Friday, April 30, 2010

My teachers aren't so horrible after all...

Now that it's the end of the semester, my teachers are finally showing some mercy. The TA for my essay workshop isn't as strict about participation and absences as he made us think in the syllabus...he told me today that without the extra credit I turned in, I would've gotten a B or B- in the class (which I would have been fine with, since I was anticipating a C). With the extra credit, I'm between an A and an A-! I thought I was past all hope of getting an A, so this made me really happy. My European lit professor (who has annoying given us pop quizzes every time I've missed class) was very generous with his grading of the quiz I thought I failed on Tuesday--he gave me a B. And then yesterday, he was kind enough to give us a seventh quiz so he could drop our lowest quiz grade. So basically I get to swap one of my zeroes for a 90%. That will help so much! If I do really well on the final, I might even get an A-. But I won't get my hopes up...I'll be happy with a B.

In other news, crazy storms in IA C today! The severe thunderstorm warning is only in effect til 2:30 (15 minutes from now) so it's pretty calm at the moment. It's supposed to continue raining all day, though. The worst of it came about an hour ago, as I was walking the four blocks from Prairie Lights to my car. I had an umbrella, but the ridiculous wind blew the rain under it--I was soaked from the waist down. And then it started hailing. Fun stuff to be walking around in...I felt so bad for the students walking around without umbrellas or even hooded jackets. I heard on the radio that there's a tornado watch in effect til 8:00. Jordan's all excited...he likes tornadoes. Gotta love Midwestern springs...

I found a job posted on U of I jobnet...the Iowa City blog is hiring an assistant editor/research assistant. The posting just went up yesterday and I emailed the contact last night...she emailed me back this morning to tell me that the position had been filled. :( I don't know why they bothered to put the ad up if they had already or were about five seconds away from filling the position. She did tell me that I could send them my resume anyway, since they'll need to hire more people in the near future. So I'm gonna do that...but I'm not holding my breath. I really don't expect to find a job that's related to my major. At least not in Iowa City, where there's a thousand other English majors looking for jobs, too. And I'm fine with that.

Okay, I need to start on some homework. The papers for my online classes remain unfinished.../sigh.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Good day :)

Yesterday was a really bad day...but today was quite fabulous. :) I got a decent amount of homework done this afternoon. The creative writing track senior reading was tonight...I was so freaking nervous! But it went really well. Six or seven seniors read, and I was the only one who read fiction tonight. Everyone else read poetry or nonfiction. And after going through so many workshop classes, it felt so nice to just read my work and have people applaud--no forty-five minute session of praises and critiques. I had to leave early to make it to a reading at Prairie Lights...I've been going to a lot of them lately for extra credit in my essay workshop (which I desperately need for my participation grade...because apparently I don't speak up enough in class). It was a really great reading--I want to buy the book now! After the reading, I met up with Carissa and Brian because they happened to be downtown. We went to Aoeshe, this Asian restaurant that I drive by every single day. It was amazing. Great Wall [of Burlington] quality (that's a very high compliment!). We all tried Korean dishes. I had gang pong chicken--fried chicken in spicy garlic sauce. So delicious! And the phoenix crab was phenomenal--really close to the Great Wall's, though the filling wasn't quite as good. I love that they have Chinese, Japanese, and Korean food. Next time I think I'm gonna have to try their sushi.

I haven't started my scary paper for human memory yet (dreading it...), but I have picked a topic and started researching. My goal is to start it tomorrow and turn it in on Friday. That way I'll have an entire week left to finish the last few chapters and study for the exam. My topic is sleep and memory. I'm finding a ton of articles about how sleep deprivation harms your ability to remember things...it makes it harder to consolidate new information. In other words, staying up all night to cram for a test and getting no sleep before said test is a really inefficient way of studying. Good to know, since I'm sure I'll be doing just that for my three finals next week. Can't wait for all this to be over!

All right...homework time.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

A legit update...

