Thursday 10 December 2009

A New Leaf

Here we go again. This is the second time that I have completely revamped my blog with an incredibly different intent for its purpose. Originally it was a blog for my travels. Then it was a blog for my musings. Now it is a bit of both: I mean for it to be a blog of my musings as I travel the world of linguistics. On here I plan to post linguistic things that I think are awesome, cool, or brilliant alongside my other various thoughts.
I also feel that I have done a very poor job in the past about posting regularly. To combat this, I'm adopting my friend Emma's plan to post at least once a week. I think I'll choose Saturdays, since that tends to be my internet adventures day anyways. :-). Here's to new beginnings at the end of the year!

-- Amy

Friday 15 May 2009

It has been a long time since I have posted on here. Here's why:

This past month was pretty much devoted to my thesis. This paper started out with the intention of being about 15 pages long (my professor's estimation). However, as time went on, we realized that more and more things needed to be commented on. Thus, my "15-page paper" became a lovely 40-page thesis in under a month, on a subject which I had no previous experience with (a linguistic analysis of Middle English through literature). On top of all of that, of course, I was also planning programs as an RA, helping to move people out, trying to keep up with my other three classes, and preparing to graduate. To say the least, it was quite busy.

So that is why a number of things which should have been done did not get done, including blogging and sending out graduation announcements. But it has been good and God has been good through it all. I did feel a bit like I would go insane at some points, but now I have a little bit of time to pause and reflect before continuing on. 

So... graduation. Graduation was definitely interesting. I was happy the week leading up to graduation because my sister Sarah came down the Wednesday before (after my last final) and spent some time with me getting to know my campus and my friends. Didn't really do much other than going out to eat and working on packing up. And shopping. A little bit of shopping. 
The rest of the family came down the night before (the rest meaning those expected, one aunt and uncle on my mom's side and the rest of my immediate family). They arrived and we played a card game at the hotel before calling it a night. I freaked out at a little after midnight because I was considering my graduation outfit when I realized that I didn't have a stoll (the little drape-y thing that goes around your neck). I thought for a frantic few minutes that I had forgotten to buy an important part of the graduation ensemble and called my friend Sarah and ran over to her room in my graduation robe. But we didn't have stolls for our graduation. Whew. Graduation morning was beautiful -- great skies, no rain. We had had lots of rain the week before, so our graduation ended up being indoors, in the WAC. Not cool, in my opinion, but understandable. My family got there early and had their seats well-planned, which was nice. We grads lined up in front of Ellis and paraded across campus to get to the WAC. Once we got there, we went into the gym through a line-up of our professors to our seats. The ceremony was nice, though I think the main speaker and our Provost were the only ones who spoke well at all. And, ta-da!, I graduated cum laude. 

This Fall, I am hoping to be attending a certain fabulous school (those who know me should know the identity of it).  I have been accepted, of course, but now I need to figure out how to pay for the first year (no funding for my studies 'til the second year). So we'll see how it goes. I'm now visiting my sister Sarah, who is trying desperately to keep me from getting into a "Graduated Undergrad Funk". To tell the truth, right now I'm just exhausted and want to lie around on a couch for a few days doing nothing. But, it is good to have people to do stuff with, so I'm thankful to her for her efforts. Will write more later. 

-- Amy

Friday 3 April 2009

R.I.P., 28-squared.
I don't know how well you can see the picture, but this was 28-squared. In the brick pit on campus, there was a set of bricks in the southwest corner (exactly twenty-eight squares from the south and 28 squares from the west) which were just a bit loose. You couldn't pick them up, but they wobbled, and you could stand on them and just wobble back and forth. I liked this very much and it was my happy place on campus. Whenever I felt unhappy or unlucky, I would go and either step on them in passing or even just stand on them and wobble to and fro. I know this is weird, but it's what I do. I took this picture last year before I went to England so that I would have my happy spot to look at while I was away. Anyways, I particularly needed some cheering up the other day, so I decided to go to 28-squared. What I saw was very sad. Apparently, the college finally decided to fix 28-squared. They reset it in new cement. It stood out with obvious new cement and it didn't wiggle. It didn't budge. It just was there, sad and unmoving in the rain. It's so ridiculous, but I realized something: I really like to appreciate the little things and it's little things which make me happy. But this also means that it doesn't take much to make me sad. So Rest in Peace, 28-squared. I will miss you.

