Una Voz

Human Rights Council of Washington County

2011-07-26T21:36:00.000-07:00

So, you may have noticed a sidebar on this blog mentioning something about the Human Rights Council of Washington County. Perhaps you are wondering what on earth that is. I figure I've given you enough time to guess, so now I'll try to explain it as well as I can.

When I moved back to Hillsboro from Corvallis, I wanted to be a part of something that spoke for underrepresented groups in my community. Luckily, I found the HRC, which is made up of all sorts of very intelligent, like-minded people with equality in our community as their (and my) main goal. We sponsor various events around the community that deal with human rights, equality, or even to celebrate amazing people like Martin Luther King, Jr. We also have listening forums with leaders in the community and Oregon to talk about important issues, like immigration, bullying in schools, and hate crimes.

I really adore being a part of this. I feel like I'm making a difference in my community, or at least trying to. I hate seeing or hearing about the ignorance in my community, and feel that it could be so much better if we all just took the time to listen and learn about the amazing diversity our community has to offer.

I am a part of the Human Rights Council for so many reasons. First, I like feeling like I'm being proactive in helping my community grow closer and more accepting of the wonderful diversity around us. Second, I have family and friends in this community, and hopefully someday I'll have children growing up in this community, and I want them all to feel safe and accepted for who they are. Third, I just want to feel that it is possible to live in a community where differences are embraced and celebrated.

I realize that I must sound so idealistic and somewhat naive, but I feel like I'm justified in feeling just tired of all the ignorance and hate in the community. Especially when it's based on such stupid, trivial things that are usually out of one's control. Why does this have to be around anymore? We have so many resources and people available to teach us how to be accepting and reach for equality; I just don't see why so many refuse to use them.

I'm doing my part to try to make my community a better place all around. If you would like to know how you can do the same, please visit our Facebook page, (and "like" us to learn about upcoming HRC events or forums!) or learn more about Human Rights here.

Equality is not an idea we strive for; it's our goal.

Twenty Five!

2011-07-02T17:47:00.000-07:00

You know, birthdays are funny. I remember when I was younger, I would start getting excited about my birthday months before it actually happened. I would seriously lose sleep just thinking about it.

Now, not so much. I honestly hardly even noticed it approaching, until I realized with a start a few days ago that I indeed, was turning 25 in a few short days. I felt like it took me by surprise, and I felt like I wouldn't even have all that much time to celebrate it, considering I'd be in school most of the day, after having been in school for eight hours every day for the past two weeks. I was exhausted, grumpy, and not totally in a celebrating mood.

But, life has a way of showing you that you're wrong about most things. That morning, I woke up to a cheerful Evan, who had strung up some "Happy Birthday!" banners and had gotten me some beautiful flowers. He drove me to PSU that morning and I couldn't help thinking that did in fact, have the best fiance in the whole world. Here he was, supposed to be celebrating summer break and instead is getting up with me at 6:15 and driving me to class. As he dropped me off, I couldn't help feeling a little grumpy, because I would have rather spent the day at home with Evan and my flowers than be in class. At least, I thought, I was able to celebrate it a little bit this morning.

Again, I was wrong. I walked into room 206 on Friday, and was greeted with "Happy Birthday!" from a lot of my classmates. It meant a lot to me, because we've all grown so close. See, we're all enrolled in these week-long classes that get you three credits if you survive until Friday, but it's a lot of intense critical thinking and it's even more sitting. Eight solid hours of class, sitting in uncomfortable little desks from the 50's (the class was held in St.Mary's Academy. Let me tell you; if I was a parent paying upwards of $10,000 a year for my child's education there, I would demand slightly more ergonomic desks) will definitely bring people together.

The class was taught by an instructor that hailed from the former Soviet Union, and oh my goodness, it showed. She would start class promptly at 8:30 am, and when she gave us "free time" to discuss, she would say things like, "Okay, I will give you 15 seconds to discuss. Discuss. Okay! 15 seconds is up! Back to your seats!" Her motto was, "When I say time is up, finish your sentence, not your paragraph."

So you can imagine my fear when my friend Julie wanted to take me out to a Lebanese restaurant close to campus on my birthday. I hesitated because our instructor gave us thirty minutes for lunch, and she was spookily accurate on starting class back up as soon as those thirty minutes were over.

Anyway, Julie showed up on campus with a balloon and flowers and I just couldn't deny her invitation. We went and chowed down on some chicken shwarma, falafels, and hummus. We sat at a small table next to the window and as we caught up, we basked in the amazing sunshine that had also decided to show up on my birthday. I didn't even realize how much time had passed until I looked at my phone and saw that it was 1:13. We had been allowed out for lunch at 12:10. I'm totally going to the gulag, I thought, as I bid Julie a hasty farewell and walked as fast as my very full stomach would allow back to class.

I tried to sneak into the classroom, but of course, the doors at a Catholic high school are never oiled well, lest you be late, and the entire class turned to welcome my late, huffing and puffing arrival. I walked over to the instructor, balloon bobbing jovially next to me, and tried to explain what had happened. She cut me off, and as I was mentally preparing myself for a USSR style bashing, she said, "It's your birthday, Mariela, and your friends wanted to celebrate. It is okay with me that you are a little late," with a smile and a pat on my shoulder.

My next surprise that day came from Dimitar, an older, Bulgarian gentleman who has decided that his life's work should be teaching and had joined the BTP cohort with me. He stood to give his final presentation, took a deep breath, and said, "before I begin, I will sing a song. Please feel free to join me if you are familiar with the lyrics." Now, Dimitar is kind of a strange duck, so we were all anticipating the Bulgarian national anthem or something, but instead, he began to sing "Happy Birthday"!! I was totally surprised, and I felt myself blushing as everybody else joined in.

I'm going to try to figure out when Dimatar's birthday is so I can sing him "Happy Birthday" in Bulgarian.

After class was over, Evan picked me up and we went to Papa Hyden on NW 23rd. We lucked out and got a table outside, where we feasted on desserts (I had this amazing thing with hazelnut gelato in it) and people watching. It was nice to sit and talk and not have our conversations tinged with stress, because Evan recently found out that he got his job back (yay!) and I was done with school for the time being. I felt okay taking my time and didn't feel any of life's other petty urgencies tugging at my conscience.

Once we had had enough of dessert and pale people basking in the sun, we met my parents for dinner at Pastini and then went back home for more dessert (funfetti cake!) and presents. I got some amazing things, but I have to say I'm most excited about the Josh Groban concert tickets! My mom and I always joked about seeing him someday, but usually ended up missing him because his tickets tend to a)sell out quickly and b)be astronomically expensive. I really can't wait to experience his concert with my mom though. It's like one of our joint dreams coming true.

I really felt so loved on my birthday, after feeling like it would simply pass me by because of everything I had going on. It was nice to finally sit back, relax, and truly enjoy my time with those who matter so very much to me. Plus, I got to eat an amazing Lebanese meal, was forgiven by the keeper of punctuality herself, and was serenaded to by a Bulgarian. Pretty awesome birthday, after all, if I do say so myself.

An amazing person, leaving behind an awesome legacy

2011-05-10T22:27:00.000-07:00

I recently stumbled upon a headline during my break at work. "Blogger Posts His Own Death."

Of course, I was intrigued, if not a little confused, as typing may prove difficult in that particular state. I was, however, pleasantly surprised by what followed. See, the article was about Derek K. Miller, who was a pretty well-known blogger in the tech and science circles. He had started his blog about ten years ago, and in 2007, he was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic colorectal cancer. The posts that chronicle his journey through chemo and radiation, as well as his drive to live a "normal" life despite the fact are nothing short of inspiring.

And yes, he did ask his family to publish his "Last Post" after his death, and it is amazingly well-written and insightful. He doesn't sound angry, bitter, or resentful. Instead, he sounds grateful for the time he had with his family and the experiences he was able to have.

I love the fact that he was incredibly straight-forward about his particular circumstances. Yes, he had cancer. Yes, it was going to kill him. No, he wasn't going to let it completely consume his life. And really, he didn't let it.

Derek Miller reminded me that life is still, and is always beautiful, regardless of one's worries and troubles. We get so mired down by the petty things, constantly moving those things up our priority list until we completely lose sight of what's really important. It seemed to me that Mr. Miller never let cancer obscure his vision of what was truly significant to him.

I'm sorry I just found your words, Derek, but they serve as a powerful reminder that life is full of complications, yet so very precious to us all.

Here's the link to the blog itself: http://www.penmachine.com/

It's only been what, a few months?

2011-05-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody! I'm not sure you all remember me, but you can just call me the worst blogger every in the history of blogging. And it's not like I haven't wanted to. Trust me. But, life has a way of running away with you, especially when it's stuffed with things like work, graduate school, trying to get rid of this flab in my middle, planning a wedding, and chasing after two rather neurotic cats. If you're reading this, thank you for being so very patient. I appreciate it.

Life has been pretty great these last few months, but its been marked with moments of uncertainty. Not in regards to the wedding, mind you (unless you count me wondering whether it's really necessary to have menus when we're having a buffet-type dinner) but about where it is I'm going with my professional career. If you've been watching the news at all, you might have noticed that the field of education is not exactly stable. This isn't exactly comforting, as I'm getting my Master's in Education. I feel like a person studying Finance right before the Great Depression. So, there are days when I wonder whether this is the right path for me. Those are the days when I wish I was one of those, "just wait and see what happens," people. Sadly, I'm not. I'm pretty proactive when it comes to my future, especially when said future is proving to be rather expensive at the moment. I don't want to drop thousands and thousands of dollars on something that isn't going to make me happy in the long run. There are those people who say that a job is just that: something to go to for the majority of the day and get paid to do. But I can't subscribe to that school of thought. I want a job where I wake up excited to go and contribute. I just don't know what job that is, yet. And that is somewhat frustrating.

I realize that I'll figure out someday. But, I want that realization to come sooner than later. When you realize what it is you want to do for the rest of your life, you want that life to start as soon as possible.

In the meantime, however, I'll appease my troubles with cute little wedding details and my new music obsession, The Weepies. I'll even share one of my favorite songs with you all.

Playing Catch-Up

2011-01-17T21:44:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone!

I'm sorry I've been such a slacker at this whole blogging business, but to tell you the truth, I've been having a really amazing couple of weeks. Things have finally calmed down a bit, so I figured I would come here to share a few of my most recent adventures.

So, my biggest piece of news is....

I'm ENGAGED!!!!!!!

The ring!

The spot where Evan proposed. It was awesome.

If I had known that we were going to get engaged, I would have at least put on some mascara and left the thug beanie at the hotel. Oh well! We're engaged!

It's true; Evan proposed during a mini-vacation to one of our favorite spots, Rockaway Beach. I honestly had no idea he had even been thinking about proposing, and I had been totally oblivious to the fact that he had been talking to his family and mine about asking me to marry him. He actually was hiding the ring under the bed for a week before he proposed!

Anyway, the proposal was perfect, and of course, I said yes. I can't wait to start this new adventure with him, but at the same time, I'm taking my time enjoying being engaged and am currently poring over wedding magazines and books for wedding ideas.

Right after we came back from our mini-vacation, we slogged through the last week of school and went on our full-blown vacation with Evan's family to Maui, Hawaii. I was nervous about flying for so long, but Xanax came to the rescue, and as soon as we touched down in Maui, I forgot all about my flight anxiety and settled into an amazing week of relaxation and fun with my fiance and future in-laws (that feels unbelievably weird to type, but in a good way!). Mainly, my days went like this:

- wake up
- have coffee and cookies while looking admiring the ocean from our balcony
- suit up, lather on sunscreen and beach supplies
- walk the fifty paces down the hall and the ten paces to the beach from the lobby
- plop down on the sand with a book
- turn over
- go boogie boarding
- almost drown (seriously, I was the worst boogie boarder ever)
- more beach/book/mai tai/ shave ice time
- dip in the pool
- walk back upstairs, shower
- have huge, calorie-loaded dinner with everyone
- admire each other's tan/burns (Evan got a really impressive one)
- go to bed

My view for most of the day

Happy to be in Maui

The view from our hotel room!

Evan and I at the Luau

We also went to a really amazing luau where I ate enough to feed a family of four, and where we met a really cool couple on their honeymoon from Sydney, Australia. We swapped engagement stories.

Watching these girls was the best guilt-trip after eating all that food

Oh yeah.

One of many amazing sunsets

Hibiscus flowers grow everywhere!

I also was introduced to the amazing thing that is Hawaiin Shave Ice. Can you tell I was completely off my diet the whole time I was there? Anyway, we had to have shave ice whenever we saw some, and I'm missing it dearly now that we're back in Oregon. Actually, I'm missing the whole island. It's tough going from 84 degrees to 43.

We flew back in on December 23rd, and so we only had one night to relax and unpack before getting geared up for Christmas with our families. We spent Christmas Eve with my parents since that's the day we celebrate most (that's just the way Hispanic families roll) and spent Christmas Day with Evan's family. It was a lot of fun to hand everyone their little island goodies. Especially my dad, since he had requested a dashboard hula girl for his car.

For Christmas, Evan pulled another surprise on me. On Christmas Eve, he handed me an envelope, which had Post-It note in it that was the first in a scavenger hunt. He had me going all over my parent's house, and finally, I ended up in the garage, where I found a vintage leather loveseat that I had been lusting after for months waiting for me! You see, Evan and I had visited Sorel's Vintage on Hawthorne Boulevard one afternoon this summer, and I had completely fallen in love with these leather loveseats. Of course, there was no way we could afford them, so I put them on my mental wish-list and vowed that some day, I would have some just like them. So, imagine my surprise when one shows up for Christmas!

There are a lot of exclamation points in this post. But really, I was that surprised!

And then, Evan and I were at his parent's house for Christmas Day, and he handed me another envelope. Again, I was led on another scavenger hunt (which took a lot more effort, because Evan's parent's house is huge) and when I finally made my way back to the living room, there was the second loveseat!

My chairs are kind of like this, but even more awesome!

Apparently, Evan had bought the chairs the same day he bought my engagement ring (how I was totally unaware of all this, I really have no idea; I'm not that clueless normally) and had hidden one chair at each house until Christmas. It was awesome, and now both chairs are sitting perfectly in our living room.

Evan and I were able to relax for a bit at home in the week before school started back up, and on one of those afternoons, my future maid-of-honor, Karla, came over and we decided to kill some time at David's Bridal. Truly, I went in with the intention to just browse and "get ideas." Well, my intentions flew out the window when I spotted some dresses that I liked and Karla said, "you know, you're already here; you might as well try some on." I quickly called my mom (because I couldn't put on a wedding dress without her there) and I ended up finding the absolutely perfect dress for me. Really, it's beautiful. And now, I have to keep it a secret from Evan for the next 16 months or so. I have to have at least a modicum of tradition with this whole thing!

Before we knew it, we were back at school, and that same Monday I started my winter term at PSU. Luckily, my schedule is a little less heinous than last term, with classes on Monday, Wednesday, and some random Fridays. It gives me a break to read and do homework, which is greatly appreciated. It also helps that I'm getting to know my cohort a little better so those three-hour long classes don't feel quite as long.

So, yeah. That was my amazing winter break. If you've made it to the end of this post, I'm very impressed. I hope you all had an amazing time with your families and hopefully the new year brings you all sorts of adventures and memories. I am so excited to see what 2011 brings us. Maybe a new leather couch?

