Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire...

With all that's been going on around here, I haven't gotten much of a chance to update. Luckily, I have a few spare minutes to give all the juicy details of my thrilling existence.

On Friday, I finally flew home. It was a 6:00 flight, which was good because I needed time to finish up some yearbook spreads. I got on the train at around 3:30 and got to the airport at around four. It was a good thing that I left myself enough time, though, since it took me 40 minutes just to check my luggage. I later found out that I could only take one carry on, and I had to check my backpack before getting on the plane. Fortunately, most of my things were already in my other bag anyway. The plane ended up leaving 45 minutes late, as one of the passengers couldn't find their insulin and had to be escorted off. After landing in LA, I found my dad and sister, picked up my luggage, and went back home.

On Saturday, I met Marina and Sherilyn to see The Lion King at the Pantages theater in Hollywood. First, we went to a new mall that had opened in the area which my sister had told me about. After wandering around there, we made our way to the theater and saw the show. It was pretty well-done; many of the designs and dances were really wonderful. I'm glad that we got to see it.

After seeing Marina and Sherilyn off the next morning, I went with Chrissie to do some pre-Christmas shopping. It wasn't too bad at first, but as the day dragged on, the lines got pretty long and I was tired out. After dinner, we started wrapping the presents we had gotten. I had to stop once it had gotten late, but I was able to work on part 2 of my comic, which I'll try to put up soon.

Today has been uneventful so far, though my family is planning on seeing a movie later today.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a great holiday season!

Laziness

Today was nice and laid back... it's nice not to have schoolwork! The only productive thing I did today was some layout work for yearbook, which isn't that strenuous.

Some of my journal friends' comics inspired me to make a (bad) comic of my own when I was up late last night. Blame them.

Hurray!

It's good to be done with my work! ...well, until January at least.

I started late this morning (surprise surprise) and did a bit of routine slacking before getting to business. First, I finished packing my boxes of things that needed to be shipped. it wasn't too bad, since Denbigh is pretty close to the campus center and I didn't have to walk very far. After more slacking, I finished my prospectus second draft (it ended up being a page longer than the original) and dropped it off. So I will be able to relax for the rest of tomorrow without any pesky assignments hanging over my head. I can't wait to get back home for break so I can visit family and friends; there are a lot of fun things planned and I'm looking forward to them!

As a side note, I've been having some weird problems with my printer recently. For some reason, it won't print yellow at all. I replaced the cartridge soon after I noticed the problem, so it's not an issue of the ink running out. Does anyone have an idea of what the problem might be?

And Another One Bites the Dust...

Today was my film class final. I did an hour or two of studying, which basically consisted of reviewing the films we screened as well as skimming through the textbook. I felt relatively confident about it, and I'm glad that it's finally out of the way. So all I have to do is edit my prospectus and I'm DONE!

This Journal Entry Has Been Brought To You By The Letter B

Today mostly consisted of slacking, though I was able to pack some things to be shipped and do a tiny bit of studying for my exam tomorrow. Hopefully the exam won't be too difficult, but you never know.

In other news, for some reason the 'b' key in my computer seems to be acting up; I have to pound the keyboard extra hard for it to work. It's really annoying, but I do have to say that I never realized how many words contain the letter 'b' until now.

Three Down, Two to Go

The good news for today: I was able to get my chaos mini-portfolio done! It only took about an hour, so I feel silly for having put it off a bit. I have completed the work for three of my classes; now all I have to do is take an exam on Tuesday and edit my prospectus. I don't think that's unmanageable at all, so I'm feeling pretty good about it. It's nice that this semester ended without a huge crunch for once.

I later got a call from my sister, who had gotten back from college the other day. She seems to be doing well, and I'll be looking forward to seeing her and everyone else in a few days.

Parties and Stuff

Well, I finally finished my paper. The topic the professor gave was incredibly broad, encompassing the entire semester, so it's not surprising that my paper ended up being much longer than intended (nearly 2000 words rather than 1000). I played with the fonts, spacing, and margins a bit, and the paper magically shrunk from eight to five pages. I got on the Haverford bus to turn it in, and just missed the bus back. Fortunately, a student who was going that way saw me and offered to drive me to campus. When I got back, I was able to tidy up my room. It's nice to have my room not looking like a pig sty and I like being able to walk about my room without having to tiptoe around books and papers.

Later this evening, I went to the end of semester 'senior dinner'. Sadly, I hadn't been able to RSVP, since I rarely check my campus email and didn't know about it until the last minute; I had to be on the waiting list for a while. It was fun; the food was good and it was nice to chat with a bunch of friends.

Right now it's really loud in the hallways; a lot of people are partying and drinking, which is not fun if all you're doing is listening to it. I also found out why co-ed bathrooms can be a hassle, at least when there are several drunk guys around. Fortunately, I had learned something from previous experiences and bought earplugs; wearing them helps make the noise more bearable.

Wrapping Up

I spent some of my productive time today finishing up my Chaos paper (it's not due for a while, unlike the poster). When I was not procrastinating or working on that, I went to class. My presentation went pretty well; people seemed impressed that I would go to all the trouble of constructing the first 5 iterations of a Koch snowflake by hand.

Later that evening, I had my last Senior Seminar class for the semester. We didn't have a discussion; instead, the professor brought food and wine and we just sort of hung out and talked about, among other things, Main Line drivers, Xena: Warrior Princess, and another professor's (he came for the free food) Darien adventure movie project.

Tonight and tomorrow morning I will work on my 20th Century Russia paper. The problem is that the subject she gave is sort of vague, so I'll probably end up fudging it a bit.

Shame on Me

I was both productive and unproductive today. Since I knew I wouldn't have enough time to do my (self-scheduled) Real Analysis exam later, I studied and took it this afternoon. I felt more confident about it than I thought I would, and, though we were given a maximum of three hours in which to take the test, I was able to finish it in half the time. I hope that my finishing early doesn't simply reflect carelessness. I felt able to answer the questions, despite my impression that one of the questions came 'out of left field' and confused me at first.

After a bit (perhaps a bit too much) of celebratory slacking, I went to the final film class movie night; the featured film was Spike Lee's Bamboozled. It was, well, pretty disturbing.

I had hoped to finish my Chaos write-up tonight, but I suddenly got very into computer games and was unable to force myself to work for a long time. I have now finished about half of the paper, and I'm a little ashamed that I had such trouble starting something that's pretty straightforward. It seems like my primary motivation for doing many things is simply to avoid facing unpleasant but simple tasks; while I know I would have a more rewarding life if less of it was consumed by avoidance tactics, I can never quite bite the bullet when it comes to getting work done.

So Sleepy...

Well, I have just about finished with my poster. It took me long enough, but I wanted to do it now so that I would have time to take an exam tomorrow (today, technically). I spent much of my non-class time working on it, but at least I have a handle on it, and I doubt I'll have much trouble on the write up, since the poster forced me to organize my thoughts. I will have to present the poster on Thursday, but the paper isn't due until the exam period.

Well, I guess this is good night (er, morning)!

Doing Work

I had another late start today, but I managed to pick up my film, finish my reading, and do some work on my math project.

I got a gift basket from home today. It's nice that they think of me, but half of the things in the baskets are things I don't eat and end up giving away anyways. And it's kind of funny that my mom will harp on my weight and then give me a basket with lots of food in it. Ah, hypocrisy...

Most of the Rosencrantz... photos didn't come out very well, but I have enough good shots to work with. Shooting photos of productions is difficult, since there's limited light and a lot of action, and it's not really appropriate to use flash. Even though I was using relatively high speed 800 film, it's difficult to take good pictures. On the bright side, the photos of the production I was in came out well; they were taken after the production and were posed, plus there was more light.

It was difficult for me to get down to doing my reading at first. I sometimes have trouble finding a good place, where I won't be distracted or uncomfortable. My room's a bad place to study, since I often get tempted to use the computer or rest. Libraries aren't always the best place to study either. Dorm lounges and the space immediately outside my room are better, but there's the noise problem.

