i'm reaching a weird (or maybe uncomfortable is a better word) point in my adjustment to life in texas. there have been a few times these past couple of weeks that i've felt a strong sense of belonging here, in texas, in austin, at ut. but i've also been equally overwhelmed by my feelings of first year inadequacy and loneliness. i guess this probably comes as no surprise to those of you that know me. witness my first semester at ND, and my first semester at western. it takes me a while (apparently, about a semester) to settle into a new place. i'm really missing the life i left behind in k-zoo. maybe more so because i know it's no longer there to go back to. friends have all scattered around the country by now. but still, i miss the friends i left behind (even more so, i miss those who have left me behind). it's not as bad as it could be here. the folk are friendly, although more competitive than i anticipated, so there is hope at the end of the line, but just right now it seems far away. and dude and paul are here as well, and soren is trying his hardest right now to remind me that a kitty is better than any smelly old philosophers.
let's just say this isn't the easiet of times.
::if my sky should fall
would you even call?::
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Thursday, September 14, 2006
settling...
well, i think i've been here long enough that i can start to come out with some definite opinions on my classes and classmates. i think it's definitely a mixed bag.
aristotle (which, admittedly, has only met once) i think will be good. at least its a class with fellow ancient people, which is quite refreshing... it can feel lonely sometimes out in the analytic world. however, the prof. does talk so quickly as to be unintelligible quite a bit of the time.
phil. of mind promises to rock, i think. despite (or because of?) the sometimes quite harsh british commentary from one prof. we're reading some good stuff, it's going along at a nice pace. i think it'll be good.
and then there's the first year seminar. so far, absolute diasaster. the title of it is analyticity. so, it's all analytic-synthetic distinction garbage. (obviously, it doesn't help that i think a lot of philosophy of language is meaningless garbage.) so, most of the stuff we read is horrid. and the stuff that is close to being any good gets attacked by the most inane arguments i've ever heard, but because we're doing hard-core analytic philo, they get termed 'good.' and really, i don't have the energy to play the game. i've tried before (like in some of my classes at western) and i just don't have the energy to do it most of the time. consequently, after the last two classes i've found myself desperately in need of a beer (or two, in the case of last night). so, here's hoping i survive... and that i find a paper topic.
as far as the peoples go.... yeah, that too is a mixed bag. there are a few who are absolutely awesome, many that i'm neutral towards, and so far only one that annoys me to peices. not bad, actually, for a group of academics. after all, we do have our reputation of awkwardness to keep up.
aristotle (which, admittedly, has only met once) i think will be good. at least its a class with fellow ancient people, which is quite refreshing... it can feel lonely sometimes out in the analytic world. however, the prof. does talk so quickly as to be unintelligible quite a bit of the time.
phil. of mind promises to rock, i think. despite (or because of?) the sometimes quite harsh british commentary from one prof. we're reading some good stuff, it's going along at a nice pace. i think it'll be good.
and then there's the first year seminar. so far, absolute diasaster. the title of it is analyticity. so, it's all analytic-synthetic distinction garbage. (obviously, it doesn't help that i think a lot of philosophy of language is meaningless garbage.) so, most of the stuff we read is horrid. and the stuff that is close to being any good gets attacked by the most inane arguments i've ever heard, but because we're doing hard-core analytic philo, they get termed 'good.' and really, i don't have the energy to play the game. i've tried before (like in some of my classes at western) and i just don't have the energy to do it most of the time. consequently, after the last two classes i've found myself desperately in need of a beer (or two, in the case of last night). so, here's hoping i survive... and that i find a paper topic.
as far as the peoples go.... yeah, that too is a mixed bag. there are a few who are absolutely awesome, many that i'm neutral towards, and so far only one that annoys me to peices. not bad, actually, for a group of academics. after all, we do have our reputation of awkwardness to keep up.
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
crikey
as ridiculous and over-the-top as he always was, i really loved the crocodile hunter, and am genuinely sad that he's gone.
since i last posted, lots of stuff has happened. going backwards: i finally got a real bed! no more air mattress for me! i am sleeping off the floor again and loving every minute of it. now, if i could only restrain myself from online shopping for new comforters.... i don't need a new bedspread... i don't need a new bedspread....
school has started officially now. i've gone to the class i TA for twice. it's a philosophy of religion class, which is weird for me, cuz i've never really done any of that stuff. and it looks like i'm going to have an insane amount of grading to do. i'm just grading for another student, not a real prof... but apparently he goes insane with the homework. seriously, insane. i've only had one grad class thus far. it was my first year seminar (obviously, required for all first years). the title of it is 'analyticity,' which loosely translates into 'way more phil of language and epistemology than a danielle can reasonably handle without exploding.' the first class was funny though. mainly it consisted of the boys going "blah blah blah, phil. of language jargon terms, blah blah blah, this is so cool" and the girls staring at them and then saying things like "this doesn't make any sense" or "why does this matter" or "that's dumb and implausible." it should make for an interesting class. (and yes, we really did have that kind of gender split, and yes, the boys do seem to be those kind of annoying analytic philo geeks.)
kiwi has been having a whole set of issues all her own. she had tapeworm, those are gone now. but she had an upper respiratory infection, which led to a urinary tract infection (you know, they clean themselves), and she also had coccidia at the same time. so, right now she's on two different antibiotic drops and an antibiotic eye ointment. in case you've never tried it, take my word, there is nothing more fun than shoving drugs down a fiesty little kitty's throat three times a day. but, in seven to ten days, she should be free of all these little germies. until then, she's quarantined in joey's room. soren misses her, he spends a bit of every day mewing outside of the door, hoping she'll come out. and sometimes, she gears up and makes a break for it and paul and i have to go running all over to chase her down.
tomorrow, our own internet service will turn on. no more stealing from the neighbors. yay!
since i last posted, lots of stuff has happened. going backwards: i finally got a real bed! no more air mattress for me! i am sleeping off the floor again and loving every minute of it. now, if i could only restrain myself from online shopping for new comforters.... i don't need a new bedspread... i don't need a new bedspread....
