It's really late at night; the clock reads 12:35 am. I should have been in bed an hour ago. But I just want to write. I want to write about the previous week and how interesting it was.
About my friend Bill--I did find out about him, and I found out (most) of the whole story about what happened, thanks to a couple sociology professors and a library clerk. However, due to the whole fragility of the situation my friend is in, I can't disclose what happened to him on the interwebs. But I do know that he's alright and I did talk to him on the phone. ...I just miss him a lot. I just keep expecting him to be around, and the fact that he's not lurking around campus like he always used to seems out of place. It has been one of the things lurking in my mind, and I have been thinking about my friend often. I hope I can see him soon and he comes back sooner than later.
I'm not sure if I should be doing book reviews on old classic novels I have to read for my American Realism literature class, but when I'm finished reading Washington Square, by Henry James, I think I will do a review. I've actually been reading it instead of skimming it, and I've found that it's not that bad at all. I really think I'm going to enjoy this class.
Speaking of classes, the books I've been having to read for Thanatology have been really interesting. Lauren seemed really enthusiastic that I was taking such a course about the sociology of death, and honestly she is one of the few that do. Most of the people I mention this class to have the following reaction... "Oh, that's cool!" *INSTANTLY changes the subject*. Even though the subject is really touchy and actually kind of depressing, I think I will devote an entire blog post about the subject and the class tomorrow.
I am simple going to mention one more thing before I head off to bed, and it is that I randomly watched Toy Story 3 this weekend. I absolutely loved it. Coming from the girl who watched Toy Story 2 very repetitively, this was kind of a no-brainer. But I loved it just the same. It had a lot of elements that differentiated this film from the other two, and it was those differences that made the film worthwhile and positively spectacular. Not only that, but this movie closed the fantastic story that the first began, with a happy, bittersweet ending. Watching this made my pretty awesome weekend even better.
That being said, here's to another week.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
Life and Death
So, a lot has been going on lately and I've just been too lazy and too busy to record it on this here blog. I'm back in school and have completed my first day of classes; I went to a leadership conference (of which I want to write a whole blog post about), and an interesting scheme of events has occurred with a good friend of mine. I will try my best to put all of these events into summation as best as I can.
About the first day of classes--the classes I attended today were American Realism/Naturalism (Literature), and Social Thantanology. The funny thing about the sociology course is that it connects to my friend. But I'll get to that later. Anywho, even though the literature course is upper division, I feel that it is going to be pretty easy and fun. But don't count me on that, the professor sometimes throws a curveball and the course material gets harder. Even so, I think I'll enjoy it. Here's a funny fact--out of the fifteen people in this class, three of them are pregnant women. I think it's interesting, but I don't know what else to say about it.
As for Thantanology, it was just overwhelming, what with my other issues going on. The professor is a distinguished guy who founded the county's hospice program, and pretty much the area's expert on death, dying, and hospice in sociology and in other aspects. So he had a lot to say, even for the first class. I do have to mention that this class only meets once a week for three hours, which is a first for me. After the class, the professor asked for me and told me some much needed information about my friend.
One of my followers, Lauren, has a close friend named Bill. Funnily enough, so do I. He's an interesting character, my friend Bill. After I started to get to know him, it felt like Bill had walked out of a novel and into my life. Everything I have done with Bill and everything that has happened with him is unreal enough to be a part of a story. This feeling runs so deep that I feel that perhaps someday I will write a novel/novella/short story(s) loosely based on Bill and the misadventures I have had with him. The thing that makes our friendship interesting is that he is my father's age. That huge age difference has given me stares and accusations that my friend is a pedophile. That is not true.
Recently, Bill went missing. By missing, I mean I did not hear from him for several weeks, and when I tried to contact him, I could not get a hold of him. Naturally, I was worried and feared the worst. Thanks to my professor and a clerk at the college library, my worst fears are over. I do know he is okay, and something really bad did happen to him, but I'm not sure of much else. I desperately hope that I will be able to see him soon, which is what my friends did promise me.
Also, I sent some postcards out to Belarus and the Netherlands today with Postcrossing. I hope I get some back soon.
About the first day of classes--the classes I attended today were American Realism/Naturalism (Literature), and Social Thantanology. The funny thing about the sociology course is that it connects to my friend. But I'll get to that later. Anywho, even though the literature course is upper division, I feel that it is going to be pretty easy and fun. But don't count me on that, the professor sometimes throws a curveball and the course material gets harder. Even so, I think I'll enjoy it. Here's a funny fact--out of the fifteen people in this class, three of them are pregnant women. I think it's interesting, but I don't know what else to say about it.
