Maledicte

• Oh jeez, it's been be a really long time since I wrote here. Mostly that's due to midterm papers. When I have pressing things to do for school, I tend to not let myself do things. (I mean, I still read fic online, but I don't write mine. And I don't get online to talk to people, but I do check email constantly.) I do still see/talk to friends who reach out to me, but I tend not to reach out because I'm technically "not supposed to." Or whatever. Anyway, I sort of became a hermit for a bit. (And I didn't manage to get one paper done, and my teacher told me not to turn it in anymore, since we're past the grading deadline. Which means that my grade for that class got dragged way the hell down, so I'm freaking out about how to pick it up again and maintaining my GPA for my scholarship and oh crap I made myself nauseated again.)

• Other than that last one, I got all A's in my midterm grades. Because I am awesome.

• Speaking of papers, I wrote a paper on Montaigne's essay "On the Cannibals" for my ethics class. I actually thought this one wasn't as good as the really-terribly-awful Machiavelli paper—certainly less organized, as I had less of an idea what I was talking about while I was writing it—but... I got another 25 out of 25 points on it. I should get my first paper for my Bible class (same teacher as Ethics) on Thursday, so we'll see what I get on that. Apparently this teacher really likes me.

• That last bit I actually know for a fact because, through a series of strange events, I ran into the Chair of the Creative Writing department at one of my other teachers' book launch, and she knew who I was because apparently my Ethics and Bible teacher was "raving" about me. Her word, not mine. I was assured that they were all good things, though.

• This encounter also led her to telling me that we should meet so that she could see about getting me out of taking some of the beginning writing classes. I gather she'd read my file, since I didn't actually tell her all that much about my writing experiences before she said that it sounded like I had sort of gone backwards. It would be nice if she could actually get me out of being stuck in the future with some of the people I'm stuck with now, but if not I will have at least cultivated a sort of relationship with her. I'm hoping she can also pull some strings to get me into her Poetry class next semester. (Apparently we have to take a Techniques class for the three main specializations, regardless of what we decide to specialize in.) She's not only smart, but really fun about being smart (if that makes sense) so fingers crossed for at least getting her as a teacher.

• I have a meeting with her and my academic advisor tomorrow.

• Moving right along from school things... The weekend of the 15th I was in a minor collision in my car. By which I mean, I had pulled in behind a guy in a truck at the gate for my dad's community, and instead of opening the gate he started backing up. I didn't realize he couldn't see me, so I thought, "Oh, I'll just get out of your way, dude," but he came straight back into me. I wasn't injured or anything, and only the passenger side rear door of my car was damaged. And, because it was clearly the guy's fault, his insurance is paying to replace my door. I'm taking it in tomorrow, they'll give me a rental for a few days, and then my car will have a door (and a window) that functions properly. Thank god, because we're supposed to get snow tomorrow night, and the window in that door no longer closes all the way, which makes my car awfully cold in the morning even without the possibility of snow.

• This does not solve the issue of my car's engine. But that will have to come a little later when I have the money.

• Speaking of, though, I worked a bunch this past weekend and make some money, all of which will likely be held in reserve for taking my car to the mechanic. I haven't done it yet because I don't want to take it and then not have the money to pay him when he's done. Hopefully I will be able to get this done in the next week or so. Fingers crossed.

• So, now that I'm actually in school for writing, I'm actually writing again. Not a whole lot, but some. I've actually started writing a story I've had notes for (and the first few sentences) since high school. It's a gender-swapped Peter Pan story, sort of. (All the credit for reminding me that I had it in my wip folder goes to olukemi and she knows why. :>) I'm really enjoying it so far, and I'm trying to finish it for when my turn to be workshopped rolls around in my Fiction class. (I can't remember when that is, now, but I have it written down somewhere.) I'd also like to finish it before NaNoWriMo, since I will be putting all my writing during the month of November towards that.