school has started officially now. i've gone to the class i TA for twice. it's a philosophy of religion class, which is weird for me, cuz i've never really done any of that stuff. and it looks like i'm going to have an insane amount of grading to do. i'm just grading for another student, not a real prof... but apparently he goes insane with the homework. seriously, insane. i've only had one grad class thus far. it was my first year seminar (obviously, required for all first years). the title of it is 'analyticity,' which loosely translates into 'way more phil of language and epistemology than a danielle can reasonably handle without exploding.' the first class was funny though. mainly it consisted of the boys going "blah blah blah, phil. of language jargon terms, blah blah blah, this is so cool" and the girls staring at them and then saying things like "this doesn't make any sense" or "why does this matter" or "that's dumb and implausible." it should make for an interesting class. (and yes, we really did have that kind of gender split, and yes, the boys do seem to be those kind of annoying analytic philo geeks.)
kiwi has been having a whole set of issues all her own. she had tapeworm, those are gone now. but she had an upper respiratory infection, which led to a urinary tract infection (you know, they clean themselves), and she also had coccidia at the same time. so, right now she's on two different antibiotic drops and an antibiotic eye ointment. in case you've never tried it, take my word, there is nothing more fun than shoving drugs down a fiesty little kitty's throat three times a day. but, in seven to ten days, she should be free of all these little germies. until then, she's quarantined in joey's room. soren misses her, he spends a bit of every day mewing outside of the door, hoping she'll come out. and sometimes, she gears up and makes a break for it and paul and i have to go running all over to chase her down.
tomorrow, our own internet service will turn on. no more stealing from the neighbors. yay!
Thursday, August 24, 2006
exhausted
first texas post! woot!
so, here i am, in the apartment. its been going pretty well so far, with a few minor hiccups. my mom was in town for about a week, and while that was really nice having her around to help us get settled in and get necessary items, it was also extremely tiring. the place is still a wreck. there are dismantled boxes everywhere and no matter how often i clean the kitchen it seems to get dirty just as fast. but, i've hung up everything that goes in the living room, and my christmas lights went up in my room today. so, things are moving along... never mind the air mattress on my floor (new reinflated tonight!).
i spent today running errands. the car needed an oil change (2nd time in as many weeks i've had to spend a morning at the saab dealer. yay.) and then i drove another new first year (this one's a canadian) down to san marcos so she could apply for a social security number. (the office in austin is just too insane to go to.) so yeah, 60 mile drive, and then she wanted to go to target. and i love target, and a brief excursion sounded nice, but after a six a.m. wakeup, i wasn't really prepared to be there for an hour and a half. by the time i got home, i managed to say hi to joey and paul and then just collapse on my bed. consequently, i missed the gathering of philo people tonight. but.... it was going to start out with a two hour logic review (we have to take a diagnostic test on logic, and everyone's freaking about it) so it prolly wasn't a bad thing to miss. there'll be a party on sunday anyways, so that ought to be better. i've noticed that right now everyone's in the 'i'm just starting a grad program so i better talk smart and impress people' mode. since i've already done the grad school thing once, i don't really feel the need, which let's me have some more natural conversations with the older students, but sometimes leaves me stalling with the younger ones. it's a weird dynamic. i'm sure it'll all ease up soon enough.
in other news, i've been getting skinny lately... its the crazy texas heat. i never get really hungry. except for water. i always want water. and i've been swimming (although paul maintains that i don't exercise, i only chill-ax in the pool.) so i'm getting a little bit tan. it's crazy.
right now, i'm fighting the urge to go and nail up my mirror and hang some more pictures. i don't want to be "that neighbor" that pounds on the walls in the middle of the night.... but my room is so ready for more pictures. sigh. guess i'll just sleep.
oh, and we got a new kitten. her name is kiwi, and soren and her are starting to become friends. i describe her as cute in a "scrappy, ragamuffin" kind of way. here's a picture of her so you can see.
so, here i am, in the apartment. its been going pretty well so far, with a few minor hiccups. my mom was in town for about a week, and while that was really nice having her around to help us get settled in and get necessary items, it was also extremely tiring. the place is still a wreck. there are dismantled boxes everywhere and no matter how often i clean the kitchen it seems to get dirty just as fast. but, i've hung up everything that goes in the living room, and my christmas lights went up in my room today. so, things are moving along... never mind the air mattress on my floor (new reinflated tonight!).
i spent today running errands. the car needed an oil change (2nd time in as many weeks i've had to spend a morning at the saab dealer. yay.) and then i drove another new first year (this one's a canadian) down to san marcos so she could apply for a social security number. (the office in austin is just too insane to go to.) so yeah, 60 mile drive, and then she wanted to go to target. and i love target, and a brief excursion sounded nice, but after a six a.m. wakeup, i wasn't really prepared to be there for an hour and a half. by the time i got home, i managed to say hi to joey and paul and then just collapse on my bed. consequently, i missed the gathering of philo people tonight. but.... it was going to start out with a two hour logic review (we have to take a diagnostic test on logic, and everyone's freaking about it) so it prolly wasn't a bad thing to miss. there'll be a party on sunday anyways, so that ought to be better. i've noticed that right now everyone's in the 'i'm just starting a grad program so i better talk smart and impress people' mode. since i've already done the grad school thing once, i don't really feel the need, which let's me have some more natural conversations with the older students, but sometimes leaves me stalling with the younger ones. it's a weird dynamic. i'm sure it'll all ease up soon enough.
in other news, i've been getting skinny lately... its the crazy texas heat. i never get really hungry. except for water. i always want water. and i've been swimming (although paul maintains that i don't exercise, i only chill-ax in the pool.) so i'm getting a little bit tan. it's crazy.
right now, i'm fighting the urge to go and nail up my mirror and hang some more pictures. i don't want to be "that neighbor" that pounds on the walls in the middle of the night.... but my room is so ready for more pictures. sigh. guess i'll just sleep.