As for Thantanology, it was just overwhelming, what with my other issues going on. The professor is a distinguished guy who founded the county's hospice program, and pretty much the area's expert on death, dying, and hospice in sociology and in other aspects. So he had a lot to say, even for the first class. I do have to mention that this class only meets once a week for three hours, which is a first for me. After the class, the professor asked for me and told me some much needed information about my friend.
One of my followers, Lauren, has a close friend named Bill. Funnily enough, so do I. He's an interesting character, my friend Bill. After I started to get to know him, it felt like Bill had walked out of a novel and into my life. Everything I have done with Bill and everything that has happened with him is unreal enough to be a part of a story. This feeling runs so deep that I feel that perhaps someday I will write a novel/novella/short story(s) loosely based on Bill and the misadventures I have had with him. The thing that makes our friendship interesting is that he is my father's age. That huge age difference has given me stares and accusations that my friend is a pedophile. That is not true.
Recently, Bill went missing. By missing, I mean I did not hear from him for several weeks, and when I tried to contact him, I could not get a hold of him. Naturally, I was worried and feared the worst. Thanks to my professor and a clerk at the college library, my worst fears are over. I do know he is okay, and something really bad did happen to him, but I'm not sure of much else. I desperately hope that I will be able to see him soon, which is what my friends did promise me.
Also, I sent some postcards out to Belarus and the Netherlands today with Postcrossing. I hope I get some back soon.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Ice Fishing, Bowling, and Deus Ex
So Monday, when we were supposed to go ice fishing, we didn't due to the weather. Lemme tell you, there has been a lot of bad weather lately. It prevented me from going to the specialist last week, and it did delay us from going ice fishing. So instead of going ice fishing on Monday, we went bowling instead.
I'm going to be honest with you all--I really, really, really suck at bowling. For those of you that know a lot about bowling, the highest score I attained was a 52. My boyfriend, Christopher, is much better at it. He picks on me a bit about it, but I don't mind.
So yesterday we went ice fishing. With Christopher's family, ice fishing is an all-day affair, from dawn to dusk. Fortunately for my frozen fingers, we didn't get on the lake until about 10 am. Once we got everything in order, everyone sat down and started fishing. It was raining continuously, so later on Christopher and I got out the two man shanty and used that to keep ourselves from the weather. For those of you unfamiliar with ice fishing terms (as I was recently), a shanty is basically a tent adapted for ice fishing. It keeps out the rain and snow and other bad weather.
For lunch, we had hot dogs on the ice. Apparently Christopher's mother usually cooks on the ice with a camp stove, but we didn't. Instead she cooked them beforehand and put them in a really insulated thermos. With some chips and soda, you have a makeshift fishing lunch right there. Chris's mom says hot dogs on the ice taste like steak. She's partially right.
As for the amount of fish... Well, everyone fished a lot. Christopher's mother fished the most--she had a whole five gallon pail by the end of the day. Chris and I fished together and caught about a quarter of a pail, and Chris's father caught about the same amount.
On the lake we fished, we caught a bunch of sunfish, bluegills, and a few perch. I promised photos, didn't I? There's one of me there on the right, and I'm holding one of the perch I caught. We were inside the shanty at the time, that's why the background looks all blue and shiny. Almost like I'm underwater. I think that's a really neat effect. Even though I was freezing and my hands kept swelling from the cold, I really did have a good time. Ice fishing is a lot like regular fishing--the only differences are the cold and the fact you use shorter poles (called jigging poles). That and you don't have to drill holes in ice in the summer!
I would like to talk about one more thing before I close this post. I've been playing the original Deus Ex game for the computer the past couple days. It's really the best shooter/RPG I've got my hands on for a really long time. I like RPGs in general, so adding the stealth, excitement, and thrill of a shooting game to an already good RPG like Deus Ex was really a good choice. The graphics are, of course, a bit choppy (much like Summoner for the PS2), but graphics don't matter when the gameplay is as amazing as this. When I finish the game, I will have a review on this blog.
I am leaving to go back to school in a couple of days. I don't want to go just yet, but I'm sure I'll have fun at the conference and I'll get back into the learning mode when classes start next week.
I'm going to be honest with you all--I really, really, really suck at bowling. For those of you that know a lot about bowling, the highest score I attained was a 52. My boyfriend, Christopher, is much better at it. He picks on me a bit about it, but I don't mind.
