it's like leaving breadcrumbs, only instead you make up stories

Today I planned to go for a run but ended up going out this morning, so instead this afternoon I decided to take a walk (since walks don't require a second shower). Rather than head to the lake, however, I decided to explore the neighborhoods around here that I never see. It was nice- full of pretty houses, tall pine trees, and silly Halloween decorations.

The thing about walking in places you've never been, however, is that you have to remember how to get back. It takes a lot longer to find your way when you're lost on foot than when you're lost in a car, especially when your car has a map.

So, in order to avoid never finding my way home, I make up stories with street signs. For example, by the time I'd walked far enough today and needed to head home, I knew that I needed to sleep by the creek, head north until I got to France, and then look for the mountain that would point me home. I have a similar story for when I go running in Richmond- Follow the ridge around the mountain, and then look for the magic stone that will point you home to the castle. I'm not making all of this stuff up, most of these words (or similar meanings) are in the street names. And my stories work, because I made it back!

"they send you off to college, try to gain a little knowledge"

This week I get to read about passenger pigeons and plastic pink flamingos for class. I will also learn about nineteenth-century sexuality, westward expansion, the War of 1812, and the subjunctive vs. indicative in Spanish subordinate clauses. Are you jealous yet?

it's raining!

Normally rain doesn't really excite me, but Raleigh is pretty thirsty right now and we need the rain. They've banned all sprinkler watering, so lawn-owners are probably doing a happy dance right now. I hope that umbrella is still in my backpack...

writin' tunes

It's important to have music playing when I write papers. Otherwise the silence combined with my sometimes tediously slow writing might be enough to drive me mad. However, I have to be careful with the music I play. It can't be too loud and crazy, and I don't want to have the urge so sing along, because that could be distracting. Other than instrumental or opera, I currently only have about three albums that do the trick.

The first is Darryl Purpose's A Crooked Line. I've been writing history papers to this since college. It includes a song about Rutherford Hayes, which is enough to put it at the top of my list.



Next is Eric Bachmann's To the Races. I heard him last year on some NPR show and immediately ordered his CD.



Finally, there is Kris Delmhorst's Strange Conversations. She took famous poems and made them songs. My favorite is the song "Sea Fever," based on John Masefield's poem. In fact, this is the CD that just helped me write a book review ten minutes ago.

weekend: fall break?

Thursday: Up early for a meeting, then meant to do lots of homework but ended up hanging out with a friend for a billion hours instead.

Friday: Read and graded most of the day. Watched a movie to celebrate all my hard work.

Saturday: Graded, then worked on a paper at a coffee shop. Home to grade a tiny bit more, then drove to Richmond. Read more.

Sunday: Read, ate lunch, and drove with the grandparents to Charlottesville. Walked around Main Street with Grandpa, then wandered off on my own to this crazy coffee place to read. Ate dinner with Grandpa, then all three of us went to a concert- Anuna, an Irish choir. Maybe you've seen them on PBS? I haven't. Read a little more before bed.

Monday: Breakfast at the hotel in Charlottesville, then drove back to Richmond. Made a sandwich and hopped back in the car to drive to Raleigh. Went straight to school for a meeting, then read. Now home to eat and finish that paper from Saturday.

an unexpected parade!

Today I went downtown to go to my favorite coffee shop and write a paper (actually I'm there now, and obviously taking a little break from that paper). I ran into some closed streets so I parked early and walked a couple blocks, and on the way there I ran into a parade! Once I ran into a parade in Charleston that wasn't very good and I was annoyed I couldn't cross the street and get away from it, but this parade was exciting because it had a great band and dancing. I deciphered that is was the Shaw University homecoming parade, and I stood there for ten minutes watching it, even though my backpack was very heavy.

a handful of heaven

Today I got a huge bag of delicious and fresh (we know they're fresh because they didn't have any until October, and trust me, we've been waiting for October) pistachios in the mail!


Thanks Grandma!

some things never go out of style

I recently read a blog entry where the author said guys should stop dressing up as presidents for Halloween. Um...are you kidding me?! Sure, more recent presidents are a little over done, especially with those stupid Nixon and Clinton masks, but I would swoon over any guy who came to a party dressed as Teddy Roosevelt or Thomas Jefferson. I'm just sayin'.

in case you missed it

It was OVER 90 degrees here, on OCTOBER 8. That's hot with only one t.

only three didn't make it

I *may* have just sat alone in the graduate lounge playing The Oregon Trail game on my laptop with professors as my fellow travelers who died of cholera and typhoid instead of writing a paper. Just maybe.

my weekend: sleeping and reading

Friday: Slept until 11am after going to bed before midnight. Did some reading and internet searching. Took a nap from 2 until 5. Read a lot more. Watched You've Got Mail (aka one of my top two favorite movies) at midnight.

Saturday: Slept until 10, read, went for a run, and read more. Took a break to eat popcorn and watch British comedies, then read again.

Sunday: Couldn't wake up to my alarm at 7:30 so slept until after 9. Got ready for church but was running late and then talked to my Santa Fe grandparents on the phone instead. Went to my new favorite coffee shop downtown to read for five hours, sat in my car and read more, then went to church at 6. Stopped by Target, and now ready to eat something and then...you guessed it...read.

I taught the kid to pop corn

I like to listen to NPR's All Songs Considered on my iPod when I run, and since I haven't been running much lately I've gotten behind. Today I listened to a show from August 9 and they played a song by the band Beirut. I'm listening to them now on their website, and I really like it. Anyway, the main guy is Zach Condon, and guess what?! I totally knew that kid back in Santa Fe. He got a job at the artsy movie theater where I worked and I trained him in concessions and tickets. He had shaggy bangs and didn't talk much. Apparently he later dropped out of high school and travelled Europe, which has a noticeable influence on his music. Now he lives in Brooklyn and is livin' the dream I guess. Good for him.

Sometimes I think this is me!

toothpastefordinner.com

i'm tired

Monday night I took a short nap around 9pm so I could keep reading. Last night I ended up taking a nap at 10:30. I had to turn that nap into going to bed early (11=early!) because my eyeballs wouldn't stay open, but that meant I had to get up early this morning to grade papers. I woke up at FIVE IN THE MORNING. I don't recall ever in my academic life having to get up that early to work. I'm tired of running on coffee. I'm tired of not getting enough sleep during the week and then not getting enough work done on the weekends because my body won't do anything but sleep. I'm tired of my heavy backpack and walking around campus in one big yawn. I'm just plain tired.

out of juice and suckin' up bugs

Today I had to cancel a meeting (well, we rescheduled it), which I never ever have to do. I'm always where I say I'll be, though I might be a couple minutes late. Anyway, not today. Why? you ask. Because I was stuck in Richmond. Stuck. My car would not go. Turns out I needed a new battery. Grandpa helped me take it and get a new one, so I was only stuck for a couple more hours. I'm sick of dealing with my car. I don't want any more problem, you hear?

When I finally got back to my apartment I heard a noise in my room. I prayed it was not scary vermin. Turns out it was a bug in my floor lamp. I could only see its scary shadow through the glass shade, and I was too afraid to stand on my bed and look more closely. I thought about smashing it with my shoe, but I decided that would be a lot of trouble since it was up there in the lamp and what if it flies? Or stings? Or explodes with babies? So instead I was a genius. I got the vacuum cleaner, attached the long hose, and without every having to look at the thing directly, sucked him up. If you have stories about how that was not a good solution because he could get out and multiply in the laundry closet where I keep the vacuum, I don't want to hear them. Thank you.

Weekend Review

Friday: Went to get my car, then to get my emissions inspection. Instead of the inspection I had to make an appointment, so I went home for an hour, then back out for the inspection, only right when I got there I got the call that my horn was in, so I went and had that fixed, and then went back and finally got the stupid inspection. Went back home and cleaned my apartment and took a shower, then drove to Richmond. Chatted with my grandparents, and visited with our new German neighbors. Read homework.

Saturday: Read in bed, then went for a run. Went with the grandparents to lunch, then home to read more. Almost took a long nap, but drank coffee and read more instead. Went to the Italian Festival in Church Hill with Sam and pet a pig, then went to Captain Buzzy's to chat. Went to aunt's house for some food and more chatting into the night.

Sunday: Read in bed. Had lots of family over for lunch. Did stretches with Sunni, then read more. Took Grandpa with me to church, where he apparently made note of all the dudes with tattoos wearing shorts. Back home to read, a short break for dinner, more reading, a short break to post on my blog, and now ready for more reading.

You know what's not conducive to an afternoon of productive homework?

Stuffing yourself at a delicious Indian buffet for lunch. That's what.

completely spoiled

I'll be the first to admit my grandparents spoil me. I'm in Richmond for the weekend and my sheets have been washed and the bed is made, clean towels are set out in the bathroom, the kitchen is stocked with skim milk and pistachios, and there are even fresh flowers in my room.