oh, and we got a new kitten. her name is kiwi, and soren and her are starting to become friends. i describe her as cute in a "scrappy, ragamuffin" kind of way. here's a picture of her so you can see.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
school?
so, summer's almost over. i leave for austin on the 9th. just a bit over a week. its a weird feeling. this has been a good summer back home, maybe the first good summer at home i've had in six years. and, although ready to get out of my mom's house and into my own place, i'm really going to miss being out on the farm. i love living out where you (normally) can't hear what's happening in your neighbor's house. but i still know most of the people that live on this road, and can just walk into about half of the houses without even knocking. i will not miss the babysitting for my sister. or grandma's insane obsessions.
i'm starting to get a bit nervous about starting up at texas. it is, after all, a top ten program. while notre dame (as a grad. program) was of the same caliber, i never was a grad. student at notre dame, and i don't think even my 400 level classes count. so i've never been at this level of school before (and yes, i am kinda writing off western here... although i think i learned a lot there and it did me a lot of good, i think the profs were waaay too easy on us a lot of the time). so i dunno. hopefully the other students will be cool. the older ones seemed allright when i went to visit.
at least i know my apartment will be sweet. i got that much. =)
i'm starting to get a bit nervous about starting up at texas. it is, after all, a top ten program. while notre dame (as a grad. program) was of the same caliber, i never was a grad. student at notre dame, and i don't think even my 400 level classes count. so i've never been at this level of school before (and yes, i am kinda writing off western here... although i think i learned a lot there and it did me a lot of good, i think the profs were waaay too easy on us a lot of the time). so i dunno. hopefully the other students will be cool. the older ones seemed allright when i went to visit.
at least i know my apartment will be sweet. i got that much. =)
Saturday, July 22, 2006
the fall
well, i haven't been blogging this summer because i've been spending a ton of time outside riding horses. one of my neighbors has a pair of foxtrotters that need to exercise and lose weight, so i got to come over and help. unfortunately, two major roadblocks have sprung up this week. first, on monday, baby-girl (the smaller of the two) went lame. however, this isn't horrible. there are other people to ride with. so i call up my neighbor ali to see if she want's to go for a ride on wednesday. of course, she does. so wednesday morning i go and grab george (the horse i've been riding... pics will come later) saddle up, and off we go. things are going great until we reach the midpoint of our ride. i see a deer... but george must have seen at least twenty, because he flipped out. and i fell down. hard. i think i fainted too, cuz i lost consciousness and an ambulance was called. apparently, once george realized i wasn't on his back anymore, he came trotting back to me and sniffed me, obviously wondering what had happened. i looked up at him (so i'm told) and started saying "i thought we were pals, george. i thought we were buddies." anyway, a cat scan, several x-rays, and a hip contusion later, i'm doing just fine... albeit a bit wobbly. i went to see george last night. he gave me a funny, aprehensive look at first... i think he thought i would be mad. but i gave him a hug and he started following me around the barnyard again. so, i think george and i are cool... but i don't know when i'll be able to get on him again. i am sore!
to top off the story, on wednesday night we lost power and it didn't come back until 3 pm yesterday. so we were out of power for 45 hours and had a generator hooked up and everything. it was crazy. joey and i felt kinda like pioneers, only without the dysentery.
to top off the story, on wednesday night we lost power and it didn't come back until 3 pm yesterday. so we were out of power for 45 hours and had a generator hooked up and everything. it was crazy. joey and i felt kinda like pioneers, only without the dysentery.
Sunday, June 18, 2006
lefty
like this would surprise anyone....
| Your Political Profile: |
| Overall: 30% Conservative, 70% Liberal |
| Social Issues: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal |
| Personal Responsibility: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal |
| Fiscal Issues: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal |
| Ethics: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal |
| Defense and Crime: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal |
Saturday, June 10, 2006
austin
so, i'm sitting in austin now, on some steps in amelie's apartment complex (using *borrowed* internet of course). i've been here since tuesday, doing some apartment hunting. (i did find a place, and its way nice... hopefully i'll have pictures up soon.) the past couple of days have been spent chilling out. doing some swimming, went to see a movie (an inconvenient truth -- i highly recommend it to anyone who cares about the world at all. there are a few too many 'yay, al gore' moments, but for those that can look past that, its very worthwhile.) the swimming has been really cool... there's a natural spring here called barton springs that has been made into a neato (and very cold) swimming place. anyway, i think its time to go now, figure out what to do tonight... just thought i should let y'all know that i'm still alive.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
peppers
yes, i know i haven't blogged in forever. i just haven't had much to say. i've been helping dude finish his finals (that was a party and a half), sleeping, and watching tv. and seriously, that's about it. i think blogging is going to be pretty splotchy until school starts again in august (we have dial-up internet at home). but, i will write all about my trip to texas (once i take it) to find a living place. i leave in a couple weeks, and i think it'll be fun. i'll be there for almost a week. but the rest of my summer looks basically like this: wake up at 5, take the dog for a walk, work in the garden, sleep, repeat. if you're thinking "this sounds like slave labor!" you're basically right. mom has plans to use me as a gardening peasant all summer long. so this is what i'll be doing instead of getting a job for the summer. i better get to take a lot of the produce with me to austin... i'm not getting paid until october, and if i want to eat, well, it looks like i'll have to grow my own food....