So yesterday we went ice fishing. With Christopher's family, ice fishing is an all-day affair, from dawn to dusk. Fortunately for my frozen fingers, we didn't get on the lake until about 10 am. Once we got everything in order, everyone sat down and started fishing. It was raining continuously, so later on Christopher and I got out the two man shanty and used that to keep ourselves from the weather. For those of you unfamiliar with ice fishing terms (as I was recently), a shanty is basically a tent adapted for ice fishing. It keeps out the rain and snow and other bad weather.
For lunch, we had hot dogs on the ice. Apparently Christopher's mother usually cooks on the ice with a camp stove, but we didn't. Instead she cooked them beforehand and put them in a really insulated thermos. With some chips and soda, you have a makeshift fishing lunch right there. Chris's mom says hot dogs on the ice taste like steak. She's partially right.
On the lake we fished, we caught a bunch of sunfish, bluegills, and a few perch. I promised photos, didn't I? There's one of me there on the right, and I'm holding one of the perch I caught. We were inside the shanty at the time, that's why the background looks all blue and shiny. Almost like I'm underwater. I think that's a really neat effect. Even though I was freezing and my hands kept swelling from the cold, I really did have a good time. Ice fishing is a lot like regular fishing--the only differences are the cold and the fact you use shorter poles (called jigging poles). That and you don't have to drill holes in ice in the summer!
I would like to talk about one more thing before I close this post. I've been playing the original Deus Ex game for the computer the past couple days. It's really the best shooter/RPG I've got my hands on for a really long time. I like RPGs in general, so adding the stealth, excitement, and thrill of a shooting game to an already good RPG like Deus Ex was really a good choice. The graphics are, of course, a bit choppy (much like Summoner for the PS2), but graphics don't matter when the gameplay is as amazing as this. When I finish the game, I will have a review on this blog.
I am leaving to go back to school in a couple of days. I don't want to go just yet, but I'm sure I'll have fun at the conference and I'll get back into the learning mode when classes start next week.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Classes and Ice Fishing
So I've just been thinking about school and whatnot a lot lately. I start classes next Monday, January 23rd. Thankfully I don't have a lot of classes, but those that I do have are pretty intimidating. The classes I am taking this semester are Creative Writing, American Realism/Naturalism (Literature course), Contemporary Social Problems (Sociology), Social Thantology (Sociology), a tutoring course so I can get a job at the writing center, and an internship.
The internship in question is training to be a "Wellness Advocate". A Wellness Advocate, or WA, as they are called, are student counselors, basically. Once you complete training, you are on call, just like a RA (Resident Assistant), and you basically counsel people with serious problems. So the whole semester of training I suppose is necessary. Like an RA, you have to apply for the position, and an interview was also necessary. Seeing as I filled out the application the night before it was due, I was surprised I was accepted into the internship.at all. But I'm glad I did, and I'm really excited about the training. I'm hoping to possibly make a few friends during the program, and it's probably the thing I'm most excited about this coming semester.
The classes I'm not so excited about. The literature course is going to be difficult because it's an upper division class, and not only that, it's taught by one of the most hard-ass professors in the English department. The professor is great, but the workload is ridiculous with her classes. The thantology class is the sociology of death and dying. I'm extremely nervous about that; I've never experienced death, and we're going to be talking about dead people all semester. Heck, one of the books I had to buy is called "How We Die". I mean, how depressing is that? Most of my classes are intimidating, but hopefully the creative writing course is a good decision and worth my time.
In other news, my boyfriend's family is going to go ice fishing tomorrow, and I'm going with him and his family. His family are avid ice fishers. In fact, I remember his mother lamenting over the summer how much she wished it was winter so she could go ice fishing... Their enthusiasm for ice fishing still baffles me. How can you have fun sitting in the freezing cold on ice? I have no idea. Apparently with Christopher's family, ice fishing is a sunrise to sunset ordeal, so I'll be gone all day tomorrow.
I honestly do not know if I will enjoy it. However, I have enjoyed out-fishing both of the boyfriends I have had, respectively, so I'm willing to give it a try. I'm kind of excited about where we are fishing. According to Christopher, we will be fishing at Wellesley Island on the Lake of the Isles. Yeah, that's about five to ten minutes from the Canadian side of Wellesley Island. Pretty cool. I will write a blog post soon about this adventure, hopefully with photos and lots of fun details.
