i'm gonna lose my head here

today's title comes from resurrection by the temper trap.

i'm not even going to bother apologising for being a bad blogger lately because, honestly, this has just been an incredibly busy semester. banana, i don't even know how you've managed with your nine thousand languages and activities. so, instead, this is just going to be a random post about things i've been liking since my last post.

beginning with:

salad! i'm a lot little bit in love with them. actually, i'm eating one right now (one of the sinfully unhealthy ones from wendy's) but i've been craving them in all shapes and sizes. like i had a buffalo wing caesar salad at salad creations last week and it was wonderful, and i made a little one two nights ago with dried cranberries and raisins and feta cheese as a midnight snack. who knew i could like green things? the momster is certainly mystified. 

dante! this is the second semester that i've had to read the divine comedy in an english class, and this time around it's actually in two separate classes. my brit lit and italian poetry/modernism class (the full course name is "T. S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, and the Italian Trecento" and was apparently going to be longer but academic services made my professor shorten it) are overlapping all over the place. we're reading a lot of the same works (okay, in reality, it's more like "we're reading a lot." full stop, the end, sorry but no sleep for Rachel until may) in each of them, but at different times, so occasionally walking into each class feels a bit like going through a time loop. nevertheless, dante and all the other medieval poets we're reading in my italian/modernism class are actually really interesting. although i am getting a bit sick of petrarchan sonnets. poor laura. also i think i have the first canto of inferno memorised.

doctor who. pretty much self-explanatory, actually. although i would like the record to show that i plan to do this to some door in my house one day, or maybe just my bedroom door this summer.

tying in with my last obsession, british television in general. downton abbey, merlin, skins, torchwood, north & south...they're all so wonderful. and, best of all, the shorter seasons makes the writers seem to step up the quality of the episodes a lot - there are way fewer filler episodes.

in keeping with my hall's obsession with merlin/pretty people in period clothing with accents, i introduce to you Arthur Bear. the hall-es and i built him at build a bear together and we're planning to mail him around to each other over the summer. he even has a little passport so you can all sign it! i'm pretty excited.

and this is Merlin Bear, which i got for myself since it lost in the hall-e vote over which bear to build (it was a tough decision to make! also, we got a lot of weird looks from the build a bear staff). michelle the hall-e made a bunny, but i don't have a picture of it.

the history channel, which on three separate viewings has told me that the biblical story of moses is evidence of an ancient alien encounter, of various rumors and theories that abraham lincoln was a vampire, and that humanity is suffering from "amnesia" which prevents us from being able to remember/understand that our ancient ancestors clearly had contact with aliens (because how else were they able to build the pyramids?). i'm beginning to worry about the channel.

cki! i got reelected for next year. we went to our district convention and won things, too, but most of you are adept facebook stalkers so you probably already know that. and i finished the club scrapbook. well, after i put every minion i could find to work, first.

and, of course, this:

if only i'd been alive in the eighties. also, how is it that everyone in that video is, like, a multimillionaire now? and a lot of them are pundits, even. oh, and the current liverpool coach is in it, too, see if you can spot him.

i'll just leave you with this:

won't let no mistake take the roof from off our heads

today's title comes from the city by patrick wolf which is amazing and you should all listen to and, yes, that means you, too, s-la:

well, it finally happened. i am really, truly, disgustingly mucus-y sick on campus. it sucks. the hall-es have been plying me with fruit and vitamin c and cold medicine and things, so it's not too bad but i sound gross. like, beyond gross, actually. every time i blow my nose it sounds like i'm trying to do a killer whale mating call or something, which means classes this week are just going to be a barrel of laughs. at least not being at home means i can experiment with cough medicines, so the rest of me is okay, if a little tired and kind of incoherent my roommate told me i sound high but we've settled on a nice little cocktail of robutussin, dayquil, and sudafed along with the world's most wonderful cough drops ever (halls, but no one ever bothered to tell me they came in strawberry and not just that horrible medicinal cherry crap) so i think i'll be fine. or, at least, the momster will think i'm fine because she has no idea i'm sick and if she did she would come here and that would be bad. 