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
boo
sitting here on the couch with blue. nice way to start the morning.
too bad i already woke up once (at 5) to drive depoe to the airport. that was sad. good thing i didn't cry. much.
seriously, what are you supposed to say when you say goodbye to someone and you know that you won't see them at all for months, and even then it won't be for very long and they're not going to be a daily part of your life anymore and you've really come to depend on them?
i have no idea. and i've had to do this twice. in one week.
as excited as i am about tejas, moving really sucks.
at least when i got back to kris's blue jumped on the bed with me and let me hug her for a long time.
too bad i already woke up once (at 5) to drive depoe to the airport. that was sad. good thing i didn't cry. much.
seriously, what are you supposed to say when you say goodbye to someone and you know that you won't see them at all for months, and even then it won't be for very long and they're not going to be a daily part of your life anymore and you've really come to depend on them?
i have no idea. and i've had to do this twice. in one week.
as excited as i am about tejas, moving really sucks.
at least when i got back to kris's blue jumped on the bed with me and let me hug her for a long time.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
turning in the keys...
so yesterday i finished with the old place. for real this time. everything is out of there now... i just have to go turn in the keys in a few minutes. i have to admit, it makes me sad. i almost cried yesterday when i locked it up for the last time. i really liked that place. and leaving it really means i'm done with kalamazoo. since basically everyone is gone, that's not as bad as it would have been a week or so ago. but i'll still miss this place. mainly because of the people, naturally. kalamazoo doesn't have a lot to reccommend it all by itself. all the same, its not a bad little town. i'm so glad i'll be in my next town for a whole five years. maybe six. it'll be nice to be settled finally. and everyone tells me austin is awesome. as dude said the other day, it sounds too good to be true... almost like heaven.
speaking of dude. here's a conversation i had with dude yesterday afternoon:
dude: i've decided something, and since it's about you, i thought i should let you know.
me: ok
dude: i've decided that you can never get married.
me: why?
dude: 'cause it would be weird. i was just thinking about it, and it weirded me out.
me: why?
dude: well, let's try a thought experiment. how about you imagine me being married.
me: i think that would be cute, dude.
dude: you're messing with the thought experiment. the correct answer is 'ew. no. that'd be weird. i'm weirded out.'
me: ok, dude. so you just want me to be alone? what about you?
dude: oh, i'm not getting married. i've already prohibited myself from that.
me; so you want us both to be single so we can live together and be happy?
dude: yes.
yep. that's my dude. silly brother.
speaking of dude. here's a conversation i had with dude yesterday afternoon:
dude: i've decided something, and since it's about you, i thought i should let you know.
me: ok
dude: i've decided that you can never get married.
me: why?
dude: 'cause it would be weird. i was just thinking about it, and it weirded me out.
me: why?
dude: well, let's try a thought experiment. how about you imagine me being married.
me: i think that would be cute, dude.
dude: you're messing with the thought experiment. the correct answer is 'ew. no. that'd be weird. i'm weirded out.'
me: ok, dude. so you just want me to be alone? what about you?
dude: oh, i'm not getting married. i've already prohibited myself from that.
me; so you want us both to be single so we can live together and be happy?
dude: yes.
yep. that's my dude. silly brother.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
change change change
I remember my last day at notre dame, after graduation, sitting in the window sill of 707 PE, looking out at the volleyball court and the quad and thinking about how sad i was to go and how much i'd miss ND. i'm pretty certain that i looked on that moment as an end; not just an end of undergrad, but an end of having good friends around all the time that i loved.
my first morning at western, august 2004, i got to orientation early. so early that all i had to do was sit around. sit around and look around and be sad. i called a few people (they were all asleep still) and left sad, pathetic voicemails. i was alone, at an ugly school, in a dinky town, all alone. it was horrible.
so now its two years later, and i think to say that i have changed is maybe an understatment. i have grown up a lot these couple of years. and not grown up in the bad way - the 'i fit in with 40 year old soccer moms' way. and i'm not really worried about grown up things like money or insurance. so far, i've had faith that those things will just come to me. and that faith has been reworded. i've been able to live just fine. true, sometimes i'm kinda scraping by, but those are the best times actually... certainly the most formative times. but there's something fun about it, too, in a weird way. with grad-school poverty comes an odd type of freedom. i think i've become more independent - even though joey and paul have been close this whole time, i've still had to make my own way here, shift for myself a lot, and make my own successes. i'm more adaptive, too. things roll off me in a way they didn't use to. and i think i handle stuff better. all in all, i think i just feel different. i'm more my own self, if that makes any sense. and i feel like i'm finally beginning to realize my freedom.
but aside from me-things... i've made better friends in k-zoo than i ever thought possible. when i got here, i envisioned two years of lonely time. but now, not only am i not lonely, but i really regret leaving y'all, as much as i ever regretted leaving my ND friends. i really do love you guys. but you know that. senior year, small erin made us all buy blank books so we could write notes to each other. basically, she wanted proof that she'd had meaningful relationships in college. i need no such proof now. i don't know that i really needed it then, either, but i definitely don't need it now.
and i know these next years will be exciting and all. after all, i will be in the promised land. and i'll find my peeps. maybe i'll even become a good philosopher (stranger things have happened). but i am sad to leave here. i haven't cried or anything yet. and this isn't really my farewell to k-zoo. even after i pack things up on friday, i'm going to still bum around for a bit. eventually, i'll say goodbye... or maybe just avoid it alltogether.
my first morning at western, august 2004, i got to orientation early. so early that all i had to do was sit around. sit around and look around and be sad. i called a few people (they were all asleep still) and left sad, pathetic voicemails. i was alone, at an ugly school, in a dinky town, all alone. it was horrible.
so now its two years later, and i think to say that i have changed is maybe an understatment. i have grown up a lot these couple of years. and not grown up in the bad way - the 'i fit in with 40 year old soccer moms' way. and i'm not really worried about grown up things like money or insurance. so far, i've had faith that those things will just come to me. and that faith has been reworded. i've been able to live just fine. true, sometimes i'm kinda scraping by, but those are the best times actually... certainly the most formative times. but there's something fun about it, too, in a weird way. with grad-school poverty comes an odd type of freedom. i think i've become more independent - even though joey and paul have been close this whole time, i've still had to make my own way here, shift for myself a lot, and make my own successes. i'm more adaptive, too. things roll off me in a way they didn't use to. and i think i handle stuff better. all in all, i think i just feel different. i'm more my own self, if that makes any sense. and i feel like i'm finally beginning to realize my freedom.
but aside from me-things... i've made better friends in k-zoo than i ever thought possible. when i got here, i envisioned two years of lonely time. but now, not only am i not lonely, but i really regret leaving y'all, as much as i ever regretted leaving my ND friends. i really do love you guys. but you know that. senior year, small erin made us all buy blank books so we could write notes to each other. basically, she wanted proof that she'd had meaningful relationships in college. i need no such proof now. i don't know that i really needed it then, either, but i definitely don't need it now.
and i know these next years will be exciting and all. after all, i will be in the promised land. and i'll find my peeps. maybe i'll even become a good philosopher (stranger things have happened). but i am sad to leave here. i haven't cried or anything yet. and this isn't really my farewell to k-zoo. even after i pack things up on friday, i'm going to still bum around for a bit. eventually, i'll say goodbye... or maybe just avoid it alltogether.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
musical blogs!
here's another cool game to play that i stole from garrett.
oh, and after 3.5 drinks tonight, i'm totally tipsy.