Thursday 19 March 2009

What a wonderful day!

First of all, all should note that yesterday, for the first time ever, I beat my friend Sarah at a chess game!!!! Granted, it was her birthday, but I had warned her earlier that I wasn't going to just let her win. So it was fair. I was very happy about that.

Secondly, today's just a wonderful day. Got up, had a good Quiet Time, and am feeling optimistic.
Hooray!

Wednesday 18 March 2009

As the frost of Winter begins to melt at the warm breath of Spring, I feel that the frost on my heart has begun to melt as well. I don't remember when that frost came, but it's been slowly creeping around my soul for some time now. The Prince of Winter tried once to ambush me suddenly with the frost, hoping to sometime turn it to stone, but he realized that my heart couldn't be conquered by such an outright show of force. So he came at me sideways. Little doubts, little whispers.
Now I hear the Lord of Growth and Spring call me back again. But how to react? I've been slowly taking my heart from Him. He whispers answers to my questions, yet I ignore and run away from them, afraid of what they entail. Then I realize how much of my life has been dominated just by that: Fear. It is my impediment which ensnares my feet from moving, ensnares my heart from caring.
Heard an excellent sermon last Sunday. The pastor spoke about the difference between commitment and conversion. Commitment is just words, but conversion is true transformation. I look at my life recently and I see fear. I don't follow my Lord with the love of a daughter to a father -- I don't do things for Him because I want to please Him. I follow Him through fear. I do things because I fear His wrath and anger.
Alot needs to be revamped. This house needs to be torn down and a new foundation built. I have seen my idols and have tried to get rid of them on my own. However, as my sister Sarah told me, I see that I need to stop treating the symptoms and start treating the disease. I need to pursue the Cure. Will this surgery be enough? Will it remove enough of my disease to get to the heart of the matter? This story needs to stop being dedicated to the Master and instead needs to be written by Him.

Saturday 28 February 2009

Wow! What a week! I had a Roman Civ. paper due on Tuesday, a midterm in the same class on Thursday, (originally) three articles to write (ended up I only needed to write one, the others got cancelled), hosted a prospie last night, and was just running around all week. And now it's done! Well... not entirely. This next week I have an RA Inservice on Sunday, an Old English Test for my Ind. Study on Wednesday, an Annotated Bib. due in Human Impact on Thursday, and a Latin Elements test in Etymology on Friday! Whew! And yet, I don't feel nearly as stressed as I was this past week. I think it's because I hadn't gotten alot of reading finished for Roman Civ. and had to catch up a bit, whereas I've been keeping pace with all of my other classes pretty well.
Thursday was a fantastic day. I finished my midterm and simply felt free and happy. Listened to a presentation in Human Impact, went to Fellowship for Dinner, where I got to talk with Melanie about Oxford, and finished off the day by inviting residents to take a quick break from studying to watch some tv and eat chocolate chip cookie dough and chocolate (of which I have an abundance left over from Valentine's Day).
Friday was likewise wonderful. Had my Ind. Study in the morning, Etymology in the afternoon, then came back and cleaned up my room before picking up the Prospie at six. Went out to eat at Domoyaki, watched Dollhouse, and introduced the Prospie to Firefly. It was a fantastic day. I just really like it when I feel that things are busy, but under-control-type-of-busy.

All's well. :-). Am looking forward to this time next week when I'm on Spring Break and going home for a week!

-- Amy

Monday 9 February 2009

It's a warm and rainy today, so I've opened up my windows to let the air and sound of rain in. Nobody's blasting their music today, so I get to simply enjoy the sound of the rain.

Am thinking that I'll have to pull my application for University of Edinburgh... They're asking for a Degree Certificate (which I don't have yet) and a full-fledged research proposal (which I definitely don't have yet). I hate to put all my hope of returning to the UK on one grad school, but I talked with Dr. Resinski and she agreed that that would probably be best. "Their starting ramp is just not matching up with your starting ramp" as she said. Luckily, Edinburgh didn't ask for any application fees, so withdrawing my application wouldn't take away money.