• So yeah, NaNoWriMo. I will be once again attempting to beat my odds. (Those odds being that I am 0 for 4 at this point.) I... don't yet know what I'm going to write. I'm thinking I might try this thing that girasola and I have been planning for years but never really get around to writing. Of all the things in my WIP folder, it has had the most plotting and planning done on it. On the other hand, as it's not entirely mine, I'm not sure I want to just go ahead and write it. Part of the fun of it would likely be writing it with her. My other options are entirely unplanned and unplotted as of yet, but I could change that. I don't know right now. But, in case anyone cares, you can follow my progress on my NaNoWriMo profile. (And until they fix the writing buddies option, that's all you can do.)

• I have been feeling lonely lately, even before I shut myself in my house and pretended to write papers for two weeks. I miss girasola and exrpan, who are not only my missing best friends, but have fabulous lives in NYC (no matter how much they complain). Not the least because I haven't been online in weeks. But also because I am just sort of feeling like I will never be able to get back to NYC, like I had my chance and I blew it. This is partially because looking at the prices for apartments in NYC is super depressing and also because there are things I am considering once I graduate (fingers crossed fingers crossed fingers crossed) that aren't in NYC. It makes my stomach go all noodly when I think about it. Ugh. Anyway, I miss you guys. ♥

• I am currently eating pasta with pesto that I not only made, but made with basil I grew. It's super delicious. (Even though it's throwing off my allowed meals for the day and not helping me lose the weight I gained while my Gram was here.)

• Oh yeah! My Gram came to visit. The same weekend that I got into the accident, actually. It was really nice. My dad and I cooked for her. Things that we got the recipes for from her years ago and used to make more often but haven't in years. Like the family spaghetti sauce. And blintzes. And baked macaroni and cheese. And frito pies with avocado. It was ridiculous how much amazing food we had, that was all cooked by me and my dad. Gram also took my dad and I out for a minorly expensive dinner at a fancy place that he and I like a lot. (It's where I took him for Father's Day this year.) Anyway, I swear I gained at least five pounds. Which means fitting in my jeans is getting problematic again. Whoops. Still, it was really nice to see Gram. We watched The Princess Bride one day, which she hadn't seen and I didn't know that my dad had. (He is a big squooshy softie, apparently. No, actually, it probably has more to do with Mandy Patinkin than anything else.) It was really nice.

• For those interested, the Big Session Festival is back. It went away for a little bit, but with the release of the Oysterband's new album with June Tabor (I suspect), it's back for this coming summer. I was looking at how much money I would need to save to be able to go, and holy crap. The tickets for the festival are actually reasonably priced, but airfares to England (as always) are frighteningly high. I think the chances of me being able to make it out there next summer are slim. Maybe I'll see if my mom will match whatever I can save... Chances are still slim, but at least she'll be proud that I'm making an effort, so it's not a terrible idea to ask, I suppose. Anyway, for those who are thinking about next summer's vacation and who happen to like the Oysterband (or celtic folk music in general) should definitely consider going.

• Wrote another X-Men: First Class fic last week. Or, I finished writing it last week. As it's been revealed, I'll likely post it here soon. Though, I want to change the ending a bit. So you can expect that soonish, I think. There may be some other fics coming before the end of the year, too. I'd like to actually finish some of the things I've started. Since I think I actually have a dozen fics in progress at the moment.

Oh jeez. This entry is really freaking long. I need to stop writing it now, regardless of whether I have more things to say. And I have to go write some poems for class tomorrow, so.

I am having a rather more domestic night than I generally have!

While at the grocery store, my dad noticed that chicken breasts were on sale, and sort of goes, "Do you eat chicken? I mean, would you cook it?" I kind of had to parse that one out, but I gathered that he meant, "Would this get eaten, or would it rot in the fridge?" At my answer of, "I can make chicken broth with it for soup! And have meat to make chicken salad!" it went into the cart.

Home now. Had to start a fire (because the heater is being annoying) before I could start cooking, but at 7pm I started the chicken broth. At 7:30pm I achieved simmering. :)

( Schneider Family Failproof Chicken Broth Recipe )

I also achieved dinner in that time. I am happily nomming away at a frito pie (and I appear to have missed my chili estimate on it by exactly two bites worth). It would be better with cheddar cheese and avocado, but it's freaking delicious anyway, and I have leftovers for lunch.

