Helloooo!
There's been nothing too exciting to post, so I've had trouble posting. On Friday, my oldest brother, Dave, arrived from Germany with his two kids, Zoe and Lucas, and his wife, so there's a little more to report on now. The two kids talk just like i did as a little girl: with a heavy German accent, and tons of direct translations or randomly inserted German words. It's really sweet, and so much fun to get to talk to kids in German again. I hadn't realized how important that language is to my own sense of childhood--reading kids books in German just feels so much better! Zoe is also very into being treated as an adult and taken seriously, which I remember perfectly from when I was that age, so we've had some really fun conversations.
Oh, before I forget, some tips for summer reading: I read The Painted Veil by Somerset Maugham and The Garden of Eden by Hemingway. The second left me in a daze for a few days; it's confusing, but in a good way. The make-you-think way. Also, I read Breakfast at Tiffany's by Capote, which was great. And a book of short stories about Panama called "Come Together, Fall apart". Just in case anyone's bored!
Other than reading, I've been going to Laguna a lot. I saw dolphins there last week, which was really beautiful. There's always something so magical about seeing them jump out of the water. Ariel and I spent a few hours singing on the beach, trying to figure out guitar chords to old 60s songs. then today, we dragged all four kids (Shawn's two girls and Dave's kids, plus all the so-called adults) to Laguna. It was fun, if slightly overwhelming. Who knew that all Winnicks had strong personalities? Izzy and Maya staunchly affirmed that they had never, Hannah-how-could-you-even-THINk-of it?-put on sunscreen in their lives. The total conviction was pretty funny. Having this many people around has been good in other ways, too: my dad's overzealous organizational urges (which mainly come out as super controling) are now distributed among far more people, so that the overall tolerance level seems to have increased. I was beginning to wonder if I would make it through the summer.
This is the first time in years--maybe a decade--that I'm together with all three of my brothers, so it's been a pretty special time. On Wednesday we're leaving to spend a few days on Catalina Island. We'll stay in some cabins, go snorkeling, my brothers will probably go scuba diving...it should be fun.
Other than that, I'm starting to get really excited for next year. I got into the English teaching course in Lisbon for September--after an intense 45 minute interview and a long application process. So I'll be doing a month of pretty intensive coursework to get my CELTA certificate, while living in Lisboa! From there...I don't know. I'm missing Maicol a lot, even with all the distractions, so perhaps the DR will need to be on the destination list somehow. We'll see.
That's enough for now: big hugs to all!
Monday, 29 June 2009
Into the Wild
Got nothin' to report but I saw Into The Wild which. was. incredible. Truly a Chapman classic about wanderlust and being flung into random places all over the world. Go see it!
Sunday, 28 June 2009
HELP!!!
Sorry I didn't get to see you ladies (Rachel and Megan)!!! I love you, but this week/ weekend has been rough. I think that I am going to jump off my balcony pretty soon or throw my dad off. He sucks so bad. You don't need the details. Just trust me. If he wasn't paying my tuition I'd have no use for the man at all.
My brother it turns out has diabetes now and has to give himself like 4 injections a day, plus eat 3 meals and no sugar or fried foods at all. This is a big deal since he normally skips breakfast and lunch and then has fast food or something equally terrible for dinner. So I've been kind of making sure my mom doesn't kill my dad and making sure my 29 year old brother doesn't accidentally kill himself by being the careless idiot that he is.
These are not harsh words. My dad really is an ASS and my brother really is RETARDED! I hate these people! My poor mother lives here all year round. I gotta get her out which may mean, moving into an apartment with her post graduation which is not something I really want to so. grrrrrr!!!!
I'll tell you guys all about work once start it. I still have another week of training before then.
I wouldn't bore you with those details.
I'm probably going to spend next weekend in Boston with Steve. I need to restore my faith in men, unless one of you has a more appealinf 4th of July plan. Love you all!!! Peace.
And yeah this Michael Jackson shit is crazy. He lived 50 exciting, but miserable and misunderstood years. I'm glad he gave us good music and great dancing and glad he's finally at peace and can't molest anymore children or get any whiter.
My brother it turns out has diabetes now and has to give himself like 4 injections a day, plus eat 3 meals and no sugar or fried foods at all. This is a big deal since he normally skips breakfast and lunch and then has fast food or something equally terrible for dinner. So I've been kind of making sure my mom doesn't kill my dad and making sure my 29 year old brother doesn't accidentally kill himself by being the careless idiot that he is.