The internship in question is training to be a "Wellness Advocate". A Wellness Advocate, or WA, as they are called, are student counselors, basically. Once you complete training, you are on call, just like a RA (Resident Assistant), and you basically counsel people with serious problems. So the whole semester of training I suppose is necessary. Like an RA, you have to apply for the position, and an interview was also necessary. Seeing as I filled out the application the night before it was due, I was surprised I was accepted into the internship.at all. But I'm glad I did, and I'm really excited about the training. I'm hoping to possibly make a few friends during the program, and it's probably the thing I'm most excited about this coming semester.
The classes I'm not so excited about. The literature course is going to be difficult because it's an upper division class, and not only that, it's taught by one of the most hard-ass professors in the English department. The professor is great, but the workload is ridiculous with her classes. The thantology class is the sociology of death and dying. I'm extremely nervous about that; I've never experienced death, and we're going to be talking about dead people all semester. Heck, one of the books I had to buy is called "How We Die". I mean, how depressing is that? Most of my classes are intimidating, but hopefully the creative writing course is a good decision and worth my time.
In other news, my boyfriend's family is going to go ice fishing tomorrow, and I'm going with him and his family. His family are avid ice fishers. In fact, I remember his mother lamenting over the summer how much she wished it was winter so she could go ice fishing... Their enthusiasm for ice fishing still baffles me. How can you have fun sitting in the freezing cold on ice? I have no idea. Apparently with Christopher's family, ice fishing is a sunrise to sunset ordeal, so I'll be gone all day tomorrow.
I honestly do not know if I will enjoy it. However, I have enjoyed out-fishing both of the boyfriends I have had, respectively, so I'm willing to give it a try. I'm kind of excited about where we are fishing. According to Christopher, we will be fishing at Wellesley Island on the Lake of the Isles. Yeah, that's about five to ten minutes from the Canadian side of Wellesley Island. Pretty cool. I will write a blog post soon about this adventure, hopefully with photos and lots of fun details.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Knitting, Bus Rides, and Snow
So I haven't been writing in here for a few days. That's due to the whole commotion of myself making the trip to the bus station, the ride back to my boyfriend's house, and the two days of settling into his place before I go back to school.
The bus trip here was a long and boring one (as usual) and I don't think I'm going to get into it. However, I will mention that I did ride with a woman on one leg of the trip, and she was really talkative. We talked about all sorts of things, and I suppose we could say we learned a lot about each other's lives. I know I'll never see that woman again, so the stories we told each other will stay a secret. It's really fascinating what you can learn from a person just by sitting next to them on a bus. Strangers that will never meet again can confide in the other, because they know they will part their ways, and probably never see each other again.
I've been learning how to knit in the past couple days. Just the simple kind of knitting I suppose. My first knitting project, which won't probably end up looking the greatest, will be a scarf. Now that winter's finally here, maybe I will be able to knit one before it's over!
I say winter is finally here because there was an ice storm here yesterday. Said ice storm prevented me from going on an pretty important appointment. However, you really can't control the weather, so I rescheduled. But that's nothing compared to what happened today. A legit snowstorm hit this morning and continued all day—at least 10 inches of snow. There will probably be literally a foot or more waiting for us tomorrow morning. We're lucky the power didn't go out—lots of other places up here did get power outages. I guess I won't be complaining about no snow to make snowmen anymore!
Monday, January 9, 2012
Last Days Home
So the past few days haven't been that uneventful, but at the times I usually use to go blog, I wasn't in the mood or I was too upset too write. That happens I guess.
We (my sister and I) went to the movie theater matinee the other day. It was only $5, and I was really expecting it to be a lot more expensive. After all, a movie ticket at the theater in my college town is $8 (although you can get one for $4 if you're a college student on Tuesdays). We had a choice between Sherlock Holmes 2 and the new Muppets movie. After watching both trailers, we decided to watch the Muppets movie. Let's just say that watching that film was certainly worth my $5. I LOVED that movie. It was so funny and so optimistic and it certainly put me in a better mood after I watched it. My sister and I loved the Muppets growing up, and we watch A Muppet's Christmas Carol every year to this day. So this film was an awesome tribute, skillfully made, to the characters we all know.
Now, Fox News (you know, that extremely biased right winged news channel) said that the Muppets movie was Communist. Perhaps naming the villain "Tex Richman" sounds communist, but honestly, the Muppets are not socialist, and the fact that news station have to bring politics into EVERYTHING is just a little disgusting. Just my opinion.
