Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Dead Week, Packing, Clothes, and Remembering Where it All Began

So it's Tuesday? Yeah, I suppose so.

Dead Week really is dead. My interactions with others have shown me how ready everyone is to be done with school. I am too, but I'm also trying to figure out classes for the summer... not sure what the best plan is. Should I go here for summer classes, which would be cheaper class wise but involve a lot of driving? Or take it where there would be less driving, no extra help and it goes for longer into the summer. I'm leaning towards the classes I'm already signed up for, but perhaps that might change. Who knows.

What was I talking about again? Oh right, Dead Week!

I've been packing away my life, which includes trying to figure out what clothes are good to pack. My realization? I am not good at packing away clothes, because I can't figure out which outfits I want to save! Goodness, I'm such a stereotypical girl. I love my clothes, what can I say?
One of the biggest problems I'm trying to think about are weather issues. This week is supposed to be raining all week. Next week is supposed to be extremely sunny. Oh Oregon.

The effects of clearing out my room are finally starting to show up, and it's really weird. I'm getting flashbacks to the very beginning of the school year, when everything was fresh and new. Oh room, despite having some problems you will be missed.

I've been chewing gum again since yesterday. Bah.

How do you decide on outfits to pack/wear for non vacation/ non everyday purposes?

Monday, May 30, 2011

The Search For Housing and Possibly Finding Transportation

How can someone come out of the shower smelling worse? Because that's a weird smell coming from my room mate, and she just got out of the shower. Maybe she uncovered something, and that's causing the smell?

How's that for an introduction? Anywho, today was quite a busy day! I looked around at places to live, all that jazz. Truthfully, I only met with two of the people whose ads I messaged. Still need the other person to get back to me.

The first one ended up being a no go just because it was so far away, and they wanted someone now. The people living there were kind of odd too.

We looked around at other buildings as well, just to see what prices I could get if I planned on living by myself.

The other place I looked at was pretty good. It was right on campus, and the other tenant was really nice. She's from China, and so is the other guy who lives there. The biggest downside is that it's an old apartment building, so it's not very pretty. I suppose I could spruce it up though.
I've looked around at other options, and I'll still keep looking.
Still, I think I might have found my place to live. We'll see.

What's in other news? Well, for awhile now, my parents have been talking about getting me a car of some kind. It all has to do with my mom needing the car that I'm driving currently, and all that jazz. I tell them I don't need one but honestly, I don't know if I would be able to do things without a car. I don't like asking for things like that still. Anyway! Today we passed by a used car on the way back home. Possibility for a car? Perhaps! It has a decent amount of mileage, but I think it would be good. A car is one of the last things on my mind though.

Paper that's due tomorrow? I do not want to write you. Bah. But I must.

What's your strangest housing search experience been?

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Housing Advice, A Lot of Food, and Nothing Days

Sometimes there are those days where you're not really sure what happened... yet it's already 11.

For the past few days, I've been scourging the Internet for places to live. I've been looking through Roommates wanted sections of things, and I've found some interesting prospects. Some have been iffy, some have seemed stiff, and some have seemed pretty good. Tomorrow I meet with one of the potential housing situations. Asking for advice from family for housing brings you many different views and opinions, which tend to be conflicting views. For instance I ask my sister about one ad that states the other tenants are, "clean and responsible." She thinks they sound like they have a stick up their you know what. Same advertisement to my mom? They sound completely perfect. I know that it's all my opinions, which is what I ended up going with in the end, but all of the different views make me confused.

Ooof. Whenever my family gets together, food becomes like rabbits and multiplies. Willpower? Not somethimg I have. Gotta work on it.

In other news, saw the fourth Pirates today. It was alright, but not critically acclaimed film. Plus the religious guy in the film? Gorgeous.

Sure there's no school tomorrow, but I'm not ready for the school week! It feels like it's already here.

Who do you get housing advice from?

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Crazy Theatre Productions, Lack of Sleep and Family Graduations

Have you ever read the Greek play Lysistrata? Have you ever seen it performed at a college at midnight?

Basically, ridiculousness. The girl next to me received about four lap dances. There was a giant purple dick held up by a stick and a cloth to represent a guy who really needed to get some. Like I said: Ridiculous.

Attending last night's show made me get four hours of sleep. Result? Two car-ride induced naps. Ah...

It's been a long day really. My cousin graduated from law school, AMAZING!

Just been hanging out, eating food, driving, and watching my cousin graduate. Now... we relax.

What's the craziest theater production you've ever seen?

Friday, May 27, 2011

Overall Good Day, Pacing Problems and Sampling Gels

Three day weekend, here we co- are. I guess we're already at the three day weekend, aren't we?

Looking back at today, I have to admit that it was a pretty swell day. Swell is a word that should be used more, don't you think? Was a day that was a lot more relaxed than most of the other days during this week, presented a pretty good project, got a twelve miler in, and tonight I'm going to a midnight showing of the college's production of Lysistrata with some friends. It shall be raunchy.

Why yes, I did run twelve miles. WOO! I even have proof:

The one thing that makes this furious at myself however is that pace. Ten minute miles? Ten minute miles?!?! When the heck did my pace decide to slow down like crazy? Now, I know what you're thinking, "Hannah, there are runners out there who would be fine with a pace like that." There are also runners out there who would look at that and scoff, who would be the people I'd like to punch in the face. However, the biggest problem is that that pace is not my pace, and I hate it. I want to be able to finish in double the time it took me to finish the half marathon because well, it's double the mileage. I finished the half marathon in a little under two hours. That's a pace of about 9 minutes. Mrugh.
I suppose I really shouldn't be so hard on myself since the last time I did a long run was the thirteenth. We are our harshest critics I guess.

Ranting aside, I'd just like to state that I freakin' ran 12 miles today. That's pretty sweet. I'm getting close to surpassing the half marathon mark of miles!
This run consisted of a lot of "firsts" actually. First long run in my new shoes, first run since I got sick (which now might have been a bout of the flu. Not really sure.), first time doing three days of running in a row since starting training for anything, and first time trying a gel!

