Inauguration

In case you haven't noticed, seeing as the media is so subtle about such things, Barack Obama was inaugurated as President of the United States of America today. George W. Bush is gone to wherever, free to clear as much brush as he desires. 

It was awesome. I watched it all unfold with about 200 people in one of the giant performance rooms, Emerson Suites. Everyone cheered and stayed quiet at the right times. The speech moved me. It said everything that needed to be said. 

Other than that, my soul was crushed today, when I saw that Dean Lynch posted about a internship just for Parkies with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (the owner is an alumnus). Why did this upset me? Because this would have been the best internship in the entire world... until my favorite coach of all time, Jon Gruden, was fired by them THIS YEAR.

WHY?! WHYYYYY???? I don't care if they totally collapsed and need a fresh start, I LOVE that man and his facial expressions.

Oh, and today was also the first day of classes for the second semester. I only had my class on Short Stories and Global Studies classes. Short stories looks like it will be a breeze after having taken IB english. I know this stuff. And I've read quite a few of the stories on the syllabus during high school. Global Studies looks great. My professor is Dr. Soyinka-Airewele, which I will avoid trying to pronounce. She is from Africa (I can't recall which country) but obviously learned english in the lovely U.K so she has a strangely mixed accent that can sometimes be challenging to decipher. But so much of the class is discussion and friendly argument, which is something I pretty much love. 

It is so cold here, it's ridiculous. Walking back from dinner I totally had a Calvin and Hobbes moment and exclaimed, classily...

"I THINK MY BOOGERS JUST FROZE!"

College never fails to bring out the best in me. 

I'm Back!

I got into lovely, snowy Ithaca yesterday afternoon. I spent the evening reuniting with friends and putting up new posters all over my walls. I will soon post pictures, because now, if any of you visit, it will actually seem like I have a life when you look at my dorm room. 

I'm madly excited for classes to start again, because I am a huge nerd. I have only two classes tomorrow, going from 8 to 10:40, and then I have the whole day free to bask in the historic nature of the day. 

This morning I rolled out of bed at 5:30, to pitch black darkness and falling snow, (cringes are appropriate) to shower before heading to the dining hall to work for four and a half hours. Normally, it will only be four hours, because I have to go to class at 11, but I stayed longer because they needed me. The bad thing about working the breakfast shift is that I start at 6:30. The good thing is that it's not as rushed as lunch was, and barely anyone comes anyway. So it's a lot of setting up, filling cereals and yogurts, putting ice everywhere. 

Also, Ithaca must have decided I deserved a Christmas present, because they got awesome new coffee machines.  I was absurdly happy about this. 

It is also not THAT cold here. Not nearly as cold as Maryland felt. 

BAHAHAHAHAHA

In case you couldn't tell, that's me laughing maniacally.  

A Little Story About a Chair That's Actually NOT Being Replaced

Yesterday I was accompanying my mom on what I assumed to be a harmless Craigslist pick-up. (Yes, we are those people.)

I inquired as to what the item was, and discovered that was a giant "chair and a half." And where would this chair go?

IN MY SPACE.

I nearly fainted, because I have developed an undying devotion and love to this chair:

It looks like an ordinary lounger. It is not. I expressed my fear of losing my chair, and my heart-felt attachment to it, and my Dad comforted me, "Don't worry, we won't give away the chair, it's going in your first apartment." All I can say is, it better.

And Mom asked, "How can you have an undying love for this chair? We've only had it for like two years."

Which is true. But ever since we lugged it down the street, this chair and I were soul mates. I got ridiculously sick shortly after, and for some reason decided my bed could not compare in comfiness. So I slept on this chair for days. It was about 100 degrees, because it was summer and there is no AC in that room. But that is what I did. 

After that, anyone who tried to occupy it got death stares. The chair is the blanket to my Linus. I sat on it, sulked, and blew my nose a million times while Claire was shaking hands with Barack Obama. I laid on it is stunned disbelief while the Giants won the Super Bowl. I crammed five people on to it during swim team pasta parties. I fought off my Dad and sister on it while they tried to tickle me to death. It has allowed me to flop onto it without shattering beneath me. 

It's my chair, and even though it's kind of broken thanks to my abuse, it's here to stay. Now if only I could fit it in the dorm room.

