I find it immensely ironic…

…that most of my traffic on wordpress has come from searches for celebrity hotties that I posted in my list of the ones I find most attractive months ago.  It makes me chuckle, especially the search terms that append “hot” to the celeb’s name.  Redundant much?

So I have been kinda down and lonely lately. Have been contemplating a solo trip to the beach this weekend. Since I’m going by myself it’ll be kind of expensive to get a room, but thought I might rough it in my truck, then spend all day on the sand, or exploring the area.  Even am debating taking my dog with, (surely there are dog friendly beaches?) but that might make my simple spontaneous weekend more complicated than necessary. I think the sun might be just what I need. Winter is a terrible time to have a broken heart and no friends close by.

I’ve been Googling different areas in Florida and checking the weather; I’m longing for 70-80 degrees temperatures to soak into my bones.  So far Naples, Florida looks attractive, weather-wise.  St. Augustine beckons for the beautiful area and history, but isn’t quite as warm, only in the 50’s-60’s.  I want to feel a burn on my skin.

I know it seems a little unsafe; my little sister thinks I’m crazy and might get mugged/raped/murdered. But I really need this, and its a little short notice to recruit friends. Besides, the insanity of it kind of makes it a bit more beautiful, in a way.

 

Things I Have Accomplished Over Christmas Break:

1.  Have gotten halfway thru Beginning Programming for Dummies.

2. Put my tree up AND took it down before New Years.

3.  Now have 10 squares of my tshirt memory quilt prepared.

4. Made four of the recipies out of the book that came with MY NEW KITCHENAID MIXER!!!!!!

5.  Have now logged just a little less than forty hours played on Dragon Age: Origins on my PC.

6.  Watched the 1st and half the 2nd season of The Office. (Given my TV watching habits {hint: they don’t exist} this is quite impressive for me).

7. Read the following books for pleasure:

• The Rice Mother
• Ironside: A Modern Tale of Faerie
• Eona: Dragoneye Reborn
• Elfquest (An anthology of the first 5 issues)
• Yotsuba&!
• The Sweet Potato Queens Book of Love
• Sign of the Dove

I read three or four more, I’m pretty sure, but they were so unmemorable that I can’t remember their titles.  Eona was outstanding, Yotsuba&! was superadorable, but better suited for the 8-12 year old range, methinks. The Rice Mother started out strong but finished weak,  Elfquest had great art but was a bit dated and I can’t say I really got attached to any of the characters, and the rest were disappointments.

Decided to list things I actually did accomplish to make myself feel better, as I got much less done than I intended, partially due to an unexpected guest.

School starts next week. Looking forward to it, but want to finish up some writing I’ve been working on before going back to the academic grind.

 

I like to build it, build it…

…a computer that is!

I thought I would blog about my first solo adventure in computer building. A friend helped me build my current desktop, but I wanted to do one on my own since I didn’t get to do as much as I liked.  Jackie took most of the photos and Sassy helped by snuffling parts and posing as needed.

This one makes me laugh

Screwing in the power supply

Make-outz!

Figuring out how to orient the motherboard.

Asus makes pretty motherboards *is a nerd*

The processor is safely in!

After installing the CD/DVD and hard drives

Putting in the stock processor fan

Building computers is exhausting.

The RAM. Also admire my attractive spoon ring.

No more guts!

After some intial fiddling, he fired right up! Also, I kind like the composition of this one.

I love the blue glow of the extra intake fan I bought. <3 Looks nice w/ the power LED

I’m probably going to sell it on craigslist for cheaps, since it was mostly a learning experience and would be silly of me to keep it since I already have a desktop. I am in love with it though, because its a really nice computer and I planned it to be super-upgradable in the future. Also, it has a handle on the top. Its like a purse! All it lacks is a decent ATI graphics cared to be a super-pimp gaming machine. Its running Ubuntu right now, but that’s kinda getting on my nerves so I may install XP on it if it doesnt grow on me.

Stats:

2.9 AMD Athlon II Dual Core Processor (Regor)

4 GB DDR2 RAM

200 GB Hard Drive <— the only thing that is a little underpowered, but I was on a budget!

A Schweet ASUS motherboard with onboard HD video and HD surround sound

 

Morning of the Living Blog!

Thought I’d update in the all of five glorious minutes I have before I have to run my 22 labrats through their mazes. Well, approximately two nights ago, Whitney and Liz stopped by Athens on their way to Charleston, and thus I was lucky enough to spend some time with them before I had to crash.

Me and Whitney discussed the novel we are writing extensively; it is shaping up quite gloriously indeed. I haven’t been this excited about a writing project in quite some time. It is difficult for me to disengage from the world of Stropsville (town title a Whitney original. ) and focus on real life, which involves responsibilities and chores and school and work, and messy, messy interpersonal things.

Well, best get back to work. *sighs* I have become something of an old woman. Didn’t get my coffee this morning and am feeling its absence sorely.

 

Mmmm food!

I have been dreadfully remiss with the blog updating, so I thought I would upload some pictures of food I have been making these past few months.

First, I made some tasty tasty bagel roll sushi, which has cream cheese, cucumbers, and smoked salmon in it. They were very much yum! Although I made waay to much for lil me.

Sassy always helps:

Sassy helps with sushi!

Sassy helps/lusts after the pigs in a blanket I made with left over pie crust.