As you can see above, the gel that I decided to try was the Strawberry Banana Gel. I was kind of terrified at this gel concept, but at the same time intrigued. Would it be horribly disgusting? What would it taste like?
The gel ended up tasting like banana Laffy Taffy and strawberry Laffy Taffy... if it were gellified. Which was a good thing, because I love Laffy Taffy. Weird thing though? I felt the need to chew on the gel. Let me repeat that: I felt like I needed to chew gel. What is wrong with me?
I felt kind of sick at the halfway mark though, and that feeling lasted for awhile. Eh. As you might be able to see, I wasn't able to finish the gel either. It currently sits in my fridge for another day. Can you save them? I have no idea.

As a last note, I had to think about how lucky I was that I got sick instead of injuring my legs. I was out of commission for a few days instead of what could have been a few weeks, maybe months.

Despite the frustration, as I said before it was a pretty swell day. Tomorrow should be pretty swell as well! (Oh goodness, we've gotten to rhyming. I should stop before it's too late.)

Runners out there, how do you work on speeding up your pace? I was doing interval stuff, and it seemed to be working on the shorter runs. Not really the longer ones, as you can see.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Busy Little Things, Baking for Bribery and Positive Influences

Today, because I did not have any actual classes, was thought to be a very chill, relaxed day. That was before I actually started the day. Now, I am standing here typing this blog post past nine, frazzled and confused that the day is already over.

Fun fact: I spend a lot of my time on the computer standing up while it sits at typing level on my pillow. My bed is very elevated.

It hasn't been work that has been taking up my time, it's simply been things. So many things! Hopping from one thing to another. Still, when I'm out of school I'll probably look at this time and think, "Wow, I had so much time back then."

Oh, I happened to see my aunt today! She was doing a presentation at my school for the day, and so we went to lunch. It was quite lovely. Some people of insanely positive. She is one of them. Being around her makes me realize that perhaps college has made me more cynical. Good thing or bad thing? Will it help me against the world more? I cannot say.

The day included baking as well. Tomorrow is my project, (which I'm still not sure how that's going to turn out), and she said bribing is a good thing. Betty Crocker cake mixes happened to be made in the forties too, which is just a bonus.

Cupcakes and other things in the community fridge. I worry about their safety.
Time to get ready for what tomorrow throws at me.

Are you busier on your busy days in college, or are you busier on your busy days of work?

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Working Together or Working Alone

Long day is long. What can you do, right?

As I've gotten older, I've learned that I don't necessarily play well with others. I do better at things like running or tennis than basketball or soccer. Which brings me to this: Group projects and I? Do not get along.

For my History of Fashion class, I have to work with a partner to write a paper. We've gotten done with it, now it just needs tweaking. However, the process was excruciating for me. It's all about whether I'm doing enough or not, and I can never figure it out. I always stress about not doing enough, and I hate when other people try to take over. That has been a problem with this project.
Before we met to write the paper, I studied up some information. I was terrified that she was going to have researched so much more without me. That wasn't something I needed to worry about apparently, because she hadn't looked up any information.
When we finally started working on the paper through an online document, I felt like she started to take over. I had had some trouble getting into the project due to the fact that I had been sick, and it was difficult to get simple thoughts together let alone writing a paper. When I looked upon the information she had written up on the document, a lot of the information was stuff that I had already researched... that I had talked to her about before.
We've gotten most of the stuff worked out, but she's kind of made me feel like I'm doing less work than I should. And it's not fair, because the only reason it's working out like that is because it feels like she's not even giving me a chance to work on things. Maybe I should be happy about that, but you might already get why I'm not due to my personality.

Well, yep. That's just how I feel on group projects.

Other than that, just been busy. Tomorrow, on the other hand should (hopefully) be pretty relaxed. Didn't mean to talk so negatively today, whoops!

Do you work better in group projects or in solo projects?

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Keywords, Registering, and Sunlight

Random thing, but on my mind: I like to look at what brings people to my blog right? These are the words that bring people here:

Ever since that post in December, that's all that brings people here. Fat squirrels. There way a week where the keywords "People in the King's Speech from Harry Potter" was in there, but it was fleeting. I guess I bring classiness, don't I?

Today I registered for classes at U of O... while in the WOU library. It felt kind of ridiculous, but I was already there, you know?

I don't think I can deal with how bright it is outside considering what time it is. I look outside thinking, "I've got plenty of time to get things done this evening!" In all actuality, it's already nine and I've only got a few more hours to get things done if I want a decent amount of sleep.
Oh, with getting things done, lately I feel like I am getting things done... but it's very very slowly. I spent hours in the library today on something that really should have taken much less time. Also why I ended up registering in there. I suppose this really shouldn't be considered a bad thing if I'm getting things done, but there's also the problem of deadlines coming up. Friday is looming, and that project is due soon. Augh.

Before I forget, anyone and everyone who lurks/ever has read my blog, check out Kat's three year blog anniversary giveaway! Three years, wild!

How are you adjusting to the brighter evenings? Is it a good thing or a bad thing for your scheduling?

Monday, May 23, 2011

Random Thoughts, Art Displays and School Worries

My room mate never seems to turn the light on whenever she's in the room. If I turn on the light if I'm in the room before her, it's fine, but she never turns it on if she's in the room. I wonder why this is. I would say perhaps it's an emotional thing, but it could also be because she's lazy. I can not say.

I don't think I'm cool enough to be in my age group, or at least a college student. That is because I do not own a pair of TOMS. Perhaps something to invest in in the future? We'll see.

I've had two opposing dreams about the same test. In one of the dreams, I received a D on the test, and it was terrible. The other dream, I received 100%. Both of these ideas I knew were delusions, but I was still stressing until I got the test back today. I ended up doing quite well, but not that well.

Random thoughts that pass through my head like this make me think I should get a Twitter, because that's basically what it is, right? Then I go through the struggles of trying to think of a good name, and pass the idea by.

One thing that I'm definitely going to miss about this campus are the awesome art projects that the art students put outside of the art building from time to time.



Many of the things I have seen I would like to steal away for myself...

...but you knew that.

On the subject of schools, for I think the first time on Friday I became terrified of transferring schools. It could be possibly because of the feeling sick factors coming into play, but I think it's a lot more than that. For instance, I'm worried that I'm going to get lost all of the time. I'll be late to classes, and be locked out or something. Also, I've done quite well in school at WOU, but how am I going to do at U of O? With bigger classes, will they be a lot harder for me? Will I be completely forgotten in the classroom setting? I really don't think I'd like that. One of the bigger things that I should be worrying about is living arrangements, but I've been worrying more about getting projects for school done right now. Livin' in the moment I guess... except for those other worries.