Anyways, I have only two (technically one and a half) days to spend at home before I take the bus trip to my boyfriend's house. I'm leaving Wednesday at 1 pm. Of course, I don't get to the town my destination is until nearly 7 pm, and then it's another half an hour to his place. Have I mentioned yet how much I hate public transit? They really don't have any respect for the people riding, in my humble opinion. I mean, the last time I took the bus (down here, to home) I thought I was going to miss my bus from one city because we had to hang around for 45 minutes in a single station. I am just disappointed in Trailways, really.
One of my friends says it would be better if there were more passenger public trains around New York State. I have no idea, but trains, freight or otherwise, have run through this town since the flood in 2006 damaged the tracks. They are still there, though, rusting away like an old relic. Honestly, like most of this town. The economy has been so bad here all of the storefronts are closing up... We're the county seat and we don't even have a thriving city... It's kind of sad, really.
So anyhow, leaving in two days and I'm not really ready. I need to realize what to pack and what I can leave here, which will probably take all day tomorrow. I really need to get more organized, I guess.
It's just been hard--several crummy things have happened to my boyfriend over these past few weeks, the most recent one being disqualified from Air Force ROTC (warning, rant ahead). Whatever could get you disqualified from ROTC, you might ask? Doing something really bad? Punching someone? Nope. He got disqualified because of several cognitive disabilities he was born with. He had to give them his medical records, it said right on there he had them. If they didn't want him in the program due to those problems, they should have told him right there. They shouldn't have let him enjoy the program for one semester and then disqualify him. That's like giving a kid who has a mild allergic reaction to peanuts, giving the kid chocolate covered peanuts (you know they are allergic), waiting for the allergic reaction, and then saying the kid can't have them. A tad exaggeration, I know, but that was how mad I was when he called me up very upset at 11 pm at night. And they didn't even have the decency to call him--no, send him an email to crush his career dreams, why don't you?
Sorry about that rant there. However, if you took the time to read that whole wall of text I'm sure you would have agreed with me to an extent...
As I attempt to organize and pack for yet another journey (and this next entry will more than likely be at that destination), I will try to keep being productive, now and when I stay with my boyfriend's. We'll see how that goes.
We (my sister and I) went to the movie theater matinee the other day. It was only $5, and I was really expecting it to be a lot more expensive. After all, a movie ticket at the theater in my college town is $8 (although you can get one for $4 if you're a college student on Tuesdays). We had a choice between Sherlock Holmes 2 and the new Muppets movie. After watching both trailers, we decided to watch the Muppets movie. Let's just say that watching that film was certainly worth my $5. I LOVED that movie. It was so funny and so optimistic and it certainly put me in a better mood after I watched it. My sister and I loved the Muppets growing up, and we watch A Muppet's Christmas Carol every year to this day. So this film was an awesome tribute, skillfully made, to the characters we all know.
Now, Fox News (you know, that extremely biased right winged news channel) said that the Muppets movie was Communist. Perhaps naming the villain "Tex Richman" sounds communist, but honestly, the Muppets are not socialist, and the fact that news station have to bring politics into EVERYTHING is just a little disgusting. Just my opinion.
Anyways, I have only two (technically one and a half) days to spend at home before I take the bus trip to my boyfriend's house. I'm leaving Wednesday at 1 pm. Of course, I don't get to the town my destination is until nearly 7 pm, and then it's another half an hour to his place. Have I mentioned yet how much I hate public transit? They really don't have any respect for the people riding, in my humble opinion. I mean, the last time I took the bus (down here, to home) I thought I was going to miss my bus from one city because we had to hang around for 45 minutes in a single station. I am just disappointed in Trailways, really.
One of my friends says it would be better if there were more passenger public trains around New York State. I have no idea, but trains, freight or otherwise, have run through this town since the flood in 2006 damaged the tracks. They are still there, though, rusting away like an old relic. Honestly, like most of this town. The economy has been so bad here all of the storefronts are closing up... We're the county seat and we don't even have a thriving city... It's kind of sad, really.
So anyhow, leaving in two days and I'm not really ready. I need to realize what to pack and what I can leave here, which will probably take all day tomorrow. I really need to get more organized, I guess.