Anyway, after finishing with my reading, I did some math project work... the bulk of which consisted of counting lots and lots of little blue squares. I'd be hard pressed to think of something that could be more of a threat to one's sanity.

I was also able to order the plane tickets for my Seattle trip this evening. I can't wait until school's out!

Chilly Sundays

I started late again this morning. Oh well.

This afternoon, I walked to the local pharmacy to develop the rolls of film I had used the other night. I was hoping to spend the hour it took to do some reading in a nearby coffee shop. However, they were running late, and the photos wouldn't be ready until 5 o'clock. I went to the coffee shop for a little reading, but I wasn't about to stay until five, and the weather's starting to get cold, so I didn't want to walk all the way back later. I'll get the film tomorrow.

After getting back and doing a little slacking, I did some more reading. Once I finish this book, I'll be done with all the reading for the semester, which is a relief but a bit scary as well. I can't believe that I only have two weeks before I go back to California.

Stark Raving Sane

Last night, as I was about to turn off the computer and go to bed, I got a call from my sister. She was a little down and in need of reassurance, and her friends at school didn't cut it. We joked around, and she seemed a bit happier when we ended the conversation. I ended up getting to bed really late, though.

Unsurprisingly, I woke up rather late the next morning. Once I had finished with my usual procrastination routines, I did some work on my Chaos project. I worked on the poster, which contains 5 iterations of a Koch Snowflake. So I basically spent the bulk of my day drawing lots and lots of tiny triangles.

This evening, I went to take Yearbook photographs of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. It was pretty good, especially for a student production. More importantly, at least for my purposes, I was able to get nearly three rolls of pictures, so I should have at least a few good shots to use for the Yearbook.

After I got back, I called my sister (she had asked me to call back last night). Unfortunately, we didn't get much of a chance to talk, since she was about to meet a friend for a movie.

Math and Stuff

Yesterday I went to classes, which were thankfully pretty laid back. Chaos was particularly relaxed; it basically consisted of meeting about our final projects and playing catch-up while everyone else was meeting. That evening, I went to chat, which was unusually lively. More people there than I think I've ever seen before.

This morning, I got up, did my math homework, and went to class. The professor wasn't there (she went to the hospital... she's pregnant and was due about this time) and another professor came in her place. It was basically review, so it wasn't anything important. After a bit of slacking, I went to Staples and got some materials for my Chaos project. I pretty much spent the remainder of the day working on it.

Inaction

I didn't do much today, other than read a few xeroxes that I got yesterday. Later, I went to the weekly movie (John Cassavetes' Shadows) and went to chat. Tonight I'll be reading a short recap paper for class; hopefully it won't be meaningless rambling because I'm so tired.

Sleepy

On Monday morning I was up very late doing work (ineffectively, I might add) and I only got three hours of sleep. I was sort of out of it for the rest of the day, and it didn't help that I didn't get an opportunity to nap until about five in the evening. I took a quick nap before getting something to eat; after eating, I surfed the web, chatted, finished doing the laundry, did some reading, and took a quiz for class. I then went to chat, but nobody was there, so I decided to take a quick nap. Next thing I knew, it was 8'o clock the next day. Oh well. I did need the extra sleep anyways, so perhaps it's better that I took a 'night off'.

On a side note, I had to throw my cactus out today. It was never quite the same after part of it got cut off, and yesterday morning I found it sort of slumped over. I always knew I had a 'brown thumb' but one would think that I could at least take care of a cactus. Maybe things will turn out better the next time I get a plant.

La de da...

Today I got up just in time to get to class. After finishing class, I tried to get work done; however, I didn't do all that much. I was able to buckle down and get the Yale app in, though. After dinner, there was a Yearbook party, which basically consisted of watching Legally Blonde. I was also able to get some photos for my section. Later, I did some reading, and I hope to finish it up later tonight. Well, that's it.

I Did Reading! Stay Tuned for More News!

Today was more productive than yesterday. Though the bulk of my morning and afternoon was dedicated to slacking, I was still able to get a decent amount of work done. I completed my reading for film class (though it was admittedly a short assignment) and senior sem (this week's readings focused on the history of sex and the body) as well as making some inroads into my 20th century Russia reading. I only have a bit of reading to do tonight and tomorrow morning. Hopefully I'll be able to dedicate more time to math tomorrow.

In other news, I am pretty hungry tonight. I ran out of clementines (several of them were rotten and had to be thrown away, so they didn't last as long as they should have), and I skipped lunch, since there's only brunch here on sundays. Sunday dinners are usually pretty filling, and I had a good meal, but, since I ate early, I'm now hungry again. Oh well.

Blah

Today I had my usual late start, getting out of bed around noon. Most of the day I slacked, surfing the web and watching DVDs. I was able to get a little bit of reading done at the end of the day, though.

So, that's my day. I'm afraid is was not terribly interesting, even by my standards.

Meetings

I put off my homework until the last minute again; luckily it was easy enough that I could finish it fairly quickly. I then went to class and lunch, after which I relaxed a bit. At around 3, I met with the Yearbook editors and turned in some pictures. One of the editors liked some computer graphics stuff that I did for the book last year, so she asked me to do something similar for the color section. I was also able to turn in some photos; they particularly seemed to appreciate the Halloween photos I took.

Later that evening, I went over to meet some of my fellow history majors; we had previously arranged to meet as a group to go out to a bar. Unfortunately, only two other people showed up. However, they were people I knew pretty well and got along with, and we had a fun time gossiping and talking about our lives. It might have been harder to handle with a large group anyway. In any case, it was enjoyable and I'm glad I went.

Fog and Rain

Today was good enough for a Thursday. I had trouble getting up this morning, but was nonetheless able to make the bus to Haverford for my class. My classes were fine; for my thesis class, the prof passed out snacks and wine as a way to celebrate the fact that she got some copies of her book today.

The weather today was very foggy, with a little bit of rain at times. I like having that sort of weather; I guess I've gotten my fill of sunny weather from living in LA for so long and thus can appreciate foggy weather. I love the way it diffuses the world around me, and how twigs and other things in the foreground seem crisper through the contrast with the rest of the atmosphere. I think fog lends an almost otherworldly appearance to my surroundings, something I really enjoy.

My Darling Clementines

I spent most of today writing a paper for class. Well, maybe I should say that I spent a decent amount of time writing the paper and the bulk of my day avoiding it. Anyway, after finishing, I walked to Haverford to drop off the paper. On the way back, I stopped by the supermarket to get some food. They having a sale on boxes of clementines, so I got one. I haven't had clementines in a long time, and they're one of my favorite fruits, so it's really good to have them to snack on (they're healthier than pizza in any case).

I microwaved my dinner, and looking at my watch, I realized that I had almost forgotten that it was film class. I rushed to class just in time. We watched a pair of documentaries: a 1960's cinéma vérité called High School and a 1930's state documentary called The River. It wasn't the most exciting screening, but that's okay.

Class and Things

Today, I got a sort of late start; I guess staying up late Sunday caught up with me. I skipped lunch (it was hot dog and onion rings day, which I hate) and went to classes. In Chaotic Dynamical Systems, we were studying fractals, and about half the class time was devoted to coloring in Sierpinski triangles. You get a ST when you take an equilateral triangle and inscribe it with an empty triangle, and take the three resulting triangles and do the same, and so forth. It looks like this:


I also got my midterm grade back... I got an A-, which I'm happy with, particularly since I knew I made some mistakes with the calculations.

I then went to film class, where I turned in my Wizard of Oz paper. We continued the discussion on experimental films, which was alright since I felt more awake than last time and they only showed portions of the more interesting films from last week.

After relaxing a little and having dinner (it wasn't good, and I ended up only having bread, cereal, and dessert), I went to the library to do some reading; I was able to finish Kruschev's 'secret speech' and the textbook chapter on the 'Thaw'.

The Joys of Writing Long and Tedious Papers

Thanks to the tea I had, I had a great deal of trouble getting to sleep last night; while trying to get some shuteye, I ended up spending my time downloading TV off of Morpheus and mindlessly surfing the web.