I know some of you think I only come to Richmond to do my laundry and eat good free food, but it's not true. Really. I come to hang out with my grandparents.

But I'll also be the first to admit that those other things make a pretty sweet bonus.

Back behind the wheel, and the horn works, too.

I finally got my car back. Finally. And just in time, too. I got a call yesterday from the car rental place that my insurance money was up and starting today I would have to pay for it myself. So I called the repair shop (again) and they said it's ready. Note they didn't call to tell me it's ready, I called them. Anyway, this was some pretty good timing. After watching The Office with the girls last night a friend helped me return my rental car and get to my apartment, and this morning another friend picked me up and took me to get my (finally) repaired car.

Only problem? They discovered this morning that my horn didn't work. But they'd ordered the part already. This made me feel uneasy. I had plans to drive to Richmond, and is it a bad idea to drive without a horn? The lady at the desk said she doesn't use her horn. "Do you usually use your horn?" she asked. Well, no, if you're asking if I'm one of those road ragers always poised to honk obnoxiously, that's not me. But what if someone slowly backs toward me and I don't have a horn to stop them from crunching my brand new hood and bumper?

Anyway, long story short, I left without the horn but in about three hours they called and said they had it, so I was able to get that fixed. I also passed my emissions test and applied my new registration sticker to the license. And everything seems to be working fine because I made it safely to Richmond.

Of course now that I have my own 2000 car back I'm missing the power windows that actually work on all four windows, the air vent that doesn't constantly flip up and can actually point where I direct it, and the cd player of that 2007 rental car...

Who knows what tonight is???

It's the season premier of The Office! Yessss.

I expected this, but it's still annoying.

I haven't mentioned it lately, so you might not realize that I still don't have my car back after my accident a month ago. Every day the new expected date of completion changes. The original estimate was for September 12. Then they called and said it might be ready late on Friday the 14th, or on Monday the 17th. That Monday afternoon I called and they said maybe Thursday the 20th. Friday the 21st I called and they said today, the 24th. Today I called and now they say it should be ready tomorrow. I won't believe it until I see it.

Weekend Review

Friday: Read all morning in bed, ate, read some more, finally got showered and dressed, drove to Foster's Market in Chapel Hill to eat a scone and read more, drove back to Raleigh to read more. This sounds like a lot of reading, and it was, but I'm pretty sure I did some puttering in there, too, and at the end of the day did not feel like I'd done enough.

Saturday: Got up and met Tess and Elizabeth to head to the NC State vs. Clemson football game. Sat in traffic on Hillsborough for almost an hour and then realized one of the other girls didn't have her ID to get into the game (which, thinking back, I don't think they ever checked anyway...), so drove back to her place and got it, then took a different route back to the stadium and quickly got in. Started counting how many times Elizabeth was jeered at for wearing orange and purple. Watched State lose from close seats in the end zone. Melted into a boiling puddle of sweat. Left during fourth quarter tired and hungry. Grabbed a sandwich on the way home and took a shower. Tried to read but took a nap instead. Started reading again around 8pm. Stopped reading to meet Tess for ice cream at 9:30. Read more from 11 until 3am.

Sunday: Slept in and went to late church service. Went downtown to hear some opera singers and symphony players, but only heard two opera songs before the symphony members left and didn't like the opera ladies when they switched to show tunes, so left. Happened to drive by a coffee shop downtown and stopped, which turned out to be my new favorite place. Read until they closed at 5. Home to read more, then eat and watch tv. Talked to parents and puttered on internet, now ready to read more.

more on that movie, because apparently I'm obsessed

So I decided to make use of the internet and actually look up that movie Kevin Costner is filming (with my dad!) and it's called Swing Vote. And then I looked at the cast list, which includes Nathan Lane (Ryan saw him at the hotel a few weeks ago), Kelsey Grammer, Deniss Hopper, Stanley Tucci, and George Lopez. And if you keep scrolling down the list you come to... Joe Gallegos, who plays a reporter. I know Joe! In real life! We were friends in junior high (and lots of kids wanted us to be more than friends, but that didn't happen even after he gave me flowers for my birthday) and kept in touch through mutual friends in high school and a little in college. The last time I saw him was a couple years ago in Santa Fe- he met a friend and me downtown for drinks. Anyway, just another way I'm connected to this movie and Kevin Costner!

update on The Extra

I talked to my dad this morning about his experience with Kevin Costner. Get this- my dad stayed there while they filmed until almost four in the morning! Crazy Dad. But, he's totally going to be in the movie, if you know to look for him. I don't actually know the name of the movie, but next year before the election look out for a Kevin Costner movie about a presidential election that is so close it all depends on one voter, in Texico, New Mexico. And in some scene you will see Costner and his movie daughter or granddaughter or something, and in the background my dad will walk by! That's right- they pulled him from the crowd and had him walk by as they shot a scene seven times. He'll be the guy with a white beard and wearing a leather jacket.

extra!

Kevin Costner is in Santa Fe right now. My brother Ryan always keeps me updated on these things when he sees celebrities. The extra part of the story is that Costner (and some others I don't remember) are filming a movie now that requires a presidential debate scene with a big crowd, so they've woo-ed a crowd to the rodeo grounds with a free concert of Costner and his guitar and free raffle prizes. And apparently my dad has gone over to sit in the crowd and listen to music and be an extra in a movie.

He's always doing stuff like that. Not trying to be an extra, but trying to see movies being filmed. Years ago he took me downtown to stand in the street and watch Woody Harrelson film a dancing scene for some movie I don't remember and never saw. Dad and I also tried to catch some filming of Rent on the plaza once, but we were too late. When Jessica Simpson filmed Employee of the Month at the park across from our neighborhood dad and Ryan went to check it out, and were told by security to leave. My dad also keeps me updated on all the movies being filmed around New Mexico. The latest news was that the old state capitol building right next to the building where he works downtown was recently transformed into the White House for one day of shooting.

Clearly, that stuff is exciting for my father, and I bet he's having a great time tonight.

Looking North

I've been thinking about moving to New England. Ok, that's not really true. But I've definitely been thinking about how I've never been there but I bet I would love it and maybe when I'm finally done with school in three more years I'll go up there. I hear it gets pretty cold, but I think I can handle it. I used to want to go into the Peace Corps and I was eyeing those cold Eurasian countries. Ok I'll be honest, I mostly preferred those places because I'm afraid of bugs and snakes and heat with no air conditioning.

Anyway, here's what my past four years looked like:
-A semester of school in Tacoma
-A semester of school in London followed by a month of travelling around Europe
-My final semester of school in Tacoma, then a few months working and hanging out
-A year in Richmond at two different jobs
-A year of grad school in Raleigh
-A summer in Richmond
-and back to Raleigh.

As you can see, I move around a lot. In fact, in about a month I will have had my current apartment longer than I've lived in any one place since I graduated from high school and left Santa Fe. (Sort of. In some ways my grandparents' house in Richmond wins because I still go there all the time and always have my same room to live in. But you get the idea.)

So I guess I'm just getting antsy. Alas, I still have quite a while to go in North Carolina.

Welcome to my living room.

This is my living room. I got my first plant to put on top of the new bookshelf that I put together myself, so I thought I would share them with you all. If you come visit I'll make tea and we can sit and chat.

Weekend Review

Friday: Slept until 11, finally read a chapter, went to school for a meeting about my thesis, looked at a couple of books at the library, went to an HGSA meeting at Mitch's for two hours (ugh), came home and wasted lots of time, finally read one more chapter (I think?).

Saturday: Slept until 9, read, went for a run (finally- it's been over two weeks), read more, made biscuits for dinner, went to The Nanny Diaries with Elizabeth, came home to read more.

Sunday: Couldn't wake up in time for the early church service (early being 9:30) so slept more and read, then went to later service (11:30). Home to read and grade papers for the rest of the day, including some more I'm about to go do.

Sometimes when you follow the rules you end up in old lady shorts.

The summer of 1999, between my sophomore and junior years of high school, I spent eight weeks at a music camp in Michigan playing the piano and cello. The camp was hard core, and I was grateful I was a piano major and didn't have to deal with the crazy competitiveness that band and orchestra kids had to deal with because of chair placements. But that's a different story.

This camp has a strict uniform code that hasn't changed much since it started in 1928. Concert wear for girls includes navy corduroy knickers, knee-high light blue socks, and a light blue collared shirt (or white on Sundays) tucked in. Plus a red sweater. In the summer. When not performing, girls are allowed to wear navy shorts, and the light blue socks do not necessarily have to be knee high. But the shirt must always be tucked in.

Going to this camp was a big deal for me. I thought about it for several years and worked hard to raise the necessary funds. I was so nervous about sending my audition tape and application that I later wrote about the application process for my college admissions essay. After I found out I was accepted (and even before, I'm sure) I pored over the literature they sent in the mail about camp life and what to pack.