It's just been hard--several crummy things have happened to my boyfriend over these past few weeks, the most recent one being disqualified from Air Force ROTC (warning, rant ahead). Whatever could get you disqualified from ROTC, you might ask? Doing something really bad? Punching someone? Nope. He got disqualified because of several cognitive disabilities he was born with. He had to give them his medical records, it said right on there he had them. If they didn't want him in the program due to those problems, they should have told him right there. They shouldn't have let him enjoy the program for one semester and then disqualify him. That's like giving a kid who has a mild allergic reaction to peanuts, giving the kid chocolate covered peanuts (you know they are allergic), waiting for the allergic reaction, and then saying the kid can't have them. A tad exaggeration, I know, but that was how mad I was when he called me up very upset at 11 pm at night. And they didn't even have the decency to call him--no, send him an email to crush his career dreams, why don't you?
Sorry about that rant there. However, if you took the time to read that whole wall of text I'm sure you would have agreed with me to an extent...
As I attempt to organize and pack for yet another journey (and this next entry will more than likely be at that destination), I will try to keep being productive, now and when I stay with my boyfriend's. We'll see how that goes.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Pondering
So I've been on winter break for what seems like an eternity. Surprisingly, I'm not getting that restless, and a pattern of living at home has actually emerged. I guess the hell that was last semester has made me wary of further academic ventures. Of course, myself and all college students will be returning to school in a few weeks.
Sometimes, I wonder about all of the social norms behind college, such as dorms and whatnot and wonder why they exist. After all, most people I have talked to, as well as my experiences, have told me that dormitory living is just awful and not really the best idea. I've experienced roommates who have treated me like crap behind my back, as well as one who didn't tell me what I was doing wrong before she moved out. Honestly, if I'm doing something wrong, tell me and I'll try to fix it! I know I have my faults, but if you give me a gentle reminder (like my current roommate, she is a godsend for putting up with me), and I will stop doing the things that annoy you.
Sorry about that rant. I guess I have too much time on my hands to really do anything but think. However, early next week I'll be heading on the bus (oh joy, buses, I'll be sure to blog about that) to go to my boyfriend's. I haven't seen him for a month... It should be interesting.
Some other things I have been doing with my time include playing video games! (I play Playstation 2 games) I should be playing Final Fantasy X; after all, my boyfriend lent it to me three months ago... Embarrassment... But I recently acquired a game called "The Shadow of the Colossus". It's kind of old (2005), but the graphics are great. You basically have to ride on your horse and kill gigantic monsters called colossi to bring your girlfriend back from the dead. It's actually better than it sounds, really. If I ever finish the game, I will write and post a review for it.
I have also been latchhooking a rug. What is latchhook, you may ask? You take a tool and some yarn and hook it into a canvas to make different patterns. They sell latchhook kits online and in craft stores. It's quite fun actually.
The one I am doing right now is of a tiger. That is what I have done so far on the right. The canvas for this kit is 15x20, so I am assuming it will be put on a wall when I am finished it. I am actually doing this kit for my boyfriend's mother, but I don't know if it will be finished before I come over to visit... I hope so... If not, I will have to give it to her another time, probably later in the upcoming semester (sometimes I go to visit on the weekends).
I suppose I won't have as much time to do this sort of thing when I get back to school, so I think I should enjoy it while I can. This intermittent period has really done good things for me, I think. I've been suffering from burnout for some time now, and these weeks were exactly what I needed to cool off and mentally ready myself for next semester. I did learn my limits and how far I could push myself academically, so it's all been good.
One more thing. I have decided to make this blog an "every other day" blog instead of a couple times a week. I've found I really love doing this blog. It's like the journal I could never write.
Sometimes, I wonder about all of the social norms behind college, such as dorms and whatnot and wonder why they exist. After all, most people I have talked to, as well as my experiences, have told me that dormitory living is just awful and not really the best idea. I've experienced roommates who have treated me like crap behind my back, as well as one who didn't tell me what I was doing wrong before she moved out. Honestly, if I'm doing something wrong, tell me and I'll try to fix it! I know I have my faults, but if you give me a gentle reminder (like my current roommate, she is a godsend for putting up with me), and I will stop doing the things that annoy you.
Sorry about that rant. I guess I have too much time on my hands to really do anything but think. However, early next week I'll be heading on the bus (oh joy, buses, I'll be sure to blog about that) to go to my boyfriend's. I haven't seen him for a month... It should be interesting.
Some other things I have been doing with my time include playing video games! (I play Playstation 2 games) I should be playing Final Fantasy X; after all, my boyfriend lent it to me three months ago... Embarrassment... But I recently acquired a game called "The Shadow of the Colossus". It's kind of old (2005), but the graphics are great. You basically have to ride on your horse and kill gigantic monsters called colossi to bring your girlfriend back from the dead. It's actually better than it sounds, really. If I ever finish the game, I will write and post a review for it.