I was eventually able to get a small amount of sleep. I woke up and did some work on my prospectus before going to class. After class, I ate lunch and continued work on the prospectus, though I was interrupted midway by a call from my sister. She told me about the trip that she and her friend took to San Francisco to see Lily Tomlin in the play The Search For Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (last year, Chrissie did a one-woman performance of the play). They were able to see Lily Tomlin after the performance; she signed their programs and took a couple of photos with them.

I finally finished my prospectus with just enough time to spare. I turned it in and had dinner, after which I kicked back a little before going to the library for a some reading. I haven't finished the reading, though; hopefully I'll be able to work on that later tonight.

Procrastination XIV: Sloth's Revenge

Today was another day in which my laziness fot the better of me. I did a little bit of work on paper #2 (due Wednesday) and have started on my prospectus (due by 5 tomorrow). Fortunately, the prospectus is only ten pages, rather than fifteen as I originally thought. I'm going to try and do the bulk of the work tonight, and continue working on it tomorrow. The project description shouldn't be too hard, but I worry about the literature review and the methodology a bit. The last part is a bibliography, which is a no-brainer.

I wish that the vacation were longer, but I know that I would probably put things off just as much if I had the extra time. I get so frustrated with myself sometimes, yet that frustration doesn't seem to prevent me from procrastinating whenever I get the chance. I just overanalyze my procrastination problem and am too paralyzed to get down to work. It's only when I'm really desparate to get something done that it actually gets finished. Otherwise, I just can't work up the energy to focus on work. Oh, well.

In other news, I am literally counting the days until the semester ends and I can go back to California. I have a pretty exciting vacation in store. Seeing my family is always good of course, and in the case of winter break there isn't enough time for me to get frustrated with everybody. Plus, I'll get to see Marina and Fred, which should be a lot of fun. Right after I get back home, I'll be seeing the musical version of The Lion King and doing some last minute Christmas shopping with Marina. A bit later, I'll be flying to Seattle to visit Fred for a few days. It should be exciting, and it's something to look forward to as I wade through the sea of papers and projects.

A Very Short Entry

Today I've been feeling better... of course, that didn't translate into getting more work done, but oh well. I'll get up early tomorrow, I promise!

Fun at the Post Office

I'm feeling better today, though it's still very quiet around here. It's really frustrating not to be able to talk to people, especially since the holidays have made people pretty scarce both on and offline; I'm more isolated than I usually am.

Fortunately, I was able to mail all but one of the applications I had worked on (the Yale app requires an extra 250 word mini-paper, and I haven't even gotten the Northwestern app) as well as a few Christmas presents. I later called home, and for a short time I was able to talk to Chrissie en route to San Francisco; however, before long, she was out of range. I was pretty lazy most of the day, though I was able to get my plot segmentation done and am working on the accompanying essay. Hopefully I'll get the two essays done tonight so I can devote the weekend to my prospectus.

Loneliness

I'm feeling pretty lonely right now. In part I'm just allowing me to feel sorry for myself, in part it's the situation of being one of the few people who is alone today (well, it's after midnight, so I should say yesterday, shouldn't I?), and in part the feelings that I'm usually able to ignore are appearing because the situation is conducive to it.

It's not like I don't have friends, and I would be doing many great people a disservice if I said I was friendless, but at some level I still feel a bit peripheral to what's going on. I feel like, to many (though not all) people who I'd consider a 'friend', I'm more tolerated than actively liked. Perhaps I'm setting my standards too high.

In any case, it's largely my own fault, since I don't always make myself emotionally available. I try to be a nice person, but I'm not always open about my feelings to other people.

Well, that's really enough self-indulgent moping for now. I think I'm feeling better anyway. Anyway, I was able to finish my personal statement, and have copied it below for your entertainment. It is quite amusing, and I'm sure you'll get a few laughs out of it.

Turkey Day

I was sort of down when I got up this morning (er, afternoon), and consequently didn't do very much besides my laundry. Late in the afternoon, I got a call from my family with Thanksgiving wishes, and I think that lifted my spirits a little. I was able to clean my room and fill out forms for law schools. Hopefully I'll be able to mail in several of the applications, along with some Xmas gifts, tomorrow. They're not due until February 1st, but getting applications in early does make a difference. Tonight, I face the task of writing a personal statement and resume along with working on my two short papers. Wish me luck!

Anyway, I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Eve

I was able to get some grad school forms over to my deans this morning, but other than that, I wasn't very productive. I spent most of the afternoon just surfing the web and chatting, though I was able to go over to the supermarket to get some food for tomorrow (Thanksgiving by yourself is depressing enough... no need to make it worse by not having any food around). It was a bit packed, unsurprisingly.

Right now, the campus is pretty deserted, with only a few diehards like me staying around for the break. Even some of the international students are able to get away by taking trips with friends. I know it would be terribly impractical to leave, though. I have three papers (one that's 15 pages long) to write in addition to applications and the usual reading. Plus airfare is steep, and it's just not worth it for such a short trip. But I do feel like something of an oddball nonetheless.

Calm Before the Storm

I had to wake up early this morning, since I had a meeting with my dean about graduate school. I wouldn't have scheduled it for a Tuesday morning, but she couldn't meet on Friday or Monday because she was sick. She agreed that it probably would be best for me to concentrate my ennergies on law schools, but said that it was a good idea for me to take the GRE while I was still in college.

I then had the usual round of classes. Today was the math presentation. My partner and I used powerpoint for our presentation, so we looked really on top of things. Film class was devoted to experimental films... some of them would be the perfect cure for insomnia.

Later that evening, I met with the other person working on the Arts section in the Yearbook. We entered a layout into the computer and agreed to meet after break. After that, I went to take a (self-scheduled) math quiz.

Today was pretty nice, since this week is relatively light on work. I was able to relax a little bit and goof off without feeling (too) guilty. Of course tomorrow is another matter...

More Late Nights

I woke up late (again) today, and did some more reading, plus I did some organizational work for my applications. If I only apply to law schools, I might not even need a third reccomender, since none of the apps I have require any more, and I doubt that the two I haven't gotten are different.

I have to work on yet another paper today, but it's basically an 'expansion' on an older one, so it's not as difficult a task. My workload is fairly light this weekend, but after break... look out.

I also got a call from my sister this evening, though she wasn't able to talk for long. She congratulated my on my LSAT scores (they were good but not outstanding... I got a 165, in the 93rd percentile) and told me about a casting workshop at USC which she attended. She didn't have the time to give me the details, but she said that the casting director of the Accused (starring Jodie Foster, her acting 'role model') came up to her to say how talented she was.

* Actually, the casting director who came up to her was from ER; the Accused person was there as a guest but didn't participate in the workshop part. The neat thing is that the director is very 'exclusive' and doesn't see people unless he has them in mind already, so this is really a foot in the door for her.

Sleeping In

Last night I tried to go to sleep after the party had stopped and the music had been turned off; however, there were semi-drunk sounding people talking loudly on the stairs right by my door. Occasionally someone would say "Shhh!", but that really had no discernable effect. I tried to muffle it by putting pillows over my head, but that didn't help much either. I eventually fell asleep, but I didn't enjoy having a bunch of loud people right outside my door.

Unsurprisingly, I got a late start this morning. The alarm woke me up, but I was so tired that I just got up and turned it off before going back to sleep again. I was so groggy that I even unrooted one of my cactus plants in the process of going to my dresser to turn off the alarm and had to throw it away (luckily, I wasn't pricked or anything).

After waking up again, having lunch, and procrastinating, I did some work on the second part of my film class project; a 4-6 page analysis of a particular sequence of the film. I decided to do the Munchkinland sequence, so I ended up taking an insane amount of notes and DVD screengrabs to work with. Once I had finished with that, I made some progress on a book I'm reading for class; hopefully I'll get that finished early tomorrow.

Annoying Parties

I started my day with math work. After lunch, I went to schedule an appointment with my dean. I then spent some time on the computer before heading over to do some yearbook layouts. In a way, I don't know why I keep doing yearbook, since I'm pressed for time as it is. I guess you could call me an overambitious underachiever; I have a lot of things I want to do, but when I try and do them I'm not able to do much of anything.

