Here we go again.

Well, after a whole week of shirking my duties and drinking more alcohol than my liver probably appreciates, it is time to go back to the school work. I always feel like taking a break will somehow make homework easier and in some ways, it does. My brain has had a whole week to think about things other than anthropological theory and Maya archaeology. But now I'm exhausted from playing so hard, my body is all outta whack and I seriously need to clean my apartment. At least it is gloomy outside, so staying in and working seems like a good idea rather than one I'm forced to make!

10 Things

10 Things that made me happy about my Sunday-drive-on-Saturday Outing:

1. Good beer at microbrewery
2. Pulled pork sandwich and sweet potato fries
3. Sunshine (high 70's!)
4. Drive into the mountains
5. Snow on the side of the road
5. Little towns with livestock, fields, and farm equipment (Almost like home!)
7. Real Apple Cider
8. Bakery Aromas
9. Chatting with friends
10. The afternoon/sunshine nap I took afterwards!

Health vs. Homework

Another weekend has come and gone. I'm no farther ahead on my homework, but I am a little tiny bit healthier! I figured out the best way to procrastinate reading for class: exercise. It is good for you, plus you don't have to do homework while doing it, plus you don't feel guilty about it later! There is a trail near where I live that I actually like running on. I also have a friend that uses the same trail and today we met up and walked together which made exercising about 4 billion times better. Hint: it is much easier to do something you don't like if you turn it into a social activity. Basically I had an awesome weekend at the expense of my homework, which I was trying to get ahead on. Oh well! But now I'm headed back to the grindstone to whip out some reading comprehension skillz.

Bam.

This has been a week of productiveness. Not only did I own my homework, I did my taxes, got my new CA driver's liscence, changed my voting registration information, found stuff at work by myself, AND I kept my apartment clean all week. Well besides the pile of dishes in the kitchen, but I did those last night so I feel like that still counts as clean. Basically all that is left on my to-do list is homework for next week (there is always more!) and fun things like check out the museums in Balboa Park. Part of my productivity this week has been based on the fact that the weather outside is yucky. It was raining so hard yesterday that I decided it was a bad idea to try and drive in it to the farmer's market. But on the plus side, bad weather seems to make me a better student!





So just in case you were curious what productivity looks like, it's kinda like this:

And there you have it. Tea makes everything go better!

Show and Tell

I pretty much love pictures, and I just figured out how to upload them here. So in honor of Saturday, here are some pictures of how my life has been going for the last month!

Last weekend, one of my archeology friends invited me over to learn how to flint knap (that's making stone tools for those of you not as nerdy as me). This is how beat up my leather gloves got, the flakes I made, my hammer stone, a chunk of obsidian I was working on and the glass at the bottom was the closest I came to making a bi-face. It was so cool.

In observance of the first Valentine's Day I have been single for since I was 15, I bought myself purple flowers at the Farmer's Market! I also decided to go for a rose, because I feel like I deserve one :)

I'm making jam today out of these! They aren't as sweet as the ones from the fall, but I'll have fresh strawberry jam on my homemade bread for breakfast tomorrow.

Some more of my Farmer's Market goodies. I went for tangerines instead of oranges this week and I am so glad I did! These are amazing!

This is where I go to school. Also, just so we're clear: I took this yesterday, February 11. That purple hillside has been in full bloom for two weeks! I kinda love how green and beautiful it all is! Also the stucco buildings are starting to look normal.

This is the view from outside my bedroom window. It is kind of hard to tell but the tree is budding/ starting to flower! Spring comes so early here.

Freeways and highways and over-passes and under-passes, oh my! Driving in San Diego has been an adjustment. Not only are there crazy roads going in every direction, but 70 is the normal speed on the freeway! But they are starting to feel normal, the other day I got upset at someone going 60 on the freeway!

This is me, and my 603 reading that takes up most of my life; we read a book a week for just that one class! I went to the beach to read and take notes my first weekend back in SD.

So there you have it. My life in a picture montage: Homework, farmer's market, nerdy archeology, and adjustment to life in Southern California!

Although I cannot say I'm fully adjusted; I still can't say SoCal with a straight face!

Procrastination

If you ever are signing up for class assignments and think: "it would be a good idea for me to do this super hard presentation early in the semester so I won't have to worry about it later. What a great way to break my bad procrastination habits."

Don't do it!

It's a bad idea. Because then you can't procrastinate.

Friday!

