We better have some epic May flowers. Wednesday, April 23, 2008

It's April 23rd. The weather is making me miserable.

Today's high: 49
Thursday: 54
Friday: 55
Saturday: 67
Sunday: 68
Monday: 58
Tuesday: 52
Wednesday: 54
Thursday: 60
Friday: 60

There are 6 days of classes left after today. Last complex midterm turned in today, paper due Monday, a couple CS labs, my voting theory project... and then all that's left is finals. Oh, and finding a job.

I wish we could open our eyes to see in all directions at the same time Monday, April 21, 2008

It's been a little epic the last couple of days...

Thursday night Lizzy, Rob, Me, Rachelle, Chelsea and Ben all went to see Margaret Cho at the Schnitz. Wonderful. Hilarious. Oddly affirming. Her opener, Ian Harvie, was also absolutely incredible.

Margaret Cho. Making one of her amazing faces.

Friday afternoon while I struggled to finish my Complex homework I got a call from Rob to tell me that the Death Cab for Cutie show in Eugene Saturday night that had previously been sold out... had released more tickets!

On Friday night I noodled around in the evening, cleaning my room, until around 9:30 when I picked up and went to Powell's. Rob, Rachelle, Ben and Elona were at the Crystal Ballroom seeing Ani DiFranco, and I knew if I timed it right, I could drive them from the Crystal back to Elona's, and then continue up to Vancouver. And I did it perfectly! I bought a coffee mug and some stickers at Powell's (Wait, it's a bookstore? Are you sure?) and just as I was being kicked out for closing, Rob called. I picked them up at the Crystal, we went over to Elona's for a bit, and then Rob, Ben and I braved the treachery of I-5 to get back to Rob's (actually it was pretty deserted).

Steve and Zoe met us up in Vancouver so Rob, Ben, Rachelle, Steve, Zoe and I could have a sleepover. We watched the intros to old TV shows from our childhood on YouTube (Captain Planet! Eureeka's Castle! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Inspector Gadget!) and went to bed late.

We woke up first around 9 as Ben was leaving town, and then around 11:40 when Ben called asking for Corvallis directions. Going out into the living room we found Steve and Zoe already up, watching Secondhand Lions and craving donuts and eggs. The four of us got in Rob's car and to Krispy Kreme we went! Still in our pajamas! We came back an hour later with two dozen donuts and a dozen eggs, scrambled the eggs, and had a donut tasting party on the floor of the living room.

Steve and Zoe (check out Zoe's sweet hoodie!)

PJ and Rob.

Mmmm.

After a lovely living room picnic I drove back to LC to shower and get dressed, while Rob went to the train station to pick up some of his Port Townsend friends who were on their way to the Death Cab show when their train broke down in Portland. They met up with me at LC, and the 5 of us drove down to Eugene to meet up with another one of Rob's PT friends and go to the show.

Death Cab. Was. Epic. They are rock stars. I saw them 4 years ago when they were touring with Ben Kweller, when they had just released their album Transatlanticism and were still known as being pretty damn emo. And I didn't really like their music back then, so we'd left about halfway through. Whoops. When I was in Budapest I discovered the album they put out in 2005, Plans. Very different sound, much more my style. Sadly, that's when everyone else really discovered them, too, so the audience was a little lame. When I saw them before all the kids were wearing hoodies and had shaggy black hair and thick-rimmed glasses. This time it was all pretty, preppy, whatever. And they only got super energized as a whole when the band was playing something off Plans. Whatever. I only really know Plans, too, but I was hoping I'd be in a minority. It didn't matter, though. The band was amazing and energized the whole time, since it was only the second stop on their first tour in several years. They rocked. The poop. Out.

Rockstars.

After the concert we dropped the Port Townsend kids at the motel where they were staying, then drove over to Amber's where we proceeded to stay up until 3:30 talking because we hadn't seen eachother in almost a year.

Then this afternoon I got free Thai food at the Thai Peacock because of my gig with the MCMC, so that was pretty sweet, too. And then I got a season of Six Feet Under from the library, came back, watched some of that, took a nap, went to a cappella AND did a problem on my Complex take home that's due Wednesday.

I told you before... epic weekend-ish-thing.


Next epic tasks: find a job for this summer, send out grad announcements.


But before that? BED! NOW!

CON. Tuesday, April 15, 2008

It came. It happened. It's all over.

Friday afternoon - two masterminds work out the final details of Operation CONgaLine. Note: clear eyes, washed hair, general peppiness.

Honestly, this con could have been a gigantic disaster. One of our staff members couldn't make it due to a family emergency, we had several cancellations the day before and day of con, and then several walk-ons the day of con. But something bigger than us was behind this, it seems, and everything ran smoothly the entire weekend.