How I Feel

2010-12-01T21:19:00.000-08:00

There are just some days, like today, where all I want to do is forget about work, grad school, and the million other things on my mind and just snuggle with my love on the couch. This song pretty much sums up how I've felt on those days.

It's only on days like this, when I come home to such an amazing guy who welcomes my griping, whining, and complaining with a big hug, understanding smile, and a kiss, that I realize that all those other things don't really matter. I guess you could say that overwhelming things are a part of life, but a great love tends to cancel them all out. Thanks, Evan, for reminding me of that. I love you!

Update in Yays and Nays

2010-11-11T21:10:00.000-08:00

I'm not totally sure where to start. I guess I should start by saying that this year has gotten off to a great start, and I can only see it getting better. In the spirit of keeping things concise, I think I'm going to just do a "yay" and "nay" post.

Yay to starting at Portland State University!

PSU = Rhinoceros

Nay to feeling like I've been run over by a rhinoceros by Thursday of every week. I am taking 3 classes, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, plus working full-time. Oy.

Yay to after-class beers with my fellow grad students

Nay to realizing that I am not a real college student anymore and do actually have to go to work at 7:30am the next day after I have an after class beer.

Yay to realizing that after 18 months of feeling like this, I will have my own awesome classroom, and I will be able to teach my own way.

Nay to knowing that in the meantime, I have to work with icky high schoolers and even ickier coworkers. Seriously, they are poo-heads.

Yay to the fact that the school I work at is super close to the middle of nowhere, which is ideal for escaping the icky highschoolers/coworkers and taking pictures.

I almost got run over for this one. Totally worth it.

I may actually frame this one.

Nay to not having quite enough time after homework to edit said pictures.

Yay to spending what precious time I have with my absolutely amazing boyfriend Evan and my family.

Nay to driving. I hate it, because it's so boring.

Yay to books on tape. I don't care that it makes me feel 98 years old to have a book read to me, but it's the only time I have. I'd probably listen to NPR if I didn't have a book on tape anyway.

This was my book on tape. It was excellent, and I kept trying to find excuses to drive so I could listen.

Yay also to losing my fear of driving to Portland. It's not so scary anymore, and we've had some awesome adventures/picture opportunities (pretty much interchangeable in my book).

Adventure/Photo opportunity at the Pittock Mansion in Portland!

Lioness at the Oregon Zoo. We went on Halloween, and the predators I was afraid of were the parents of the tiny humans. We seriously almost got mauled!

Nay to having our exploring cut short because of the rain and it getting dark right after lunchtime.

Yay to cozy nights at home with Evan, a glass of wine, and the newest Josh Radin cd.

Nay to spending my Saturdays on the couch doing homework.

Where I can dance like a moron and get a great workout!

Yay yay yay for Zumba! I will always drag myself out of my graduate school stupor for Zumba!

Yay for dropping close to 20 pounds!

Seriously, YAY for dropping close to 20 pounds! (frankly, it deserves two yays)

Nay for the silly holidays coming in at full force. I am such a weakling in front of mashed potatoes and stuffing!

Yay for having a trip to Hawaii being more than enough motivation to turn away those mashed potatoes. At least the first time they're offered. I am, after all, only human.

I plan on sunbathing right here. No mashed potatoes for me!

In love with this!

Yay for buying the perfect swimsuit that actually makes me want to get out on the beach.

Yay for finding shorts, capris, skirts, and my whole Hawaii wardrobe for under $50 bucks. I may just become a flip season shopper!

Yay for Black Friday! Ladies, watch out. I've been working on my elbow throwing skills.

Yay to not having very many Nays in my life.

Yay for having everything to look forward to and nothing holding me back. What an amazing feeling!

Okay, seriously

2010-11-11T09:48:00.000-08:00

The award for Worst Blogger of the Year can now be handed to me. Luckily, for all three of you who read this, I have a four-day weekend and my plan is to definitely update this thing.

Seriously. I will. Pinky swear.

-Mariela-

An Amazing Summer

2010-09-09T21:46:00.000-07:00

Summer 2010 from Mariela Marquez on Vimeo.

I know I've been a total slacker as far as blogging goes, but I was really busy having an extraordinary summer. I went on some great trips, saw amazing things, and made some fantastic memories. Now that school/work has started back up again, as well as that dreaded rain, I was feeling nostalgic and decided to make this video of all my great times. There are a lot of pictures, and I realized a little too late that the duration of each picture was about two seconds too long. At least the songs are good. The songs in the video were definitely prominent members of my summer soundtrack, and I will always tie them into the amazing moments I had this summer, especially on those chilly, back-to-school mornings.

Anyway, I hope the video makes up for my slacking. Enjoy!

Here's to 24!

2010-07-04T17:21:00.000-07:00

I was really stoked for my birthday this year, for a variety of reasons.

1. I wasn't in Corvallis
2. ...

Well, okay, one reason. I have been in Corvallis for my last two birthdays, and while they were wonderful, there was always this rushed feeling about it all, because either my family had to drive back to Portland, or we had to head back to Corvallis.

And while I don't really have anything against Corvallis, celebrating just about anything is tough to do there, especially after 6 pm. I mean, there are a handful of restaurants, and the bowling alley or movie theater, as far as options go.

So, being in Portland to ring in 24 was pretty exciting. The day started off awesomely, with Evan bringing me flowers in bed, and then making me a full, cholesterol-ridden breakfast of eggs, hash browns, and pancakes. After devouring them, he gave me my presents, which were awesome. I got the new Jason Mraz album, as well as Carey Brothers, a new musical obsession of mine. I also got a stack of Bill Bryson's books, which was sweet because he is my favorite author and I had just run out of things to read.

After digesting, we got all cleaned up and headed to Portland for dinner at Pastini with my parents. Let me tell you, it was amazing. I had this chicken with spinach in a red pepper sauce, and even though Evan said that it was "an unnatural color," I totally hoovered it.

I had an obscene amount of food that day, seriously. It just gets worse.

We then drove a couple blocks, (walking was out of the question because a) it was raining and b) I was too full) found a miraculously close parking spot, and heading into the Keller Auditorium to see The Lion King, which was absolutely phenomenal. I was seriously transformed into a six year-old as soon as the music started. I couldn't stop gaping at all the amazing sets, the music, the costumes; it was all so incredible.

After the play, we headed back to our place for Funfetti cake, coffee and some gifts from my parents. I have always been a true only child when it comes to my gifts, and I have always liked to shake, poke, and prod them. In a defense strategy, my mom hid my present inside a bigger box, then wrapped it in a sweatshirt, so I had absolutely no idea what I was opening. Imagine the scream I let out when I realized it was Photoshop Elements 8! I have played with it a bit, and while it is overwhelming, I'm really excited to see what it can do.

It was really an awesome birthday. But, the fun, and the food, don't stop there.

I spent July 2nd just trying to let my body filter out all the sugar and excitement from the day before, not knowing that my mom and Evan were secretly planning a surprise party for me on the 3rd. My mom had mentioned having a barbecue, and I had agreed, even though I was kinda surprised she was so insistent about it. When I asked about whether we should have it on the 4th, she very quickly answered, "no, the third would be better. Yep, the third works best for me, right Evan?"

Evan: "Yeah, I like the third more than the fourth, definitely."

Me: *lifts eyebrow skeptically*

Honestly, I had reason to suspect, because my mom's done this to me before. For my 21st, she threw a big surprise party for me, and I had no idea until I was in front of 40 people with nothing to say and just the tiniest bit drunk from a Sand in Your Shorts I had had at Red Robin earlier. The same thing happened on my 16th birthday, sans the Sand in Your Shorts, but just as much dumbfoundedness.

But, seeing as how the other two had been on "big" birthdays, and this was just my 24th, I pretty much just chalked it up to my mom really liking our deck in the backyard, and my paranoia.

My mom and Evan's plan worked out pretty well, because it turns out I had to leave the house at just the right time to attend a birthday party at Out of This World Pizza and Play. My goodness, that was insane. I was hungry though, so I inhaled two pieces of pizza and slurped down some soda before coming home.

See, what I said? About the food? Also, I wish that I had some pictures to chronicle all of this, but in all the excitement, we all forgot to take pictures.

As I came down our street, I recognized my friend Magalyn's ancient Thunderbird, and then, Devan's Jeep, and then Karla's VW Golf, and I realized, I had been duped.

I walked into a full-on luau-themed party with a lot of my great friends in attendance. My dad, a grilling master, made some awesome chicken kebabs, which we had with salad and some ice cold beers. It was great to see so many of my friends and catch up. It was a perfect afternoon, and of course, it was topped off with cake.

It was, all in all, the best birthday I've had in a very long time. It has been such a crazy year, what with moving twice, quitting and finding jobs, and growing up in so many ways, that this sort of celebration was just what I needed to wrap up such a fantastic year, and starting this new one in my life with warmth in my heart, a smile on my face, and a whole lot of food in my tummy.

Time for a New Backpack!

2010-05-17T11:18:00.000-07:00

So, I am headed to Graduate School! I was accepted about two weeks ago to the Portland State Graduate School of Education, where I'll be part of a program called the Bilingual Teacher Pathway, and (hopefully) in two years, I'll graduate with a Master's in Education, and an initial teaching license with endorsements in Language Arts and ESL/Bilingual Education.

Man, I hope all that fits on the diploma.

What's cool about this program is that it's meant for people who work full-time, so classes are during the evenings and weekends. So, it's a huge relief for me, because I really didn't want to leave my job for two years for school, and then somehow come up with close to $20,000 dollars to pay for it.

Oh, another nifty thing: I can defer my student loans from my undergrad until I graduate from PSU. Seriously, I am so excited about this. I make about $1,200 a month, and a good third of that (if not more) went to those greedy old guys at the Department of Education. So, if $400 goes to student loans, and $320 to rent, I am left with $480 to last me a month. And while it'd be great to spend all of that on myself, there's usually something that comes up during the month that results in my paying a greasy mechanic or a veterinarian some exorbitant amount.

So, yeah. I am super excited to start the program in September, learn all sorts of cool things, and then start teaching! Oh, and of course, I am totally stoked to get a really cool backpack with the money I WON'T be paying to old greedy dudes!

Why I'm Marching Tomorrow

2010-04-30T21:19:00.000-07:00

I'm marching tomorrow in Portland. There will be marches just like it all over the United States.

I can't wait to be a part of it. I can't wait to help people realize that this country has gone from being the land of opportunity to being the land where you can be split from your family for trying to give them opportunities.

It's not fair that we get yelled at and insulted by people whose ancestors did the exact same thing as the Hispanic and Latino people are doing now. They are coming here with their families, because they want the freedom and the chance to make life better for themselves.

Why is that so hard to see? Why does that merit hateful comments and rudeness from others? Why are some people afraid to see other people try to succeed here?

I am an American citizen, and I'm proud to be one. But, I am also an immigrant. I came here with my parents when I was three. We had very little, but my parents worked unbelievably hard, always, everyday. Not only did they put me through college, they went back and got their second Master's degrees. They are a success story, through and through.

I am so proud of them, of what they've accomplished. And I'm realizing the strength it must have taken for them to get to where they are. My goodness, just think about it. They left everything and everyone they held dear just for the chance, just the chance that they could offer me a better life. They've endured so much in hopes that I would succeed and get ahead in life. My goal, every day, is to prove to them that they did not sacrifice so very much in vain.

My parents did not come here to steal jobs, or become criminals, or take advantage of social security. They came with hope for a better future. And, I can assure you that every family you encounter that has immigrated here, Hispanic or not, has come for the same reason.

When did that become a bad thing? When did hopes and expectations for a better future require a piece of paper for the chance to flourish?

I see how wonderful my life is here, and I feel so incredibly lucky to have been a part of so many wonderful experiences and opportunities, despite the obstacles.

I truly believe that every person who makes that incredibly scary leap into a new, unknown future deserves the kind of life I've been blessed with.

And that is why I'm marching tomorrow.

My Newest Relationship

2010-03-24T21:14:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of great relationships in my life. I have an incredible one with my parents (finally, now that I'm not a totally self-absorbed teenager), an super awesome one with Evan and his family, and I adore my friends. Honestly, I am very lucky.

There was, however, one relationship that I was hesitant to begin. I have been telling myself I need to start this relationship, and I always found excuses. Money, time, and downright denial were my main ones.

But, I've finally bitten the bullet and jumped into this relationship with everything I have. Excuses be damned.

I'm talking about the gym here. I joined a Bally's Total Fitness that is on my way home from work. That way, I figured, I would feel guilty driving by it if I didn't go. I don't do well with guilt, so this was a good strategy.

In college, I went to the gym pretty regularly. Especially freshman year, when I was dating a guy who was on the crew team who was in spectacular shape. I felt like I needed to keep up and so I spent literally 10+ hours at the gym a week, and I hardly ate anything. I dropped to about 112 pounds that year, and while I looked "great," I felt awful. If I wasn't working out, I was sleeping, because I didn't have any energy to do anything else. At one point, I was eating 600 calories a day and running 6 or so miles a day, plus weights.

Dumb, I know, but at that point in my life, I was so insecure about myself, that I figured that if I looked the best I could, I could at least feign confidence.

The funny thing, though, is that I never thought I looked good enough. I didn't realize at the time that confidence (cliche warning) comes from within, and isn't something you can chase after on the track. Even at my thinnest and most fit, I didn't like myself.

And then I met Evan. Evan, who loves me for me. Who loves me when I am happy, grumpy, and being a dork. Who loves me for loving elephants, being uber picky about socks, singing loudly in the shower, and best of all, supports me in absolutely everything I do. He didn't care if I missed a day at the gym, either, but those days turned into weeks, and while my self-confidence grew, so did my waistline.

So now, I want to feel as good about myself on the outside as I do on the inside. And this time, I'm doing it safely. I'm going three times a week to the gym, and planning to take a lot of walks besides. I've started cutting back on my portions and made better choices, and I've told myself that if I slip, that I won't get down on myself and drown myself in self-pity and ice cream. Instead, I'll start again the next day.

So wish me luck, guys. As that one guy in the movie Casablanca said, "I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."

We have the coolest cat ever!

2010-03-14T13:57:00.001-07:00

Here is our cat, Newton, playing fetch. You just have to love lazy Sunday mornings!

"Hey, I put some new shoes on..."

2010-03-08T15:03:00.000-08:00

Usually, for Valentine's Day, I receive some flowers, or candy, and a card. There's nothing wrong with that, of course, but this year, Evan out did himself.

He got me a pair of Vibram Five Fingers!

You see, we read this book Born to Run, a few months ago, and the shoes were mentioned as part of a new, barefoot running movement. They originally started as yacht shoes, but runners started using them once they realized that they didn't need the arch support or super cushy heels. Also, they've been reported to lessen arch, heel, and Achilles pain, which I've had problems with for years.

I know, I know. Looking at me now, you'd never guess I used to run. A lot. I ran every day, five to eight miles a day, and I totally bought into the hype of having to have all sorts of cushioning and support. I even went out and bought a pair of Nike running shoes that were made to help with my over-pronation. After reading the book, it's not a big surprise that three weeks into running with the super-shoes, I developed a severe case of plantar fasciitis, and had trouble with heel pain. I was icing my arches every day, and popping tons of Advil, just to run a few miles. I couldn't go more than two miles without wincing and having to stop to stretch out my arches. Eventually I stopped running altogether, even though I kept eating like I ran eight miles a day and boom, you get the present me.