I knew all about the uniform. Knickers and buttoned-up shirts were loaned by the camp (that's right, those things soaked up many a camper's sweat year after year), and you purchase-ordered your blue socks ahead of time. If you wanted shorts or light blue polo shirts you were on your own. But there were still rules.

According to multiple instructions, a girl's navy (and not denim) shorts were not to be shorter than the length of her fingertips. In fact, they called them "walking shorts." Now, if you girls would please stand up and notice how low your fingertips fall, and think back to high school and the days before hip long shorts, I think you will understand where this is going. Long shorts were not cool. But at camp, apparently they were the rule. I had to shop for a very long time before I could find long enough navy shorts that didn't have pleats and a high waist. The pairs I finally settled on were still extremely embarrassing. "It shouldn't be too bad," I convinced myself, "because all the other girls will have long shorts, too. Right?"

Wrong.

I arrived at camp with at least three pairs of long and unflattering shorts. I followed the rules. And I never saw a single other high school girl with long shorts like mine. Somehow they all knew they didn't need to worry about that rule. Or they simply chose fashion over obedience.

I was not a happy camper. And I sure sported those knickers proudly.

woohoo!

Guess who has been classified as a North Carolina resident for tuition purposes? ME!!! That's right. Not only does my address, driver's license, vehicle plates and registration, voter registration, and state tax payments classify me as a resident, but my school does, too. Whew.

the game is called "awesome shirts we should buy Andi"

Check out what Val and Nic have come up with so far:

link

really great weekend

Friday: Slept in after getting home late Thursday night. Read one measly chapter, then went to the store to find zucchini. The first store didn't have it, so I tried another. With zucchini and lots of cheese in tow, went home to make delicious zucchini squares. Immediately cut my thumb on a cheese grater, but wrapped it up in a paper towel to cover the blood and kept working. Also sliced cheese and frantically got myself ready, then left with zucchini squares and cheese for the graduate student and faculty reception at Oakview. Mingled and chatted away. Talked with a professor about Texas and the Oregon Trail while everyone else cleaned up. Went out with a group for (more) drinks afterwards.

Saturday: Up early to pack up my dirty laundry and hit the road for Richmond. Arrived in time for Mexican Saturday lunch. Took a nap. Went to the store to look for zucchini. The first store didn't have it. Recognize this?! Found it at a different store. Learned Ukrops doesn't sell beer, and sort of felt stupid for not knowing that already. Came home to make zucchini squares, but had happy hour with the grandparents instead. Started making zucchini squares, and used a food processor instead of slicing my thumb again. Frantically got myself ready and left with zucchini squares-turned-triangles and beer for the James and Jennifer Send-off. Chatted with lots of friends.

Sunday: Read another measly chapter in bed, then showered and ate delicious lunch with family. Read some more with tea and coffee while everyone else napped. Went to church and got teary-eyed over my real Murphys see-you-later. Home to watch some opera with Grandma and read. Scrounged up some dinner, and now about to read more.

"I think this one's a keeper."

On our never-ending quest to find decent Mexican food around here, the grandparents and I once again tried a new place today for Mexican Saturday. I learned from a recent survey about a couple of new places that are supposedly good. Then I read a review and decided we should try Cielito Lindo. Grandpa had the tilapia, I had good carne asada tacos, and Grandma and I both had margaritas. The place wasn't too far, was cute, and the waiter was friendly and put up with us very nicely (except for the part when Grandpa mentioned I'm from New Mexico and the waiter said "that's near Arizona, right?" Ugh. "Yes," I replied, "but it's much better than Arizona.")

It's still not what I'd like, but that's because New Mexico has spoiled me. Unlike many of the places we visit in Richmond, however, this is one we'll gladly visit again.

Finally.

Tonight I finally went to my first show down here in North Carolina. Well, not counting a few cover bands. Ever since I left Tacoma/Seattle I've really missed going to concerts. Tonight my friend Elizabeth and I went to Chapel Hill to see The Mountain Goats (but really it was just John Darnielle). It was great. I had forgotten about how I listened to a Mountain Goats cd on repeat as I packed up my apartment in Tacoma to move away. One of the lines is "I am gonna make it through this year if it kills me." I was prepared to use that as my theme song in my future home of Richmond, but luckily I didn't have to. Of course now with busy and hard school plus a thesis to write, I might have to reinstate it...

back to school: weekend of homework

Friday: Slept in, spent many hours working on my application for in-state tuition, ran errands, home to eat and read well into the night.

Saturday: Read and did homework, ate lunch, drove around looking for an open coffee shop with big enough table, finally found one and spent four hours working on my thesis, home for a crossword puzzle in front of the tv and a little more reading.

Sunday: Read, went to church, home for lunch, read, took three hour nap, ran errands, read.

In case I ever need to leave breadcrumbs...

I just went to the freezer to get down some pita bread (I freeze my pita and bread, since I can't eat it fast enough) for my hummus. I was pretty sure I had seen some earlier this week, which is why I bothered buying the hummus. Turns out I was wrong. Instead of a package of pita I found five almost-empty packages of bread with nothing but the heels. FIVE. I don't like to eat them, and I guess I feel bad for throwing them away so I tell myself I'll feed them to the ducks at the lake. I've never gone and fed them to the ducks. For now I think I'll just put them back in the freezer.

Gracias Profesor(a?)

I am overwhelmingly grateful for how patient and kind my Spanish professor is. Seriously, she deserves a medal or something. You see, I am in a Spanish class with several other graduate students who need to pass the same language comprehension exam in order to get our MAs. We're mostly American history and English students, so this language thing is a big pain in our you-know-whats. Luckily, the course is designed especially for us. All we have to do is translate written Spanish into English. "Como estas?" conversations or written assignments that read like a children's book ("el gato es negro y blanco...") are not our concern. Plus, the course is pass/fail or audit only, so we don't even have to hand in assignments.

But what we do have to do is go around in a circle and translate, and it can be tedious. I mean, we're in the class because we don't really know Spanish and we want to learn it in one semester (ha!), and we don't even really want to learn it but we want to graduate. So we go around reading the Spanish text aloud in English, but the professor must correct every other word we say (it seems) and sometimes we just stare at her blankly. I imagine we must be incredibly disappointing. And yet, she is always smiling and understanding. I don't know how she stands it, but I sure am thankful that she does.

Gotcha!

In case you don't know, I'm a little paranoid about bugs. I hate them. I'm scared of them, I have a special bug dance for when they're around, and I want them dead. Not put outside, dead.

Now, I'm not an idiot. If I can get someone else (Grandpa, my mom, a boy, etc.) to kill a bug for me, I will. But sometimes those people aren't around, and that's when I put my brave and determined face on. It's also important to be armed with a flip flop.

Last night there was a spider cricket in my bathroom. A big one. I got my sandal, crouched as close as I dared, and aimed. Unfortunately I missed, and the thing hopped to safety under the sink where I couldn't see it. "I'll get you in the morning," I said, and closed the bathroom door.

This morning I opened the bathroom door cautiously, and there he was, back in his original position. I got my sandal, crouched a little closer, and aimed. I was 0 for 2. He jumped back to his hiding position. "I'll get you when I get home tonight," I said, and closed the bathroom door again.

This evening I opened the bathroom door cautiously, but he was still hiding. Or, you might say, prolonging the inevitable. I simply had to wait.

Five minutes ago he was back. And I was ready. Third time's a charm.

Junior High Style

Today I signed up for a locker at the library. Only graduate students get them, so that's pretty exciting. Actually, I think this makes me a complete nerd. But hey, I don't want to carry heavy books around campus all day on Tuesdays and Thursdays (when I have three classes, plus extra homework to do in between), and I don't want to spend all my time walking to my car (or rental car, sniff) in the parking deck. Unfortunately my locker is the bottom one, and it's small, so you practically have to lay down on the floor to get into it.

I haven't had a locker since junior high. It was orange. No wait, I had a blue locker my freshman year of high school for PE. I was always a little disappointed in the no locker situation in high school, after growing up with Saved by the Bell. Maybe I'm secretly trying to make up for that now. Unfortunately the tiny locker on the floor buried in the stacks of the university library probably isn't going to cut it.

Weekend Review

Friday: Talked on the phone a lot about my car, moped around, took a long nap, and finally did some reading late at night.

Saturday: Walked to the car rental place, ran some errands, read, took a short nap, went to Neomonde for dinner with the girls, drank wine and watched The Office at Jenny's, and went out on Glenwood for drinks and dancing.

Sunday: Slept in, went to church, puttered around, ate a late lunch, read, took a nap, and read more.

Are you kidding me?!

This morning after dealing with car insurance and car rentals and car fixers, I finally decided I should eat something. So I went to the fridge to get some yogurt, and the light in the fridge was out. Then I opened the freezer and noticed that the ice is melting. So now I have the maintenance guy coming to fix my fridge. I'm just grateful I'm a renter and I don't have to pay for this.

