Another Day, Another Year

It's the last day of 2011 and all I really want to talk about are books. Mainly, how both impressed and envious I am of writers. Also, seeing as I'm not a writer like the type of writers I'm going to mention, I know I won't say this with as much eloquence as I'd like.

The reason why I'm envious of writers is due to their ability to create emotion. Create whatever worlds you wish, what creatures you prefer. Yes, these things are valuable skills. However, I only mostly care about when... well, I suppose when writers make me care. Perhaps I get too involved with the characters in stories, but maybe it's just good writing. When a certain character is tortured, if the writer does their thing right readers will care. This goes for television as well. The humorous quips, the intellectual speeches. True, it's helped a great deal by good actors, but a lot of it comes down to good writing.

Yeah. I wish I was able to create fictional characters that people I don't even know would come to care about. Sounds crazy? Probably is, but think about how people like J.K. Rowling must feel about hoards of strangers caring about the moves of fictional people from her head.

Anyways, a new year is coming up, huh? I've hardly registered it. Honestly, it's starting to feel like just another day. Due to the fact that one of my friends just flaked out on me, it seems I'm going to go spend the New Year with some family. I really wanted to go out on the town, but I'm not going out alone. What can you do?

Resolutions... still working on solid ones. Hmm. Welp, I'll see all y'all new year! Unless you're already reading this in 2012. Whateve.

What are your thoughts for the new year?

An Addicted Personality

So I have an addictive personality. When I start something, I must finish it no matter what. The reason I can't have junk food in the house? I will eat it as quickly as possible. A blog I find interesting? I will read every post.

What I'm trying to say is that I stayed up until an hour before my normal school time wake up to finish a book, because I started the third in the series at 11:00pm. I'm not proud.

So much for getting my schedule back to normal. Thank god I have another week.

Anywho... have you read The Hunger Games series? Because it's quite good.

...I need to go to bed.

Acting My Age

Today, my cousin who is two months younger than me turned 20. All she could say when I saw her is how old she felt. Yes, 20 is old. A bit ridiculous, but that's how I felt the first few days of it. I often think about my age. As in, do I really fit my age? I like young adult novels. I love dress up. How adult do I really sound?
Then again, young adult novels have all of the fun. They go on incredible adventures and such, so it seems that not all young adult novels are meant simply for the YA audience.

As for dressing up? Why don't we do dress up more often? It's fun. I guess that's what getting all dolled up for a night on the town is for.

On the subject of growing up, it's hard to try to prove I'm maturing to my parents. Whenever I try to explain, it sounds more like a whining teenager to them. Not very good for convincing my maturity, but I'm working on figuring something out. I think part of the problem stems from the fact that I'm still their youngest, and maybe it's harder to see me growing up. I dunno.

So, I'm not sure I feel my age. Do you feel your age?

Let's Restart

Earlier, I had ideas on what to write about. However now as I sit at the computer, nothing comes to mind. Perhaps because I started The Hunger Games a couple of hours ago, and it's sucked me in like every other person that has read it. Hell, I'm already halfway done.

Seeing as the holidays are over, it's time for a restart. I honestly think that if New Year's wasn't right after Christmas, a lot of people would be a lot heavier even though most resolutions don't end up being followed through with. Wow, that's a long sentence.

Still, I think I'd like to get a move on with at least a few certain goals now. Waiting is just wasting time for getting things done. Therefore, here are some little goals that I would like to work on. They're not quite concrete yet, but I'd like to have a basic idea.

• Get back to my "before the holidays" weight. I'll admit it: I was not good this holiday season in accordance to food. Funny thing is, that I didn't have any problems until the week and a half before Christmas. Another thing is when you're smaller, it takes less food to help you gain weight. That's why people who originally start losing weight can eat so much, but y'all probably already knew that. And running? Only gets you so far. I have been running this entire break, and it doesn't do as much as you'd think sometimes.
• Get my sleeping pattern back to normal. This break, I've been mean to my normal schedule and been waking up late. True, I'm not over-sleeping, (I'm getting eight hours) but nine? Is too late for me. I want my 7:00AM back please!
• Use my punch card at the rec center to take exercise classes. I've been bad about using it, and I spent money on it! I don't want to end the year with any classes left.

I'm sure I'll think of more things I'd like to work on, but for now those are the basics. Now it's time for me to get back to The Hunger Games. Starting it in the evening was a bad idea.

What are your main goals for the future?

Time for Recuperation

And we're back.

I thought a post would be in the works for yesterday (or two days ago technically), but honestly? It wasn't going to be able to happen. It was just busy.

Did everyone have a good Christmas? I certainly did. I'm also still trying to recuperate. Not sure if I'm truly in that phase yet. The day started out on a bit of an odd note, due to the fact that I woke up in the middle of the night before waking up again at 7:00 AM to start baking some rolls. Usually every year before, my family has gone straight to the presents on Christmas morning, but we didn't get to them until about an hour later. Ah, we're getting old in this house. Sort of.

The haul was good, the food was aplenty, and there was much family time to be had. We had Christmas "dinner" at our house, so a lot of family came over. (I say "dinner", because when it's at 2:00 PM, it doesn't really seem to be dinner.)

As for the gifts, I think all of our family members did well on getting things for each other. My sister got me some of the coolest things, making me feel like a foodie type. That includes some bacon chocolate, and adorable tablespoon/teaspoon measuring spoons.

Now, I have no idea why I'm up so late, but it's time for me to go to bed. We can chat more later.

How were your holidays?

Last Minute Prep

The presents have been wrapped.

The Indian food has been consumed.

The pajamas have been opened and put on.

It's Christmas Eve. This has been quite the successful Christmas season, with what I think are pretty good gifts to be had by the people I got them for. Well, we'll see by the reactions tomorrow. My only regret? Not watching my favorite Christmas special, The Year Without A Santa Claus. It's not because of the story, it's because I love the Heat miser song. Which is also the Snow miser song, pretty much but the heat miser is so much cooler. Or less cool? Whatever.

Tomorrow, more baking is to be had, as I'm apparently baking rolls this year. This should be interesting...

What were your last minute holiday preparations this year?

Time for Some Holiday Cooking

Christmas eve Eve? I can dig it.

For the holidays, it always seems like there are a million things to do the day before. Then you wonder to yourself: why didn't we do this all before?

And it's a valid point. The only problem with that tends to be the fact that usually it's food prep that needs to be done. Food prep sometimes can't be done much sooner than the day before though.

Despite being stressful, making food for the holidays is some of the most fun food to make. Why is that? Here are my reasons:

All of the food is food you wouldn't usually make, so it's fun to cook with a lot of butter/ fun desserts.

Sure, it's stressful, but you also don't have to worry about work in the moment.

Busy kitchens full of family and friends =fun.

Then again, I'm typically only in the dessert area when it comes to holiday cooking. Stick to what you know I suppose.

Anywho, busy day tomorrow! Getting excited but nervous about getting everything done.

What's your favorite time to cook and why?

On the Hunt

Ah man, I just want to have it be Christmas already! Then again, I'm surprised that it's already Wednesday.

Despite what people say sometimes, jobs are a good thing. When people have them, they complain about everything that's wrong about them. Take away that job? They'll be wishing they still had it.

Currently, I'm still job hunting. Can you tell? What I can say about jobs is that having a job isn't a bad thing, it's trying to get one that's the worst. Then again, maybe that's just how it is for the socially awkward. Think about it: it takes elements from every one of a socially awkward person's nightmares.

• Making them speak in public, almost like a presentation.
• Trying to impress someone you don't know, like trying to make new friends.

All I know is that the more I've been applying it seems, the worse I get at it. I totally play head games with myself.Too bad I can't ask for a job for Christmas.

Good lord I'm depressing. Ah well. I think I'm just a tad too cynical. This is what happens when I have nothing else interesting to write about! I blame winter break.

Now it's time for your interview question! What's your best skill in regard to a job?

Cringe-Worthy

Blaugh. For quite some time, I was excited to be on break. Now that I've been on it for about a week and a half, I'm going stir crazy. Pretty much I've been feeling like this:

Source

Yup.