And, yeah, maybe my form was terrible, or it was the asphalt I was running on, but there's a part of me that believes it was the shoes. Especially because ever since I've started wearing my Vibrams, I haven't had ANY arch pain, heel pain, or pain in my knees. It's a big deal. I wear them everywhere. I've even worn them on short runs around our neighborhood, and there wasn't any pain. There was just that feeling of freedom you get when everything clicks into place as you run.

I know they look weird. I get funny looks and questions all the time, especially from my students, but I just adore these shoes! Forget flowers and candy, I am going to ask for a pair of Vibrams every Valentine's Day!

New Things

2010-01-24T21:41:00.000-08:00

Beware: long, long post ahead!

I can't believe that two months ago I was basically living another life. I was in Corvallis, by myself, with a crazy cat and about a million unknowns hanging onto my shoulders. It was a really hectic period, but now, two months later (I last blogged in October? Eeek.) I really can't believe how amazing it all turned out. Honestly, the move and adjustment to life here in Beaverton could not have been smoother, and for that, I feel incredibly lucky.

So, new things in my life:

Moved into a wonderful little house in Beaverton, for which we don't have enough furniture, but that's okay because it gives the kitties more room to run.
We decided to adopt another kitten. Her name is Ampersand (it's the name for the "&" symbol) and it's a good thing she's so darn cute because she is a handful.
I was fortunate enough to get a job! I am now working as an ESL assistant at Liberty High School in Hillsboro. It has been a big adjustment going from middle to high schoolers, and one that I'm still trying to make. But, the people are great, and I get to hone my Algebra 2 skills, as well as read really cool novels again, like One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Animal Farm. Oh, and I get to actually work with old teachers I had back at Glencoe! It is totally surreal to refer to them as my colleagues, and I'm sure they're kind of weirded out as well.
My boyfriend, his family, and mi familia all pitched in over Christmas to surprise me with a Canon Rebel XSi! It is an amazing camera, and I love learning to play with it. I have vowed to not use Photoshop for at least the first six months I have it, which I hope will force me to really get to know all it's fantastic features.
After that amazing Christmas present, we went down to California to visit family, and it was Evan's first experience with my extended family. We are a, uh, flavorful family, and it was great to see Evan fitting right in with our locura (or craziness, for you non-spanish endowed people).
Evan and I took our first long adventure in California. We drove from Santa Ana to San Diego, and it was an absolute blast exploring the San Diego Zoo, Wild Animal Park, Old Town San Diego, and Balboa Park (my absolute favorite place). It was, of course, made more fun by the fact that I had my awesome new toy slung over my shoulder to chronicle the whole thing.
Evan and I have decided to start living in a more healthy way. We both read Born to Run (an incredible book that everyone should pick up, and that I will blog about later) and kind of mutually decided to start living better, not to slip into our high school jeans again or wow everybody this summer with our super slim and sculpted selves, but because we just want to feel better. This is my second week, and already, I can detect small, but significant changes in how I feel. Oh, and remind me to tell you guys about Chia seeds in an upcoming blog post. They are amazing, and have been key in this whole revamping of our lifestyle.
I don't know if you remember, but I mentioned before that I was having some pretty hardcore issues with anxiety before the move, and as anxious people go, we don't like changes, especially big ones. As I wrote my last post, I was dreading all the anxiety I was sure to feel while adjusting to this new stage in my life. A new city, a new house, a new job, etc., and I just wasn't sure if I could cope with it. So, imagine my surprise when I don't feel anything but an immense wave of calm wash over me almost as soon as we move in. I haven't had a panic attack since our move, our felt that edgy sensastion gnawing away at me for a long time. It's been amazing to be home. Every time I drive around my hometown, I am surrounded by old, happy, memories, and it excites me to think about all the new ones I will be able to layer over them. So far, 2010 is looking pretty promising.
I have decided to end this post with my favorite picture of our trip. I feel like he represents my goals for this year: stay strong and confident no matter what happens.

Three pieces of furniture and a cat.

2009-10-25T18:47:00.001-07:00

That's all I have at the moment. Well, and some food in the fridge.

No, no one broke in. I am almost totally moved out of Corvallis!

When I first realized that I would have to spend a month here, it seemed like an eternity away, but now that I seriously only have 4 days left, I've realized that the hardest part of leaving Corvallis is Corvallis itself, if that makes sense.

When you want to leave a place but can't, you only see the negatives about it. But, when you want to leave a place and then you're leaving before you thought you would be, all you see are the things you'll miss.

And there's a lot I'll miss. Everywhere I go in Corvallis holds some sort of special moment. I guess it's not hard to fill a town with memories when said town is so tiny it only takes 15 minutes to cross it. I suppose if I'm ever feeling super nostalgic, I can come back and get my fill of memories in less than half an hour. Efficient Nostalgia.

Plus, I'll be back every couple of weeks to get my hair cut. This may seem ridiculous to just about everyone, but my hairdresser really understands my hair and I would seriously follow her to Timbuktu, if I had to. If I didn't have my hairdresser, my tresses would look something like this:

I am super excited to move though, and start our life in Beaverton. We are actually living in a house, which will be a welcome change from our years of living in apartments. The littlest things about having a house are just so exciting to me. Like, I can't believe we'll have a driveway, instead of parking for a spot and worrying about some guy denting your door. Or, the idea of having a solid foundation under our feet, so I can do my Wii to my little heart's content, and Newton can tear around the place without our downstairs neighbor pounding on our floor with the end of a broom. Simple comforts.

So yeah. One more week in cozy Corvallis and then, new adventures!

Alone Time

2009-10-05T21:19:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I am so worried about a situation that I fail to see the silver lining until it basically hits me in the head.

The situation at hand is that I am currently spending a month alone here in Corvallis. Evan got a teaching job at Beaverton High School and of course, had to move up to that area to start teaching the savages aka high school freshmen.

As much as I wanted to go with him, I had to realize that I have a full-time job here with my own breed of savages, also known as middle schoolers. The way the economy is now, I would be a tad more than moronic to leave a decently paying job and a place that I worked so hard to have a voice in because I am a little nervous about being left all by my lonesome.

Of course, on paper it seems really simple: He goes and makes moolah, and I stay here and make moolah, and at some point, we come back together and share said moolah.

But, if you will, picture our plan as a cross-country runner. This guy is running smoothly, nothing in his path, and the sun is shining.

Images courtesy of Google

Now. Picture a mean guy in a trenchcoat walking up to our runner and throwing a gigantic wrench in his path. making the runner run straight into a very well-grown patch of poison oak. We'll call this wrench Anxiety.

The truth of the matter is, I have anxiety. Pretty badly, actually, and the idea of being left alone every evening was terrifying. Not to mention just about doing everything alone. I couldn't fathom grocery shopping alone, or running errands all by myself. It was too daunting.

So, back to our runner. He's picked himself out of the poison oak, and albeit itchy, he keeps going.

And, out of the bushes springs a crazy, rabid animal with a penchant for aluminum foil and all plants and he sinks his teeth into the runner's leg.

We'll call this crazy, rabid animal Newton. Frankly, this cat is really bizarre. I feel like a single parent (okay, maybe 1/100000th of what they feel) when I'm home alone with this feline. He gets into just about everything that isn't bolted down or welded shut, he eats everything (his latest meals: a magnet, bamboo leaves, gravel, and a large piece of aluminum foil), and then takes just about the smelliest poops I have ever experienced. And, trust me, I know animal poop.

So now our runner is itchy, and bleeding. As he's limping along, let's say that a very angry looking raincloud bursts open right on top of this poor guy, and a torrential rainfall begins to fall on him. Since this guy is an Oregonian right down to the core, the rain itself doesn't bother him so much as the absolute swamp of mud this rain is creating for him, bogging down his every step forward.

We'll call this muddy slop Loose Ends That Need Tying Up. On one hand, a month seems like forever, and when I think of all the little things I have to do, I feel like I am already out of time. And money.

What's crazy about this metaphor, is that our runner will eventually get to the finish line, and he'll be stronger after such a journey. And so will I.

I will take this time to live for myself down here; to go shopping for shoes I don't need but desperately want without Ev behind me looking like I dragged him into the store. I can browse for makeup or books for hours and not have to worry about anything or anyone but myself. I can learn a lot about myself that maybe I missed out on by living with someone for the last 3 years. It's so easy to put someone else that you care so deeply about before you and even lose yourself in that devotion. This is my chance to find myself again a little bit. To take a slightly scary journey that I know will have its fair share of obstacles, but in the end I will make it to Beaverton, and I'll be stronger when I get there.

And, at least, I don't actually have Poison Oak.

Oh bother...

2009-09-19T21:12:00.001-07:00

I've been lazy.

Well, at least as far as blogging is concerned. I can honestly say I had a lazy-free summer. It went by entirely too quickly, in my opinion. Maybe I'm just used to college-level summers, where you are free as soon as you get out of your last final in the early days of June, and don't amble back into a classroom until the very end of September.

Well, those days are long gone. I was definitely in a classroom on the second day of September, doing battle with a bulletin board (why are those things so darn difficult?!) and cutting out little stars, hearts, sharks, and dinosaurs from card stock for nametags.

To be honest, though, I don't know what I would even do with an extra month of summer; we crammed so many things into the 2.5 months I did have. I suppose I would sleep a lot, chase after my energy-riddled kitten, and spend most evenings jamming to the awesome new Beatles game that I had to have (thank goodness for old, deaf neighbors).

Oh, and Netflix. A lot of Netflix. Especially since we would go weeks without seeing some of the movies we got this summer because we weren't in the city at the time.

Anyway, while a part of me is definitely bitter about waking up a little bit after the sun rises and dealing with hormonally charged teenagers soon thereafter, I also feel good about settling into this scary "adult" thing a little more easily than I did last year, and so far, this year is going well for me. I like the teachers I work with, and the best part is that I for half the day, I work almost entirely in Spanish. It's been great to dust off that part of me and get some much-needed practice in. There were a few years there in the middle to high-school age where I almost lost my ability to speak this gorgeous language. I feel like now, I am making up for lost time.

Also in today's news, Google is telling me that this is my 50th blog post, which I think is pretty nifty. I started this as a way to just chronicle my thoughts and experiences as I left CollegeLand and headed into the "real world" whatever that means. It has been a lot of fun, but I think I will start talking about other, more serious issues soon. Before, something would get me either really amped, or really infuriated and I'd be afraid to talk about it because I was sure I'd get a comment saying, "you're the dumbest person ever; cancel your blog immediately before my eyes start bleeding from reading your ignorance."

Frankly, now that I think about it, this is my blog, made just so I could say whatever I wanted, ignorant or otherwise. If you guys are ever at odds over something I say, please tell me; I love debating issues. If you guys are ever offended, by all means, click away from my blog.

Don't worry; I'm not going to get super serious on all 4 of you. There will still be plenty of posts about my crazy life, tweenager wrangling days, and new to the blog, crazy stories about my seriously ADHD kitten, Newton.

And of course, there will be pictures like this one to just make your day:

Sunburnt lips while camping, August. Angelina Jolie, eat your freakin' heart out.

And they call them the "dog days of summer"...?

2009-08-05T23:42:00.001-07:00

I think they need to seriously think about redoing that term...I've never seen a dog sleep quite like Newton can!

Newton.

2009-07-27T23:09:00.001-07:00

I was going to do a blog about our new place (which rocks, by the way) but decided instead to do one about Newton, a kitten we are kitten-sitting for a week.

We were a bit apprehensive about taking him in at first because I have a pretty significant cat allergy. By pretty significant, I mean that I get hives the size of Alaska and sneeze my frontal lobe out every time I am near a feline. I wasn't always allergic, but ever since I went off to college, it was bestowed on me. Phooey, I say.

But, alas, his cuteness won me over, and I decided that living off of Benadryl for a week would be worth it. I missed having a cat around.

Anyway, here are some pictures of the little guy.

Also, I took some video of him playing with the laser pointer. I think they are pretty entertaining. When he's awake, he's more or less non-stop. I can only write this now because he's sleeping, otherwise he'd be on top of my laptop, attacking the keys.

An apartment cleaned, a lesson learned

2009-07-12T13:15:00.000-07:00

It's not often that one has an epiphany while cleaning an oven.

But, it happened to me.

See, I was really anxious before we moved. Suddenly, I couldn't remember why we were moving. After our roommate moved out, our apartment felt huge again, and I could not fathom living anywhere else.

I cried a ton on my birthday, because each time I saw our mountain of boxes, I didn't want to leave. I cried when we came to the new apartment because it felt so different than our home. I didn't sleep at all the night before we moved, and I felt sick and miserable about leaving.

But anyway, the truck was packed, and on what felt like the hottest day in the history of the world, we moved out of our little tree house.

I kept wandering around the new place, feeling like I was just on vacation and would promptly be returning home, while Evan, totally enamored with the in-unit washer/dryer, promptly did four loads of laundry and went about unpacking boxes while I moped.

The next day, we trooped over to the old apartment to clean it. I was nervous, because I just knew that I'd be overcome with homesickness and never want to leave it again.

But, as I dusted, vacuumed, scrubbed and washed this old apartment, I suddenly saw it just as it was: an old, empty apartment. There was nothing in those old rooms that made it feel like home. I didn't feel overcome with homesickness because this place was so obviously not my home. It was an old, (very dusty) apartment that I had lived in once.

I had just a little bit of time to think about this, because the next day, we headed up to Portland to celebrate the Fourth with my family. And here, I was home. I was home because I was with my family, and with people I loved.

And a few days after that, we came home to Corvallis. Again, I was home because I was with a person I care so very much about.

Most of you probably know this, but it took me a good hour of cleaning out our old oven and vacuuming corners with dust cougars to realize that it's not a place that makes a home, or the furniture in it: it's the people that make it home. One doesn't go home after a long day thinking, "I am going home to a great, Craftsman-era bungalow with great built-ins and wood detail," they think, "I am going home to my family."

Regardless of where I am, if I am with family, with people I love, then I am home. Right now, home is right here in this quiet corner of Corvallis with Evan. I know that now, and I couldn't be happier.

Plus, the in-unit laundry is pretty rockin'.

Packing up and movin' on out!

2009-06-30T00:39:00.000-07:00

So, it is final. We are headed out of this wonderfully ancient apartment and moving 3.3 miles down the road to a better one here in Corvallis.

For posterity's sake, here are the things I will miss:

Having not one, but two parking spaces assigned to us, and not having to pay a ridiculous amount for it.
The trees all around our apartment. Since we live on the third floor, it is a little like living in a tree house, and I just loved looking out of the windows and seeing a forest of green.
Having the coolest manager ever. Steve is awesome. I am pretty sure he can hear me singing at full volume in the shower because our bathroom shares a wall with his apartment, but he has never mentioned it, or given me the stink-eye after I belt out The Killer's "Mr. Brightside" fifty times a week.
Being super close to downtown. I love taking walks to the waterfront and dinking around all the little bookstores and shops without having to worry about parallel parking (aka me crashing into an expensive car while trying)
The windows this place has. Seriously, we don't ever need to turn a light on in the summer. Or winter, for that matter. Natural light just tends to stream in.
This is probably more applicable to Evan, but the kitchen here is pretty awesome. I have been able to appreciate it when I go in there to get a glass of water or make toast. Ev really likes having a really giant island he can do his (or all,) cooking done.
The office. We are actually moving to a slightly smaller place, and I will miss the size of our office here. We could comfortably fit a bookcase, two desks, and a couch in our office and still have room to spare. I wrote all my final papers, letters, and journal entries in here because it was always relaxing to be in that space. I crammed for tests, cried over the grades I received on tests, and had some of the best conversations with Evan in that room.
Just the comfort I feel here. This was our first apartment together, and we've had millions of moments here that built up and made it feel like home. There is a part of me that is scared to leave this place, because even with it's flaws, it is perfect to me.