Read the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew today and got thinking about the passage where Jesus says that if your right eye causes you to sin, you should gouge it out. Of course, I think that he's using it as an analogy (yes?). It got me thinking about my DVD collection and television watching. Is this a source that I should cut off? We'll see.

Have been playing the computer in games of chess alot recently and have been very happy that I've been dominating. However, the computer has made idiotic plays, so I guess I shouldn't be too happy about it.

Tomorrow is Pay Day! Is it sad that I'm far more excited about this than the 14th? I have to be on duty this weekend and am thinking of getting a group of my single lady friends together with some cookie dough to watch a couple of "chick flicks" this Saturday. I think that would be lovely. (starts humming "Wouldn't It be Loverly?" from My Fair Lady)

-- Amy

Saturday 7 February 2009

Well, not too much has been going on this week -- it has simply been a good week in general. I've gotten work done, hung out with friends, and have talked with my family plenty. I do wish that I could go home this weekend, but that's just a silly impulse. Tomorrow's the 20 year anniversary for our church which we have attended for 10 years, and I'd like to go. But a 14-hour round-trip drive is just not very practical on the weekends. It's just a bit strange, having lived in England last year. Then, there wouldn't have been the slightest possibility of going home on the weekend at all, I couldn't even go home on the bank holiday weekends. Yet here, home is only a 7-hour drive away. I keep thinking "I could go! I have a car! I can drive there! It's not like I have to hop on a plane for 10 hours!" Yet I know that I shouldn't. I don't quite know what gets me in these moods. :-)



In other news: I tried out a new hairstyle yesterday and got 4 unsolicited comments! That made me a little happy, as vain as it sounds. Also, today has been absolutely beautiful! We had sunny skies and the temperature was around 60. Was able to go around without my coat on, which was fantastic. Because the weather was so nice, I opened up my windows for a bit and did a little bit of knitting. However, I had to close them after awhile, because it became cloudy and colder, and the music from Martin was disturbing me. But praise God for beautiful days! I loved it!

-- Amy

Monday 2 February 2009



I had a really good weekend. Hendrix Winter Formal was on Saturday evening. At first, I was a bit unsure about going. I like getting to dress up and go out with friends, but was concerned that I wouldn't feel comfortable dancing there (I'm a bit picky about where I dance and to what music. Silly, I know) and that I'd be a bad participant in a group. Luckily, it didn't turn out that way at all.
I dressed up in my yellow sundress which I bought in England last year, putting a nice light dress-up shirt underneath and borrowed a light blue ribbon from my friend Beth. I went to Brigid, McCaul and Aaron's house at around 5:30 to get my make-up done. Jordan was really nice and offered to let me use some of hers, but I ended up buying my own foundation, lipstick and eye shadow (I don't really own makeup. I'm pretty sure I left what I do own at home. And that stuff's probably around 6 years old.). So I got some new make-up, borrowed a little eyeshadow from Jordan, and had Brigid put my hair back and it all ended up rather well! (Pictures will be put up on Facebook).
I left their house to pick up Beth at around 7:15. Sam would have joined us if she could, but she was down in Memphis visiting her boyfriend this weekend (it's the weekend before his birthday and he didn't want to come up for formal.). So we went in to Little Rock and met up with Lacey and Melody for some dinner at the Sushi Cafe...


It was as delicious as it looks. I ate myself full and then we headed on to try to find the Convention Center. That was definitely an adventure. SOCO hadn't given out very good directions and we ended driving down a road which the center wasn't even on. Thoroughly lost, I pulled over into a spot on a side road and called my mom. She was able to give us a better address and read us the directions from the Convention Center's website. We found it then without any trouble, and were really happy about it.
We then made it into Formal at around 9:30. I did end up dancing a little bit, but the best part was getting to see friends and fellow classmates in their beautiful dresses and suits. Beth and I agreed that around 11:00 it was time to head back to Conway, since Beth had to do liturgy at her church the following morning. But I had a great time -- much better than expected -- and was really pleased with the night in general.