...i just read that paragraph back. my roommate is right, even when i type i sound high. sorry guys. 

the hall-es and i went on an adventure friday night, but it's a story that i want to be, like, grammatically correct so i'll wait until i'm no longer sick to write it up. 

for similar reasons, i won't be recapping the oh-so-wonderful liverpool-chelsea game. well, not in words, anyway:

in conclusion, serhio ramo thanks you for your time:

On the highway, on the freeway, in the airport

today's title comes from brother lee by citizen cope:

today went well. my biology class was predictably boring. my english teacher emailed to tell me he lost his paper. the roomie had a meeting with him to talk about our upcoming paper (due after thanksgiving break - i hate final papers) and reminded him to look for it (my professor is a bit of a nut) and i just got an email that he found it. here's hoping i get extra credit for the "stress and trauma" i endured. just kidding. it won't happen, but a girl can dream, right?

circle k is hosting servicefest tomorrow, which is basically a giant dance with lots of mini service projects you can do if you want to raise money for a bunch of local charities. it's going to be awesome it better be, we've been planning this thing for months. we painted the rock and chalked most of campus and hung up a bunch of flyers for it today. i was kind of sad that i was giving up on dinner with the hall-es and the rest of my usual group of friends (it's expanding! i hadn't realized just how much it had expanded until it came time to organize the secret santa. getting everyone in one place is turning into a bit of a chore. we tried to do secret santa distribution by proxy over the weekend, but that just turned into a mess, so now we're doing it during dinner tomorrow) but i'm a club officer and it would've been irresponsible of me to skip out on publicity stuff even if it was just the fun things that loads of people came to help out with and not the actual work (flyers and banners and yelling at the lady at the copy center for like fifteen minutes because she screwed up our order).

that's right - i actually did the responsible thing. be proud, everyone. and i was rewarded for it! while we were painting the rock, two of the other officers came back from the end of campus near my dorm and told me that the fire alarm had gone off while they were there. i was feeling pretty smug for getting out of a fire drill. i ran into a hall-e on the way back to my dorm after we were done painting just in time to hear the fire alarm go off again. apparently the alarm the other cki officers heard hadn't been a drill - it had been fourth floor setting a microwave on fire again, which inspired the RAs to have a fire drill tonight. needless to say, the hall-e and i turned right around and went to bingo night instead. it was fun. and we got to skip an hour (an hour! eep!) of standing in the cold outside our dorm. and, yes, we might have amused ourselves by texting the trapped hall-es/reminding them to tell us when the drill ended. what? you can't expect me to complete my moral development all in one day, can you?

after we got back, we had another skins watching party. we got through three episodes today! i'm so proud. i really love that show. i can't wait until the movie comes out.

oh, and international friendly day was horrible. germany and sweden tied (not too bad, since it was at least interesting to see how the players who were new to the national team played) and spain got flattened by portugal, 4-0 (again, not bad - it's good news for germany during the euros and world cup, and cristiano ronaldo's reactions were funny to watch). it was the england-france game that was terrible. final score? england 1-2 france. and steven gerrard got injured - when fabio capello promised liverpool to take him off after and hour and didn't. why do they even play friendlies? there's no point. save the damn liverpool captain for his club, k?

at least we got this picture out of it

yes, i'm still mad. and i have a stats test tomorrow, so i'm going to sleep now. at least i get to go home tomorrow night. oh, and there's harry potter to look forward to! 

load the car and write a note

today's title comes from i and love and you by the avett brothers:

other music i've been listening to:

i succeeded in one of my (mini) life goals today! i have more skins converts - specifically, the roomies, one of the neighbors, and stella the hall-e. while we were waiting outside joanna the hall-e's room for her to get ready so we could go to brunch, we noticed that her neighbors (and, like, half our hall) was watching skins...and that got the other hall-es wanting to watch it. so i let the roomie borrow my computer to watch while i was in the shower and came back to find a full on watching party in my room. i had to join in, of course. we made our way through two episodes before calling it a night. i'm so happy right now, i feel like effy in this gif:

i haven't had an occasion to post skins gifs in so long, you can just have another one:

and a harry potter one, too! it's coming out in just one day! i'm so excited! i can't stop using exclamation points!

i'm cuddled up to my electric blanket again. this thing is wonderful. it almost makes up for the weather today. my dorm is at the bottom of a hill - which means i have to climb up three billion forty five (more or less) steps to go anywhere on campus and a giant puddle always forms right outside the door whenever it rains. the rain boots were an invaluable asset, even if they do sort of clash with my umbrella (it's black and covered with white polka dots). there's no point to being stylish (or coordinated) in the rain, right? right.