And, to ease the fear of moving, here are the things I won't miss:

Drunken college students walked below our balcony every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night.
The Big Brother-esque street light that shines directly into our dining room
Kitchen cabinets that are crooked and roughly the same color as Snuffulufagus
Yellow, faux marble countertops.
Having to do our laundry in a dungeon next to where they keep the Dumpster.
A shower door that seemingly hates to stay on the track, especially right at the moment the water gets cold and you have shampoo in your eye.
The stairs to our third floor apartment here are so steep and treacherous that one must almost hire a Sherpa to help ascend. All (and I mean all) of our friends (and most of our parents) have tripped or fallen going up or down those stairs.
Being half a block from the fire and police station. I sleep through all sirens now, which I fear is a disadvantage in trying to survive. If they go by during the day, however, I can tell the difference between a cop car, ambulance, or fire engine just by listening to the stupid siren.

All in all, it has been a wonderful two years here, and while I will miss it and always look back on our first big Couple Adventure with fond memories, I think this move will be good for us and bring on a whole new slew of moments. The next blog entry from me will probably be from our new home! 'Till then, take care, and blog yourselves so I have something to read when I take a break from packing!

June 2009

2009-06-14T18:31:00.001-07:00

Please excuse my absence, I've been trying to stay sane with everything June has had me up to.

First, I had to keep my students entertained until the last day, which was a feat unto itself. The 8th had been checked out since the 1st of June, and I all but had to juggle textbooks for them to pay attention. When the last day finally came, I realized that I would definitely miss those kids, especially the ones that I had forged a connection with. I told one that I was planning on going to his high school graduation, and when I said that, he looked at me, and said, "do you really think I'll make it there?"

I said, "of course you will!" And his eyes teared up and he said, "okay teacher, I will see you there!"

I hate to sound cliche, but it's moments like that that seem to evaporate all the bad days. It has been such a great year, and I have learned so much. I don't think those kids realize how much they have taught me about patience, compassion, commitment, humor, and love. I owe them a lot, and will miss them next year.

My 8th graders

Good luck with everything, guys!

Also in the last few weeks, we've decided on a new apartment here in Corvallis, and are planning to move on my birthday, July 1st. It is going to be a big move for us, but I think we're ready. Also, we get to choose paint colors, and being the gigantic HGTV freak that I am, I am totally excited about that.

Finally, but most importantly, Evan graduated from Oregon State University on the 13th, with two degrees! One in Education and one in History, plus a teaching license. It was exciting to sit and watch him culminate these last five years of school. He has worked hard, and I could not be more proud of him! It's funny to think that we met as college freshmen, and are still together and facing new experiences as graduates. I can't wait to see what new adventures Life takes us on!

Evan in the sea of graduates

Apparently, OSU has a song that Alumni are supposed to know

Me with the new alum!

Congrats, Ev!

sing it to me, Ray

2009-05-07T22:21:00.001-07:00

I love Ray Lamontagne, (evidenced by my going and buying all three of his albums because I couldn't stand to leave one behind) and I especially like this cover he did of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy". I know, I know. I too, got so sick of that song during the summer of 2007 that I felt nauseous when it came on the radio, but Ray (we are on a first name basis; he just doesn't know it) puts a really great spin on it, and I can listen to it over and over, dramamine free.

The homestretch

2009-05-03T18:48:00.000-07:00

That's what all the teachers call this time of year. I see it more like I've been climbing a mountain, and these last 5 weeks are like the super rocky, slippery part right before the summit, where you're not sure if you have enough oxygen or strength to make it to the top. Summer would be the easy downhill climb, and once you reach the bottom, it's almost September and you may as well turn around and start climbing again.

Anyway, I haven't meant for this to become some sort of monthly thing. I always thought I'd be one of those annoying people who blogged almost daily about just anything. I know I keep promising to be more consistent with this, but I may as well stop and say that once I reach the top of Middle School Wrangling Mountain, I will be back more often.

So, good news: I have been offered my position at Linus Pauling for next year, same hours and everything, and I would be a moron of gigantic proportions to not take it. The major sacrifice we have to make is pushing our plan to move back to the Portland area another year, but I think we can live with that, especially if we get some sort of furry pet to make up for the serious lack of people around.

Another plus: apartments are waaaay cheaper here in Corvallis, and we've decided on a two-bedroom, one bath in a much nicer part of town. It is a definite upgrade from the place we have now. Don't get me wrong; I love it here, but the complex was constructed somewhere near 1972, when I suppose not having lights in the closet, golden-hued countertops matched with dark dark dark cabinets, or a slightly slanted kitchen floor wasn't a big deal.

I suppose the hardest thing for me these last few weeks was to actually find the silver lining in staying here another year. I had really amped myself for leaving, and starting a new chapter in our lives, and I felt like I was being held back against my will. Then I'd get mad at myself because hey, it was a job, for crying out loud, which, right now, is a lot more than some people have. And yeah, there are days when I want to pull my hair out and punt more than one kid out the window (there is a reason those windows don't open all the way, and why Glencoe High School had none: the temptation is too great) but in the end, I adore my job, and I adore my kids.

So yeah. Staying here another year certaintly won't kill me, and who knows what lies in store for me, or us, in the upcoming year. I'm sure there will be more surprises.

Okay, if you made it this far, here is your reward:

This is what happens when you get two tired educators on a Friday night!

I cannot get enough of

2009-04-04T15:54:00.000-07:00

Slumdog Millionaire!

I just watched this last night (every time we tried to see it in theaters one of us came down with the flu, so we just resorted to Netflix so we could watch it, plague-ridden or not) and I loved it. Rarely does a movie move me like this one did, and if you haven't seen it, please do!

Also, being the soundtrack junkie that I am, I am currently obsessing over the music in this film. Here are two of my favorites, although I thought it was all fantastic.

ssshhhhhh, I'm hunting an apawtment...

2009-03-15T21:49:00.000-07:00

I apologize for not writing more often. I have an excuse other than laziness, however. I have become totally enthralled and addicted to apartment hunting, which I know doesn't sound horribly exciting, but considering the fact that I've had the flu not once, but twice (my immune system is no match for middle schoolers), it's about all I have the energy for.

There's just something about comparing floorplans, and amenities offered, and oh, ratings. I love ratings and reviews.

Okay. I know I sound like a loser with too much free time, but really, it's addicting. We've made a list of about 8 complexes (complexi?) in the Hillsboro/Beaverton/Tanasbourne area that we're going to scout out during Spring Break. If you guys (all 6 of you) know of any we should know of, or avoid, I am all ears.

I'm not saying I want a baby...

2009-02-08T18:20:00.000-08:00

But shopping for other people's is a lot of fun. Especially when you can get stuff like this:

The shoes are my favorite. For now, I'll vicariously dress other people's children as I would my own. That'll definitely do for now.

Oops. Is it really February?

2009-02-01T20:19:00.000-08:00

Well. It's been a while since I've posted, and I wish I had a decent excuse, like a really high-powered job, or kids, or moving to an exotic island and realizing there is no internet.

But, to be honest, my real reason is that I've just plain gotten lazy. I've had ideas, but then something happens, and I want to post about that, but there's this twang of guilt that I won't be posting about the former thing and well, it is a vicious cycle.

That's why I am going to try to cram everything that's happened in one post that (hopefully) won't bore all six of you to tears.

Which will be tough, since I haven't posted anything since we made gingerbread houses and they have gone the way of the dinosaurs and Pauly Shore's film career.

I think what I will do is a "yay" and "nay" post, because they seem to be the most energy efficient, and we're all about being green here in this household.

Yay to having Christmas Break start a few days early.

Nay to Corvallis apparently thinking we don't need the roads cleared and that we still can use horse-drawn sleighs to get around.

Yay to taking the chance to walk around Corvallis and realizing that it looks like an old timey Christmas card during the winter.

Nay to losing my debit card and driver's license in the stupid snow while sledding.

Yay to the amazingly nice lady at Wells Fargo who heard my story through my hysteria and let me have an emergency card.

Nay to realizing the emergency card only had 60 bucks on it because I couldn't provide a form of ID other than my OSU student identification card.

Yay for stores that have special sales for people like me who leave Christmas shopping for the 23rd.

Nay to dealing with students who have had three weeks of vacation and have somehow forgotten everything taught to them the 3 months prior.

Yay to watching Obama's inauguration and experiencing such a monumental moment with my students.
Nay to the other teacher in the room who promptly turned off the inauguration because he voted for the other guy.

Yay to also being able to attend Carl's wedding reception back in Hillsboro and see him be so incredibly happy.

Nay to realizing that yes, my friends are getting married, having children, and getting jobs and are, by most accounts, adults, and therefore (gasp!), so am I.

Yay to coming back home to Corvallis and settling back into our routine and being able to play with our new Christmas goodies. One of which was this amazing book of the classic Life portraits. Best part about it: it comes with actual prints that I can put into nifty frames!

(don't actually click on it to look inside...)

Nay to a newfound aversion to snow. It snowed this last weekend, and when I saw it peacefully falling outside my window, I moaned and said, "Ugh, more?"

Yay to the sun finally coming out again and being able to go outside again and not fear breaking an ankle. We went to Eugene for the day recently and went to 5th Street Market and Prince Pucklers, the best ice cream in the world. Even Obama has been there!

Nay to not actually being there when Obama stopped by.

Yay to at least being there with Evan, whom I have had the pleasure of spending three wonderful years with. He is an amazing person, and I hope to share many, many, more years with him. Especially if we can still stop by Prince Pucklers.

Nay to Corvallis School District for announcing that their budget will be utter crap for the next two years, which means I probably won't be working at Linus Pauling Middle School next year.

Yay to seeing this as an opportunity for us to move back up to the Portland area where we would be closer to our families and friends, along with the fact that Ev and I would probably have a better chance of finding a teaching gig, what with there being more than one district nearby. Also, a major plus: not walking out the front door and being instantly hit with the smell of 3,000 cows. No, really. It happens.yay! nay!

Nay to leaving all the kids that I have gotten to know. I really don't know how teachers can watch their students leave their grades year after year. I get all sad and teary just thinking about it. I've already promised to come visit them in high school.

Yay to most apartments in the Tanasbourne area allowing pets bigger than fish! And that have fur!

Nay to being allergic to most things with fur, resulting in our probably having to buy something with "doodle" in it.
well..they're not that bad...

Yay to having a fish meanwhile. And he is the coolest fish in all the land. His name is Osiris and he was my reward for surviving an uber cold that had taken over my sinuses and made me its minion for a week.

I call Ozzie for short.

Nay to having a cold so severe that when I tried to go to work, my coworkers took one look at me and said, "Sweetie, we don't mean this the wrong way, but you look horrible. Go home and sleep." And this was after I had taken two Dayquils. At least I got Ozzie out of the whole ordeal.

Yay to finally catching all 6 of you up on what I've been up to. I hope you guys haven't given up on me, and that you have not totally gone comatose after reading all this. I will try to be more consistent with updating this so it's not a manifesto every single time. Here's to February, more adventures, and hopefully more blog posts!

Sudden Burst of Craftiness.

2008-12-09T22:09:00.000-08:00

So, I adore Christmas. Well, the season, rather. I love the cold, brisk mornings (provided I am not out there too long) the cute sweaters, the cozy evenings with a cup of hot cocoa, the lights (I even like the tacky, gigantically bulbed, multi-colored ones), heck, I even like the music.

During one of these cozy evenings, Evan and I were trying to think of what to do that didn't involve leaving the relative warmth of our apartment. He looked at me warily and said, "What do you think about making gingerbread houses?"

The cause for wariness stems from the fact that I am the least domestic person you'll ever meet. I don't like to cook or bake, I have never owned any sort of scrapbooking paraphernalia, and the last time I sewed, my stuffed horse ended up with just two legs instead of four. My "projects" never come out quite right, and I think it's just better for the craft world if I don't come around and insult it.

Naturally my answer to Evan's question was, "You mean the kind that come in kits, right? The ones that you just stick together?"

I got a significant eye roll, and all of a sudden, I was attacked by a bout of craftiness. I wanted to go and get all the things needed (and then some, I realized) for making an amazing gingerbread house. So we managed to convince our roommate, Ira to join in, and we trooped off to Winco to load up on anything made with sugar. I told myself in the beginning that I would use all of the candy for the houses, and I kept my promise, for the most part.

The necessities: M&M's, gumdrops, gummy bears, choco-rocks (more on those later) three kinds of frosting, and graham crackers (this was on a college student (and fledgeling EA's)budget. Oh, and for sustenance for me, a glass of green tea.

This wonder of the world is a choco-rock. We found them at Winco and I had visions of a pathway to my house, along with stone pillars...I actually do love architecture, and if I had any sort of a penchant for math, I would have probably wanted to be one. As it stands, however, my math skills are nonexistant, so choco-rock pillars it would be.

Evan concentrating on his task at hand. He had actually done this before. Ira and I had never even tried this and were actually failing miserably on the other side of the table.

Ev actually managed to finish his basic house before Ira and I even had three walls up. Yeah, that open space? "It's a sun deck. I'll make a railing soon."

Proof that I was a graham cracker building failure. This was my second wall, and when I started to attach the third one, it just broke off. Maybe it's a good thing I never went into architecture. Then again, the Great Wall must have lost a few stones, right?

This is what we call Karma. Evan rushed the building of his silly deck, and the whole second story of his house fell on his Gummy Bear BBQ. I get the biggest kick out of the surprised expression on the red gummy bear. He just seems to be saying, "oh dear..."

This was Ira's house. We looked away, and when we looked back, his house looked as if the the Keibler Elves had thrown up on it.

We were amazed that the roof didn't collapse from the sheer weight of peanut-filled M&M's.

When I got tired of repairing collapsing walls, I made a snowman out of gumdrops.

This was my door, and while my dreams of an amazing, decorative, choco-rock pathway didn't come completely true, I still think it's cute.

Evan's finished house. He has since eaten all the gumdrop shrubs, the M&M railing to his sun deck, as well as the gummy bear inhabitants of the deck, and is now eyeing Ira's landscaping.

I'm sorry for the blur. I despise flash, and our apartment manager doesn't understand the need for decent lighting lest there be an amateur photographer living in unit 302. Anyway, here were the (now deceased) inhabitants of Evan's house. Evan is quite crafty, and I need to point out the orange bear workin' it on the black jellybean bbq.

Again, the blur. I'll write a strongly worded letter to the management later. As for now, just take note of Evan's little garage and car he made while he waited for Ira and I to try, yet again, to put a roof on our houses.

My finished home. I went with the open-air attic, haha. Easier to find things, I think, when all the daylight streams straight into your attic.

The finished subdivision. I think these homes will go for anywhere in the low 300 thousands to the 450 range (that right there was my immense pride in myself for doing something remotely crafty and it coming out relatively tolerable, and my love for the HGTV channel.)

I think this could become some sort of tradition.