Instructions:
Put your music player on shuffle.
Press forward for each question.
Use the song title as the answer to the question, even if it doesn't make any sense.
1. How am I feeling today? Whole Lotta Love by Led Zepplin (this sounds about right)
2. Will I get far in life? I Wonder by Blind Melon (yes i do wonder... all the freakin' time... welcome to life as a grad student in a field that few people even recognize, much less find important or useful)
3. How do my friends see me? Find the River by REM (what would that even mean?)
4. Where will I get married? Vindicated by Dashboard Confessional (now this one is even more confusing)
5. What is my best friend? Passion by the Nixons (this one i can almost buy.... given my spontaneous nature... but we all know the real answer is puppies)
6. What is the story of my life? Myself by The Verve Pipe (ha)
7. What was high school like? Farewell and Goodnight by the Smashing Pumpkins (i think i agree)
8. How can I get ahead in life? Traumlicht as song by the ND Glee Club. (now, thats pretty funny. DreamLight, is what is translates to, whatever that means)
9. What is the best thing about me? The Impression that I Get by the Mighty Mighty Bosstones (this one i buy... i am good with first impressions)
10. What is today going to be like? Omaha by Counting Crows (so flat, boring, and in the middle of nowhere? i don't like the sound of that!)
11. What is in store for this weekend? 4am by Our Lady Peace (this sounds a bit more like it)
12. What song describes my parents? You May be Right by Billy Joel (may... but what does a may really mean....)
13. To describe my grandparents? Shameless by Billy Joel (this might work for grandma... but not for grandpa, at all)
14. How is my life going? I don't sleep, I dream by REM (yep)
15. What song will they play at my funeral? Your Body is Wonderland by John Mayer (i hope not, since i hate this song... how did it get on my playlist anyways?????)
16. How does the world see me? Impersonality by Goo Goo Dolls (impersonal??? boy, do i have them fooled....)
17. Will I have a happy life? The Sad Cafe by The Eagles (well, that doesn't sound very encouraging)
18. What do my friends really think of me? Up in the Sky by Oasis (well, i am flighty... and Carrie always used to call me a crackbird)
19. Do people secretly lust after me? All you Need is Love by The Beatles ( HA! I knew it. you all love me. and frankly, who can blame you??)
20. How can I make myself happy? Brain Stew by GreenDay (what? mix up my brains a bit more? isn't that what my next level of school is all about?)
21. What should I do with my life? Eight Days a Week by The Beatles (yeah, we all know i need to work more... but come on!)
22. Will I ever have children? Narcolempsy by Ben Folds Five (ummmmm..... yeah......)
23. What is some good advice for me? All in All by Toad the Wet Sprocket (and this means??)
24. How will I be remembered? more love by Victor Wooten (doesn't sound so bad)
25. What is my signature dancing song? Stairway to Heaven by Led Zepplin (haha)
26. What is my current theme song? Sleepyhouse by Blind Melon (suprisingly, despite the huge amounts of sleep lately, this is completely untrue)
27. What does everyone else think my current theme song is? Thirty-Three by Smashing Pumpkins (ha, sure they do)
ok, that's it for now. soren is insisting on snuggle and i'm tipsy, so typing time is over.
oh, and after 3.5 drinks tonight, i'm totally tipsy.
Instructions:
Put your music player on shuffle.
Press forward for each question.
Use the song title as the answer to the question, even if it doesn't make any sense.
1. How am I feeling today? Whole Lotta Love by Led Zepplin (this sounds about right)
2. Will I get far in life? I Wonder by Blind Melon (yes i do wonder... all the freakin' time... welcome to life as a grad student in a field that few people even recognize, much less find important or useful)
3. How do my friends see me? Find the River by REM (what would that even mean?)
4. Where will I get married? Vindicated by Dashboard Confessional (now this one is even more confusing)
5. What is my best friend? Passion by the Nixons (this one i can almost buy.... given my spontaneous nature... but we all know the real answer is puppies)
6. What is the story of my life? Myself by The Verve Pipe (ha)
7. What was high school like? Farewell and Goodnight by the Smashing Pumpkins (i think i agree)
8. How can I get ahead in life? Traumlicht as song by the ND Glee Club. (now, thats pretty funny. DreamLight, is what is translates to, whatever that means)
9. What is the best thing about me? The Impression that I Get by the Mighty Mighty Bosstones (this one i buy... i am good with first impressions)
10. What is today going to be like? Omaha by Counting Crows (so flat, boring, and in the middle of nowhere? i don't like the sound of that!)
11. What is in store for this weekend? 4am by Our Lady Peace (this sounds a bit more like it)
12. What song describes my parents? You May be Right by Billy Joel (may... but what does a may really mean....)
13. To describe my grandparents? Shameless by Billy Joel (this might work for grandma... but not for grandpa, at all)
14. How is my life going? I don't sleep, I dream by REM (yep)
15. What song will they play at my funeral? Your Body is Wonderland by John Mayer (i hope not, since i hate this song... how did it get on my playlist anyways?????)