my group and i presented our organ trafficking presentation today. we actually found a lot of really interesting information when we were researching for it. there were one or two funny things, too. like this. who could resist a trustworthy site like kidneykidney.com? don't you just love the 20% off deal in the top right corner, too? this was pretty crazy, too. who knew charlie the unicorn was real?

i'm pretty tired now, so i'm going to sleep now. s-la don't forget the games later today! i'm so excited that they're on espn3. i can't wait to watch in high definition.

it's a nice to start again

today's title comes from white wedding by billy idol. i've been on a kick lately, don't even ask me to explain it:

other music i've been listening to lately?

this just made me laugh:

and this is just awesome. as is this:

nothing much happened today. i worked on my organ trafficking presentation with some friends. oh, and then i rewatched persepolis with the hall-es. it's still good. i mostly just napped today. i had my 9 a.m. lab today, so i basically just rolled out of bed (it was so hard - the new duvet is like sleeping on a cloud) and wandered to class in my pajamas. we went on a mini field trip in bio today. we went around campus collecting samples of dirt from different habitats and testing for organisms. the things we were looking for were invariably gross. the lab partner and i were hoping not to find anything, so of course a spider fell out of our bags as soon as we got back to the lab. it was horrifying. thankfully, class let out early today. i had a nice long brunch and then napped from noon until four. it was wonderful. sleep really is a girl's best friend.

don't forget - it's international football soccer time, starting tomorrow: usa v. south africa (2 p.m.), germany vs. sweden (2:30), and spain vs. portugal (3:55). celebrate with me by watching this (alternately wonderful and horrifying) ad for spain's new jersey:

i whip my hair back and forth

today's title comes from...seriously? do you really not know where today's title comes from? oh, fine:

the hall-es decided to start singing this randomly during today's oovoo session. now joanna the hall-e keeps singing it whenever we least expect it.

circle k had it's annual thanksgiving dinner today. it was fun. we spent a lot of time setting it up, but it was worth it for the turnout. apparently we got over sixty people (crammed into one very tiny dining room). britney and i went to go pick up the food from the caterer - bad idea. we're not exactly the largest (or muscliest) people. oh, and all the dishes were really hot and we kept forgetting to use the oven mitts when we were putting everything in the car. the drive itself was really fun. britney managed to reignite my billy idol love. i've had white wedding stuck in my head all day. but then came taking everything out of the car. we dropped a pie while attempting to open the door. half of it ended up on the floor and the other half was very smooshed but still in the box...so we did the right thing and sat down on the floor and at the other half. our impromptu munch fest was interrupted by the other board members coming to the door to see what was taking us so long. they thought we were hilarious. i still think that not letting an extremely tasty pie go to waste was a very sensible decision.

husband number three offered me his old down-filled duvet for my dorm room since i get cold easily. the momster dropped it off today. it's wonderful and soft and very, very warm...and queen-sized. which means that my poor bed is completely dwarfed by it. i recruited the hall-es to help me put the (much cuter) new cover on it and the cover was so large that michelle the hall-e crawled inside it to the far end to pull the duvet in after her - it made the covering process a lot easier. also, apparently the inside of my duvet cover is just like being in a tent. at least now we know what to do if we ever get bored - duvet cover tent/pillow fort playtime!

we eventually figured out that i could just fold the duvet in half. so now my bed is extra fluffy! it's a good thing, too. my roommates and i sleep way too much - the hall agrees. someone's always sleeping in or coming back from an early class to nap or napping before going out or going to bed early. our lights are, like, never on. at least being a room of fellow hibernators means that everyone's always very courteous of each other's sleeping time. these things are important, okay? and, yes, i realize everyone in the entire world has already seen this. i don't care, watch anyway:

i found this on youtube. i'm kind of in love with this kid's covers. i can't help it - cover songs are like catnip to me.

until the earth stops turning

today's title comes from gorecki by lamb:

liverpool lost. that's all i'm going to say about that. these past two years have been a pretty depressing time to be a supporter. i have high hopes that the new owners will do the right thing come january transfer window time, though.