Yesterday I picked up my epi pen prescription. It came with a little practice pen, so I can practice stabbing myself. Hooray. When I showed my sister the practice pen, she instantly asked, "Can I stab you?" Because an older sibling's goals in life include terrifying/annoying their younger sibling. (Yes, I know you can read this Chloe. I say this to you in real life anyway.) Besides, the doctor told me I should have other people around me know how to do it just in case. When she went to stab it... I recoiled in horror. There's no way I'm going to be able to have someone stab that thing into my leg, let alone stab it in myself.

Usually I've been fine around needles. If I don't see the needle itself, I'm alright with it. Show me that needle going into skin though? Euegh. I'm like that for most things involving harm to the body. Show me a person with their bone jutting out of their skin? I feel that pain.This is one of the many reasons why I could never be a doctor... besides being terrible at science.

A clever conclusion to this post is lost on me, so I suppose I'll abruptly end it. It happens. (Geez I've been saying that a lot.)

Do grotesque injuries freak you out? Or are you calm and collected when it comes to that stuff?

Eating Like a European

Before I say anything else, I'll just say this. To add to my "Pretentious Movie Buff Know-How", I watched the movie A Clockwork Orange today. I'm not sure if I really liked it. Can you like a movie where you don't like any of the characters? Because that movie? Does not give you any characters to root for.

Being the holiday season and all, I've been thinking about food. Such as, having different food around for Christmas break, and baking treats, things like that.

Pumpkin bread muffins! Not for me though.

One thing that I've found interesting about food is how people eat. As for the basics like proper etiquette, I'm a freak about it. I hate when people smack, I worry when I accidentally clang my fork against a plate. I like etiquette, but that's mainly because I was raised to be a freak about manners. My mother collects etiquette books. However, people's manners in regards to eating isn't what I've been thinking about recently. I've been thinking about the speed of eating.

I just have to ask: Do people actually chew food thirty times before chewing? I highly doubt it. I've tried, it takes about a minute if you do. Still, eating slowly in general is a good thing. It makes you eat less, and helps you realize when you're full. Still, a lot of people don't enjoy their food like they should. Think of the "Eat like a European" concept. I haven't read the many books about it, but apparently Europeans really enjoy their food. Not like those ridiculous commercials where people are basically having orgasms, but simply without distractions. We Americans just scarf our food down, while doing something else at the same time.

I know I tend to eat my food quickly if I'm not thinking about it. It happens. Recently while eating something, I thought, "When (if) I get to go to Europe, I'll eat like a European." I instantly realized how silly that was, and decided I should do that now.
Sure, I suck at it. I still have things to distract me while I eat sometimes, it's a force of habit. Still, I'm working on it.

Other things I need to work on? Eating only until content, listening to my body more, and all that jazz. Ah, the joys of trying to be smart about food.

Other than that, just trying to be more productive that I have been. Today? Not the greatest in that sense. Let's try again tomorrow, by trying to get to bed earlier!

Do you "Eat Like a European?" Do you care about food etiquette?

On a random note, the whole a versus an thing is bothering me. It's an E before European, but it's not an, right? I don't know.

Upcoming Holidays and Scattered Productivity

So, when did it become the 18th? Seriously? I have one more present to buy, but this week certainly is going to be a holiday preparation week. The thing is, it doesn't seem like there's really that much left to do. Perhaps my mother is simply making me worried.

Anywho. Today began as a lazy day, but became a bit productive as the day went on. Cleaned my room, cleaned out a random closet in the parents' house. Little projects, all that jazz.

I just was ready for a rest day. Which, I pretty much got, but still got some stuff done. Also found some websites to waste time. Not a great thing for productivity.

On a random note (besides this post being super random), I'm in a mood to bake. It seems that there's much more motivation to bake when it isn't necessary. Thankfully, there are some bananas that are ready for mushing, and I'm somewhere where there are people to take food with them to work.

Hm. Thoughts are scattered for the evening. It happens. Hopefully with the new week, my thoughts will be coherent.

How did you spend your weekend?

The Road Trip Experience: A Recap

After the slightly spazzy post, it's time to tell the tale of my adventures of road tripping. It's kind of hard to blog from a phone, ya know? Still, I had to say something with that little tease. Let's start with a little background.

For all of my life, I've been a very follow the rules type of gal. I don't usually do anything daring, or super adventurous. Let's be honest, every actions I take comes with five thousand thoughts about it beforehand. I am not one who makes rash decisions. So what decision occurred a week ago was a bit out of the ordinary.

I don't know how it came about, but my sister and I were talking about me seeing one of my friend's school. She goes to school on semesters, so our schedules have always clashed. This term, I ended up getting done a week before she did. That's when my sister offered this suggestion:

"Why don't you offer to give her a ride back to Oregon?"

And then I thought, why not? Although it wasn't really for her. It was for me. I've never driven a road trip myself before. It would be something interesting to do. I'd be able to something that wasn't simply "safe".

Teenage rebellion? Sounds like it, but I don't think it was. Besides, don't you have to be a teen for teenage rebellion? The whole thing was more of a being able to do new things like driving far distances. Sure, that sounds like an odd thing to get experience with, but from what I've experience already in my life I think it's a good skill to have.

My mother was convinced I was going to die. She told my sister and dad to say goodbye "Perhaps for the last time." A tad over-dramatic, don't you think? It could have been bad because it was over the pass. Sometime, the pass is pretty snowy. However, on my trip it was completely clear. It was fine.

Total driving time in two days? 14 hours-ish. What was supposed to be apparently a 8 hour and 22 minute trip back home turned out to be cut down by a whole hour. Nice. The trip back was also supposed to commence at 9:00 AM, but that certainly changed when I was wide awake at 5:00 AM. Ended up getting home at 1:15, which was very nice.

As for my short amount of time in Moscow, it was nice. I met my friend's friends from over there, who were all very nice. Saw a very large, very soft dog named Zola. Ate dinner at 9:30 PM (OH GOD SO LATE). Saw the largest collection of the VHS movie Speed. One of her friends had about 250 copies of said movie. Why? Who knows. But it was just a wall of orange. Bizarre.

I didn't see a lot of U of I, but what I saw seemed very nice. My friend suggested that we stay a day, but honestly? I wanted to just get home. Plus, I wanted to get done driving.

Issues arose during the experience, stemming from paying for gas. As in, at first she didn't want to help. For such a long distance, it's going to take gas. I personally think that with offering a ride, I should get help with said gas. From this came the complaint that she didn't have money, despite not having to buy a ticket for the bus. Um, I saw the prices for a bus ticket. Plus, my car gets really good mileage. I only had to fill up twice. My total gas cost was slightly less than half of what a bus ticket was, but after the whole debacle she helped pay for half. If that. She mumbled how "she could have just taken the bus". The thing is, she thinks that I'm rolling in the dough, but I'm not. I'm extremely frugal is all. I didn't offer to give her a ride just because I wanted to do something out of the blue, I thought it would be a nice gesture. You can probably sense that I feel a bit insulted and disrespected.

The thing is, I'm beginning to see more and more of the bad qualities of this friend. And our relationship is beginning to be strained. Honestly, it's beginning to be hard to actually see the friendship. But that's an issue for another day.

'Scuse the little rant, but other than that it was a cool deal. Plus, I came home to find out that I won a blog giveaway from Gingersnaps! I've never won one before, how exciting! I need to email her. It's funny: when I read the name of the winner, because I though, "That blog sounds so familiar... Wait! That's me!"

Welp, I seriously need to go to bed. I am le tired.

What's the last road trip experience you've had?

Riding to Idaho

Today was certainly a day of firsts. First time driving seven hours in a day. First time driving that far by myself. First time filling up my own gas. (I'm from Oregon. We don't fill our own gas.)

Currently, I'm in Idaho. I decided to pick up one of my high school friends at her school. Honestly, I'm quite tired right now. Tomorrow I'll return back home. Yes, I'm telling the internet where I am. I think since it's to a very vague area, I'll be okay.

So there will be more details when I get back home. For now... I'll leave you with that.

What's the farthest you've ever driven?

Running on Treadmills

Today, I did something that I may dare to call... daring. At least for me.

I ran 10 miles today. No, that's not daring for me, I've run that before.

I ran 10 miles on a treadmill. What witchcraft is this? Alright, I know for a lot of people, doing distances like that on a treadmill aren't crazy. For me? Insane. I'm the type of person that by mile 3, I'm bored out of my mind. Today though? I was able to go pretty well for ten.

The funny thing is, it wasn't even very cold outside. The weather actually has been pretty nice the last few days. I just didn't want to go outside. Eh.

