College: Spring 2010 -- Day Seven

"I would like to be thin, but I like fried food better. I'm from the south, we fry everything. We fry vegetables. We fry cornbread and call them hush puppies. We're up to turkeys and candy bars, we aren't stoppin' any time soon. Southern people don't even age, they just drop dead." -- Lisa Landry
I got my $5 book today! $4.74 for a novel that was $15 in the bookstores. Take that, WKU. I win.
I did just about nothing all day. I ate at Pit Stop with B, then got ice cream with Leah and Mitchell. (Also known as Mia and Litchell.) Kelsey came back around 9:00 and we sat around and were slap happy. Bets called and we talked about this summer and Sambica some. She said B and I should be expecting phone calls sometime this week. Hello excitement.
Now, for a new tradition.
Today's Top Trio! (appreciation of alliteration)

1.) Welcome back to college!
2.) My ceiling was purple with a tint of green
3.) What an awesome tie, with an awesome knot. That an awesome person tied...

College: Spring 2010 -- Day Six

Recap:
Thursday-- I really don't remember anything exciting happening other than my first multimedia class. I know a few of the people in there, and I feel it will prove to be an interesting semester. I'm not new to stills and audio, I worked with them a lot senior year in broadcast, but Adobe Premiere is most likely VERY different from Final Cut Pro. Thank goodness I have Mac friends who produce videos...
Friday-- It was cold. All the snow that was supposed to be here at 6 am didn't evens tart until 2:45 or so. My morning class was canceled for essentially no good reason. Then again, this is the lady that sat behind Jesus in preschool, so maybe her thong sandals weren't gonna cut it in the cold weather. Other than that, pretty normal day until the snow hit pretty hard and didn't let up. After I went to my first WKU basketball game (and got a free scop of Culver's...I'm seeing a trend?) I was in Minton with B, so I didn't have Luna and I was tiny bits of upset. We hung out with Mitchell and Leah and played on my macbook and watched Along Came Polly and I broke a window and some other fun stuff that I forgot about that doesn't really matter anyway so the end.
Saturday-- Brian and I were going to cook breakfast for the two of us, but Mitchell and Leah were jealous, so we added them in. Then Kelsey found out and her friend from Louisville, Caitlin, decided to participate, too. By participate I mean sit in the hallway while I made pancakes two at a time in my tiny skillet. Roughly 30 pancakes...and two hours...later, everyone except Brian, Mitchell, and myself had eaten Jimmy John's and ditched on breakfast. Oh well, more bacon for me.
Towards the end of breakfast (and yes, I cleaned everything up, Mom...) B got a text message from one of his fraternity brothers declaring it was time for snow football. We rushed out and shot that for a bit then just roamed around and took pictures and played in the snow. Mostly it was just me playing, but that's ok. I accept the fact that I'm basically a 3-year-old at heart. I LOVE SNOW!
I know you're wondering where your pictures are, but hold your horses, I'm busy eating a turkey and cheese sandwich.
...
...
...
That was delicious. I would like everyone (both of you) to know that I have three types of Kool-Aid in my refrigerator. I'm not ashamed to say that two of them are the squeeze bottle kind, either.
Now for pictures, Jaws is getting grumpy because I'm not paying attention to him.
Ok, quick fact: The iPad could essentially kick my macbook in the face. Also, Apple just released a new version of the white 13-inch. I like it better. Of course, seeing as how this one isn't even a year old. Guess I'll order a keyboard cover and make myself feel special or something...

When you first walk into my room, this is what you see:


To your left you will see what I call a "couch." Please note the $3 pillows.


The rest of the left half, complete with leaning lamp of Big Lots.


I velcroed my iHome remote to the wall. Take THAT, alarm clock!


My kitchen area, including a tangle of cords...it's safe, I sorta promise.


My desk! And TV stand! And drawers!


New rolly cart thing that allowed me to move into my dorm in ONE trip. Thanks, Katie! Also, I now have a big kid mirror in my room =)


I have two closets! With matching curtains! I'm pretty proud of that, true story.