i have a confession to make:

you know that iranian film class that i always complain about? well, i kind of like it now. the films are getting better as we move into the modern era, and even the ones i initially didn't like are actually pretty good. i don't know how to explain it properly. it's like...the more i learned about iran and its culture and the revolution combined with my film analysis skills getting better to make me actually appreciate the movies we've been watching. a lot of them are about kids during the revolution or after it. it's kind of surprising how easy it is to connect with child-driven plot lines, especially when a lot of them were based off of the director's real life experiences. it made me start to wonder what happened to them after the movies were over. oh, and we watched persepolis on friday. we have it at home, but i bought my own copy today. i didn't like it the first time i watched it, but now i'm a little in love with it. the same thing happened to me with pan's labyrinth. it's so strange - this is like my year of multiculturalism, or something. i'm a little crazy for spanish and iranian history right now. they're so complicated and divided and just...i should probably stop before i start writing an essay.

this craziness is starting to transfer into other things, though. like, from becoming interested in just iranian films, i've started liking foreign films in general. i hate writing that. it feels pretentious. but some of them are really good! and subtitles aren't actually that bad.

i raked leaves with circle k today. we had to get up at a horribly early hour to do it. the hall-es and i actually woke up late and ended up texting the other members for half an hour for directions to the house they were at and walking half a mile in the opposite direction because we are geniuses. it was fun, though. this one woman told us all not to quit school because we would never make it as professional leaf rakers, but i think she was just jealous. her leaf blower ate joanna's headphones, too, so we made a return trip to target so she could get new ones. while there, we saw these crimes against nature:

doesn't he look cold? also, don't you just love the dog's face in the background? it's totally judging that guy. 

poor, poor anne frank and ray bradbury do not deserve to be shelved right next to that crap. and sold for less money. 

the following are not crimes against humanity. they're just funny:

why, yes, that is her entire wardrobe (more or less) drying on her bed. 

the roomie attempted to dry two loads of laundry in one dryer. as a result, nothing got dry. and since this is a weekend, the second she left the laundry room all of the dryers were taken. so she decided to dry everything in our room, with hilarious results. 

i discovered the existence of cookies and cream hershey kisses today! i probably shouldn't have, actually. i can't stop eating them.

i think the whole world is drunk right now

in the last half hour, i have overheard such gems as:

hall-e's roommate: this is - this is - oh my god, what do we call you again?

high school senior: ehehehe, i'm cute. 

hall-e's roommate: yeah, you are. 

hall-e: who is this and why is he in our room?

hall-e's roommate: um, um, um - who is this?

hall-e's roommate's friend who walks in the open door: this is eric. he plays lacrosse.

hall-e's roommate's friend's girlfriend: hi, i'm meredith. i'm drunk. can i leave my stuff here?

hall-e: ...

this was while we were watching hercules in joanna the hall-e's room. we had a few other interruptions, too. oh, and then the roomie and i found a whole pack of drunk people just sitting on the steps outside when we went to take the trash out. oh, college.

in other random news, the hall-es and i went to central park today. we went shopping for electric blankets (mine is zebra print - it's wonderful) and went to dinner. we decided to walk to borders after, which meant cutting across a parking lot. now, today i was wearing a skirt, leggings, a giant fluffy sweater jacket, a hat, mittens, and boots. basically, every part of me besides a little square of exposed neckline was warm. keep this in mind, otherwise my next actions will seem a little...odd.

the momster got a new iPad today. she named it nemo at my request. she was texting me for advice on how to set it up, since she's not the most technologically savvy person (well, when it comes to apple products, at least). i was also texting a few other people at the same time.

and, my life being what it is, i end up texting the momster: MY BOOBS ARE COLD. instead of my apple id information. and her oh-so-sensible response?

the momster: oh my god. where are you? are you at a whorehouse? what are you doing?

me: i'm at borders.

the momster: are you sure? leave immediately! you don't know what can happen there!

ah, reason. it's so good to know that it's still a precious commodity in the world. don't worry, i managed to talk her back to (relative) sanity. not without spending a good ten minutes reassuring her that my new ownership of a (zebra print!) electric blanket wouldn't lead to me burning to a crisp in the night (the words "automatic shutoff" didn't seem to resonate with her)

also, i got another mysterious package today. this time it contained nail polish - that i definitely did not buy. i'm a little confused, to be honest. happy, since they're the two colors i most regretted not getting during my little "oh my gosh, it's cheap and on the internet" nail polish buying binge (here today, aragon tomorrow and can you tapas this? from opi) but...i definitely didn't buy them. i double checked my credit card statement just in case. and the package was also definitely addressed to me (i double checked that, too, despite the fact that one of the hall-es thinks that i would have no problem running off with any nail polish-containing packages even if they weren't mine). this is becoming very odd.

oh, and don't forget: liverpool plays tomorrow at 12:30. i'm going to go to sleep tomorrow, since i've got rake-a-thon with circle k at nine a.m.

