La Vie En Rose for 2004 January

It's funny how you only notice how much stuff you have when you have to move it all. I just LOVE my new place, but I'm so beat and ready for bed, and I can't find my toothpaste.

I had a lovely first day of school, and would be quite happy if not for the fact that I can't find anyone ot take over my lease, which means that I am utterly, completely, and totally screwed.

I hate writing personal statements. Me, me, me. Look at me, I'm so great. And did I mention I am the coolest ever? and that I am amazing? Ugh.

On the good news front, there is some, but I don't want to jinx myself so I'll leave it at that.

Christina is coming for lunch tomorrow! I must think of somewhere exciting to take her. Mom, where was that Italian place you were talking about?

All done, but I feel slightly discouraged. No one's going to be stupid enough to let me into grad school.

I've cleaned off the bistro table and chairs that were on the balcony in my old place and set them up in my room. Patio furniture? In my room? Why not? Leonard mentions that he's glad his apartment is small, because he doesn't have any furniture. In a way thats how my room is. It's big enough for a double bed, but the thought of moving mine all the way from home, trying to take it apart and put it back together, was more than I could handle. My twin bed was trouble enough. So I'm just filling up the space witrh other furniture. It'll be nice to have some place in my room to study, other than my desk, which had the distracting computer, and other than my bed, which has the distracting pillows.

They have a LUSH on Third Street now! It just opened in December. I am ecstactic! (or however it's spelled...)

I just finished doing my hair with this henna stuff and I LOVE it! It's nice a dark and reddish, though not as dark as I had hoped. It says you can build up deeper color by using it again, so I'll do that. Now is only I could find something to make my hair not so pouffy.

It's official. The new girl is moving in to take over my lease tonight or tomorrow. My life is set!

*waits patiently for the next thing to go wrong...*

At school from 10-6:30 today. Am too tired to think. Not to mention very hungry. But I ran into Ali (friend from London) which was exciting.

$70 reader, which I refuse to buy, is not on reserve. We'll see how this works out. Maybe I will pay someone in the discussion to lemme borrow and make photocopies. Or email Professor and ask him to put on reserve.

So far no one has commented on my new hair, which I find a bit odd since it really is a lot redder. But I haven't see that many people who see me on a regular basis, so that must be it.

If anyone wants details of my long ago trips to Little Rock, you can read them here. The only thing Mom forgets to mention is the warning I got in Texas, which is pinned to my bulletin board as a kind of trophy. I see it as a symbol of the bad-but-could-be-worse aspect that seemed predominant that week.

Chris: *making dinner*

Rachel: maybe I'll come see you! I'm ravished!

Chris: I think the word you are looking for is famished.

Rachel: er... yeah *blushes*

A very bad new habit

Rachel: we'll only buy the essentials

Christina: define essential...

Rachel: define "essential"

Christina: it's scary enough for me to think like me never mind other people...

Since it's the begining of the quarter, and some of you might actually care, I thought I'd bring up to date about all the classes, etc, I am taking.

For work I'm reading a book about this woman who was a doctor in Serbia and Macedonia during WWI, it's quite intresting.

I had oceanography lab today for the first time, and thats pretty interesting too. We drew lines around ocean depths, called contours. Like on maps. And in lecture we learned all about the structure of the earth and the solar system.

Poli Sci is intresting too. The first paper is due next week, about American society's role in diplomacy. Trouble is, the two articles are in the reader, which I refuse to buy. I asked him to put a copy on reserve in class today. Perhaps will email him, too. It's the same professor as last quarter. Some don't, but I like him. I think he's a good lecturer.

The ES course should be good, too. I'm going to read all kinds of interesting things like Kafka and Woolfe and Proust. I can almost feel my cultural literacy expanding.

Celtic Mythology is going to be great, too. Even though I just found out I have to petetion to get it to count; its not automatic. And remembering how well my last petition went... but still, there's no reason why this one shouldn't go through. It's actually a Lit class!