Interestingly enough, I bumped into an old high school classmate while doing yearbook stuff (she goes to Haverford, and is the only person from my high school in the Bi-Co); the Yearbook office is in the anthropology/psychology building, and she's majoring in anthropology. We said 'hi' and chatted for a minute before going our separate ways. I think it's always odd when you see someone from your past unexpectedly, since you don't have the mental preparation to deal with them.

I then went back to start work on a film project. We have to do a plot segmentation and essay on one of the films we've covered in class. Because I thought it would be more straightforward (and because I could get a hold of the DVD), I chose The Wizard of Oz. It was interesting to see the movie again, though I have to say that I find Glinda a lot more annoying now that I'm not seven years old anymore.

Right now, a bunch of people are throwing a party right across from my room... needless to say, it's quite aggravating.

Thor's Day

Today was relatively decent for a Thursday. I woke up early to drop off my paper, then checked my usual round of websites and had a half-hour nap before getting on the bus for Haverford(where I have my morning class). After class, I talked to my professor about reccomendations, but I'll expand on that later. I then walked back to Bryn Mawr (because we talked, I had missed the bus) and had lunch. I had a few minutes of downtime in which I typed a short proposal for a Chaotic Dynamical Systems final project (I want to do something on Koch snowflakes) before going to class. Class was pretty laid back, though the professor assigned us to present various exam problems to the class (he liked the way I did a certain problem on interest rates, so I'll be doing that one). I then went to my film class, after which I had another thesis meeting. Later that night, I had to talk for ten minutes about my thesis, which went okay, though I don't like talking about something unless I really know what I'm talking about.

Okay, now it's time to backtrack. I talked to the professor and she expressed some doubts about the entire 'applying to history and law grad schools' thing. Basically she said that, because of the limited prospects for history students, schools limit their number of students and only want people who are really passionate about history. I don't know if I am really that committed; the fact that I'm 'hedging my bets', so to speak, sort of testifies to that. Plus I think I could see myself going to law school more easily than history grad school. Taking that into consideration, I don't know whether it's worth the time and effort (not to mention the money) to apply. I am going to talk it over with my parents later tonight.

La de da...

Let's see... what happened today...?

I went to class and then spent the rest of my day trying to write. I even got rid of my net connection for a while. I have made some progress, but I'm still sort of blocked on it. It's really frustrating, because I have nothing to write about and can't really use quotes to make my paper longer.

Tonight's movie was M, directed by Fritz Lang and featuring Peter Lorre (I think this was his first big role). It was good, but I was sort of frustrated because they were pretty lazy with the subtitles, and only translated the most vital scraps of information. And at points the white subtitles were shown against a white background, making it impossible to read the little translation they provided.

Torpid Tuesdays

Today I finished up my math exam. I got up later than I expected, and encountered a few unexpected problems, but I was able to figure things out and turned it in. I also was able to get a second professor to write a reccomendation, so I only have one more to track down. I later did some reading, took a math quiz, and did some application work.

My day was less than eventful, so I don't have much of interest to say... so here's a picture!


Wasn't I cute?

Overwhelmed

Today was sort of mixed. I went to class, turned in my paper, and did part of my math exam (it's unlimited time and open book/notes/etc.). Part of the exam dealt with making the bifurcation graph below.

Papers and Procrastination

I am currently alternating between a paper, this journal, and chat, so my thoughts might be a little scattered. I am doing alright on the paper, though I can tell it's going to be more than a little long. I wish I had the ability to simply sit down and write a paper without causing myself undue worry; as it is, papers that should be simple undertakings are stretched out needlessly by my own procrastinating.

Today I was feeling a little down for some reason... I think that perhaps that hindered my ability to do work. My mind was sort of distracted, never a good thing when you need to do a good deal of work in a short time.

And, as an attempt to make my journal less boring, here's Sunny!

Getting Personal

Today I slept in a bit, but I was nonetheless able to get some reading done. Tonight, if all goes well, I will do a paper for class. Tomorrow will be jam-packed with excitement, as I work on more reading, a take-home math exam, thesis stuff, and application stuff (including the two-page 'personal statement').

I am sometimes uneasy about these personal statements for college. Something about laying down something that states 'this is who I am and here's what makes me tick' makes me uncomfortable; I have trouble reducing myself to a short explanation of my personality. I think it's hard to approach yourself objectively anyways, since a person is almost always too self-interested to divorce their romanticized conception of themselves with the person they are.

A related issue is that of presenting oneself in the context of a college or graduate school 'personal statement'; the image of the ideal student inevitably looms over such compositions. After all, it is not in an applicant's interests to present themselves as they are... they are trying to paint the 'right' image of themselves (though perhaps adding enough of their own quirks to stand out). Ironically enough, these statements can't ever truly be personal.

Anyway, I hope I'll be able to get this work done without too much trouble. I have so much to do this week that it's crazy.

Food for Thought

Today I had the usual round of classes and stuff. I was able to get a decent amount of work done, which is always a good thing, though there is still quite a bit on my agenda. Tonight was also movie night for film class; we watched Sergei Eisenstein's Strike.

The cafeteria served less-than-good things today, so I ended up not eacting much. I was reminded of a thought I've had, usually during midterms and finals. During 'on' semesters, I tend to lose more weight than during an 'off' semester. It seems that, for some reason, I'm more able to do unpleasant work when I'm slightly hungry. Otherwise, I tend to be lethargic and procrastinate. I guess human beings, as organisms, don't feel an instinctual need to work (which at a basic level means getting food) when they're full. But this is just empty speculation...

Perhaps I can try and figure out a way to get in a more 'hardworking' mentality... spending a lot of time putting off work can really be draining, especially when the work catches up with you.

Classes and Things

Last night I looked at possible classes for next semester and worked on a tentative syllabus. Here it is:

Monday, Wednesday, & Friday -
Intro To Real Analysis II - A continuation of the real analysis class I'm taking this semester. I need it to complete my minor.
Abnormal Psychology - (M,W) I think this'll be an interesting class. I haven't taken much Psychology, and it seemed like one of the more interesting offerings.
Senior Seminar - (M) It's the thesis class. I wonder why I'm signing up...

Tuesday & Thursday -
17th and 18th Century Art in France - I've taken classes from the professor before, and they were pretty good. Plus, it'll be good to have an art history class.
Creative Writing - This class is very difficult to get into; I tried unsuccessfully to get into it my Sophmore year. Hopefully I'll be able to play my senior card, though.

I think the schedule is better than this semester's... I don't have more than three classes on any one day, and the bulk of classes are at the beginning of the week, so that crunch comes during the weekend when I have the time/energy to deal with it.

On to today... it was fairly uninteresting, even by my standards. I went to classes, did some reading, and surfed the web. I did get a picture of me (from Sure Thing) in the school newspaper though.

Insert Title Here

This morning, I performed the miracle of actually getting up early... hurray for me! Once I felt suitably conscious, I went to the campus center and got my senior portraits done before class started. Hopefully I don't look too hideous.

After class, I managed to do a little reading before going to dinner. I met with the rest of the cast and we went to dinner. Since restaurants would be a tad pricey and nobody felt like the regular dining halls, so we ate at Batten House, where the director lives. Batten's a small pseudo-dorm that's themed towards environmental and social activism. They make (vegetarian) dinners each night, and guests are invited to drop in, so we came and had some food while we chatted with some of the residents. It was sort of an informal requirement that guests play some type of name game; we had to name our favorite vegetable (I said corn) and Ben and Jerry's flavor (cookie dough). I then went back to my room and did some more reading before heading to chat.

Do you like Entemann's crumb cake?

I got up late again, though it wasn't quite as bad as yesterday. I met with the yearbook person and we arranged to meet again later. After several futile attempts to study, I got ready for the second (and final) performance of the show I'm in. It went well, though not as well as last night. After the performance, the cast and director took down the lights and we agreed to have dinner the next day.