!!!

why, yes, i do already have a post with this title. i don't care. why? because ophelia lives!

that's right - after spending three days constantly attempting to restore it, badgering my friends, roommates, and hall-es to help me, calling the parental units no less than three times in the middle of the night out of despair, and frantically googling every possible cause and solution for her affliction (i even tried doing this hideously complicated series of computer commands, only to be stopped by michelle the hall-e, who informed me that i had been using the wrong disk number and nearly wiped my computer of everything on it) ophelia seems to be working properly. she's syncing on itunes right now, which means i won't have any real confirmation until morning since it'll take all night for my music to copy onto it. i don't care. i'm just so excited. i was really starting to hate seeing that stupid little gray apple logo pop up on its home screen every time i tried to do anything with it.

and on that happy note, i really will go to bed. i'm actually resisting the urge to stay up all night until ophelia is done syncing. be proud of me. and wish me luck - hopefully this will be my last night of curling up to my phone so i can still hear music while i sleep.

louder than ever

today's title comes from the song of the same name by cold war kids.

this week's itunes free music downloads were a mixed bag. i'm a big fan of the spanish song of the week

but they're also offering what looks like a free copy of blue suede shoes. beware, though. beware. it's this horrible, remixed thing. who would remix elvis?

sometimes i feel like two different people. hermit rachel and college rachel don't even seem to belong to the same species, let alone the same person. that's how bad it is - i'm referring to myself in the third person. how obnoxious is that?

i can't explain it properly, but i feel like i should try since this blog really has come to replace my diary lately. well, this blog and my ical. everything seems to be in there. see?

back to me being whiny and self indulgent...

i don't like change. at all. and it keeps coming home to me that who we are now isn't who we've been (isn't who we'll be). all of the plans i had for myself are slowly unraveling and being replaced by new ones. the new plans aren't necessarily bad. but...they're different. i actually considered becoming a pre-med major. me! to be fair, biology and stats are actually my highest grades right now (who would've thought that'd happen?) and i was being unfairly influenced by one-too-many "save the children!" documentaries in my global issues class.

still. it's change. changes everywhere. leaves and classes and people. oh, people. oldest and dearest friends of mine, why must you keep changing on me? some of you have been throwing me for a loop lately. i think i might be doing the same thing to some of you.

where i see myself in ten years is changing, too. i never realized this before, but (soccer ogling aside), i'm a little terrified of actual relationships. blame the momster and husband number one (and their various, numbered spouses) for that, i guess. i don't know. the thought of getting married before i'm, like, forty is vaguely horrifying to me. i want...the world, i guess. to see everything and do everything and date a couple dozen people just in case (who knows - the multiple marriage thing could be genetic) and just...be. i want to die knowing i've experienced life.

i want to die with the ability to stop going on quasi-philosophical rants in the middle of the night. 


i feel so unsettled, mentally. if i was home right now, this would be the time i did something reckless. started one of those mini-adventures that usually leads to one (or all) of you commenting with some variation of "oh, rachel" or "not again" or "you crazy bitch". which...fair enough, i suppose. the hall-es here seem dedicated to keeping me in line, though, since i've already been told to wrap this up and go to bed, to finish my paper tomorrow (but not put it off later than that), and to stop eating fun dip at 1:45 in the morning. i can't help it. i like it when my tongue is blue.

also, i lied. i totally lied. i know exactly what brought this post on. someone i was friends with in elementary school got engaged. engaged. and pregnant, which - go figure. but but but. we used to share wonderballs and those weird little cookies that you dunked in frosting at recess. how is this even possible? i might be panicking slightly. also, how does one even go about responding to that wedding invitation? is there a polite way to say "no, thank you, i prefer not to freak myself out any further watching you and your idiot groom who's even uglier than he was back in the day get hitched next weekend"? i didn't think so. 