2008-12-09T20:56:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! So it's been a busy couple of weeks, what with Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Middle School Tweenager Wrangling, and trying to stay sane. I've been having a bit a rough patch lately, mainly dealing with things that are far beyond my control but being far too stubborn to admit it, and it has resulted in my reading every one else's blog but skittering away from the trouble of writing in my own.

Luckily, it's Finals Week here in sleepy little Corvallis, and it means the majority of my (still) college-attending friends have holed themselves in their apartments or the Valley Library to cram 10 weeks of material in 5 days, so I have found myself with a little free time to write.

Before the dreaded Finals Week hit, Evan, our roommate Ira and I had a few fun times.

We actually decided to have our own Thanksgiving, a week early. We are always out of food anyway, and this way, we figured, we'd have a lot of leftover food to keep us until the actual day of Gluttony.

What's more funny is that I don't cook. Not at all. Maybe toast, if I'm feeling inspired. But, I did manage to make our mashed potatoes. I'm not sure the boys trusted me with anything else.

Evan made apple pie from scratch, and it was fantastic. I did, however, make the apron in a sudden burst of craftiness.

The next two are just of the wonderful fall colors we get the pleasure of seeing everyday outside our apartment.

And, since it is a Tuesday, I decided to share a song that has helped me through my rocky, too-stubborn-to-realize-I-can't-do-anything-about-it-now moments.

More posts to come! Including one where I had another sudden and unexpected attack of craftiness!

Picture Movie!

2008-10-30T12:15:00.000-07:00

I've decided to try something new. Instead of making you sift through a huge, long, photo-laden blog, I used Picasa and made a sort of slide show (I call it a movie) with all the pictures on that. I hope you enjoy it!

Since I don't particularly like silent films, I thought I'd attach a song you can play while you watch. It is "Be Gentle With Me," by The Boy Least Likely To. Hey, I don't name these bands.

"My Summer Vacation..."

2008-10-04T22:36:00.000-07:00

I think I have started a post about 30 times. First it was about the last bit of my summer vacation, much like the essays we were forced to write in elementary school. If I had to write that essay/speech now, it would probably go something like this:

"I spent the last few weeks of summer in Sunriver, Oregon, where it is possible to feel under dressed while doing relatively mundane things, like getting the paper.

I then came back to my hometown, Hillsboro, and was the maid of honor at one of my oldest friend's wedding. Not without it's fair share of drama, however, as I almost fainted during the pastor's 16 hour (slight exaggeration, but not much) monologue. Thankfully, most people only remember the good stuff, as is the trend of most weddings. Oh, and Tatiana stole (note: not caught) the bouquet, so I shall be planning her bachelorette party soon.

About two days after the wedding, I began my first "real" job at Linus Pauling Middle School. I really object to the quotations, because I still stand by the fact that sheep wrestling/midwifing/vaccinating/more wrestling was a real job.

Yeah. You wish our middle school had looked this cool. Heck, I wish my University had looked this nice.

I do have to admit, however, that my "real" job is by far my favorite, and that I enjoy just about every minute of it. The minutes that aren't so enjoyable are the ones where the kids feel like rejecting every possible iota of common sense and instead opt for the poorest behavioral choice imaginable. I have learned quickly, though, that reverse psychology works wonders.

"Oh, you're not afraid of doing a little worksheet on semicolons, are you?"

Also, the kids I work with are pretty awesome. It's hard not to have certain students you enjoy more than others, but in all honesty, I see the potential in all of them, even if they may not. There are days when I wish I could pull them aside and just tell them how much I believe in them, and how much I know they can accomplish. It's my goal this year to help them see that.

It hasn't been difficult to get to know the kids, either. A reason may be, as one teacher put it, "well, you are closer in age to them than to most of us." She may have had a point, as I get accused of being an 8th grader almost daily. I thought my days of, "Where is your hall pass, young lady?" were over.

A rather unfortunate result of having a "real" job is having a "real" alarm set at 6:50 am. It's a rare moment now to catch me anywhere near awake after 11 pm.

The mention of which is actually a good transition into the conclusion of my essay, where I say that overall, it was a wonderful end to the summer, and that I am truly content with how my life has turned out as a result of things that happened in the last 6 weeks or so. I am excited to see what the rest of the year has planned for me. I am sure Fall and Winter won't let me down."

In hindsight, my speeches in school would have been so much cooler with a song at the end. Like a personalized credits scene. So here goes:

Life Music

2008-08-07T14:53:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I wish that I had a constant soundtrack for my life. That, whenever something big happened, or just when I was walking down the street, there was the perfect song playing in my head, without the help of an i-Pod. If anything, they hinder my life soundtrack because the shuffle mode can't be relied upon to choose the right song for the moment. I know that I'm not the only one who's experienced a truly amazing moment just in time to hear "Baby Got Back."

What I need is a personal assistant who has a database of awesome songs; like the guys (or girls) who choose what song to play at a certain part of a movie (is there an official title for that?) to follow me as I go about my day and just know what song to play when.

Anyway, I heard a song recently that I would definitely play in my life soundtrack a few times a week, when I feel like nothing makes much sense, and the world seems so big, uncertain, and scary. This song would play after reading the first page of the newspaper, or watching the news, and then going outside for a walk to clear your head of the dark things. Cue song...now.

The Heart of Life - John Mayer

The little things.

2008-07-30T19:33:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. Mainly, I've asked myself questions, and the answers have really had a great effect on me.

See, I've been really stressed lately. It tags along with the 13 credits I have to cram into the next 3 weeks.

Usually, I do not handle stress well. I get panicky, irritable, and just want to sleep until all my burdens are gone or overdue. Essentially, stress makes me its minion, and stress tends to feed off of refined carbohydrates and sugar, usually in the form of chocolate chip cookies. Once stress leaves, however, I am the only one that's left to deal with the consequences.

Anyway, I started getting stressed last week, and I could feel myself just breaking down under the pressure, and while I was having a really good cry about it, I asked myself what good all this did. Did I honestly believe that I couldn't achieve this, that I couldn't see myself through a mess I admittedly signed up for? Why was I saying I couldn't do it?

Of course I could do it. For the first time, instead of cowering behind the fear that I couldn't do something, I found strength in proving to everyone, and most importantly myself, that I could.

So, now, instead of letting stress and worry get me down, I let it force me to be confident in myself and my abilities, and to trust that things will work out.

The most annoying thing about stress was that it gave me a sort of tunnel vision. I could only focus on what I had to do, and how little time I had to do it. I was completely oblivious to the amazing things going on around me. Forcing myself to see around the stress has really let me stop worrying about the big things I can't control, and to really enjoy the little things. Of which, of course, I have photos of, just to remind myself.

Little things I have been witness to lately have been:

A flower growing in a pile of weeds and roadside trash.

The vibrancy of the Corvallis Farmer's Market reflected in tomatoes.

A summer league championship game. Oh, and playing with Ev's DSLR.

A wonderful sunset.

Stress and worry isn't worth missing out on nifty things like these. Evan bought me the ring at the beginning of this post, and looking down and reading that promise to Live, Love, and Laugh has only made my resolve to not let my anxieties about silly things (they will certainly seem petty in the long-run; of that I'm sure) get the best of me.

I promise.

Farmer's Market!

2008-07-17T23:00:00.000-07:00

Evan and I decided to swing down to the Corvallis Farmer's Market this last weekend because it was a gorgeous day, and because this event has been going on steadily every weekend we've lived here (and probably a few thousand years before) and we've steadily slept through it every weekend.

We usually save our Saturday "dates" for the evening, opting to stay inside and be hermits for the day. Switching it up was fun, minus the fact that we emerged into the early afternoon sun like a pair of moles, squinting and shying away from the bright light.

Anyway, we headed down a few blocks, and we had a really good time. At the risk of sounding like a travel brochure, the Corvallis waterfront is really nicely laid out, and even though there were a lot of people, it was comfy. The vendors were really nice, and had samples of just about everything, including some homemade french bread, which I painfully had to pass on. Instead, I took my carb-frustrations out on some organic cauliflower.

I could never make it look as good as that bread.

Next, we hit up the local artisan's market, which was also very cool. Not Saturday Market cool, but I can see how living in puny Corvallis would stifle your creativity.

Why is it that we are so tempted to buy homemade stuff we don't need? I don't even drink tea. But I wanted it.

I wasn't so tempted by these, as I don't need an already dented...thing.

Another prime example of something that I totally fell in love with, and I have no idea why.

After we perused all the things we wanted for no reason and thankfully couldn't afford, we just meandered around Corvallis. Actually, that's not true. Evan ended up buying an elephant carved out of wood. It was five bucks because it was missing a tusk, so we named it Tusko, after the elephant that had a tusk removed at the Oregon Zoo.

It's funny to think I've been here for four years and I haven't really explored the town outside of campus. I always used to scoff at New Yorkers who'd say they had lived there their entire lives and they've never been to Times Square, but now I can relate.

There is also some pretty nifty architecture in this town. I'm impressed that Corvallis had the foresight to save some of its earliest buildings. I actually really like learning about architecture, and if I wasn't completely inept with all things even remotely mathematical, I would have considered being an architect. Oh well. Taking pictures will have to suffice.

This building used to be a general store in 1908 or something, and now it houses a Sprint store and disgruntled college students.

Same building. I love that some guy has been forced to climb up the building and paint those little decorations bright blue for the last 100 years.

This is the City Hall. We can actually see it from our apartment, and the bells still ring out the hours, which I like. I'm sorry I caught the flag looking so droopy.

Overall, it was a really great afternoon. I'm sure there will be more Corvallis exploration adventures, even if the town is only about 5 miles long.

sdrawkcab

2008-07-17T19:01:00.000-07:00

If you haven't figured it out already, the title of this is the word "backwards" written backwards. This is because I've started to notice that I do a lot of things backwards. It's not something I do on purpose, but it's definitely something that people have asked about.

So, yeah. I tend to read newspapers, magazines, operation manuals, and menus backwards. Also, when I resume a book, I open it to the last page and work my way to my saved spot (I never use bookmarks, because it frustrates me to no end when you put all your trust into a stupid bookmark and then the damn thing slides out, leaving you to remember the page anyway), and when I take a test, I always, always, start with the last question.

I can't imagine three 6 year-olds being so enthralled by the newspaper, but she is reading it backwards, for what it's worth.

The only one I can maybe explain is the test one. A lot of my upper division classes had the fantastic short answer portion for the last 5 or so questions, and I like to do those while the information is still completely fresh in my mind. I am not a good test taker, and when I get nervous, my brain likes to take a vacation to the Bahamas while I have a small coronary in the non-air-conditioned classroom. Plus, a lot of what professors tend to ask on the short answer pops up again in the multiple choice (or my favorite, matching or fill-in-the-blank) which takes away the anxiety one feels when trying to choose between A or C. Or maybe it's E, which says that both A and C are correct.

It almost always goes something like this. Not pleasant.

I have absolutely no idea why I do any of the others that way. It's not like I enjoy reading the endings to all the articles before I even know what the headline is.

Maybe I started thinking about this quirky (which sounds better than just plain ol' strange) routine because I am currently unemployed and was thinking about what sort of unique skills I could put on a resume to make myself more appealing. Alas, this little habit of mine probably doesn't make the list.

I've decided that overall, I don't really like the hiring process. I feel like a resume is just a place for you to flaunt yourself, the interview is where your potential boss measures the real you to the resume you, and the "call-back" step is just to test your patience with other people, because your resume said you were patient.

Which I'm not, by the way. At all.

Yep.

Totally Cool Stuff Tuesday #5...?

2008-07-08T15:27:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I posted a totally cool stuff Tuesday list, because my life has revolved mainly around Fundamentals of Accounting, which sucks the fun out of just about everything. But, I have found myself with some rare free time (or so I hope. I probably have a midterm tomorrow that I didn't know about) so I thought I'd update a bit.

1. Nintendo Wii - I received one of these from my mom and I finally found the time to play it, and I am already addicted. I think Evan, an avid lover of all things Xbox 360, is even warming up to it, especially since his beloved 360 officially bit the dust a few weeks ago. Wii wins!
2. Nick Brandt photography- Seriously, these pictures took my breath away. This is wildlife photography at its absolute finest. Below are two examples, but totally check out his website to see some more of his amazing work.

3. White Old Navy flip-flops - I am putting this on here because they will most likely only be white for this week, and so I will treasure them. I don't know why I do this every year, but I am compelled to buy a pair of $2.50 white flip-flops every summer. They are just the perfect, lazy college student's footwear, because the white color somehow makes up for the fact that they are the cheapest form of footwear available. Anyway, this summer, I resolved not to, only to be given a pair for my birthday. C'est la vie, right? Maybe next year when I'm actually getting a paycheck I will splurge and get a pair of real sandals, but for now, these are wonderful, and still white.

4. The satisfying feeling of getting really cool pictures- I know I've slacked on posting pictures, but it's because Blogger feels the need to frustrate me when I try to post them, and seeing as how I tend to be impatient, this results in my storming away and no pictures ever getting posted. Today, I will triumph.

Steps leading to one of many waterfalls at Silver Falls State Park

One would think I was a flower enthusiast or a botany major with all the pictures I take of flowers, but truth is, I have no idea what any of these are. Nor do I care. I separate them out using a, "This one is pretty, this one is not, is this one poisonous?" system.

I don't know which one this is. But it was pretty.

This is at the Olympic Track Trials in Eugene (or as the clever newspeople called it, "The road from Eugene to Beijing") and this guy was the scrawniest of the bunch. I had my camera on drive mode, and I probably was very successful in annoying everyone in the stands with the constant, click, click, click, click...

The women's 1500 meters. I love their looks of determination. And, extra bonus: seeing them made me want to get to the gym a lot more often.
The three guys from Oregon who are going to Beijing. Okay, I'm going to be honest: I took this picture from the giant screen at the end of the Hayward field. If you can't be down there to take the picture, steal it from the Jumbo-Tron, I always say.

My favorite of the day. It took me 10 laps to get this one.

5. Summer -India Arie - I really like this song, because it's light and summery, which cheers me up when I'm stuck inside listening to cash-flow this and prokaryote that, watching summer go by through classroom windows. I hope you guys like it!

That's all for this week. Next week will be a lot less chaotic (knock on plastic desk) so I hope to get on here more often. Later days!

yays and nays

2008-06-26T15:33:00.000-07:00

So, I know I've been gone for a while, but I plan to make it up to you guys with what will probably be a hugely long post. I've decided to copy our OSU newspaper, The Barometer by listing off recent events in my life as either "yays" or "nays." Here goes:

Yay to graduating from college.

Nay to summer classes after you've gone through the, "you're finally done!!" speech.

Yay to getting 100 bucks for graduating from college.

Nay to having to spend that 100 bucks on an accounting book, financial calculator, and Statistics 201 study guides.

Yay to buying Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri, one of my favorite authors.

Nay to forgetting to bring it back with me to Corvallis.

Yay for friends loaning you other books, like Caramelo, by Sandra Cisneros. I highly recommend it.

Nay for friends, when you realize that they have all summer to be free and merry, while you're stuck in a 3.5 hour accounting class every. single. day. Starting at 8am.

Yay to being completely done with said accounting class in three weeks, even if it means selling my soul to a financial calculator.

Nay to not having AC in our apartment, which results in us yelling at each other to be heard over the fans and the roar of traffic (well...the few cars we have that pass by. It's Corvallis. Anything more than 12, and we call it traffic) that comes through our windows.