Just so you all know, I don't have work or class on Fridays. Be jealous. So instead of spending my day sorting shell miden (that's what I do at work) or stressing about having enough to say in class; on Fridays I get to do fun things! Usually, I drive out to the beach and do some reading for class in the sand and sun and then about 3ish I head over to the farmer's market and pick up some delicious fruits and veggies (PS: Going to a farmer's market in February is Amazing!).

This Friday is different, though. For one thing, it's kinda cold outside! It's not like 40 inches of snow and a night temperature of -15, but it is under 70 and that makes it just too cold for me to enjoy the beach. For another, I have a colloquium to attend at 3:30, so that discounts the farmer's market part of my day, too.

DON'T PANIC!

I have a back-up plan! Instead of Beach/Veggie shopping, I have decided to have a baking day! As we all know, a baking day is one of the best things in life, but it tends to put a little strain on the waistband when you live by yourself. But I have thought this plan at least half-way through. And the plan is this: Only bake things you need or can give away. It's basically brilliant. I'm baking bread (cause I stopped buying bread in September, if you didn't know) and I'm also baking cookies cause I owe some people some thank yous for helping me out in a pinch.

I'm also thinking maybe I should do laundry at some point because I haven't done any since being back in San Diego, which has almost been four weeks. Aaaand potentially clean my apartment because it is even scarier how long I've let that slide.

Anywho, the point was this: Happy Friday!

Bhabha Ate My Soul

Anthropological theory hates me. I'm all for deconstructing post-postmodernism and discussing the state of post-colonial anthropology. However, do I really have to read 300 pages of a super intelligent guy that doesn't believe in definite boundaries and therefore rambles for approximately 299 of those pages?

The answer, unfortunately, is yes. I also have to write a paper about the information I'm supposed to be gleaning from this work and lead a three hour discussion class on it on Wednesday.

I'm pretty sure my brain is trying to retreat into the realm of day dreams every five minutes as an act of self-preservation.

The Dog Days Are Over?

Last week was rough. It was the first week of school and piles of homework, the first week back in SD by myself and I had a meeting with my advisor who told me to slow down. Never in my life have I had an educator tell me to stop trying to learn so much! In conclusion, I was kinda bummed. But yesterday felt like a turning point.

Yesterday I discovered an Eels CD on my iTunes that I'd never listened to before. I love it! I also read my homework next to the pool and got a little sunburnt. And for dessert last night I made homemade Cherimoya and Strawberry ice cream. All little things, but they add up to a big accomplishment: I enjoyed my day. Basically I'm feeling good, ready to take on the week.

Maybe my advisor is right and I should slow down and smell the beach air. After all, I am living in San Diego! But that does not mean that I'm not going to keep pushing myself to learn behind his back because, lets face it, getting things done is what makes me happy!

PS: Look up the Glee version of the song "The Dog Days Are Over" it will probably change your life.

School Books

I hate buying books for school. They are always expensive. They are always heavy. And they always remind me of how much reading I'm going to have to accomplish in the next 15 weeks.

Also this semester I have to have a whole book (350 pages) read by the my first class (Wed.) and I haven't started it yet. And Amazon can't get it to me in time so I have to read it off Google books which means inside reading on the computer, not outside in the beautiful weather reading.

On the bright side, I like learning and books and school.

If I keep reminding myself of that, I'll start to enjoy buying books, right?

Time to go home

So if you didn't know, I've been in Spokane for about a month. That means for a whole month I've been living in my parents' house. Don't get me wrong, I love my parents and we actually get along pretty darn well, but this isn't my home anymore and I've been here too long for this to count as a vacation.
So I'm sort of living in limbo, not really building on my life because my life mostly is in San Diego now. The only saving grace is that I've gotten to see Elisha a ton! Basically we've hung out for 4/5 of the days I've been in town. It's been awesome to have my BFF in the same town as me and also to have friends that I can call and just hang out with. For example, in this past week I've just hung out and chatted or played games 4 different times with a different mix of people each time.
A part of me really wishes I could stay in Spokane and keep living this life. But a bigger part of me is ready to for my own space again. It was good that I came home and recharged my drive to finish school and also to keep creating the life that I want in San Diego. Although Spokane will always be my home town, this visit has reminded me that it is no longer my home. And I'm ready to go home. I just wish my family and friends lived closer to me!

New Year

New Year; New Start on:
My Master's Program,
My self esteem,
My eating habits,
My dating life,
My stress level,
My spending levels,
Me!