I suppose America's Next Top Model is a pretty good distraction.

Actually, I'll have much more daring experiences coming up this weekend. But that's a story for next time.

What's the farthest you've ever run on a treadmill? Are you more of an outside runner or a treadmill-er?

Baking Cookies

Today I had some people over, and you know what we did? If you said baked cookies while Hannah ate far too many, you'd be right!
And I forgot to take the camera out again. It happens. With me, anyways.

During this baking session, we happened to make one of my favorite holiday cookies of all time: Treasure Cookies.

What are treasure cookies you ask? Here's a look:

Simple, eh. But then split it open:

And that's where the magic happens. To make it, you pretty much just take a piece of candy. Then wrap it in cookie dough. Then bake it. Amazingness.
Really, it's just an excuse for me to be able to eat more peanut butter cups.

I think my favorite overall cookie is chocolate chip though. When I was younger, I adored snicker doodle. Don't know why I don't love them as much anymore. Perhaps it's because of the lack of chocolate.

This is my favorite seasonal cookie. This doesn't seem like it's very festive, but this is the only time that we usually make them. Probably because if we made them at any other time of the year, we'd all gain twenty pounds every week.

Cookies. Just one of the best desserts ever in my opinion.

What's your favorite type of cookie? Do you have a special occasion cookie?

Text Savvy

Goodness, every time I start writing something, I instantly delete it. Guess I'm not in the writing mindset? Well, let's try this anyway.

I am part of what's called a "technological generation". Apparently, our generation is supposed to know all about tech, be using it constantly, and be up to date on everything every second. As I've said before, I am not tech savvy. Sure, there are things that I find to be simple knowledge with tech that trouble older generations, but for many things I'm not sure I fit the mold quite well.

Part of my lack of tech savvy-ness? Texting.

One of the things that we're supposed to know how to do and be doing it constantly is texting. Of course I know how to text, but I don't do it as often as the rest of my age group seems to. A habit I have is to read a text and forget it.
Maybe this isn't just me. Maybe a lot of people are like this. However, from everyone else my age I've seen they're texting ten times as much as me.

Oh, also I don't abbreviate on texts. I write full sentences 90% of the time. What, am I trying to send an email? I don't know. Eh.

Yup. I really am having some writer's block, can't you tell? Well, tomorrow I'll have stuff to talk about. We're baking cookies! (Meaning me and some friends.)

Are you text savvy?

Wrapping Gifts

Do you ever have those days where you simply take forever just to get going? No? Just me? Ah well.

The funny thing is, I didn't even get up at a terribly late hour. I just couldn't get moving! The winter haze is starting to creep up on me, and it's not a good thing. Still, I am sticking to my guns and trying to be productive.

Today's productive task? Wrapping Christmas presents.

Actually probably some of my better work.

I told my mom that I'd be happy to wrap the Christmas presents this year, saving her the work. Honestly it doesn't take much effort, but it's just time-consuming. I'm happy to wrap Christmas presents, but there's just one little problem I have: I'm terrible at it.

Will your gift get covered in festive paper? Yes indeed. Will it also have huge chunks of paper sticking messily out the side? Yup.

I can still get a gift wrapped though. I think that's all that really matters because in the end, we just want to rip some paper off of a box.

Are you good at wrapping?

Shopping for Christmas

The day after I talk about being frugal with money, what do I do? I help my mom go on a shopping spree. Ha I kid, but I helped her buy Christmas gifts today. Including my Christmas gifts. Yeah, it's a little odd.

There are pros and cons to knowing what gifts you're going to get for Christmas/Birthdays/etc. The obvious pro is that you'll get what you want. The con? The surprise is gone.

I think the thing with surprise is that it's a little like magic. Sound goofy? What's the biggest thing needed for magic tricks? The element of surprise. You don't know how they pulled that rabbit out of the hat, and once you do it's not exciting. Personally, I love surprises. One of the coolest birthdays I had was getting a surprise party. (It would have been awesome, if not for the fact that I was feeling super sick right before getting surprise. Ew.)
Still, despite the surprise being gone I'm okay with it. Sure surprise is nice, but my mom needed help with her shopping. I just don't want to wrap my own Christmas presents is all I'm saying.

Truth is, there are things that I'd like. The thing is I'm always thinking, "I don't really need it." It kind of goes in a terrible circle though. I feel guilty about having money spent on me, but by explaining this, I make my mother feel guilty about spending money. I'm not trying to make her feel guilty, I'm the one who feels guilty. Oy. I just have psychological issues with money I suppose.

One of the funny things about shopping is how tired it makes you feel. I suppose it's because you're on your feet all day, but it simply doesn't register.

That was my shopping day. Yup.

Do you like knowing your gifts? Or would you rather be surprised by a gift you might not want?

Saturday Night and Such

Whenever I have trouble starting out a blog, I start surfing the web. It happens. I suppose it's because my thoughts are a tad scattered tonight.

Good news on the book selling front: I already sold a book! Granted, it was probably for a lot cheaper than it should have been, but I think I made a decent buck. Well, once I get paid.

On another note, new SNL tonight! Huzzah! I keep forgetting what day it is, and it's barely been two days. It may seem like I've been watching a lot of television, but I'm really not. One thing I had to watch? My Theatre professor from last year being on a television show. WHAT. That's the craziest thing ever! So nicely done Ted. Sorry you had to be eaten by rats. (Grimm is a pretty morbid show.)

My aunt was thinking about me when she saw these adorable little loaf pans!

I can't wait to use them! Also, can you tell my family members like to shop? They just buy things... even if it's not for a holiday gift or anything. Just because it's there. I it's a very nice trait, but I'm glad I don't have a weakness for buying things "just because they're there". I'm surprised the members of my family haven't gone broke.
I simply never buy things on a whim, really. That includes for myself. The last thing I bought "on a whim" for myself was in October, when I bought a Portland Marathon Mug, a headband, and a sticker for my car. Unless you count half marathon registration in November? I dunno.

I really thought I would have a lot more to say today, but honestly I do not. It's just one of those days I suppose.

What was the last thing you bought "on a whim?"

A Start on Winter Break

Winter Break is here! Huzzah!

Okay, I'll stop talking about finals now. I'm just glad that I don't have to study anymore. Funny thing is, when I was actually able to waste my time on the computer, I really didn't want to.

Last winter break? I wasted lots of time. This winter break, I have only two goals: Accomplish as many things as possible. Always keep busy.

Currently, still trying to figure out what all of that is that I'm going to apparently accomplish. However, I've totally gotten a good start on it.

After dozing off, I started to get to work. (Chlo, when you called me I was barely awake. Driving did not sound like a fun idea at that time.)

Selling text books has always been something that I've never really wanted to deal with. Figuring out selling things online? Obnoxious. Selling them to the bookstore though? Talk about getting nothing for your books. The thing is, they're not getting me any money by just sitting on the shelf of my closet. That's why tonight I put up quite a few books for sale on Amazon. Exciting! It also includes a few of my old manga. Now, let's just hope that people buy them.

Other than selling books, I'm hoping to do a lot more this winter break. Think earning money with odd jobs and finding ways to see friends. Trying to job search. Perhaps some reading? Running is in there too, but that's a given.
What are your plans for the holiday season?

Do Over

I don't have a lot of time tonight, so we're going to make this quick.

Fact: If I were able to do this week over, I would in a heartbeat. Because this week? Not my best show.

I wasted so much time this week, and it wasn't pretty. Not even in good ways, except for running. It's obnoxious.

This is the problem I have with a lot of free time. When I do have a lot of free time, I waste it. When I'm busy, I actually use my time wisely. And yes, I know that I've talked about this before. I'm not very original tonight, I happen to have an 8:00 AM final tomorrow that is zapping my desire to be witty.

Will I get bad grades this term? Probably not. I did all of my homework, and I actually concentrated in class. I... well, I guess you can say I learned. I'm assuming it'll be between an A- and a B for almost all of my classes. Except for maybe EC, but I'm hoping the curve will help me out. Good lord I hope so.

I know, I know. This is the whole, "I only got 98%!?" argument, but I'm being kind of positive on this one.

As for fall term? Not my shining moment. I know that they always say, "Live life to your fullest!", but that totally did not occur this term.