Yay to 3.5 hour accounting classes, because they are held in a firmly refrigerated room. Seriously, I wear a sweatshirt to class, and I'm still shivering. This is a conundrum, because I have to peel it off as soon as I walk outside and realize that the sun has literally descended upon Corvallis.

Nay to having to ponder the dilemma of either carrying your sweatshirt over your arm like a butler's towel, or doing the uber dorky tie-around-the-waist technique from 7th grade. The latter of which strongly rivals the fanny-pack in loser level fashion.

Yay to getting the IKEA Stuff for my Sims2. I probably love building and decorating the houses for my Sims than actually playing the game. Now with the IKEA stuff, I'll never play, but that's okay, because my Sims will be living in style...in pause mode.

Nay to never actually decorating anything because my life is dedicated to pumping out cash flow statements and balance sheets on Excel for the aforementioned devil of an accounting class.

Yay to my birthday in 2 days. 21 has been a good year, and 22 will be even better. I am making sure of that.

Nay to class stomping all over my birthday, since it is on a Tuesday, along with the crushing irony of the fact that I was always jealous of the kids whose birthdays fell during the school year, and their moms would bring cupcakes and punch, and that now my birthday is falling during the school year, my last school year ever, and it probably couldn't be less unpleasant. I don't even know if cupcakes or punch could make it better.

Yay to funfetti cake, which my mom has made for almost all of my birthdays before college, and could maybe, potentially, hopefully, make having a birthday on a school day bearable.

Nay to ruining about 3 weeks worth of exercise when I bite into a small country sized piece of funfetti cake on Tuesday.

Yay to my parents, who are amazing, and without them, I wouldn't be here (literally) writing about how I made it through college and life. The best part of graduation was hearing them say, "We are so proud of you, mija." They love me even if I'm a chubster who loves her cake. And eats it too. (I couldn't help it.)

Nay to my parents indulging my chubster fantasies by taking me to the Olive Garden for my birthday.

Yay to Olive Garden breadsticks. They are the carb equivalent of Matt Damon in my fantasy dreams.

Nay to not being able to think of a cute and clever way to end this post, because I am tired from an 8 hour class I had to take, and sore from shooting dart guns.

Yay to ending the post on a positive note, with the promise (to the 5 people who read this blog) that I will write more often. And, speaking of notes, how about a song or two to leave you with? The first is Sea of Love by Cat Power, and the second is I'm Yours by Jason Mraz. Enjoy!

good day, bad night

2008-06-10T00:13:00.001-07:00

Since we were given such a beautiful day on Sunday, the four of us decided to go miniature golfing. It was an awesome way to have fun and relax before us undergrad students settled into our desk chairs to study, and Geoff the grad student headed back up to Canada.

The day started out well. I decided to wear my best golfing polo, along with some yuppie knock off big sunglasses.

Evan also decided to wear a polo as well, although this is not out of the ordinary. He wears one just about every day.

Now, Travis was a sight. This kid only ever wears track pants and OSU (insert some sport here) t-shirts. I literally had to pick my jaw off the floor when I saw him in a polo, khaki shorts, and quite possibly the funniest hat I have ever seen. I think he wins the award for the day in the Exaggerated Golf Attire category.

This was by far the nicest mini golf place we've ever been to. Every little hole has a mini diagram for you to see before whacking your ball into the parking lot. Hole 11, as you see here, has a stream running through it, and, a piece of the turf was missing, to make it tricky.

An Evan, in his natural habitat.

So Travis didn't mind the diagram, and instead decided to rocket his ball into some bushes. Evan, being the good guy that he is, helped him out, while Geoff and I giggled like little girls and took pictures.

It's funny how much one concentrates to get a plastic little ball 4 meters.

This was a tough one. The hole was actually uphill and to the left, plus, there was a giant fake rock in the middle. This was at the top of the little hill. I (light blue ball) narrowly missed getting trapped in the fake rock, while Evan (dark blue ball) was much less fortunate.

Travis taking a shortcut to the next hole.

We couldn't pass up the chance to take a photo next to chainsaw carved bears. Who makes all these? And, how do they all look exactly the same? Ponder, and discuss. Also, notice the funny old man cap on the bear. :)

I'm sorry these are so bright, by the way. Geoff's big ol' thumb moved the setting on my camera to shutter speed, and it was set at a low one, which let all that wonderful afternoon sun into every picture.
Impatiently waiting for me to stop taking pictures and golf. I took this one and was shocked at how bright it was, and then I realized that the setting was off. The guys wouldn't let me take another one, though.

After golfing, we went to McMennamins to grab a drink, and we had a really good time. At the time of this picture, I had no idea what I was in for.

I knew that the pollen was terrible outside, so I made sure to take a Claritin before heading out. 24 hour relief, my a$$. Everything was fine until we got back home, and I rubbed my eye. Instantly, they started watering and I sneezed three times in a row.

It's over, I remember thinking. I've really done it.

Did I ever. I was up sneezing so hard for the next 6 hours, that I went through a whole box of Kleenex and Evan took an emergency trip to Freddies for more allergy meds. I tried everything: taking a benadryl, taking a shower, changing out of the clothes I had worn outside...ugh. The worst part was probably the fact that I couldn't do anything but be miserable. And when I'm miserable, my misery wants company, and it so happens that Evan was in the most cheerful mood ever. He was as happy as a little clam, and for some reason, it infuriated me. Why does that happen? Why, when we are sick, do we absolutely hate the people who can't be as cranky and irritable and sneezy and wheezy as we are? Poor guy. He should be applying for sainthood here soon if allergy season lasts much longer.

All in all, it was horrible. I honestly don't think anything could be worse than that. Maybe like, childbearing, but in that case you get something out of it. All I have today is a raw nose, sore muscles from sneezing, and a tummy ache from all the medication I took. Maybe it's Karma for being an absolute beast last night. That's probably it.

Anyway. It's time for bed. You can bet that Tylenol Allergy Multi-Symptom tablets made it onto my Totally Awesome Tuesday list!

Various Travels pt. 2

2008-06-04T22:58:00.000-07:00

My latest adventures have taken my camera and I to campus, and along I-5. This is what we saw.

This is the clock tower on campus, and someone has very carefully written various bible passages all over it, even though someone else is just as quickly erasing them. It's interesting.
I really liked the stark blue in this shot, though.

The reason we went to campus was the Battle of the Bands event here. I don't even want to know how these people got up on top of the Memorial Union, but man, they must have had an awesome view.

This is Charlie. This picture has no technical merit, but his hair definitely does.

We had the chance to see an amazing sunset on our way back home from Portland. I kept getting dust specks from the window in each shot, so I actually (stupidly, in hindsight) lowered my window, stuck my arm and relatively expensive camera out the window while going 75mph, and snapped a few pictures. I justify my actions with the fact that they turned out awesome. I may actually get prints of these.

Totally Cool Stuff Tuesday #4

2008-06-03T21:08:00.000-07:00

Today was a real Tuesday. It started against my will at 7am. I was dreaming that I was talking to a friend of mine, and suddenly she reached out and starting pinching my upper lip really hard. It really hurt. So much that I actually woke up and realized that a HUGE bug had just bitten me on the lip! I flicked it away, satisfied to hear it hit the wall pretty hard, but I could not fall asleep again, fearing that this stupid bug had friends nearby that also wanted a kiss.

So I lay there and listened to Corvallis waking up, and when Evan finally decided to wake from his hibernation, I squeaked, "Evan! Something bit me on the lip while I slept!"

He squinted at me for a second, then said, "Oh. That's no fun." Then he rolled over and went back to sleep.

That wasn't exactly the reaction I was hoping for. I lay there for a little while longer, now jealous of how easily my boyfriend can fall back into a completely unconscious state in a matter of seconds.

And thus, began my day. There have been things, however, that have greatly improved the day. And here they are:

1. Lipton's Diet Green Tea - Zero calories, and antioxidants, to boot. Plus it is uber refreshing .

2. Realizing that all my finals are online and open-note - This is like a granted wish from the Senior Year of College Fairy.

This would have been me during finals week if my professors hadn't decided to be completely and totally awesome.

3. Finally buying my graduation shoes - I spent a good portion of the weekend scouring shoe stores looking for the perfect pair of graduation shoes. I knew that I wanted a wedge heel, and they had to be black, so as to match the rest of my somber graduation attire (black robe, black cap...it totally fits the celebratory mood) and whenever I thought I had found a decent pair, the lady would say, "We are actually out of that size, but there is one pair left in Hoover, Alabama (or Albany, Oregon, but either way, it was really inconvenient). Do you think you'll be stopping by there?"

Anyway, I set out this afternoon, determined to find a pair of shoes in my own freakin' city. And I did. Veni, vidi, vici.

4. Knowing that this Friday marks 2.5 years for Evan and I - I love looking back at all that we've come through together, and even more, I love looking forward at what is to come, because I know it will be awesome.

We rule.

5. This week's song shall be "Build a Home" by The Cinematic Orchestra. I really like it, and I hope you do too.

Various Travels pt. 1

2008-06-03T14:50:00.000-07:00

It is rare to find my outside of my apartment without my camera. The great thing about having a point-and-shoot is that I don't have to carry around a suitcase for all my lenses, or wear one of those dorky cameraman's vests.

Anyway, we recently took advantage of a relatively nice evening and walked down our block to a small playground. These are a few of the shots from the small adventure.

I must have taken 100 shots of these swings. I just loved how bright they were.

I don't exactly like the zoo-like feel of this one, but I had to take advantage of the sunburst behind him.
Evan is such a patient guinea pig for my portrait attempts.

After I got frustrated with portraits, I decided to take on some flowers, and felt better about the results, even though it took a few tries to get the flower, the leaves, the spiderweb, and the sunlight all in focus.
There is this lone rosebush that grows out of what I think is the worst soil possible, but the rose that ensues is always just gorgeous. It's as if it's trying to say, "see? this place isn't so bad"
Flowers are soooo much easier to take portraits of than people.

I really liked the contrast of colors here, and the lighting on them was absolutely ideal.

I will pay someone 50 bucks to tell me what these are, because I want to plant a few and then take pictures of them all day.

These used to terrify me when I was little. I hated the idea of standing up and walking on them without any hand holds. I suppose that they were made to improve our balance, and the fact that I avoided them at all costs could explain why I am a huge klutz.

There are a lot more pictures of this afternoon that I would like to post, but frankly, the glacial pace at which blogger uploads them is frustrating. So, if you would like to see more, just head on over to my other time-vacuum, Facebook, and look for my photo albums.

Also, stay tuned, because I have more pictures of more recent travels comin' up in a new post! Yay!

Newport Adventures!

2008-05-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

The poo-weather didn't stop us (Evan, Me, Geoff and Travis) from packing into Geoff's tiny Acura and heading toward the Oregon Coast. Here are some shots from the day.

Bridge as seen from the beach. It was really peaceful on this little trail we found.

I had to use my Macro setting for something.

Travis is just so animated, that he makes action shots really fun. Even though it looks like he's been catapulted, he was just "hopping" off the log.

Some whales etched into the banister on the trail.

Looking at a viewfinder through my viewfinder.
Still working on portrait-style shots. It's tough. Maybe I could do a better job with a better camera... ;).

Abandoned sandcastle.

Abandoned footprints.
Evan, myself, and Travis in the background. I love his cheeky expression.

I like going for unconventional shots, and as we walked along the beach, I snapped this one and liked it.

Leaving our mark on Newport for the day.

Totally Cool Stuff Tuesday #3

2008-05-27T18:14:00.000-07:00

This Tuesday wasn't so bad. Mainly because it was disguised as a Monday. I did have to do a presentation, which made it very much a Tuesday, because I wasn't prepared in the least, and it had to be in Spanish. I pulled through though, with the help of my totally cool stuff!

1. My camera. I absolutely love my camera. If there were a fire, and I knew Evan was outside safely, the thing I would run in and grab would be my camera. It's not fancy, and by that, I mean it's not a digital SLR. It's a Canon Powershot A620, and technically, it's a point-n-shoot, which means it does all the real thinking for you. Put it on Auto setting, and basically you're guaranteed a decent shot. I've had it for two years, and I've played around with it enough so that I don't think I even want a dig SLR, because I get amazing shots with this one. Plus, it can handle being in my purse and being banged around and still it comes through for me. Forget the giant SLR's with four foot long lenses; when I go on safari, I'm taking my powershot.
2. Coke Zero. I'm such propaganda for this stuff, and really, they should be paying me for posting this, but this stuff is wonderful. All the coke taste, without any calories. It does sound too good to be true, and I'm betting that it probably is, but for now, I'll enjoy it.

3. New sheets. I have been yearning for a new set of sheets for a while now, because the ones we have screamed boy dorm, plus made our room look dark and sad. Seriously, who buys a comforter that has black as its main color, along with stripes of gray and lighter gray. It's like an Edgar Allen Poe story on fabric. Now we have sheets that are striped blue, white and a light green. I think I'll have more cheery dreams from now on.

Now if only I could afford furniture to go along with it...

4. The beach. Evan, myself, and two friends went to the beach for Memorial Day. On the way there we listened to Geoff's eclectic music selection (everything from MJ's Thriller to some irish band we've never heard of). We had a really good time, and the beach was relatively void of people. We played in the sand, jumped off of logs, looked for sand dollars. Later, we spent over an hour at this really awesome antique store (such are my powers that I can make three guys enjoy an antique store) called Pirate's Plunder, and we had a delicious lunch at the Rogue Brewery. It was one of those days that utterly exhaust you, but for all the best reasons.

On Old South Jetty Trail

Travis and I being Pirates at Pirates Plunder

I will be posting more beach trip pictures on another blog entry, so check back soon!

5. I've decided that the fifth totally cool thing will be a song. This week is something much more mellow, which totally goes with the dreary weather we've been having. If Evan could sing or carry a tune, I'd ask him to learn this for me ;). Sorry about the video; it was the best quality song, worst quality pictures, haha.

I hope you've all enjoyed this week's list! I am off to finish (finally) 100 Years of Solitude. Wish me luck!

Randoms

2008-05-21T21:47:00.000-07:00

As much as I've enjoyed studying my Biology of Birds notes for the last...well, day, I think I've earned a break and decided to post a few random pictures of this weekend that didn't exactly tie in with the picnic theme.

This wonderful old car is owned by some cranky old guy that lives down the street. He lives in one of the oldest houses in Corvallis, and when he's not spending oodles of money restoring that, he's spending it on fancy old cars. Fine by me, as long as I get to ogle them when I walk by, as well as take pictures.
I literally knelt on the pavement on a 92 degree day to get this shot, and I'm relatively pleased with the results.
Just showcasing some vintage vehicle goodness.
This last one is really random, I know. But the choir was practicing and when I looked over, all I could see through the window was the stained glass Jesus seemingly directing their beautiful songs. I was all the way across the street, but my trusty zoom feature on my Canon came through, and I like the picture that goes along with such a peaceful memory.

Okay, back to the birds!

Totally Cool Stuff Tuesday #2

2008-05-20T17:43:00.000-07:00

This was a pretty heinous Tuesday, let me tell you. I awoke to the sound of pelting rain in a very cold apartment. We've just gotten so used (after three days...I guess you could say we're adaptable) to leaving all the windows open at night so we wouldn't roast. Well, I did the opposite this morning. I froze.