These are not harsh words. My dad really is an ASS and my brother really is RETARDED! I hate these people! My poor mother lives here all year round. I gotta get her out which may mean, moving into an apartment with her post graduation which is not something I really want to so. grrrrrr!!!!
I'll tell you guys all about work once start it. I still have another week of training before then.
I wouldn't bore you with those details.
I'm probably going to spend next weekend in Boston with Steve. I need to restore my faith in men, unless one of you has a more appealinf 4th of July plan. Love you all!!! Peace.
And yeah this Michael Jackson shit is crazy. He lived 50 exciting, but miserable and misunderstood years. I'm glad he gave us good music and great dancing and glad he's finally at peace and can't molest anymore children or get any whiter.
ALSO
If you all post your mailing addresses or email them to me at dsibley09@amherst.edu (yes, I'm still using my Amherst address -- will change it eventually), I would love to send you a postcard. I have already collected and even written notes to a bunch of you, but need places to send them!
Friday, 26 June 2009
Pot is legal!
...in Amsterdam, that is.
Monty and I made it here yesterday after a horrible night in Hamburg. Don't go there, seriously. We accidentally booked a hostel in Europe's largest Red Light district, which could have been interesting (you know, from a sociological perspective), but turned out simply sleezy. Plus I'm pretty sure our hotel was for sex tourists.
But! All is well because we are in the beautiful Netherlands. Canals and marijuana galore. So far in Amsterdam we have discovered a delicious Belgian beer; bought a pot of pretty yellow flowers, which we promptly named Bruno; visited a lame photography museum; got lost on bikes trying to find a grocery store -- turned out to be the pretties bike ride anyway; and legally smoked pot on a sidewalk. Plus we're staying at something of a campground, in something of a trailer, which only adds to the charm.
Paris in a few days! And will definitely be returning Stateside at the beginning of August, so maybe I can see some of you then? I heart you guys.
Ps. Do you all think it's a little strange how sad people seem to be about Michael Jackson? I do. I mean, Thriller was great, and the man could dance, but he was also freakishly weird.
Monty and I made it here yesterday after a horrible night in Hamburg. Don't go there, seriously. We accidentally booked a hostel in Europe's largest Red Light district, which could have been interesting (you know, from a sociological perspective), but turned out simply sleezy. Plus I'm pretty sure our hotel was for sex tourists.
But! All is well because we are in the beautiful Netherlands. Canals and marijuana galore. So far in Amsterdam we have discovered a delicious Belgian beer; bought a pot of pretty yellow flowers, which we promptly named Bruno; visited a lame photography museum; got lost on bikes trying to find a grocery store -- turned out to be the pretties bike ride anyway; and legally smoked pot on a sidewalk. Plus we're staying at something of a campground, in something of a trailer, which only adds to the charm.
Paris in a few days! And will definitely be returning Stateside at the beginning of August, so maybe I can see some of you then? I heart you guys.
Ps. Do you all think it's a little strange how sad people seem to be about Michael Jackson? I do. I mean, Thriller was great, and the man could dance, but he was also freakishly weird.
χαιρετισμός αργκό !
Lovelies! The subject of this post is "hello most loyal friends!" in Greek! I'm still in utter disbelief that I'm here, but anyway... I missed my day, and I am so sorry! We actually got to Greece at the beginning of the week but internet has been hard to come by and also, I have been a very busy bee and I've barely left the boat.
The trip to Greece from Italy was blissfully relaxing. We meandered our way down the Italian coast for a few days, passing by the island volcano of Stromboli, swimming off the coast of Capri, and sailing through the straight of Messina at dusk. There are 3 of us on-board, my dad and I, and a French crew my dad's age named Jean-Philippe. During the trip, we each had two shifts a day of 4 hours (mine was 8-12 am and pm) where we were on watch - basically, we have to make sure the boat doesn't run into a tanker and sink. Pretty straightforward. When I wasn't on watch, I was doing a variety of things, none too exciting: sleeping, reading (Omnivore's Dilemma, Of Love and Shadows, a book about the Camino, Nat'l Geographic magazines), writing, dreaming up Watson ideas, listening to my dad's crazy adventures of his youth, sitting at the bow watching for dolphins (none came! very sad) . . . that's about it really.