i'm done being crazed and rambly for the night. the momster is coming for our weekly mother-daughter bonding session tomorrow, so i'll probably rant to her, too. and isn't it strange how i actually look forward to that now? i used to hate it. now it's like one of the only normal things left in my life. also, starbucks better name a drink after me by the time i graduate. i swear, there are days where i think my family keeps them in business. well, the northern virginia and frederick ones, at least.

random story of the day: in my chaucer class (filled almost entirely with english majors as it's a 395), neither my professor nor any of my classmates could remember what galileo was famous for. one person suggested that it was for discovering that the earth was round. another said he did "something wonky" with gravity (tangentially, isn't wonky a fun word? i think i'll start using it). at long last, one of the lone science people (bio major, to be specific) finally set everyone straight. this is the same class full of people who got into an in-depth discussion on robespierre, dante, and ezra pound. oh, english majors. i love you all.

with the lights on

today's title comes from shelter by the xx. i don't know why, but i've been listening to them a lot lately. their music is just so wonderful for winter. anyway, have a listen:

it's story time today. highly embarrassing story time, no less. normally i wouldn't post this here, but it's not the kind of story i want the hall-es to hear and i just had to tell someone, so...

before i begin, let's give you a little background information. ophelia the ipod? still dead. since i'm physically incapable of falling asleep without music, i've started using the phone as a substitute. the alchy roomie spent the weekend boy-hunting (i approve, since she found one that looks like benny feilhaber and he lives right downstairs). we heard all about it last night - leading everyone in my room to stay up until around two or three in the morning. not fun, since i had a nine a.m. lab this morning. when it came time to go to said lab, i basically rolled out of bed, pulled on a normal t-shirt, left my pajama pants on, and left, since i had Napping Plans for after class.

this all sounds - well, if not normal, fairly typical for me, right?

well, here's where the story begins:

my naptime got put off until around three today because the hall-es dragged me to lunch and then the mail room with them. by the time i got back to my room, i was dead tired. so i dragged out my headphones, plugged them into my phone, and basically collapsed into bed. however, i only got about half an hour of sleep before s-la's text woke me back up. my reaction was like this, at first, but then i replied:

note: when i post naptime statuses, don't text me. ever. 

after that, still being tired, i tried to go back to sleep. but i was in that half-awake/half-asleep state where my mind focuses on weird things. today's weird thought was: oh my god, i can't sleep with a bra on, what if it pulls an ophelia and tries to strangle me in my sleep? don't say it. whatever it is you are thinking just...don't.

now, we all know that i'm not that coordinated at the best of times, but my inability to control my own hands/feet/flailing limbs becomes downright pathetic when i'm half-asleep. so it should come as no surprise to anyone that i managed to get myself tangled in a mess of my own bra straps and head phones and shirt sleeves and the plug from the reading lamp that's clipped onto my headboard.

confusion. confusion everywhere. 

and, my life being what it is, this would be the time that the benny feilhaber lookalike the alchy roomie was stalking knocks and comes into the room to look for her.

my reaction?

well, first it was this:

and then it turned into this:

again, don't say anything. really.

however, i totally went back to sleep after because traumatic incidents aside, no one is depriving me of my required ten to twelve hours, thank you very much.


also, i entered the bad roommates awards by not telling the alchy about her visitor. and i think i threatened benny feilhaber jr. enough that he won't go blabbing to anyone, either.

in conclusion, my life sucks and conan premieres tonight.

we live half at night

today's title comes from vcr by the xx.

i know i've posted this song before. it's just that good. listen to it again, okay?

i went on an adventure to central park and the mall with some of the hall-es. our main goal was chipotle for the burritos (successfully acquired), but we got distracted by other things. i discovered the wonders of the dollar store today! we played in there for a while - christmas decorations are already out. i was a little mystified. whatever happened to thanksgiving? does no one appreciate the turkey anymore? or wearing politically incorrect pilgrim and indian costumes? this is the backbone of our country, people! okay, nor really. whatever. it's still a time honored tradition. they were still fun, though. i'm debating whether or not i should decorate my dorm room for the holidays. i really want to (you all know by now how i feel about holidays - i'm already trying to organize a gingerbread house for the hall), but i'm not sure if it'd be worth it when we leave campus on december ninth. decisions, decisions (you all know how i feel about those, too).

after that, we went to target and played in the toy section. there's so many cool ones now! i don't know what it is about the holidays, but i always feel about five years old the second the weather starts turning cold. like, i have to bundle up in the puffiest, warmest clothes i own and the christmas socks come out...and so does the christmas list. would it be silly if i asked for this for christmas?

