One of the things I was most anxious about moving onto the farm wass that I knew at some point, I would have to cook lunch for everybody--everybody being 20-30 people. Well, my turn came up today. And I'm still alive! I owe much to my new friend Molly, who helped me every step of the way. Ok, I pretty much just did what she told me to do. We made fried rice loaded with goodness and somosas and a tomato salad. So from 9 to 12:30 we cooked. I then rang the bell to signify lunch wass ready, which is a fun thing to do. So much power. Everyone stops what they are doing and walks down to eat.

I finally got my food and sat down and looked around at the people sitting and eating around me and thought, "Wow. It worked. Everyone is eating. No one is going to make a PBJ Sandwich. They're eating was we made and are satisfied."

Did I mention I never cook?

I probably will have to again sometime. I'll worry about it when it happens.

And I can sleep in tomorrow! Even though I wasn't working outside today because of the cooking, I am really tired. I did have to wake up at 6:30 to milk goats, so maybe that contributes something.

Today definitely felt like summer, and I'm not just talking about the sun and the heat. Both of those were involved in the day (but thankfully today I wore sunscreen) but there was also swimming in a pond. It was a sizable pond, though not quite a lake. I don't really know where the line is between pond and lake. I think it has to do more with depth than expanse. Either way, a dip in this body of water was very refreshing and very summer. It will be happening again soon. We did see one and a half snakes though. I say half, because one was just a baby. The other one was gliding along the surface of the water. It looked pretty cool, but was not a comforting sight.

And this is from page 248 of the aforementioned novel:

As well as touching on the sensitive topic of religion, Athena had gone further: she had talked about diet, a subject of national interest, more important even than wars, strikes, or natural disasters. We may not all believe in God, but we all want to get thin.

Ouch, America. That hurts. Oh wait, this book is set in England. Really--ouch, humanity.


The human mind is an amazing thing. I was thinking this while typing that quote. I was looking at symbols (letters) with my eyes that form into thoughts (words) that flowed into my mind and back out through my fingertips, which knew which buttons to press to transcribe those symbols to form those ideas again on this document. Wild!

There are a few new folks on the farm now. That's fun. Two people moved in yesterday. One on the previous Thursday. One on the Tuesday before that. One on the Friday before that. One on the Thursday before that. That last one was me. I'm practically a veteran. So if you didn't catch all of that, there are six people who have moved in within the past two weeks.

Today my foot got trampled on by goats. It's ok; it'll just be a bruise. And I furthered my sunburn. Now, every section of my body is a different color. My arms and neck are pink. My torso is white. My legs are tannish. Oh yes, and my face is somewhere in between my arms and my legs (not physically, I'm referring to its color. Physically, my face is above both my arms and my legs. Don't worry. Everything is in order). I think it is a pleasant combination.

Sorry I'm being weird.

So I checked my sitemeter and apparently someone from Kansas reads my blog? Is that true? You can give me an anonymous holler of that is you.

I will leave you with a bit from page 198 of the novel I am reading right now by Paulo Coelho called The Witch of Portobello

Anyone who believes they have failed will always fail. Anyone who has decided that they cannot behave any differently will be destroyed by routine. Anyone who has decided to block all changes will be transformed into dust. Cursed be those who do not dance and prevent others from dancing!

The World Hunger Farm also has bees, and yesterday I got to experience them. There are eight or so beehives and I and another checked on them yesterday, to make sure they were on schedule in honey-producing and what not.

I got to wear a stylish hat like this fellow here, except I wasn't as crazy as him and I also had gloves that went up to my elbows and a long sleeved shirt. It was a little terrifying at first, hundreds of bees buzzing around me. Bees are pretty smart, and if they really want to sting you, they will sting you. Two flew up my pants' leg and stung me in my leg. I am alive to tell the tale. I ended up putting tape over my pants at about the ankle so no one else could squeeze through. It looked hot.


And now tis the weekend and I'm super excited about sleep. I said earlier that I'm getting into naps, but it's been hard for me. I keep trying to nap, and I'm tired, but I just lay there. Like today. It's annoying.

Life is hard.

I have a wonderful sunburn now. It is especially brilliant on a strip of skin on my back right above where my pants ended. My tank top didn't always cover that little area whilst I was bent over, working in the garden this afternoon . It was probably the hardest work I've done since I've been here. Four and a half hours of rolling around in the mud, basically. I still dig it though.

Haha. Dig. I'm punny.

And apparently the majority of my audience would like to be my pillow. That is very sweet of you three people. I'm not saying that it tied with being a garden gnome, because at least two of the three garden gnome votes were me from a different computer. Possibly all three, I don't remember.

You dig?

"When will i realize that the skin I'm in, hey, it isn't mine? . . .though I know I can't hid and oh how hard I try, but this is just the shape I'm in."

That's from a Blind Melon song that's playing on my iTunes. Interpret it as you will.

I experienced my first farm rain. It's better than normal rain. Farm rain has more meaning than normal rain. And there is much more mud. But there is much less care about being muddy. I've been caring less about my appearance and cleanliness in general, which is a lot of fun. Here is make up free, dirty, farm Laura, leaning against her farm wall while sitting on her farm bed, typing on her farm laptop.


I officially milked goats for the first time today. I say "officially" because I milked a goat Sunday too, but today was the first time I was scheduled to do so and I milked goats. As in two. There were eight to be milked, but since I'm new and slow, I milked two in the time it took my milking partner to milk six. Milking makes ones fingers rather tired. I will have stronger hands after this summer. And forearms.

There's another new guy we picked up at the Waco airport yesterday, which I had never been to before (I am having so many adventures). We made a sign to great him. I think we kind of freaked him out.

Now the rain is over and the clouds are racing past my window

You can expect a lot of posts from me this summer. I feel like I will have a lot of free time. And I am becoming ok with that. It used to make me really restless when I didn't have anything to do for extended periods of time. Just sitting around for more than an hour or so just didn't satisfy. Now I'm good with it. I can just sit and read and read and read or journal or nap or what have you. That was most of my yesterday, actually. I finished The Unbearable Lightness of Being, which is exciting. It feels good to finish a book, you know? Next.

So in anticipation of lots of sitting around, I bought the 2007 edition of The Best American Nonrequired Reading and a book by Paulo Coelho called The Witch of Portobello. Those will keep be occupied for a bit.

I'm looking forward to embarking on my first week of working at the farm--to being in it. I only did a little work on Thursday and then on Friday, and haven't gotten my hands dirty since then. I want to.

In the mean time, here is a picture from Whitney Travis . . . er . .Rushing's wedding last Saturday. Wow, that was just a week ago!

I've known those girls for most of my coherent life. I'm glad that I still do. They are good ones.