I have also been latchhooking a rug. What is latchhook, you may ask? You take a tool and some yarn and hook it into a canvas to make different patterns. They sell latchhook kits online and in craft stores. It's quite fun actually.
I suppose I won't have as much time to do this sort of thing when I get back to school, so I think I should enjoy it while I can. This intermittent period has really done good things for me, I think. I've been suffering from burnout for some time now, and these weeks were exactly what I needed to cool off and mentally ready myself for next semester. I did learn my limits and how far I could push myself academically, so it's all been good.
One more thing. I have decided to make this blog an "every other day" blog instead of a couple times a week. I've found I really love doing this blog. It's like the journal I could never write.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Of Mice and Men
I finished reading the classic tale "Of Mice and Men" (Steinbeck) today, and I decided I would use this blog to write an appropriate book review of the short novel. As I am new to writing book reviews you will have to bear with me. I am also going to try to keep the spoilers at a minimum.
So I was slightly pressured into reading this by my boyfriend and subsequently his mother, who both urged me to read it (alas, I never read it in high school). So since I have plenty of time now (it being winter break and all), I decided to read it and write a review.
I found the short novel to be very compelling, and the characters unique and captivating. The language itself was a little hard to understand, as it was from a different era (the 1930s, as I later found out). One of the main characters was constantly using words like "tart" and other outdated words (such as the "n" word, but that was an acceptable usage at the time). I found that the language difference actually enhanced my reading experience, as it allowed me to delve deeper into the novel and relate to the characters as well as the plot.
Speaking of the plot, the plot moved at a very fast pace, a pace I was very surprised about and not used to. The book moved very fast through the plot. However, there were pauses to add detailed and sometimes poetic descriptions about the settings of the novel. In fact, at the beginning of the novel, long paragraphs were taken for descriptions of the characters and of the settings before the author introduced the dialogue. Because of this style, though, we are introduced to the characters in very appropriate ways and allowed to create our own opinions of them.
Concerning the characters of the novel, Steinbeck naturally draws you in to feel pity and somewhat mixed feelings for Lennie, one of the main characters. Lennie is what can loosely be defined as mentally retarded--to an extent. Due to his repetitious behavior and other behaviors throughout the novel, I personally feel that Lennie is probably a very low-functioning autistic. The author has us sympathizing with Lennie throughout the novel--even though he does do terrible things, his intention is never to harm anyone, and after he has done bad wrong he feels a tremendous amount of guilt.
George, his everlasting companion and caretaker, is an interesting character himself. Sometimes it seems he feels obligated and resentful that he has to take care of Lennie, other times he just feels sorry for him and the fact that he really doesn't belong in the world of the novel.
After reading the end of the novel and mulling it over, I realized that I had found my interpretation of the novel. Most of the characters had dreams--George, Candy, and Lennie formed a dream (and possibly a goal) together to get some land, farm off of it, and live alone and happy together, but their dreams cannot be accomplished because of Lennie. Lennie does not belong in the world of the novel; he is misinterpreted, and because of this he is not accepted and will never be accepted. That is the tragedy of this story and what makes it memorable.
---
I plan on writing reviews for novels and films sporadically in this blog. However, I may be writing reviews (and interpretations) of classic literature, because I will be reading such literature in my classes next semester. I'll probably be so busy I won't have time to read novels outside of college reading (as usual).
So I was slightly pressured into reading this by my boyfriend and subsequently his mother, who both urged me to read it (alas, I never read it in high school). So since I have plenty of time now (it being winter break and all), I decided to read it and write a review.
I found the short novel to be very compelling, and the characters unique and captivating. The language itself was a little hard to understand, as it was from a different era (the 1930s, as I later found out). One of the main characters was constantly using words like "tart" and other outdated words (such as the "n" word, but that was an acceptable usage at the time). I found that the language difference actually enhanced my reading experience, as it allowed me to delve deeper into the novel and relate to the characters as well as the plot.
Speaking of the plot, the plot moved at a very fast pace, a pace I was very surprised about and not used to. The book moved very fast through the plot. However, there were pauses to add detailed and sometimes poetic descriptions about the settings of the novel. In fact, at the beginning of the novel, long paragraphs were taken for descriptions of the characters and of the settings before the author introduced the dialogue. Because of this style, though, we are introduced to the characters in very appropriate ways and allowed to create our own opinions of them.
