| First days at UTSA |
[Aug. 22nd, 2007|01:35 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  It's scary, but not bad... | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Morning Has Broken - Cat Stevens | ] |
I have had my first two classes of college this morning and I'm back in my dorm patiently waiting for it to be a little closer three o'clock so that I can walk down to my next and final class of the day. I think I'll take my laptop to this one, just because I want to. It could give me something to do if there's a lot of time spent waiting for the professor to arrive (like in my first two classes). We didn't do anything today, it was all introductions to the course, the teacher, the grading and that sort of thing. I'm going to cancel my meal plan today, because I don't think I'll use it anyway. Speaking of meal plan I'm a little bit hungry. Carrots sound good, don't they? Yes, yes they do. I think tonight, after I've cancelled my plan I'll go to the grocery store and buy some actual food for myself instead of the light, snacky type things I'd gotten before. I'm in the mood for some chicken. I think some chicken with rice and greenbeans for dinner...oh, wait. I'm going out to dinner with Juliana I forgot. I guess I'll go to the store after that. Or tomorrow. My schedule tomorrow is pretty easy...or not easy so much as I end at 11 and have the rest of the afternoon free. Fridays are good too, because I only have one class all day long. I really like that. I was trying to make it so that I didn't have any classes on Friday at all but it didn't work out. One class isn't so bad really. My back hurts and I can't figure out why. I think it's the new bed, they're not really very comfortable. I bought a mattress pad to go over the mattress but I'm waiting until Sunday when I'm going to change my sheets to put it on so that I don't have to mess with the fitted sheet again. I hate that damnable fitted sheet. It's so annoying. Obviously it's a wonderful thing for beds and sleeping but putting it on is insanely annoying. I figure that this weekend I'll probably do some organizing because I've already done the reading for my first class and math didn't assign any reading or homework. I know what daddy would say, something about "reading anyway" but how much reading can one do in a math book? Lots I guess, but I hate them and so I'll just wait until Friday when he gives us our silibii (??maybe??) to start working on that. I'm worried that my Anthropology class is going to have a lot of reading too. That would give me three classes, at least, with a bunch of reading. I like to read but these books are so dry and boring that I'd really rather not have to spend all my free time reading. I ran into Daniel today, walking around trying to find his classes. We don't have anything together, but that's okay...we'll end up seeing each other eventually like today. It's about a 15 minute walk from my dorm to my classes and I'm thinking about buying a bike but I first have to locate the acceptable places to ride them. I don't think it would be very nice to bike through the pedestrians walking to and from classes all the time. I ordered my parking permit yesterday so it should arrive to me within...well soon. It said within 4 business days but I'm pretty sure that they lie about things like that. Mmkay, I'm going to do something that pretends to be productive but really isn't. Like...oh, I don't know. |
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| Central Texas...and that's about it |
[Jul. 25th, 2007|10:10 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | Happy in the Heights | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Dancing Shoes | ] |
Hello people. Thought I'd tell you about UTSA, because I went, with momma, daddy, Emily, Daniel and his family, and Ari, to see it last week. I must admit that it's not what I expected. I think last summer's visit to the Trinity campus, which is so amazingly lovely with all it's giant oak trees, tainted any love I could have to the sandy, and sandy-brick campus of UTSA. We saw my dorms though, not my particular room (or any room, for that matter) but the block of buildings that I'll be calling home. Basically it look like an appartement building, but I'm perfectly happy with that. The campus itself is pretty far from San Antonio propper, it's a little suburban for my tastes, but as everyone (Especially the Emilys) keeps reminding me -- it's only for a year.
On that same trip we went to Schlitterbahn, which is always fun. After 10 years of annual trips we know all the rides and most of the bumps in them, but it's still nice to sit in a tube and relax. The river was really high because of all the rain that's been inundating central Texas lately and some of the rides that let off into the river were closed for that reason. We also went to Austin and saw Marien (don't know how she spells it) Michaels, and Dodo (Emily's grandmother). We talked for a long time with both, and we went the Bake House, which momma says she absolutely loved in college.