I've come to value and enjoy sleep a lot more. This summer I've decided to get into naps. I'll be waking up everyday at 7, at the latest, and working, so a nap in the afternoons sounds like a nice idea. I had a short one yesterday and awoke with the imprint of my quilt on my face. I've never really liked naps before, so this is a big deal for me.

So I have lived through two nights here. Yesterday I harvested a lot of broccoli. I also witnessed a goat giving birth! That was really interesting. And I saw one of them take its first steps. Life is amazing.

Another new girl has moved in. Her name is Anna and also goes to Baylor. We are both sitting in the common area right now and just had breakfast. She made bread yesterday and it is really good. I just had some toasted.

During the weekends the only people who have to work are those who have weekend duty. So I slept in some this morning and will probably go into town today and bother my roommates.

My computer is almost out of battery and I don't feel like going to get my charger, so I'll leave it at that.

I'm here now and I had no reason to be so nervous. This is probably one of the most chill places in the world, with really nice people.

So today I got here (here being the World Hunger Farm, if you're just now tuning in) at two and moved into the dorm. My bed is really close to the ground. I have my own little corner ("In my own little corner in my own little chair . . .") Right now I'm the only person in my room, but soon two more girls will be joining me. It'll be a party. Another girl lives in an adjoining room. So I moved in, and then was at a loss of what to do (most of the farm work occurs in the first half of the day). So I gave myself a little tour aka I wandered around (meandered, if you will). I said hi to the goats and cows and rabbits; I checked out what was growing in the garden, etc (I'm being way too detailed).

Anywho, eventually I spotted some people working in the garden. I walked up and asked if I could help. So then I assisted them in transplanting eggplants. I really love working with my hands. Blisters are already starting to form. Sweet.

My evening ended with getting ice cream with "the girls." One of them is leaving in the morning, so I joined in on their farewell activities. They are neat people and I'm excited to be here.

It feels so right to be here

Baa. Today I go there. Really? Today? Within the hour I will be there. That's cool. I'm cool. I'm all packed, and I'm cool.

Daytrotter is a cool website. So cool that they have become "of interest" to you (on the right). Che-che-che-check out, wha-wha-wha-what's it all about.

I've noticed that being nervous is kind of like a drug. My perception is a bit distorted and I'm saying weird things. I felt like this times ten before I played at Common Grounds, and before that before I played at Buon Giorno. And people keep trying to talk to me and that is just not a good idea. I hold not responsibility for what I may say. And I still have 30 minutes to stew in this!

I am an all powerful Amazon warrior
not just some sniveling girl
so no matter what I think I need
I can't possibly
have a need
in this world

Thank you Ani Difranco. Me neither.

Wow, three people so far want to be my pillow. That was my silly answer choice, the one I just threw in there, I guess I have good friends/stalkers. They want to make my head comfortable. I personally would want to be a garden gnome, out of process of elimination really. As a paintbrush, I would always be flung about and have gunk in my hair. As a Macbook Pro I would be too stressed out. As a djembe someone would always be hitting me. As my pillow, I would be smothered and get hair germs and face oil all up on me. As a garden gnome, I could be outside, and maybe even kidnapped and taken to interesting places. Sure, I couldn't independently move, but that is the meaning of the world inanimate. Mainly I want to be a garden gnome because my desktop picture right now is a colony of gnomes I saw in Switzerland.

They look happy. I would be too--forever chilling in the yard of a house located on a Swiss Alp.

I'm back in Waco now, if you're keeping track. Tomorrow at two I'll be moving into the farm. I have this idyllic vision of me at the farm. In the morning I merrily milk goats, tend to the chickens, whatever they have me do. Then merrily I eat lunch with my fellow workers. Then merrily sit outside and read and journal and play spades or some such activity. That's my vision right now.

Until then, I'm just sitting around.

Oh, and the Radiohead concert was sweet. Even though we were really far away and couldn't see much. It was still sweet.


AND..to make this post even longer and contain more types of media, here's a video of Jason Mraz's new single. I have a crush on him.

"'How would you like to go to Palermo ten days from now?' asked Franz.
'I prefer Geneva,' she answered. She was standing in front of her easel, examining a work in progress.
'How can you live without seeing Palermo?' asked Franz at an attempt at levity.
'I have seen Palermo,' she said.
'You have?' he said with a hint of jealousy.
'A friend of mine once sent me a postcard from there. It's taped up over the toilet. Haven't you noticed?'"

That one is from page 80.

I'm going to hang out with Radiohead tonight. Woot! I'm not actually an active listener of Radiohead, but I appreciate them as musical artists and enjoy concerts. I hear they have memorable concerts. Woot!

I will soon begin the next phase of my summer. This past week as been hanging-out-at-home phase. Consuming. Food, time, money. Phase two will involve working, but with hanging out involved as well. Making new friends and learning. I'll let you know how it goes.

And apparently people would rather roadtrip than work at an organic farm with cool people. I guess we're different. I don't know why I made that poll, I had already made my decision. I guess just to know other people's decisions. You should take my new one though. It'll give me insight into the souls of my fan base.

"Chance and chance alone has a message for us. Everything that occurs out of necessity, everything expected, repeated day in and day out is mute. Only chance can speak to us. We read its messages much as gypsies read the images made by coffee grounds at the bottom of a cup."

That's from page 48 of a book I'm rereading--The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera. I read it for my European Lit class in the fall and remember finding it intriguing. I'm now out to find how intriguing it actually is. So far, very much so. I heard a quote once, I think by C.S. Lewis or Winston Churchill or some other oft-quoted man, about how to really read a book, one must read it twice. I believe that to be true. And since it is in a quote, it must be true.

So, I know we've been over this, but I'm a senior now.

And I'm in a big empty house. I love the people who normally occupy this house, but it's also really fun for it to just be me (and Milan Kundera).

I like this whole not-having-a-schedule thing. It's very satisfying. I want to be a writer, so I can do this forever. No office nor fluorescent lights nor squeaky chairs. Bleh. The room in which I took my Political Science final had very squeaky chairs. It was really distracting.

So I'm a senior now.

Rachael: "We're Seniors. How did this happen?"
Laura: "I don't know. We went to a few classes, took some tests, and it just happened."
(I feel italics makes things more interesting)

Well it's happening, whether we're happy about it or not. I am usually. And there's no point in mourning the loss of college before I've left. I have my whole life for that! I hope I don't use my whole life for that though. That would be depressing--if when I'm a writer I just write about how much I miss college. Don't let me do that.

I have so much to do! Write in my journal. Read a book. Play guitar. Organize my binder of songs; it's a mess. Continue writing in my blog. Hang out with my roommates. Eat. I'm so stressed. I have no time for all of this!

Heh.

This song has been an obsession of mine since I got the CD it resides in earlier this semester. You can tell she is having the time of her life when she performs. I want to see her live; that's a goal of mine. She rarely comes down South though, let alone to Texas. I'll just have to move.