I love the fact that we give ourselves a brand new start every year. At the start of each new year, we sit and talk about all the things we are going to differently and about how we are going to be happier. Whether I change or not, January 1 I promise that this year will be amazing to myself. I hope. I like that we as a Nation, hope. It's important. So I make resolutions and even if they have fallen by the side by February, it's okay. Because next year, I get to try again.

Christmas Alphabet

Finals are done! I'm going home and it's party week! In celebration of all the learning I've done this semester (and that I don't have to do any for the next four weeks), I've compiled a list of all the things I will be doing that are not school this break!

A) Avoid getting sick
B) Build a snowman
C) Chat with my Best Friends
D) Decorate a Christmas tree
E) Eat my Mom's home cooked meals
F) FREE Laundry!
G) Get my hair cut
H) Hug the people I love
I) Invite people to my Birthday party
J) Joke with Elisha
K) Keep the Christmas spirit
L) Listen to Christmas Music, while not doing homework
M) Make Christmas cookies
N) Negotiate the mall
O) Open presents
P) Present Presents (Get it?!)
Q) Quote "Friends"
R) Renew my love of Snow
S) Sleep in
T) Turn 23 (so old!)
U) Use a sled
V) View Christmas lights
W) Watch movies
X) X-tremely love the world
Y) Yodel
Z) Zip up my winter coat to go skiing

What have you learned this semester?

Today was my last day of class of my first semester in San Diego! I still have finals to power through, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I've come a long way from that first class. But I've learned a lot this semester and hardly any of it has to do with Anthropology.

I now know my way around SDSU's campus. I have a favorite place to work in the library and a favorite place to get coffee. I know how to buy lunch for cheap on campus. I know where and when the Farmer's Markets are. I know where I have to stand in the trolley station to get service. I know when the laundry room in my complex is going to be empty. I know how to deal with ants and black widows inside my apartment. I know how to dress for Southern California weather. I know the people in my department. I know how my oven is going to bake things. I've even made friends!

And I know that I can do it. I've started over and it's working! San Diego has become my home and, even on a Friday night when I'm still in the library working on finals until 6, I like it here.

Procrastination

Today:
1)I went to class
2)I got important car documents noterized
3)I went grochery shopping
4)I came home
5) I checked my email
6) I checked facebook
7) I did my dishes
8) I did my teacher evaluations
9) I made ginger cookie dough (so that it could chill while I did my homework)
10) I checked my facebook (for a half an hour)
11) I baked the ginger cookie dough
12) I wrote a blog
13) I think lucky number thirteen ought to be actually starting on my homework, what do you think?

Christmas Music

I miss Christmas. Don't get me wrong, I love palm trees and 70 degree weather but it's just not the same as two feet of snow. I made cookies last night for a class potluck I have today and while I was baking and frosting, I set Pandora to play classic Chrsitmas tunes. I was happy as a clam singing along and then "I'll be home for Christmas" came on and I couldn't hold back the tears. I blame finals. Or perhaps it's homesickness. But whatever it is I want my Mom! Whew. Don't worry, in two weeks I get to go home! Also, So here we go finals, you may have won last night's battle, but I will dominate you, or at least I'll cry trying!

In the beginning...

In the beginning was the Word… wait, that’s a different story. In my story, the beginning was a lot messier. My beginning began, like most do, with a birth. I’m a winter baby and my Sister remembers losing her favorite glove that day. My Dad remembers the doctor with his foot up on the table trying to yank me out and my Mom remembers my little red head. It’s funny how some things stay in our collective memories while others fall out and are lost along the way.
But that beginning was quite a while ago and I’ve had many others since then.

I moved to San Diego this fall. I left my best friend, my parents, and a relationship that was falling apart to come to a brand new city where I knew no one. Things that are scary are also kind of liberating. I imagined I would invent a new, better me. Turns out, I was only partly right. I’ve become different, but, in many ways, I’ve retained and rediscovered many of the things that make me more me. Change is like that. Sometimes, when you think things are changing most, that’s when you notice they stay the same.

Beginnings mean endings but endings also mean beginnings. This is the beginning of a blog. I’m hoping to discover something about myself while writing it, but also just to share what is going on in my life. Hopefully, I won’t be so melodramatic in all my posts!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. I’ve always kind of liked that. I’m not too much for religion, but as far as origin stories go, that’s a good one. Perhaps God is our words, perhaps our words are God. Who knows?