Ugh.

Bad cold. Not sleeping well, not breathing well. Not concentrating well. Ergo, not much happening here.

I recently bought the new All-American Rejects cd, and I love it: 1. I can't get enough of the song "Move Along." 2. I've made my peace about "Dirtly Little Secret." I no longer think it's a terrible (though catchy) song about a guy being ashamed of the girl he's with. No, I think it is more literally about our obsessions, our personal shames, our...secrets. The use of Post-Secret in the video isn't clever and incidental but intentionally surface level.

Congratulations

To the employee of the month at my Best Buy, who drives a black el Camino (for some reason it struck me as funny, and made me wish for a camera phone).

To me, who was able to reply "Pretty much, no" to the interviewer from my church checking out to be sure I wasn't someone crazy wanting to do creepy things with the children in my ministry, when he asked, "So, have you never had any problems in your life?"

Olympics

This morning I watched the opening ceremonies for the Olympics. (Last night, some friends and I had Bollywood night, eating Indian food and watching the film Dum.) I've been surprised by the tepid reaction most of my school friends are giving to the Olympics. Nobody I talked to was excited about them or even planning on watching. It sort of made me feel like the little kid with all the cosmopolitan adults who were too cool for such childishness.

But, as I watch my taped ceremony, I'm glad that I'm excited. So many people spend so much time and energy focusing on the negative, criticizing and critiquing everything that's wrong with the world today. Yesterday afternoon I went to our World Cinema Film Seminar (I actually ran it--the guy who was supposed to couldn't) where we watched and talked about Osama, a film about the terrible condition for women in Afghanistan under the Taliban. People were angry that the international community hadn't done anything to stop it, yet they also talked about how they are against the current US intervention. One girl even offered that because those of us in the room "like arty films and are more anti-Bush." Hmm. I wish I had been clever enough to respond to that.

So, this morning, seeing a world-wide effort to promote healthy relations and simply enjoy some of the pleasures of life, like sports and artistry, I was glad to be celebrating the positive good that is being done in the international community. Rather than feeling shameful, I feel piteous for those who don't want to take a moment and rest their negative energies to be happy and excited for the games to come.

Oscars

I have to admit I'm not especially excited about this year's nominees. I haven't seen most of the films though I'm working, at least, on the top five. I'll see them soon because they're nominated; they look okay, but, for the most part, they seem so groomed for the Oscars that I'm not expecting any O'Henry endings. I did see Capote on Friday and thoroughly enjoyed it. I love movies about literary people. Plus, if Philip Seymour Hoffman doesn't win the Oscar, I'll never watch them again.

(Okay, we all know that's a lie, but he seems utterly deserving.)

Freakish and Random

As I was filling out my gradebook for the semester, I noticed that eight students, a full one-third of the class, have last names beginning with "S."

I've finished the second season of Gilmore Girls. Quite fun; I'm torn over whether I want Rory to be with Dean or Jess.

I finally finished my homemade present for Eden; I can now send her the birthday/Christmas combo pack (not yet a month late!).

My cinema and the city class is awesome. Last week we watched Fallen Angels, which rocked. Alienated people wandering Hong Kong at night with cool, techno-mellow music. This week we're watching Metropolis, which I'm excited for, except for the fact that its silent and I can do absolutely nothing else, but watch it. No multi-tasking tonight.

Tuesday, Oscar nominations are announced!

Do we think this would look awful on me? It would be the perfect thing to go with my red Mary Janes that I don't know what to wear with.

And I Was Doing So Well

I was so productive the first week of school. Heck, I was even good for most of the weekend, finishing most of the week's homework and lesson plans through next Monday. But then Sunday night hit and Gilmore Girls, the first season of which I've been casually watching on dvd, got good. I was up until two a.m. last night (I teach at nine and have a 35 minute commute) watching. And again tonight, rather than finishing reading all my students writing samples, I finished the season, which ends rather cliff hanger-y and now I can't wait to get my hands on the next season. It's frightenly remniscent of last year's Buffy (not that I'm loving Gilmore Girls nearly as much); fortunately, there are only five seasons available, not seven.

I Can Quit Anytime I Want, or Media Overload

I feel overwhelmed with things to say here, so I'll probably end up saying very little and trite information at that. On Friday there was a lot of snow here, so much that my friends decided not to visit me for dinner and a movie. In the absence of my planned activity, I laid in bed for eight hours or so (I was planning on taking a nap) and watched tv.

