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...