By the weekend, we had reached Greek waters and Monday afternoon, we squeezed our way through the Corinthian canal and headed for our final destination - Athens (or rather, Pireaus, which is the port city just outside of Athens). As idyllic as life at sea may sound, life on land sucks for a sailor. Getting to shore means you have to do all the things you couldn't do at sea, like CLEAN EVERYTHING and fix all the things that have broken en route, etc. My life here at the marina has not been very inspiring. Mostly a LOT of manual labor, all day, in the hot son - scrub, rinse, polish, wax, repeat. In a few days, we'll get to do some sightseeing (although I've been doing a little bit already here in the marina, and let me tell you, Greek men are quite the lookers, especially the one working on the boat next to ours. Dark features, olive skin- I'm a big fan.).
I'm still feeling like a huge dunce who can't speak the language, or read the alphabet for that matter, but that's okay. All is well in the land of Zeus and friends. It was most lovely to catch up on all of your lives - I miss my babyloves! Next Tuesday, I'm going to France to spend a whirlwind 24 hours with my friend Laura, then I'll be London-bound, and then America! Expect a phone call (or for me to show up at your door - Cait, Rachel, Julian, Dan, Megan, others?!).
αγαπάω (love),
Carmella
The trip to Greece from Italy was blissfully relaxing. We meandered our way down the Italian coast for a few days, passing by the island volcano of Stromboli, swimming off the coast of Capri, and sailing through the straight of Messina at dusk. There are 3 of us on-board, my dad and I, and a French crew my dad's age named Jean-Philippe. During the trip, we each had two shifts a day of 4 hours (mine was 8-12 am and pm) where we were on watch - basically, we have to make sure the boat doesn't run into a tanker and sink. Pretty straightforward. When I wasn't on watch, I was doing a variety of things, none too exciting: sleeping, reading (Omnivore's Dilemma, Of Love and Shadows, a book about the Camino, Nat'l Geographic magazines), writing, dreaming up Watson ideas, listening to my dad's crazy adventures of his youth, sitting at the bow watching for dolphins (none came! very sad) . . . that's about it really.
By the weekend, we had reached Greek waters and Monday afternoon, we squeezed our way through the Corinthian canal and headed for our final destination - Athens (or rather, Pireaus, which is the port city just outside of Athens). As idyllic as life at sea may sound, life on land sucks for a sailor. Getting to shore means you have to do all the things you couldn't do at sea, like CLEAN EVERYTHING and fix all the things that have broken en route, etc. My life here at the marina has not been very inspiring. Mostly a LOT of manual labor, all day, in the hot son - scrub, rinse, polish, wax, repeat. In a few days, we'll get to do some sightseeing (although I've been doing a little bit already here in the marina, and let me tell you, Greek men are quite the lookers, especially the one working on the boat next to ours. Dark features, olive skin- I'm a big fan.).
I'm still feeling like a huge dunce who can't speak the language, or read the alphabet for that matter, but that's okay. All is well in the land of Zeus and friends. It was most lovely to catch up on all of your lives - I miss my babyloves! Next Tuesday, I'm going to France to spend a whirlwind 24 hours with my friend Laura, then I'll be London-bound, and then America! Expect a phone call (or for me to show up at your door - Cait, Rachel, Julian, Dan, Megan, others?!).
αγαπάω (love),
Carmella
Thursday, 25 June 2009
Rosena
Hello girls! Rose here in DALLAS TX with Selena! on her luscious computer jamming to the indie hip-hop (what the fuck is that?? go look up 'discovery') and lounging around. Yesterday, after going to work with Selena, where I was treated to a decadent seared ahi tuna hawaiian salad, we went to Forth Worth, the home of Texas' history and heritage (hicks). I saw a cattle run! and then we had half a rack of ribs, which is an entree meant for one person, but me and Selena were full up splitting it. Everyone here is really cordial. Today I slept in while Selena worked, and now we are going to the MALL and then out again. Last night we went out to a bunch of cool Texan bars with Selena's friend Esther. What else...two dollar margarita's, many pints of Shiner Rock beer (local!), a cheese plate, taro popsicle...I wonder why I only remember the food. Well anyway, we have a bunch of pictures for you:
Half devoured Ahi Tuna Salad a la Greenz, Selena's salad joint.
Ft. Worth Water Gardens in true tourist fashion
They have cowboy boots with everything on them!! Like butterflies! And in every color! PINK!
We're cowboys!!!!
He's a cowboy!!!
A Cattle Drive!!!
Billy Bob's -- The biggest honky tonk in the world!! it was HUGE.
This is us trying to take Carmella photos!!!!!!!!!!! wooooooooooooo
Half devoured Ahi Tuna Salad a la Greenz, Selena's salad joint.