*Whew, don't worry, the guy came and fixed the electrical outlet (I guess that was the problem?) and the fridge is up and running again. Now I have to go catch it. Haha, get it? My fridge is running...

Here, let me tell you about my day.

First, I woke up before the sun. Why? you ask. Because on Tuesdays and Thursdays I have a class at 8:30 in the morning, and I gave myself 45 minutes to drive to school and walk across campus. I haven't had a class this early since high school.

Next, I drove to Chapel Hill to buy a book at Borders. Why? you ask. Because my professor submitted the wrong book list and I bought a bunch of the wrong books through Amazon, and one of the books that was not on the list is a book he wants read by next Wednesday, but is not in the bookstore yet, and Borders in Chapel Hill is all I could come up with that had it in stock.

After that I went to my favorite place in Chapel Hill to get a scone and chai and read my women's history book, but then I discovered I bought (again, through Amazon) the third edition when my professor wants the fourth edition, and while that might not matter for some books it definitely matters for this book because I was missing most of the assigned articles.

At three I went to my TA class, which is Early American History. That went fine.

Since we got out early I had time to go to the bookstore on campus and purchase the correct women's history book.

I then had to walk across campus again, through the stifling and sticky North Carolina heat, to my Spanish class. It started fine, but by the end I was tired and she was talking about Spanish grammar and I was thinking to myself "Where am I? How did I end up in this place talking about Spanish grammar? It's like high school again."

When this class finally ended just before 6pm I walked back across campus to my car, thankful that the day was over and I could go home to cool off and eat dinner.

But then.

Then I got in a car accident. And my car was towed away, and I had to call a friend to come pick me up off the side of the road. No joke. I'm fine. I don't know about the car yet.

My friend (Tess) took me to her apartment, since we were all planning to go there and watch The Office later anyway, and she made me dinner and gave me aspirin for my headache, and was a very good friend for picking me up off the side of the road and being so nice about it. She even stood on the super hot sidewalk with me for a long time, where we both got mosquito bites.

After hanging out and watching TV another friend drove me back home, since I don't have a car to drive anymore, and now I am ready for a shower and to fall into bed.

p.s. Let me add that the day really didn't seem so bad while it was happening. Even the accident was fine- I didn't freak out or cry or get upset or anything. Life happens I guess. It's only now, going back through my day, that I realize it was what some might label "a no good very bad day."

whoah

I just realized I haven't had caffeine all day. I don't think that's happened in a very long time.

my personal parade

Last year at the beginning of the school year I was in the parking deck walking to my car when I heard the pep band march by, and I got kind of excited about the idea that I was going to a school with a pep band that walked around campus. Then I never heard the pep band again and I got kind of sad about that. But today they were back! In fact, I had just driven out of the parking deck and was sitting at a stop sign when the whole band decided to dance right by me on the crosswalk. It was like my own personal parade, and it made me smile.

Toods Virginia, Hello North Carolina

Alas, the summer ended and it's back to school for me. I spent the whole weekend hanging out with the grandparents and Uncle Richard, playing Rook and eating like it was going out of style. Sunday I finally packed up and left Richmond after a concert with Grandpa (plus more snacking at home). I arrived in Raleigh around 9:30, unpacked the car, and decided to go ahead and unpack everything in the apartment as well instead of dragging the whole process out over three weeks. Since I was on a late-night roll getting the apartment back in order I also decided to put together my new bookshelf, which turned out excellently. I'll post pictures later when it has books and I've rearranged the pictures on the wall.

Today I had lunch with incoming students, went to a TA meeting, and had another meeting for the history grad student association. Then I had to buy groceries for my empty fridge. Now I'm about to head over to a friends house for movies and pizza.

Let me say this: Lots of the other returning students seemed full of doom and gloom today with the start of a new semester, but so far I'm excited. Sure, I'm sad the summer is over, too, but I can't do anything about that and as long as I'm here I plan on having a good time. (Of course I may be singing a new tune in a few weeks when assignments are due...)

a little bit of this and a little bit of that

I forgot to tell you that my brother Ryan went to the state championship last weekend for his shooting stuff and he won two trophies. Or maybe it was three. But the real excitement is he is the New Mexico Junior Champion! So congrats to him.

More news from New Mexico is that my mom had surgery a little over a week ago on her arm, and in case you don't know she can only use one of her arms and that's the one that was chopped on, so it's kind of a big deal. But she's doing well and she thinks she might even go back to work a little this week, so that's good. This was really the summer of surgery. Remember Grandma and Grandpa? (who are both doing very well!) Well my other grandmother also had surgery on her hand, and Uncle Richard had surgery, too, or at least he was in the hospital for a while. Sheesh.

My grandparents got a new fancy bed last week so they can each adjust their own sides of the bed, and when I was away working on my thesis at a coffee shop they snuck into my room and took my lovely brass bed away and gave me their bed. I was a little bit sad about this, because I don't like change, but really the bed I have now is bigger and very nice. They've had it for years and years. Also, Grandma let me pick out a brand new comforter for it, which was nice. Then she told me I have to come back and get another internship next summer now that she's gone and bought me a new comforter for the room I'm currently moving out of.

Actually, the moving isn't "current" quite yet. People keep asking me if I'm packed yet and when they first asked that I thought "Pack? I didn't even remember I would have to do that!" But it's true, I need to start bagging and boxing up the room so I can stuff it all in my car and move back to Raleigh tomorrow. In the meantime though, I'm going to go take a nap.

If I think it's delicious, it must be. Right?

I realized today that one of the reasons I don't like to cook very often is that I'm always nervous and self-conscious about how others will like my food. I mean, I'll pretty much eat anything, but it turns out lots of other people aren't the same way. I suppose if I'm trying something new for the first time or just making it up as I go I have a pretty good attitude about the whole thing, as some potluck people can attest to when I show up and say "Here ya go, not sure how this will be but I'm cool with it if you are." Instead, the times I'm most nervous are when I'm making something that I love, which probably means making something my mom makes and I've grown up with.

Once in college I made my mom's delicious pizza (with homemade crust and everything!) and put all the usual toppings on it, but the two friends I had over for dinner began picking toppings off their sections of the pie before I even got it in the oven. "Whoah whoah whoah," I said shaking my head in disbelief. "What are you doing? When you eat Andi's pizza, you eat Andi's pizza!"

They say one of the steps of child development is being able to empathize with others and take their thoughts and feelings into account. At least I think that's what "they" say, but I'm no psychologist. Anyway, I think I must not have fully developed in that area when it comes to other people not liking some of the foods I love.

"You don't like Indian? Is that even possible? It's my favorite!"

or

"You don't like sweet potatoes? Are you even American?"

or today's example,

"You don't like my mom's tuna salad? But it has avocado and tomato and egg and sprouts and you eat it in a pita! How can you not like that? It's the best tuna salad there is!"

Sadly, today Grandpa did not enjoy the tuna salad sandwiches I made the way that he should have. Some people, it turns out, just don't know what's good.

There's a reason I will never watch The Birds.

Remember the bird that had the nest in our garage? Well she's been back for a while, and that means I spend as little time in the garage as possible. The bird, you see, is mean. She's a mean bird. She flies around and yells at you. She says "stay away from my nest and eggs," and I yell back "stay away from my garage you mean bird!"

Lately we thought maybe she was gone, since no one had seen her for a few days and there don't seem to be babies in the nest. I was hoping she was gone today when I went out to the garage fridge for a Coke. I peeked in the door and looked in, guarding my eyes with my hands against the possibility of a beak assault. Instead of seeing her, however, I saw a hummingbird. Ugh. Maybe you think they're cute, but hummingbird shmummingbird, why can't they just stay away? I opened the big garage door in hopes the hummingbird would fly out, and when it seemed to just sit still by the fluorescent light (which I turned off, also in hopes it would fly away) I decided to brave the garage anyway and grab my soda. Of course right when I entered was the moment the mean bird came flying out! Agghh! The place has gone to the birds.

Weekend Review

Friday: Went for a run, ate lunch with the grandparents, took a long nap, went to a movie, and puttered around for the rest of the night.

Saturday: Read, went for a run, drove all over town and finally ate dim sum with the grandparents, took a long nap, happy hour with the grandparents, and did some thesis research.

Sunday: Chatted with Allison, did some thesis research, ate lunch with the grandparents, walked through the Watermelon Festival and then all over the Museum District, went to church, ate with church peeps at Joe's Inn, and more puttering.

morning announcement

This morning I went downstairs to scrounge up some breakfast. I'd decided on eggs in a frame, and it was as I was flippin' my frame on the stove that Grandpa came in with an announcement.

"This afternoon we have an appointment at 4:10."

"An appointment?" I replied, "what kind of an 'appointment?'"

"We're going to see The Bourne Ultimatum. Grandma and I haven't been to the movies since we moved here."

And sure enough, at 4:10 the three of us went to The Bourne Ultimatum.