It is Monday, so I guess the lesson for the day is... from Bridesmaids. That lesson is food poisoning is kind of like that, except maybe less graphic.
Yeah, don't have much in that subject. And I'm done talking about food poisoning now.

How do you deal with the fear of the unknown future?

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Not Much Going On, Pictures and Running Situation

Sunday night? Sunday night! It felt like it was just Thursday and we were all thinking, "Wow, it feels like Friday."

Once again, it was a day of mostly sleeping, except with the added studying of Psychology. In which I did a quiz online and did splendidly on.

So today, whenever I took the chance to creep out of my bed, I would see myself in the full length mirror. I looked like one of those kids who you should send a dollar to for food. Geez. My mother agreed.

Oh! Also, I was going to post pictures yesterday, but I totally forgot! So... here you go!






I didn't even know there was an ultimate Frisbee league.
 Also, I'm worried about my running. Since I only ran about a mile yesterday, and didn't run today when I was supposed to run 11 miles on Saturday and 4 today, I don't know how I should run next week. Or this week I guess. I don't usually run on Mondays, but I am going to tomorrow. Then I was thinking maybe I could run my 11 on Tuesday? Or should I just wait until next Saturday for my long run?

Have a nice night!

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Orientation and Feeling Sickly

So here's what you missed last time on Glee! what happened yesterday and caused me to basically not be able to write any coherent thoughts.

It all started yesterday at Orientation. I woke up at about 7, believing that the orientation started at 10. You see, they told me that I would be receiving a letter with all of the information for the day. I never received said letter, but when I called the office they told me that it would start at ten. I was still nervous that the time wouldn't be correct, so I checked online... Online it said 7:30. Rushing out the door and hitching a ride, I was terrified that I would miss something.
I arrived at 7:50. Time of actual start? 10. Just... like she told me. Geez. So, ended up waiting for a couple hours just for things to start.

It was weird going around campus by myself. My lack of sense of direction helped me get a lot of walking in. I never realized it before, but the campus is quite pretty.

Not sure if it's as pretty as WOU though.

Speaking of WOU, weird thing happened. At my freshman orientation at WOU, there were PLUS team members that showed us around. I saw my PLUS team member at transfer orientation. Kind of awkward, kind of hilarious.

I had lunch, and that's when I started to get sick.

All I can say is that I felt awful. Even though my sister is sick herself, she helped me out while I was hardcore strugglebusing. I'm thinking that I may have gotten food poisoning, because I got sick. I could hardly move, and the only reason that I managed to type out what I typed out yesterday was because I had just hurled, making me feel slightly better for the moment. (TMI, yes.)

The weird thing that pissed me off the most was that today I was supposed to run my long run today. I ended up running a mile around the local track just so I wouldn't pass out in the middle of nowhere. It just- ARG.

Pretty much all I did today was sleep. I woke up, drove home, slept, woke up, slept again, ran a bit and showered. And here we are.

One of the worst things about getting sick? You feel like you've had the crap kicked out of you.

Probably going to bed soon? I think so. Oh, and huzzah! We all survived the rapture. Pish.

When was the last time you got sick? How did it affect the rest of your life?

Friday, May 20, 2011

Lack of words.

Whoof. Today was a quite a day. A day of ups, and a day of low lows. Don't worry, it's back up for the most part.

This morning I woke up at around 7 AM. I went to bed around 12:30, not a normal time for me. I'm thinking that added to the outcome of the evening...

Okay, I'm not sure if I'll gonna be able to write out anything coherent tonight. There will be more words tomorrow.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Missing Class, Orientation and a Sense of Direction

It feels like a Friday night. Alas, it is Thursday.
Part (and the main reason) that it feels like a Friday is because I am not at the dorms tonight. I will not be going to class tomorrow either. What's this? Hannah skipping a class? That's not like her at all!

Really, it's not like me to be missing class. I think tomorrow will be the first day of class that I ever skip. Gosh, what kind of college kid am I? The reason for the missing of classes tomorrow is because I have orientation at U of O tomorrow. So... I'm missing school to learn about another school? Does that count as a good reason for missing?

If you ever got to know me in real life, you'd quickly learn that I have one of the worst sense of directions in the world. Places I've gone thousands of time are places I lose my way getting to. I know why I have problems with it though. When I was young, I never paid attention to where we were going. I never watched the pathway, I watched the sky. The trees. The people walking by. Where we were going was great, I just never seemed to care how we got there.

Today was gorgeous. It had rained earlier in the week, but I think the warm weather is... WAIT. I can't say that, because every time I've said that, it's rained again after said statement. Still... 75 was the high! 75!

I am quite tired tonight. Dunno why. Maybe because I woke up kind of early today, but I should have gotten a decent amount of sleep last night.

Do you have a good sense of direction, or a terrible sense of direction?

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Random thoughts, Influence of Others, Psychology Class and Gum

I've got a lot of random thoughts for the day, so bear with me.

I didn't mention this yesterday, but can you believe this Schwarzenegger scandal? Geez. Remind me to never marry a politician, because apparently they all like to cheat on their wives. Anywho.

I saw someone wearing Vibram Five Fingered shoes with socks. How does that work?

I didn't think about this before, but my room mate is completely influenced by the people she hangs out with through dress. I know that her personality is like this, but I never noticed it affects what clothes she wears. It's crazy. For instance, when she used to hang out with the stoner group in high school like myself, she dress like... a stoner. Hemp mushroom necklace, ironic plaid shirts, you name it. When she hung out with the wannabe gangsta/prep people, her gangsta clothes shined through. That's actually one of her main styles though. Now, she's begun dressing exactly like her friend Katie. Even their hairstyles are really similar. Weird.
When I hung out with mis stoner amigos, I still dressed like my usual preppy/girly style. Cardigans will always be my fashion friends.