I keep thinking about the leather jacket in BeBe I saw in Saturday... it was on sale... but I MUST resist. I have to be extra careful if I want to go backpacking in Europe this summer. Oh--that's another thing that may not have gott(en?) mentioned about the trip. I had a little mini-revelation while staring at 800 miles of Texas. I'd been reading Niether here nor there, by Bill Bryson. He goes to a lot of intresting places, and he has some interesting things to say, but he doesn't actually do anything interesting. The whole time I was thinking I could write a book like this, much more... interesting. Now, some people say stuff like that all the time (mom) but never do anything about it. I'm usually in that category, but I'm only young once! And I've got nothing else to do the month in between my lease being up and grad school (hopefully) starting.

So I put my Christmas money in a special seperate savings account I opened just for this purpose, and I'm going to put the remainder of my STRS money (all 1 1/2 months worth of it) there, too. That should put me at about 1,000. I'd planned to save 2,000, but Stacey of the IISA board returns recently from abroad, bring horror stories of the exchange rate, so I think I might need more than that. Still, I have 7 months to save, and with a Real Job it just might be possible!

I walked to Borders to see if they had my book on Celts, since they were out at the book store. Did not have it. So I walked to the French pastry shop and bought an eclair. The roommates are on a special de-tox diet. I am on a special eat-everything-I-can-get-my-hands-on diet. Something about being a Girl turns my stomach into a bottomless pit about once a month.

Maybe I'll just stay in LA and do research next year, instead of going to school. I bet that would help me get in somewhere really good. And I'll be all rested and ready to tackle... might even go for the PhD. Who knows?

I decided driving Leonard's car to Little Rock wasn't enough, so I'm writing letters to people in New Hampshire, telling them if they want their kids to be able to go to college, they'd better vote for Clark.

leonardr4clark (8:06:49 PM): you make a good point about reaching hp fans

I'm still amazed about the weather (or lack thereof) in LA. In some ways it's nice, because, well, it's nice. But in other ways... I just keep thinking that my scarf collection is going to waste.

To all who commented about the eclairs: I can check and see if they ship.

Is there anything more cheering than a new hat? There is no tonic to equal it, as every woman knows, and the confidence it brings is indeed great. Mine has a pink ostrich feather, the only one I ever had, and I wore it on this one occasion, for I was in uniform a few days later. I saw it again though, when in bedraggled uniform I came home in 1921, and found that my parent had given away every stitch of my clothing except that now very démodé and most unbecoming hat. How I ever could have chosen it, and what a sight for the gods I was as it perched precriously on my short hair over a lean, weather beaten face!--Dr. Isabel Hutton, With A Women's Unit.

Later she says: but of course few die in our hospital, they nearly all get well!

Mom and I went to see Calendar Girls, which was fabby. "Not naked--NUDE!" She also bought me new glasses--sunglasses and a regular pair. My vision is getting worse, yippee! Amazing that I am suffering the consequences of aging, yet still look like a teenager.

Finally, after almost 20 hours of working on it, finished my summary for work! Whew! but now I have all this reading to do for school... I feel like I'm behind already! AND a paper due Friday... yikes!

I am in a FABULOUS mood, for the following reasons: 1. PS paper was postponed, which means that, yes, I will have time to breath this week! 2. After buying stamps to mail my letters to NH, I stopped by the STA and got some European travel brocheres! (Mom taught me a v good system, in which, everytime I go to buy something, I ask myself: "Do I want this ______, or do I want to go to Europe?" It works quite well.") 3. I have v good food from the store and home. 4. I am just happy in general.

Had my second lab in Oceanography. We're doing all this lame math stuff... when are we going to talk about sea turtles? I may P/NP it, so as to make the most beneficial use of my limited time this quarter.

Now must go clean my room and unpack (from yesterday!) and FIND my letters to NH. Also: read Proust and locate generous guy from PS who is letting me copy his reader.

