my Legend

Legend
November 1994 - October 2006

i am still reeling in shock, with no idea when i will recover. but i miss him more than i can possibly express. Legend was the perfect dog and the best of friends. i love him.

horseys!!!

so this morning was my first morning at my new therapeutic horsebackriding barn. way fun. it so different from reins of life. so much more laid back and kinda random. but i liked it. it felt like a real barn (real here meaning the barns all my neighbors have where we just grab a horse, tack up, and go as opposed to barns where there are lessons and things). i still smell like horse now. yay! (don't worry, i will shower soon.) i feel so much happier after spending some time with some horses. and yes, they are that essential to my happiness. they calm me down. a lot. and there might be room for me to exercise them. there certainly are some tubbily horses out there. and i'm sure there are some decent trails in those woods. (oh my gosh the woods and hills out by this barn! you have no idea how much i'd love to ride through them!!)

in other news, as i'm getting to know more people in the dept, i've been hearing a lot more stories about current and former residents of the dept. it definitely is an interesting place, filled with many socially challenged weirdos. my favorite story thus far... well, i certainly oughn't to type it out, but let's just say that tim's account of the importance of grad. logic and it's ability to win spouses is very far from accurate. =)

soundtrack

if you know me, you probably know how many theme songs i have had. somehow, i doubt this will get them right, but we'll see.

IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?

So, here's how it works:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool...
7. (I totally added this one on my own) Add senseless commentary to each song

Opening Credits: You Say - Vertical Horizon

Waking Up: MFC - Pearl Jam (i guess i could wake up to this... but i think my apartment would have to be a whole lot more rockstar than it is right now)

First Day At School: The Nearness of You - Norah Jones (i don't think this really makes sense...)

Falling In Love: A Wedding Interrupted - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Soundtrack (this is very intense... sounds like i'll be getting ready to do battle or maybe just running away)

Fight Song: Untitled - Better than Ezra (this one really makes no sense, unless i'm fighting in slow motion and its one of incongrous scenes like you see on walker texas ranger)

Breaking Up: I Took Your Name - REM (i think this one works... so long as its a triumphant break-up)

Prom: Eleanor Rigby - Beatles (seems like kind of a sad song for prom, but highschoolers would prolly dance to it anyway, right?)

Life's OK: Cast No Shadow - Oasis (yeah, sure)

Mental Breakdown: Smashing Young Man - Collective Soul

Driving: Fred Jones Part 2 - Ben Folds (i don't think i've ever even heard this song before, but it would only really work for driving if my life is one of those movies that don't really have a plot and don't really end in a satisfying way...)

Flashback: She Don't Use Jelly - Ben Folds Five (flashback to what?? and ugh, this is a bad cover of this song)

Getting Back Together: Uncle John's Band - Grateful Dead (this could maybe work... but the setting would have to be back home... or somewhere equally countrified)

Wedding: Narcolepsy - Ben Folds (hmmm... i'd rather not be asleep....but the piano parts are kinda pretty.... and i don't actually like Bed Folds that much.... i just have a lot of it on my compy)

Birth of Child: Dancing Days - Led Zeppelin (interesting choice....)

Final Battle: Easy Wind - Grateful Dead (what, exactly, could i battle with this song playing??)

Death Scene: Drive - Blind Melon (hey, its kinda mournful...)

Funeral Song: What Am I To You - Norah Jones (might make sense...)

End Credits: binky the doormat - REM (if its my movie, there has to be some REM)

change

there is one big difference between the department at texas and the department at western. people here do take me (and all the other girls) seriously. and that is the default position. not the exception, or something that comes up after i have somehow 'proven' myself. its very refreshing. and definitely helps me be a better student. i don't have the pressure anymore of wondering what i have to do, so i can just go out there and do my thing. oddly enough, i find i'm much less worried now about asking the dumb question in class or admitting my ignorance. (not that i'm saying much in class, thats just not my way... but you know...)

the department party was last night. there was lots of drunkenness, a few funny moments, and just as many awkward moments. maybe i need to start hanging out in the department more. that would probably help. but i have yet to really connect with anyone here, which makes it hard. don't you love vicious circles? the point of the story is i wish it took me less time to adjust. i need to figure things out now, not in three months. and i need to figure out how to break in and grab me some real friends.