Watched the Superbowl last night and was happy that the Steelers won. I didn't particularly care for any group (I enjoy college football more), but rooted for the Steelers since my pastor at home is a fan. I also went to see the SoBe LifeWater 3D commercial. I had picked up the special 3D glasses at the grocery store last week ('Chuck' is going to be in 3D tonight, which is why I got them). It was amazing. You could watch it without the glasses as well without any trouble, but when you put the glasses on, it turned into 3D. I liked it and am looking forward to watching 'Chuck' in 3D tonight. Woohoo!
-- Amy

Wednesday 28 January 2009

A fantastic day! Even though it was cold and we were supposed to have two inches of ice on the ground (it didn't make it here), it was an excellent day. I had my etymology and philology class followed by my first History of the English Language meeting. It was fantastic! Getting to spend 2 hours just talking about linguistics. Love it. This is why I want to be a linguistics professsor.. so I can do this every day!!!!

Also, found a Jayhawks game on tonight and watched us beat Nebraska. It's been far too long since I've watched a 'Hawks game. Rock Chalk, Jayhawks!!
-- Amy

Saturday 24 January 2009

I am thankful that I am not very queazy at the sight of blood or vomit. Today reminded me of that fact. Some of my residents sent me an e-mail today, letting me know that someone had gotten sick in their suite bathroom again. I went there and thought that I could just shut down the toilet area. Then I saw the sink. And the door. And I had to shut down the entire bathroom. I asked everyone on that floor if they knew who could have done it, but everyone said that they didn't know. It's a bit frustrating. Not only because I really need to know who keeps getting so drunk that they keep vomiting all over, but I'm also quite concerned about their health! I mean, there was definitely blood in that vomit, which is not a good sign. I tried to disinfect the area as best as I could, but the poor housekeeper is going to have to be the one to clean up again. She really shouldn't have to do that.

So that was the low point of my day.

The high point was this evening. Sam, Beth, and I got together and cooked dinner again. Beth cut up the veggies and made us Greek Salad while Sam cooked the couscous and chicken nuggets and I washed up dishes. It was delicious. Then we went upstairs and watched the Miss America Pageant. I was a bit cynical and displeased with it all, as were the other two, but I did like the fact that all of them looked like they were actually healthy and not anorexic like some previous pageants. I kind of have problems with beauty pageants. Maybe it's because I have bad memories of beauty pageants in Alabama when I was little that I would get all excited about, only to be disappointed. It was fun to dress up, but not to be judged. It was nice, though, to watch it with my friends and discuss our thoughts on beauty and what it means to be beautiful.

That was my day.

-- Amy
Wednesday -- Broke two of my nice dishes while washing them in the sink. One of them, (my ceramic bowl) is really awkwardly shaped and difficult to hold, so when it was in the water, it was even more so. So, I fumbed with it just a bit in the sink and suddenly realized that it had landed on an broken my special crystal stemless wineglass that I had bought for my birthday. Also, the bowl itself had a nasty crack and you could hear the ceramic moving around. So, I had to throw both of them out. It was a little sad, because they both were pretty much the best dishes I have here (excepting my teaset), but I was fine with it, even though it made the day a little sadder. Luckily, though, that evening I got a brilliant e-mail from Hugh which had lots of fantastic youtube videos. So that made the day wonderful again. (Thanks!)

Thursday -- Went to class, went to Target and got a pair of nice new bowls which are microwave safe and easy to hold. Then resumed work on my Oxford application. I had revised my work samples and personal statement the night before, and was awaiting my sister Sarah to look over them for me. In the meantime, I made the mistake of going on Petfinder.com. And I saw this cute dog named Bandit. Half Border Collie, Half Corgi. How much more wonderful could you get!? Just look at the photos! Anyways, as I said, it's a mistake whenever I go on there, because I inevitably find a pet I would like, but I can't get one right now. I mean, I'm not sure where I"m going to be next year and I might even be in a different country. So, sorry Bandit, hopefully you'll have a better home.