...only much, much better. I just realized I have a scholarship I had forgotten about. From scoring well on some stupid examen back in HS. I decided to save it for when I *really* needed it, then completely forgot it's existence. By now, intrest has added up to 1150--which means I can use it for books and supplies this year, and save my other money for Europe! Yippee!!!

$1.95 to copy the articles I actually *need* to write my papers sure beats $70 for the whole reader. The guy at office depot only charged me for 1 sided copies, and he gave me a 15% student discount, AND he asked if the girl on my wallet was me (it's Audrey Hepburn).

"Sort of like scrapping ice off your windshield--which may not be a good analogy for LA, but hopefully you have a sense of how that works"--my oceanography prof, on subduction zones.

Adventures were had in Westwood with Kathy, and later, over IM with Christina, UCLA parking permits were likened unto good-looking, nice boys. GiGi's cats like me lots, which is fabby, but right now there's not enough space on my bed for *me*.

Have decided to not be lazy and do Shakespeare this quarter. Good news. Richard III (nice change from all the tragedy, eh?). Queen Elizabeth. With Queen Margaret. "OH, my POOR BABES!" *SOBS* (may not be actual line).

While jogging this morning, I was trying to deal with my stupid earphones, which kept falling out of my ears, and I tripped over a crack on the sidewalk and fell. Luckily I landed on the grass, so I dont hurt much. And no one saw. In that respect, I don't know why I'm posting this... oh well, perhaps it will give someone a laugh.

On Friday Christina came over and we had beauty day, then we went with GiGi to see Moulin Rouge at midnight on 3rd St. Apparantly they're trying to make it into a cult movie, but I don't know how sucessfull that is. There were only three people dressed up. But no cult would be complete without squealing fifteen-year-old fan girls. Ugh.

Then yesterday Nat and Chris came over and I introduced them to Indian food. Yum. And now I am going to UNsocial and do work all day. Whee.

By the time I finish eating my Christmas candy, it will be Valentine's day. Not that I expect to get candy for Valentine's Day. Just pointing out...

In light of upcoming events (my birthday), I've decided to publish this wish list:

Harry Potter poster

Eurail pass

Norah Jones CD

Gift Certificates to Target, LUSH, or Trader Joes

Something from my Amazon wish list (OK, so there's only one item right now, and it's not released yet--and NO, it's not book 6--but I'll maybe add some more.

An HTML lesson

If you wish to donate money to a charity in my name, I hear that the Send Rachel to Europe Fund does v good work.

Tonight's Proust adventures were briefly interuppted by the appearance of a mouse, which, after a labourous transfer from the living room to the front lawn by Nikkie and myself, unfortunately died of battle wounds inflicted by Poncette.

Also: some new pictures are up.

GiGi: Promise me you'll never become soccer moms

Nikkie: If I'm ever in danger of that I'll send my kids to boarding school.

While I was walking through the geology building to get to my lab today, I noticed a picture display on the wall from a visit to a geological site in Europe. One of the pictures was of people lying on the floor, and the caption said, "Sleeping in London Stanstead Airport." (You'll find what you're looking for at the bottom the the link.)

Our IISA open house was quite sucessful. Loads of people showed up, and I heard people talking about coming to the first cafe night (my pet project) next week. The topic: Harry Potter as a literary phenomenon. Yay!

Does the US have a superiority complex?

YES

or

No?

For the correct answer, please see my collected works, to be published sometime tomorrow before 11 am.

And I SWEAR, one of these days, I'm finish a paper AHEAD of time.

I came home and my momma made delicious bread. I'm now going to go read about Serbia. Glasses tomorrow!

While spending an hour scouring the entire Target Store trying to find an alarm clock, I came across a really cool Eddie Bauer carry-on roller covertible backpack luggage thing, which I would like to add to my birthday wish list ;)!