This is where I/and Kelsey/and Brian eat. I call it " pull out table for two"


But this is more typical...oh well

And since I can't have my real Milkshake, I have this one!


A few snow shots:
Yes, I did something incredibly cheesy. It took almost an hour. Don't judge me. I left one of my memory cards in Brian's bag, so...fail me. Anyway, here's what's on my hard drive thus far:
This is either either a) much braver or b) much stupider than I...







Yeah, that just happened...

That is all for now. I have new neighbors; they seem pretty cool. But as far as I'm concerned, roommate free is the way to be! (but only when you don't have to pay for it.)

College: Spring 2010 -- Day Three

So far, so good. That's how I'm summing up the first three days of school this semester. Tuesday was incredibly easy, as I only have one class at 9:35. I'm done by 11, just in time to catch B before his philosophy class and eat lunch with Mitchell, Leah, and Chris at Garrett.
After lunch I headed back to my room and did pilates with some videos Leah gave me on iTunes. It hurts. Also, I have no balance. These things make it THAT much more challenging.
My English professor managed to prove to me again today that she is slightly off her rocker, but the class goes by quite fast, so I don't find the time to complain. I may do more of it once I finish reading and analyzing The Ballad of Sir Patrick Spens for Friday's class.
I learned about ways of knowing in biology today. And my professor's trips to Kenya. That was about it. The saddest part was the cell phone service goes in and out, making any form of text conversation practically inconceivable.
When I got to my Intermediate Reporting class, I was handed a "sheriff's office report" and 3 direct quotes and told to write a story. If I had learned anything in my Media Writing class last semester, this may not have been a problem, but considering I didn't...that was nerve wracking. Once I finally got in the flow of things I was fine and turned out (what I hope is) a decent story.
Brian just left for his French 102 class, and I'm getting ready to head to Panera Bread and Steak 'n' Shake before church to see if they're still hiring. I may try Cracker Barrel afterward, but it's on out there.
Due to a minor freak out by his mom about the weekend weather, Brian and I missed BCM last night because we were snow boot shopping, but if our plans pan out for tomorrow, we'll go to CRU.
We'll be hitting the gym again tonight for some cardio when I get back from church. I just hope my body isn't still too mad at me for making it do tree-zers yesterday...
Also, I bought banana chips and slim jims. It's an awful combination and I by no means recommend it.

College: Spring 2010 -- Day One

None of my classes seem like they're going to be bad so far. I think my English professor sat behind Jesus in preschool, but other than that, she seems alright. My only homework was to look up poems online and print them off; she doesn't believe in textbooks. I had to order one small novel that wasn't in the bookstore; I found a 1989 printing edition for 75 cents on half.com =)
I had about an hour break before my biology class, which is a HUGE lecture class, but won't be too bad, either. All the power point presentations are online to print off and I can take a test up to 3 times. Feel free to harass me if I don't get an A in this class.
My intermediate reporting class is filled with upperclassmen, mostly creepy looking photo majors, but it should be exciting all the same. Professor Mac seems interesting; considering I learned nothing in my 202 class, 302 may be a challenge. Good thing I'm a self-proclaimed grammar nazi!
After a successful fun to Big Lots and Kroger with Kelsey and Leah (complete with five reusable shopping bags) I headed for some food and workout time. I missed the classes since we went shopping, but I biked about 9 miles and MAN does my butt hurt =( The stair stepper upper/jogger/sprinter machine was also cool. We had a nice 15 minute bonding experience. Did I mention all the new machines have their own TVs? Uhm, yeah. It's awesome. Most of them have built in fans, too. I like this gym thing! I found some girls I knew and we did a short ab workout at the end, then headed back to the dorms to relax.
That's where I am now, and the couch (and Brian) are calling my name.
Class at 9:35 in the morning means a nice breakfast and a cup of coffee. I love my schedule.