16. How does the world see me? Impersonality by Goo Goo Dolls (impersonal??? boy, do i have them fooled....)
17. Will I have a happy life? The Sad Cafe by The Eagles (well, that doesn't sound very encouraging)
18. What do my friends really think of me? Up in the Sky by Oasis (well, i am flighty... and Carrie always used to call me a crackbird)
19. Do people secretly lust after me? All you Need is Love by The Beatles ( HA! I knew it. you all love me. and frankly, who can blame you??)
20. How can I make myself happy? Brain Stew by GreenDay (what? mix up my brains a bit more? isn't that what my next level of school is all about?)
21. What should I do with my life? Eight Days a Week by The Beatles (yeah, we all know i need to work more... but come on!)
22. Will I ever have children? Narcolempsy by Ben Folds Five (ummmmm..... yeah......)
23. What is some good advice for me? All in All by Toad the Wet Sprocket (and this means??)
24. How will I be remembered? more love by Victor Wooten (doesn't sound so bad)
25. What is my signature dancing song? Stairway to Heaven by Led Zepplin (haha)
26. What is my current theme song? Sleepyhouse by Blind Melon (suprisingly, despite the huge amounts of sleep lately, this is completely untrue)
27. What does everyone else think my current theme song is? Thirty-Three by Smashing Pumpkins (ha, sure they do)
ok, that's it for now. soren is insisting on snuggle and i'm tipsy, so typing time is over.
Sunday, April 23, 2006
almost there...
just a quick post today so i can return to the blogosphere. i am still alive. and i am going to tejas next year, officially. notre dame spent some quality time last weekend toying with my heart, but in the end, they couldn't deliver and texas won out. right now, i have a paper that needs finishing. i just spent a goodly time procrastinating by washing my car (she looks so shiny and new again!), but now it's time to work. boo. one more paper for arthur, one for mike, and then my time at western is done. crazy. it doesn't seem like it's been that long since i got there (and was dismayed over the ugliness). but look at the prettiness of tejas. (that's the building i'll be in next year.)
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
tejas??
ok, so a week after i return from my travels, its prolly a good time to do a serious post and let you in on my thoughts about where i'm going to be next year. now, before i do that, let me outline for you just what happened during my trip. this will be my itinerary plus a bit of commentary.
tuesday: leave k-zoo on the afternoon train. get into chicago. taxi to beaker's place of employment. chill out. eat dinner at the grand lux cafe (super cool). go back to muppet mansion. answer about a thousand emails. sleep.
wednesday: wake up and get down to UIC, leaving plenty of time to get lost. fail to get lost, so spend lots of time in the grad student lounge introducing myself to random grad students. meet meinwald and have semi-awkward lunch. afterwards, i hang out in the dept a bit more and then proceed to michigan ave. with another prospect. we get lost. walk to navy pier. turn around. buy emergency flipflops for my ouched feet. eventually, i try on manolos. meet beaker, get pizza at chicagos, chill out, sleep.
thursday: go back to UIC. this time to attend some classes and have lunch with some grad students. meet with abe so he can talk some more trash. eventually head out so i can pack things, check out of muppet mansion, and head to evanston. take the purple line up, check into my hotel, find a noodley place to eat, watch tv, pass out. final thoughts on UIC - its nice. meinwald is decently cool, albeit somewhat awkward. the profs are cool and the atmosphere is nice.
friday: wake up, get ready, head downstairs to meet with a prof for breakfast. he's weird and jittery. keeps complaining that everyone is late. eventually, get to campus, meet profs and grad students, eat lunch, talk with profs some more. by the time this portion of the day is done, i've already decided northwestern is not for me... but i still have a day and a half left. kraut (the ancient philo guy) is nice, but too ethics-y. the rest of the dept. is too continental. but, they take us out to thai. that's cool. after, i go back to the hotel, everyone else goes out drinking. i sleep.
saturday: lunch with kraut and some grad students. after, we head into chicago. everyone else is going to a museum, i skip out to go to this cool cat shelter with kyle. seriously, over a hundred cats in one place. amazing. meet up with the group again at a profs place and then go to indian food after. by this time, i'm thoroughly sick of the other prospects. one, a loud self-important german prick, especially. on the way home (i was put in charge of getting everyone back to the hotel since i was deemed 'practically a native' by the grad students taking care of us), i suggest putting him on the yellow line to skokie. unfortunately, it doesn't run that late.
sunday: get up, check out of the hotel, get to the airport. wait forever for my flight. it's late. eat a cinnamon roll. buy some gum. forget about my ever-present, always-bad motion sickness and get on the plane. an hour and a half later, i wake up sick. actually sick. i have to get up and throw up and everything. i am unhappy. finally touch ground again (where people are supposed to stay), get to my hotel. find out its skeevy. order chinese, watch grey's anatomy.
monday: i am now in tejas. after all this time. walk to school. once again, introduce myself to random grad students. meet with a prof. eat lunch with some students. go to a reading group. go to dancy's class. dancy's cool. he comes over to introduce himself and invites me to dinner afterwards with everyone. we go to trudy's, a local tex-mex kinda place. dancy hangs around for a while and tells stories. buys me dinner. he leaves, the rest of us go to a coffeeshop bar place. sit outside! and talk about the program/philo/whatever for a couple hours.
tuesday: wake up, get ready, pack, drag my stuff to the dept. meet with an ancient guy. run into dancy again, spend some time talking in his office. he tells me more stories about how icky northwestern is. wander around. spend some time looking for the perfect texas tee-shirt. meet tye, go to his undergrad class. he's a bit odd. got a bowie-esque air. hard to describe. collect my stuff, get to the airport shuttle, wait for my flight. this time its on time and i remembered to buy dramamine. paul picks me up in chicago. we go home. sleep. important things i learned in texas - if you're cool enough, you can get your way in academia by threatening to resign; if you're not quite cool enough, its important to have cool friends that will do it for you; philosophers are always willing to talk smack about each other and about other departments.
wednesday: paul takes me to the train station in niles. johndepoe picks me up in k-zoo. go to arthur's class. kris brings me home. we eat lunch with dave. i get to drive again (yay). come home. sit on futon with pillows and comforter. sleep.