This is a strange and wonderful feeling. The only class left that I have responsibility to is Astronomy, and that final is Monday afternoon. That's an eternity away! Today I sold back some books, and so I have cash, an empty schedule, and many adventures to be had.

Speaking of adventures--have I told you that's what I want to do after I graduate next year? Ultimately, I want to go to grad school, but before then, I want to have an adventure or two. I could go plant trees in Canada or maintain trails in a national park or pick kiwis in New Zealand. I'm only young once, and with no family of my own nor career to hold me down. I could just go. Go go go go.

I feel like this semester I've over-used the word "adventure". Is that possible?

And let's just say I'm super excited for this semester to be over. It has given everyone a beating, and I'm not just talkin' academics. I've gotten closer to many of my friends, though, because of it.

Reason 1: I've already written in here once today (I've had a lot of time on my hands)

Reason 2: I ate lunch alone today at Memorial

Reason 3: While eating lunch, I wrote a poem.

Reason 4: That poem is about an omelette

Reason 5: I'm about to show that poem to you.

red tomatoes
green peppers
salsa and cheese
eating alone
for all to see
ain't no one here
but my omelette and me
and salt and pepper
my mind set free
no conversation
to tie it down
no small talk
to hinder its bound
no vocal chords movin'
no smile nor frown
just no one here
but my omelette and me
red tomatoes
green peppers
salsa and cheese

now we're halfway done
with each bite, it disappears
like moments in a day
months into years
miles under car
hair in the sink
lead on this paper
ice into my drink
ain't no one here
but my omelette and me
red tomatoes
green peppers
salsa and cheese

now my omelette's gone
I'm really on my own
sitting at a table
exposed and alone
but those eggs are inside
fueling my drive
they will give me energy
help me to survive

ain't no one inside
but my omelette and me
red tomatoes
green peppers
salsa and cheese

It will be my new hit single.

There was actually also mushrooms in my omelette, but that didn't really go with the rhythm.

A couple of weekends ago I went to Austin to see this girl in concert. Since then, she has taken over my apartment. At any given moment one of use--me or my roommates--is listening to her. I keep waiting to get tired of her but it still hasn't happened. Here's the video to one of her new songs, Madly

And then here's a picture of Linh and Tins being excited to see her whilst in line, and then a picture of her performing at Stubb's.



I have a girl crush.

Oh, and on an unrelated note, my planner has a new inspirational quote every week. This week's:

"You've got to take initiative and play your game. In a decisive set, confidence is the difference" --Chris Evertz

Class is over and Baylor students are in the midst of dead days. I'm at Common Grounds and there is no one around me just hanging out and talking like usual; everyone is hunched over books and papers. The conversation that is around me consists of class talk, study talk, exam talk. Lots of furrowed brows. There is a solidarity in our studying.

My brow is un-furrowed at the moment. I'm not too stressed out. I don't believe in furrowing my brow over my classes. It's just school, it's not the world. Chill out. Learn what you can, do what you can, but don't loose your joy in the process.

Ben Harper is playing so I'm feeling particularly groovy and chill, if you can't tell.

I'm wearing my tshirt that says "books are good for you." I'm hoping to impart a good message on me and on all who look at my shirt. Books are good for you.

I feel like I've only been in class a week, and now they are all over. Junior year has been a very interesting year.

So most of my European friends are now back in my life (as in American friends that have studied in Europe this semester. I'm so cool now that I have to make that distinction). I forgot how much I enjoyed them, since I haven't spent time with them in a year.

Mi piaciono.

I don't know about you, but I sometimes have a difficult time balancing. I believe in the value of the chase, in the art of "playing hard to get," as silly as it is. As in dating. Like, in not coming on too strong, keeping the other guessing, etc. But at the same time, my blossoming feminism is encouraging me to shed these archaic dating rituals and just go after what I want. I don't know how to balance these two drives. Do you? This is not rhetorical.

And here's a shot of Eddie on one of the rare occasions that he is out of his shell

I'm really interested to see how long he will survive in the environment of my bathroom counter. Yesterday I caught him whilst he was emerging out of his shell. That was really exciting. But then I took a lot of pictures and he got scared and slushed back in (I wasn't sure what verb to use. I wanting to say "gooeyed" back in, but that makes no sense. He is more gooey than slushy though).

And tomorrow is my last day of class. Woot! I'm ignoring the fact, though, that a lot of my friends at other schools are already done with their finals. That's an injustice.

*The significance of my post title is that my European-American friends are old, and Eddie is new.

So yes, I'm living and working at the World Hunger Farm this summer. I can't decide whether to be scared or excited. Part of me doesn't want to, but I know myself well enough to know that is just the scared part of me. It's the same part of me that last spring, didn't want to go to Italy. I ignored her then and I'm going to ignore her now.

Now it's just up to me to decide when I want to start. I want to spend some time at home, so I'm thinking around the 1st. My stomach has a lot of butterflies in it right now.

In other news, the last day o' classes is this upcoming Monday. Holla. And my last final is on the 12th, which seems rather late to me.

And on a final note, you can get the new Death Cab EP for free here (that's a link by the way).

"I would like to invite you to be a live in volunteer for the summer, attached is a packet that should help you get an understanding of expectations.

Please let me know if you will accept the position and if you have any other questions."


Eeee!

Many weeks ago, I rented a tent from Baylor for my backpacking trip. When I got it I opened it and laid out the tent to make sure everything was accounted for, and wrapped in the tent I found a shell. I thought it was really random and kind of cool and so put it in my pocket. When I got home I took it out of my pocket and put it on the counter in my restroom. There is has sat for many weeks, just taking up space. That is until . . .

On Sunday morning I took a long shower. When I stepped out, I noticed that my shell was not where it had been for the past month, but was instead perched on top of my soap dispenser, in such a way that gravity should cause it to fall. I tried to take it off, but felt some resistance. Something inside the shell was suctioned to my soap! Well, I did take it off and looked inside and saw a bunch of gray gooiness. Apparently, all this time there has been something alive in the shell! Later in the day I checked on the shell only to find it was somewhere else on the counter. I was really amused at this point and decided to give it a name--Eddie.

This morning Tinsley and I caught the creature in the act of moving. It's a large snail! It's so gross and green and gooey and has four antennae. It was traveling up my soap dispenser again. I researched snails this morning and found out some of them hibernate in the winter, and so that must be what Eddie has been doing all this time. I also went on a website about keeping snails as pets and looked up what different kind of food they eat. So now, he is sitting in an open tupperware container with a carrot placed next to him (I'm on campus). I took a picture of the set up before I left so I can be sure to know if he moved or not in the mean time.

Pretty exciting stuff.

I had a couple revelations earlier this evening while studying at Common Grounds

So I did it. Last night I preformed at Common Grounds' open mike night, thirty whole minutes of just little me. I don't really know how I did, because I was in my own head the whole time and felt kind of like I was on a different planet. People said I did well, but of course they did. I did mess up a few times but at least I did it.