I drove my frozen self to Lincoln Elementary, where I had to help wrangle 40 first and second graders who can smell both the exhaustion on teachers who haven't had their morning coffee as well as summer around the corner.

Add to that a ton of spanish reading, and then spanish class that would offer little challenge to the first graders I taught this morning, and you get my Tuesday.

Luckily, I have amazing things that get my through my Tuesdays, and here they are!

1. John and Kate Plus Eight. This is a show that I really should have no interest in, as I am not from a large family nor do I particularly enjoy small kids. But I do. I'm completely invested in this crazy family consisting of 2 parents, 2 twin 6 year-olds, and 6 3 year olds. It's adorable and entertaining, and it makes my life seem a lot less hectic because I'm not cleaning out 6 little kid potties while dealing with tantrums and general chaos.
2. Coffee. I realized recently that I fit the very description of an addict. I get headaches without it, and my mood declines pretty impressively. But I get a small cup o' Joe, and man, I'm an angel. My day isn't started or completed without some. I know I sound pathetic, but it's my only addiction, I promise.
3. Everybody Worth Knowing, by Lauren Weisberger. Okay, so I enjoy reading quite a lot, but I can only take one "heavy" book at a time. Right now the hefty one on my list is 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and frankly, some light fluff reading like EWK, is just what I need after a romp through Garcia Marquez's most confusing novel ever. I don't recommend EWK it if you're looking for something meaningful and intellectually satisfying. If this book were food, it'd be the highly refined carbohydrates of the literary world. Not nutritious at all, and doesn't get you really full, but it sure was good while it lasted.
4. Fresh Express Caesar Lite Salad. I love these because you feel like you should be guilty, but there's no reason to be. You buy it completely ready to go: it has the lettuce, croutons, dressing. All you do is throw it into a bowl and if you're feeling crafty in the kitchen, make some chicken and voila, chicken caesar salad. It's great for kitchen incompetents like myself, who want to give their kitchen savvy significant others a break but not feed them Top Ramen.
5. So, when I got my new MP3 player, I decided to branch out and just put music on there that I don't normally listen to. That way, my favorite music doesn't get old, and I get a chance to broaden my musical horizons. Anyway, I found this one song on my old external hard drive called "On The Radio" and I really enjoy it, especially when walking to class. It has a cute beat, and the lyrics are fun too.

Anyway, that's the list for the week. I hope you've enjoyed it and hopefully, they will get your through your Tuesdays or whatever day of the week that seems eternal for you!

Perfect Picnic

2008-05-20T12:21:00.000-07:00

So this weekend, we decided to have a nice picnic lunch at our favorite park here in Corvallis. It's pretty much the epitome of the small town park, surrounded by big trees, a church, a small art museum, and the City Library. The weather was ideal, and we were celebrating the fact that we had somehow dragged ourselves out of bed to go for a morning run. I, of course, took my camera, and the following are just a few of the shots from the wonderful afternoon. I'm sorry they aren 't in any sort of order; I don't understand this blogging stuff well enough yet and for now, all my pictures have a mind of their own and appear in whatever order they want. These flowers were braver than us, and confronted the 93 degree weather face-on.
These flowers surround the park, and while I have no idea what they are, I thought they were lovely, and smelled amazing.

My love. He might not be as pretty as the flowers, but he does smell nice.
More of the mystery flowers.
I was going for a serious look here. Obviously, I failed miserably.

I really need to buy some shorts for 92 degree weather. I must have looked so odd with jeans on. I always laugh at how giant Ev's feet look compared to mine. Oh well, I can wave with my little toe. Beat that, bigfoot.
Flawless day. Well, except that big tree would blow all of it's little seeds on us with every decent gust of wind. We just took it as another grain to add to our 12-grain bread.
This is probably my favorite shot of the day. He probably has this view a lot, as he is my favorite guinea pig.

I'm sorry this is so far away; there were wedding pictures being taken, and I started snapping before I realized I was probably breaking some cardinal photography rule
For some reason, I adore this picture. There's no real technical quality, but those expressions are priceless.
The standard faces smushed together portrait.

We stayed at the park for over an hour, then realized that it truly was too hot for our pale and sensitive Oregon skin, so we walked back home. On our way, though, we saw some cool stuff, and you can be sure that I took pictures. Gosh, I'm like a tourist in my own town. All I need is the fanny pack.

All in all, it was a great afternoon, and I loved how good it felt to soak up the sun and bask in the shade and comfort of each other's company. Although we do live together, we don't have a lot of "us" time, meaning that school, stress, volunteering, and various errands keep us running in different circles until dinner-time. Then it's homework or reading until we run into each other again as we brush our teeth before bed. It just lets us savor those rare moments were we aren't full-time students with a ton of responsibility but instead, a lazy couple in love. Mhm.

Totally Cool Stuff Tuesday

2008-05-13T23:06:00.000-07:00

I don't exactly like Tuesdays. They just seem to be the day that gets in the way of all the other better ones. It doesn't do much but remind me that the day before was Monday, and the next day will just barely be the middle of the week. At least Wednesday makes you feel like you're at the top of the hill. Tuesday is that 90 degree stretch full of loose rocks right before the top.

Anyway, to combat Tuesdays, I will be posting some totally cool stuff that I know can get me through any Tuesday. Maybe you will find them helpful too, and before you know it, Thursdays, and therefore, Greys will be here!

1. Tia Rosa's Tortilla Bread. I don't have a tia Rosa, but if I did, and she could make this, she would be my favorite relative. We actually found this by accident, and now we search for it every time we go to Fred Meyer, because it is so addicting and soft and basically results in the PERFECT quesadilla.
2. My new NON-APPLE I-ANYTHING MP3 player. No Itunes, no compatibility issues. Just 2 GB of amazing, illegally downloaded music of my choice.
Gosh. That's a big image. Anyway.

3. Wheat Thins/String Cheese combo of champions. Seriously, this is the best quick snack ever. Just enough crunch and cheesy goodness to make Tuesday bearable. Or any day, for that matter. But especially Tuesdays.

+
= love.

Granted, you're not going to eat the whole box (as tempting as that might be) or a whole package of string cheese, but these were the only pictures I could really find. Oh, and if you're a poor college girl like myself, you'll feel (maybe, kinda, probably not) like you're eating fancy hors d'oeuvres.

4. The Oregonian. It's our only real nerdy splurge here, because we feel it is important to get the news outside of the Corvallis bubble. I adore our morning eating cereal while expertly trading different sections. We have it so we don't even have to look up from our cups of coffee.
5. Arbor Mist. Har har, I know. But frankly, I'm on a college budget and it tastes like a Capri Sun. After a long Tuesday, it hits the spot perfectly. Oh, and to really feel fancy, you could combine a glass of the Mist with the aforementioned Wheat Thins and String Cheese. Think of what a college sophisticate you'd be then! And, while I may look all of 14 in my profile picture, I am 21 and can therefore indulge in the adult version of Capri Sun. Also, I am only posting a picture of three bottles here because those are the three flavors, not to say that I drink three every Tuesday and am headed for dialysis before graduating.

Well, there you have it. This week's totally cool stuff that got me through Tuesday (I just realized it's Wednesday). Tune in next week for a new list!

2008-05-12T14:16:00.000-07:00

So, this may sound weird. Actually, I know it will. But, I feel like I should have written about this particular inspiration of mine for a while, especially since I see it every time I sit at my computer which, I'll admit, is a more than a few times a day.

Ahem.

Okay, so there are people who gain strength from historical figures, or authors, or religious characters or someone. What do I get inspired by? A leaf.

Seriously. Now stop laughing and let me explain.

When winter began to descend upon little sleepy Corvallis, the leaves naturally started to fall off the trees that line the sidewalk outside of our apartment. All of them did, ending up on the sidewalk or street where they turned into rainy mush and were either flushed down the gutter or picked up by the street cleaner.

All of them, except one. This one leaf curled itself around a tiny thin branch and has weathered out countless rain storms, hailstorms, snowstorms, winds, and combinations of all those. There would be days where I have come home from a particularly heinous day and I sit at my computer all flustered, only to look outside and see this leaf steadfastly clinging to its branch while big heavy raindrops pelted down on it.

I can't believe I'm actually saying this. But it's true. I'm inspired by a dead leaf. I'm inspired every time I look out of my window and see this little leaf holding on quietly and calmly. I feel like I too, can withstand anything that comes my way.

wanderlust or something.

2008-05-07T10:44:00.000-07:00

So, I've been wondering lately: why have I done things the way I have?

There's no real exciting answer, because the only one I've come up with is, "because that's what everyone expects you to do, and is sensible."

Will I tell my grandkids that the reason I didn't just pack up my stuff and head off into the world with little more than a sense of adventure was because it didn't seem sensible?

That would quite possibly make me the lamest grandma ever.

I have these two friends. Both have decided to sidetrack the sensible and head off on very cool trips that neither will easily forget. One is traveling the country by train and stopping at just about every big city, just to experience it. The other packed his few belongings onto a motorcycle, and took off down the west coast and into Mexico. His can't get lost or be late, because he has no schedule or destination. He just knows that at some point, he'd like to get to Costa Rica.

When I first heard about these adventures, I was apprehensive. How could they leave the normal scheme of things? They had school, right? And jobs to find?

And lately I find myself thinking that even though I have done the four straight years of college, and have had the tedious summer jobs, I don't have any more of a guarantee that my life will end up more successful or happy.

If I don't have that, then why? Because it's what I'm supposed to do? Man, if I had used that logic 90 years ago, I would be married with 4 kids by now, trying to breathe in a corset. Luckily, a few girls back then had the guts to take the leap and experience something else.

With no guarantees, I have nothing to lose and everything to gain, right? So what if miss out on one job opportunity by using that time to run through thousands of pigeons in some piazza in Italy? If that means I get to breathe in the dusty, hot air of the Roman Colosseum? If I get to look up through the criss-crossed metal of the Eiffel Tower? Or get to hear my name echoed through the walls of the Grand Canyon?

To me, every place is one in the same. It's all Out There, and I'd like to see it all. The monotony of this life (although happy and safe) can become stifling, and although I know I'd come back to it eventually, it'd be nice to smile to myself and know that at one time, it had been broken.

well.

2008-04-28T16:09:00.000-07:00

As I was waking up on Monday, and eating my toast, Erik Ainge was becoming a multi-millionaire.

I find this horrifically unfair. In the grand scheme of things, I don't find it justifiable to get a seven figure salary for throwing a ball. Personally, I think one's salary should reflect the impact it has on our world.

football player = amusement = $500 dollars. Right?

teacher = educating future leaders, broadening minds, expanding horizons, etc. = 1,000,000

And I'm not being biased because I: a) have teacher parents or b) am dating an education major.

I just think that makes more sense.

Anyway, I digress. Instead of getting all bitter, I'm going to take joy in my simple pleasures. Here are some things that have recently made me very content:
I bought some crocs. I gave into the ultimate uber Oregon trend, and I couldn't be happier.
This isn't sheep poop. I am done with that. These, are chocolate covered peanuts and they are my new favorite sin. I would pick a handful of these over Erik Ainge any day.

Speaking of sheep poop, I finally got my paycheck today, and am now 178 dollars richer. That also makes me happy. No matter that Erik is making that while taking a wee; I refuse to let that get me down.

Ah, music. Lately, I've been listening to a lot of new stuff, and my two favorites are:

Mushaboom - Fiest. Just try having a bad day after listening to this. Seriously.
Love Song - Sara Bareilles. Quite possibly the most realistic love song I've heard in a while, which is ironic, because it's about how if this dude loves her enough, he doesn't need a freakin' love song to begin with.

Along with music, comes YouTube. I have decided to not completely kill my computer by cramming it with music, and the loss of my own music library has been assuaged greatly by this little video website.
And last, but certainly not least, there's Evan. No one has better withstood my terrible bouts of stress and insanity (and repeated playings of Mushaboom).Erik may have a lot of money now, but he will probably spend it on super sweat-proof socks and jockstraps, while I get to spend my days walking in amazing shoes, eating chocolate covered peanuts while listening to music, and getting truly fantastic hugs from a boy named Evan. So take that, Mr. Ainge.

cinco!

2008-04-24T15:36:00.001-07:00

5 images that I love that aren't from family photo albums and such:

I love this because there is such feeling behind it. It was such a monumental time in history, and this guy was really celebrating. The fun part is that no one knows who these two people are. After this awesome moment, they both went on their separate ways and the photographer never got a chance to ask.

This captured me the first time I saw it and still am captivated by this photo every time I see it. It's a simple portrait, but it just says so much.
I love Diego Rivera paintings, because they bring out the beauty of Latin American culture. The vibrant colors, the people, the themes in his paintings are all very true and presented beautifully.
Any images from Santorini, Greece absolutely make me get over my fear of flying and make me wish I could hop on a plane and go live there forever.

Okay, so this isn't the exact image, but I do really admire wildlife photographers. They wait for hours to catch a single moment in order to remind us that there are other amazing creatures sharing this planet with us. If I had the money and could go back in time four years, I'd major in Photography and do this. Yep.

5 years ago I was: A junior in high school? My senior friends were all graduating and I was so horribly jealous of them. It also was probably my best high school year, minus the car accident, but that taught me a lot too.

5 months ago: I was in California celebrating Christmas Eve with various family members. Of course, this was the first year that it EVER snowed on Christmas Day, and I was wearing a t-shirt. Pffft.

5 minutes ago: I was picking out music from YouTube, because it was my turn. I couldn't choose between Shakira, Bach, or the TeddyBears. It's a tough choice.

5 things on my "to-do" list:

1. pick up my paycheck, because I sure as heck did not freeze my a$ off for nothing.
2. turn in my resume and cover letter to a possible job
3. cross my fingers until I hear back about the job
4. vacuum. We have dust cougars, that have devoured the dust bunnies.
5. look up events for Mom's Weekend.

5 recent pieces of mail:

1. Women's Health
2. Smithsonian Magazine
3. National Geographic...we subscribe to a lot of things, don't we?
4. Bed,Bath, and Beyond catalog, which tempted me to buy things I don't need
5. Corvallis Newsletter

5 things I would do if I became a billionaire:

1. pay off school
2. buy my parents a house
3. buy us a house
4. get a puppy...shoot, puppies!
5. invest

5 of my bad habits:

1. biting my nails
2. not biting my tongue when I should
3. addiction to refined starches
4. being disorganized
5. I don't often call people back

5 good memories:

1. any summer day in my old house
2. Ev and I's first kiss
3. First time we said, "I love you."
4. The moment I knew my dad would pull through
5. going on junk food binges with my mom

5 places I've lived:

1. Mexicali, Mexico
2. Lake Oswego, Oregon
3. Aloha, Oregon
4. Hillsboro, Oregon
5. North Plains, Oregon

5 songs I love:

1. Over the Rainbow - Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
2. Yesterday - The Beatles
3. These are the Days - Van Morrison
4. The Seasons - Tchaikovsky
5. Lullaby - Josh Groban

5 jobs I've had:

1. Conservation Intern at the Oregon Zoo
2. General floor drone at Old Navy
3. Sheep wrangler
4. college food maker/milkshake extraordinaire
5. camp counseler for Camp Adams/raging hormone child wrangler

5 books I love:

1. The Time Traveler's Wife
2. The Namesake
3. The Giver
4. Life of Pi
5. Marley and Me

5 things that are out of place around my house:

really? just five?