Touchgroups were frequent, focused and fantastic for most.

The food Gabe and Avalon made us was delicious, filling and vegan/veg/earth friendly.

Workshops were the best and most productive I've seen in a very long time, if ever. There were discussion groups, massages, drum circles and dance classes, all led by YAs at the con.

Worships were touching, expanding, freeing. Sharing, drumming, dancing -- beautiful.

The t-shirts were great, and well liked.

Honestly, I don't see how it could have been any better. There are other people I would have loved to see there, there are other things I think could have been done differently or better, and I wish I had gotten more time connecting with the community instead of flitting around making sure everything was running smoothly. The criticisms I've heard have all been minor: there could have been more vegan food, there could have been an angel wash, there wasn't enough of one thing, there was too much of another.

But really. It really couldn't have been any better.

Sunday morning: dirty, sleepy, pleased as crap.

After closing worship in the church parking lot, over half the group invaded the local Denny's, procrastinating the final goodbye.



From what I've heard, this was one of the best cons in quite a while. It seems like everyone left feeling replenished and reconnected. I left feeling drained, but so proud of my first attempt at real leadership, that I wouldn't have it any other way. (also I am being hella narcissistic).




Now back to the real world. Less than a month left of school as I know it. And I move to Vancouver in less than a month, too!

I wish the real world would just stop hasseling me Thursday, April 10, 2008

Here are some pictures that illustrate life right now:

These are the math girls - Me, Lauren, Jacque and Kelsey. We spend a lot of time together... doing math. Lauren, Jacque and I are in voting together, Kelsey and I are in complex, and Lauren, Jacque and Kelsey are in combinatorics. Whee math!

Jacque got a wiener dog puppy that's about the size of the burrito I ate last night.

This picture illustrates everything that is new and exciting about my life at this very minute: dyed hair, stretching earlobes, and CONga Line t-shirt.

CONga Line. TOMORROW. Wtf how is it already the middle of April? There have been a few bumps in this last week of planning, but it looks like things are finally going smoothly again. Phew.

Also, I "graduate" a month from tomorrow. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN I THOUGHT LAST WEEK I WAS A FRESHMAN. Next up: 2 summer classes... then real world.

Are you fo'reals? Friday, April 4, 2008

I can't really comprehend the fact that con is a week from tomorrow. Today, I guess, since it's 1 in the morning. Wow.

Also going to meet future step brothers on Saturday for the first time. Should be good?

Plans for this weekend, besides that:

• Get a damn haircut (I swear to god it's been like 3 months)
• Dye my hair (cherry bomb!)
• Go to Saturday market
  
• Make my ears happy (I'm in the process of stretching them to a size 14 - not much bigger than they were before, but still a step up. They're unhappy at the moment).
• Homeworkin'!
• Con plannin'!
• Finish grad announcements, get them Mommy approved.

Oh jeezy, it's 1:15 am. How did it get this late?

Spring Breakin' Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Life is crazy.
Spring break was wonderful and needed.
Con planning is going relatively smoothly. It's less than two weeks away now. Wow.
School is six weeks from being over. Then just two more classes this summer and I'm done for good.

Waves crashing at Devil's Churn (halfway between Newport and Florence along 101)

*snicker*

Blending in with the local wildlife

What, me? Just go with it...

The herd of elk - our homies.

Sweeties in the Redwoods

Wonder-full

Hugs from the Golden Gate

Schmancy guest room in Dody's retirement community

Rob and his hometown, Pacifica, CA.

Sea lions at Pier 39

Me and Emily at Pier 39!!

Rob + Me + Fog City Diner (it's only featured in the best movie of all time)

Apparently I can only go that way.

I'm thinking about putting this picture on my graduation announcement. Bad idea?

He can jump higher than I thought he could...

I've been crafting a lot - maybe I'll be an artisan when I graduate?

Bork bork bork Friday, March 21, 2008

I wrote this Icelandic(ish) Saga for my German Lit in Translation class.
... Enjoy?




I'm almost done until Spring break! Yesterday was the first day of Spring and I forgot to celebrate! (It rained all day)

I woke up 5 minutes after CS started this morning, so there's no way I'm getting there. I'm going to get dressed, instead, and go to the health center and find out whether or not I should be worried that my glands have been swollen and angry for 2 weeks now. If they tell me I should be worried, I'll go to immediate care in Corvallis.

Corvallis! I'M GOING HOME TOMORROW! Hooray! And Mommy's birthday is on Sunday! And Easter! Yay! Exclamation point!

I will give a real update on my life soon, I promise.