and that's it folks. i got tired just typing it all out again... much less living it. it was an exhausting week, but i think a lot of good came out of it. i think i'm gonna go to texas. they've got the best program. biggest too. and they've got great resources in ancient. unfortunately, no one there really does late plato metaphysics, which is what i want to do... but given the resources and the placement record (and the freaking coolness of austin) i don't think i can turn it down. UIC has meinwald, but she's only one... and i don't think i would get the kind of training there (in ancient) that i would really need. however, i'm on the waitlist at ND... and i've promised to sayre that i'll wait till friday to make a final decision. he wants to see if i'll get pulled off the waitlist. i doubt it. but i promised i'd wait. if all goes as i think it will, though, next year i will be a citizen in the republic of tejas.
tuesday: leave k-zoo on the afternoon train. get into chicago. taxi to beaker's place of employment. chill out. eat dinner at the grand lux cafe (super cool). go back to muppet mansion. answer about a thousand emails. sleep.
wednesday: wake up and get down to UIC, leaving plenty of time to get lost. fail to get lost, so spend lots of time in the grad student lounge introducing myself to random grad students. meet meinwald and have semi-awkward lunch. afterwards, i hang out in the dept a bit more and then proceed to michigan ave. with another prospect. we get lost. walk to navy pier. turn around. buy emergency flipflops for my ouched feet. eventually, i try on manolos. meet beaker, get pizza at chicagos, chill out, sleep.
thursday: go back to UIC. this time to attend some classes and have lunch with some grad students. meet with abe so he can talk some more trash. eventually head out so i can pack things, check out of muppet mansion, and head to evanston. take the purple line up, check into my hotel, find a noodley place to eat, watch tv, pass out. final thoughts on UIC - its nice. meinwald is decently cool, albeit somewhat awkward. the profs are cool and the atmosphere is nice.
friday: wake up, get ready, head downstairs to meet with a prof for breakfast. he's weird and jittery. keeps complaining that everyone is late. eventually, get to campus, meet profs and grad students, eat lunch, talk with profs some more. by the time this portion of the day is done, i've already decided northwestern is not for me... but i still have a day and a half left. kraut (the ancient philo guy) is nice, but too ethics-y. the rest of the dept. is too continental. but, they take us out to thai. that's cool. after, i go back to the hotel, everyone else goes out drinking. i sleep.
saturday: lunch with kraut and some grad students. after, we head into chicago. everyone else is going to a museum, i skip out to go to this cool cat shelter with kyle. seriously, over a hundred cats in one place. amazing. meet up with the group again at a profs place and then go to indian food after. by this time, i'm thoroughly sick of the other prospects. one, a loud self-important german prick, especially. on the way home (i was put in charge of getting everyone back to the hotel since i was deemed 'practically a native' by the grad students taking care of us), i suggest putting him on the yellow line to skokie. unfortunately, it doesn't run that late.
sunday: get up, check out of the hotel, get to the airport. wait forever for my flight. it's late. eat a cinnamon roll. buy some gum. forget about my ever-present, always-bad motion sickness and get on the plane. an hour and a half later, i wake up sick. actually sick. i have to get up and throw up and everything. i am unhappy. finally touch ground again (where people are supposed to stay), get to my hotel. find out its skeevy. order chinese, watch grey's anatomy.
monday: i am now in tejas. after all this time. walk to school. once again, introduce myself to random grad students. meet with a prof. eat lunch with some students. go to a reading group. go to dancy's class. dancy's cool. he comes over to introduce himself and invites me to dinner afterwards with everyone. we go to trudy's, a local tex-mex kinda place. dancy hangs around for a while and tells stories. buys me dinner. he leaves, the rest of us go to a coffeeshop bar place. sit outside! and talk about the program/philo/whatever for a couple hours.
tuesday: wake up, get ready, pack, drag my stuff to the dept. meet with an ancient guy. run into dancy again, spend some time talking in his office. he tells me more stories about how icky northwestern is. wander around. spend some time looking for the perfect texas tee-shirt. meet tye, go to his undergrad class. he's a bit odd. got a bowie-esque air. hard to describe. collect my stuff, get to the airport shuttle, wait for my flight. this time its on time and i remembered to buy dramamine. paul picks me up in chicago. we go home. sleep. important things i learned in texas - if you're cool enough, you can get your way in academia by threatening to resign; if you're not quite cool enough, its important to have cool friends that will do it for you; philosophers are always willing to talk smack about each other and about other departments.
wednesday: paul takes me to the train station in niles. johndepoe picks me up in k-zoo. go to arthur's class. kris brings me home. we eat lunch with dave. i get to drive again (yay). come home. sit on futon with pillows and comforter. sleep.
and that's it folks. i got tired just typing it all out again... much less living it. it was an exhausting week, but i think a lot of good came out of it. i think i'm gonna go to texas. they've got the best program. biggest too. and they've got great resources in ancient. unfortunately, no one there really does late plato metaphysics, which is what i want to do... but given the resources and the placement record (and the freaking coolness of austin) i don't think i can turn it down. UIC has meinwald, but she's only one... and i don't think i would get the kind of training there (in ancient) that i would really need. however, i'm on the waitlist at ND... and i've promised to sayre that i'll wait till friday to make a final decision. he wants to see if i'll get pulled off the waitlist. i doubt it. but i promised i'd wait. if all goes as i think it will, though, next year i will be a citizen in the republic of tejas.
quizzes!
i found the links to these quizzes on johnny-dee's site... all i have to say is that my results are way cooler than his.
Saturday, April 08, 2006
i'm back!
but i'm not doing a real post yet... i do have tons to update y'all on.... but we'll get there eventually. one bit of news though, i've officially (as of yesterday) turned down northwestern. so at least that's out of the way.
now, a music game i stole from garrett... who stole it from someone else.
Favorite Artist name: R.E.M.
Choose a band or artist; and answer a bunch of questions using only titles of their songs.