Happiness is pretty easy around here. ♥

• Interestingly, one benefit of dying your hair often enough—particularly if it's black, which doesn't come out easily—is that you get to stop doing the ends after a while. So, because I don't have to bundle up under a trash bag to keep the dye in the ends of my hair off of me any more, tonight I put the dye on my whole scalp and then danced to "Fire Burning" around my house in a tank top and my underwear. Sometimes it's the little things in life we have to enjoy. ;)

• I've hardly been depressed for the last several days at all. Mostly because—even if I haven't yet decided to stop putting out effort—I've mostly given up that it will yield anything. Oh well.

• I has two new pairs of jeans! Seriously, I got a $100 pair and a $80 pair for $60 including tax and shipping from Levis.com. Yay sales! Alas, they didn't have the short-legged kind, so I'll have to have these shortened, but wow do they do nice things to my legs and butt anyway.

• *still dancing*

• I'm rereading one of my favorite Lackey books, and I had forgotten how much of it there is. Holy crap, long. There's a lot that bores me now in between the parts that I remember and love. Oh well. At least it refreshes my memory.

• Tomorrow isn't the 8am staff meeting! Whoo! (It's still next week, though...) Yay for not having to get up between 6:30am and 7am. I'm way too used to sleeping until 8:30 now.

•Through various shopping forays, the next week or so is going to be filled with really awesome food. I am excited. Tomorrow is flank steak marinated in my dad's "teriyaki" marinade. There's also half the quiche I made still. I made a giant bowl of jello tonight. And there's bbq beef brisket from Trader Joe's for sammiches. Plus, you know, various snack things. And a whole new loaf of challah for french toast. I am looking forward to this.

• P.S. I want an old style Polaroid camera. (My mom might actually have one somewhere...) Failing that, I would settle for one of the awesome new instant cameras Polaroid makes.

• I got stuck in Denver. Ok, somewhere between Colorado Springs and Denver. About 20 miles from our destination on Friday, my the front left wheel of my dad's car started making CLUNK-CLUNK-GRIND noises, and just when we thought it couldn't get worse, it started sounding like things were falling off the car. I was riding in fear for my life for a little while there. Anyway, it turned out all right, I'm alive, car's being fixed, and we're only here two days longer than expected.

• I'm reading Nora Robert's book Black Hills and I'm having trouble getting into it. Normally, this is not so much of a problem. Actually, the beginning was good. But now that the actual plot is getting underway, I'm like, "Why is this so hard to read?" And then I hit on it. The reason. The main female character is annoying as fuck. Holy crap, I loathe her interactions with the main male character, because she's ungrateful and annoying and bitchy, when he's being concerned for her life. Lesson one, ladies: it might be annoying when your old flame tries to keep you from being killed, but shut up and let the man do it. Geez.

• I should write something instead of distracting myself from the Nora Roberts with Arthur/Merlin fanfiction. You know, I should be productive instead of being a lazy bum.

• Our hosts here in Colorado had like.... 25 avocados here, and most of them are ripe and I've been eating them constantly with their blessing. It's delicious. Avocados are some of my favorite food, and we almost never have them. But apparently our hosts got a good deal on avocados, and are pleased to let me eat away at them. There was guacamole the first night, and avocado on toast for almost every other meal since. DELICIOUS.

• There are TV shows that will be starting soon that I am seriously looking forward to. White Collar will be starting in like... a day. And the series premier Covert Affairs is either right before that or right after that. Which looks seriously awesome. Haven I guess has started, as I found it on Hulu last night and watched the first episode. It was good enough to continue watching it. I don't know what else there is, but if there's more I'm probably looking forward to it.

• Still pretty much walking on air. Being in Denver for the whole weekend has put a slight dampener on it all, but it's still there. Things are still delightful.