Other than general "fun" with Mike not much happened. Surprise. Went to talk to my Senior Seminar professor and figured out a topic for my paper! I can't decided if I think that is good or bad. I mean, its good that I have a topic, but it also means that I am that much closer to having a topic for my honors thesis... and you know GRADUATING college. Can't quite say I am ready for that yet. Went to senior sem class next & talked more about said topic idea & various other senior things. LUNCH! That was how hungry I was by the time I got to lunch. Too bad the food sucks. I don't think I've brought up that particular rant yet, but we outsourced the dining hall and I think the food has actually gotten worse. It's the same food (supposedly) but it has way less flavor. Like its either spicy chicken or plain baked chicken all the time. No marinated chicken ever which is kind of annoying. And the switched to COKE products. Grr. I'm a Pepsi girl and always will be. Ok so done with the why college food sucks rant for now.

Back in my wonderful dorm room (more sarcasm) I did nothing except enter (tons of) giveaways and watch a little show I happen to be obsessed with called Criminal Minds.

 Criminal Minds Cast: Thomas Gibson (Aaron Hotchner, Team Leader), AJ Cook (Jennifer Jareau, Media Liason and possible profiler), Matthew Gray Gulber (Dr. Spencer Ried, profiler & genius), Joe Mantegna (David Rossi, senior profiler), Paget Brewster (Emily Prentiss, returned from the dead profiler), & Shemar Moore (Derek Morgan, profiler & mussel). Not pictured tech goddess Penelope Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness)

JJ, Reid, Morgan, Hotch, Rossi, Prentiss, Garcia

Catching Up- The Weekend

Weekend? Weekend? Where did you go? It always seems like the weekends fly by. Saturday morning consisted of sleeping in (I made it all the way to 9AM!), showers, and homework. Lunch with J. Homework. And more homework. Saturday night... now that's where things get interesting. And not like that. Spent the night with SB & later Jaz just talking and hanging out. Watch 3 episodes of Millionaire Matchmaker in a row and see how you feel about humanity. And then spend 3 hours in the campus center playing ERS and drinking coffee. Oy. haha. What can I say? It's what we do. Sunday. More homework. Lunch. Reading The Namesake and APhiO meeting/hanging out. And guess what? Then it's Monday again.

Catching Up- Friday

Oh glorious Friday! I was quite ready for you to come. Day 5 of classes and I was ready for it to be over as soon as I got up! MIS just seems like busy work to me still. Hopefully I will end up learning something. Senior Seminar makes me nervous every time I walk in. At least I did decently on the first quiz. After class & lunch I hung out with SB, J & E in someplace that shall not be named since I'm technically not allowed in there. We always have a great time. Maybe too good of a time, actually. Friday night = just chilling in my dorm room like a loser and doing homework and entering giveaways, obviously. 

I also found out that I was lucky enough to win the first three books in the Unbound series by Lori Devoti! And even cooler news is that they're signed. I'm quite happy. They ship soon and I can't wait to get them!

A Trip Down Memory Lane

So (in my grand amount of spare time) I like to enter giveaways for books. Because well I like books a lot. So today, I came across one that is giving away the full quartet of one of Tamora Pierce's series. I LOVED her boks growing up. Actually, admittedly I still do. The female characters in her novels are great role models for young girls because they show the importance of hard work and perseverance (especially the Alana series). If you haven't read them or know someone who is in their formative years I'd highly recommend them.

To learn more about the contest visit: HERE
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The Broken Clock is a Comfort

Ok, so the title has nothing to do with anything, except that I'm currently listening to Lifehouse. Today is day 4 of classes and I am already completely exhausted. I'm totally out of practice on the whole reading textbooks thing. Classes weren't so interesting today. Masters was freezing (of course) so I spent an hour and half shivering in my IDS class. We watched part of Gung Ho in International Management. So much for the theory that you aren't going to watch real movies in college...

I won a copy of The Namesake from one of my many giveaway entries. Of course. Because I just bought it. Not that I don't want it, but that always seems to happen to me. Maybe I  can sell it on Amazon or ebay or something and make a little bit of money. Poor broke college student. She needs more books, just not the ones she already owns

Fire Drills and Skunks, Oh My

It's day 3 of junior year and we've already had the second fire drill of the year (faulty fire alarm (?) and a hair dryer). The first one was on Sunday and they always happen at 10:30 at night.... only in college. And there is a skunk somewhere outside so the entire ground floor smells like skunk. Ewww. Other things that happen today include going to class (I can hear the surprise) and just general hanging out. First tutor request of the semester for finance. That should be interesting since I've never tutored for finance before. Senior Seminar should be interesting, I've decided, but I am no closer to figuring out what the heck I want to write my literature review on. Crisis PR, maybe. MIS just seems like a waste of my time. She basically takes definitions straight from the book. At least it might me an easy A. 

In other news C started (officially - post hurricane) her freshman year of classes today. She seems to be handling it well so far. We've got a skype date for this weekend! Mom flies home from Nashville today (well actually she's landed probably). 

In book land I won a copy of The Pagan Stone by Nora Roberts today from Let's Book It! Thanks so much for the great book! I can't wait to get it! And my mom is a HUGE Nora Roberts fan so it will make a perfect present.

Day 2 (AKA Yesterday)

Day 2! Class doesn't start until 11AM - that is sooo completely foreign to me. First class seems really awesome, the 20 page paper not so much, but awesome nonetheless. Second class. Not so awesome. I have a feeling this is going to be the really hard one. And to top it off I already know I am going to have to take the one test early because I have a field trip for the awesome class the same day. Grr.