When I started taking the Psychology class, I was really excited about it. However, now that we've gotten to the eight week, I've realized that I despise the class. The strange thing is, it's not the reason you would think.
My professor is a pretty cool lady. She's very humorous, she tells us interesting stories... but she isn't the greatest professor in my opinion. Her classes at first were good enough. Show us a video clip or two, then talk about the slides. Some of the slides she went through a little quickly, but they're online. Now it's video clip, video clip, show five seconds of slide then another video clip. It's pretty much only video clips. You might think, "Oh that shouldn't be that bad, should it?" Actually, it is. I want to learn, and I don't feel like I'm getting it that great from video clips. It's true that the clips (usually) have some information that's useful, but when it comes to quiz time I feel like the classes have taught me nothing. That's not a good sign. Plus it feel like she wants to get through the slides as fast as possible just so she can get to the next video clip.
I didn't think that it was that weird to want to learn in college.

Today we happened to watch talk about obsessive compulsive disorder today. For one thing, this class tends to bring out the hypochondriac in me. Also, I think I have some OCD habits, but not as bad with the cleanliness factor. It is true that I have terrible anxiety with wearing anything that has a stain on it though. My OCD habit has to do with numbers. I can't stand odd numbers, I only like even numbers. For instance, if the volume of something is measured in numbers, I despise seeing it on an odd number. I always have to turn it to an even number. Or five, because five is half of ten... which makes it okay somehow. My favorite number is eight, probably the king of even numbers. All the things you divide it by are even, (except for one, but that doesn't count) and it's infinity sideways. Okay, eight is just an awesome number just because.

I've stopped chewing gum. Well, I stopped... yesterday? In the afternoon, when I ran out of the current pack that I had. Hopefully, this will continue for more than a day or two. I realized that my gum habit had gotten out of control when I realized I was going for sticks of gum like a chain smoker... or chewing gum. That makes sense, yes? Along with the smoking analogy, it occurred to me that one of the many arguments I make to people who smoke (other than the obvious ones) are the fact that it's a habit that wastes a lot of money. I may have been using meal card money, which will need to be used up anyways, but it adds up. Therefore, gum is out of the picture for now.
Plus, the other reason I decided I should stop is because it was starting to make my jaw hurt. That's just depressing.

People in my hall probably think that I'm completely insane if they can hear me out in the hallway. Sometimes I clap to nothingness, or it seems that way because I'm jamming with my headphones in. Yesterday to my computer I yelled, "I will hit you because you are being stupid!" It was being stupid, but now people may think that I am abusive. Not a good thing.

Have you ever taken a class that didn't turn out like you expected? Was it better or worse?

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Lack of Motivation and The World of Bloggers

I believe that the effect of studying for a good chunk of the day burnt me out, causing me to have a lack of motivation to complete anything today. That, and receiving a certain paper back.
Don't you hate it when you get great marks on the smaller assignments, making you think that you're writing everything right, then discovering that apparently you're not when it comes to the big essay? No? Just me? I know, I shouldn't be complaining about this, but I honestly thought that my writing had been good for the class. Well, I'll just be done with that for now, but I just wanted to get it out.

The blogging world is such a quirky, fun place. It's amazing how people can connect, tell incredible stories, and just create an environment where you can find at least one person if not many with the same interests. Before I started blogging, I occasionally looked at some blogs. I never really read any of the blogs on a regular basis though. As I started blogging, I started exploring blogs more often. Soon I had my regular blogs. I continued getting more regular blogs on my reading list, and I still am finding more blogs I like. (There's too many, it's ridiculous!)
Now it's funny because sometimes I end up thinking about some of my favorite bloggers like someone I know in real life. On a run recently, this is seriously how I was thinking:

I wonder if Annie's finals went well. They should be done by now.
Speaking of finals, how exciting that Lexie graduated from college! I wonder how she feels now that it's over.
I wish I had the confidence of taking pictures like Caitlin.
Gosh, all of the 50's inspired dresses that Jessica wears are so adorable. I seriously want to steal her clothes.
Speaking of things that are adorable, all of the treats that Erica makes look so fun and tasty. I wonder how her move has been going.
Rachel has been doing lots of home decorating hasn't she? And she just went on vacation, it looked really pretty.
Oh, that reminds me, how much longer is Mimi staying in the UK? She goes to the coolest places over there.
I can't believe Ashley went and ran a half marathon with her fiance who only had run a four mile run before. Crazy. She is a beast, and it's meant in the best way possible.
And Kat? Getting ready for her wedding, training for a marathon, and having two loved ones graduate right after another? Girl has a lot on her plate!

If you didn't already guess by now, those are a few of the blogs I read the most. Sometimes I'm forgetful in commenting, and some I miss a post or two. There are even more blogs than that that I like to look at. Geez, they're all women aren't they? Maybe it's just me, but I feel like a lot of bloggers are women.

To these bloggers, I'd like to say thanks. Not just to the ones who've peeked at my own blog (but you guys are AMAZING), but to all of you who have let the rest of us into your awesome lives. For being real, even if we can't prove it. For inspiring us unintentionally or on purpose. I'm pretty sure a huge part of the reason I thought it would be cool to do a half marathon is because I saw so many bloggers who had run them, or even farther. Bloggers who had only run 5ks, and had wrote about how scary that was. So anywho... yeah. Bloggers are cool.

Another thing I've noticed? All of the bloggers I read are older than I am by a couple of years. Many of them are about my sister's age (I think). Once again, I am drawn towards older people. Odd.

The main reason I started thinking about this was because Lexie messaged me asking about adding a Name and URL thing to the comments like so many other bloggers I know do. Currently, I am not sure how to do that. My skills in the language of HTML have disappeared, so I'm not sure what to do to fix that. It's like any language, you've got to continuously use it or you lose it. It could be because of Blogger, but I'm not really sure. So, if anyone has any knowledge on that... let me know! That would be great. (Geez, how far I've fallen in my tech skills.)

Right now I am lacking any good food for snacking. At first, I thought this would be a good thing so unnecessary snacking would not occur, but this is not the case. I've realized when I'm hungry, but not hungry for a full meal, I need snacks. Peanut butter, Top Ramen, and Bagel Thins are not good munchy foods. I shall jack some snacks from home when I pass by on Thursday.

My feet are horrendously disgusting. Good lord. Now that you know the status of my feet, you can sleep soundly. Or have nightmares, your choice.

How have blogs affected you? What are some of your favorite blogs?

Monday, May 16, 2011

Disappearing Pants and The Hypocritical Situation

This morning I awoke to find my pajama pants had disappeared. Naturally, I was confused. I ended up finding them later in the day, but this has gotten my to finally realize that yes, my pajama pants are too big.
It's not that I've gotten smaller though. It's just one of those things where the elastic has stretched out from over wearing them. Bah.