Friday -- finished revisions and submitted my application at 2am (8am Oxford Time)!!! Was really happy about that, so went to bed, slept in, had oatmeal for breakfast. Also, finally received all of my books needed for my History of English Language class! Huzzah! Finished off the day by having a lovely albeit rushed dinner with my friends Sam and Beth. We baked up some whole grain bread and had some whole grain pasta w/ sauce. Delicious! Watched the episodes of Monk and Psych while eating some cookie dough for desert.

And that's it for now! I pretty much just got up, so I'm going to get ready and go to Lunch!

-- Amy

Tuesday 20 January 2009

A Day of Hope


Woke up early this morning, excited to start this historic day. Went out, ate breakfast in the cafeteria, and settled into a seat at the Burrow at 10:00. I was ready. The Satellite feed was already on, and as it got closer to 10:30, the Burrow began to fill up around me 'till it was packed. As the pomp and circumstance filled the air, I noted the interesting fact about the inauguration. We, as Americans, have very few formal traditions. Yes, holidays are, to a point formalized, but we really have very few national ceremonies. And here was one of them. Every four years, we celebrate the peaceful passage of power (or retainment of it), through this ceremony. However, this one was particularly significant. I shy from using terms based on the color of his skin, because I do not think that the color of a man's skin defines him. However, there's no denying that for the first time, a black man was elected president. This is huge. Just 40 years ago, it would have been nearly inconceivable that any man with a black father would be sworn into the Oval Office. And, when I saw Obama emerge from the White House, I felt tears in my eyes. This is what many people in America had suffered for. As they said in the Inaugural Address, finally, "the words spoken on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial have reached the White House". Amazing.
The entire procedure was inspiring for me. I felt that John William's composition for the Inauguration, as performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Itzak Perlman, was absolutely beautiful. And Obama's speech was inspiring. It offered a frank look at the dire situation of our country, but offered us hope and reminded us that through unity as a nation, we can survive the current struggles. It offered a gesture of peace to the Islamic world which has long been overdue, without giving disrespect to those who have fought for our country. And of course, it recognized those individuals who fought for full recognition of their freedom those years ago in our own country. As I saw the older people in the crowd, I wondered at what an amazing thing it must be to them to see this happening. I came from the Address, feeling revitalized, inspired, and hopeful.
The rest of the day was, naturally, fantastic. I called my mom and she had been able to watch the Inaugural Address at her school, though, of course, the atmosphere was not entirely as joyful as that here at Hendrix. She marvelled and spoke with me about how unreal it still seemed. For someone who lived through the 60s, saw the protests, the struggle for civil rights, it's astounding for her to see Obama in the presidency. Today, I have a special prayer. I pray for Obama -- that he would be a wise, godly leader. I pray for America, that we would be united and work together for what's right. I pray that the still lingering resentment in some communities towards Obama would fade away and be replaced by respect. I pray that we would be a godly, loving nation. And I pray that God would bless America -- not because we deserve it, but because He is merciful. May we turn back to Him, and be good representatives of Him.
--Amen--

Monday 19 January 2009

Played a chess game with Sarah (my college friend, not my sister, though she is my sister in Christ) last night. I was doing so well and dominated almost the entire game! ...And then I let a pawn slip by and lost. A rematch is definitely in order.

Today's Martin Luther King Day, so there's no classes. And tomorrow's Inauguration Day!! Am really excited and hope that good change will happen through Obama's presidency.

One last application to put in (Oxford). Hopefully will get it done today.

-- Amy

Saturday 17 January 2009

"Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto -- duh duh duh duh duh duuuuuuuh". I have had that song stuck in my head for three days now. I really have no clue why.