So that's my day. You will be quizzed on it later, so if you have any questions you'd better ask them now.

Lazy Fridays

It was a pretty laid-back Friday. After class, I had a quick lunch and got ready to meet with someone on the yearbook staff. Problem is, she forgot about it and never showed up. I then went to the bookshop and ordered a class ring, something my parents insisted that I do. A while later, I went over to an afternoon rehearsal. We were in the actual performance space (in the library cafe) for the first time. After getting back, I relaxed a bit before going to the supermarket and having dinner.

I talked to my sister this afternoon; she seemed to be doing well. She told me that she made a wish list on Amazon, so I followed her lead and made a small list of my own.

My Random Babbling

I'm feeling a bit more awake now. After a convoluted Foucault discussion, I went to the math lab. I basically spent the time typing a bunch of numbers into spreadsheets for a bifurcation graph. It wasn't challenging, but it was dull. I then ran over to rehearsal; it was fun but ended after midnight, even later than usual.

Something I've been thinking about lately is how my relationships with other people have changed over the years. Though I'm nowhere near extroverted, I feel more comfotable dealing with people; I'm not so much out of my element as I used to be. However, there isn't really a clique of college friends I hang out with. It was a little different during my first year, since the college puts all frosh into hall groups and they tend to become pretty close. But I think the college mentality is different from high school, and it's not so necessary that you find a group of people to hang out with during lunch breaks and the like. It can make things more difficult occasionally, since there isn't an 'automatic support group' who you can be around at parties or have lunch with.

I don't mind the situation, though. I feel much more comfortable around friends than I used to. I always felt somewhat peripheral among my circle of friends in high school; I hung out with them during lunch and breaks, but I didn't really spend much time with them outside of school and extracurricular activities. In large part that's because I lived far from the school and it was impractical, but my shyness also played a factor. I don't think many of the people there got the chance to know me. My shyness is still there, but I generally feel more able to cope with it now.

Yawn...

I have some time to kill before Senior Sem class, and the rest of my night is pretty packed, so I figure now would be a good time to give my daily update. Well, I was in no mood to write my paper last night; I had a terrible headache and was too tired to concentrate. So I woke up early and did it when I was more rested. Of course, that led me to be a bit tired for the rest of the day, but I think that would have happened either way.

Tonight I have the aforementioned class, plus math lab (I have to work on a project with a partner) and rehearsal. I'm having fun with the play, but I'll be glad when it's over and done with, since late night rehearsals are inevitably pretty taxing.

The Graveyard Shift

The spookiest thing I came across on Halloween was my math exam; it took two hours (max. time= 2 1/2 hours) and was self-scheduled. After my class, and exam, I dressed up in my costume and passed out candy to kids of the faculty and staff who were trick-or-treating in the dorms. I tried to get some reading done, and then I went to my class screening of Strangers on a Train, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It was an entertaining movie and I enjoyed it.

I then tried to do some work before rehersals. I microwaved some popcorn and ended up burning it, so now I smell like burnt popcorn (though someone in rehersal thought I smelled like sausage instead). Anyway, I went to rehearsal, where I did, uh, rehearsal-type things. And now I'm back here.

Tonight's going to be a lot of 'fun'... I have a short paper to do, so I think I'll be up pretty late. Hopefully I'll be able to get it done fairly quickly.

Anass Athena Thea...

Today I woke up pretty early. I spent most of my morning getting grad school applications together, a long overdue task. I got sort of lazy in the middle of the day, though.

Tonight was Lantern Night, one of Bryn Mawr's traditions. Luckily, I was able to get a ticket, so I made my way to Thomas Hall, where the ceremony was being held. I had a ticket for the roof, so I had to climb through a window to get there. I also tried to take photos, but I think things were so dark that it was futile, despite the 1600 film I brought. After waiting a while, all the lights in the building were turned off, and things were almost silent as the frosh proceeded onto the courtyard. The songsmistresses chanted a song in Greek as sophmore 'runners' ran and gave the frosh their traditional Bryn Mawr lanterns. This year's class has red as it's class color, and consequently gets red lanterns; my class color is dark blue (what a fun fact!). The songsmistresses led everyone in another Greek song as the frosh proceeded off. Next is step sing, but I opted out of that because I was cold and wanted to go back to my room.

Party Hopping

Today I woke up rather late (1 pm), so my plans to be productive were somewhat shattered. I did go on the library website for some thesis sources and also typed up my Sure Thing lines so I could memorize them more easily.

This evening, I got in my costume and went to two Halloween parties. It was okay; I'm not really much of a party person, though. I think I enjoyed making the costume and taking Yearbook photos of people more than actually being at the parties themselves. Parties bore me for the most part; I feel awkward and I find things a bit superficial for my tastes. I'd rather do something with a small group of close friends or work on an interesting project. Nonetheless, it was good to get out of my dorm, and I got some compliments on my costume (I'll have to post a picture once I develop the roll).

So sleepy...

I started the day with math homework, went to math class, and, after a break, did more math homework. Fun, huh?

This afternoon, I made some alterations to my costume. Since I got it at a thrift shop, I couldn't exactly be picky, and it's slightly big on me. So I got a curtain and fashioned it into a ruffle for the shoulders. It came out alright, though not spectacularly. After all, I don't have any model besides myself, so I have to sew and model at the same time, an especially difficult thing when the fabric is on my shoulders and I have to keep my arms relatively still.

I then went to take Yearbook photos for an acapella concert. It was short, and they served good snacks, so that was fun. I then got to watch some TV, since the lounge was empty.

Tomorrow's going to be a busy day. I only hope that I can get all that I intend to get done finished.

Time for a Math-a-Thon! Oh Joy!

Today I did the unexpected and went to classes. I tired to wake up a bit early this morning (6:45 or so), and that made me a little tired for the rest of the day. After classes were done, I went to the math lab, where I had to do some TrueBasic programs for a homework assignment. I finished just in time for another rehearsal. Tonight I have a pile of math homework that I can't put off, so I'll be working on it for the rest of the night/morning. Loads of fun!

Attack of the Killer Time-Eating Paper! (Yes, I Like Cheesy Horror Movie Rip-Off Titles)

I spent the bulk of my day working on my paper and turning it in, always a fun thing. It was one of those times when I spent as much (maybe more) time avoiding the actual work by surfing the net or playing Tetris as I did writing. I was planning on getting some math done today, but I guess that'll have to wait.

Today was movie night for film class; we watched Citizen Kane. It's a good movie, of course, and I enjoyed it, but I wasn't really in the mood to watch a movie tonight (especially since I've seen Citizen Kane before). I have too much work to take care of. After that, I had another rehearsal for the skit I'm in. We ran through the scene once before we went on our merry ways.

Surprise Surprise

After getting up and surfing the net a little, I made my way to my first class. I was actually a little ahead of schedule (the teacher pushed the syllabus back a bit) on the reading! I still have a paper to write for the class though; tonight will most likely be a caffeine-fest as I try to get it done. For my third class of the day, I had an unpleasant surprise; I walked in the classroom to find the other students working on a test (I thought that it would be given on Thursday). Giving a test on the first class after break is just evil in my opinion. Fortunately, I have a pretty good memory and was able to handle it.

After the usual stalling, I managed to get some reading done, after which I went to rehearsal for Sure Thing. We ran through it once and had a few notes, but a lot of the time we just hung out. When we were talking about programs, Promise (who had just seen a few scribbles on my script) suggested that I do the artwork for it, and everyone seemed to think it was a good idea. So I'm happy about that. The production's going to be performed really soon, so I'd better get cracking and memorize my lines.

Vacation! ...and Going Back to the Grind

I had a very fun time in San Francisco (If you want to get technical, I was actually in the nearby city of San Jose). On Friday morning, I finished packing last minute things and, after checking my email, made my way to the train station. I checked in at the airport and went to one of the restaurants there for lunch. I then made my way to the gate. As the airlines are now taking extra precautions, the line to enter the terminal was longer than usual but not unreasonable; it took about five minutes.