I'm very full of puppy chow.

I got my car inspected today, which I've been meaning to do since February. It took less than ten minutes; I can't believe I didn't do it sooner. People are silly like that.

I'm in the midst of planning my hypothetical backpacking trip for my real Backpacking final. It's to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado and will be hypothetically occurring this July. We're in the midst of day three right now and we're exploring Glacier Gorge's trifecta of glacial lakes. I had never heard of the word "trifecta" before today, but apparently it means "a run of three wins or grand total events." I guess there are three sweet lakes. We're having a good time, but are starting to get a bit smelly, as we are three days going without a shower. And we're just halfway through.

I want to take this trip for real. If you haven't noticed, I've recently been bitten by the outdoor adventure bug. I want to be outside and I want to have an adventure. This summer I want to work at a farm, last week I went hiking at Cameron Park, a couple weeks ago I went backpacking with my class (I think that is where the bug bit me) , and now I'm dreaming of a sweet backpacking trip. Let's have an adventure!

In other news, I changed the strings on my guitar all by myself for the first time last night. It was good bonding with ol' Martie. Since we bonded so much, I gave him a name--the aforementioned Martie. He's a Martin guitar. I think he appreciates it, and the new strings. They're so clean and squeaky. And I'm super excited about Wednesday.

I have lots of dirt under my fingernails.  Yesterday I harvested at the Farm and today I planted flowers at an elementary school with UBC. It was fun.  It made me want a yard to plant flowers in.  If you have a yard,  you should take advantage of this nice weather and go plant some flowers soon.

Happy Diadeloso!

Diadeloso is Baylor's "Day of the Bear." It's a tradition whence class is canceled and general merriment ensues. Basically.  That is why I am not in class right now.  I have plans to go hiking in Cameron Park, but it may rain.  So that's a bummer.  I printed out a trail map and everything.

So another idea for the summer is to take a/some studio art class/es at Baylor. I don't actually need anymore, but it would be fun. And I actually know a lot of people staying in Waco for the first half of the summer. I don't know. We'll see.

It's easy to just give up on yourself. To taste rejection a few times, and then just throw in the towel. Freshmen year here I rushed and that didn't turn out like I planned. A couple weeks later I tried out for a choir and was turned down (I don't know what I was thinking. I do not have a choir voice and I can't read music). At that point I thought to myself, "Well, maybe this is a sign. Nothing is sticking here, so maybe I'm just not supposed to be at Baylor." But my friends were sticking, UBC was sticking, I didn't really want to go anywhere else, and I just banished the thought from my mind.
Last semester I spent my time stretching my wings and pushing my boundaries and taking adventures and I left Italy feeling like I could do anything. This semester I'm feeling significantly less invincible and realizing not everyone wants me. I talked to Tinsley about it this morning. She applied for a position in an organization she's apart of that she didn't get and, while putting on mascara, we pondered the tendency we, as people, have of tasting a hint of rejection and from that deciding that we will always fail and should just give up. But we don't think that about other people. I know that she's not a failure and she knows that I'm not a failure, so really we're just being illogical about ourselves.

That goes for you too. You're not a failure.

Ok, I'm at the SUB right now and there are ants crawling all around my computer so I think I will leave soon. It's freaking me out. And this post is long enough. I also understand the tendency in people to mentally check out when they see a really long blog post, because I do that myself.

So I'll check out now instead.

So I went camping last night with strangers (see last post). It was enjoyable--nothing too exciting. It was rather chill and now I want to go backpacking for reals. We hiked for about two hours yesterday, set up camp, had dinner, chatted around a flashlight (fires were not welcome). went to sleep, woke up (obviously, I mean, here I am), hiked for about thirty minutes, and then we were out. I was not even gone twenty-four hours. I want to go backpacking for a week. As part of our final for our class, we have to plan a backpacking trip to a United States national park. Maybe I'll actually take mine. Wanna come?

Now I'm at Common Grounds at on awkward table that I never sit at. It's rather crowded here; I guess people are getting all their work done before a new week starts. I didn't actually buy a drink, so maybe I should feel bad about taking up a table. I don't really.

16

I don't know if that's a good or bad thing.

So I didn't get that internship at the Kimbell this summer. Major bummer. So of course now I'm questioning my whole course in life. Yadda yadda yadda--normal college-student stresses and fears and general questioning of everything. I won't bore you with that. I'm looking into the World Hunger Farm now. There's possibly a spot this summer for a live-in volunteer, they say. I'm going there tomorrow so we'll see how that works out, if that's even what I want to do. Gerg. I don't know exactly what "gerg" means, but it feels right.

I've recently gotten into the Indigo Girls. I know I'm about ten years too late, but I'm ok with it. Today I learned the song "Closer to Fine" on the guitar. Now I will drive my roommates crazy with it. And they will love it. Love it I say!

And here's a picture from the aforementioned outdoor service, taken whilst we were picnicing afterwards. (You can click on it for a closer look.)


This weekend I get to go camping with strangers. I'm in a Backpacking class but I going camping with a different section of said class. So I'm not actually looking forward to it, though I'll probably end up enjoying myself, because I like outside. Maybe I'll come back with a new bestie. Or enemy. Probably just a bunch of new acquaintances. Think of all the new people I'll get to say hi to on campus!

What do you guys think I should do this summer?

Although Italian made a shocking come-back, hermit has won out on my poll. Today I will give some thought as to what my next poll will be. Stay-tuned!

Today is a beautiful day and I am once again at Common Grounds. I'm sitting outside today though, which is nice. Most of today I have been outside, actually. UBC's church service this morning was outside at a little park near the suspension bridge (if you're familiar with Waco. Well, it was there whether you're familiar with Waco or not. That reminds me of the comedian Dimitri Martin, "I went into a clothes store and a lady came up to me and said, 'If you need anything, I’m Jill'. I thought, 'Wow, that's amazing! I've never met anyone with a conditional identity before. Who are you if I don't need anything?'”). UBC encouraged everyone to ride their bikes there and bring lunch and a blanket; I did both of those things. And frisbees were involved. It was a wonderful way to start a Sunday. Then I rode my bike here and have been working since. I've gotten a lot done.

My roommates and I have this tradition that every Sunday night we get blizzards at Dairy Queen. It is convenient because we live within walking distance of a Diary Queen and so some of our blizzard-guilt is alleviated by the fact that we walked there and back. We are also usually joined by various guest stars, meaning other friends or siblings. It's something we all look forward too--the ice cream and each other. I'm looking forward to it right now.

(A little black bug was just crawling on my computer screen and I thought it was my mouse arrow and that I was going crazy.)