1. the shoes that should be lined up inside my closet but are actually...well, they're everywhere
2. my backpack that is next to my bed
3. my spanish notes that currently reside in the kitchen
4. my socks that, like my shoes, are everywhere. I personally think they are trying to escape.
5. The 5 tons of newspaper that are in our "mystery corner" or our apartment. We really have nothing to do with this space, so naturally, we fill it with recyclables.

5 things I love to eat:

1. tortilla chips
2. french bread
3. really cold baby carrots
4. almonds
5. chocolate. duh.

5 people (non-blood related) who have had a positive impact in my life:

1. Evan - he is my hero.
2. Mr. Beals - amazing teacher that I want to clone so that my kids can learn from him
3. Lani Roberts - OSU professor who helped make me proud to say I'm me.
4. David Shepherdson - Oregon Zoo mentor. I want his job.
5. Loren Chavarria - OSU professor who is the embodiment of a strong, successful hispanic woman

I tag: Carl, Evan, Asia, and anyone else that feels like it. :)

ding dong, the hair is gone!

2008-04-11T14:12:00.000-07:00

So, I was sick of having long hair. It was time for a haircut. I had been growing it since probably Christmas break and basically, it was working really well to blend me right in with the sheep I was working with.

Now that that is over, and I will be around human beings more, I decided to check out a new hairdresser. She had been recommended by a friend that has curly hair as well, which is so incredibly important. 99% of the time, I'll walk into a haircut appointment, and the moment I take my hair out of the ponytail, the hairdresser will gasp audibly, then say something along the lines of, "Oh. You have a lot of hair..." the she'll dare to reach and touch it, as if maybe I am playing a big joke and glued on extra curly, coarse hair to the curly, coarse hair I already have. When she realizes that it's not a joke, they usually repeat, "well...you have a lot of hair."

As if I didn't know that. As if I don't own a mirror and see that my hair has the consistency to that of a Shetland pony mated with a lion.

So I was ecstatic to hear this hairdresser exclaim, "you have a ton of hair...but I can't wait to play with it!!"

Sweet! She took the time to ask me what I wanted, and she gave me her opinion, which I took as valid, because she has curly hair as well. And, for the first time, I didn't have to ask her to thin it, as she thought of it all on her own! She gets curly hair!! I was amazed.

So, after about an hour and a half, and what she called, "close to heart surgery" difficulty, I ended up with:She even took the time to straighten it, which I would liken to building the pyramids or climbing Mt. Everest with one hand, blindfolded.

This is what it looks like now, in it's natural, curly state:

The smile says it all. I have finally found an awesome hairdresser, and I vow right now that I'll follow her wherever she may go. Even the Arctic.

a farmer's life for me?

2008-04-01T15:24:00.000-07:00

I remember stumbling home after my last day of work at the sheep center on Saturday afternoon, utterly exhausted, soaked with mud, slush, and an assortment of sheep bodily fluids. I had herded, chased, wrestled, fed, and been abused by at least 400 ewes and their lambs for the last 23 hours. When I wasn't at the barn, I was sleeping. I got a minor case of frostbite on at least 6 fingers from sorting sheep for 2 hours straight in a hailstorm.

I walked in my front door, and kicked off my very caked with who knows what boots. Then, as I walked toward the shower, I literally peeled off my jeans, long johns, fleece, sweatshirt, and two shirts, finishing off with the three pairs of socks that had barely kept my toes from freezing off.

As I stood in the almost unbearably hot water, trying to convince the blood in my body that yes, my fingers were worth saving, I realized something:

I would miss being out there.

And, I do. As far as grueling jobs go, this is the most demanding one I've ever had. But there was something about being surrounded by such a beautiful landscape that seemed to put my whole self at ease. I remember one morning especially well: I had been sent out to fetch about 240 sheep from a steep, one-acre long hill. I trudged up there, my boots rapidly getting bogged down by the thick mud, and as I rounded around the flock, I paused to look around. It was absolutely beautiful. I was surrounded by soft rolling hills, dotted with these ancient looking trees, and farther, were purplish mountains that were capped with pines and snow. As I started to move the sheep down the hill, it started snowing lightly, and even though I ended up soaked from the tip of my nose down, I don't think I will ever forget how positively silent it was, save for my breaths, and the light footfall of the sheep. I felt so at peace out there. I felt at peace even in the barn, which was drafty and 37 degrees on a good day. After feeding all the sheep, I would sit back and just take it all in. The sweet smell of alfafa, the sounds of lambs playing, the birds that nested in the rafters. It was a very satisfying feeling and I couldn't help thinking that if I could, I'd do this for the rest of my life.

Maybe, a while from now, I'll get tired of the rushed, structured urban life that we're all expected to live, and go find that peace again.

hrm.

2008-03-18T10:58:00.000-07:00

I, for the last three years, have been wondering what the purpose of finals is. Well, beside stressing us out and asking us to regurgitate what's been told to us for the last ten weeks. Do professors need that sort of assurance? Did my students learn? Are the going to leave my class with my priceless knowledge?

I can pretty much vouch for the fact that no, I won't. I'll just walk away.

And it's because they are asking me to cram in ten weeks worth of stuff, and write it back down again exactly like I did the first time around. They are not asking me to think about the stuff and analyze what it may mean in the grand scheme of things, which I think would help it become more than just another string of words for me to spew out when asked.

I think that's the problem with education lately. I have gone through who knows how many classes, and I can honestly say that I would be hard-pressed to recall anything horribly specific past the date of the last exam.

Shouldn't the goal of educators be for their students to retain information given to them? I feel like a parrot, not a scholar. I will repeat whatever you say as long as you give me a biscuit, I mean, a grade.

There have been a few classes that I have come away with feeling like I learned something. Where the professor stared at us when we gave a practiced answer, and said, "Okay, but what does that mean?" I can still remember the concepts of those classes, and I can apply those concepts to things outside the parameters of an essay or multiple choice question.

And of course, as soon as that is asked, there is the one person who asks if they will get extra credit if they put their own opinion in an answer.

All the cheesy ads for Oregon State say that once you are done, you will have a quality education (and a very large, but now useless unless its halloween, wardrobe consisting of orange and black clothes). But what does that mean? That one was able to repeat enough things enough times in order to get a degree? If you were to ask a new graduate, what could they tell you?

"What did you learn a year ago?"
"Not sure, but I guess I passed, because now I have this nifty degree!"

Great.

Well, I have to get going. I have a final in about an hour.

"I am a nice human..."

2008-03-11T23:32:00.001-07:00

This morning I had bad, evil, mean thoughts about the guy who was power washing the sidewalk right outside my bedroom window. I am a light sleeper, and it seemed to me, anyway, that this guy knew exactly when I was falling back asleep so that he could crank his power washing thingy to full blast. So two hours of my morning went like this:

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.....

Me: sweet, I can sleep again

rrrrRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!

*cue evil thoughts*

In all honesty, I think humans are the only things that have to remind ourselves to be decent.

Every time this dude did this, I had to make an effort to remind myself that this guy probably doesn't want to be waking me up, that this is his job, and he has to eat too, and who knows how heavy that power washer is. I had to remind myself that I was being mean, and that even at a very early time in the morning, I am a nice person.

Despite my reasoning, I still ended up with less than the optimal amount of sleep, and I wondered if any other thing in the animal kingdom every does this.

Does a lion whose sleep has been disturbed by zebras think: Hey, they're probably nice zebras who didn't mean to wake me. They're probably hungry and the grass here is pretty decent...

No, the lion doesn't. The lion goes out and eats them and then resumes the nap on a full stomach, to boot.

I guess I can't really think of cannibalism as a viable option for resolving my annoyance today. I guess I can look at the bright side of things and think that instead of sleeping, I got some homework done, which I probably would have otherwise put off until...well, now.

Anyway, I'm sorry this is such a useless, bitter-sounding post. I am really a nice person.

won't you be my neighbor?

2008-03-06T23:39:00.001-08:00

You know, growing up (as if I'm old and wise at the ripe old age of 21) I always watched movies and shows where everybody knew their neighbors. The characters would emerge from their house in the mornings to pick up the paper, and for some reason, there was always a neighbor watering their lawn. They would look up and wave, smiling grandly, and say, "Hey there, main character! How is that project of yours coming along?"

"Oh, *chuckles* you know how those things can go, Fred!" And then the main character would walk back inside with a sense of belonging.

It always seemed too good to be true, and the longer I live at my apartment complex, the more I realize that hollywood is, in fact, full of lies.

I don't know my neighbors personally, and from my initial impression of most of them, I don't want to. You may remember me mentioning one in my valentine's day post, saying that I might try to be nice to him, for holiday's sake. That didn't happen, by the way. He irked me so much the next day that I threw that good idea out the window.

Anyway, here they are:

1. The Shrew
He got this name from the mere fact that he never emerges from his apartment, unless it is to run out really quickly, drop his trash in front of his front door, then literally slam the door shut. He doesn't seem to realize that the trashcan is actually 30 feet away, and instead, his stinky garbage sits in everybody's way, especially ours, since we have to pass by it on the way in or out of the complex. We don't all want to know how many boxes of Tostino's Pizza Rolls you had this week, buddy. When we have run into him, he gives us a look that plainly displays his inferior view of us and quite possibly the whole world. I tried to be nice to him on Valentine's day, but couldn't do it.

2. Bad Parking Girl
This girl's car is obviously so in love with mine that it must park itself 4 inches from my driver's side door everyday. She must indulge her car's love affair with mine, and I'm sure that it brings her great pleasure to watch me wedge myself between the two cars and try to open my door without leaving a sizable dent in hers. Also, we think she has super powers, or at least, bionic hearing, because she used to have these detachable magnet signs on her car, and one day, Evan and I joked about removing them. The next day, they were locked inside of her car, and she glared at us when we went to check the mail. Hmmmm.

3. Cigar Guy
Technically, this guy is my favorite, and sadly, he moved away last year. Anyway, right around dinner time, we'd always see this guy standing at the curb of the complex, peacefully smoking a cigar. To add effect, he did it under the one street lamp, and it gave the whole evening a film noir kind of feel. While I don't mean to condone smoking on any level, it seemed to fit this guy, and his cigars always smelled kind of good. We miss you, Cigar Guy.

4. The Screamers
This is a newlywed couple that lives downstairs, and apparently, the honeymoon stage is over. Over and dead.

5. Abstinence Girl
This is the person who has the space to the right of us, and all we really know about her is that she has a giant bumper sticker on her car that reads "I have lived with abstinence and have no regrets!!!" This is great, and kudos to her. The confusing part, however, is that she wears the most provocative clothes I have ever seen. We're talking super short skirts, and cleavage abounding shirts. Way to send mixed signals.

I can only imagine what our neighbors think of us, and what nicknames we have earned. I know that it probably wasn't the wisest idea to live on the top floor when we are both verifiable klutzes and drop just about everything, the sound of which I know reverberates through the floors of the complex. Also, Evan has a subwoofer that is the size of a small pony, and it can send some booms through the county, much less the complex. And the coup de gras of this whole thing is that we are both complete nightowls and are prone to laughing fits at 2am. Hm.

So, I know we're not the ideal neighbors. Maybe we haven't learned enough about being neighbors to belong in a Pleasantville type place just yet. Maybe freak-filled apartment complexes like this are a training ground or something.

All I know is that we're not moving anytime soon. :)

saying goodbye to the sweatshirt, and other things.

2008-02-21T10:43:00.001-08:00

I have this sweatshirt. I bought it on my very first trip to OSU after I learned I had been accepted. I've probably been wearing it at least once a week since then. It has made trips across states, across country borders, and the beach countless times. All that soft stuff on the inside has long ago rubbed off, so to be honest, it's not even that comfy.

I was wearing it in class yesterday, relaxing in my sheep management (don't laugh) class, happy that it had been washed and smelled clean. Then, I looked down after dropping my pen, and I realized: this thing is gross.

Proof of the grossness.

I mean, the sleeves are threadbare, and have acquired a gray tinge (they should be white), there are random spots on it that have simply become permanent residents on the shoulder and front. The little Champion logo had fallen off, leaving a blue stain, and there was a mysterious pen mark right under the "Oregon State University" lettering, which, by the way, has gone from a bright, vibrant orange to a pale, rusted color. I had just washed the thing (okay, Evan had just washed it) and here it was looking like I had dragged myself to class on my stomach. Oy.

So, I know what I have to do. I have to delegate my favorite sweatshirt to weekend status, possibly only painting status. As stupid as it sounds, I can't believe how hesitant I am to do this. This sweatshirt has been with me through it all. I wore it the first day of college, I wore it through my first hardcore breakup, I wore it while I moved in and out of apartments. It's been through a lot with me.

But let's be honest here. It didn't keep me warm anymore, because the slightest breeze could blow right through it, and it wasn't comfortable, due the fact that the feel-good fuzz had worn off. So I was wearing it for the mere fact that we had history. It was comfortable and safe. Maybe, with the demotion of the sweatshirt I can also break free from other things that I have just settled into. Maybe I can move away from the safe and comfortable and onto new and exciting things in my life. Maybe this is a sign that I need to take those steps.

Now, the only question: should I get a new sweatshirt to take with me on my new adventures?

Valentine's Day

2008-02-13T23:28:00.000-08:00

So, there are a lot of people who apparently loathe Valentine's Day. I can understand why. They see it as a day owned by Hershey's and Hallmark and other frilly uber emo commercial franchises. Some proclaim it to be a sexist holiday (then what is father's day and mother's day?), because men are expected to buy stuff for their significant, (or maybe not so significant but shallow) girlfriends. Others think that it is a day that alienates all those who aren't expecting their own frilly, fat-filled, gift.

I really understand why people would not like this particular holiday. I've been the single one on Valentine's Day before. Oh man, have I been. Not only that, I've been the single girl while all her best friends had boyfriends on Valentine's Day girl. Yeah, it sucked. And now that I'm the girl in a committed relationship with a great boy girl, I can look back and try to convince myself that I wasn't wallowing in the deep end of the self-pity pool. I'm sure I was; let's be honest here.

Regardless, I never lost my romantic ideals set around this holiday. I was talking it over with Evan, my great boy that I often muse to, and I said that while I get the annoyances some people feel, I see Valentine's Day (along with getting more and more annoying to type all the way out) as a way to "love loudly." See, a lot of people's biggest complaint with Valen- screw it- V-day is that it gives the stoic dudes out there the excuse to save the "L" word for one day a year. Obviously, if you love someone, you shouldn't leave them guessing the fact for 364 days of the year. Those days, remind them you love them by just saying it as you go out the door, or after you eat lunch or while you procrastinate. This is loving quietly. And by that I mean it's not an outright declaration to the masses that hey, you love someone. That's what v-day is for. To outright celebrate your love for someone. Love loud. Wear red. Kiss on the street corner. Buy those stupid little cookies that are horrid for you that have the sprinkle hearts. Bust out the markers and draw the third grader version of the heart. You get where I'm going.

And what's stopping you from loving yourself if you're single? Love yourself quietly everyday. Heck, love yourself loudly everyday. And on v-day, love yourself super loud. I was so scared of looking pathetic by treating myself to valentine goodies in my kingdom of singledom, but what I've come to realize is that I probably looked more pathetic in my sweats, eating stale Wheat Thins and watching The Real World. How could I have let myself hate myself on the day that celebrates love?

So just love tomorrow. Love yourself, love the others in your life. I'm going to try really hard to just like my neighbor, just for the sake that it's valentine's day.