That's about it for updating, although I think anyone who really would like to know knows that Momma and Ari are staying for an extra week because momma's boss is sympathetic to the cause (daddy being a cripple and eating momma's vacation). There you go. |
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| Costa Rica |
[Jul. 9th, 2007|09:59 am] |
It's been a while since I've written anything on here, and I've heard that my adoring fans are desperate for an update on my exciting international travels. And so here is COSTA RICA:
On the plane over I sat in the window seat next to a blind man and his wife who argued constantly, there wasn't a 5 minute stretch where they were just speaking like normal human beings. When we got into the airport and had our passports stamped Emily and Hannah were so excited, and the Costa Rica stamp is a pretty one; all black and oval-y. After our bags were all loaded on to the top of the bus and covered in a not so rainproof tarp (I discovered this later, when I realized that my clothes were all wet) we all hunkered down for the three hour drive from the airport in San Jose to a smaller city called Guapiles where we were staying at an "eco-friendly lodge" affiliated with the Lutheran church (ILCO in Costa Rica, which stands for Iglesia Luterana Costariccense) called Centro Manu. Manu was very nice, practically surrounded by rainforest with little two to four person cabins in a circle and a large dining/meeting area in the front. Hannah, Emily and I stayed in one cabin and Melanie joined us later (passport troubles to horrifying to explain). Matt's girlfriend, whose name I am blanking out on, dubbed us the naked cabin because of a conversation she overheard through the paper-thin cabin walls. Our cabin shared a wall with theirs, Matt's girlfriend, Dakota and...Marcy? I feel bad for forgetting these peoples' names. Actually, to tell you the truth I never learned everyone's. The cooks, there were two, made the most amazing food ever, every night. Emily and I fell in love with "Gallo Pinto", basically red beans and rice, but something about the Costa Rican-ness of it made it just so much more yummy. Also Natilla, which is this creamy, sour cream like stuff that you eat with lots of things, like Arepas (kind of like pancakes, but again better). Dakota took down the recipe for the Arepas, and I'll have to remember to get it from her. We spent a lot of time at Manu, and also in a community called San Martin, where we painted benches, built a fence and dug a trash pit. We did lots of other activities with the kids there too, like the water fight that Emily regretted later, when her shoes wouldn't dry, and just hanging out. One of the things that most amazed those who didn't speak any Spanish was their ability to communicate, even through that barrier. Those kids at San Martin, and the kids at the other communities we visited barely spoke a word of English, but they still communicated, and we still communicated with them. That's the beauty of friendship. Like Hannah's friend (lud, I can't remember anyone's name) who used a lot of gestures, or little Nicol, who was just so so cute. We went to an orphanage and I fell in love with a 3 month old baby named Erica. Emily fell in love with her older brother, he's about 2. If we were older and could afford it I'm pretty sure those babies would be ours right now. We went to a Volcano on our last day in Costa Rica, and while I wouldn't call it exciting it was definitely a fun thing to do. We all took pictures of it, and of us standing in front of it. The air was so much cooler, a lot less humid, up in the mountains and that's where Hannah and I have decided that we're going to live when we move to Costa Rica. |
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| I'm leaving and coming. |
[Jun. 6th, 2007|07:12 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  So..yeah. | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Oh My God -- Lilly Allen... | ] |
I’m leaving Jakarta this afternoon after two years of living here. There’s something strange about the leaving because it’s also a going home for me. I’m returning to where I always lived, where I’ve always considered home, but my parents and often hard-to-live-with sister are staying here. They’ll live here for another two years, probably, and I’ll get to visit them but I won’t live here again…at least not with them. It’s perfectly possible that I’ll be back here, in Indonesia at least, on my own. Ah, well. I’m going back to Texas for a few days, and then Costa Rica, about which I’m hugely excited, then Texas for a little while, and then Colorado to see my Uncle Andrew, his wife Kate and their four children who vary in age and adorable-ness depending on who you’re talking about…then Texas for the rest of the summer. I think I should clarify for any offended parties that I’m sure Thomas would blanch at being called adorable, as might Nicholas and so I wont, but Anna and Jonathon (why does that looked like it’s spelled wrong?), well they’re just “cute as a button”. And on that note I’m going to spend a little time putting all my things into two duffel bags and hoping it all works. |
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| Oh, and by the way |
[Jun. 4th, 2007|04:55 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | Ahh, sweet sweet Monday | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Henrietta - The Fratellis | ] |
Two of mes amis got tatuajes today. Emma got an Asian symbol (Chinese or Japanese, I'm not sure which.) that means Faith…it’s at the base of her hairline on the back of her neck. Lara got the outline of a horse on her left shoulder blade. I was named honorary photographer and I held Emma’s hand, the pictures are loverly, if I do say so myself. Of course there was a little peer pressure for the always prim and proper Annaliese to get a giant frog on her back. Needless to say I did not succumb. I can’t even remain happy with a hairstyle for more than a few months, I don’t think a permanent picture on my skin would fly after a while. Besides, even though I know now that it really doesn’t hurt that much I’m not about to sit there and endure the pain. Women suffer through enough because of nature, I’m not going to put myself in anymore pain. I might be going to get my hair permed tomorrow, but I haven’t completely decided. Oh…damn…I forgot to make that appointment. Ah, well. I’ll just call in the morning, I don’t think Johan will be horribly busy on a Tuesday. Wouldn’t it be like life though if Tuesdays were the unofficial day for women to visit the salon? Ah well, c’est la vie.