Funny thing is, I ran a marathon this term. It was early on though, so it felt different. And I'm glad I got involved. Still you know how they ask, "If you could do anything over, what would it be?" November to the end of this term. Totally would push redo.

Now, I have to go back to studying. Really, I just want to be done with tests. I think the reason I'm being so bad with procrastination is the knowing that tests are what should be taking up my time. I dunno.

If you could do a chunk of time over, what time would it be?

Birthday Association

Yes, it's totally acceptable to have "One of those weeks." Mine would have been like that if it weren't for the break I have tomorrow.

Today I looked at my calendar and realized, "Hey, it's my grandma's birthday! I need to call her!"
Did I have her birthday written down on the calendar? Oh no. Instead, the words on said calendar were "National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day".

Needless to say, this is a horrible way of remembering your grandmother's birthday. However, it's how I've always remembered it because of the story we were told. Yes, one year on grandma's birthday they were listening to the radio... AND THE BOMBS HIT. While she was happily opening her presents seconds before.
No one wants to associate terrible things with happy occasions, like your grandmother being alive for another year. Yet, I'm always able to remember her birthday. I also don't this I would remember the day of Pearl Harbor, unless I needed to for some history class. That sound terrible? You know that's the only reason you remember dates like that.

Back then, I would assume it would be similar to having your birthday on the same day as 9/11.

Actually, I know someone who has his birthday on said day. He has some swell muttonchops.

I don't mean to be morbid, I'm simply stating facts. It makes me think of my birthday. I don't have any major events that occurred on my birthday other than it's National Peanut Day. (Well, except for one site saying apparently the universe was created on my birthday. But that's another story.) It would only be a tragedy if I had a nut allergy.

I've always remembered birthdays because of holidays too. Both one of my cousins and one of my best friends have birthdays the day after Valentine's Day. My dad has the same birthday as Mickey Mouse. Okay, that's not why I know my dad's birthday, but I think that's the coolest fact.

I guess what I'm saying is that I'm terrible at remembering birthdays and the only way I'm able to do it is by date association. Sounds about right.

Other than that, only have one final left! Friday at 8:00 AM. Economics. Hoo boy. But that does mean I have pretty much all of tomorrow free. Except for another part of my HPHY final I have to finish online, which is basically the same test, but we get to do it on the computer and have all of the answers. Hmm. Those are disgustingly awful sentances, please ignore their structures. Honestly, I should stop talking while I'm behind.

Do you know anyone with a birthday on a holiday/significant day?

One of those days

Can we say it's been one of those days? Because it's been one of those days.

One of those days where you end up falling asleep in the fetal position on the floor of your apartment for 15 minutes.

One of those days you try to find anything to distract you from your flashcards that you've looked at multiple times at yet still don't feel prepared.

One of those days where you study, but the information simply doesn't click.

One of those days where you wish you had everything you needed to function how you usually do in your apartment. Like being able to run in your apartment. Or take tests. Because who really needs fresh air?

There's never really a true definition of "one of those days", but sometimes certain days are just one of those days.
I think that taste of vacation wasn't good for me. Especially since when there are finals, there aren't classes. It's like it's teasing me.
Can you tell logical, coherent posts are not on the schedule for this week? I assumed it would not continue this way, but here we are.

Well, I must be off to look at more information that I will most likely forget in a few weeks. Tally ho!

When was the last time you had "One of those days"?

Feeling Finals

Let's just move on from yesterday's post, shall we? Because that junk was ridiculous.

Currently, I'm in study zone for my first final that is happening tomorrow at 3:15 PM. Personally, I like morning tests the best. That way, you're not thinking about it all day, and you're fresh. If you get sleep that is.

Although for tomorrow? Sort of glad it's in the afternoon. The fact is, I'm nervous about this test. I've been able to answer all of my flashcards, but still... I don't feel that great about it.

I thought I did pretty well on the midterm for this class, but then I did less than great. Well, not as well as I thought I could have gotten. Meh.

Funny how our perception of how we did on a test can be completely different from how we actually do. For myself, when I feel good about my test I do badly. When I feel terrible about a test... I do even worse. Or surprisingly good.
Yeah, this isn't true all of the time, but this is how I instantly think about these things now.

Test... I am not excited for you. That's all I have to say.

How does your perception of how you did on a test actually affect the outcome?

Getting Your Zzzzs

Holiday parties I have gone to since this month started: 2
Times I have worn my ugly sweater meant for such events: 4 times.

You can see how this is a problem. It's so warm though! Don't worry, I'm not wearing it in public.

Due to the fact that sleep is currently the main thing on my mind, let's talk about it now shall we?

In high school, I was never that kid who could stay up until 2 every night and function like a normal person. Oh no. I needed my sleep. If I had anything under 6 hours, I pretty much became brain dead.

Guess what? I'm still like that, although now I need to go to bed early as well. Aw yeah, I am the cool kid.

Hmm. I thought I would have a lot more to say about that, but apparently I do not. Last night's total hours of sleep? 3.5. Yeah.

I think I'm going to bed right now.

How many hours of sleep do you need to function?

An All Black Kind of Day

Two early day posts in a row? What is this? That's just how we're gonna roll, I suppose.

This has been an all black day, for clothes at least. I wore my all black running outfit for most of the day, and tonight is initiation which is all black required.

Been taking a lot of pictures of myself lately. Huh.

Being slightly nerdy I instantly thought, "I look like a ninja!" in my running outfit.Which is always makes you feel cool, because ninjas are awesome. Fun fact though, ninjas actually didn't look like what we think they look like. They didn't wear things like this:

Instead, they really wore normal clothes as to blend in with the crowds. A true way to be undectected, rather than jumping around in black pajamas.

The whole black outfit did make me think of an occasional outfit that I do end up wearing, depending on the situation. That outfit is something I call The Lazy Ninja.

The Lazy Ninja: When you realize that you're wearing both a black sweatshirt and black sweatpants. I discovered the lazy ninja last winter break while sittin' cozy watching movies. I saw my reflection on the mirror, a little shocked to see what could be a ninja that had let herself go. Thus, the lazy ninja was born.
I believe the only other person who knows of this is my sister, and she only knows about it because I mentioned it causually on the phone or something.

I think this should be a thing. Because who hasn't had a moment where they realized on their lazy day they were wearing all black sweats. Right?

Welp, I need to head off. Hopefully, tonight will be an exciting night!

What's an all black outfit that you like?

The Allergy Test

Hello everyone.

What is that paper that I'm holding, you ask? Well, it's a paper that I received yesterday after a little doctor's appointment I had. A paper letting me know that I can't eat a food that I adore.

It's official. I'm allergic to shrimp. And crab, apparently. Funny thing is, I'm not allergic to lobster, so there's that buttery goodness still on the menu.

It's kind of obvious, but I wasn't always allergic to shrimp. I used to love shrimp. It's also featured in a lot of healthy recipes. All was fine until one day I ate some, and something was off. My throat felt a little itchy, and my face got a bit of a rash. I thought, "Oh maybe it's cooked weird since we're in Mexico." At least that's what I hoped.
A few months later, I had some shrimp again at a family shrimp cookout. A few pieces and the weird itchy throat feeling was back. Oh no.

I tried to deny it, thinking that only two little times shouldn't be a big deal. On the other hand, I had that fear in the back of my mind. My mother was freaked out I was going to die, so she told me to make an allergy test appointment.

Have you ever gotten an allergy test done? It's a little weird. They poke your arm with samples of the potential allergens, then see which ones itch. They also have a control, which is meant to itch. So even if you're not allergic to anything, you'll still end up itching.

You can't really tell, but the one that's more pink and it second left one closest to me is shrimp. Boohoo.

Also, you know the prescription up there? That's for an epi-pen. I have to get a freakin' epi-pen. Just in case. I never thought I would need anything like that!

Well, I suppose I can be thankful that I'm not allergic to peanuts which is what I eat for breakfast almost everyday. (Peanut butter on toast with a hint of jam... delicious.) And I don't really care about the crab, because I've never liked crab anyway.

Oh shrimp. We'll always have that delicious garlic-y pasta dish from that restaurant a few years ago.

Have you ever had an allergy test? What's a weird allergy you have?