As we walked in Grandpa asked if we wanted popcorn. Grandma said she didn't want it right then, but maybe she'd want it later.

"What do you mean you'll want it later?" I asked.

"You know, maybe in the middle we'll come get popcorn."

"Uh uh," I said. "You don't leave a movie in the middle for popcorn. You'll miss the movie! It's now or never."

So Grandpa got the popcorn (and drinks).

After the six previews were finally over Grandpa said (a little too loudly) "It's about time." He also leaned over during the film to *whisper* "I wish they'd learn to keep the darned camera still," and after the movie ended he declared (again, a little too loudly) "Well, that was a lousy movie."

So maybe The Bourne Ultimatum wasn't their style (even though they'd seen one or two of the other ones), but we all had a good time. We also left the theater with popcorn crumbs on every one of our shirts, though mine, of course, had the least.

Time flies when you're having fun.

The summer is coming to an end, and yesterday was the last day of my ten week internship. In addition to the lunch and gift I got on Monday, the rest of the archives staff threw an ice cream social for me yesterday. They also gave me a very nice card complete with bug stickers on the envelope. Apparently I made a reputation for myself for hating bugs. And to top the party off, they gave me a framed collage of the Virginia governor whose papers I worked on all summer. The whole thing was very nice and exciting.

Yesterday morning I finished my section of the collection, so for the rest of the day I got to go through an older collection of letters from the late 19th to early 20th century. It was fun to work with a different sort of collection (mine was from the 1970s-80s), even if only for a few hours.

The people at my internship were really good about showing me around and letting me get a feel for different kinds of archival work. Overall I had a great time there. They kept making jokes at my ice cream party about how I must be glad to finally be getting out of there, and I kept having to say "You don't understand! I really do like it here! I go home and tell people the exciting stuff I get to do!"

So I'm going to miss it. And now I have to enter the uncomfortable transition period between work in Richmond and school in Raleigh...

It's a dirty job, and you have to stay organized.

A few weeks ago my uncle was helping my cousin work on his truck, and somewhere along the way he cut his hand. "Now I'm a real mechanic again!" he said. That was when my cousin held up his scarred hand and said "Look at this- I'm a plumber and I get cut all the time." Then I jumped in. "I'm an archivist, and I can get a mean paper cut."

No my friends, the world of archives is not as quaint and bookish as you might imagine. Take today, for example. An eighteen-wheeler dropped off two palates piled high with old boxes and filing cabinets full of papers, and I helped to rebox and move them on the hot loading dock. Well, we started to rebox and move them until we noticed bugs, and not dead bugs but moving live bugs. And I got red rot all over my clothes, which I had to blot out with tape in hopes it won't stain. So that was pretty exciting.

Today was also my last day working with the woman who has led my project all summer. As a treat she took me to lunch to celebrate. She also presented me with a cute gift bag. She noticed that I went through a ton of post-it notes this summer, because they help me stay organized. Apparently not everyone uses as many post-it notes as I do, and she was amused. As the supportive person that she is, she wanted to help me out with future archival projects and with my thesis work, so she gave me quite the assortment of brand new post-its. She thought she was being funny but I'm already planning how I will put these babies to use.

weekend review

Friday: Up early to take my car to the shop, then back home for Grandma's delicious scones. Went for a run, then had grilled tuna steaks for lunch. We also had sliced avocado so between the scones, tuna, and avocado I had three of my favorite foods before noon (we ate early). Went to the eye doctor to get a new prescription for my blind eyes and ran a few other errands, including getting a new bookshelf for my apartment. Looked at terrariums at First Friday with Sam and got a delicious beer afterwards (that makes four of my favorite foods in one day! Oh, and I ate pistachios, so that makes FIVE!)

Saturday: Went for a run, then out to a new Mexican restaurant for lunch. It was better than some, but still not quite what we're looking for. Drove to Raleigh and checked on my apartment (no leaks or bug problems!), then went to a cookout at Ryan and Erin's house. Didn't win the limbo competition, dance competition, or raffled door prizes.

Sunday: Slept in some, then drove back to Richmond. Went to a really great chamber music concert with Grandpa. Home to work on the crossword and take a nap on the couch. Now a little puttering before bed.

I guess I won't be taking us to the beach.

Today Grandma gave me a small flier with details on how to go online and find out if she won a sweepstakes. The prize is $25,000 a year for life. I won't tell you the details because everyone knows that sharing info on large prizes with friends means lessening your own chance of winning, and apparently I'm not that nice. Anyway, being the smart Grandma that my Grandma is, she decided it would be better to enter the contest under my name so the "for life" part will last a little longer (barring any horrible unforeseen circumstances, of course). We started to plan out how we would split the prize, since she got the flier but it is under my name. Grandpa said I could have it all as long as I took them to the beach every year, but I said maybe I should just get $5,000 a year and they can keep the rest. I think we all agreed that was a good plan.

Alas.

I still have a few days to keep trying for a $10,000 award and daily prizes, but we did not win $25,000 for life. Looks like we'll have to find some other way to get to the beach.

stamped: return to sender

I'm a disaster.

As you probably already know, my apartment is in Raleigh. I, however, am in Richmond, and have been in Richmond all summer. But you know what goes to apartments? Mail. I mean, mail goes lots of places, but my mail happens to go to my apartment. My mail is usually not very exciting. Forests of trees-turned-fliers-and-coupons generally fill my box, but a few important things come, too.

Now, ordinarilly when someone leaves her apartment for the summer she makes sure to deal with the mail situation. Maybe she has her mail forwarded, or has the post office hold it. Maybe she even has a friend check her mail every once in a while.

But me? I didn't do any of the above. I thought I would be going down there a lot more often during the summer and I could just empty the box every once in a while. Then unforeseen things happened around here and I didn't get away much. Yet even when that turned out to be the case, I still neglected to deal with the mail situation. I pretended that my teeny tiny mail box grew to the size of a locker in my absence and continues to be a happy receptacle for my mail.

The truth, however, is that after the box became crammed full the post office was nice enough to hold my mail for thirty days, and after thirty days was up (at least a month ago) they began to return my mail. It's all gone. A friend checked yesterday and all that's left is a dang flier.

Ugh.

weekend trip north

This weekend I went with my friend Tess to Washington, DC and the Northern Virginia area. It was great fun. We stayed with my (great) Uncle Richard in Leesburg. He recently moved into the penthouse of a big fancy condo in a big fancy condo complex for 55+ers. It's okay to laugh when you hear that the place is called Leisure World.

Friday we saw the changing of the guards at Arlington Cemetery, visited the National Portrait Gallery, ate lunch at the Chinese place in Chinatown with the guy making noodles, and visited the National Museum of African Art. Then Uncle Richard took us to dinner at Clyde's in Leesburg.

Leesburg, it turns out, is closer to West Virginia than it is to DC. So Saturday we drove to Harpers Ferry. I really liked it there. There was history (+1) and mountains (+1) and wineries to visit on the way back (+1). Saturday night we went to Adams Morgan in DC, which is a strip with tons of fun bars and restaurants. I think Uncle Richard didn't know what to do with two twenty-four-year-old girls at Leisure World running around at 9pm trying to get ready for a night on the town.

Sunday we slept in and then went to brunch with Uncle Richard at an old bank. Then Tess and I went to Georgetown to walk around and shop before hitting the road again for Richmond. I also introduced Tess to the world of Ikea on the way home.

Overall it was a pretty excellent weekend. We saw museums and sights in DC, mountains and history in West Virginia, a beautiful winery, and DC nightlife and shopping. And seriously, how could a weekend that involved taking this picture not be awesome?

tagged: 8 habits or facts

1. I still drink Carnation Instant Breakfast most mornings for breakfast. In fact, I'm running out...

2. If I write in a book that I'm reading for school (and those are the only sorts of books I write in) I do it in pencil because I think it keeps the page a little cleaner looking and also because I am always self-conscious about what other people will think about what I've underlined if I ever sell the book or lend it to someone, and I imagine that I can always just erase everything, though to this day I have never actually gone through and erased any of the pencil markings.

3. I make my bed every day, even when I live alone in my Raleigh apartment. Every day. Mostly this is habit, because my Dad always forced us to as kids and because my grandparents will give me a hard time if I don't, but I also feel like it makes the bed seem more fresh when I get back in at night, even if I haven't washed the sheets in two months.

4. When eating M&Ms or Skittles I like to have an even amount of colors in my hand, so I will eat the extras until they're even, and then eat those evenly, usually three at a time.

5. Since I have been getting up early every morning to take Danny on a walk (so he'll poop somewhere other than the yard) and to water, I have been in the habit of cheerfully telling myself once I'm out of bed to "Greet the Day!" And sure enough, it helps cheer the morning up. Coffee helps, too.

6. My love of crossword puzzles has put my grandparents into the habit of always leaving the Flair section of the newspaper (aka "Andi's section") out in the living room for me, even when they've already thrown the rest of the paper out. Also, when I am in Raleigh for school but they know I am driving up to visit for the weekend they save me the crossword, and that makes me happy.