Yesterday I went to my etymology class where we covered the history of the English language as well as its hypothetical prehistoric history. I loved it! It's so nice to be in classes where I get to talk about this stuff again! (By the way, our class is doing an online word blog, where we have to make submissions for assignments. It's at http://www.wordblog2009.blogspot.com/ . This past week we had to choose a word which we like and explain why we like it. I chose "kookaburra"). After class, I came back to my room and had a rather long and dream-filled nap. I woke up with a general sense of well-being and contentment, which was nice. Beth, Sam, and I went out to Domoyaki for Supper, and I had my 'usual' (avocado rolls and grilled veggies -- soooo good!). Came back and watched the new episode of Monk (not as good as I expected) before going on duty. There was a party going in the suite across the way from mine, so I spent most of the night trying to keep a general eye on what was going on so that noone hurt themselves or died of alcohol poisoning. Also, last night was the first time that I have ever walked in on people making out on a common room couch. It was awkward, and I don't think they were even my residents, but they slept there all night (I didn't particularly care to look long enough to scrutinize and figure out whether they were or not). Also, last night I had a really strange experience. After coming back from a round, I put in my earphones and as I slipped off my pea coat, ZAP! I got a small electric shock in my ear from the earphones! It didn't really hurt, but I thought "Whoa!... That's the first time anything like that has ever happened to me in my life!". I mean, I understand the logic behind it, but I just hadn't ever thought about the possibility of getting a static electric shock through your ear! Bizarre, isn't it?
Today I slept in late, on account of having to stay up 'till 2 a.m. (kind of strange to think that some of my friends in england were probably just waking up at that point). I think watched a couple youtube vids of mr. bean before going to lunch with Sarah, Sam, and Beth. After lunch, I came back here and chatted on skype with Rachel (it was so good to hear from her!) for a bit. The rest of the afternoon was general relaxing with a little bit of knitting. Went out at around 6:30 with Sam and Beth to Walgreens (for a prescription for Beth) and Kroger (for assorted groceries and dinner). Beth and I bought a frozen spinach and mushroom pizza which was delicious and we ate it while watching an episode of John and Kate Plus Eight. Came back and had a surprising e-mail from Keon. The title said "Shocking News!", but it still wasn't the kind of 'shocking news' that I had expected. Was rather surprised, but did watch his youtube videos on the logic behind his current beliefs, which I thought were really well put together, though I may not personally share his convictions. I'll have to collect my thoughts a bit more before writing anything more about that. Was called out by a resident to listen to a washing machine (the concern was legitimate and not as silly as it sounds), but luckily nothing ended up being wrong with the unit. Got on duty and chatted with Emma for a bit. And that's all for now! Hopefully no funny business will be going on in the Houses tonight.

-- Amy

Thursday 15 January 2009

A rather good (albeit cold) day. Got up late and enjoyed having a teacup sized serving of applesauce for breakfast. Had a lovely face time with God, lounged around, and knitted a bit before going to meet up with Beth and Sam for lunch. I had completely forgotten about Sundae Thursdays and was very happy to make myself a nice sundae for desert. Went back to my room and tried to finish up on some reading before heading to class at 1:00. After class, I came back to my room and watched an episode of Psych before going to supper with Beth and Sam again. Afterwards, did some more knitting (I know, I'm just a knitting fiend today!) and watched a new episode of The Office (a duel between Dwight and Andy? Brilliant!) before going to the meeting for The Profile. Got my article assignment for this month and I'm thinking it should be really easy, which I like. Have read a bit more for my homework and am planning on going to bed sometime soon. It really was so cold today! The ground was pretty much covered in Hoarfrost and we're supposed to have a low of 7 degrees Fahrenheit. Brr!

Wednesday 14 January 2009

Today's Quote: "English is a beast." -- Dr. Resinski

Today has been fantastic. I went to my first Etymology and Philology class, which I'm very excited about. Also finished reading "That Hideous Strength" by C.S. Lewis, and have therefore finished reading the Space Trilogy. Excellent. Also finally opened up that jar of applesauce. I also finally received my long lost birthday card from my 20th birthday.