Since school started, I feel as though I've been inundated with things to watch. One friend lent me season one of Arrested Development and another season one of Gilmore Girls. In addition, my online rental has sent me (albeit dreadfully low in my queue) the first disc of Profit. So I bounced between these three shows for the entire day. Arrested Development is hilarious in a bizarre way that I'm loving. I'm not yet in love with Gilmore Girls though I'm enjoying it enough to keep watching (like Mt. Everest, the discs must watched because they are there). Profit is disturbing and creepy in a special the-protagonist-is-a-villainous-sociopath sort of way that was too much for mainstream audiences in the mid-90s (heck, it probably still is too much for most mainstream audiences, though not you, gentle reader).

On Saturday, Friday's activities were able to be renewed. We went to see Brokeback Mountain (perhaps slight spoilers ahead). There were some raw scenes that I was uncomfortable watching, but overall, it was interesting, I guess. More interesting however was the not-so-favorable-assessment of the film by my gay friend, who convincingly noted that the film isn't really progressive. Literature/Film often has homosexual characters who are 'punished', similar to the fates of two men in this film. Also, the film seems to be playing to unrealistic fantasies (like most media).

I feel a little bad that my money went to that film, and not End of the Spear a film about Jim Elliot and Nate Saint who were killed on a missionary trip to Ecuador, which my parents are currently seeing. I hadn't really heard of the film until today, and I wasn't prepared to see another film in the theatre so soon.

Well, hopefully, I'll be able to go soon and my students will appreciate the powerpoint on "What You (Should) Already Know About Writing" that I've put together in the meantime.

The Beginning and Strangeness

First few days of the semester. I generally love it; there's nothing more exciting than getting a new syllabus or a new class--what will I read, learn, and love over the next few months? Yesterday was a little disappointing. One class didn't have a syllabus, and the other had some big talkers.

It was weird in my film class; after having the same professor for two years, I anticipated being a little nervous, but I felt like all my confidence in my proficency in the subject was gone. I couldn't speak or jump into the discussion. I felt like it was my first film class all over. Hopefully, that'll wear off soon enough and I'll be able to participate!

This morning I had my first class for teaching. I think it went ok. I have one student from last semester. The kids were all pretty quiet, but seemed eager enough. Hopefully, they'll be a fun group. I had a great bunch last semester, so I worry that they won't be the same.

Odd thing. I'm pretty sure (in the 90th percentile) that one of the students in my class is someone I went to high school with (and he was older than me). Granted, I understand that people take different paths to (or around) college--some meander more than others. But, I feel weird teaching writing to the guy who was ahead of me in Latin. Should I ask him what high school he went to and verify the connection?

Tomorrow!

The semester starts tomorrow. I'm mostly excited. I am much more productive when I have some sort of a schedule. I did however get my bathroom painted. A week into last semester I wished I would have painted it over the summer, but didn't have time until now. I did three coats and it still isn't perfect, but it's livable. I painted it a darkish orange and am going to use brown paint to add words, a quote, a verse, or some such embellishments, but haven't exactly figured out what those'll be yet. For now, it's just orange and that'll have to suffice.

I've got a meeting on campus tonight. My brother leaves tomorrow. Time for the next chapter.

More Stalking

So, when I ran into my stalkee at the office yesterday, I found a reason to go to his office (leaving a note on somebody else's desk with information that I've been meaning to give her for months). During the course of our conversation (well over a half an hour!), he mentioned his blog, to which I replied, "oh really, so anyone can read it," prompting him to give me the address. Of course, I've read it already, but now I can talk to him about it!

I've been spending a bunch of time working on my syllabus, but I think I'm happy with how the class is going to look. I'm going to have them keep blogs!

Internet Stalking

Seeing as I'm the quietish girl that didn't know how to talk to boys very well until college and still doesn't have the faintest idea of how to instigate a relationship, I excel at internet stalking--quietly gathering up every shred of information about the person to be found on the world wide web and then pining for him secretly. My latest crush has mostly dissipated in the wake of him having a harem of girls also pining for him, some probably much louder than me.

However, he wrote a fantastic journal about a coast to coast walking trip he took by himself this past summer in England. He's quite a droll writer and makes me want to go back to England (not that I need much encouragement for that). While there are a myriad of reasons why we would be perfect for each other, the one from this journal that stands out to me is from Day Twenty-Three. I have made anyone who has ever visited me and walked in the woods behind my house play Pooh Sticks. Generally, I have to explain the reference, but here's a guy who already knows it.

Sigh. Pine.

As Soon As I'm Not Lazy

(e.g. when the semester starts), I shall post this in a permanent fashion on my sidebar.

But not today.