It's such a beautiful day and I have such a lot to do, but here I am writing in my blog. I'm at Common Grounds--I know, very unlike me (sarcasm). I rode my bike here since it is such a pretty day, it was a little hard though because my backpack was so heavy (thanks to the weight of this laptop I am typing on). Today, I can taste summer, so I having a hard time becoming motivated to work on school. I do other things instead like work out or ride my bike to Common Grounds or write in my blog. Stuff like that. I can also taste summer in my Arnold Palmer, which is a drink here--a combination of iced tea and lemonade. Oh, also, I watched Scream 1 and 2 last night. I usually watch the Screams at some point every summer (I have the box set) ergo I am in summer mode.

Now I'll take a creepy picture of myself. You can see what my new haircut looks like unstyled. (I'm not obsessed with myself, I promise.) I had to not look like I was posing for a picture because I am in a public place. It would be cool if I could take a picture with my laptop pointing out, so then I could take creepy pictures of other people. Steve Jobs should work on that.
I'll have to give him a call. Ol' Stevie.

I harvested yesterday at the World Hunger Farm. The spinach was out of control!! Some of the leaves were bigger than my hand. It's yummy spinach too, my roommates and I bought some of it over a month ago and are still eating on it. Yum

I cut my hair today.

I took a picture of it for you on my laptop. I felt silly posing for it though because Claire and Rach are here too, and that is why I'm laughing . . . because they were laughing at me (or with me, I suppose, since I was obviously laughing too). I didn't mean for the hair cut to turn out some Katie Holmes-y
but oh well. I enjoy having my neck and shoulders free of hair. It's something relatively new for me. It's freeing.

I enjoy change.

I have been feeling very satisfied lately.

But enough about that. Happy Birthday Bailey!

Way to be born. Way to live through two whole decades! I hope your next decade is astounding. You're within your third decade now!


That's all I had to say.

Yesterday was a really good day, so I'm having high hopes about today. Class was normal, and afterwards I met some girls from UBC at Common Grounds. We've decided to start a new group called "Intra" that would be involved with meeting the needs of UBCers. I feel like, at UBC we do a lot of discussion about theology and social action and community service and have fun groups (like I went to a new UBC Yoga group last night) but we don't really talk a lot about each other. I want UBC to be more than just another activity people are involved in, but a family. A place people can find support. So we going to start some sort of prayer request system via Intra and contact people who want to be contacted or to talk to someone or whatever. I'm supposed to make an announcement about at Church on Sunday. Scary.

So that's a new fun idea in my mind. I also went to a lecture on campus yesterday by Wilma Mankiller, former chief of the Cherokee Nation. She talked about the changing roles of indigenous women and leadership of women in general. It was interesting. She's an amazing woman. She has been awarded 18 honorary doctorates (soon to be 19), among many other awards and honors she has received.

So that was cool. I also went to that UBC Yoga group, like I mentioned. It was fun doing Yoga at church. At first I felt like I was at a church sleepover or naptime group as we moved all the furniture out of the backside and laid out our mats and took off our shoes. It was neat.

And now I have a new day on my hands. And a new month! We'll see what happens.

And Bailey turns 20 tomorrow!

I just saw the movie Stop-Loss. It was so good. It was heavy and sad, but so good. I think Tim Cogshell of Box Office Magazine put it well when he said, "The film manages to walk a line that is not antiwar in the main, but is distinctly pro-soldier, and thus takes pains to speak to the plight of the American serviceperson." Ol' Timmy, he always knows what's what.

I think it's interesting hermit is winning in my poll. I guess I have some loner friends. I, for one, chose to be an owl. Then I could fly, people. Fly I'm feeling kind of like a hermit right now though. I'm sitting in my room on a Saturday night. I can hear a party going on next door. As we were returning home from the aforementioned movie, we saw some girls leaving in high heels and little else. Their night was just begining while mine is in the process of ending.


[I have a confession. I don't actually hear a party going on next door, I just thought that would add dramatic effect. Sometimes I do hear parties though. And I little while ago I heard a person talking loudly, if that counts for anything.]

I'm feeling a bit under the weather. This is unfortunate because I'm supposed to go camping tonight with my Backpacking class. I honestly don't see that happening. It was hard enough sleeping last night in my bed, I can't imagine sleeping in a tent like this. Ug. Bleh. Achoo. So right now I'm drinking hot tea and watching Chicago. (Pop Six Squish Uh-uh Cicero Lipschitz . . . that's the song on right now)

Dang. Being sick is annoying. I want to just go to sleep and wake up when I'm better.

I want to do this or this maybe.

edit:
fyi: the words "this" and "this" are links.

I'm at Common Grounds.  It's really loud and hoppin here.  And Robin Hood is playing on mute in the next room.  I'm kind of studying for my Mythology test on Thursday.  Thursday is so far away.  Here's a picture of me taken right before I wrote this sentence, making a Jim face.

That's how much studying I'm getting done; I'm taking pictures of myself on my Photo Booth.    I'm really ok with it though. I'm not too concerned about the test, whether I should be or not. I'm usually not that concerned about tests, and that has worked so far. I think what messes people up is when they get too stressed about things and psych themselves out. Also, not studying would mess people up.  

So I'm back on Facebook and I'm back on meat.  I'm a little more normal.  I had Babe's chicken tonight at Echo and it was sooo good.  Mm mm.  As was the creamed corn.  I still want to eat less meat though, than I did before.  I can think of more reasons to not eat meat than to eat it and  I would rather err on the side of not eating meat than eating meat.  If nothing else, I tend to eat healthier in general when I'm not eating meat.  So why not become a full-fledged vegetarian?  Perhaps I will someday.  I just don't really feel like it right now.  Truth be told I just don't want to be accused of copying my vegetarian  roommates, Tins and Rach.   It's a lame reason, but whatever.

I caught up with some old friends tonight.  My old gang from Sunnydale--Buffy, Xander, Willow, Dawn, the usual.  They're doing well, still saving the world.  Buffy still impresses me--how she can do all those high kicks and acrobatics in tight leather pants.  Remember when I was Buffy?

I've noticed something this semester.  Everyday after class I come back to my apartment, fling my backpack aside, slump down on the couch, and don't know what to do with myself.  It's like--I've been looking forward to this moment all day, this moment when class is over, and once is comes upon me, I don't know what to do with it. I haven't looked past that moment.  I'm going through that right now.  I got out of class at five and came home to an empty apartment. I don't even know what I've been doing with myself this past hour, but nothing of note.  I've been going since eight this morning and it feels very uncomfortable to just stop.  But my brain and body are tired, so I don't want to start anything, so I'm just left feeling unsatisfied whatever I do or don't do.  I think this is called boredom.

I finished The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan yesterday. I read it for my Women in American Society Class and I have a book report over it due Wednesday. It was a really enlightening book. I only have the intro paragraph of my paper written, but I'll quote myself and say, "Reading the book was not only an interesting lesson in the history of American culture, but also was helpful to read as a woman myself."