7. When I go to Taco Bell, which I mostly do in Santa Fe but occasionally do in Raleigh, I usually get a bean burrito and a soft taco supreme.

8. My face often has a habit of giving away whatever I'm thinking without my noticing. This usually simply amuses people, because I have been known to make some funny faces unconsciously.

At least the running warmed me up.

Those of you in the area already know that today was unseasonably not as warm as usual. And a few posts ago I told you that they keep the building freezing at my internship, so I use a lunch-time walk in the heat to warm up. But without heat today, I stayed cold outside even though it's July and I was wearing a long-sleeved shirt. In fact, I looked down while eating my sandwich and noticed that my fingers were white and my nails were purple with cold-ness.

As I continued to walk down the nice tree lined street in the Fan and contemplate my freezing fingers, a whooshing flurry flew precariously close to my head. "Goodness!" I thought, "that bird scared me." And then the bird scolded me and I looked up in a tree to see its beady little bird eyes staring directly at me. Before I could even comprehend the creepiness of the ogling bird it took off from the branch and headed straight for my head. I jumped and hurried off down the sidewalk, but the whooshing bird came at my head again. No joke, the bird was stalking me. I had visions of bird poop in my hair and my eyes being pecked out, and when the bird kept flying from tree to tree and aiming at my head I freaked out and ran down the street to get away. Seriously. I ran. With my open Coke.

Weekend Review

Friday: Man, I can never remember my Fridays...oh yeah: slept in a little, made rolls, went to the store, ate Grandma's meatloaf with my rolls, took a nap, went to a bookstore, and went to Sam's for Allison's going away party.

Saturday: Ran, went to lunch, took a nap, puttered, went to a coffee shop to research for thesis.

Sunday: Up early, worked on crossword puzzles, made pasta with shrimp and tomato sauce, took ten-year-old cousin to spend gift card at the Limited Too and endured her singing every word of the "I'm a Barbie Girl" song in the car, went to church and chatted afterwards, home to putter all night before finally going to bed.

My worlds don't often collide.

In college, I was always keenly aware of the separation of my Santa Fe and Tacoma lives. Except for the occasional visit from my parents or Ryan, nobody else from the two places ever mixed. Well, once an ex-boyfriend visited me in Tacoma for about an hour freshman year, but that was it. When I moved to Richmond that simply added another world that rarely mixed, though it did so more than the other two.

The real collision of my worlds lies with Allison. Allison and I have been friends since our freshman year of college. I'll admit that sometimes when I think back on friends at school I mostly think of Katie and Amy, or the friends I would watch movies with on the weekend and go to shows with in Seattle. I didn't do those things with Allison. But she and I were in a Bible study all through college, so in some ways we knew each other even better. And when I really stop and think about it, she was truly a big part of my college years. We froze together while planting cherry trees with migrant workers during a spring break, she helped fill my room with tiny cups of water stapled together on my birthday, one semester we met for breakfast every Tuesday at the SUB, I held her hand while she got her nose pierced, and we went to a Sunday service together at Westminster Abbey in London.

Allison graduated a year early and moved to North Carolina for PT school at Duke. We were all sad to see her move so far away, and honestly, I doubted I'd really see much of her again, because sometimes that's how life goes. Then I moved to Richmond. And after that? I moved to North Carolina, too. And then she moved to Richmond! As if these coincidences weren't enough, back in 1999 we were both at the same music camp in Michigan for eight weeks. We didn't know each other at all, but now we can remember together blue socks, the date gate, and the tuba hut. And you want to know another coincidence? The one person from college who actually has seen me in Santa Fe is this guy Cody, who is a close family friend of Allison's. How crazy is all that?!


Last weekend another friend who was in our college Bible study came to visit for the day, so three of us were back together again! That's Josefina on the left and Allison in the middle.

So to boil all of this down, what I'm trying to say is I love Allison and I'm incredibly grateful that she transcended my Tacoma world and is still in my life. I love hanging out with her, and sometimes when I'm sitting next to her in church I think back to sitting with her at Lighthouse in college and I am overwhelmed with how amazing it is that we're still together.

Tomorrow Allison leaves Richmond for Belize, where she will work her PT magic with children for six months. I will miss her a lot, but I think this is an amazing opportunity for her so I'm also excited to see her go. I can't wait to hear about her adventures, as well as her inevitable (but hopefully few) misadventures. And who knows, maybe the next time I see her will be in Belize in January?!!!

Mexican Saturday is back!

Today for lunch Grandma and Grandpa and I went out for Mexican food. This was their first post-surgeries outing other than visits to doctors. We weren't terribly impressed with the food and the service was only so-so, but we sat outside and had a very enjoyable time. It was especially enjoyable for Grandma and me, with our "medium" sized margaritas that turned out to be jumbos (like I said, service was only so-so). I, however, did not finish mine because *someone* had to be able to drive us home for naps.

Updates on the internship.

Some of you readers whom I know (is that the correct use of "whom?" I had a professor who said not to bother using it anymore, but I disagree with him.) in real life have asked how the internship is going, and now I'll go ahead and let all of you know whether you asked or not.

In short, I still really like it. Sometimes the work I'm doing gets long and tedious, but that's just how working with these big archives collections goes. I finished the project they had for me after five weeks (plus it will take a little time to fix it up once someone has looked over my inventory), so they had to find a new section of the collection for me to do, which is exciting I guess.

What isn't exciting is finding mouse poop in the folders, or dealing with rusty paperclips that shed dust and probably give you cancer when you breath. (And for the record, the mouse poop, as far as I can tell, is very old and was deposited before we got the collection.)

Tomorrow is another public lecture, which I'm excited about. It's on George Washington. I'm sad that this will be the last lecture that happens while I'm still there.

Every day during my thirty-minute lunch break I take a walk. It's my favorite part of the day. I don't mean that in the "recess is my favorite subject in school" sort of way, I just mean that I love walking around the neighborhood and looking at houses and yards while eating my sandwich, fruit, and cookies. And sure, it's usually a billion degrees when I'm out, but they have the air conditioner on so high all the time that thirty minutes is the perfect amount of time to thaw out.

I hope it rains.

For several weeks now, I have been in charge of watering our yard. Sure, I turn on the sprinkler and that takes care of the grass, but my grandparents have flowers and tomatoes and herbs and tons of other stuff all over the place, and it's my job to keep them alive. So far I'm doing okay, and watering seems to work. I even sprayed some bug killing stuff on some Japanese beetles a couple times. But my gardening knowledge stops after water and bad beetles.

Grandpa loves flowers, so not only does he have them all over the yard, but he usually arranges them around the house as well. Add to that the fact that my other grandfather in New Mexico used to own a flower shop, and you'd think I'd know a little more. Those pink flowers on the fence? No clue what they are. The red ones by the stairs? Nope. I don't even know about most of the herbs out there. The tomatoes I can handle, but even there I didn't have them staked up and after describing the massive mess of tomatoes in my yard to a woman at my internship she scoffed and said "you weren't made to live on farm" (like she does). Even when I tried to arrange some cut sunflowers on the table the other day I simply made all the petals fall off in my hand. Sometimes I feel like a gardening disaster.

But despite all that, the yard still looks pretty darn good if you ask me. And you don't even have to ask me, because you can see for yourself!


These are only some of the tomatoes.

See Danny under the table?
















We have grapes, too!

You know who else enjoys our yard?



Myrtle.

Weekend Review

Friday: Woke up to Grandma's bran muffins, did some stuff around the house, then ran. Ate lunch, took a nap, then ran a few errands. Ate dinner, then hung out with cousins.

Saturday: Did stuff around the house, and eventually ate lunch. Went to a coffee shop to do homework, then saw the new Harry Potter movie. Ate at Famous Dave's, then came home to do a crossword puzzle and go to bed.

Sunday: Ran, went to the store, then made Andilicious Burritos for lunch. Took my friend Josefina from college to Carytown, then to get a beer at Capital Ale House. Church at four, then we ate Ethiopian food with Allison and Sam. Sat with my grandparents and worked on a crossword puzzle, and now off to bed soon.

I don't live in an empty house anymore!

My grandparents are back! Grandpa came home yesterday, and Grandma came home today. They still have lots of recuperating to do, but they can walk and get themselves to the kitchen. Tonight they came to the kitchen to experience my first attempt at tomato soup. We have a billion tomato plants outside, which I am in charge of watering. Also, they are flopping all over the ground because I don't know anything about gardening or putting in stakes and stuff. I figure since we have a billion plants we can sacrifice some of the tomatoes to the ground and eat the rest. Anyway, I didn't want to make plain-old-tomato-soup so I added some herbs I found outside (I water those, too) and an onion and even some jalapeno and chili powder. It was spicy and not at all what they were expecting, but I thought it was good and they at least played along nicely and ate it all. Now I have to think of some other awesome things to do with tomatoes for when a new little batch gets ripe...

on the up and up

I wouldn't know because I've never had surgery, but apparently it sometimes makes you want to die. Or it makes you despair and think you will be an invalid forever. But really, most surgery is done to make you better. Even better than you were before. So you have to sit tight for a while, and that takes patience.