I didn’t talk about Bali. I should talk about the trip to Bali…but I’ve talked about Bali before, with all it’s Australian tourists and cheap things. Although, this trip is the first, maybe the second that I’ve really, really enjoyed bargaining. I also like all the sales women. Well, not all of them. But for the most part they’re so happy and personable. One woman in Ubud even told me that the next time I go to Bali I should stay at her house and she would show me all around the country-side. It’s things like that that really make me want to go places. It’s no fun to travel to a place full of cold and unwelcoming people. Ahh. Costa Rica in 5 days, that’s absolutely no time at all!!!
Today the packers came to put my life into boxes. They boxed everything up and I don’t really have that many breakable things. I’m really only worried about my Turkish tea-set, which is a prized possession of mine and made completely of glass. Other than that there are tons of my clothes, shoes, purses, pictures, some books, and miscellaneous things. I’m hand carrying my entire and extensive jewelry collection, which I’m not really looking forward to but it’s much better than not getting it at all. It hasn’t really sunk in, even now that my stuff’s all gone, that I’m leaving and that I don’t or at least won’t live here any more. My home is in Texas now, and although part of my home was always Texas it feels just as odd as it did saying that Indonesia was my home 2 years ago. And on that slightly melancholy note I’ll sign off to vegetate en frente del television. Nighty night, good mornin’ and anywhere in between. |
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| (no subject) |
[Jun. 4th, 2007|07:14 am] |
The Class of 2007: College and University Matriculation by Country and Institution - A Partial List
United States of America
Babson College (2)
Bates College
Bentley College (2)
Berklee College of Music
Boston University (3)
Brandeis University
Brigham Young University
Butler University
Carnegie Mellon University
CUNY/Brooklyn
CUNY/Hunter College
Claremont McKenna College
Clark University
Colby College
College of Wooster (2)
Colorado State University
Diablo Valley College
Drake University
Emory University (3)
Evergreen State College
Franklin & Marshall College
George Washington University (2)
Georgia Institute of Technology (2)
Hawaii Pacific University
Hiram College
Indiana University
Johns Hopkins University
Kenyon College (2)
Lake Forest College
Lawrence University
Lasell College
Lewis & Clark College
Loyola Marymount University
Macalester College
Marymount College (2)
Millsaps College
New York University (5)
Northeastern University (3)
Northwestern University (3)
Occidental College
Ohio Wesleyan University (2)
Pace University
Parsons School of Design
Pennsylvania State University (3)
Pepperdine University
Pratt Institute
Princeton University
Randolph-Macon College
Randolph-Macon Women’s College
Rice University
Ripon College
Santa Monica College
Savannah College of Art & Design (5)
St. Edwards University (2)
St. Mary’s College of Moraga (3)
School of the Art Institute Chicago
Simmons College
Southern Methodist University
SUNY/Plattsburgh
Suffolk University (4)
Texas Christian University
Trinity University - Texas (2)
University of Arizona
UC/Berkeley (2)
UC/ Los Angeles
UC/San Diego
UC/Santa Cruz
University of Charleston
University of Delaware
University of Denver
University of Illinois (7)
University of Michigan (2)
University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill (2)
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oregon
University of Pennsylvania
University of Portland
University of Puget Sound
University of San Diego
University of Southern California (2)
University of Texas
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin (4)
Valley Forge Military Institute
Virginia Polytechnic Institute
Wellesley College (2)
West Virginia University
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (2)
Australia
International College of Hotel Management
Monash University
University of Melbourne (3)
University of Queensland
University of Technology/Sydney
University of Western Australia
Canada
Acadia University
Alliance University College
Dalhousie University
Queens University
Trinity Western University
University of British Columbia (6)
University of Calgary
University of Northern British Columbia
University of Toronto (2)
University of Victoria
University of Waterloo
University of Western Ontario
Finland
Jyvaskla University
Holland
Amsterdam Fashion Institute (2)
Avans Hogeschool
University College Utrecht
University of Groningen
Hungary
Semmelweis Orvostudományi Egyetem
India
Mt. Carmel College
Indonesia
Institut Teknologi Bandung
Italy
Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi
Japan
Hitotsubashi University
International Christian University
Osaka University
Korea
KAIST
Seoul National University
Yonsei University
Malaysia
Lim Kok Wing University
Taylor’s College
New Zealand
University of Canterbury
Philippines
Ateneo de Manila University (2)
Colegio de San Juan de Letran
Enderun College
Singapore
Nanyang Technological University
Switzerland
Les Roches University of Hotel Management
Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne
Thailand
Webster University
United Kingdom
Bath Spa University
Imperial College
London School of Economics
Loughborough University
Oxford Brookes University
University College London
University of Bath
University of Brighton
University of Durham
University of Wales, Aberystwyth
University of Warwick
Singaporean Military Obligation (3) |
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| I have graduated and I feel the same |
[May. 26th, 2007|07:22 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | A little Melancholic | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Little Things -- Lily Allen | ] |
I am a high school graduate. As of about 7:15 last night, when our diploma’s were officially conferred by some woman whose name I can’t remember…possibly Valery Scane, I am a high school graduate. The strangest thing, I think, is that I feel completely the same. There’s no difference in anything, except now I can get a better job that I could 48 hours ago. My speech went well. I didn’t make any outwardly obvious mistakes, even daddy who has heard the speech a few times didn’t really realize that I’d messed it up in one place. That’s always nice. The reception was boiling hot, because we do live in the tropics, but they didn’t really do the whole fan/aircon thing well. It never helps that graduates are forced to wear disgusting, itchy, non-breathing polyester choir robes, instead of anything comfortable at all. We live in the land of textiles here – why couldn’t they perhaps find a nice cotton choir robe for us to wear, something natural and breathy? I would suggest it for next year but I’m really just going to stay as far away from there as possible for the next 2 weeks. I’m not bitter about my last two years of high school, or the place they occurred in, it’s just that I’ve graduated and now am not shackled to the buildings, rules, and regulations that have run so many of our lives. |
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| YouthAIDS |
[May. 21st, 2007|10:53 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | I'm going to make a difference | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Enseñame Tus Manos - Alejandro Sanz | ] |
Last night I watched Travel and Living’s “Celebrity Journey Special” where Ashley Judd and Selma Hayek travel around Central America to spread awareness and to learn about the Latin American AIDS problem. It made me cry and so when I got up this morning I joined the YouthAIDS mailing list and different things like that and I’m thinking about helping organize or organizing for myself a fundraiser…I don’t know how to do that though, so I will be enlisting the help of more knowledgeable people. And then, after my fundraiser I’m going to go to Central America and fight the ignorance and the stereotypes that surrounds AIDS and AIDS victims. That’s my plan at the moment…It’ll take a few years to achieve these goals, because of that pesky college education, but I’ll do it. Maybe I’ll be able to organize summer trips with the University. Don’t tell me I’m getting ahead of myself, I’m well aware. But I’m at home, and I was at home all day yesterday and I’ll probably be at home all day tomorrow too so this is what’s keeping me from screaming bloody murder, and it’s a wonderful cause. |
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| I'm strangely tired and oddly awake. |
[May. 20th, 2007|09:05 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  tired but excited for Wednesda | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | En Algun Recuerdo -- Bacilos | ] |