Two weeks left of school... Eek! I can do it, I can do it... And now, an overly detailed account of all the crap I have to do in the next fourteen days.

I'm SO glad to be done with my stories and essays for my two workshop classes...I do have to revise one of my essays (that's our "final exam"), but that's not so bad. I also need to attend as many readings as I can so I can do write ups on them for extra credit. My TA keeps passive aggressively bringing up participation grades. Since I usually only make one or two comments per class, I can only assume that my participation grade is awful. So yes...extra credit is in order. Not much to do for my fiction class--I have to finish a novel we're discussing by Monday, prepare to workshop some more classmates' stories, finish my journal...nothing I can't get done in a day or two.

Unfortunately, I never got caught up in my online classes. But I think I'll be able to make the deadlines. I got two essays and a chapter quiz done in my human memory class yesterday...so I just have four quizzes, one essay, one eight page paper, and the final exam left. Yeah...not a lot at all. Nope. For mythology, I have five quizzes, one five page paper, and the final exam left. Not as intimidating because I already have the paper outlined--and it's shorter. Online classes suck because you have to complete them before finals week...so I had to schedule my exams for May 5th and May 7th. I could really use the extra week to get the exams done...but what can ya do. Hopefully I can cram some studying in somewhere.

For my European lit class, I'm done with papers! The last one was due two days ago. We're reading one more super short novel, and then all that's left is the final exam...which should be easy. It's an essay exam, but he's giving us the questions a week before so we can prepare. And, bonus, because the exam is officially scheduled for 7:30 AM on the last day of finals week (aka the worst time ever), he's letting us take it on May 6th.

And, kinda scary/cool...I'm participating in two readings. On the 26th, I'm reading for the creative writing track's "senior celebration reading." They asked all the seniors graduating from the track to read some of their work, if willing. So I got brave and signed up. Then my essay workshop is affiliated with this "writer's gone public" reading that's happening on May 5th...and I signed up for that, too. Why not? It's the kind of opportunity you only get as a student. Or as a legit published writer, of course.

Now, if you didn't catch this, because of weird scheduling stuff, I don't actually have any finals during exam week. So after May 7th, I'm DONE! I'm so excited that, after surely being sleep deprived for two weeks straight, I'll be able to sleep for a week straight. And maybe get up once or twice to apply for some jobs. Graduation is on May 15th. I read online that the ceremony will take like three hours.../sigh. I'm really tempted to not go, but I think my parents would freak out if I didn't participate in my college graduation.

In non-school-related news, Spencer is moving out on May 3rd. I'm looking forward to reclaiming the living room...but I'll miss him for sure. And our rent's going to go up with it just split between three of us. We're not going to make him continue paying us...he's not on the lease and he didn't even have a bedroom, so that would be kind of awful. I can't believe that it's almost time for us to move, too...three more months. So excited to move to our dog-friendly apartment in Coralville! I just hope we can squeeze all of our stuff in...I'm not worried about the bedroom or living room--they're both really roomy--but the kitchen is teeny tiny. But I'm sure we'll make it work.

What an obnoxiously long blog. But, look--no survey! Go me. Okay, I'm going to make coffee and do some reading.

Friday, April 23, 2010

I finished my essay on recovered memories! Yay, productivity! Celebrate with a survey before diving into chapter 12? Yes.