Oh yeah. And I go back to college tomorrow. 

And I'm procrastinating. 

This worked. 

Winding Down

It's my last week in Maryland, and let me tell you, I am not looking forward to going back to a world that involves work. 

Even though I'm kind of there already, because I have a deadline Sunday. YAY. And, per usual, I had weird dreams about it. Last night I was panicking because I wasn't sure how I could get my interviews done if I went with my friend A on a spur of the moment trip to Australia. Which my Dad was driving us to. 

Obviously my life is incredibly stressful right now...in my dreams. In real life, I am enjoying doing very little. 

I've been busy saying goodbyes as pals return to school at different times. It's no fun, but I'm definitely looking forward to seeing my friends at Ithaca again. It's certainly been a while.  

Unfortunately this post can't be salvaged, it's doomed to being pointless and boring. Sorry!  

Otis

I am in Otis right now, basking in all the delights it offers.

Because I am here, I'm not so keen on the interent because I have way better things to do. Like lay on the couch and be amazed as Harlan Coben has made someone who the everyman thought to be dead reappear. And read as Carl Hiaasen kills another villain in a very strange way. Like, speared with a stuffed marlin head. OR, I can even do what I did today, which is sit on a rock and enjoy being in the sun.

Seriously. That is what I did. Thanks to my new puffy jacket supplied by the parents, I am impervious to the elements. That, and it was an amazing day outside.

I'm still on a college sleeping schedule, so at about ten last night I decided to watch the second half on Titanic. No one ever does this. Even on the DVD on the "select a scene" part, they separate the movie into the generally happy half, and the "Doom to the Lower Classes!" half. I have watched the first half ridiculous amounts of times. Ever the contrarian, yesterday I watched the part in which everything is very depressing and wet. It was depressing. But my life looked awesome in comparison.

So I'll finish out the week here, loving doing nothing. Then, Claire heads back on Friday, not to return home until May thanks to crew. I head back to the lovely D.C area to continue doing what I'm doing here and maybe apply to some internships. Such is the life.

OH: College break kick's high school break's butt.

You learn something new every day!

90th Post for 2009

2008 changed my life!

This is to be expected of course, but it's hard to believe that any year after it will be as crazy. In 2008 I completed IB, graduated high school, and started college. In between it all I met so many amazing people and had to say goodbye (and later, "Hello again!") to people that have had my back for my entire life. 

I captained a team, voted in an election, supported a candidate, got soaked at an outdoor concert, danced at prom, relaxed with friends, wrote essays, wrote applications, stalked the mailbox, made a decision, GRADUATED, coached a team, went to Otis, said goodbye, arrived at Ithaca College, and found another awesome home. 

So 2008 turned out to be pretty awesome. 

The events in 2009 aren't as likely to inspire greeting cards and ever-commercialized congratulations for completion of cultural rites-of-passage like those in 2008, but here I go! 

Also, can you believe that this is my 90th post? 

I certainly can't. 

Break Update

I realize I haven't been so great at updating this as I bask in the absolute nothingness that is collegiate winter break. 

Yesterday the whole family enjoyed one of my mom's christmas presents (from Dad), and we all headed over to the Kennedy Center for "The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber." In short, it was AWESOME. In getting there, I realized why I never, ever drive in D.C. We got totally lost. We always do, when trying to get to the Kennedy Center. It's tradition. Luckily we'll get another chance on New Years Day, trekking over there for Claire and my birthday present, a Legally Blonde show. Which I am totally up for. I'm in the process of renewing my passion for show tunes. 

Last night we also had dinner with some family friends, and took the traditional (yeah, we're all about that) walk around the neighborhood (despite one member being in crutches) in the freakish 60 degree weather we are having. 

Christmas was great. On Christmas Eve we watched the movie Elf so that the rest of the family could finally understand what Claire was saying all the time, as the Christmas spirit prompted her to quote it constantly. 

"SANTA?! I KNOW HIM!!!" and  "Smiling's my FAVORITE!"

On Christmas, not keeping in with the spirit at all, we watched people get their butts kicked in Casino Royal. It was awesome.

We are a family of complex tastes. 

Today I plan on working on my room so I can remind myself what my carpet looks like. I also hope to take in a few of the amazing games that are going to be on today. I'm so set.