Without going all into it, I'll just tell you one of the biggest things I took from the book. My future makes me kind of anxious. Like, I don't know what my life will be after graduation--Grad school? If so, studying what? Peace Corps? Teach ForAmerica? Working? Some sort of other crazy adventure? The uncertainty is kind of scary. But Ms. Friedan encouraged me that such anxiety shouldn't be run away from. That's what most women did in mid 20th century (the book was published in the early 60s). Following their interests and passions--whether it be in art, business, writing, medicine--meant much risk and uncertainty, and it was much easier and safer to just retreat back into a home and tend to clean floors and healthy children.   

I'm back in my bedroom in Waco, about to go to church. It has been a really good week. I'm rather sunburned at the moment, but it is worth it. It feels like more than a week has gone by since I was last in class, it feels like it has been a month. I've done so much. I helped my mom with the shower, I went to Oklahoma, I played guitar in public for the first time, I went to the beach, Rob and Caroline are now engaged, and now here I am, back at one of my homes. Good times. And I'm so excited to have Caroline as part of my family. I wish I could have been there. And next weekend I'll be home again and so can see the ring and hear the story. And, you know, celebrate Jesus' love for all of humanity.

And that is Rachael, Linh, and myself in front of the Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi.

I'm about to begin phase two of my Spring Break. Today some of my friends and myself are roadtripping down to Port Aransas for a couple days of fun in the sun. Even though tomorrow there isn't supposed to be much sun, the rest of the days are supposed to be beautiful. And even though our condo will have free wifi, I'm not bringing my computer, so you probably won't be hearing from me these next couple of days. Of course, I'll have my phone so if you need me, you can call me.

Buon viaggio! (that's me wishing myself a good journey in Italian)

Today I had an adventure. Will, Bailey, Amanda, and myself roadtripped to the Arbuckle Mountains region of southern Oklahoma for a day away. We ate a grand American feast at a little roadside diner,

got slobbered on by camels and llamas,

got into some trouble with the law,

and saw some beautiful waterfalls.


I deem it a successful getaway.
(That last picture is little and faraway. You can click on it to blow it up. I look disheveled because I had to run from where the camera was on a stump to my position in the photo in ten seconds. Just so you know.)

I'm sitting at my home in good ol' Colleyville, TX (uh oh, you know where I live now. But I guess I've mentioned Waco many times and am still alive. I'll be ok). It's the long anticipated break of Spring, even though it's not Spring yet, we'll let that slide (am I supposed to capitalize seasons? I'm never sure). Today is the long awaited shower of the weddings, which sounds dangerous. I just imagine wedding presents pouring down from the sky--you need to watch your eyes for those box corners.

I have this grand dream of finishing Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique this week, which I have to write a book report for next Wednesday. I never read as much on breaks as I plan to, though. I also would rather watch a movie or sit around with friends or sleep. Those are all valid pursuits on the break of spring, I think. But I have two hundred more pages I must read. We'll see how that goes.

I know I've mentioned this before, but I really like volunteering at World Hunger Farm. Yesterday I sorted and cleaned lettuce and other miscellaneous produce. Because of the rain and snow, the vegetables that had been harvested were really muddy. I know it doesn't sound very exciting, and it wasn't really exciting, but I enjoyed it. I guess because it's just so different from my normal day acitivities. And to see food come from the ground to my plate is really neat. I think if my plans don't work out this summer, if I don't get an internship, then I want to be a live-in volunteer there. Live-ins live there (obviously) in exchange for 20 hours of work per week. I think how it works is that they work on the farm until about lunch time and then have the rest of the time free. And weekends are free as well, unless you have weekend duty. I would learn lots of cool stuff--like how to milk goats and about vegetables and chickens and rabbits and cooking and living off the land.

So that's an idea.

So I know I already wrote today, but I'm here again. Consider it making up for lost time; I haven't written a lot in the past few weeks. And I haven't had a "I'm sitting at Common Grounds" post in awhile, and I figured it was about time. So . .

I'm sitting here at Common Grounds, enjoying a mug of hot Vanilla Almond tea, seasoned with milk and honey. It feels perfect for a day like today. Its rainy and cold and a bit dreadful, depending on your frame of reference. If your frame of reference is the inside of a cozy coffee shop with a cup of tea at your side, then it's not dreadful at all. Astronomy was rather pointless this morning. The professor wasn't there, and instead the TA lectured on the topic of his choice, which was the history of rockets. Meanwhile, I practiced writing, and then doodling, with my left hand. It was enthralling, to say the least.

It's also fun being here because I always run into people. The coffee shop is right off Baylor campus and so us Baylor students are its predominant customers. There are always people here studying or chatting or having DTRs; every once and awhile you'll find someone napping.

I've been recently listening to a lot of Fiona Apple. She's good angry, empowering girl music. Not that I'm an angry girl, but sometimes I pretend to be.

Ok, I'll for real study or something now.

I have a headache. I've had it since I woke up this morning. My first thought today was "Ouch, my head hurts." That does not bode well for the rest of my day.

Last night, Baylor played A&M in Men's Basketball here in Waco. It was quite the event. Everybody went. I thought about going, but the only reason I considered going was because everyone else was, so for that reason, I refused to go. So Linh and I decided to be countercultural and went to see a movie instead, "The Other Boleyn Girl." The movie did not impress me, but apparently the game wasn't very impressive either. We lost. So last night all Baylor students were disappointed. Linh and I because of the movie, and the rest of us on the outcome of the game.

I just remembered Lost is tonight. My day is looking up.

I had two tests yesterday. One was Political Science which was fine, and the other was Backpacking which took ten minutes. Now I'm just biding time until Spring Break. Well I do have a midterm paper for my Yoga class. It's supposed to be 232 words, which is about a paragraph, basically. I asked why 232 words, and not 230 or 250 or some pretty round number, and he said there was a reason, but he wouldn't tell us. I bet there is no reason.

Spring Break is next week. Can you believe it? Me neither. Next thing you know tomorrow I'll be graduating.

I'm usually in my 3D Design class right now, but instead I'm at the SUB (student union building) writing to you. Class was canceled. I skipped said class last Friday, so I hung around the sculpture room anyway and caught up. My professor is going to think I'm awesome. I burned my finger though. We're starting a new project that involves torches and metal rods, and I kept picking up my metal rods where I had just torched it. My left pointer finger is really mad at me right now. It kind of hurts to type. But I type on because that is how much I love you guys. I'm actually starting to like this class as well. It used to just be a hastle, but I like working with my hands,I'm finding. Even when I torch them.

I'll go read about feminism now.