The Return of the Attack of the Killer Thesis!

This afternoon, I went back to the American Philosophical Society archives to do some preliminary work on my thesis. I got to look at some documents, plus I was able to get some advice on other places to visit (happily enough, one of the places suggested was the archive at Haverford, which is pretty accessible). I didn't have enough time to look in depth, but I think I got a good start. The train trip also allowed me to catch up on some reading I had been slacking on.

After I got back, I didn't do all that much, but I was able to clean up a graphic that I had been meaning to work on for a while.

Semi-Productivity

Today wasn't the most productive day ever, but I at least managed to get a little bit done. I called the American Philosophical Society and arranged to visit the archives again tomorrow, so that should be interesting. After making the call, I went over to the supermarket and got some food. I did a tiny bit of reading, and, since the dorm lounge was empty (this being fall break and all), I also treated myself to a few cartoons.

Money Down the Drain

After an uneventful morning, I called the testing center. Apparently, they had me scheduled for 9:00, which is really odd. I am pretty positive that I didn't misread the number I wrote down (it is very clearly a 4), and, since 'nine' sounds nothing like 'four', I couldn't have misheard it. My guess is that the person in the center misread the appointment. Oh well.

They said that I would have to call a different number to deal with billing, but would allow me to make a second appointment (the earliest date they could get me was November 26th... argh). When I called about getting a refund, they first offered a voucher for a second appointment, but, since I had already made the appointment, a voucher wouldn't work. They then gave me a partial refund, which is better than nothing, but nonetheless means that I wasted thirty or forty dollars for a test I didn't take.

This afternoon, I got an email from my sister, in which she announced that she had signed up for AidsWalk. I called to wish her luck, but she was busy and couldn't talk very much.

Stupid Testing Centers

Today was the day I was supposed to take the GRE. This afternoon I got ready, did a bit of last-minute prep, and got on the train. I found the testing center easily and with plenty of time to spare. But, when I entered the building and signed in, one of the security people told me that he saw the last people leave a while ago. We went to the office to double-check, and the room was completely empty. That such a misunderstanding could have occurred is truly bizarre; I took down the information on the test as soon as I heard it (I registered by calling). I'll try to call tomorrow and work things out. Hopefully I won't have to wait a month to take the test or pay for the test I didn't take.

Not wanting to have gone to downtown Philly for nothing, I walked across town to the art museum, where they were having a Thomas Eakins exhibit. I enjoyed going, though I wasn't able to stay for very long, and only really looked at the Eakins and 20th century stuff (I've been to the museum before, though, so it wasn't a huge deal). After that, I went to a restaurant for dinner and took the train home.

As part of my campaign to get people to comment in my journal, here's a question that popped into my head while I was in the art museum:

If you had to choose between being a major innovator in your field of choice and receiving the credit for a major innovation in that field, what would you choose?

I'm leaning towards the former option myself... I think I would prefer being a creative but unrecognized person to being widely recognized but having little originality. What do you think?

Fumbling Around in the Dark

Last night the power went out, and, since I made a mistake and thought it would happen an hour later than it did, I was in the shower when it started. Fumbling around in the dark for shampoo and soap is not fun.

After taking my shower, I noticed some people playing Trivial Pursuit in the hallway (the hallways were left semi-lit for most of the night). Though I didn't really know any of them all that well, I had a fun time.

Later that night, I tried to turn on my laptop so I could go to chat for as long as the battery lasted. Unfortunately, for some reason I could only get into Windows in 'Safe Mode', and, after restarting my computer a few times, I decided it was futile.

I was finally able to get on my computer this morning. After checking my email, I went to the local camera store to pick up some film. I then stopped over at the supermarket and made my way back to my room. I ate lunch and then called up my mom. We seemed to come to an understanding, which is really a relief.

The rest of my day has been relatively uneventful, but hopefully I'll be able to get some work done, including some studying for tomorrow's (gasp) GRE. Fortunately, I won't have the same transportation problems that I did with the LSAT; the GRE takes place during the afternoon and the testing center is accessible by train.

Fall Break!

Well, break has finally come; I think it will be good for me to unwind a bit.

Happily enough, I was able to get a good amount of sleep last night and am no longer a zombie. Though I slept in a bit, I was able to finish up some homework before class. After class, I chatted a bit with a friend; I mentioned something about wishing I had more of my own money instead of having to rely on my parents so much, so she volunteered to help me get a job at the library. The hours are supposed to be flexible, so it shouldn't be too difficult to work out.

Later this afternoon, I helped move yearbooks to the office and also was able to pick up some slides. I then treated myself to dinner, which is something I haven't done in a long time.

Zzzzz....

I'm still in zombie mode right now from lack of sleep, so I'll try to keep this short. I'm feeling better than I did earlier, though that's not saying a whole lot. I'm hoping to catch up on sleep tonight. Fall break starts this Friday, so I'll have a little more time to unwind (though I still have to do some papers as well as prepare for the GRE and midterms).

Today I submitted some artwork to a magazine for consideration. I tried once before, but I was careless and forgot to include a self addressed stamped envelope, so it's not really a surprise that I didn't get a reply. This time I was a bit more careful. Even if the magazine doesn't want my artwork, at least I'll know where I stand.

Tomorrow night my entire dorm will have an electrical shutdown while the school fixes the power system in a nearby building... It's frustrating, but hopefully it'll force me to get some sleep.

Yay Journal Update

Well, shortly after my last entry, I called dad at work. It went well; he sounded happy for me and okay with it, and he didn't grill me or anything. He told me to call mom on Saturday. I hope that goes well. I can't see her getting truly angry or anything, but I can see her overprotective side coming out.

This night's film screening consisted of two Buster Keaton films (Cops and The General), both of which I enjoyed. Somewhat surprisingly, despite the fact that they're around eighty years old, the humor and slapstick haven't 'aged' much, and it seemed like the rest of the students in the audience really got into it too. Afterwards, I worked on staging for 'Sure Thing' with the director and other cast members. It was fun; I will be excited to see the show pull together.

Fun For the Whole Family

Last night I had a long talk with my sister. She seems to be doing well; she likes all of her classes and gets along really well with her roommate. After talking mostly about what was going on in her life, I broke the news about Fred and how I'll be seeing him next weekend. She was excited and surprised about it, though she wanted to make sure I was careful and everything. We talked about how to tell mom and dad, and agreed that it was probably best to tell dad about it first. She's curious as to their reaction, and wants me to call her once I tell them the news. I hope they don't get too worried; hopefully the fact that a lot of my dad's family lives near San Francisco will make them less nervous.

Terrific Tuesdays

I started my day by getting up early (well, early for me, that is) to do some CDS homework. Since another person was in the room watching cartoons for part of the time, I ended up splitting my concentration between doubling systems and "A Pup Named Scooby Doo". I think I was able to do a good job on the work anyway, and, as many people in chat know, I miss getting to watch TV sometimes since I don't have a TV in my room and I don't always have access to the one in the lounge.

After classes, I was able to upload photos and artwork to my site and do a decent amount of reading before going to a yearbook meeting. We're going with a new company this year, and the guy in charge basically gave the staff an overview on what makes a good layout and that sort of thing. He seems willing to help us out a lot, so I think the chief editors made a good decision in changing companies.

I took some time to reflect today, and am feeling really good about where I am right now. Though I know I have my flaws, I feel pretty self-confident and I like the person I've become. I feel extremely fortunate to have some good friends; it's very nice to have people who appreciate my talents and my company. It's truly a nice place to be.

Monday Madness!

It seems like fall has finally arrived; today, the weather has been quite cool lately. It's very pretty though, and I was able to take several pictures of the campus today.

Last night, Fred invited me to come to San Franciso for the next weekend. I'm really excited about it. I'm a bit annoyed with Travelocity though; I can't seem to get the information on the site. I emailed them about the problem, so it should work out.

In other news, I worked with my partner on the write-up for the archive visit. It went pretty well, and we were able to finish within 45 minutes. I also met with my partner for the Senior Sem presentation to talk about the readings. Other than that, I didn't get much done.