~*Story Time*~

In 2007, I came down for my birthday, since I was going to be studying in England that year. My friends here at Hendrix showed me an excellent time and I don't think I've ever had a better birthday party or have been more touched. At the birthday party, they presented me with a construction paper birthday card, which they had all signed. I loved it. The next day, I took a couple trips to get everything into my car and drove off. It was hot that day, so I had both windows rolled down a bit in hopes of cooling off. On interstate 412 (a toll road), some papers blew around in the back seat suddenly, and I thought that my birthday card flew out of the window. I pulled over at the next stop and cried, lamenting my loss. I really liked that card because it had all the well-wishes from my friends. However, it was getting late, and I still had a couple more hours to go, so with a heavy heart, I continued on my way. A month or so later, Lacey informed me that one of her residents had found it on top of her car and had given it to Lacey. Apparently, when I was putting things into my car, I had set it ontop of the car next to mine and had forgotten about it being up there. Having thought that my card was forever lost on the side of the road, I was so happy to hear that news. When I came back to Hendrix before Christmas, Brigid and Grace were supposed to give it to me, but they had lost it in their room. So, finally, the card was put back in my posession. It's just so cool when God restores something to you, which you thought was lost.

And that's pretty much it for today.
So, two days ago, I bought a jar of applesauce. I figured that it would be nice to have for breakfast and was really looking forward to opening it yesterday. So, yesterday morning, I set up some water for boiling and proceded to try to open the applesauce jar. It wouldn't open! I tried at various times for two hours to no avail. This morning is now the second morning of my disappointment. Either I'm really weak, or my hands are not coarse enough to adequately grip the lid. Just a random story.

In other news, I have recently discovered that I might actually prefer reading to watching television! This is a revelation. The reason why I say this is that I am a tv-freak. Seriously, I get sucked into television. WhenI was little, my mom would find me glued to the tv (don't worry, I got tons of playing time in as well. I just love the stories and plots, etc. Even now, when a telivision is on, no matter what is on it, I tend to zone in on it and get a sort of dazed look. Frightening, isn't it? So recently, I've been trying to cut back on my television watching. Instead, I've been reading books, such as C.S. Lewis' That Hideous Strength. And I find that I love it! I actually don't feel as much need to watch stuff throughout the day and feel more accomplished afterwards! It's a lovely feeling. Now if I can just stay that way.

Tuesday 13 January 2009

And now I'm back at School!


Looks as though I have an interesting semester ahead of me. I'm taking Etymology and Philology, Roman Civilization, Human Impact on Ancient Environments, and an independent study on the History of the English Language. It all sounds as though it's going to be brilliant, and I'm sure it will be -- as long as I can stay ahead of the game (which I plan to).


Christmas break has left me revitalized and ready to tackle what comes my way. While at home, I was able to get a good majority of my grad school apps finished (just two left to go!) and enjoyed being able to kick back and relax in general. Granted, it wasn't always fun (I did get a bit cross at times), but I loved being back with my family. We're such a crazy bunch and even though we can drive each other a little nuts, it's nice to be back with people who don't mind if you're act a little crazy. It is really weird how things have changed since we've grown up. And yet, they haven't. This Christmas time was particularly awkward because of the recurring discussions about marriage and boys. When you live in a family of four women and only one man (my father), the subject's bound to come up. But this Christmas it seemed to be more of a discussion than usual. And yet not much has changed. Angela's still the ridiculously outgoing one (she went down to Tennessee on New Year's Eve and had a date the next day.. the next day! How does she get guys to ask her out like that? I just don't know) while Sarah and I remain the dateless. Angela's always been the only one to have dated and had boyfriends. She's just more outgoing, I suppose. I'm more wary, personally (I think that I have too much time to think it through and analyze what could happen). But like I said, it's a bit strange that the subject came up so much. I guess it's just showing that we're all growing up (creepy!).

Alright. Onto other subject matter. Today was a good day and I got alot accomplished. I've been having a few problems with dry eyes recently. Today, I went outside and the cold dry wind kept blowing into my eyes and making them water. During class, my eyes actually started to hurt from being dry. Maybe I need to look into getting some eyedrops or something. Anyways, I attended my first day of classes today and it all looks very promising. The strange thing about my classes this semester is that they are all in the afternoons. I've never had them in the afternoons before, so it will be interesting to see how I handle the difference in scheduling my time. That's pretty much it for now. I might write more tomorrow. Hope all goes well for all of you 'til then!





-- Amy