It feels good to do things for other people. I baked cupcakes tonight for a friend's birthday (I know, I'm so domestic) and we're going to deliver to him later tonight. It was therapeutic-the mixing, the baking, the icing, the sprinkling, the arranging on a plate. It made the things weighing on my mind feel a little lighter. It was my first time to make cupcakes, and they turned out quite yummy. Not that it was very hard--I just followed the directions on the box. It created quite a mess though. It's red velvet cake and it now looks like I've killed someone in the kitchen--there are splotches everywhere, and my hands have an eerie red tent (excuse me, Will I mean tint) now.

Oh, the last batch is done cooling. Now to attend to more icing.

"Feminist" is such a loaded word. It makes a lot of people uncomfortable. It brings to mind man-hating, bra-burning, possibly-gay, women. Kind of the way the word "Christian" makes some people uncomfortable. They think of judgmental, money-hungry, smooth-talking, televangelists. In reality, that is not what Christianity is about, and in reality, feminism isn't about hating men or destroying perfectly good underwear. It's about equality. It's about giving everyone a chance. I'm a feminist, and chances are you are too. Do you think both genders should have the same opportunities to participate and be leaders in society? To vote? To be CEOs? To coach sports? To be president? To take care of the home? To teach a third grade class? To tell jokes? To preach? I think most of you believe women to be capable of doing any of the above. Not to say all women are capable of doing everything, like not all men are capable of everything. The issue shouldn't be on gender, the issue should be on ability.

Sorry to get on a soapbox, it just bugs me that Feminism is often talked about with such disdain--"femininazis" and what have you. It's just about equality. What's so scary about equality? And equality is not the same as sameness. Men and women are different, that's pretty obvious, but they should still be equals. It's not about turning men into women or women into men, but about appreciating each person's unique perspective and abilities, and learning from each other.

Hm, that's not what I signed on to write a post about at all. I was going to talk about how pretty today was and how I didn't go to church this morning because I slept, but then went to the park instead, Bible and journal in tow. And I was going to tell you the fun fact that Waco's Cameron Park is the second largest part in the US within city limits, the first being Central Park in New York City. And I was going to tell you how I inadvertently sat down in the middle of a disc-golf course at the aforementioned park and had frisbees flying over my head for a good portion of the time I was there, accompanied by rowdy, swearing men. I was going to say it was distracting, but entertaining.

But I didn't talk about any of that. Instead I rattled on about feminism. Professor Mueller would be proud.

Ho hum, my week is almost done. Not much has happened in my life of note. Just tests and reading and eating and sleeping. Weeks are going by faster now. It's a happy and sad thing. I don't really have much to say this week. Instead, here's a cute picture of Rach and I taken at Claire's aforementioned birthday party. A picture is worth a thousand words right?

I like how Rach's arm pushing on mine make me look somewhat toned.

Speaking of that, I'm going to work out.

No, I want to write something interesting.

I learned yesterday in my Women in American Society class that a man's high school diploma is worth as much as a woman's bachelor's degree. In other words, a man with a high school diploma, on average, earns as much as a woman with a bachelor's degree. My professor, who is a woman with a Ph.D., said that when Baylor first offered her a job, she found out that she was offered $1000 less than a man who was offered the same job. She confronted the powers-that-be about it and their response was they offered her less because her husband had a job. "But what about me?" was her response, "this is about me, not my husband." Eventually she got her way.

Isn't that crazy though? Two guys in that class chuckled when they heard that, about the earning power of a man's diploma versus a woman's BA. Some of my guy friends like to joke about it too, how it's worth more to be a man. I kind of laugh along, but really,I don't thinks it's funny. I'm working hard here, as are my girlfriends. We deserve just as much as anything our guy friends would earn. It's not a joke, it's our future.

Grr.

Today is such a dreary day. It put me in a dreary state of mind, but that's what working out, oatmeal raisin cookies, and roommates are for. The roommates also help with the rent.

Today is a big game day for Baylor Men's Basketball. We have a rematch against Texas. Tickets for the general public sold out even before student tickets went on sale yesterday. Student tickets went on sale at 11:30 and Rachael, Linh and I got there at 11 to stand in line. There was already quite a line formed. At least this time I wasn't alone in standing in line. A couple Fridays ago I went by myself to "quickly" pick up tickets for the Oklahoma game and ended up standing in line in the rainy cold for an hour.

What's interesting is that the Lady Bears are ranked higher than the Men, yet it's the Men's games that sell out, the only loyal fans for the Lady Bear's being local alumni. Word on the street is that men's basketball is more fast-paced and therefore more fun to watch. Well I have a ticket for the Women's game tomorrow afternoon and I'lll see if that is an accurate statement.

Ok, so it's not D Day, it's V Day (or almost anyway). I don't actually dislike the holiday, it's just fun to pretend I do. Like on our calendar, Rachael put a big heart on February 14th which I promptly wrote "Poop Day" in. I thought it was pretty clever. Being cynical is just so much more entertaining.

But really, it can be a good day. And it doesn't have to be about romantic love, it could be about love for humanity in general--love for your nieghbors. In that spirit, I've baked cookies for the people on my little hallway that I will anonymously place in front of their doors tomorrow morning (don't tell them). I'm putting a plate of cookies in front of our own door as well, so they will be none the wiser. I've also included a little note on the cookies. It says "Merry Singles Awareness Day! I hope it's sweeet" (get it? the cookies are sweet?) and then one of the six following quotes:

Love is only a dirty trick played on us to achieve continuation of the species. ~W. Somerset Maugham, A Writer's Notebook, 1949

Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction. ~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Forget love - I'd rather fall in chocolate! ~Sandra J. Dykes

Love is much like a wild rose, beautiful and calm, but willing to draw blood in its defense. ~Mark Overby


Love - a wildly misunderstood although highly desirable malfunction of the heart which weakens the brain, causes eyes to sparkle, cheeks to glow, blood pressure to rise and the lips to pucker. ~Author Unknown

A bell is no bell 'til you ring it,
A song is no song 'til you sing it,
 And love in your heart
 Wasn’t put there to stay -
Love isn’t love
'Til you give it away.
~Oscar Hammerstein

I think that's pretty clever as well, and I hope to make someone smile. And to make myself smile, before I go and take my Classical Mythology test. I've been baking cookies, writing cute little notes and writing about it in my blog instead of studying. Oops.

My roommate Claire's birthday is tomorrow (as is my half birthday) and so last night we celebrated. We threw a superhero party. It was pretty sweet. I think the most fun part was getting ready for it, though.

Claire, the lady of the hour, was a Ninja Turtle, Raphael to be specific.

I was Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Here I am vanquishing Claire.

Jenny, Tins, and Rach were Charlie's Angels (Jenny was Drew Barrymore, Tins was Cameron Diaz, and Rach was Lucy Lu)

This picture is funny because Melissa and I thought it was supposed to be a silly picture, but apparently it was supposed to be a pretty picture (Melissa was Just-Got-Back-From-A-Wedding Girl). So now it looks like I'm killing Melissa behind the rest of my roommates' backs. Heh heh.