The cast of the production I'm in had arranged to meet tonight, but only three of us ended up coming. Rehersal was canceled, but I didn't really feel like working on the skit, so it's almost a good thing.

Jenny's Exciting Adventures, Episode 236: "Jenny Naps!"

Today was pretty uneventful. I slept in pretty late and spent most of the day just surfing the net. I was able to get some work done before taking a nap this evening. I was awoken when my phone rang; my dad made a call regarding the whole lawsuit buisiness. It turns out I have to make a few calls to some other people. Hopefully everything will be settled after that, though.

LSAT Lunacy

I had my LSATs today. After getting up early and preparing a bit, the cab driver called to tell me he was on his way. I got in the cab at around 7:45, and we went to Cheyney University, where the test was being administered. Despite the fact that the cab was pricey (I ended up spending about $100 dollars for the round trip), I'm glad that I didn't attempt using public transportation, since the university was really out of the way. As it was, I ended up getting to the center with little time to spare.

I ran over to the center and got in line, after which I signed in, had my admission ticket fingerprinted, and headed over to the room which I had been assigned to. The test went pretty well; I felt confident about the 'Arguments' section in particular. I wish I had a little more time for the 'Games' part, but I think I did well on the parts I was able to get a good look at.

After the test, I didn't do much work, as I wanted to unwind a bit after the four hours of testing. I did a teeny bit of studying and also worked on formulating questions for my Senior Sem presentation. I also did preliminary research on the historian Norbert Elias, one of the people we're studying this week.

STOP
IF YOU FINISH BEFORE TIME IS CALLED, YOU MAY REREAD THIS SECTION ONLY.
DO NOT WORK ON ANY OTHER SECTION OF THE JOURNAL.

TGIF

Today was a pretty nice, laid back day. After class, I ate lunch with the other cast members in the production I'm participating in, after which we did some work on the various scenes. The skit I'm in is David Ives' Sure Thing, and I'm one of two people playing Betty. We basically worked on how the script will be divided. It should be fun, so I'll have to write about it in the future.

I pretty much relaxed most of the day, though I went into town to pick up slides and took a few photos for the yearbook. I was even able to take a nap this afternoon.

Later this evening, I did some studying for tomorrow's LSAT. I feel relatively confident about it, since I have been doing the same sort of analytical thinking in my classes. We'll have to see how it goes though.

Unfortunately, I was lazy and registered late, so I can't simply take the test at Bryn Mawr; I have to go to a center that's 40 minutes away. I tried to find someone with a car but was unsuccessful, so, since I don't want to bother myself with trains when I should be concentrating on the test, I am taking a taxi. It's expensive, but I don't have much choice in the matter. I guess this just shows that it's important to prepare for things.

The Attack of the Killer Thesis

Well, I had my Senior Sem class. After the week's discussion, I was able to talk to my professor about my thesis again. One of the archivists had mentioned a topic that sounded interesting (Tories in the wake of the Revolutionary War), and I wanted to see what she thought about it. The talk went a lot better this time; she encouraged me to look a bit more into it. Hopefully I'll be able to go back to the archives soon; since Fall Break is in a week and I'll be stuck on campus anyway, it's probably a good time to get organized.

A Very Quick Entry

I tend to think of Thursdays as my 'marathon days'; I have four of my five classes, and I don't have much of a chance to catch my breath. Since I will have to be off to my Senior Seminar (Thesis) class soon, I'll try to keep this short and sweet.

I got up early to do my weekly Senior Sem paper on the week's reading. Fortunately, I was able to get the work done relatively quickly and didn't stall as much as I often do. I then had three classes: 20th Century Russia (at Haverford), Chaotic Dynamical Systems, and Intro to Film. Luckily, I don't think I missed much when I skipped CDS on Tuesday besides a True Basic lesson. I also got a CDS homework paper back with a big red 'excellent' written on it, so that made me happy.

After class, I was able to pick up some film I dropped off; the roll included shots of the acapella benefit concert and my room. I posted the pics of my room up on my site, so you can now see where I'm living this year. I also met with a partner about the Senior Sem presentation we'll have to give next week.

Anyway, I must be off; I don't want to be late to class!

Blah-de-blah

Today was a pretty average day... I went to classes, did a little reading, and (of course) procrastinated. I met with my partner for the Double Indemnity segmentation project after class and also watched the weekly screening for my film class (Secrets and Lies - it was originally going to be Rear Window but the teacher changed it at the last minute). Later, I met with the other people in the one acts that I talked about earlier; we did a preliminary read through.

I'm not in the mood for writing a long, drawn-out description right now, but that's my day in a nutshell.

What Happened Today (Aren't I Original?)

Today, I woke up early to do a bit of my Chaotic Dynamical Systems homework before going over to Haverford for my 20th Century Russia class. Fortunately, I got plenty of sleep last night, so I didn't feel tired or anything. After class, I walked back and had lunch, then finished up the work.

Unfortunately, I had underestimated the amount of time that it would take to complete the assignment, so I skipped the CDS class in favor of finishing it up. The teacher is pretty understanding, so I think it'll be alright as long as I try and be more on top of things. And I think this week I've been relatively good in terms of that, the missed class notwithstanding. I think I needed the extra time anyway, since Tuesdays and Thursdays can be a bit of a drain sometimes. Well, enough with the rationalizations.

After finishing and posting a drawing, I met with a partner to work on our Double Indemnity breakdown. We watched the film a second time to get the order correct, though we fast forwarded a bit. After that, I was able to get some reading done on Zamyatin's We (for those who haven't heard of it, it's sort of a Russian 1984), which we'll be discussing Thursday. I made good progress, getting about 1/4 of the way through, but it was a pretty involving read and has gone pretty quickly.

Raiders of the Lost Archive

Please forgive the godawful pun in the title.

Anyway, after class, I met Rachel to visit the archive of the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. After meeting up, we got on the train to central Philly. The archive was located in the 'historical' part of town, near Independence Hall and other landmarks from the revolutionary period. All the landmarks were closed, presumably as a precaution after the World Trade Center attacks. It's understandable, but still a bit sad.

We quickly found the archive. After filling out reader forms, we met with an archivist, who was nice enough to give us a tour of the vault, which had the most valuable documents in the collection. Luckily, the original Lewis and Clark journals were out since they had recently been displayed, so she was able to show them to us. We also saw a Darwin manuscript and a scientific manuscript from the 1600's, among other things. After touring the vault, we talked with another archivist, who basically told us what the archive had to offer.

In terms of less extraordinary documents, Rachel spotted this near the vault entrance; one of the archivists had posted it as a joke. The archivist offered to make copies for us, so we got an amusing little souvenir.

After doing some reading, I decided to audition for a series of one acts. The director didn't ask for schedules, so that won't work against me this time. I knew the director a little, so I think that kept me from being too nervous. The audition went well despite the fact that I had too much caffeine beforehand; I was able to make the director laugh a few times.

In other news, I joined ICQ today and got an, um, explicit message about two seconds after I got on. Lovely...

Inertia

If you haven't guessed by the title, I didn't get all that much schoolwork done today. I did a tiny bit of reading, but that was it. Hopefully I'll be able to do a little bit of work before bed.

One good thing that happened today is that the cafeteria switched back to the 'old' sundae bar; instead of having tiny cups of ice cream, they now have actual scoopable ice cream. ...You know you're pathetic when you care about things like that, but oh well.

Sigh

I'm feeling a bit depressed right now, though there's really no huge reason for me to be. It's frustrating to feel drained and exhausted when you've gotten more than enough sleep and haven't really done any work. Hopefully I'll be able to finish my reading today, though; I'd sort of like to concentrate on my math and LSAT prep tomorrow.

I think I'll try to do some reading before dinner. Hopefully I'll be able to get something done.

::Tries to think of witty subject line::

Today was pretty lazy and uneventful. Since I did all of my Real Analysis homework yesterday during the problem session, I didn't have to scramble to do any homework before class. So I got to nap and goof off until 11. I was able to finish a graphic for GirlSite, which is good because I've been sort of lazy sending artwork for the site for the last two weeks.