Today, I shall just post the link here and say Post Secret is amazing. People make handmade postcards sharing a secret and send them to this guy who posts them. Its amazing. I've been reading them for several months now and I almost always laugh aloud and tear up at the same time. There's an exhibition of cards in DC that I wish I'd go to (man, I need to visit Carrie!). Cards are used in the All-American Rejects new video for "Dirty Little Secret."

Anyway, if you people haven't ever seen 'em, do so now and I promise you won't regret the time. Money back guaranteed!

Oh Yeah

Happy Blog Birthday to me! It's been exactly one year since my first post. Nothing compared to the prolific likes of Eden or Lij, but still--yay!

The Librarian

All of you should see The Librarian: Quest for the Spear. It's a little cheesy in that special made for TV way (which is silly, why should TV be an inferior medium for two-hour narratives than film...well, I suppose the environment--commercials, etc. makes it less appealing, but that doesn't mean the quality should decrease), but quite fun overall. It's very Indiana Jonesish with Noah Wyle as a man who has umpteen degrees and is the king of nerds (swoon). In case you don't see it--your loss--I will fill you in on the two best lines:

"I should have known he was evil; he gave me an A-"

from one woman to another while engaged in fisticuffs over Noah "Get your own geek"

Wicked Cool

I'm in Boston visiting the rest of my family (and the Roomies). We drove out here--18 hours--straight--not tons of fun. The hours were whiled away however by playing my new PSP and listening to my Ipod through the car radio station (its been an electronic Christmas!). Even though I've gotten lots of new gadgets and I've been watching lots of movies, etc., I haven't been tied to my computer and cell phone like I normally am. Its been rather freeing, not being connected with anything I don't physically interact with. Sorry, however, to those of you whose voice messages I haven't gotten, blogs I haven't read, etc.

When we get back home, I'll have to return to a somewhat more normal life, write my syllabus, answer emails to students complaining about their grades-blah. That will cut into my narrative time (books: On Beauty, The Italian Secretary, a couple trashy paperbacks; movies: Sherlock Holmes: A Case of Evil (with the guy who plays Darcy in the new P&P), Dangerous Lives of Alter Boys, Meet the Fockers, Serenity (shiny, Eden, shiny!), Return of the Native (Thomas Hardy and Clive Owen), Mercy, Don't Look Now, Amnityville Horror; televison: Veronica Mars, The Tick, Home Movies)

Musically, I'm thinking about new groups, does anyone have an opinion on: The Dandy Warhols or James Blunt? How about Madonna's or the All-American Rejects' new albums?

Round Up the Wagons!

We're heading west to settle Catan! My brother's good friend for the past twenty-five years came over last night, and he, my brother, and I played Settlers of Catan for eleven hours! It was fun; I felt like it was J-term and I was back at Taylor.

Detox

So, I'm done. With everything. As my dad says, I'm a free agent. I stayed at school until ten Wednesday to finish grades, but then I didn't have to go back at all. The past few days have been great; I've been winding down from the hardest semester ever.

Thursday night we got half a foot of snow, and my normally one hour drive turned into three as I made my way to the movie theater for HPIV again and TL, TW, & TW. I think this HP movie is my second favorite but close to first. I waffle between whether I like the third or fourth book better, so its an understandably tough decision. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was amazing. I loved it; I cried for a bunch of it. For me that's one of the signs of a good movie. I haven't read the book in a long, long time and have only read half of the series, so I don't even live on the same street as intense fans. But still, I think it accurately represents Lewis's vision.

Over the past few days, I've also watched Silence of the Lambs, The Thin Man, Reign of Fire, The Reckoning, and Chinatown. Yesterday I read two trashy novels and decorated the Christmas tree. Today I watched a cool documentary on the National Geographic Channel about tattoos. I baked cookies. I did laundry. I started On Beauty by Zadie Smith (whose White Teeth I adore), which is a love letter to E. M. Forster's Howards End (which I also adore).

Yipee-Kai-Yai-Yea!

I've finished everything for the classes I'm taking. I had a final tonight that was okay; I don't think there's a danger of a C, and I got an A- on my paper, so huzzah! Even if I do get a B, I suppose I don't need to get into any more schools. This is a terminal degree if I can maintain the energy and pace of grad school for three and a half more years or so.

Tomorrow I've got grading to do; Wednesday, I'm 'giving a final' (aka sitting in the room while they turn in portfolios). I'll have to grade those, assign the final grades, and then I'll be done!

I can't wait to consume massive quantities of narratives (books and movies)! Thursday Katie and I are going to see Harry Potter IV and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Should be lots o' fun.