Ugly Sweaters and White Elephant Gifts

As usual, December 1st is when I finally start getting into the Christmas spirit. Play your Christmas music to me now, because then it won't get old too early. Christmas movies? I shall get into watching you now. Well once finals are over. Whatever.
Anywho, as the holiday celebrations have begun, that mean holiday parties are happening too! I happened to go to my first of the season, the Chrismahanakwanzakah party help by the APO fellowship chair. Pretty much ugly sweaters and white elephant.

I didn't win ugliest sweater, but I think I had a pretty spiffy one.

Sadly enough, this is one of my mom's old sweaters. It's just... the colors. No.

I've never really done a White Elephant before, but I've heard that you're supposed to get simply ridiculous gifts. That meant perusing the RV Garage. Where junk goes to live. I managed to grab a Harlequin romance novel courtesy of my mom, and an old beanie baby shark. It was bizarre, and delightful. Hell, I didn't even read what the book was about but when the person who got it did... it was ridiculous.

My gift? A reversible sweatshirt thing. Huh. All I know is that I have to wash it, but it actually could be nice to wear for lazy day wear. Maybe.

Oh goodness, I need to go to bed. Excited that tomorrow is Friday, but that means finals are that much closer. Ew.

Have you ever been to a White Elephant? What's a ridiculous gift that you've received?

Random Thoughts and Goals for December

Before we get started, I'm just gonna toss out a few things on my mind.

• I'm getting an allergy test tomorrow, to see if it's true that I can't have shrimp. I hope it's not. I love shrimp, I don't want it to hurt me.
• For the last two days, I've had the lyrics "An elephant never forgets, so my dick remembers everything" stuck in my head. Yeah. I like the song "Freaks and Geeks" by Childish Gambino, although all I can think is, "Silly Troy, why are you rapping?"
• I got accepted to be a member of APO! Yah! I did all of the stuff, so it was kind of expected but still. Huzzah!
• Why is it that I can't bake small things? I always burn the bottoms. I never have this problem with loaves. Sure, the rest of it is fine but burnt bottoms are never fun. I ended up scraping off the bottoms of some Chocolate chip scones so they're acceptable to give away.
• It's my mother's birthday! Happy birthday mom, love ya! Thanks for raising me to be mostly normal.
• This week has been Dead Week, and it's actually been surprisingly dead for me. I have a paper to edit for Friday but other than that... classes have been reviewing stuff. I know that a lot of the people are doing projects this week, but I also think that they have less to do during finals week. I do have three finals...

Are we good? We're good. Anywho, what I wanted to talk about today are goals. I see bloggers always posting their goals, and it seems like a good way to stay on track. They say that it takes 21 days to form a habit. Or is it 28? Whatever. All I'm saying is that it's time I make monthly goals.
I'll admit, I actually did have a goal for November, and I stuck to it pretty well. It was:

• Eat 2 servings of fruits and 2.5 servings of veggies
• Only one serving of cooked veggies a day
• Only one dried fruit for a fruit serving per day

Other than Thanksgiving where everyone has plates of tan and white, I did quite well on this! I ate salad, and I even got back into grapes! I used to not like grapes because I'd always grab the bunch with the gross squishy ones. It tainted my memory of grapes.

Now that we're starting December (!) it's time to work on a new goal. I actually have two things to work on this month. First, is to track my computer time and cut way back. I've talked about my obsession with the computer, and it's horrendous. The thing is, I never actually see how much time I spend on it. I think if I track computer use, it'll make me want to spend less time on it because of all of the shame I will feel.

My other goal is to not spend money on soda or gum. Now, this is kind of cheap since I'm going to probably spend a good chunk of time at my parents' house (which is always stocked with some sort of diet soda). However, I'll push this through January as well. Gum and soda? I should not waste money on you. Even if you are delicious. The biggest problem I have with this though is that I like having some sort of flavor in my mouth at all times. Yeah, that sounds dirty. Due to this, I tend to munch more when I don't have something occupying my taste buds with zero calories. Guh.

I think it'll be good just to have two goals per month, because it's easier to work your way up. At least that's what I'm hoping will happen.

I don't want to go to classes anymore. I want it to be winter break now. Can we arrange that, with me still getting good grades in my classes? No? Boo.

Do you have any goals for December?

Wish Lists are Boring

I'm procrastinating getting in the shower. What is going on? I used to love showers. I suppose that's what happens when you have to fight against the clock for a warm shower. Goodness.

As we are getting closer and closer to the holiday season, it's around this time that we start asking the people around us, "What do you want for Christmas/Hanukkah/WhateverDecemberholidayyoucelebratethatyouhavetoshopfor?" Let's face it, you're getting/giving gifts in December no matter what you celebrate. It's just how the world works now.

The thing is, there are phases of gift-receiving that we all go through. The biggest and main one comes when we're kids. When we're kids, we want EVERYTHING. Our lists are a mile long, or really expensive. Either way, the more gifts mean the more exciting your morning is going to be. Then there's the phase that I'm currently in. It's called, "I don't really want any gifts, because I would rather have money so I'm not broke." This phase isn't fun for anyone. This phase may also mix with the "practical gift phase", because at this point that's what we need. Toys are a waste of money and space. We adults do not need trinkets, they are useless. (I keep on wanting to call myself a teenager lately. Good lord, I'm twenty. How did that happen?)

I admit, there's nothing I really need but that's not the main reason I've said, "I don't need anything for Christmas just money." The biggest reason I've been asking for money is because of the (hopefully) studying abroad. The last few days all I've done is apply for scholarships and jobs, but I like easy gift money.
On the other hand, I've been thinking about gifts lately. I realized that yes, there are a few things that I actually would like. I'm only reluctant to ask, because I'd rather have cash. Eh. Yes, I know that wish lists make for obnoxious posts, but I'm going to do it anyways. Anywho, I present to you my Christmas Wish List.

Source

1. Microsoft Office
Did I say fun gifts? Because I meant gifts that I need. Yes, my computer doesn't have Microsoft Word. It's got some default program that comes on the computer. Did you know that Microsoft Office doesn't come with all computers? I certainly did not when I got my computer as a graduation gift. I've been able to handle documents just fine without it, but it's annoying, and files don't send right. I just would like to be with modern times.

Source

2. Cellphone GPS holder
Don't worry, I have some fun holiday wishes but in reality I want this. I get lost all of the time, so I use the GPS on my phone. It's useful, but I have to look at the phone in my lap for directions. Not so useful. I saw that my aunt has one of these, and they seem really awesome.

3. Community Season 1
For all of my Community praise, I have to admit I haven't seen all of the first season. This was at a time when I didn't know what a Hulu was (Now my terrible addiction), so I always missed it when it was on. I only started watching it online when I saw the 1st paintball episode.Usually, I'm a watch an episode only once type of girl and then I'm done, but Community is one of those shows where I can watch certain ones a few times. Like the zombie Halloween episode. Arrested Development falls into this category as well.

4.Itunes
Itunes are boring. But I want music. Mainly The Lonely Island. Apparently all I listen to is fake rap.

That's my list. Like I said, older kids? Boring lists. I've always sucked to shop for, in case you're wondering.

What's on your Holiday Wish List?

The Power of a Petition

Shit's going down here at the U of O.

Y'see, drama started right before Thanksgiving break when the current president of the school received word that his contract was not reinstated for the upcoming year. This has caused an uproar from many of the faculty and students at the school because many of them think that he is doing a good job. Apparently, the problem comes from his ideas about changing the school from being funded by the state to funding itself after taking out a big loan. His ideas might also change the school to be similar to a private school in a way. The whole thing is that the state (or the people in charge) don't like this idea, so they think it's time he left. Overall, I don't really know a lot about it. What I've learned about the situation is what I've talked to others about or have been told about. All I know is that people are not happy, and they're letting the world hear them.

For instance, quite a few people have donned the picture of "the hat" as their profile picture. "The hat" is apparently a symbol of the president because he wears a certain hat all of the time. Other ways that people are participating are by making petitions.

Here's the thing. I love the effort that people make for something they really care about. I'm all for it. However, I don't think that petitions work. No matter how much love is put behind something, when the top dogs have made a decision, they've made a decision.

There's an alternative reason that I've brought this up, and it has to do with one of my favorite television shows: Community.
If you're a fan of Community, you've heard about the fact that it's not on the mid-season list of shows. Meaning it's probably going to be cancelled. Now, Community fans are a bit eccentric, but they love their show. One of the things that sucks about the whole thing is that a lot of Community's fanbase resides online. I can't watch Community when it's on air, I can only watch it on Hulu. I think this is how it is for a lot of the fans.
Due to the fact that the Internet includes a huge Community fan base, there are a ton of protests/petitions/etc for Community online. ...Can you see where I'm going with this?