i mean, yes, it is a toy. but - it's buzz lightyear! and we played with it at target and it talks and turns toward you and has a spanish mode and everything. it's pretty much the coolest thing i've ever seen.

oh, and don't forget: chelsea v. liverpool tomorrow at 11 a.m. you should watch it. here's why:

listen to didier. it'd be a fucking disgrace if you missed it. tune in for the atletico madrid-real madrid derby tomorrow, too. it's always fun to watch.

oh, and you might have noticed that i finally changed my 'currently reading' book. i'm rereading extremely loud and incredibly close by jonathan safran foer for three reasons: 1. it's awesome. 2. i finally bought a copy of it and can see all the pretty pictures and word circling and the flip book at the back. 3. he's releasing a new book in just nine days and i want to get used to his crazy multimedia style again.

this new book is the real reason i'm mentioning it. i just preordered it (since barnes and noble is offering free shipping and if you preorder it online you get a much-needed discount, considering the downright cray cray original price of the book) and it looks amazing. see for yourself:

to explain what you're looking at, i'll just include the interview that first clued me into this book:

An enormous last day of life.

“Jonathan Safran Foer, deftly deploys sculptural means to craft a truly compelling story. In our world of screens, he welds narrative, materiality, and our reading experience into a book that remembers that it actually has a body.”
–Olafur Eliasson

Our early conversations with Jonathan Safran Foer aboutTree of Codes started when Jonathan said he was curious to explore and experiment with the die-cut technique. With that as our mutual starting point, we spent many months of emails and phone calls, exploring the idea of the pages’ physical relationship to one another and how this could somehow be developed to work with a meaningful narrative. This led to Jonathan deciding to use an existing piece of text and cut a new story out of it. Having considered working with various texts, Jonathan decided to cut into and out of what he calls his “favourite book”: The Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Schulz.

As Jonathan began to carve out his story, we started doing our production homework and literally got turned down by every printer we approached – their stock line being “the book you want to make just cannot be made”. Thankfully, we found Die Keure in Belgium who relished the challenge of making a book with a different die-cut on every page.

Over a year of writing, cutting and proto-typing later, comesTree of Codes, a haunting new story by Jonathan Safran Foer cut from Bruno Schulz’s words.

The book is as much a sculptural object as it is a work of masterful storytelling: here is an “enormous last day of life” that looks like it feels.

doesn't it look amazing? i'm excited.

random fact: i've been listening to the xx while i typed this. itunes is weird, though, so when i type "the xx" into the search bar, i get every song, band, or album artist that features two Xs and/or the word "the". which means i went from nice, muted, good-for-writing, indie techno pop to:

yeah, i don't know either.

saw your face last night on tv

today's title comes from this song:

the hall-es and i went to see paranormal activity 2 last night. it was hilariously un-scary. however, having left my license at home, i had to do a number of questionable things in order to procure a ticket. apparently some movie theaters actually care about verifying if you're over 17 or not. and of course this would happen to me after i turn 18. i'd post more details, but...well, those of you getting letters from me will see why i'm leaving the story off here. also, if you haven't already, facebook message me your home address. i have charlie brown christmas cards and they are begging to be sent out.

my halloweekend has been pretty awesome so far. like s-la, there were some boy-related (mis?)adventures and a couple of parties. lola the hall-e has been absolutely hilarious as a result of her own adventures. there's been lots of text message analyzing and gesture-dissecting going on in our hall. tonight we're taking it easy, though. hopefully we're going trick-or-treating in a few minutes, too!

...yes, that's right. i'm a college freshman and i'm going trick-or-treating. i've never missed a year and i'm not about to start now. besides, if we go early there'll still be time to party after. i'm thinking this will be my theme song today:

oh, and in case you didn't already know (you should)...

LIVERPOOL WON. the manager remains insufferable and christian motherfucking poulsen played. and, no, that's not swearing. that (should be) is his actual name. seeing as that's what anyone with, you know, eyes, screams at their tv and/or computer screens while watching his decrepit 300 year old self run aimlessly around the pitch.


here, bask in the joy with these hilarious pictures:

clearly the highlight of this game was seeing stu stu and freckles on the same screen

no reports yet on why a game of red rover broke out during the game

ehehehehe

eh. it's halloween. have another song. this one's dance-y!