Instead of talking about a thing I've learned from fictional characters, today I'll be talking about things I've learned due to the influences from the women in my life.
  1. Women are hypocritical, plus they contradict themselves like crazy and
  2. No matter how much you doubt it, you will probably have many similarities to your parents.
I bring this subject up due to what I was talking about yesterday. Yes, I was worrying about money, but I was still in the mindset of, "It's my responsibility, I will pay for it." And I still am. Therefore, when my mom started texting me today about paying for my things, of course I shot it down with that mindset. Is it pride? Perhaps, but as soon as I started refusing, I realized something: I'm becoming my mother more and more.

Let's come up with an example, shall we? Say that I'm talking to my mom about a car. She'll start out by saying something like, "I don't know if I can even afford this car that we're driving now." With that, I'll start talking about savings or something. She'll instantly say something like, "Oh, we're perfectly fine on money! I don't know why you worry so much." You see that contradiction? How she talks about everything. Now I do the exact same thing.
It's not only habits like that that I've seen picked up. Other habits are my sister's habits, which I occasionally dabble in as well. My mom will quote things like crazy. She ends up sending me random texts that are something she heard that she thought was funny. Guess who does the exact same thing, but to a much more extreme level?
My sister. I've gotten many bizarre quotes (that are from things we both love) through mostly text, even through phone calls. Such as:
  • Winning!
  • It was my twin.
  • Brought your favorites!
  • Heeeeeeeeeeey brother.
  • Who is this hermano?!?!
Ridiculous. As for the women contradicting themselves, I've seen this happen all of the time. A classic version of this has been, "Oh my gosh, you're so skinny!" and then dissing themselves while they're the exact same size. I've seen women say, "That's not healthy" to something you're eating while they eat a doughnut. Gossiping can be a contradiction in some situations! Women are crazy. I should know, I am one.

This day just was a study study day. Oof. Well, not much else to say. Night!

Are you similar to one of your parents? Or are you extremely different?

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Dealing With Money, Financial Aid, and School Situations

What an influence money has on our lives. Goodness.

The last few days I've been worrying about money. I know I think about it too much, but it's been on my mind even more lately. There are a few reasons for this.
First of all, running is starting to suck up my money. When I've looked at my past big purchases, they've been two things: School supplies and running things. Even with a discount from the running store, I still had a good chunk of money yanked away when I got my shoes. I've been wishing I could sign up for more little races during the summer, but then I think, "Oh wait. That costs money." Looking at Northwest running magazines filled with races has been like looking through a clothes magazine for me. (Seriously, it's the environment of runs! They're so fun and upbeat!)

My other piece of concern comes from my decision to take summer classes. It'll be good to take classes during the summer to get them done, but money is not fun to deal with. It turns out that I can't get financial aid, so I'm going to have to pay out of pocket. I know that my mom might want to help me, but I feel like I need to pay for it myself. The only other thing that causes concern with this is a smaller amount of hours of working to earn money back for the next year... hooray being a (sorta) adult!

Another thing that stands on the subject of school finances is how I'm figuring out my financial aid for next year. I don't think it's to the right school right now, and I've fixed what I can of it... but I think my parents need to do some things on the form. Gosh, I hate how dependent it makes me sound. Ha, it's funny because I am their dependent! Am I right? Yeah, maybe not.

Other big thing on my mind? Trying to figure out where I'm going to live next year. I'm not looking towards living in the dorms just because it's really pricey, and I don't want to. I'm hoping I can find someone to live with, but I also have ideas for worst case scenarios. I simply hope it just doesn't get to that.

In other news, I continue to have the appetite of a starved piranha. When I was training for my other run, I don't think I was this hungry all of the time! I haven't even run as far yet! Pish. I'm gonna gain twenty pounds.

Apparently I can't resist cookies either. Hence the comment above.

I'm quite tired... Time for rest.

What do you do to keep your finances in check? What do you do when you need to make big purchases?

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Different Personality Friends, New Running Shoes and Gels

Sometimes, you simply wonder just where the time goes. It's already past 11!

So last night was the Cinderella Ball held by one of the dorm halls at my school. It was just a fun night to go out to dinner in fancy dresses and dance around like a crazy person.
I ended up going with two of my pals from school. It was fun going with friends because the last time I went to a dance with a date, it ended up being really awkward. Perhaps that's what happens when you ask a very shy sophomore to a dance. Oh well.

Not the best picture of me. Yikes.
Some people only see certain sides of you. Maybe it's so we fit better into the mold that society gives to us, maybe it's just so we have as many people as possible like us. I can't say. I bring this up due to the fact that the friends I went with are... a lot more religious than I am. Our usual conversations are alright, but it gets kind of awkward in certain situations. They'll start talking about worship, and I simply sit there thinking, "Please change the subject, please?" Other odd thing about our personalities? I think parties... college parties are fun. Ones that aren't as innocent as they were in grade school for someone's birthdays. I can't really show these guys this side of my personality, because... Well, I guess I don't know why.

I went to go buy my new shoes today! They're pretty much the same type of shoes that I had before despite being a different wave number or something. They're Mizunos again, and they feel a lot like my old shoes. I like 'em though. I don't know how my run is going to be with them though.

The other things that I bought at the running store? Some running gels!

I don't know when I'm going to use them, but I became overly excited about buying them. Crazy? Perhaps. My real concern is knowing how far I should be running to consider actually use them. I grabbed Strawberry Banana, Vanilla Bean, Vanilla Orange, Mint Chocolate and the Pineapple one above. Gah, they make me just want to go on long runs!

To my runners out there: Have you ever used running gels? How far/long did you run to use them?
Are there certain friends you act differently around?

Friday, May 13, 2011

Friday the Thirteenth and Daunting Things That Shouldn't Be

It's Friday the thirteenth! Anyone out there superstitious?
The day doesn't bother me too much, but it really shouldn't since my sister was born on a Friday the thirteenth. In October. Then again, I sometimes use this to state why she can be a bitch sometimes.
Ah, sister love.