Ft. Worth Water Gardens in true tourist fashion
They have cowboy boots with everything on them!! Like butterflies! And in every color! PINK!
We're cowboys!!!!
He's a cowboy!!!
A Cattle Drive!!!
Billy Bob's -- The biggest honky tonk in the world!! it was HUGE.
This is us trying to take Carmella photos!!!!!!!!!!! wooooooooooooo
Wednesday, 24 June 2009
hi beauties! i've spoken with three of you in the last twelve hours! amazing! rose because my iud was fucking with me. megan because we're meeting up in nyc this weekend, and becky cuz we're meeting up in nyc this weekend. sweet and strange to hear your voices.
not much to report! going to work every day - making my money. went out last night to the basement (noho club) - jess from the cce djs!!!! 80s and hip hop. it was AWESOME. thought of destry because darling danielle hussey was also there mad rocking out..
otherwise, fun times w dan mccune this weekend exploring an itty bitty artsy town in pioneer valley (shelburne falls). and spending lots of time w my new housemates. and matt mendoza and sabato. what a life ! love love
not much to report! going to work every day - making my money. went out last night to the basement (noho club) - jess from the cce djs!!!! 80s and hip hop. it was AWESOME. thought of destry because darling danielle hussey was also there mad rocking out..
otherwise, fun times w dan mccune this weekend exploring an itty bitty artsy town in pioneer valley (shelburne falls). and spending lots of time w my new housemates. and matt mendoza and sabato. what a life ! love love
Hey Lover Birds,
I missed my day -- Rachel can attest -- I sent her an email and that did me in. Way too sleepy. Ha. I am still home... trying to be productive and tackle the way too many projects I've decided to do. Unfortunately, each day seems to slip by with startling rapidity, so no real progress has been made anywhere! Except that I've been working out a lot with my parents, which means fiercely competitive weight lifting sessions, and this super hard-core hip-hop aerobics class with my mommy. yes, she's definitely getting her groove on. i think this comes with a personality change. yesterday she described something as "big ass" and today she said "we gotta blow this joint."
anyways, selena requested dress pictures, so here they are! i will send pictures (before and after) of other stuff when i produce it... hopefully you'll have SOMETHING next week? making no promises. love you all and miss you terribly.
ps sorry for the ridiculous photos. its kinda lame taking pictures of yourself... and i look silly! :)
Monday, 22 June 2009
Not much
So not much have changed in the past week... I've been working every morning and lounging around every evening -- applying to jobs, playing Settlers of Catan with rowdy Dallas folk (yes they're real people!), and drinking happy hour margaritas. Mainly I've watched TONS of movies so I'm going to give a quick run down! I saw UP! with Zims, and we cried the entire time behind our 3D glasses. I saw Away We Go with fucking adorable John Krasinski, of The Office fame, which was the most saccharine sweet indie movie of the summer. I finally saw Rachel Getting Married and Synchedoche, New York and soon I'm going to watch The Visitor, Persepolis, and Into the Wild.
Rosie and I will post ridiculous pictures of square dancing and cowboy hats later this week!
Rosie and I will post ridiculous pictures of square dancing and cowboy hats later this week!
Sunday, 21 June 2009
Buona sera!
So this post is for two weeks as I missed my last Sunday-- I have been quite the busy bee and traveling a ton even though I am still in Amherst. On one hand, I am working about 12 hour days-- on the other, my daily work schedule looks something like this: arrive at work, have writing workshops with famous people (a three person two hour writing workshop with Peter Elbow the other week!), read, have book discussions, practice vocabulary words, go strawberry picking, go see exciting lectures by cool people, go to movies/concerts, get taken out to lunch and dinner-- and all the while, the best part, watch the boy who we are working with simply loving life. He is growing so much and every time he is able to apply something we've read or learned into some new part, a smile breaks out over his face and it is so so so rewarding. I think this is the best job in the whole world. At least for now!
Other than my work life, life at 92 Montague Rd. is great. All the newbies are moved into the house now (just missing that bella carmzella), and we hang a lot at night. Usually baking, late night dinners, sitting around just having a good time. Summer's got a slow groove on now and I'm really digging it. I'm in CT right now (its so weird to be back in my old high school room)-- I came fo father's day and had SUCH a great day with my family. My mom is actually learning Spanish surprisingly fast-- my dad continues only knowing three words: si, bueno and cerveza. But somehow, we'll manage for the FAMILY TRIP TO COSTA RICA in July!!!! Ahhh I am so excited I can hardly contain it. Watch out for that Sunday's post...