Some people were lame and came as themselves, saying they were "Super Kim" or some such nonsense.

Good times.

Are you aware of Pandora Radio? It's pretty sweet. You tell it an artist you like, and then it develops a radio station for you with artists and songs of that same style. You then can bookmark certain songs or artists you discover if you want to remember them to buy or listen to them later. I had been told about this website before but had not experienced it until this morning. I was studying for my Mythology class and was going over the story of Pandora and her box and thought, "Oh yeah, Pandora, let's check that out," and I did. My Ani Difranco radio station has made for good studying music. Then my computer almost ran out of battery and I took that as I sign that I should take a break from studying and write in my blog. And as a sign that I should plug it in.

The weather has been beautiful, no? Yesterday I went to World Hunger Farm and worked in the garden for a couple hours. It was therapeutic. Going there is a good punctuation to my week. It's one of the few times in the week that I'm not doing something for myself--like going to class or studying or working or eating or buying groceries. I'm doing stuff for the Earth. And there are cool people there. I hoed with a girl who was visiting the farm and works at an organic farm in Pennsylvania. Before that she was a trail blazer in Maine--she made trails. Cool, huh? And there were two new kids at the farm, as in baby goats, that were precious.

Today, in my Women in American Society Class, we had a special visitor. One of the students brought her kindergarden-aged daughter in because she was sick and so not at school. She was a precious, well-behaved girl, who coughed and colored throughout the whole three hour class. Now I'm losing my voice. Interesting coincidence . .

Today is the first day of Lent (which I pondered in my last post). I had an omelette for lunch, sans meat, though ham sounded very tantalizing.

Have I told you I have class on Wednesdays from 8-5? Because I do. Ok, so I have a two hour break 11-1, but that's still a lot of time to be in class-mode. So Wednesdays I feel like all I do is go to class, study, and sometimes work-out. It's not bad, it's just kind of exhausting. Bleh. I'm way tired right now and it is way before my bedtime.

You've probably heard that women live longer than men-on average 7 to 9 years longer. But interestingly, women tend to marry older guys-on average 3 years older. So, at the least, a women is assured at least 10 years of widow-dom under that system. That's kind of silly of our society. In the the Hopi tribe, women marry men about 14 years younger than them, which sounds crazy to us, but works out just dandy for them. My Women in American Society professor suggested we should start talking to ninth grade boys. Could be promising.

I like how at the end of my last post I ended with a question to my public. We'll do that again. What do you think of ninth grade boys??

I told you I'd tell you how going toWorld Hunger Farm went on Friday. Well here I go. First I ate lunch with some of the live-in volunteers and a group visiting from A&M. It was a tad awkward, because like I said, I kind of just showed up, but it was cool nonetheless. We had food all grown on the farm--some sort of rabbit stew, cornbread, sweet potatoes (I think), and kale. Then I joined in on the A&M group's tour of the farm. It is a really neat place, and it was a beautiful day. Then I peeled some pecan shells. I don't know the correct term. Cracked pecan shells? Che-ev. And that was all I did that day. I'm going to go back next Friday and hopefully the next and for the rest of the semester. Sweet stuff.

In other news, I've decided to give up meat for Lent. Two of my roommates are vegetarians, so they will help me out. Why meat? I'm not really sure. I just want to challenge myself I guess, and see what being a vegetarian would be like. I haven't decided if I will eat fish or not. Both of my vegetarian roommates eat fish, so really they are pescatarians. I don't eat fish much anyway so perhaps that won't be an issue. I have taken a liking to sushi though . . but Lent isn't really about what I like. It's about the opposite kind of--it's giving up what I like. I like my cousin Rob's take on Lent. It's not really the thing that I'm giving up that's the big deal, it's being conscious of the season and anticipating the coming of Easter. Last year I gave up sweets. The year before I gave up sodas and Collins' cookies (it's a dining hall that had delicious cookies). This year during Lent I will also keep of Facebook as I have been doing. I think I'll get back on after Easter. We'll see.

What do you guys thing about Lent?

I have a headache. Grrrr. And I don't have Advil because the only time I think of buying some sort of painkiller is when I am in pain, like now, but when I am in pain, like now, I don't feel like going out and buying medicine. So I'll complain and growl instead. Grrrr.


On Fridays I get out of class at 11. Holla. It's awesome. And today, at 12:30, I'm going to the World Hunger Farm. I've mentioned before wanting to volunteer there this semester instead of getting a job, and so today I will embark on that endeavor. They eat lunch there at 12:30 all together, so today I was invited to come and partake and meet everyone. I'm kind of nervous. I've never gone there by myself. So I'm just going to walk up and be like, "Hey guys, you said I could eat lunch with you . . .?" Apparently they are all really nice and welcoming people. I don't see how you can't be, working at a place called "World Hunger Farm." I'll let you know how it goes.

I had a dream last night that I was back in Florence. It was a very real dream. I remember looking out the window of our apartment (in the dream) and thinking,
"Ok Laura, you're only here a few days. You better make the most of it."
But then I thought, "But I'm not in Florence. I"m home. This isn't real."
But then I thought, "Yes you are! Look around you!"
And I went back and for like that for a little while. It was weird, like I knew I was dreaming, but didn't. The strangest part was this morning, I put on a skirt I haven't worn that much since I've been home, and when reached in the pocket I found a five euro bill. Five euro! I wish I could walk down the street with that and get a pastry and cappuccino like I would every morning in Florence.

But isn't that weird?

"The Kenya of today is almost unrecognizable to the Kenya that until recently was celebrated as one of the most stable and promising countries on the African continent. On Sunday night, local television stations showed menacing young men brandishing machetes and iron bars at road blocks along one of the country’s busiest highways. The men hurled rocks at buses, with one large bus run off the road, as police officers stood by. . . Kenyan newspapers reflected the gloom on Sunday.
'For the umpteenth time, we again ask President Kibaki and Orange Democratic Movement leader Mr. Raila Odinga to work for peace, truth and justice,' said an editorial in The Sunday Standard. 'Kenya has bled enough.'"

That hurts my heart.

I went to a concert last night at Waco Hall. It was headlined by Matt Wertz and opened by John McLaughlin. I had never heard of either, and John blew me away. Matt was alright--good, but nothing memborable for me. John made me melt. It was just him and a grand piano on the stage. I bought a CD. Here's a sample for you; it's him playing "Indiana."

So dreamy! He's married though. His loss.

In other news, I went to my first American sporting event since I have been back. Today I watch the Men's Basketball team play OU. We were beat 77 to 71, and my heart hurts a little. It was so much fun though. I forgot how enjoyable it is to go to stuff like that. To yell and scream and cheer and sing the fight song. You really feel like apart of something