I love Community, but I'm not so sure on how well the petitions are actually going to work. Not like I don't have hope (I'm very very very hopeful), but for every "Betty White to Host SNL!" petitions, there are a hundred other petitions with arguments from hopeful fans.

Still, I did sign the online Save Community petition. Because I still hope that it's not done for good.

#Sixseasonsandamovie.

Do you believe in the power of a petition? Or do you think it's unrealistic?

Stepping into the New Frontier of the Internet

Fun fact about me: I am terrible at making up usernames. It's not just that, but I'll try to think of a username for something for hours. Sometimes I'll just stare at the screen, thinking about it. How depressing.

So I got a Twitter. Yup. I have no idea why I should even need a twitter, because in my book Twitter is for:

1. Famous people or
2. Extremely witty people (Comedians usually)

I'm not sure I can classify myself in either one of those categories. I'll try to fake it in the latter category. Now, I do have reasons why I actually thought getting a Twitter might be a good thing. First of all, everything is talking about how "it's a good way to network yourself". Do I know for what yet? No. Who knows what it could help me with in the future with though. Another reason has to do with Jimmy Fallon in a broad sense. Y'see, lately I've been watching clips from his show, and one of the segments he has is called "Hashtags". This is created by input from Twitter users, and for some of the subjects I've thought, "Hey, I have a good experience I could send in," then realizing that I do not have what is required to participate. This actually works for a lot of things, because a lot of TV shows and such that I'm a fan of only promote things through Twitter. In my sad little brain, this makes me think that the shows don't think I'm as big of a fan. I have the dumbest logic ever, but you see where this is going. Last reason? Lots of bloggers seem to have them and it seems like blog-y things travel through the Twitter-verse.

Anywho, now you can find me trying to be smarter than I actually am in a different area of the Internet, @HannahHasAFact. Ridiculous username? Perhaps. It's sort of based off of the same idea that this blog is titled after, because in almost every conversation I have I have to throw in some random fact like a pretentious jackass. Good lord, that was a run on sentence. I felt a touch of relief when I saw that you could change it in the future if desired.

Did I just write a whole blog post on justifying why I created a Twitter? I think I did. There is something wrong with me. Then again, I usually end up joining in on the trend as soon as it starts fading. I'm like when parents start joining the Facebook, and it's not cool anymore. Eh.
If you just got a rando-person following you, now you know why.

So, to all of those in Twitter-land: Any good people to follow I should know about?

Grandma Max Syndrome

I've got a problem that seems to have been passed through a few generations. It's something I lovingly call  Grandma Max Syndrome. This syndrome is what happens whenever one of the people who has it gets injured. They'll get injured somehow, and not really make a big deal about it. Or, what that actually means is not even acknowledge it. When my grandma was having a stroke, she exclaimed, "I'm fine!" while at the same time half of her face was drooping. When my mother fell out of the attic, and I was screaming about needing to take her to the hospital, she simply said, "It's okay, let me just lay here for a second." No.

Grandma Max Syndrome is pretty common for a lot of runners too, not wanting to admit we're injured. Thankfully, this is not where Grandma Max Syndrome has hit me. On Thanksgiving day when taking the delicious brie out of the oven, the pan hit my arm.
"Did you burn yourself?", my cousins asked.
"Don't worry about it," as I backed away slowly. Sure, I put my arm under cold water, but soon I was over by the brie, indulging.

What I didn't mention to anyone afterwards was that my arm was still stinging a couple hours later. Sure I'm telling y'all but I don't really mention when I get hurt in the moment. Eh. I only mentioned it after it was noticed, and someone asked, "What happened to your arm?" Today it started blistering. I've never gotten a burn this bad.



Little, but still icky.

 Sometimes you're an idiot you do crazy things for what you love. Meaning cheese baked in crescent rolls.

Other than burnt arms, I got to see one of my best friends from high school today! Due to the fact that they've been remodeling the high school, we decided to go take a look at it. Funny thing was, while we were there, one of the teachers drove up and let us explore inside! Don't you love crazy happenings like that?

Have you ever been injured and just not acknowledge it?

Thanksgiving Recap

Alright, first of all I have no idea how some of y'all were able to post yesterday. Seriously, I had no time at all! Anywho...

Before I get into an actual recap, I suppose it would be best if I threw in my things to be thankful for. I was planning to do two posts today, but... no. That's not gonna happen. Well, what am I thankful for? The obvious things like family, running, education, and basically the ability availability I have to do so many different things.

Now, onto the Thanksgiving recap! Honestly, not sure how much I have to say about Thanksgiving, but let's just see what we can do. There has been one year where I only ate until I was content. This was not the year.

Before any of the feasting occurred, it was time to participate in the Treadmill in the Basement Turkey Trot. Part of the requirements was making a race bib. I felt a tad ridiculous wearing a race bib while not in a race, but you gotta do what you gotta do. As for the bib my biggest concern of the day was about even getting my run in. So having a proper bib? Not much on my mind. That means I had this attached to my jacket:

Yes, a bit sad. We make due.

My contribution to the Turkey Trot? 10 miles. I decided to do my long run that morning instead, which if we're being honest was just because of the upcoming eats that were happening.

After the run, obviously food cooking was in full swing, and appetizers were on. All you need to know about that is that's the point where I eat pretty much all I really want to eat for the day: Brie cheese. Wrapped in a crescent roll.  Honestly, that's all you need to know.

The rest of day included the obvious dinner, Apples to Apples, and also included the Annual Turkey Bowl. The Turkey Bowl is basically all of the family members heading off to the high school and playing a "game of football". I say it like that because it's really just throwing the ball around to each person, trying to have them run. Mostly the little kids. For the older gals (including me), that meant goofing off and recording videos at the edge of the field.

Later, there were card games and talking. There were other things too I think. I'm not sure I remember just everything that happened, but all I know is that the cousins? We all stayed up until 3:00 in the morning. Oh god. This does not work for someone who wakes up automatically at 9:00 AM.

Right now, I'm exhausted but I'm watching the newest episode of The Soup. Homework time starts tomorrow. I hope y'all had a great Thanksgiving!

What did you do for your Thanksgiving?

The Night Before Thanksgiving

Welp, it's the night before Thanksgiving. That means it's family time. Meaning... blogging will be quick, also due to the fact that I need to go to bed early. Running in the morning has to occur, and it's already past the time that I'll get eight hours of sleep. So yeah.

On the ride up, I had a long discussion with my dad about finances. Economics seems to have given me more to talk about to my dad. I guess that helps when he's an accountant.
All I know? The world of money is confusing.

This is really all that I have time to say. We'll see how turkey day commences, okay?

What are you excited about for Thanksgiving?

The Four Types of Classes That You Will Take in School

Now that I've been in school for more than 13 years of my life, I think it's pretty safe to say I know the basics of what classes are like. With this, there are always certain types of classes that you are going to end up with, no matter what. I'm not talking about math or reading though. This isn't based on what the classes are about necessarily, but how they affect a person. Seeing as I love Cracked, and the "5 types of blank" videos that College Humor has, I'm here to present you with:

The Four Types of Classes That You Will Take in School

4. The Class You Knew You Were Going To Hate Before You Took It... Then Realized That You Indeed Hated It
You knew you had to take that class. You just didn't want to. Whether the feeling against the class is because it's hard or boring, all that matters is that you are taking it and you don't want to take it. Well the first day rolls along, and it's time to start. You look around the room and see what seems to be a cool mix of people. Perhaps the professor has done something to the setup to make it more exciting. Maybe the professor just seems like a neat person. The class begins and...
It's boring/hard/awful/whatever you want to use to describe it sucky. This class is going to make this term drag on forever, isn't it? You don't even want to get started on the next class coming up:

3.The Class You Knew You Were Going To Hate Before You Took It... But Became One Of Your Most Intriguing Classes
Ugh. Not this class. You don't even like this subject. Why the hell are you taking it? Oh  right, major requirement. Dangit. At least you're getting it done with now, so you won't have to deal with this junk ever again. Unless you fail. Oh god, there is no way you'll be able to take this class twice, let alone the fact you haven't taken it once. Grumbling on your way to your seat, you look around and see all of the other people scowling about this class, also as a major requirement. Then class starts. As the class goes on, your polite interest transforms into an actual interest in what the professor is talking about. Wow, this is fascinating! What useful information! This class actually might be hard, but you actually care about what's being talked about. Isn't that what school is about? Now it's time to go onto your next class, which you are pumped for because it's:

2. The Class You Were Excited About... Then Grew To Despise.
When signing up for this class, you were hyped even by the name of the class. You've never known much about this subject before, and now you're going to learn everything you want to learn and more! Who wouldn't want to sign up for this class. Now you're sitting in your seat right before the class is about to start. Man, even the professor seems cool! Then the lecture starts...
...and you can't believe it. You already know all of this stuff. This is so stupid. Didn't you learn about this in grade school? Geez, and you've got ten more weeks of this junk. It could also be that the cool class turned out to be really freakin' hard. You were not prepared for this. You took this because it sounded the easiest out of the required classes, not for a challenge.
Finally we have:

1. The Class You Were Excited About... That Turned Out To Be Awesome.
This is a class to treasure. This is the class that you're going to be talking about forever, or at least like an annoying know-it-all about for the few weeks after. Awesome classes are sometimes the classes you take specifically for your major, but sometimes they're just a class you signed up for because it caught your eye on the course catalogue. Boy, weren't you a smartie to actually look through the course catalogue. This class might not even be an easy class. You might end up doing a lot of work for it, but do you care? No. You're so enveloped in the information, studying for this class is fun (if not sometimes stressful). Now if only every class was like this one.

Well that was fun! Goodness, I do enjoy lists. And if you want to read lists about ways your cellphone is screwing with your body and mind, or the basic things you won't believe you're all doing wrong, I suggest reading cracked. Seriously, it's addicting.

Currently I have one of each type of class: Writing 121 is a class I knew I wouldn't like, and it turns out I don't still. The reason? It should be an easy A, but it's not. The professor doesn't like the way I write. She's actually said that I'm a good writer, but... Ugh. Plus, I've already taken this junk.
Economics is #3 strangely enough. Truth be told, I'm probably going to get my lowest grade of the term in this class. However, the information is useful. I'm actually using what I learn. Despite not doing that great on quizzes, I actually understand the information. Ain't that a weird predicament! (I'm a good writer? Ha, oh dear...)
#2 is Exercise as Medicine. Going into the class, I was excited to learn about just what the title suggests, exercise as medicine. Unfortunately, it's boring and I don't care about what I'm learning. Well, I suppose I do care because it's good to know the 4 chambers of the heart and such. Oh the other hand, meh.
#1 is Journalism 201. Sorta. It's true that I enjoy this class, and that I'm doing well in this class. I'm also connecting things in my day to day life with this class. On the other hand, there's a class which I still consider my number one #1, and that was History of Fashion that I took last spring. I loved that class, and I still think about things I learned from that class today. I still want an Ionic Chiton from the Greek period. Currently, it's still my most enjoyed class that I have taken to date.

Wooh, that was a wordy post! Other than that, I've just been waiting on getting the last of my forms in for the study abroad application, typed up the last homework before Thanksgiving break, and now... typing this up. I've done a lot of typing today. I wish I had a typewriter. Maybe I could buy one someday... after I save up enough for study abroad. Then a camera if I earn enough money before I leave. Why must everything cost money? I'm going off on different tangents, meaning I should sign off for the night before I think of something else random to say.

What were your classes #4,#3,#2, and #1? Would you add anything else to the type of classes you take in school?

An Unexpected Trip Back

Here I am, officially home for the holidays!

Ha, well actually I'm not quite done yet. Still, I am currently sitting back in my bed at my parent's house (still my house, I'd like to say) typing this up. Then I'm going back down to school tomorrow morning... only to be back up here Wednesday. What is this madness? Let me explain.

In part of my "getting things together for study abroad" ventures, I needed to get a letter of recommendation from one of my professors at Western. Now, I like asking people for things in person much better than email so I decided that it would be a good idea to drive up to Western, the first time since I'd finished this summer. Her only office hours that I could go to were today. Besides, I was hoping I would be able to run into some friends while on my impromptu visit.
Good thing I did too, because I was able to get a transcript (also needed for the application) while I was over there. The transcript system online? Not good. Another example of liking to do things in person rather than online.

It's funny- even though I've missed WOU, I hadn't missed it as much until I stopped by again. A wave of memories flooded back into my mind, and I saw fun little things that I missed about it. One example was the giant versions of things project that the art students do. They make giant versions of whatever, and the projects decorate the lawn. My favorite that I saw this time was a giant electrical plug!

One of the craziest things I noticed? So many things are different! Alright, not so many things, but mainly the WUC! There's a whole other attachment added to it, and it feels weird!

Before I left, I was able to see one of my friends that goes there. She's as adorable as ever, which may sound weird since she towers over me. But she's just so innocent! Apparently everyone is really busy this year, including her many hours spent in the studio. I guess that makes sense, since most of the people I know over at WOU are upperclassmen. Then again, I've had a kind of busy term. What's the deal with this year? Eh.

By the time I was able to get my recommendation, it was already dark and pouring. Blergh. Not something I really wanted to drive 1.5 hours in. So I decided to just head back to my hometown and stay for the night. It works out nicely due to the fact that my earliest class is at noon tomorrow. Yes...
The only downside? I'm totally going to be pulling a "wear the clothes from the night before look", which sends out a good message.
I wish I had brought running clothes. My parents have a new treadmill, and it would be really nice to do my run indoors for once. Oh well.

I keep on having other ideas about what to write about, but instead lately I've been just talking about what's going on in my life... What a concept, a blog talking about what's going on in said blogger's life! Yeah, I don't know what I'm saying half of the time either.

Definitely feels like I'm on vacation... but still should go to bed before midnight, so I can wake up at nine. Yup.

Where was the last "place of your past" that you visited? How had things changed? Stayed the same?

Thinking About Traveling

Ah... as soon as I slow down, it's the end of the weekend! What is this?

I may have briefly said that I've made a big decision, and that's true. I have, but I have to make sure that it all works out. You see, I've found a study abroad program and I'm applying for it. As in, already started the application, trying to get references, typing up essays way of applying for it. I have less than two weeks to get all of that information together. What on earth was I thinking?

Well, all of last week was freaking out about if my schedule would allow me to even study abroad like I planned. Once I calmed the eff down, I was able to figure out that yeah, this could work.

The other thing I realized is that I need to actually do something, not just talk about it. I mean, I've been talking about it forever, and I've been looking at programs since I started college. I've gone to every type of event that talks about study abroad, and I've researched the programs. I've learned pretty much all that I can about it, so it's time to actually take the next step. The sooner I get an application done, the sooner I can apply for scholarships. And yes, I'm going to need scholarships. Hoo boy.

Now all I need is to finish the application, and wait. The other part that comes with this is looking for a job. Adding up all of the money that I have plus financial aid, I still need to earn about $6,000. That's a lot. That's why I need to earn some money.

Other than that, I've been rushing from place to place since Thursday, so it was nice to actually calm down and stay at my house for a bit. I'm not the type that likes to be go go go all of the time, it wears me out! Besides, I'm going to have another go go go day tomorrow. Thank goodness it's almost Thanksgiving break!

What was the last big decision you made? Did you think about it for a long time, or did you instantly jump on board?

Game Day

It's another installment of Life as a Duck, because today was a special day. Today was Game Day.

At the U of O, it's pretty hard to get student tickets because they sell out very quickly. However this week? This week I had a ticket. I was ready to go to my first Duck game. Aw yeah.

Game day on colleges are usually all very similar, if you go to a school that's pretty big. People will be walking everywhere across town hours before the game, and plenty of these people aren't even students. Isn't this what always happens? Anywho, so traffic of course is not something you want to deal with. Students walking everywhere, and crazy fans in cars? It's madness out there, and half the time people are getting drunk to go watch the game at a house anyways.

Getting to the arena, and right before the game is the actual most exciting part. People are walking in droves, everyone is excited... It helps that our team is good. The energy that flows through the whole stadium is addicting.

As for the noise? Well, recently I read that U of O stadium is the second loudest college football stadium in the country. They were only beat by a school that caused a mini quake because of their noise. If you ever somehow end up watching a game with UofO, just listen. You can hear them.