Today I set out to do a ten mile run, and I was freaked out. Why be freaked out? I've ran that much before at least twice. I've even run farther than that. Being freaked out seemed a bit weird, but then I got to thinking about it. Before I signed up for the race in October, I automatically started running a little bit farther every time I went out on a long run. It's only now that I've started to get freaked out about it, and I think I know why. Take the art student, for example. They adore art, they love to make art. However, when it comes to an art assignment, they procrastinate. They don't want to do it. The reason why is because now they have to do it. It's not something they're doing for fun, it's something they're doing for a grade. I enjoy running, but it gets scary when I'm required to go farther.
Speaking of running, I'm going to get new shoes tomorrow. Goodness, money is disappearing quickly lately, but it's for necessary things. I might have passed the 500 mile mark for these shoes, and when you can feel at least five rocks trying to stab their way through your shoes it's probably time to do something about it.

Tonight I'm going to a dance thing in a dress from eight grade. Yes, it fits me. This is what happens when you decide to slim down your senior year of high school.

What's something you love to do that seems daunting when it's required?

Feelings of the Week and Packing Up Part 2

So blogger was glitchy last night, meaning I wasn't able to get this post up last night. I tried! Anywho, there will another post tonight!

Lately I’ve been swearing like crazy. I know that it’s not very ladylike, but I simply can’t help it. I blame television.

Today was part two of the packing up situation. There was a good amount of work done, and there have been many drawers cleaned out. It may seem a bit crazy getting stuff put away already, but I know that it’s going to be a process. If I have some free time, I should use it being productive, right?
Ugh. For the past week I have been feeling bloated and ravenous all of the time. I can’t stand it. I’m hoping it’ll go away by next week…
Also, I think I did something to my wrist. I don’t know what, but whenever I move it certain ways, it gets a twinge of pain. Oh boy.
Not much to say for the day! Just been busy and productive!

What are some habits you’ve had lately?

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Making Things Tidy, Messy and Organized All at the Same Time

So opposite effects are happening in the rooming situation as of late. Well, maybe just today.
The room mate spent the day tidying everything up. I spend part of the day tearing it apart like it was Christmas morning.


I suppose this picture seems like it only illustrates two slightly mess girls. Oh well.

The reasoning behind this? I don't recall if I've mentioned this, but my last final happens to be on the last Friday of school. This is also the day that we are meant to move out of the dorms. My final ends at two. We need to be out of here at five. Personally, I don't want to be running around like a madman for three hours trying to get my rear out of here. Honestly, it took me about three weeks to finally get all of my things in my room to my liking. ...Yeah.

The results of that were that I happend to get a full box of things out to my car already! Plus my gift for my birthday from my room mate.If you don't remember, she bought me a goose. For some reason, all of my home town friends like to buy me random things they find in thrift stores.

It may not look like much was removed from the room, but I was able to clear out most of three drawers:




Plus, that box had been under my bed. and it had quite of bit of stuff in there to begin with. Feelin' productive!

Honestly, today was extremely productive, but it just felt like I wanted to get so much more done! The days... far too short.

How soon do you get started when moving out of somewhere?

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Defending the Room Mate and Natural Hair

My room mate was dissed by someone today. Right to me. Basically what she said was,
"She seems nice, but... there's just something I don't like about her."
The thing about that is you do NOT diss my room mate to me. It's like the sibling thing. Yes, you can bitch and moan all you want about your room mate, but when someone else gives even a little sass... Yeah, things are going down.

My hair is getting ridiculous. I need to get a haircut. The weird thing is, with my hair I never end up doing much. The one big thing that I do with my hair that doesn't come naturally is part it to the side. My hair happens to naturally part down the center, which isn't a great thing. With having dirty blond hair, my 'do with the part down the middle resembled the Hanson brothers. Now? I decided to take a look.

This is how I usually have my hair.

And this is how I really usually wear my hair.

I really should work with my hair more. I'm simply lazy. I tend to think if it doesn't frizz out like crazy, it's fine.

How do you do your hair?

Monday, May 9, 2011

Getting Back to Tennis, and Following Dreams For Yourself

I remembered why I started thinking about my changes since high school in the first place. I was thinking about tennis.

When I was in high school, my sport of choice was tennis. Sure I ran, but I was actually doing something in tennis. I went to state last year, and I was a big deal.

I played tennis for the first time since October today. How depressing is that? I was definitely rusty, I can tell you that. I struggled with my follow through. My thumb began to callous again, or at least tried to. I never really thought about how that disappeared until today, when my thumb started to hurt because of it. 

I still won though. Haha.

Despite all of that talk the other day about how I'm not much for the competition of running, I love the idea of races. I was skimming through a magazine listing all sorts of runs coming up, and I was thinking about runs that would be fun. Truthfully, it's not the concept of the race that's fun, it's the experience of a race. Sometimes they're themed, occasionally people dress up... Races can be a blast! There are tons of people around who happen to find running as a source of entertainment like you do. Plus, you can get some cool things from runs. Like in the Truffle Shuffle, I got chocolate. And it was delicious.

Geez, I have got to stop talking about running so much! It's getting ridiculous.Who do I think I am?

It's Monday, so that means I have a lesson that I have learned from a fictional character. Today's lesson is sort of backwards, but it all adds up in the end. Today's lesson comes from Legally Blonde. Yes, really.

Our heroine starts out with a goal. She plans to go to Harvard Law School to reclaim the love of her ex. However, as she continues on in her journey, she discovers that going to Harvard isn't going to get her ex back. Instead, she realizes it's something she wants to do, and she wants to do the best she can.

The lesson is that you shouldn't follow dreams for others, but for yourself. Yeah, I guess that doesn't really come to light necessarily in that movie, but the idea stuck with me. I've heard sad tales of following loved ones to places, then breaking up and being left with nothing. Alone in a place they didn't even want to be in the first place.
I just know that I never am going to let someone else cancel out my dreams so I can be with them. If they really cared, they'd wait for me. Maybe it wouldn't work out, but it might also not work out even if I did cancel out my dreams for you. It might sound a little selfish, but we all need to have a little selfishness in our lives.

What is a dream you could never give up for someone else? Is there a dream you would give up?

Sunday, May 8, 2011

What Makes the Perfect Mom?