Love you all.
Cait
Other than my work life, life at 92 Montague Rd. is great. All the newbies are moved into the house now (just missing that bella carmzella), and we hang a lot at night. Usually baking, late night dinners, sitting around just having a good time. Summer's got a slow groove on now and I'm really digging it. I'm in CT right now (its so weird to be back in my old high school room)-- I came fo father's day and had SUCH a great day with my family. My mom is actually learning Spanish surprisingly fast-- my dad continues only knowing three words: si, bueno and cerveza. But somehow, we'll manage for the FAMILY TRIP TO COSTA RICA in July!!!! Ahhh I am so excited I can hardly contain it. Watch out for that Sunday's post...
Love you all.
Cait
From Berlin
Hi Friends!
Apologies again for missing my day. As long as I'm in Europe, or at least as long as I'm bumming around outside of Paris, we should probably assume that I will post as regularly as I can, but not necessarily on Fridays.
Monty and I are still on a roll, having a great time wherever we end up. We're getting along despite constant 24-hours a day, 7-days a week contact. In fact, Monty has turned out to be a great travel buddy -- he's good at making me laugh even when things go awry.
So we decided to 'hop' into Germany and somehow made it all the way out to Berlin. But I'm really glad we did because Berlin is amazing! It's been the best time. The city has the most fascinating 20th century history, great modern and restored architecture, and fabulous museums and nightlife. (Damn, I sound like I'm writing for a travel guide, but seriously, I love it.)
Nerd that I am, I've been most excited by the history. I feel like I'm learning history lessons just by standing in this city. The Berlin Wall -- that stuff is crazy. And Rachel, we spent about five hours in the Jewish History Museum, and I was thinking of you the whole way through. Literally, from the Middle Ages exhibit right through to Zionism I was asking out loud, 'And what would Rachel think of THIS?'
Maybe the best part is that we're sharing an apartment with a great couple from Wisconsin. The past few days have felt a bit like a Berlin four-person version of Before Sunrise and Before Sunset (if you haven't seen these movies, you should probably stop reading this and go watch them now). We all hit it off, and the four of us have been walking around the city, not always with a definite destination in mind, wandering into cafes and bars, and having great conversations. They are good both for a laugh and for intellectual stimulation, and they remind me of you guys.
I have to go apply for a job (yuck), but I wanted to let you guys know that all is well. I have so much more I could write but always feel overwhelmed when it comes time to post.
Oh, and I guess I should chart where we've been and where we're going (maybe should have done this first?): We jumped from Paris to St Emilion and Sarlat (little wine towns in central South France); then to Nice; then up to Geneva, Bern and Luzern, Switzerland; and here to Berlin. After this I think we will likely head across Germany to Hamburg, and then into the Netherlands for Amsterdam, and down to Brussels and/or Antwerp in Belgium, and back to Paris.
Loooove and tchuss (my one of three German words, which really doesn't even sound right as used like this, which I'm sure Hannah and Julian will tell you).
OH! and Megan: I really gave myself the worst bangs-trim ever. I needed you or Selena or Rose or my grandma or someone else so badly. Way too short and fairly crooked. I tried to tell myself that I looked like Audrey Hepburn, but really it was quite bad. I think it's grown a bit now, but I was definitely lamenting your absence for a few days there.
Apologies again for missing my day. As long as I'm in Europe, or at least as long as I'm bumming around outside of Paris, we should probably assume that I will post as regularly as I can, but not necessarily on Fridays.
Monty and I are still on a roll, having a great time wherever we end up. We're getting along despite constant 24-hours a day, 7-days a week contact. In fact, Monty has turned out to be a great travel buddy -- he's good at making me laugh even when things go awry.
So we decided to 'hop' into Germany and somehow made it all the way out to Berlin. But I'm really glad we did because Berlin is amazing! It's been the best time. The city has the most fascinating 20th century history, great modern and restored architecture, and fabulous museums and nightlife. (Damn, I sound like I'm writing for a travel guide, but seriously, I love it.)
Nerd that I am, I've been most excited by the history. I feel like I'm learning history lessons just by standing in this city. The Berlin Wall -- that stuff is crazy. And Rachel, we spent about five hours in the Jewish History Museum, and I was thinking of you the whole way through. Literally, from the Middle Ages exhibit right through to Zionism I was asking out loud, 'And what would Rachel think of THIS?'