Lately, our team has been very good, and it's almost expect that we're going to win. Tonight's game though... oof. Sure, it was close near the end, but we did not play well. So many dropped balls... Oye.

I apologize if I seem a tad incoherent, it's just I'm very tired. Truth be told, as soon as I got back into my apartment tonight, I knew I wasn't going anywhere. Don't worry, I was glad. I'm surprised I'm not asleep now... which is what I'll probably go do now. Goodnight.

Are you a big football fan?

A Hectic Sort of Week

It's been one of those crazy days, you know? Anywho, here's what's up with life for a quick update, or just random thoughts:

It's amazing how much family members can effect you, mainly siblings. I've been able to convince my sister to read cracked, and now she's addicted to that and reads some blogs. As for her effect on me, most of the music I listen to is because of her.

I've realized that I spend far too much time on the computer. Not a new development, but lately it has caused some problems. (Don't worry, I'm doing all of my schoolwork.) I'm deciding to try and wean myself off of using my computer so much, possibly not using my laptop and instead use the library computer until schoolwork is done. This isn't the reason for not posting yesterday, I just didn't have time. We'll see.

Most of this week was consumed by stress of classes and registration. One night after finding out certain classes wouldn't work in the schedule the way that I wanted them to... I had a mini breakdown. It happens. However, after I let everything out, I actually got down to thinking, and realized I was perfectly fine in the way of school scheduling. It's good to clear your mind with a good pouring out of emotions because then you can actually think coherently afterwards.

My croissants were indeed a hit. That's always a good thing.

I'm making a big decision. More on that later.

I'd really like tomorrow to be a relaxing day after the last few days I've had, but that's not going to happen. What can you do? Especially since I have to cram a 9 mile run somewhere in there... Oof. That's why I have to go to bed now. So night to all, and hopefully there will be more detailed posts from me in the near future.

What type of week was it for you? Any exciting weekend plans?

Imitating the Foodie Bloggers

Sometimes, I wish I was a foodie blogger.

Or had any theme, really. Other than college kid writing? I dunno. Still, foodie blogger is the type of blogger I wish I could be the most. Food bloggers seem to have all of the fun, and they make the tastiest looking things. For instance, Mimi over at Gingersnaps just wrote about the FoodBuzz Fest, and everything sounded amazing.

But here's the thing: I am not very good at cooking. As I've mentioned multiple times. However, I'd like to think of myself as an okay baker. I'm slowly learning the art of this baking thing, don't worry about it. I've been baking bread out of what I'm calling my Bread Bible since I bought it this summer, and yesterday I thought I would make something out of it for the pledge potluck happening tomorrow.

Which leads me to point two of why I'm not in the position of being able to be a food blogger... My food isn't pretty. The best quality that all of my food baked goods has that it smells amazing. (If I do say so myself, hur hur hur.) When I baked pumpkin bread on Halloween, I received complaints about the bread smelling good. Trust me, it was a good thing in said situation. For the last two days, I've smelt like butter. You'd be surprised, but it's fantastic. I just kept smelling myself.

So what did I make today? See for yourself...

Croissants! Yes, I realize they are not super pretty but hell I'm going to take them as my dish tomorrow. That's another thing that makes me nervous about my baking- no one has ever really eaten my baking before. Sure, they've had my cookies, but no one else has partaken in the consumption of my bread. My dad never ate any, even though I would offer it. Then again, when I made him granola for Christmas last year because he likes food to munch on, he didn't eat any of it. I don't know.

I'll admit, the croissants are a little... toasted on the bottom. I didn't even keep them in the over for as long as the recipe said, it was a lot less time. I freakin' watched them. However, I taste tested one and... OH MY GOODNESS. This is why rolling three sticks of butter into flour is a good thing. (True story.)

So I'll take my little batch of french baked goods...

...And serve them to people. Wish me luck!

In case you were wondering, my phone camera still hasn't been working. That means all of these pictures were taken with my web cam. Yet another reason why I could not be a foodie blogger.

Oh, and the Cascade Half is in January. Plenty of time for training, so I'll try a little experimenting with the running.

Are you nervous about cooking for others? What are you the best at cooking/baking? Truth be told, my specialty is chocolate chip cookie dough. The trick is adding two eggs, doubling your chance of salmonella if consuming raw. And it tastes way better raw.

Here We Go Again

Wow, it's been over a month since my big race, hasn't it? And I said I would stop talking about it. Alas, here we are.

Indeed, I've been back to running for awhile, but it's been very relaxed. It's like I wish I had something to motivate me to train...

Oh wait. I do.

Yes, I'm going to be running the Cascade Half Marathon again, hooray! I always like being signed up for races. There's just something about them that helps with the motivation. Especially since I forgot what it's like to run when it's cold out.

I know, running my next half on the first ever half marathon course I ever did again? How boring. Still, I'm a little sentimental. I mean, it was my first ever half marathon! Plus the course is completely flat which is really nice. (A good way to block out the fact that it was pouring the entire time last year.)

Those are not the only reasons I'm running this race again though. There's actually a bigger reason, which is... My sister is running it! Yeah!
I know you might not want me talking about this on the blog Chloe, but it deserves to be said. Besides, it's a good thing.

This will be her first half marathon, which is so cool! Then again, she's already run that distance in her life before, so she'll kill it.

On other running related news, I'm quite excited to have been invited to the 2nd Annual Treadmill in the Basement Turkey Trot by Kat. I don't think I'll be running a half marathon, but I think a ten miler may be in the cards for the 24th of November. Five at the lowest.

The only thing I can really think about right now is how on earth did it already get to be almost 9:00PM? We are not amused. (Who is this we?)

I think any day that I go for a run is a productive one in some sense. It might have seemed like the day disappeared, but I did do something, right? We're going to say yes even though it doesn't feel like it. Buh.

Do you have any fun races coming up?

Flippin' Schedules

It's that special time of year again!

Source
No, not this time of year.

It's time to register for classes. Oh yes.

One of the things that I despise am getting used to while attending the U of O is the whole system of class scheduling, and advising appointments. At WOU, it was very easy to have everything figured out for your classes. They would post signs in the walkways, indicating that signing up for classes was coming very soon. They would send you an email to remind you. You only had one advisor, and that advisor helped you with all of your class scheduling questions. That? That does not happen here.

Trying to be the responsible student, I made sure to set up an advising appointment, with the person said to be my advisor. Being on the ball, I thought to myself. However apparently, your advisor does not help with your schedule. Your advisor helps with internships and such. That meant having a drop in appointment but thankfully, they were able to see me today.
With all of this stuff you have to do yourself, it's amazing to me just because my room mate last year couldn't even figure out all of the advising stuff despite the large amounts of help she received.

Have you ever had something organized just the way you like, just to realize that one thing has to change, changing your whole set up in the process? I have, and when you're unstable due to not enough sleep the night before, it's not a good thing. Especially if it makes sometime you really want to do in the future seem even more difficult than it was before. I may have gotten testy with the advisor after learning about certain classes being offered at certain dates, and how it would affect my plans. Then again, she was kind of rude. She cut me off a lot, which personally I don't think is very nice even if you think you know what the other person is going to say.

Apparently the advising situation isn't great for a lot of people, as I've been informed. I suppose that's just what you have to deal with in a big university.

I register for classes on Friday, so I decided to organize my (hopeful) schedule for the next term. I definitely have a love/hate relationship with organizing my class schedule because I love to organize my time, but sometimes things don't fit the way I want them to. Eh, what can you do.

On an unrelated note, this month is NaNoWriMo! The other name for it is National Novel Writing Month, and I always forget it. The whole idea is that you are to write a novel that is 50,000 words by the end of the month. I always think that it would be cool to participate in, but by the time the month begins I realize that I don't have any ideas for things to write about. Then again, I'm not sure if I've ever had an idea for a novel. Comics sure, but a novel? Not really. Still, it's a very cool idea.

When did I start enjoying November so much? I've actually been really liking this month. Plus, it's already half over (almost) meaning that Thanksgiving is very soon! Hoorah!

I can't believe how late it is already. Goodness. It's bedtime for me.

Do you like planning your schedule ahead of time, or a you a more "go with the flow" type? Me: Very big on planning ahead. My high school friends: Extremely go with the flow. Opposites attract?