Piper only deems strawberries acceptable offerings after wrapped in leftover pie crust.

There is a farm near Athens called Washington Farms, where you can pick your own fruit and it is so much tastier! I went a month or so ago and picked with some work friends and then made pies with my gallon’s worth. Blueberry season will be in full swing in two weeks, and then later in July I’m heading home for blackberry time!

Strawberry heads! Mwahahaha!

This monstrous strawberry that either looks like a turtle, or one of those Piranha Plant enemies from Mario.

Prebaking. (Yes, I use store bought crust! Don’t be judgin’!)

Cooling in front of the window. Turn head sideways for full effect.

I also made some honey wheat bread that was pretty tasty.

Also that day I reeealy wanted some pound cake. It was, after all, finals week.

NomNomNomNom!

Well, that’s seems to be good for today. I will update more often, promise!

 

Since Facebook is the place for frenemies…

…I’ve decided to talk about my newly single status here instead.

So…I’m single.

So…I thought I was going to talk about my newly single status but cannot think of a way to talk about it that isn’t high school xanga-esque in style. Suffice it to say that I have been single since Friday, that even though she broke up with me, I was the one that really wanted it, that we are going to try to be friends, and that I think that I will, at some point, be happier. At least happier in the long run.

I am going to be single for quite some time, I think. I need to reclaim autonomy.

 

There is a website…

…called FML. Which stands for the obvious. And people post the woebegone incidents of their lives, most of which are amusing. And then viewers to the site vote on these stories, and they can either vote “you life is f’d” or “you deserved that”.

I have been reading them for the past hour to make myself feel better and over the course of that time I have decided the site ought to add another option.

“You deserve your life”.

 

Valentine’s Day Post, Having Nothing Whatsoever To Do With The Day Itself

So the other day I was in the Student Learning Center and I stopped by the Jittery Joes to get a small dark roast coffee and I proceeded to put in it honey, cinnamon, skim milk, and a splash of half and half. Then I got one of those cute tables all to myself, the ones with the black stone tops, and drank it while reading Suttree by Cormac McCarthy. I took a sip that was heavy on the cinnamon just as I read these lines: “They tucked their elbows and their hands hung from the upturned stems of their wrists like broken lillies. They stirred and subsided with enormous lassitude.” and I felt as well-content with the world as I ever expect to.

In addition, I am currently reading the Tain, which is a collection of Celtic myths. I am enjoying the surprising agency of its women and the unsurprising accuracy of its prophets. Also, it has many poems dedicated to cows. To say I approve would be a most decided understatement.

 

Take a journey to the bright midnight…

…or a couple hours past it. I have lost the ability to sleep for some reason. I have not been able to sleep at night for the past week. And its not like I sleep that late to make up for it either. I went to bed at four last night and woke up at nine. This would have been great around finals time, though.

I think I am going to go read Oliver Twist in bed. If that doesn’t relax me enough I am switching to Pilgrim’s Progress. That may be my answer after all. John Bunyan is what would be the result of C.S. Lewis being hit by the boring truck multiple times. Same basic outline, but ultimately lifeless.

 

Because I have better things to do than study…

…like write this blog. So, to steal from both Whitney and Betsy:

Seven things I plan to do before I die:

1. Get married (possibly even legally ) and have four babies. I kinda wish I could have them all at the same time so I would only be pregnant once.
2. Live in another country (with my significant other, not with some creep)
3. Finish crocheting that charity baby blanket I started in high school.
4. Finish writing a novel.
5. Publish a poem in a literary magazine.
6. Build a computer myself from scratch
7. Own 40 acres of land, have a cow, a donkey, and assorted goats, and build the perfect adorable farm house on it.

Seven things I can do:

1. Read three (average sized) novels in a day
2. House train a dog.
3. Castrate a male animal.
4. Write a three page paper on a two sentence poem.
5. Draw a Kekule diagram of any molecule you like.
6. Find any book in any library, if it is checked in.
7. Field dress a deer.

Seven things I cannot do:

1. Sing on key
2. Handle insects.
3. Drive a stick.
4. Watch Rachel Ray (ahhh! that voice!)
5. Keep my apartment clean
6. Stay on a diet.
7. Understand cars.

Seven things I find attractive in others:

1. Scrawniness (I used to feel shallow until I realized my taste runs to not merely skinny, but, in fact, gangly and awkward.)
2. Sense of humor
3. Intelligent
4. Kindness (Not just not-mean, but genuinely nice. Mean people suck and they are a big turnoff.)
5. Humility (Arrogance is almost a big a turn off.
6. Nerdiess is hawt.
7. Glasses are sexy.

Seven things I say most often:

1. Sassy, you’re a whore.
2. Sit! No! Down! Off! OUT! (I decided to combine all the things I say to Sassy or I wouldn’t have any people words left lol)
3. What do you want to eat?
4. I don’t care. Whatever y’all want.
5. It’s true.

Seven celebrity crushes:

1. Always and forever, Ron Weasley. <3

2. Alex Gaskarth from All Time Low

Here he is IN GLASSES!

3. Not young (all little too awkward) and not old (a little too grizzled) but middle aged harrison ford.
4. Orlando Bloom = Still hott

5. Shaki

6. Allison Hannigan has really pretty eyes

7. Anna Popplewell: I definitely thought she was ugly in the first movie, but when I watched the second I changed my mind. Plus her last name is awesome.