Maybe the best part is that we're sharing an apartment with a great couple from Wisconsin. The past few days have felt a bit like a Berlin four-person version of Before Sunrise and Before Sunset (if you haven't seen these movies, you should probably stop reading this and go watch them now). We all hit it off, and the four of us have been walking around the city, not always with a definite destination in mind, wandering into cafes and bars, and having great conversations. They are good both for a laugh and for intellectual stimulation, and they remind me of you guys.
I have to go apply for a job (yuck), but I wanted to let you guys know that all is well. I have so much more I could write but always feel overwhelmed when it comes time to post.
Oh, and I guess I should chart where we've been and where we're going (maybe should have done this first?): We jumped from Paris to St Emilion and Sarlat (little wine towns in central South France); then to Nice; then up to Geneva, Bern and Luzern, Switzerland; and here to Berlin. After this I think we will likely head across Germany to Hamburg, and then into the Netherlands for Amsterdam, and down to Brussels and/or Antwerp in Belgium, and back to Paris.
Loooove and tchuss (my one of three German words, which really doesn't even sound right as used like this, which I'm sure Hannah and Julian will tell you).
OH! and Megan: I really gave myself the worst bangs-trim ever. I needed you or Selena or Rose or my grandma or someone else so badly. Way too short and fairly crooked. I tried to tell myself that I looked like Audrey Hepburn, but really it was quite bad. I think it's grown a bit now, but I was definitely lamenting your absence for a few days there.
Happy Sunday!
...from a mildly drizzley Amherst. It's Taste of Amherst this weekend, with lots of local restaurants having booths set up on the green, so I've been stuffing myself with all the best food the Valley can offer all weekend. Most of the rest of my weekend has consisted of walking Anna (the professor I'm working for)'s dog and helping a friend walk Tony Marx's dog, which is large and untrained and can pull really, really hard but is really cute. And keeps me in shape.
I finally uploaded and edited my pictures from Argentina, after many weeks of laziness, so here are a few.
:)
Julian
For all of Chapman: the Women's Bridge in Buenos Aires. Kinda phallic though.
A really cool flower monument that apparently mechanically opens at sunrise and closes at sunset.
I'll leave it there for now...I put a bunch up on facebook, so go there.
I finally uploaded and edited my pictures from Argentina, after many weeks of laziness, so here are a few.
:)
Julian
For all of Chapman: the Women's Bridge in Buenos Aires. Kinda phallic though.
A really cool flower monument that apparently mechanically opens at sunrise and closes at sunset.
I'll leave it there for now...I put a bunch up on facebook, so go there.
Saturday, 20 June 2009
sorry i missed last week. i just forgot again. maybe i should set an alarm. so i returned yesterday from a week in boston/ rhode island with steve. i had the time of my life! we just did normal things like walk around the city, eat at restaurants, go to bars, play pool with cumberland townies, kareoke, movies, window shopping, going for "runs" and bike rides around his town, walk on the beach (it was way too cold to swim). rhode island is so green and hilly and new englandy, like amherst, but minus all the smart people. everyone there is so regular, simple compared to amherst people and new york people and florida people. that's the way they seem anyway. i don't know. whatever. anyway, it was so great to be with steve, but not at amherst. i feel bad that he always gets the stressed out, depressed, angry version of me, the amherst becky who's on the edge all the time. the same one you guys often get. that's not the real me, and it was so nice to be with him in a carefree environment, no school, no work. it felt like a honeymoon. i cried when i had to get back on the megabus home.
so now i am here in beautiful queens, ny. last night i went bowling with my friend mary from highschool (little asian who visited amherst that time) and my friend kristina from middle school.
it was in this big bowling alley/ pool hall/ arcade/ bar/ restaurant. it was like a carnival or something. a lot of fun.
i spent today cleaning and cooking and babysitting my niece. back to my housewife life. but starting monday, i will be a career woman! two weeks of training before my job really starts.
then 8 weeks of being basically a day camp counseler to the kids of incarcerated parents. should be interesting and rewarding and shit. plus i need money!!! i am considering singing in the subway because i wont get my first check for another 3 weeks. it's that or selling my body in the subway. i'll let you know what i decide.
oh also, my hair is growing fast. i should have a sizeable afro by the end of the summer, which is nice because i am really tired of looking super butch everytime i don't have a sundress on and giant hoop earrings. i really miss hair. it sucks to walk around on a windy day and have nothing happen. you know what i mean julian. doesn't it suck? but i am really happy it's natural now. i feel really good about that part.