After class was finished, I met with Rachel, who's my partner for the archive visit. We scheduled an appointment to visit an archive on Monday afternoon. It should be interesting, so I'll have to write about it when the time comes.

Finally, this evening I went to an acapella concert; since I'm editing the Arts section of the yearbook and wasn't able to get someone to cover for me, I had to go and take pictures. The concert was a benefit, with all donations going to the red cross. All of the Bi-College (aka Bryn Mawr and its 'sibling school' Haverford) groups were there, along with an Indian-American group from Penn (to clarify, the group was not Native American, but from India). It was enjoyable and lifted my spirits quite a bit.

I was also able to get some sketches done this evening, which is important if I want to consider applying to art schools. I think they came out pretty well.

I did work and other things

After going to bed pretty late last night, I woke up earlier than usual to finish up some work. Predictably, I was something of a zombie in this morning's classes, but I felt more awake by the afternoon. Surprisingly, my Chaotic Dynamical Systems teacher liked the way I did Tuesday's homework problem (which I did at an insanely late hour), and asked me to explain what I did to the class, so that was sort of good. I was able to explain things well enough despite the aforementioned zombie problem.

After my last class, I went back to my room to find the phone ringing. It was the director of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. She had wanted to cast me, but my schedule just didn't work with the other people she wanted, so she wasn't able to. I can't say I wasn't a bit disappointed, but I'm glad that she took the effort to call, and also that the fact I wasn't cast didn't really reflect on me. I have a pretty full schedule as it is anyway, so having the extra time is probably beneficial.

Since I didn't have my senior thesis class this week (it's 'visit the archives' week), I was able to go to a math problem session and work on my Real Analysis homework with some classmates and a TA. I usually just throw my homework together, so being able to work with people and ask questions was really helpful. Real Analysis can be tricky, because the teacher and TAs want proofs to be clear; simply understanding the concept isn't enough. So it's especially good that I was able to go to the problem session.

Stuff and Junk

I was able to do quite a bit these past two days. Though I went to sleep really late Monday night, I was able to get up in time to get to my first class on Tuesday. After that class, I was able to call the medical service corps with the information they needed, so I hopefully won't have to worry about that entire ordeal anymore. I then went to my next two classes, though I was a bit tired, particularly in my Chaotic Dynamical Systems class.

That evening, I decided to audition for a student production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead; I figured that it would be a fun experience. If you're not familiar with the play, it's Tom Stoppard's reworking of Shakespeare's Hamlet that centers on the minor characters Rosencrantz and Guildenstern (no, really?). The audition went surprisingly well. It helped that I remembered the play from high school, and I was, amazingly enough, not really nervous. Perhaps I was too tired for my nerves to kick in, or maybe I figured that it was more of a random thing and thus didn't get too overly invested emotionally.

Anyway, I found a person to read with for the audition, and we practiced a while before going in. The director took our information sheets; she noticed that I had assistant-directed a play before and asked me whether I would be interested in working in that capacity. After reading the scene, she had us do a few improvs by ourselves. I'm not the most spontaneous person in the world, but it went pretty well. She said that she was mainly considering me for Ophelia, since I had the look she was going for. I think I have a good chance, so we'll have to see how it turns out. Ophelia's a pretty small role in Rosencrantz..., but I think it'll be fun. I don't know whether I would have the time to commit to a main character, so this way I'll get to be a part of the production without being overburdened by it.

Today I was able to give my room a much-needed cleaning and also make an appointment to take the GRE. I also talked to my professor about my thesis for the first time. It wasn't a particularly encouraging meeting; she felt I was trying to tackle something too amorphous and complicated and that I should get something more concrete to latch onto. It's valid criticism, and I guess this is all part of the process, but it's still frustrating to have to deal with. Hopefully I'll be able to find something that is both interesting and doable.

Early morning rambling

Since I wanted to stay on top of things, I have stayed up much later (or is that earlier?) than I should. While I'm sure I'll feel the consequences tomorrow, it has allowed me to concentrate on my reading as well as do some thinking. I love how things are at two or three in the morning; everyone's asleep, and it's like you have the entire dorm to yourself. I appreciate the tranquility of the early morning hours; it's one of the few times I can be alone with my thoughts without being interrupted by other people.

Anyway, something troublesome happened not long after I made my last entry. My dad called and told me that I might get sued. Here's the backstory:

Stuff happened today

Well, Monday is a pretty light day for me, schoolwise. I only have one class (the other four are on Tuesdays and Thursdays), so I can ease my way into the week. I spent more of my time on the net than I probably needed to, but I nonetheless was able to get a decent amount of work done.

Schoolwork's always harder for me than it really needs to be; I tend to overintellectualize the process of getting work done, which makes it hard just to bite the bullet and do the work. I end up putting more effort into procrastinating my work than the work itself sometimes. ::sigh:: And now I'm overintellectualizing the fact that I overintellectualize things...

Anyway, at least I know this is a problem for me and can try to curb any bad tendencies on my part. The nice thing about living on a college campus is that there are a lot of libraries and other places where you can go to if you need to study. I don't know if it's true for other people, but I find it very difficult to study in my own 'personal space' for some reason. I guess I get distracted too easily or something.

And so it begins...

Well, I have now added a Livejournal... yay me.

I've been wanting to have a forum to express my thoughts as to what's been going on in my life, and I think the 'Updates' part of my website just didn't cut it. Because my site's built so everyone who knows me, from friends to relatives to people from my internship, can check up an me, it sort of had a 'Christmas letter' sort of feel; while I gave some broad information on my life, I didn't feel I could delve or talk about the more trivial things in my life. And, after Kim mentioned Livejournal tonight, it led me to set up my own journal.

I didn't do much work today, though I did get a few chapters of a book read. I mostly surfed the web, though I also did a pen drawing and am doing cleanup on another piece of artwork.

Well, that's it for now; I think I'll get more into things as time progresses, though.

Updates and Thoughts

Well, I am now a week into my final year of college. It's sort of scary knowing that I will have to make a definite decision as to where I'm going in the next year, and it doesn't seem possible that my college years are coming to a close. It's something that you know will eventually come up; still, part of me can't conceptualize making the change and taking concrete steps towars a possible future. It's something I know I have to do of course, but making this sort of decision has never been a strong suit of mine.

It's been great being back at school and running into all the familiar faces there. It's weird not seeing some of the people, though; I keep wondering about random people and have to remind myself that they've moved on now. My new dorm room is great; it's HUGE and is right by the front entrance. Unfortunately, there isn't any storage space, so I had to buy a bunch of plastic bins to make up for that. It also doesn't have a built in closet, and the metal closet that the school provides isn't very good, so I'll have to see if I can find a cheap replacement.

And Now For Somethng Completely Different...

For a change of pace, I am making tonight's entry a series of limericks (yes, I am bored):

I got out of bed somewhate late
Which made me a little irate
I checked a website
Then I had to take flight
To get to my math class (how great)

I found myself quite distressed
About my upcoming three-hour test
I talked with a buddy
We agreed we should study
Together, so I'm less depressed

I entered some pictures I took
Which I thought had an artistic look
In a contest, I thought
It might be worth a shot
If I win, I could get a free book
I know it's lame, but hey, it rhymes

After that, I quickly asked around
I wanted some old teachers to be found
I need teachers' praise
'Cause of applications' ways
Of wanting profs to say you're profound

I... uh, never mind. I'm getting tired of this, and I bet you are too.

Anyway, I then got some stacks of books for my thesis. After that, I searched the UC Riverside site for one of the professors who I want a recommendation from (of the three, one is still around, one transferred to Riverside, and one is somewhere in the area but isn't teaching right now). I emailed profs 1 & 2 about the recommendations, but I haven't found a way to contact prof 3.

After doing a tiny bit of reading, I went to another rehearsal of Sure Thing. I think I pretty much have the lines down. So I won't make a complete fool of myself come performance time.

And then I got to my room and typed in my journal... oh wait, never mind.