more good things

• Everyone that I asked to be a reference or write a reference letter is super cool and very willing to say nice things about me. Isn't that good. I can't imagine how awkward or disheartening it would be to have to wait forever to hear back from these people or hear nothing at all and have to ask again and again. But yay people are being cool. I will feel better when I find an apartment but one thing at a time and until then I will just continue my love affair with craig's list. refresh refresh refresh...still no July 1st listings.
• I have almost completely finished the neverending whine that is my Master's portfolio
• This week has been my Spring break from my internship and it took me until Thursday to remember how to stay up late and sleep in. Now how many days will it take me to start waking up early again?
  

something good

I hate leaving up a bad post. So this is just a placeholder to say, I am holding it together. Things are crazy but entirely manageable. It was great to go sit out in the Biergarten with Quinn and friends and not do any work last night. The weather is fantastic and if nothing else the sunlight is making my life so much easier (easier to get out of bed in the morning, easier to keep getting work done in the evening) and of course I really need to get back to writing papers now.

One of those days

Its been one of those days where nothing is really going wrong, but when I sit down at night I feel like everything has been driving me crazy. I feel like my body is vibrating tonight with all of my stress over school, work, moving etc. that I don't know what to work on. I feel over caffeinated (but I'm not) or all keyed up like I get when I take allergy medication (I haven't). I can blame the intensity of my professor in class tonight, who sounded like she was shouting all evening (and even felt the need to interject my name into one such statement --totally randomly like I was a little kid ready to wander into the street, or like had just asked her a question about that point and she wanted my attention [I hadn't, she had it]--and this is a big class with about 20 people or so). I can blame it on the intensity of sharing 3 minutes before and after class wtih ~10 people as keyed up and stressed as I am about completing their degree requirements. I can blame it on getting lost in the menu of the California teacher credentialing board and listening to their menu twice without hearing anything, before finally hitting a random button and being connected to a message that told me the office hours ended at 4:45 PST, it was 7:45EST and I probably would have made it in time if I had pressed a button my first time through the menu but I got distracted by the Internet and didn't hear any of the "press 6 if you know your party's extension and would like to dial it now." Also who closes their office at 4:45? I could blame it on the seemingly endless stream of evening emails between me and my internship supervisor about mysterious requirements that I think she makes up during her commute back to good old Kentucky. But if I am going to place blame I think I should blame my crappy day on everyone and go with the Simpson's quote "You know what I blame this on the downfall of? Society!"-Moe Syzslak

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANGELIQUE!

Angelique, Here is a long ago picture of you at a beach in Germany (April 2000 I think?) You are 29 today. Sort of an eh number to turn, but if you are like me you can just start telling all the old ladies you work with that you are thirty. It has been an intense year but I am so glad that we have stayed such close friends even though we haven't lived near each other since we were Junior's in high school. Remember high school? Yeah, that was lame, doesn't it make you glad you are 29 now and can do what you want to do. Go places without a hall pass. Drive your own car 9 hours to visit your friend in Cincinnati. Move to a new state. Drink beer (or wine for me) (or scotch if you prefer). Decorate your own apartment (or maybe a house sometime). Make drastic career changes and life changes and ignore the idea that you need to live your life like it is preplanned...school, marriage, baby whatever, We can keep changing our minds about what we want to be when we grow up (when is that? grown up? I was waiting for it but I don't think it happened yet, besides all the changes keep things interesting. You can live in a place where you can walk to a store and buy fresh flowers and fruit to put in a bowl in your own kitchen. Some sort of random things but the kinds of things that make me happy. Hope you have a good day and you get to go out to eat yummy food. (and chocolate cake!)

Here is the most recent picture I could find of us together. You know I love you and it is your birthday because I took the time to get rid of your red eye and I still posted the picture even though I am doing that weird taking my own picture without a timer double chin thing.

and here is another one from when Amy and I came to see you in Germany


and one more


***2006 update-don't amy and angelique look like babies in this picture?

wedding wedding wedding

I need to settle all sorts of wedding stuff before I can start to do all sorts of moving to L.A. preparations (and truthfully somewhere in there I need to fit in work, internship and school work but that is another whiney post for another time). So this weekend I started to get things done for everything, I pried myself away from job listings and apartment listings to get out of the house and get things done. When I got home I was even so motivated as to organize my desk and computer and upload some old photographs. If you are feeling in need of some wedding rants by all means read on. If you know it will make you crazy stop now. And as usual if you have any questions or advice for the L.A. move let me know.

The Dress

Yesterday and today I went wedding dress shopping with my friend Lili. This was helpful in avoiding any actual thesis/portfolio writing. So I felt it was a good compromise, work & dress shopping instead of work & schoolwork. Of course this just means that I again need to alter my calendar and move back when I am writing what and try to convince myself to write more after school (with the kids) and class (with the other teachers) during the week.
And today I was able to cross something off the wedding list when I finally bought the dress. Or at least put 60% down on The Dress. I (like so many girls I know) went completely against everything I said I wanted in a dress to buy one that truly flattered my figure. I thought because I was tall I could look good in a simple slip dress (what my mother continually refers to as the Carolyn-Bisset-Kennedy-type-dress), but like my shorter friends I too looked like I was tromping around in my mommy's night gown in that type dress.
So the dress, the dress is ivory and plain and strapless (because in the early 2000's it is apparently only possible to buy strapless or halter style dresses and again you hafta go with what flatters). It is long and A-line and has the dreaded crinoline that I thought I could avoid. It has (wait for it Nora) a BOW. I love ribbons and it has a nice ribbon, high on the waist. The ribbon I ordered is called something stupid like baby's breath, but is really champagne colored with bedazzled jewels on it and flowery sort of shiny embroidery. (bored yet? I am) So I might trade that out for a blue ribbon, cause I like blue and I picked blue hydrangeas as flowers so blue, blue, blue, like the polar opposite of Shelby in Steel Magnolias and her signature colors of Blush and Bashful. Whatever. I have no pictures. Sorry. Just imagine me, tall, strapless, weddingy, but not like a total cake topper, because I totally tried on some dresses that looked so much like icing that I wanted to eat them.

New Ring

Here is a picture of my new engagement ring. It came from this company that Michael found online. All very ecologically responsible of him. I realize now it is better to do the little things you can do, than cynically give in to the idea that things are so bad there is no saving them. So I love it. It is blue and wedding ring like and very comfy to wear, which was my only issue with my first ring.








Here's the up close version. I will post more tonight I finally got out the camera cord and uploaded my pictures from Christmas on. Sad isn't it. I guess I need to make a resolution about monthly uploads, that and taking the camera everywhere, because I feel desperate without it whenever something crazy or beautiful happens.