Saturday, March 29, 2008

Saturday Photo Hunters #1

HIGH

Spring Break - Woohoo?

There’s an episode of FRIENDS where Ross, a professor, is dating Elizabeth, a student. Elizabeth is going to Florida for spring break, and Chandler and Joey shout woohoo after they, or anyone else, mentions it. When Ross asks for an explanation, Monica clarifies saying, “During spring vacation, you do nice things with your grandparents. During spring break, you do frat guys.” (Woohoo). I’ve heard all about Spring Break Miami, Spring Break Cancun, MTV Spring Break, and wet T-shirt contests (woohoo). They’re played up as huge college initiations - the reason you go to college practically. Still, I have yet to (knowingly) meet someone who has participated in these activities.

It seems most people at University left for spring vacation. For example: I went to the beach (woohoo)...but to hang out with the Mother and the Grandmother and look at retirement communities for the Grandmother (no joke). Friend #1 went to Miami (woohoo)...but to hang out with his relatives...who don’t sound like a crazy bunch. Friend #2 went to Philly, and then drove through PA with his mom to see civil war battlefields. No disrespect to the Union and the Amish, but that’s not worthy of a woohoo. Across-the-Hall went camping in Arizona with her dad. Friend #3 went to Miami with the tennis team (woohoo)...but had to live with some team member’s grandparents. Living with 80-year-olds you’ve never met doesn’t exactly scream keg-stands. Friend #4 stayed on campus for hardcore crew practice. According to what we’ve heard, other schools take the rowers to Florida for practice over break. Friend #4 feels like she’s missing out on a pretty big woohoo.

Roommate went to NYC on her own so I guess that’s worthy of a mild woohoo, although knowing her, she’s probably going to spend the entire time in a theater or museum - not dancing on bars. I’m not the only one with a distorted image of college spring break. The little sister of Friend #1 thought we had a break of 3 weeks off to take this huge road trip to Florida for the aforementioned wet t-shirt contests and other woohoo type activities.

Not exactly.

So do I just know all the nerds? Is this what the rest of the American college population is doing right now and my bubble of friends and I are just in a totally different universe? And what do you do for spring break (woohoo) if you already live in FL?

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Oh, the Agony

Such is the life of a slacking overachiever.

I am an overachiever. Because of this, I signed up for an independent study policy internship downtown and convinced my Dean to let me take 6 classes during my first year. (I am receiving credit for the internship so it is considered 6 classes total).

I have to write a twenty page policy paper for this internship.

I am a slacker. I have left all of the work to the almost last minute and, during busy weeks, the absolute last minute. I must turn it in tomorrow morning in person. I am stuck in the computer lab writing until it is done. The lab closes at 4am, but I'd like to get out of here by 12:00. No dinner tonight. Just left over Easter chocolate. To achieve my midnight goal, I am posting on my blog, sending my friends bumperstickers on Facebook, and checking out Thursday Thirteens.

Why?

Because only a draft is due. There is certainly time to improve it for the final.

And the independent study is pass/fail.

That's my mantra right now.

"Don't freak out. The sun hasn't set yet. It's only a draft. It's only pass/fail."

Thursday Thirteen #7

(She's actually a wonderful roommate and I'm very lucky to have gotten such a good situation...but these are just the things that irk me).


Thirteen Things I'd like to tell my roommate

1 - Your hair! The diagonal bangs make me crazy! You’ve got to straighten them or something.

2 - Your cough and laugh are awkward and annoying. But i guess you can’t change those.

3 - Please don’t hum or sing. It’s really distracting when you think your mouth is a snare drum and i’m trying to learn arabic.

4 - For the love of god, close the window! It is too cold out and we freeze during the night!

5 - The comments you make about your faith and other faiths really bother me. My faith could not be more different from yours. I’m trying to be open and learn about yours, but sometimes you sound really ignorant.

6 - Please stop leaving your keys in the door. It’s annoying and not safe.

7 - Please remember to turn your alarm off on weekends...really, please do this.

8 - Turn the volume on your alarm down! I don’t know how it takes you several minutes to hear it each morning. I’m across the room and it always blasts me out of bed.

9 - Stop closing the door! If I am in the room with the door open when you get back, please do not then close the door behind you when you leave a few minutes later. Obviously, I want the door open.

10 - Please stop taking my cable out of the internet jack. It’s very passive aggressive.

11 - I don’t want to hear you saying negative things about people you went to high school with. you sound very condescending and patronizing. It makes me feel bad for them, especially when I can identify with the problems they’re having that you’re telling me about. You don’t realize it, but sometimes you’re insulting me, too.

12 - Your boyfriend really needs to spend more time in his room. you may think he’s great, but the rest of the hall, myself included, thinks he’s really very extremely super annoying! I’m really tired of him hanging out in our room every evening. It’s also really awkward when you guys start making out and I am sitting right there.

13 - Please don’t support that presidential candidate.



That feels better.



Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others' comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!



Sunday, March 23, 2008

Photo Show It - Diffusion

I'm really not sure what this means, but dictionary.com says it has something to do with a "soft focused effect." That doesn't really help, but here goes:

This is part of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul. Taken early October, 2006.

Photo Show It

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Photo Show It - Depth of Field

I am a very amateur photographer, but I'd like to give the Photo Show It meme a shot (pun intended). I'm not very artistic and I'm not quite sure what depth is or if this picture even qualifies. This was taken in a small port town in Maine during December 2007. Excuse the reflections from the window
Photobucket

A New Meme

From Blog Talkers Talk: What does spring mean for you?

Spring means a mixture of activities for me. As a student, it means both crunch time as exams draw closer, slight panic as I make summer arrangements, and relief as the year will almost be over. The weather is wonderful, of course, although it's taking a bit longer to warm up at University than it did back home. I am so fortunate not to have allergies so I am always able to enjoy the weather. This slacker absolutely does not do a big spring cleaning. Throughout the year, I plug along, picking up, vaccuming, and doing laundry as needed. I think the worst part is the weather not being able to decide what to do. This is similar to that awkward period in the fall where it's too cold for half of your clothing, yet you feel stupid in the other half because it's just not cold enough.

I don't get spring fever so much as summer fever. Around this time I start thinking about the Cape where I've spent every summer of my life. I'm also anxious to get past exams an on to whatever fabulous un-paid internship I managed to land. As of right now, I have not yet received acceptances so I am anxiously awaiting those. Daylight Savings Time happens over the weekend where, at college that involves seriously screwing up your sleep cycle, so I don't feel the effects of DST until Sunday night when I'm frantically trying to finish a paper and wish I had another hour left to do it...such is the life of a SlackingOverachiever (well, actually this part is just about the slacking).