As you can probably imagine, things have been a little stressful around here. Well, just a little for me, but a lot stressful for Grandma and sometimes for her daughters. Stressful for Grandpa, too, because he's been sitting in the same boring hospital room for two weeks.

But things are looking up. Grandma's surgery went well, and she was already getting up to walk a little this evening. Also, Grandpa had a lot of fluid in his chest that made him short of breath (which is why they wouldn't let him come home), but today they drained it all out (1.5 liters!) and he's doing much better. This is all exciting news.

A few days ago in the thick of stressful times, despair was swimming around in Grandpa's chest and he said "sell the house and get us an apartment." He rescinded that rash statement, and today with a chest full of healthy air he ordered "renew the passports!"

Weekend Review

Friday: Went to my internship, visited Grandpa at the hospital, then came home and...I'm not really sure. Maybe I just watched tv? This weekend has been a little off since the Wednesday holiday messed with the week and I don't usually work on Fridays.

Saturday: Ran, then went out for a Thai lunch. Helped an aunt create a PowerPoint presentation, came home for a little bit, then went to a coffee shop to do research for my thesis. Came home and got in bed to read.

Sunday: Ran, ate lunch with Grandma, then went to another coffee shop for more research before 4:00 church. Took Grandpa some cooked spinach, then came home. Now I will work on a crossword puzzle and then go to bed.

Tomorrow morning Grandma has surgery, so both of my grandparents will be in different hospitals and I will be here, holding down the fort with Danny.

a few little updates

Danny-the-cutest-dog-ever is sick with a not-so-cute hacking cough. Luckily he sleeps in Grandma's room and not mine.

I played my cello today. I'm not gonna lie, it wasn't very good.

Grandpa did not go to rehab today as planned. Turns out he's doing too well for it, and yet they said he's not well enough to leave critical care and come home. Riddle me that.

Today in my internship collection I found the signature of a president before his presidential days. That was pretty exciting. I also found a newspaper ad from 1975 that read "Enter the Miss Virginia Beauty Pageant. No Talent Required."

"I don't know much about the Civil War, but I can tell you about the Alamo."

Those were my words to the news camera in the fourth grade when my dad took me to the ceremonial (re)burial of some Confederate soldiers in Glorieta, New Mexico. Luckily they didn't air my little interview that night on TV.

Tonight I stayed more on topic when I was interviewed. If you happened to be watching the channel 8 six o'clock news in Richmond this evening you saw me say a few words from the corner of Stuart and Mulberry in the Fan. I was walking and eating a sandwich during my lunch break when I saw a news camera up ahead, so I made sure to cross the street and get out of their way. Apparently I was the lone young woman they'd been waiting for at that corner though, so they jogged across the street to meet me and ask if they could ask me a few questions on camera about the two sexual assaults that took place last night in that area. I said sure, but then realized I didn't really have anything to say- that's a horrible thing to happen, but why did they want to talk to me about it? I wasn't there, I don't know anyone involved, I don't live there, and I don't walk around there alone at night. Anyway, it was awkward but I got through it and the few seconds they aired weren't too bad. Thankfully there was also an intern present to tell me I had crumbs on my face before the camera rolled.

Weekend Review

Friday: Visited Grandpa at the hospital, ran some errands, ate lunch with Mom, took Mom to the museum at the VHS, watched a movie.

Saturday: Visited Grandpa, ran more errands, ate lunch, took Mom to airport, hung out around the house with cousins, went to aunt's house for Chinese and to hang out on the porch.

Sunday: Ran, visited Grandpa (he looked great today!), went to Mass with Grandma, ate lunch with her at the Hill Cafe, read for an hour, went to church, went to other aunt's house for pho party.

This is true when you live with my Grandma:

toothpastefordinner.com

So good.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Tarrant's is delicious. Today for lunch I ordered chilled strawberry soup and a Reuben, and my mom ordered gazpacho and a Monte Cristo. I ate some of everything, and it was all amazing. Even the potato salad and pasta salad were good. The service is great, and the atmosphere is fun, too. If you're in Richmond you should go there. And take me with you.

He'll always be Superman.

Yesterday I went to see Grandpa after work. He asked someone if they wanted a fat lip and referred to his surgeon as "The Chopper," so I cried with relief to have my Grandpa back. He's in a ton of pain, as anyone who has had their chest cracked open and their heart stopped and messed with would be (not to mention a vein taken out of his leg and lots of tubes sticking out of various places). Today when I went the nurse came in to walk him to his chair so he could eat his liquid dinner. He didn't want me to stay and see him walk, and told the nurse he was supposed to be Superman and couldn't have his granddaughter seeing him otherwise. Of course that only made me want to cry again because seriously, I could never think of him being anything less than a super man.

So far so good.

Grandpa has come through the quadruple bypass and things are going smoothly so far. He's still on the ventilator, which they will try to take out tonight or in the morning. All four artery grafts (I think that's what you would call them) went well. Grandma and Mom and I got to the hospital around 9:15 this morning. Eventually Judy, Sunni, and Caryn joined us. We finally got to see him around 4:30. He was still asleep and had tons of tubes sticking out of him, but he's alive and we got to touch him and tell him we love him.

During the many hours of waiting I did a few crosswords and sudokus, read about four pages of a book, played Boggle and Old Maid, ate lunch, a green milkshake, and some hot fries, talked with family, and went outside for a break from the worrisome waiting.

Grandma will get to visit him in the morning around 10, and I can't wait to see him tomorrow after work.

a different sort of weekend

Friday: Ran, grabbed lunch at McDonald's, and spent the afternoon at the hospital both hanging out with Grandpa and then waiting to hear the results of the cath. Ate dinner with Sam at Mom's Siam, then got a beer at the New York Deli in Carytown.

Saturday: Ran with Monica on Monument Avenue, ate lunch with Grandma, and spent the afternoon with her watching tv and napping. Picked up my mom at the airport, then went with her and Grandma to see Grandpa at the hospital. Ate and hung out with Mom into the evening.

Sunday: Went to mass with Grandma and Mom, then to visit Grandpa again. Ate lunch at Aunt Judy's house, then came home for a nap. Went to FSC for church, then back to the hospital for a brief visit. Home to eat with Grandma and Mom, and now going to watch tv and do a crossword puzzle before bed.

Grandpa's surgery is scheduled for tomorrow (Monday) morning at 8 am, so we'll all be hanging out at the hospital tomorrow. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers, and please keep them up!

Thoughts and Prayers Please

Grandpa is in the hospital, expecting a quadruple bypass any day now. He had a cath scheduled for last Monday, which was pushed back because of something with his kidneys, and then it got pushed back again and finally happened yesterday afternoon. That went fine, but showed that things are pretty serious. He's in CCU now, and apparently he's not feeling too great today. So please keep him and grandma in your thoughts and prayers, as well as the rest of the family.

still a nerd

Today at my internship I got to visit the preservation lab and use the encapsulating machine. It was pretty exciting.

nature seems to be moving in

Our garage has become a zoo.

A little bird built a nest in a cubby holding paintbrushes, and birds hatched, and one of them has already flown away. I mean, I guess this is kind of neat and cute and all, but the momma bird is always making a fuss at anyone who goes in the garage, and I'm always afraid she's going to swoop down and poke my eyes out.

In addition to the bird, the other day we were in the garage to check out the birds and the grandparents noticed a squirrel over by the other wall. A squirrel who was headed straight for the door, where I happened to be standing. I freaked out and jumped a mile out of the way, then ran across the yard, afraid the thing was going to bite my ankle and give me rabies.

The next day Grandpa reported he saw a chipmunk in the garage. Now seriously, this is getting to be too much. All those animals are, as animals tend to do, leaving grossness everywhere, and now I'm afraid I'm going to get hantavirus.

My Weekend in Review

Friday: Covered my grandparent's bathroom window, then ate lunch with them. Went over to an aunt's house to let her dog Ginger (a 13-year-old chihuahua) out. Back to grandparent's house for a super long run (over six miles), then sat around with family drinking wine and chatting. Ate a little dinner, then headed back over to aunt's house, where I spent the next two nights. Played Guitar Hero a lot and became a Guitar Legend.

Saturday: Up to make a pot of coffee and read, then out for Mexican lunch with grandparents. Let the dog out again, then went to a coffee shop for more reading. Went to dinner with family, then to see the musical Into the Woods.