1. Are you male or female? she just wants to be
2. Describe yourself: i dont sleep, i dream
3. How do some people feel about you: strange
4. How do you feel about yourself: i'll take the rain
5. Describe your ex boyfriend / girlfriend: suspicion
6. Describe your current significant other: the one i love
7. Describe where you want to be: high speed train
8. Describe how you live: at my most beautiful
9. Describe how you love: talk about the passion
10. What would you ask for if you had just one wish: make it all okay
11. Share a few words of wisdom: why not smile?
12. Now say goodbye: departure
now, a music game i stole from garrett... who stole it from someone else.
Favorite Artist name: R.E.M.
Choose a band or artist; and answer a bunch of questions using only titles of their songs.
1. Are you male or female? she just wants to be
2. Describe yourself: i dont sleep, i dream
3. How do some people feel about you: strange
4. How do you feel about yourself: i'll take the rain
5. Describe your ex boyfriend / girlfriend: suspicion
6. Describe your current significant other: the one i love
7. Describe where you want to be: high speed train
8. Describe how you live: at my most beautiful
9. Describe how you love: talk about the passion
10. What would you ask for if you had just one wish: make it all okay
11. Share a few words of wisdom: why not smile?
12. Now say goodbye: departure
Monday, March 27, 2006
i am such a slacker
remember when my guy was this tiny? i do. it was the cutest.i ought to have done so many things this weekend. i ought to have written a paper for mike. i ought to have worked on my next presentation for arthur. i ought to have caught up on my reading. instead, i've snuggled with these puppy-types. i did do some laundry. but not even all of my laundry. sigh. i'm getting burnt out on school. especially on teaching. four semesters of teaching have worn me down. i don't think i'm really cut out for it. (don't even ask why i'm working towards being a professor.)
on the flip side, i am really excited to be heading out of town on tuesday. i'll be traveling around (alone) for a week. i think i need the break. and it'll be a lot of fun. i even get to go to a warm place! yay! i look forward to packing a pair of flipflops.
peanut got sick today. she's one sad little pup. i feel so bad. there's not much i can really do for her though. hugs and water seem about all i can provide. but every now and again she looks up at me with this sad face.... poor little girl.
Saturday, March 25, 2006
puppies!
so this weekend i'm puppy-sitting for cheryl. right now, there are two chihuahuas running around the apartment like little insane things. sometimes they let out a battle cry and wrestle. if you're wondering what the battle cry of a chihuahua is like, it starts out as a little snort and then moves to a high pitched squeal. hilarious.
so aside from the puppies, not much is going on. i have tons of work to do this weekend that i am, predictably, having trouble doing. the goal for tonight is to write an exam for my kids. they take it on thursday. at least this time i won't be there to watch. so they can't bug me with all their dumb questions. (have fun john)
tuesday afternoon i leave for chicago and begin my whirlwind tour of grad schools. i'll start at UIC, move to NWern, and then to UT. ND i think, is basically completely out of the picture by now. they rejected the dude, and i think that now, if anything, i am on the waitlist for the waitlist - which i think translates into 'patty is just waiting until she can send me my rejection letter, too.' its too bad, i think it could've been fun. me and sayre have always got on well, and we all know my obsesion with ND. but, i think chicago or austin could be really cool... and more like a real adventure. k-zoo has only been an excursion, not an adventure. the town's too small and too much like places i've lived before and too close to ND to make this time a real adventure.
i'm hungry. i've already had two dinners. but i'm still hungry. i need to find a snack now. and put on lotion. my hands arent doing so well. stupid cold.
so aside from the puppies, not much is going on. i have tons of work to do this weekend that i am, predictably, having trouble doing. the goal for tonight is to write an exam for my kids. they take it on thursday. at least this time i won't be there to watch. so they can't bug me with all their dumb questions. (have fun john)
tuesday afternoon i leave for chicago and begin my whirlwind tour of grad schools. i'll start at UIC, move to NWern, and then to UT. ND i think, is basically completely out of the picture by now. they rejected the dude, and i think that now, if anything, i am on the waitlist for the waitlist - which i think translates into 'patty is just waiting until she can send me my rejection letter, too.' its too bad, i think it could've been fun. me and sayre have always got on well, and we all know my obsesion with ND. but, i think chicago or austin could be really cool... and more like a real adventure. k-zoo has only been an excursion, not an adventure. the town's too small and too much like places i've lived before and too close to ND to make this time a real adventure.
i'm hungry. i've already had two dinners. but i'm still hungry. i need to find a snack now. and put on lotion. my hands arent doing so well. stupid cold.
Sunday, March 19, 2006
tag!
ok, so southie tagged me, and i cannot ignore the rules of the blogosphere. so, here goes...
The rules:
List seven songs you’re into right now. No matter the genre, whether [or not] they have words, or even if they’re any good, they must be songs you’re really enjoying right now. Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs, then tag seven other people to see what they’re listening to.
The List:
R.E.M - The Outsiders
Cake - Commissioning a Symphony in C
Norah Jones - Lonestar
Gustav Holst - Jupiter (from the Planets)
Cake - Shadow Stabbing
Eiffel 65 - I'm Blue (the dabadee song)
The Caesars - Jerk it Out
The Tag:
I don't think i have seven blog friends to tag... but i do think paul and erin should do this, if for no other reason than that both of them seriously need to update.
The rules:
List seven songs you’re into right now. No matter the genre, whether [or not] they have words, or even if they’re any good, they must be songs you’re really enjoying right now. Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs, then tag seven other people to see what they’re listening to.
The List:
R.E.M - The Outsiders
Cake - Commissioning a Symphony in C
Norah Jones - Lonestar
Gustav Holst - Jupiter (from the Planets)
Cake - Shadow Stabbing
Eiffel 65 - I'm Blue (the dabadee song)
The Caesars - Jerk it Out
The Tag:
I don't think i have seven blog friends to tag... but i do think paul and erin should do this, if for no other reason than that both of them seriously need to update.
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