Do you have a big or small family? Medium.
Do you like the way it smells after it rains outside? Yep. And I'm enjoying the scent today. :)
As a kid, did you ever get in trouble for drawing on the wall? Yeah.
Do you toss & turn in your sleep? A bit.
Do you often flip your pillow over to the "cool" side? No.
Have you ever threw popcorn at someone in a movie theater? I don't think so.
Do you need complete darkness to be able to sleep? Nope. I think I fall asleep faster in complete darkness, though.
Have you ever jumped off a roof? Yes, the roof of a little shed. Nothing bigger than that.
Do you have a motto you live by? No, not really.
Are you gullible? Sometimes.
Do you believe that there's good in everyone? I like to think so.
Does it annoy you when people play dumb? Yeah.
Have you ever ate a crayon when you were little? Not that I can recall.
Can you change the oil on a car? No.
Have you stolen a street sign before? Nope.
Do you have freckles? No. But I have this spot on my chest that is all freckled from the sun, if that counts.
Do your initials spell out anything cool? They spell the name Al...if you ignore my middle initial.
Do you take the shampoos & conditioner bottles from hotels? Sometimes. Not the standard crappy "conditioning shampoo" that makes your hair feel awful...but it's legitimately good shampoo, or if the bottle is cute, yes.
Do you use a night light? No.
Have you ever peed in the woods? I've peed outside several times...but never in the woods.
Do you dance even when there's no music playing? Only to make Jordan laugh.
Do you chew on your pens & pencils? No.
Where would you bury hidden treasures if you had some? My Uncle Paul's house.
Do you take vitamins? No.
Can you curl your tongue? Yeah.
Which are better: green or black olives? I hate both of them.
Can you knit or crotchet? I used to know how to crochet...but I forgot.
Do you believe things happen for a reason? Yeah.
Are you a daredevil? No.
Are you passive or aggressive? Passive.
Do you think you are emotionally strong? Yes.
Have you ever had your mouth washed out with soap as a kid? No.
Do you have any unhealthy obsessions? With what? Coffee, which I know is horrible for my teeth...desserts of all kinds, which are going to turn me into a fatty because I never workout.
Do you have any scars? Yeah, lots.
Does the future make you excited or nervous? Mostly excited.
Are you allergic to any animals? Yeah. Cats and ferrets are the worst. I'm mildly allergic to dogs and rabbits, too, but not enough to keep me from obsessing over and interacting with them whenever I can.
Who makes your day brighter? Lots of people!
If you HAD to lose one of your 5 sense which would you choose to give up? Smell.
Do you like your tea sweetened or unsweetened? I like iced tea sweetened and hot tea unsweetened.
Are you a skeptic or do you easily believe? I dunno...somewhere in the middle, I guess.
Would you rather be Amish or homeless? Amish.
Can you read music? Yes.
Do you blush easily? Yes...I hate that!
Does public speaking make you nervous? If I'm prepared, no. If it's a "wing it" kind of situation, yes.
Do you frequently experience deja vu? No.
Have you seen any famous city landmarks? Not really. Does Mt. Rushmore count?
Do you deal with or run away from your problems? I try to deal with them.
Do you act your age? Yeah. Well, compared to other 22-year-olds that I've encountered, I act above my age.
Do you color inside the lines? Yeah.
Do you believe in a lot of conspiracies? No.
Have you ever bought anything from an informercial? Nope.
Can you tell people honest things straight to their face? Yeah.
Are you double jointed in any way? No.
Are you easily offended? No.
Did the movie jaws scare you? I've never seen it.
How good are you at keeping secrets? Very good.
What stupid little thing stresses you out? When strangers stare at me. Unfamiliar situations. Running late.
Have you ever tripped over your own two feet? Yeah.
Do you talk to yourself? Sometimes.
Do you crack your knuckles? Yeah.
Would you flip off the president? No.
What does the world need less of? Hate.
Do you stop to smell the roses? Yes.
Would you ever drop out of school? No.
Have you ever went rock climbing? Only on one of those fake rock climbing walls.
What would you take from your house if u knew it would be flooded 2morrow? Since I have until tomorrow, I'd take as much stuff as we could move out in a day. Our electronics and all my books would be the priority.
Would you prefer to be emotionless so you didn't have to feel a heartbreak? No...life without emotions would be horrible.
Is there a way to solve world hunger, that we are ignoring? Perhaps.
Can you count in roman numerals? I can use them and read them, if that's what you mean.
Do you sleep on your side, stomach or back? Side, mostly.
Do plants die in your care? In my experience, yes. But it's been several years since I've tried to keep a plant.
What do you think of when you look at the stars? How far away they are.
Have you ever blacked out? No.
How do babies make you feel? Happy and nervous.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Yay, SPRING!