Concerning the characters of the novel, Steinbeck naturally draws you in to feel pity and somewhat mixed feelings for Lennie, one of the main characters. Lennie is what can loosely be defined as mentally retarded--to an extent. Due to his repetitious behavior and other behaviors throughout the novel, I personally feel that Lennie is probably a very low-functioning autistic. The author has us sympathizing with Lennie throughout the novel--even though he does do terrible things, his intention is never to harm anyone, and after he has done bad wrong he feels a tremendous amount of guilt.
George, his everlasting companion and caretaker, is an interesting character himself. Sometimes it seems he feels obligated and resentful that he has to take care of Lennie, other times he just feels sorry for him and the fact that he really doesn't belong in the world of the novel.
After reading the end of the novel and mulling it over, I realized that I had found my interpretation of the novel. Most of the characters had dreams--George, Candy, and Lennie formed a dream (and possibly a goal) together to get some land, farm off of it, and live alone and happy together, but their dreams cannot be accomplished because of Lennie. Lennie does not belong in the world of the novel; he is misinterpreted, and because of this he is not accepted and will never be accepted. That is the tragedy of this story and what makes it memorable.
---
I plan on writing reviews for novels and films sporadically in this blog. However, I may be writing reviews (and interpretations) of classic literature, because I will be reading such literature in my classes next semester. I'll probably be so busy I won't have time to read novels outside of college reading (as usual).
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Beginning the New Year
For years I have tried so hard to write in a physical journal, looking up to my twin sister, who often writes in a journal and has been since we were in middle school. However, to my frustration, many notebooks and hardcover journals were left unfinished. Only small bits of prose and my thoughts could be written in them, for I have always felt that my words look stupid on paper. A silly thought, I know, but I am sure I am not the only person who has thought this.
But now with the internet and all of the obvious luxuries that it has to offer us, I will try blogging. (Plus, I am a semi-fast typist, so I suppose I can get my words on the "page" faster). Funnily enough, this whole "blog for the New Year" idea was my sister's as well. A fantastic idea, one that I probably wouldn't have thought of myself.
---
So begins 2012. The year that everyone seems to think will end life on this planet as we know it. Well, all I have to say about that is the whole "apocalypse" prediction is the biggest line of crap I have ever heard of. No one knows when the world is going to end. Why fret about it? Fret instead about the election in November, where the fate of America will rest when the next person becomes President.
Anyways, I personally have a lot of goals set up for this year... "What?" you may ask? "You don't make resolutions?" The reason I do not make resolutions is because 1. I never make any attainable resolutions; and 2. I never keep them. So my theory is to stick with goals, because I nearly always stick to my goals and achieve them, even if I have to try, try again.
As I said, I have many goals planned out (haven't written them down yet, but I will) for 2012, and you will surely hear about them as the weeks and months continue. I plan on updating this twice a week at least--more if I am comfortable with it.
This blog will be a testament to my writing skills--for although I am an English major at college and consider myself a writer, I don't write as much as I should. To be honest, I don't have a lot of motivation, and I get distracted easily by lots of different things. So this blog will be a commitment to me--let's see if I can keep it
But now with the internet and all of the obvious luxuries that it has to offer us, I will try blogging. (Plus, I am a semi-fast typist, so I suppose I can get my words on the "page" faster). Funnily enough, this whole "blog for the New Year" idea was my sister's as well. A fantastic idea, one that I probably wouldn't have thought of myself.
---
So begins 2012. The year that everyone seems to think will end life on this planet as we know it. Well, all I have to say about that is the whole "apocalypse" prediction is the biggest line of crap I have ever heard of. No one knows when the world is going to end. Why fret about it? Fret instead about the election in November, where the fate of America will rest when the next person becomes President.
Anyways, I personally have a lot of goals set up for this year... "What?" you may ask? "You don't make resolutions?" The reason I do not make resolutions is because 1. I never make any attainable resolutions; and 2. I never keep them. So my theory is to stick with goals, because I nearly always stick to my goals and achieve them, even if I have to try, try again.
As I said, I have many goals planned out (haven't written them down yet, but I will) for 2012, and you will surely hear about them as the weeks and months continue. I plan on updating this twice a week at least--more if I am comfortable with it.
This blog will be a testament to my writing skills--for although I am an English major at college and consider myself a writer, I don't write as much as I should. To be honest, I don't have a lot of motivation, and I get distracted easily by lots of different things. So this blog will be a commitment to me--let's see if I can keep it
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