hmm...what else? yeah. so this summer is gonna be working, getting fit, forcing myself to play guitar enough to actually get good at it, yoga yoga, yoga, meditate, read new age spitiruality shit, wish you all were here with me, repeat. that and the occasional trip to boston and maybe amherst to see carmsy, rachel and co. and maybe dan up in maine. it all depends on money. i hate how much money matters. oh well. LOVE YOU!!! tell me more about you!
so now i am here in beautiful queens, ny. last night i went bowling with my friend mary from highschool (little asian who visited amherst that time) and my friend kristina from middle school.
it was in this big bowling alley/ pool hall/ arcade/ bar/ restaurant. it was like a carnival or something. a lot of fun.
i spent today cleaning and cooking and babysitting my niece. back to my housewife life. but starting monday, i will be a career woman! two weeks of training before my job really starts.
then 8 weeks of being basically a day camp counseler to the kids of incarcerated parents. should be interesting and rewarding and shit. plus i need money!!! i am considering singing in the subway because i wont get my first check for another 3 weeks. it's that or selling my body in the subway. i'll let you know what i decide.
oh also, my hair is growing fast. i should have a sizeable afro by the end of the summer, which is nice because i am really tired of looking super butch everytime i don't have a sundress on and giant hoop earrings. i really miss hair. it sucks to walk around on a windy day and have nothing happen. you know what i mean julian. doesn't it suck? but i am really happy it's natural now. i feel really good about that part.
hmm...what else? yeah. so this summer is gonna be working, getting fit, forcing myself to play guitar enough to actually get good at it, yoga yoga, yoga, meditate, read new age spitiruality shit, wish you all were here with me, repeat. that and the occasional trip to boston and maybe amherst to see carmsy, rachel and co. and maybe dan up in maine. it all depends on money. i hate how much money matters. oh well. LOVE YOU!!! tell me more about you!
Friday, 19 June 2009
entertainment across all forms of media, or hardcore leisure
Just finished Farenheit 451, being recently inspired to read those old classics that I managed to miss during high school. It's nice to have the time to do all of this catch up. I'm headed to the swap meet with Kevin (he visited Chaps, remember?) tomorrow.
Interesting events in recent memory include the San Diego County Fair, complete with adorable cows, goats, sheep, canopied kiosks of shops selling completely useless shit, and anything that has ever been fried. I actually saw a sign advertising a confection composed of two cookies forming the outer flanks for the following delicious filling, "cream cheese, strawberry jam, and CHICKEN" ...what the fuck. Not even I, nor Jess, would put chicken in the middle of a cookie and sweet goo sandwich. Not that it helps, but I believe it was fried chicken. The fair is a sick sick place.
Also, opened a twitter account (http://twitter.com/ultracricket) in order to follow the iran election, and have just now made my first post, so that if you click on the link, it won't be a silly empty page. Who knows, maybe i will become a 'tweeter', helplessly connected in a pool of peer consciousness, which is more and more starting to seem to me a miraculous and scary manifestation of the 'hive mind' which captivated my star trek adolescence. You know...the borg...RESISTANCE IS FUTILE...too nerdy?
Also yesterday watched Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey for the first time and it is SCARY AS FUCK. The scariest part of which is encapsulated by this youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1IPrx-zC1Y&feature=related
How scary is this scene out of context? Because after watching the entire movie, I wanted to crawl into a corner and cry softly. Man this video doesn't even have any of the HAL stuff. In other movie news, I agree with Rach, Up is lurvely.
Next week I'll get to tell you about my upcoming trip to Selena's crib in Dallas, and then it's back to Amherst for a quick hello and MOVE TO BOSTON. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh real life ahhhhhhhhhh....that is all.
Interesting events in recent memory include the San Diego County Fair, complete with adorable cows, goats, sheep, canopied kiosks of shops selling completely useless shit, and anything that has ever been fried. I actually saw a sign advertising a confection composed of two cookies forming the outer flanks for the following delicious filling, "cream cheese, strawberry jam, and CHICKEN" ...what the fuck. Not even I, nor Jess, would put chicken in the middle of a cookie and sweet goo sandwich. Not that it helps, but I believe it was fried chicken. The fair is a sick sick place.
Also, opened a twitter account (http://twitter.com/ultracricket) in order to follow the iran election, and have just now made my first post, so that if you click on the link, it won't be a silly empty page. Who knows, maybe i will become a 'tweeter', helplessly connected in a pool of peer consciousness, which is more and more starting to seem to me a miraculous and scary manifestation of the 'hive mind' which captivated my star trek adolescence. You know...the borg...RESISTANCE IS FUTILE...too nerdy?