Today was Mother's Day, and I'd like to think that everyone either spent time with their moms or sent them love any way they could.
With the idea of Mother's Day, it gets a person thinking. Just what makes the perfect mother? Really, the answer to that is different for everyone. For me, my perfect mom doesn't need to know how to cook the perfect meal. She sometimes can make dirty jokes that make you cringe and laugh at the same time. She doesn't always tell you what you want to hear, but sometimes tells you what you need to hear. She helps you out even when you say you don't need it (but in reality you do). She wants you to go for your dreams, but she wants you to look at things realistically. She's not trying to be negative, she just doesn't want to see you get hurt. The perfect mom isn't truly perfect. If she were, it wouldn't feel like she was as special. The perfect mom forgets things sometimes. She says things that can be really awkward.
But she's still perfect.

You may look at that and think, "What? Those are weird things to say about your mom being the best mom." Yet, I know if you listed off things for why your mom is the best, I might look at and think, "What the heck? I'm glad my mom isn't weird like that."
For instance, I just watched the movie Babies. Other than ogling at the adorable actions of some of the babies, I watched some of the parenting skill with absolute terror.
  • (Is it really a good idea to sit in a hot tub with a baby?
  • Why... Why did she wipe that there? I'm gonna throw.
  • The little guy is out there all alone! What are you doing?)
See? Even in different cultures, different cities! The right way to be a mom (or dad) can be seen in different ways. I know that I wouldn't have the first clue how to be a mom.

I love my mom, just the way she is. I get annoyed sometimes and I know she gets annoyed too, but that's just life.

Speaking of today, I decided to go down to the hometown to go to lunch and a movie with my mom. Somehow, I ended up getting help filling out forms, and getting food to bring home.

Oh mom.

If you have a mom, or maybe two moms, or maybe two dads, or whatever you have. Whoever raised you, don't just show them love on one day. Remember how awesome they are everyday.

What makes your mom special?

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Changes in Myself, Considering Yourself a Runner, and Differences in Running Practices

I remembered one of the other things that I need to get done in the future: Get a haircut. My hair is getting really long, and something new needs to occur.

Today I thought about how much I've changed since just last year. It's crazy. Last year I was known as the art chick, the girl who was the only non-stoner among stoners. I didn't get that great of grades. Now, I get really good grades. I'm a girl who runs a lot. Plus the thing is, I feel like I've changed mentally. Sure, there are a lot of habits that I have that I've always had, but somehow I know that how I think about certain things is very different. When mentioning that I'd changed from "That art chick" to "That girl that runs a lot", I was greeted with,
"Well that's not much better."
... Um, excuse me? What the hell does that mean? I'll let you know that running is amazing, thank you very much!

Since I'm on the subject of running, I also thought about my standing as a runner today.

Somehow, it sort of feels like I can't really call myself a runner still, but then I think about what that means. I don't go more than a day without running. I make sure that I schedule time for certain runs during the week. I think about how far I can go. I talk about running far too often. Still, I start to think, "I'm not a runner. I don't run as much as other people do, and I don't care so much about speed."
The mileage thing worries me in training, because I've heard of some people running a ton a miles before things. On the other hand, I've seen plenty of training schedules that say I'm doing just fine. Really, what does that matter? I care about running. I run a decent amount. I should feel proud to say that indeed, I am a runner.

I don't know if I've ever mentioned this here in the blog, but I have ran on a cross country team since middle school. Sure, I ran back then, but I was never very into it back then. I started to wonder, "Why do I like to run so much now?", and the answer is simple: Competition.
I hate running with other people, because I'm always comparing myself to then. If I'm running too fast, I look like a jerk. If I'm running too slow, I look like a loser. Running with my sister? Probably one of the worst ideas. Especially since one thing I happen to do is breathe quite heavily. Sure, it may sound bad, but that's just how I breathe. However, when I'm running with my sister and I'm breathing heavily, this happens:
Chloe: "Jeez, why the heck are you breathing so hard?"
Me: *tries to stop breathing so hard, ends up hyperventilating*
It's not a good cycle. When I run, it's not for periods of time. It's for miles. I've read both ways of running are good. I simply prefer my way.

This summer, I think I'm going to try running with people again. I may be slower, but it'll be nice to have company for longer runs if I do. Who knows? Maybe they'll push me to go faster.

I think I've either hit or gone over 500 miles in these shoes. Dangit, I didn't want to get new ones, but I'm pretty sure I need to. Goodness!

On a final note, I really want this:

An art student made it, and it's currently on display outside of the art building. I want it. I can set it in my dorm!

When was the last time you realized you've changed a lot? How did you change?

Friday, May 6, 2011

Trying to Figure Out Live and Living in the Moment

It's Friday... Now what?

Lately I've just been thinking about stuff that need to get done. Not necessarily for the week, but in the future. I need to:
  • Figure out my rooming situation for next year
  • Figure out how I'm going to move everything out of my dorm in three hours on the last day of school
  • Calculate all of my spending for the year
  • Try to see if there are other job options for the summer
  • Talk to professors about missing a day of class for orientation of another school
I know that there are other things that I need to do, but I'm having trouble thinking of what I need to do next. It's kind of weird that I don't know what's up for the future, and I feel like I should care more. I'm living in the moment I suppose? For the day I suppose.

I hope everyone has a lovely evening!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Body Image, Tests, and Not Being Dressed For the Weather

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone? Did you have Mexican food (or something else) in honor of the day?

Do you ever have those days where you just don't know if there are plans that are supposed to happen in the future you should know about? That's currently what my mindset is like. I like having things planned, but for now? Don't really know what plans I have.

Body image is a very odd thing. Why do we happen to care so much about how we look? Lately, I've been thinking about that. Lately, I've been having a skewed view on my body image. I currently weigh the same amount that I have been, but it feels like when I look in the mirror, my weight goes all to my stomach, and I look like I weigh a lot more.
The thing is, I'm at a perfectly acceptable weight for my size. My BMI is actually on the lower side of the scale. Yet, why do I care so much about body image? Really, why does anyone?

The only people who are required to really be thin are actors and models. For any other type of career, there's nothing wrong with being at a normal size. Then why do the rest of us need to be small? Isn't being at a healthy weight enough?

Apparently not. All I can say is that I'm lucky to be at a healthy weight, even though I'm not actress skinny. (Truthfully, I think it's because I'm not toned.)

That's just a little thing I've been thinking about lately.Other than that, I've just been worried about my two tests tomorrow. Oh, and how I apparently can't dress for weather. Yesterday when the sun was shining, I was wearing black pants. Today I decided to bare my legs, and it was cold all day.