Sunday: Played Guitar Hero all morning and then only had time for a twenty-minute run. Over to the grandparent's house for lunch, then made two kinds of delicious scones (cran-orange and gingerbread). Let the dog out again, then raced across town for church. Over to different aunt's house for "high tea" with sandwiches and my scones for Father's Day, or in my case, Grandpa's Day. Back over to other aunt's house to feed dog and play more Guitar Hero. Home at grandparent's house for bed.

Happy Father's Day

On Father's Day, I just thought you all should know that my dad is a pretty awesome dad.*

My dad taught me to love history. He took me to historic sites and events and reenactments and he introduced me to 1776 the Musical, which also played a big role in helping me like history. He also sounds slightly interested when I go on and on telling him about what I'm currently learning about or writing in school, which is nice.

My dad taught me to be honest. In the fifth grade I liked this boy, and for Valentine's Day he gave me a card and asked me to a movie. I was super excited and said yes, but then I flipped out and changed my mind and didn't know how to get myself out of the awkward "actually, I don't think I want to go to a movie with you anymore" situation, and even though my mom agreed to make up the story that at age 11 I was too young to go to a movie with a boy, my dad did not like the idea and said he would not support it. He also gives back the extra money every time a cashier gives him too much change.

My dad taught me the value of money and looking for things on sale. Also, I am a very picky shopper when it comes to buying clothes, and my dad is, too. Luckily, this means he is one of the few people in the world who will put up with shopping with me. For example, he is the one who took me prom dress shopping my senior year of high shool, and after many many hours at many many stores, we agreed on a decent dress that did not have flowers (he kept picking out dresses with flowers that looked like something a ten-year-old would wear on Easter), was not too tight, and did not cost an arm and a leg.

My dad taught me to leave a safe distance between my car and cars in front of me on the highway. He might not always think I actually do this, but I sure do it more than lots of people. He and I have spent many many hours driving on highways, because he drove with me between Santa Fe and Tacoma four times. One of those times he made us stop at The End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center in Oregon City, which I did not want to do at all, but I ended up really liking it and that is when I first became interested in the Oregon Trail.

My dad taught me about how great long walks can be. He likes to walk, and now I like to walk. When dad came to Tacoma for my college graduation we went on this long walk from my apartment over past school, down to the water, back up the hill through the rain, and finally to my favorite pub. So far that is our favorite walk together.

My dad taught me the fun of having family songs. He and I have a special song by Roger Miller. He also has a special song with my brother Ryan. And whenever my mom says "Shoot!" the rest of us sing "Bang bang, she shot me down..."

My dad taught me some other stuff, too, but we don't want to be here all day. Instead, I will leave you with this picture of my dad and his two kids on Christmas of 2006. (Please notice that our angel on top of the tree was wearing a fishing vest ornament, a waiters ornament, and has a fish ornament hanging from her arm.)



*My mom is really awesome, too. Just so we clear that up.

Total History Nerd

Today at my internship I was sitting at my big table working away when I learned there was a public lecture about to take place downstairs, and the lady who's supervising my work and answering my billions of questions asked if I would like to go.

"Okay, yeah, I'd like to go," I said out loud, (when on the inside I yelled "heck yes I want to go hear a history lecture!"), "when is it?"

"Um, in about two minutes," she replied.

So I dropped my work and quickly headed downstairs, making sure to memorize my path so I could find my way back afterwards.

I was taken aback when I entered the auditorium and saw a sea of senior citizens, but the speaker was good and it was interesting. Sometimes I got sidetracked though and stopped paying attention, but only because I was thinking "This is so great. I'm getting paid to learn history!"

You want to know the worst thing ever?

Being kept awake at night by itchy mosquito bites all over your legs and feet and elbow. And you know what's even worse? Having bug bites that make you not want to shave your legs because you always cut them open when you shave and they scab over or get infected, but then when you don't shave the tiny growing hairs catch ever so slightly on your already irritating pajamas or sheets or pants or towel, making them itch even more. Like I said, worst thing ever.

Weekend o' Fun Review

Friday: Went for a run, then ate lunch with the grandparents. Ran some errands and read for a few hours at Crossroads Coffee and Ice Cream, which I liked and will visit again. In the evening I went over to play Guitar Hero and Dance Dance Revolution with my cousins.

Saturday: Went for a run, then headed over to Sunni's 10th birthday party, complete with a pool, moon bounce, slip 'n slide, video games, and a pinata. Was attacked in the moon bounce by wet ten-year-old boys and ended up fully clothed but completely drenched. After the cake I drove home, put coolant in my car, showered (again), and drove to Raleigh. Went to a cook-out at Ryan and Erin's house, where I partied all night and won a hoola hoop contest. I even got a trophy, but I forgot to bring it home.

Sunday: Slept in, then drove back to Richmond in time to pour wine for church at 4. Came home and had tea with the grandparents, then ate dinner and watched the beginning of the Tony Awards. Now very tired and off to bed.

Bigfoot

Way back when, like junior high days, I had pretty big feet. I normally wore sizes 9.5 or 10. My Aunt Caryn would give me her old shoes, which were huge, and they would fit. Then I guess my feet shrank. (Or shrunk? Er, got smaller.) I wore 8.5 for several years. 8.5 is a good size. It's Celia's size, and when she makes me get dressed up to go out I can borrow her heels.

But my feet just got big again. My parents bought me a pair of cute black flats in Santa Fe, and they are size 9. Not only are they size 9, but I realized after wearing them all day last Sunday they are still a little snug. Blame it on that particular brand, you say? What about when I got running shoes last weekend and I ended up bringing home SIZE 10?! How do you explain that? And then I got some fancy flip flops(by fancy I mean not from Old Navy), and they are also size 10. This is crazy, I say. Crazy.

internship update

Even though I've been out of school for four weeks and gone on two vacations already, I feel like this week was the real beginning of my summer since I finally started my internship. Monday I came home exhausted and was in bed by nine because it's been almost a year since I've had to get up early to sit and work for eight hours (even if I was working for eight hours, perhaps writing a paper, I had plenty of coffee; but when working with archives you can't have coffee with you, and that's rough). It's going well so far. Today, on my third day, I finally found my way to and from the archives and manuscripts office from the staff entrance all by myself! This morning I also got to go with the staff to hear three visiting scholars talk about the research they're doing at VHS, and that was exciting. Oh, and there was a story in the paper, and then I got pointed out on the internet.

Tuesday I amazed myself by getting up at six in the morning to go for a run before work, and I even got to work a few minutes early! It was great. I might try it again tomorrow. Also, Sunday I bought my first pair of real running shoes (I've been using my old tennis shoes all this time. And by "tennis" I mean plain athletic shoes- don't get confused and think I play tennis, because I don't.) I had no idea what a difference they would make! Why did no one tell me sooner?

And finally, I know you readers were probably worrying about this, but Myrtle the Turtle has appeared once again in the back yard. (I *may* have been a minute late on my first day because I had to run back inside to tell Grandma the turtle was out for the first time.) So fret not, Grandma has her little friend back and can once again yell at poor Danny every day for eating the turtle's food.

Weekend Review

Friday: Slept in, then went for a run around the lake. Puttered around telling myself not to freak out about my back. Went to the library at school to return and check out books. Also went to Target and the grocery store (needed milk for Saturday's chocolate milk breakfast). Did some packing, and watched the last episode in Grandma's As Time Goes By boxed series.

Saturday: Up early to pack the car and drive to Richmond. Went to lunch with Grandpa, then worked on the crossword puzzle and tried to take a nap. Unpacked and moved back into my Richmond room for the summer. Had dinner with Allison, Sam, Jennifer, and James at Allison's place. Beat the boys at Taboo.

Sunday: Up sort of early to run, but it was raining so I did the crossword puzzle instead. Went to Stony Point for church, then home for lunch with the grandparents. Went to the mall to spend my free $15 at The Limited, and ended up spending lots more money of my own that wasn't free. Went to church at FSC and mingled afterwards with friends. Had soup and beer at Ipanema with Allison and Sam. Visited with cousins Leslie and Sunni, then went to Dick's Sporting Goods to spend more money with Leslie's friends and family discount. Off to bed with first-day-of-summer-internship nervousness.

My back hurts.

While in Santa Fe my lower back started to feel a little funny, and I thought I must be sleeping on it wrong. One day was especially bad, and I blamed it on my old mattress with worn out springs, so Ryan switched the mattress with the trundle bed mattress under my day bed (day beds are hot, I know). That helped a little. But right as I was starting to feel better, I had to sit for many uncomfortable hours on an airplane and carry my heavy bag on my back, and that didn't help anything. Today my back is bad again. But let me clarify- when I say "bad" it is definitely relative. I have been blessed so far in my life with little pain, so when something is different or uncomfortable I say it hurts. I still managed to go for a run, and that didn't hurt, but I can't bend down very easily, and I couldn't do my usual stretches, and I decided against crunches.

I'm really hoping that sleeping on good beds and not sitting in airplanes will fix it, and that this will just go away. Especially since I have to start sitting at a desk all day every day on Monday.