One of the worst things about being an English major: wasting ink and paper. I go through two cartridges of ink every semester. Those things aren't cheap! :( It's mostly because of my workshop classes...I have to print out my classmates stories and essays to write comments on them. They're never short. Maybe I should start printing stuff off at a computer lab...waste someone else's ink.

I can't believe it's already 5:30. Days go by fast when you sleep til 3:00. Yes, 3:00. Ridiculous, I know, but I needed it. I got three hours of sleep Wednesday night (finishing a short story) and four hours of sleep on Thursday night (studying for an exam). Not fun. It paid off, though--I did really well on the exam. As for the short story...meh. It came out at nine pages and I would have liked to add about five more...but it was already two days late, so I just didn't have the time. And I'm not at all happy with the way I ended it. Super crappy last line...can't wait for everyone in workshop to talk about how much they hate the ending. Oh well. I'm glad to have it, and the exam, crossed off my to-do list.

Puppy-sitting tonight til tomorrow morning. :) Hopefully Jack and Suki's cuteness won't be too much of a distraction...I have a bunch of homework to do. Still several lessons behind in both my online classes. I have no idea when I'm going to find the time to write a five page paper for mythology and an eight page paper for memory.../sigh.

I am so thrilled with the weather we've been having lately (with the exception of Wednesday, which was freakishly cold)--skirt friendly! No jacket needed! And all the greenness...it makes me happy. I love spring so much.

Mmk, feeding the survey addiction again...but it's a short one.

What's the longest song you've ever listened to? I don't know. Probably something classical.
Do you like garlic bread? Yes!
Would you ever date someone who didn't believe in marriage? N/A for me, but if I wasn't married...I probably wouldn't. At least not seriously. It would be too depressing.
What's the funniest book you've ever read? I read a spoof of the Left Behind series once called Right Behind...it was really funny. Nature Girl and Skinny Dip by Carl Hiaasen are both really funny--satirical crime novels.
Do you think most teenagers are becoming vegetarians just to look cool? I'm sure some of them do it just for the sake of trendiness. Same with the whole "go green" movement.
Have you ever tried climbing a tree? Yeah. I used to love climbing trees when I was a kiddo. My grandpa had a bunch of apple trees that were perfect for climbing.
When's the last time you ate a taco? Last week, in Florida.
Do you make surveys when you're bored? No. I fill them out when I'm bored.
3 things you like to learn about: Music, literature, animals.
What's something you could debate about for hours? I don't think I could debate anything for hours.
Do you like Dr. Pepper? Yeah.
Would you ever open up your own restaurant? Maybe if I went to culinary school. And learned a lot about managing a business/the restaurant industry.
Do you like taking long surveys? No, I like shorter ones. If it's more than 50 questions, I usually won't fill it out.
Has anyone ever called you charming? Hmm...don't think so.
What culture fascinates you? Any culture other than mine, really.
Have you ever talked to Andy? ...Who's Andy?
Do you own a pearl necklace? Yeah. Not the classic string of pearls, though--it just has one pearl and a tiny diamond, in a silver setting. I'd like to own a legit string of pearls someday.
Do you have trouble pronouncing big words? Not really.
Do you label people? I try not to...but it's happened.
Most rap music nowadays is degrading to women, do you agree? I don't listen to it so I wouldn't really know, but I've heard as much from others.
Do you watch 'Greek'? No.
What chances do you think you have of becoming a divorcee? I'm extremely happy with my marriage. I can't imagine divorce in our future (of course, what newlywed couple would?).
Do you own a type writer? No...I kinda want one, though. Is that weird?
Have you ever been to a drive in movie? Yeah, I along time ago with my family. We saw The Lion King.
Do you own any television shows on DVD? Nope...there's a couple that I really want to have on DVD, though. The Office and Scrubs, for sure. And maybe Sex and the City.
What books are you reading? Currently reading Germinal by Emile Zola.
Are you excited for summer? Yes!