Why do we care so much about body image?

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Comparing Dorms to Home, Spring Days and its Downsides (But Not Really)

I think the internet on my computer didn't want to turn on so I wouldn't watch a show while getting ready for bed. I suppose it's for the best. Therefore, we have a phone-based post for the evening.

The mess in my room? It's getting ridiculous. The thing is, I don't understand why. Almost every day I clean, yet it gets messy an hour later. At first I blamed it on my lack of ability to clean. Now I blame it on lack of space.
I think that's one of the things you take for granted when (if) you're living in a house with your parents before college. That shampoo? Can't go in the bathroom, it's a community bathroom. Those books? If they don't fit on the shelf, there's no where else to put them.

Spring has come (for sure, I think this time). It's a nice feeling, yet it's almost toxic for being a student. The lovely weather makes you want to sit outside, relax, and hang out with friends. Oh, you can try to do homework, but it's not going to get done. Did my day contain doing just that? You bet it did. Yes, I ended up getting my homework done, but there are a lot of other things that I should be getting done as well. Like getting more shaving cream. ... I can use soap for one more day.
The other thing that warm weather does? Seeing as it stays brighter for longer, you tend to think you have more time in the day... which means you have plenty of time... not really.
Still, I can't complain about it. I'm just lucky to have it!

What's the biggest thing you realized you took for granted before college?

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Making Big Decisions

Yesterday, I did something a little crazy.

I spent $145 dollars without remorse. Without thinking about it. I won't even get anything from it. I have to pay for what I paid for. How ridiculous is that?

...Actually, that's not really true I guess.

Yesterday I paid for a tee shirt.
Yesterday I paid for a few months of training, either by myself or whoever wants to.
Yesterday I paid for the inevitable pain and soreness to come.
Yesterday I paid to have a day on my calendar filled, with a few hours every week.
Yesterday, I registered for The Portland Marathon.

And the part about not thinking about it? I guess I could say I didn't think about it when filling out the form, but I certainly did take a large chunk of time to think about it before. This has been on my mind for weeks, maybe even months. Really, I probably started thinking about it after my half marathon in January, but it was fleeting thoughts then. After the Cascade, people would say, "Are you going for a marathon now?"

I thought, "No way. A half marathon is one thing, but a full marathon? Now you're crazy."

Granted, the thought is still crazy hence the extensive amount of time thinking about it. I went through the thoughts, "Will I have enough time to train?" or "Can I actually motivate myself to do it?" I gave myself a million reasons why, but the didn't matter. Then I decided to ask why not?

And there wasn't really a good reason. My mileage has been going up automatically. I've looked for training schedules, and I'd already be ahead of schedule.

I'd like to be able to say I ran a marathon before my twenties. Just because that would be really cool. And now, I kind of have to.

I don't mind.

I'm sure it'll register with me in a few days, but for now all I can think is "Huh."

What big decision have you made recently?

Monday, May 2, 2011

Time Flies, Screwy Weather and Things I Have Learned From Fictional Characters

I don't know how I ever felt like I had free time in high school. On Mondays when there's class from about 9 to 2, my whole day feels like it just disappeared.
The weather went back to its regular 45 degree temps. I think Mother Nature just likes to screw with us, especially when it starts pouring and you're dresses for summer. Goodness.

Today's lesson comes from Glee, but it also comes from many other situations. The reason I say Glee is because it is pretty much the main idea from Glee. Now, this lesson I learned from things like Glee, but the concept grew when I started to get older and realized that it really did make me like that.

The lesson is music can be some powerful stuff. It can sway your emotions like crazy.

The thing about Glee that's pretty ridiculous in my book is that they seem to try to solve every problem they have by singing. This isn't really the most logical way to deal with problems, but through some of the songs and situations you can actually bring some problems to light.

Also, it's obviously not just problems that music brings to light, but happiness, sorrow, anger, love. This isn't really a lesson, but it's funny when you think about how certain songs affect you.

For me, whenever I'm in the car driving myself, I sing Annette Hanshaw and music from Dr.Horrible. Sublime makes me think of lunch hours at my house with my friends in high school. Certain Owl City songs remind me of silly little crushes, and how ridiculous I was then.

I guess today's lesson is a little weak, but it's what I've got for today. I'm feeling like I really haven't gotten much done, but at the same time felt like there was no time. Which is completely ridiculous because there was plenty of time... Right? Bah, I'm just confusing myself.

What songs evoke memories in you?

Spring Days Done Right

"Oh my gosh, it's so GORGEOUS today!"

"Welcome to The Bracelet Hour, today we're talkin' about charms"

"Hii! Hi. Hiiiiii Lucy!"


These are things that I repetitively said today. Especially the part about the beautiful weather. I never wanted it to go away. One of the other two had to do with talking to a one year old, can you tell which one?

Today I ended up going up to Washington, a thing that just sounds so weird once you say it. Traveling to another state in one day? And not even the whole day? Granted, it was right on the border, but still.

I ended up going to Washington for my little second cousin's birthday.

Fun! In case you didn't realize by now, I have a lot of cousins. And I'm pretty close to most if not all of them.

The weather today? Just fantastic. It was like Mother Nature suddenly looked at the calendar and said, "Hey! When did May happen? Oh well, let's make it nice out." I just wanted to sunbathe.

There were a few things that came to light today, I believe. Like:
  • I forgot how cool I think it would be to be part of Saturday Night Live. Also, ridiculous accents are awesome, and everyone should try to do them.
  • I think babies around 1 are my favorite, because if you're able to make them happy with something simple, they will adore you. Plus, they're at the age that they still like to be held, but if they are learning how to walk...
  • ...it's fun to help them along.
  • Time flies. And no, it's not (just) because it was a birthday I thought about this, but one of my cousins brought this up:
"Hey, did you go to Stumptown this year?"
"Wait, I thought we just went to that!"
"Hannah... that was last year."

...Yeah. So time flies. Goodness.

And these two are partners in crime.
These pictures are from my mom's camera, and taken mostly by... one of my cousins I believe? And my sis. Thanks mom! (She has such a nice camera, goodness.)

Yes, my family is a bit ridiculous, but it makes them a lot more fun.
On a last note, this is how everyone should now try to eat cake:
The one year old way. It's quite efficient, really.

Did Spring come your way this May Day?