Yesterday was Prom. Everyone always has such high expectations for prom, and even though this years Juniors did a fabulous job of designing and decorating things it was still a little of a let down. I think there wasn’t a specific reason that it wasn’t wonderful, but being out with friends is always nice and I had a great time here with everyone and at Praline. I don’t know if I mentioned it earlier but momma and I decided that it’s not really fair for only one family to see the prom dresses of everyone (we would have gotten ready together at someone’s house and gone straight to dinner). So we threw a little “cocktail party” and all the girls and their parents came and stood around and ate little appetizers (momma made these amazing cream cheese filled wonton things that are amazing and wonderful. Emma special ordered them for the party after falling in love with them at my birthday). We took lots of pictures of everyone together, everyone with their parents, all of that. Momma and daddy are at the American club and so I can’t ask momma where she saved the photos when she loaded them before I left so that I would have a completely free memory card. I decided, at 1 something in the morning, that I really didn’t want to go out after prom so I made a begrudging Lara let me take her car home. We were really close to the house when we picked Ellen up but no one was listening to my chant of “take me home, we’re really close to my house”. I was this close to asking the driver in Indonesian to do it. He loves me, he talks to me when I’m alone in the car and he never talks to Lara. She maintains that this is because she is related to her father, but I think it’s because I’m amazing. I keep thinking about how it’s only three days until Mommo, Susan and Josie get here. I’m so excited for that. And I can’t wait for Graduation on Friday. I have to go in to school tomorrow to get some signatures for a completely pointless form that we all have to fill out. I’m not really sure why they think that it is necessary but we have to get all of our teachers, the librarian, the nurse, the book room people, our counselors, and some other people that I’ve forgotten about. What do they think that serves? Nothing. It serves nothing. Also I have my first rehearsal for my grad speech on Monday at three. And now I have to go make sure I actually got all the make up off my face last night in my zombie-like state of sleep deprevation. |
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| La Cucaracha, La Cucaracha, y ya no puede caminar |
[May. 19th, 2007|07:35 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | Happy, happy and excited | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | "I'm done with High School" -- Me, in my head | ] |
Yesterday I took my last final exam of the year – Advanced Algebra. And although there is a rather large possibility that I failed the sucker I’m happy as a clam to be completely and totally done with high school work forever. Yesterday after I got home I was jumping around and laughing at some of the stupid TV jokes and I couldn’t really figure out why everything was so amusing and happy. Then it hit me – Because I’m doooone. Done forever with the silly high school place full of pointless classes that I will never need and mediocre teachers that don’t like what they’re teaching. It’s really quite a rush.
Tonight is the prom, and the pre-prom party. I got my dress yesterday and it’s all pressed and dry-cleaned and wrinkle free. I’m supposed to go at three today to Johan’s to get my hair and nails done so that I’ll be all set and completely ready by 5:30 when the pre-prom people are supposed to get here. I’ve finally decided what to do with my hair, although I’m not really sure how traditionally promey it is. Ah well, que sera, sera. Which is, coincidentally enough, my ring tone.
Juliana just invited me to/ told me I have to buy tickets for Austin City Limits and I’m muy excited-o. I mean, Bob Dylan. Who in their right mind would pass up Bob Dylan? Only a crazy person. (Which really sort of knocks them out of the running anyway because they were supposed to be in their right minds). Something just made me think of the chicken song, the “I don’t wanna be a chicken, I don’t wanna be a duck, so kiss my butt. Quack quack quack quack” song. I was trying to explain it to someone the other day and they just thought I was insane. Which, living here, isn’t a new phenomenon but this person was Emma, I think, and she’s Canadian. And although she may harbor secret plans to have me shipped off to the loony-bin she usually understands what it is that I’m on about.
There’s this little chant going on in my head “I’m done with high school. I’m done with high school”. It changes rhythm, earlier it was that taunting thing that Sandra Bullock does in Miss Congeniality, the “You want to kiiiiiiss meee” thing. Now it’s “La Cucaracha” but I can’t figure out what should go in the “Y ya no puede caminar” spot. Oh, oh! I’ve got it “And I’m about to graduate”. That works, right? So if we put it all together it’s “I’m done with high school. I’m done with high school. And I’m about to graduate”. Remember when reading this you must read to the tempo of La Cucaracha or it doesn’t work and I come off a little like a moron. |
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