Back to the Grind

So it is my semi-usual bedtime of midnight, and I'm finishing my last minute organizations and gathering everything I'll need for the morning. I'm being resourceful and using the same notebooks and binders that I bought last semester, so, yay me =)
I've got 3 classes tomorrow: English 200, Biology 113 (Intro), and Journalism 302 (Intermediate Reporting). Since I've decided to make more trips to Preston this semester, I've written "Awesome Abs" into my schedule at 4:30, followed by "Hip Hop Cardio" at 5. Hopefully they'll be fun and I'll stick with them. Tuesday includes my Public Speaking class at 9:35 and a "Mixed Yoga" class at Preston at 11:45. If I feel like I can make it, there's another "Awesome Abs" session at 5:10 on Tuesday.
Today/tonight have been rather laid back. I helped Kelsey move all her stuff in this morning, and Brian came down to help around 10:30 or so. Leah, Kelsey, Mitchell, Brian, and I went to lunch at subway around 2 after hanging around the castle for a bit, then split up so we girls could get ready to hit the mall =) We ended up taking longer than we meant because Dakota came back! ...but only so she could move out. This is rather depressing for most of us, but it's probably better for her to be home with her mom and going to school at Vandy. We wrangled up some boxes to help her start packing up, and when we got out of the showers, her walls were empty =( Her roommate is most likely switching dorms at the end of the month. LAME. Around 5:30, the 6th floor troopers (Leah, Kelsey, Jamie, Wynn, and myself) headed to the mall to get Kelsey's belly button pierced. Two small freakouts later, we were headed to Buffalo Wild Wings with two holes in her tummy =) It's very cute and I'm kind of jealous...
We watched part of the Vikings/SAINTS game with Alex and Mitchell at Bdubs, then went to a closed Big Lots, and headed back to the dorm. The rest of the night has been unpacking and wasting meal plans on ice cream and catching up on the past month of our lives. It feels really great to have everyone back together and to be getting into a routine again. The iHome alarm has been set for 8:15, so I'm gonna call it a night and hope for a solid 8 of sleep. G'night, y'all!

Back in BG

I'm watching how hot dogs are made on the Food Network's "Unwrapped" show right now. Part of me wants to vomit, but part of me doesn't care because they're still delicious. Now they've moved on to sourCRAP...or kraut. Whichever.
Today consisted of putting some more final touches on the castle, buying food and drinks, and trying to use meal plans. As is turns out, pretty much everything closed at 7 tonight. What time did we finally get home from Big Lots/Dollar General/Wal*Mart? About 7. After we hauled everything up and put it away, it was about 8. It was a LOT. But hey, now I have matching curtains and four cute pillow cases! (I only bought one pillow though..fail.) For at least half of the campus residents to be back, I can't believe only 2 eateries are open. It's slightly ridiculous. Brian and I were so upset we nearly ordered Chinese; but then we remembered all the food I just bought. Hello, Mac and Cheese!
I've got the room arranged differently than I did before break, so part of me is praying I don't get a roommate. I've packed so much stuff in here to fill up the empty space that I don't know how people survive two to a room anymore. You should see the randomness that I brought to fill my shelves. I almost bought a real plant today to put on top of an empty shelf. But then Brian reminded me that I'd probably kill it, so we nixed that idea. I'm still contemplating fake flowers though...
I've got posters and a few more pictures to put on the walls, but other than that, it feels like home again. Now I just need a kitty...
I'm excited for classes to start on Monday, believe it or not. I'm going to print out my syllabi tomorrow after church and going on a book hunt. Normal people probably don't get excited about that, but I am. I'm trying to get into better sleeping habits, so I assume I'll hit the hay soon.
Oh! I ran into one of my softball girls from Murray while I was in Big Lots, her sister goes to school her and her family was buying some sweet furniture for her apartment. We spent a solid 45 minutes talking about who's engaged, who's pregnant, and who's probably going to get engaged because they're gonna get pregnant. Oh, I love small towns =) Glad to be back in a big one!