What else did I do? I watched guys play tennis. people stare and point at nothing on the ground for about 10 minutes, and saw a bunny. Too bad J2 and I were supposed to be reading and studying.  And made A LOT of dirty jokes/inferences with SB & Jaz. Good times. Except I had to go to a stupid SGA meeting for treasurer stuff. I hate bureaucracy.

Back In the Swing of Things

First day of college classes for JUNIOR year. When the heck did that happen? Two classes down - two to go. MIS seems ridiculously easy (hopefully that's the case) especially since we can pass the class on projects and homework alone. Senior Sem kind of scares the shit out of me. After all, I'm not a senior and I'm taking a 400 level class. At least there are a few people in the class that I know and I also know what kind of work the teacher expects from me. But still, the idea that this class is pretty much going to determine my senior thesis which isn't due for another 20 or so months is a little bit scary. Actually it is a lot scary. 


The nice thing about being back at school though is getting to see all of my friends. It feels like we never left! And of course, there were three things we talked about drama, sex, and sex. What else? Double entendre are really entertaining.  But I guess that is what happens when you spend 5+ hours in the campus center with nothing better to do. Two more classes to go tomorrow. I'm really excited about my IDS and hope that it lives up to my own hype. Not really sure what to expect with International Management. The teacher is supposed to be pretty hard. Time will tell. 


In other news... I recently won a ebook in a giveaway! It is called Rabbits in the Garden by Jessica McHugh. I haven't had a chance to start reading it yet what with a hurricane and classes starting, but I'm really excited to start it! Stay tuned for more thoughts on that!

Irene Update

Well, all is well that ends well I suppose. No major damage. Lots of rain & it is still quite windy, but things could be worse. The flooding is pretty bad in Philly (about an hour or so east of me) and my parents lost a tree (about an hour or so west) but I guess I got lucky and didn't lose power or anything. Now I just need something to do for the rest of the day since I don't feel like going outside.

Irene, Irene

Lovely picture isn't it? Well that's what I'm living through. And it changed my life in the course of (not kidding) 4 hours. My parents took my sister to school in CT (while I went on a nice book hunt detailed below) and not even 4 hours after they left the campus decided it was closing. Meanwhile, my school decided it was going to open early to save people from having to move in while it was raining/windy. So, my parents turn around and pick up my sister while I completely rearrange my plans for the weekend. See, I had very nice plans for Saturday, but instead I left my house at 9:30 to be able to move into my dorm without having to deal with the 3-5 inches of rain forecasted to fall and the wind gusts of 20-40 miles an hour. 

So, now I am sitting in my dorm room, all set up minus decorations, on a Saturday, with nothing to do. It's currently pouring outside with pretty strong (though not dangerous) wind gusts. Oh, and neither my microwave or my air conditioning work. Icing on the freaking cake. 

The Proposal

I'm watching this movie by myself on the night before I'm supposed to go back to school. Kind of pathetic, huh? I was trying to read Wuthering Heights, but I just can't concentrate. I absolutely hate when that happens. Don't you? It's like I really want to read, but I just can't do it. So, instead I'm watching The Proposal.


I find this movie quite amusing. Sandra Bullock has been one of my favorite actresses circa Miss Congeniality. Funily enough, as I type this the scene where Sandra's character Margret and Ryan Reynold's character Andrew share secrets and she tells him that her favorite book is Wuthering Heights. Fate is funny that way. Well, Jane Eyre is my favorite classic, but I love Wuthering Heights too. I read the children's version many years ago and fell in love with the basic story. 


Also, I had an English teacher in high school who used to tell all the girls that eventually they would make it through their Heathcliff period. My best friend and I were dying of laughter, but there were SO many blank stares. It was unbelievable how many kids didn't know what the heck she was talking about. It was kind of sad actually. Thank you movie for reminding me about the sad state of humanity.  

Hurricane, thanks for ruining my plans

So, that hurricane that is aiming for the East Coast? Apparently since it is supposed to hit here on Sunday we can now move in on Saturday. This actually seems like a really good idea. Except, I REALLY want to go to the fun show on Saturday. I'm so conflicted. I have no idea what to do. Grr.

My Pockets Feel A Lot Lighter

It's really a bad idea to let me anywhere near a bookstore. Really bad, at least for my wallet. Even when I go in with a budget I never make it out under it. Or at least with the number of books I was planning to buy. Today was no different. Went down to Midtown Scholars Bookstore (if you live in Central PA I highly recommend a visit). Luckily for me they were having a sale so I didn't end up spending too much money. Relatively speaking. Bought 3 books. Wuthering Heights because I surprisingly don't have a copy. The Namesake, by the author of one of my favorite books - The Interpreter of Maladies. Third I bought A Factory of Cunning by Phillippa Stockley.

It's Natural Disasters Week

I consider myself a pretty calm person (most of the time). However, this week, kind of stressing me out a little. I move back in for my JURIOR year of college this coming Sunday. When did that happen? You know what else is supposed to be moving up the East Coast Sunday into Monday? Yep, that's right Hurricane Irene. HURRICANE. Somehow the idea of moving in to my dorm in the middle of a hurricane is rather unappealing. To top it off, I've just finished a seven day stretch of work. A seven day stretch where people kept calling off. One person, one day I understand. But 2-4 people THREE days in a row? The universe must hate me right now. And we had an earthquake yesterday. Fun times. I was pretty sure all the glass in the hutch on my desk was going to fall and crush my nice, pretty, blue macbook. I don't think I can handle life without my macbook. Nope. 

Hurricane Irene projected storm path and rain amounts. I live in that bright pink area. OH JOY. 


More to come, gotta go see my baby sis off to college!


Cheers,  Leigh Leigh