Let's get pumped up! Thursday, March 13, 2008

Appreciators of our football team here at Lewis and Clark are in a distinct minority. The majority of the school couldn't be bothered with going to a game (even a home game!), following the scores, or even getting to know a football player. The team itself is a joke. I think my friend Marcus from BSM put it (he plays football for Occidental) "wait, you go to Lewis and Clark? I think we play you guys at the beginning of the season just to beat you. You guys are awful!" It's often pondered whether we'd be better off just losing the football team, since other athletics at Lewis and Clark (for example, our Ultimate Frisbee team) flourish, and the money that goes to football could be funding another department in athletics... or maybe even... academics? The problem is the alumni. Many alums would stop giving to the college altogether if we lost our football team.

The point of this story is that back in the fall a couple of my friends (Nick and Brian) decided it would be hilariously ironic if they got REALLY PUMPED UP for the homecoming game. They dressed themselves in the school colors, taped giant L C's to their chests, and got really drunk. You know, the way you get pumped up for football if you go to a state school.

Evidently a staff or faculty member took a picture of them ALL PUMPED UP at the game, and since they are so starved for proof that your average student really, really likes football...

Well, they ended up in the Alumni Magazine:

Yay! My friends are dorks!

A capella retreat this weekend at Rockaway beach was absolutely wonderful. This week is frightening. Way too much work, not enough time.

Let me sleep on it, I'll give you an answer in the morning. Wednesday, March 5, 2008

This weekend, while I was procrastinating doing homework, I designed the logo for con.... yay!! I drew the line drawings, Lizzy L. did the writing.

The front:

The back:

I haven't really decided on colors yet, but Dev and I were talking and really liked the idea of something really bright and beautiful and awesome.


I'm listening to 'Paradise by the Dashboard Light' and it makes me think of Budapest and Voula and late nights spent in Morrison's.



I put up a link on the left hand side to my YouTube channel, which is currently full of Kimya Dawson, Mountain Goats and Section Line Drive. Hooray!

I found out today that I was supposed to apply to graduate. No one told me... I was gone last semester... I feel so out of the loop. Looks like I can still apply (late) to graduate.. sigh. Screw you, bureaucracy, I'm sick of filling out forms.

It's that time of year again Tuesday, March 4, 2008

HOLY SHIT IT'S A NINJA GET IN THE CAR

International Fair was this weekend, and it was really good, besides my freak out just before hand, partially due to having not had coffee, a shower or food and not knowing when I was going to get to consume/take either. (The freak out was around 12:15. I had coffee around 12:45, a shower around 12:50 and then call was at 1:00, so I didn't have food until around 4:30... damn). We sang Chicago and 29 Ways. Rob has videos of both and is hopefully uploading them today. We chose solos for Chicago on Sunday of last week, deciding that Kyle and Sarah would sing it at International Fair. And then Kyle couldn't make practice on Tuesday or Thursday and Sarah got a cold, so it ended up being Sander and myself in front of a wall of international students and a ba-jillion parents. Serendipity, I guess? 29 Ways was absolutely fantastic (though we took it a little fast) and John made his solo debut on it. And rocked it HARD.



This time of year, between February and April, always seems to be really challenging, but life-changing.

• Steve and I started dating in April of 2000. We broke up in May of 2003.
  
• Justin and I got together in March of 2004 and broke up in March of 2005.
  
• Dylan and I got together in April of 2005 and broke up in February of 2007.
  
• Rob and I kissed at RockOn (Spring Con 2007) on the last weekend of March last year.
  

(Why are those all just get-togethers and break-ups? There was a lot more stuff happening in the Spring of all of those years, the relationship stories are just the milestones, I guess) This year is especially eerie because a lot of the things that happened last year are happening again under different circumstances. And I don't mean in a Twilight Zone kind of way, I mean that I went on choir retreat last year (in February, we're going again next weekend), I participated in the International Fair last year, I saw the Mountain Goats last year. The weird thing about it is that I'm living in the same apartment and I was gone in the Fall, so it almost feels like the months of June through December just... didn't happen, and it's still last Spring. I worked Sunday afternoons in the Math Skills Center last year and sometimes I still accidentally plan my weekends around being in there from 12 to 3. Last Spring was really hard, especially from around Valentine's day to Spring Break. I was really lonely, I was chasing someone who was very obviously not into me and couldn't seem to take a hint, I was drinking too much... Actually, Spring of my Senior year (2004) was very similar, previous to Justin and I getting together. But minus the drinking.

But it's not last Spring and everything is completely different, there just happen to be some similarities in my activities and living situation. Weird.


Rob had a cold this weekend and I'm coming down with it. Suck.

I will put a link to my YouTube account on the left hand bar, so you can just check out my videos there. I'll be uploading Mountain Goats and a capella in the very near future, so I'll update here when I put them there.