I would stop working at NBC for 45 million, too

I was incredibly sleepy when I first went to bed about an hour ago, but now I'm wide awake and simply can't fall asleep no matter how hard I try.
Brian and I were going to move back into our dorms today, but I managed to postpone it because of some slightly terrible news.
Milkshake ran away.
Well, not really "ran away" per se, but more like, I let her outside to play on Tuesday and she hasn't come back yet. For me to be such an adamant dog person all these years, this is a big deal for me to miss this stinkin' kitty. I don't know why, but I don't want to leave without seeing her again and knowing she's ok. She managed to get under my skin without her claws, too, apparently. I miss the odd sensation of waking up to her climbing my window at 4 in the morning or trampling my face and licking my elbow. She's just so freakin' cute. It's been rainy and gross outside and I'm rather worried about her.
On another note, I'm really ready to get back to the Green. I don't know why, but I've just been rather BLAH lately. I can't put a finger on the reason. I feel like it's safe to say I'm not sick anymore, and the swollen lymphnode chain on my neck has all but disappeared, but I sporadically feel the need to just lie down and stay there. I'm hoping getting back into a routine of classes and such with jolt me out of this funk.
My goal is to find some kind of part time job in Bowling Green when I get back, provided I'll be able to take off spring break for which I mailed the deposit today. Brian will be giving campus tours, and I hope to not be sitting around being lazy all the time. Speaking of lazy...I definitely gained the freshman 15 while I was home over break. Probably just another reason I can't wait to get back to hiking that monster hill every morning. My calves have been warned.
I watched Leno tonight but skipped out on Conan, despite the fact that only one more new episode of his tonight show will be aired. Man, I am living through some great moments in history. And some pretty crap ones, too.
I love the support that's being poured into Haiti post-quake, but why did it take a tragedy to make us realize how poor this country is? Not that we can go back in time and fix it by any means, but if we could have poured in the millions of dollars a few years ago that we are now, maybe some of the infrastructure in the nation's capitol would have been more stable and able to withstand the quake; maybe they would have better technology and cleaner water and better medical care. Just a thought. It's all over the news now, but sooner rather than later I'm sure it will disappear just like other great headlines that still consume our citizens but not the forefront of our minds.
I have a lot to ramble and rant about tonight, but for the sake of your sanity, if not my own, I'll attempt to go to sleep.

"If you have trouble sleeping, count sheep. Do NOT count endangered animals; you will run out." -- Mitch Hedberg

You Caught Me

I'm updating the blog and redoing my layout because I don't want to clean my room. It's not really my room anymore, anyway. Milkshake's in there more than I am. She showed up outside about 2 weeks ago, and since I'm such a softie for animals, I went outside to pet her for a minute, then decided she needed food and milk. I went to get a refill for her, and mom had let her inside. When dad came home we decided to let him discover Milkshake for himself; but she was nowhere to be found. We headed out to the cabin for Christmas and she stayed here, most likely under my bed. She stayed around for a bit, and the Sunday after New Year's when I was in Louisville with Brian, Momma and Daddy let her out and she didn't come back.
Until last Tuesday. It's now 24 degrees outside and I'm not letting her back outside; so she's under my bed. I spent 10 bucks on her yesterday at Dollar Tree. Stinkin' kitty. But now she has a collar so I can take her outside without her running off and new toys and frisky's salmon something food. At about 4:30 this morning I realized I should have bought the toys WITHOUT jingle bells inside. *ahem*
I've still got 16 days until school starts back, and I'm as close to bored as I'll get. I helped with inventory at the library this week, and the hours I'm getting at Rue 21 are next to nothing. I've begun my search for a job in Bowling Green though, so maybe that'll work out. I'm only taking 15 hours next semester so that'll hopefully fill in some empty time and pry me out of the lab.
I can't think of anything else to postpone the room cleaning, so I guess I'll post a few pictures and be done for the day.

Well, it seems I have misplaced the cable that connects my camera to my computer, so I'm taking a raincheck on those pictures and going to go look for in while I clean my room =/

I FOUND IT!!


Dad's Big Red shirt

Claire and John and J's Charlie Brown tree

Papaw opening their new digital camera. "Where do ya put the film?"

Bubba

Claire in our sleeping quarters. Tight squueze.

out of order, but this is Milkshake

New Years at Brian's...so many people

The hat I got for Brian's dad (a die hard UK fan)

me decorating a Christmas cookie, as the Campbell Christmas tradiation calls for

Dad and Mom looking at the frame I got her

I named her Milkshake because of her milk moustache =)