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

I know...

I know, I fill out too many surveys...

But I'm experiencing some hardcore writer's block (at the worst possible time) and I need to stop thinking about this story for a bit. Mmk? Mmk.

Have you ever had a crush on someone too old for you? Nope. More like too young, lol.
Are you frightened by perfection? No...maybe intimidated.
Who reminds you of you? The members of my immediate family. I don't know anyone else who's like me.
Do you like Plushgun? Dunno who that is.
Are you impolite? No.
What are your obsessions? Writing, music, coffee, ice cream, hubby...among other things.
Do you watch Lost? Nope.
Is there any TV show you've seen every episode of? Seinfeld, I think. And probably Sex and the City, too.
If you had to watch MTV, what show would you watch? No idea. I don't know enough about the channel to know if there's anything on it that I don't hate.
Did you ever see the *More To Love* show? No.
Who would you send to fatcamp? No one.
Is there any logical reason for humans to weigh 500lbs+? I sure can't think of one.
Have you ever surfed? Nope.
What do you do when you go to the beach? Walk barefoot through the squishy wet sand...lay in the sun...maybe swim, if it's hot enough.
Do you know anyone that lives in an old farmhouse? Yeah.
Dallas Green or Christofer Drew Ingle? ..Who?
iPod or MP3? I have an iPod...but it annoys me sometimes.
Track or Volleyball? I was in track, but I'd say volleyball is more fun than running in a circle.
MadTV or Adult Swim? I love Adult Swim for Family Guy and King of the Hill...and everything else on it annoys me. So probably MadTV.
Aqua Teen Hunger Force or Robot Chicken? Robot Chicken.
South Park or Family Guy? Family Guy.
Snowboard or Ski? I've never tried either, so I don't know.
Spongebob or Courage the Cowardly Dog? Courage! That was a good show. Far less annoying than Spongebob.
Did you watch Rugrats as a kid? Yep...I was addicted, like everyone else in the third grade.
Have you ever watched Jerry Springer? Yeah.
Name one Beatles song. Hey Jude
Who's your favourite Beatle? I don't have one.
Does Lady GaGa really have a wang? I doubt it.
How many words do you know for *Marijuana*? I dunno...maybe like half a dozen.
Have you ever broken your school's dress code? No. We didn't really have one...although I seem to remember that girls would get in trouble for dressing super skimpy.
Do you have any Lost theories? No.
If you were to have wings, what would you want them to look like? Like the angels' wings you see in paintings.
What's your Last.fm page? Don't know what that means.
What's with the vampire craze? I dunno...but it's getting on my nerves.
The Lost Boys or Interview With A Vampire? Never seen either.
Have you ever broken up with someone to find you want them back later? Yeah.
Has anyone ever dared you to eat a chili pepper? Yes.
Did you do it? Yep.
Do you like spicy food? Yeah--mildly spicy. Nothing crazy.
Have you ever tried Thai food? No.
What's your favorite thing to do in the snow? Sled.
How do you dress when it's cold outside? Jeans, a sweater, clunky shoes...and all the standard wintry stuff. Coat, gloves, scarf...
Have you ever watched Avatar; The TV Show, not the movie. No. I didn't know there was a TV show.
What do you bring with you on a week-long trip? Lots of clothes and all my bathroom/makeup crap, homework, my journal, my laptop.
How do you pass time in hotel rooms? Watch TV, nap, read.
Do you steal trolley carts? No.
What's your favourite Spongebob Squarepants episode? I dunno. I haven't watched the show in a long time.
What smileys do you typically use? This one- :)
What's your cell-phone's signature for text? I don't have one.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Back to reality

Home again. /sigh.

We had a ton of fun in Florida...all in all, a really relaxing mini vacation. I was initially nervous about flying, but after our first flight I was fine. The free drinks were great and it's really beautiful up there in the clouds. The house we stayed in (Rachel's aunt's house) was so beautiful. Kinda felt like we were at a bed and breakfast. It was right next to a lake--we saw a ton of cute duckies. The whole backyard was enclosed in this huge screened structure to keep bugs and such out of the pool. We didn't do much swimming because it wasn't quite hot enough, but it was fun to stick our feet in. I had to turn in an essay Thursday night. I got that done and emailed (only half an hour late) and after that, I got approximately no homework done on the trip. So I'm gonna be up all night pretty much every night this week. Oh well...it's the last month of my LAST YEAR of college. It'd be silly to expect anything other than lots of all-nighters.

Meeting some of Jordan's WoW buddies went quite well. They're all really cool...they kept telling us what a cute couple we are/how perfect we seem for each other. Jordan has tried to convey that to them over Vent numerous times, but I guess it's something you have to see to understand. Everyone got along really well...and we kinda miss them! Three days went by too fast. Jordan and I were rather emo on the way home, thinking about how far away they all live. Not sure when we'll see them again. :( Ian and Rachel want us to move to Alaska with them, lol. Probably won't happen, since we've already signed a lease for the next year. And the following year, we might be "starting up the baby factory" as Jordan puts it, and we definitely don't want to start having babies that far away from our families. Sorry, Ian and Rachel. Their wedding was so cute. Very small--just 15 guests. They had the wedding and reception at a nice Italian restaurant. The food was amazing. Not bad for being the whole thing being thrown together in about a week.

We got back to Iowa around 4:30 on Sunday...made it to my parents' by 6:00 for Easter dinner. Had a nice, albeit brief stay with them. Came back to Iowa City today with big piles of Easter candy. :)

Well, before I dive back into homework, I feel inclined to fill out a survey. So deal with it.

What time did you wake up this morning? 10:00
Who is the first person you spoke to after waking up? My mom.
Are you currently listening to any music? If so, what? Yeah. Regina Spektor--Two Birds on a Wire.
Have you taken any surveys other than this one today? No.
Whose birthday is up next on your calender? Hubby's! He's turning 23 in a month.
Do you have plans for tomorrow? Just the usual--class, homework. Blah.
What are you currently looking forward to? Graduating college. Moving to Coralville. Having Crosby come live with us.
Have you ever touched a shark? No. I've never even seen a shark, apart from the Animal Planet.
Are you avoiding someone/something right now? Yes...that something would be homework.
Where's the farthest you've ever been from home? Florida or Arizona...whichever is farther.
Is today special to you in any way? Not particularly.
Where's your cellphone? On a stool next to me.
Do you believe in second chances? Yeah.
Is there anyone on your mind right now? Not really.
Are you a fan of Sharpie markers? I guess.
What CD or song is your favorite right now? Regina Spektor's CD Far.
Have you changed out of your pajamas today? Yes.
Can you speak any other language, even just a little? I can speak a little Spanish. I've forgotten a lot since SCC, though.
Where is your favorite place to travel to? Anywhere beautiful and relaxing.
Who is your favorite musician? I have a lot. Currently obsessed with Regina Spektor (clearly, since I've mentioned her twice in this survey already).
Where did you last shop at? Air force base in Florida.
Do you cross your legs when you sit? Sometimes.
What was the last book you read? Currently reading Germinal by Emile Zola.
Have you seen both of your parents today? Just my mom--my dad left for work before Jordan and I woke up.
Are you ambidextrous? No.
Do you prefer writing in print or cursive? Print.
What is your favorite TV show? The Office...and almost aything on The Food Network.
Is anyone you know a police officer? Yeah, one of Jordan's uncles.
Will you visit any relatives over your next vacation? Probably.
Are you planning on watching a movie tonight? Nope.
Do you wish you were currently somewhere else? Kinda.
Are you a fan of scented candles? Yes.
Is there any food you're craving? Yeah...I could go for some fresh berries. Strawberries or raspberries.
What's your current favorite lyric? "Hold on, one more time with feeling. Try it again, breathing's just a rhythm. Say it in your mind until you know that the words are right. This is why we fight."