Also yesterday watched Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey for the first time and it is SCARY AS FUCK. The scariest part of which is encapsulated by this youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1IPrx-zC1Y&feature=related
How scary is this scene out of context? Because after watching the entire movie, I wanted to crawl into a corner and cry softly. Man this video doesn't even have any of the HAL stuff. In other movie news, I agree with Rach, Up is lurvely.
Next week I'll get to tell you about my upcoming trip to Selena's crib in Dallas, and then it's back to Amherst for a quick hello and MOVE TO BOSTON. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh real life ahhhhhhhhhh....that is all.
Thursday, 18 June 2009
amHerst
helloo! how's everyone? hopefully swell . i'm good. returned to amherst on sunday, started work on monday. 9 AM - 5 PM is ROUGH, but I'll get used to it.. consoling myself counting my dollars earned and then deciding how i'm going to spend it.. (basically: what gear i'll need for the AT!!! Carmz, i hope you're still up for that ? )
i've been strangely busy considering i only have five friends in the whole valley ! and i've just been researching a bit what all is going on up here this summer... finally feeling the summer's full potential !!! cait and i cooked up grub on sunday - monday i saw movie up (tear jerker / heart yanker of the year) - tuesday i hung out with sabato and then went to iron horse salsa night with my new housemate (HANNAH - .. wish i could have watched you dance!!!! - that was mostly what i did.. watch. turns out, my salsa sucks - but my merengue's spot on !!) - last night i had a series of impromptu adventures with matt mendoza (all excellent).
i just had an iud put in - literally an hour ago. and i feel ok. weird... they gave me some derivative of novacaine.. so maybe that's the difference ? i'm also on my period..... hope this lasts ! knocking on some fake ikea wood.
ah! last topic. my new place! roommates ares suuper sweet - whole place is sweet. come visit, asap!!!
love love love infinite kisses
rach
i've been strangely busy considering i only have five friends in the whole valley ! and i've just been researching a bit what all is going on up here this summer... finally feeling the summer's full potential !!! cait and i cooked up grub on sunday - monday i saw movie up (tear jerker / heart yanker of the year) - tuesday i hung out with sabato and then went to iron horse salsa night with my new housemate (HANNAH - .. wish i could have watched you dance!!!! - that was mostly what i did.. watch. turns out, my salsa sucks - but my merengue's spot on !!) - last night i had a series of impromptu adventures with matt mendoza (all excellent).
i just had an iud put in - literally an hour ago. and i feel ok. weird... they gave me some derivative of novacaine.. so maybe that's the difference ? i'm also on my period..... hope this lasts ! knocking on some fake ikea wood.
ah! last topic. my new place! roommates ares suuper sweet - whole place is sweet. come visit, asap!!!
love love love infinite kisses
rach
Tuesday, 16 June 2009
High School Reunion and My Mommy
Man -- I love you all AND this blog. How else would I get a sense of what each of you is doing every week? Love it.
SO: on Thursday I came back from England, sick as hell -- I ended up with a ridiculous chest and sinus infection -- so nasty -- to TONS of family here for the weekend. My uncle Woody practices "body talk" and managed to partially heal my sickness, and then I went to the doctor for serious antibiotics and chest clearing meds. I am mostly better. My cousins were here with their funny/cute babies and their husbands -- 2 1/2 year old Pele was chased a little by my dog Sophie and so he freaked out a little. I picked him up and said, "Sophie's kind of big isn't she," as I imagine it would kind of be like having a Polar bear chase you around this enormous dining room table, and Pele said "too big." I took a long late night hot tub with my cousin Juliette (Pele's mommy), during which we carefully monitored the temperature -- she's preggo again (which I of course love) and doesn't want to overcook that bun in the oven. We speculated about family relationships and whatever. It was good. :)
On Saturday, I left the family and sped up to my high school! Woot! My five year reunion was unbelievably fun -- definitely didn't expect it. It was SO nice to catch up with people -- many of whom I hadn't seen or communicated with since graduation and to be reminded of how much I really love so many of them. We got drunk in the cafeteria and then went out to Cambridge for a high school style house party -- so fitting. On Sunday I went into Boston with my HS roommate and saw one of my favorite high school friends from the class below us.
ANYWAYS, now I am home. Before going to my reunion, I accompanied my mommy to her gym so I could use the machines and she could go to a step class, and sadly, she had yet ANOTHER fight with her instructor. She's been sticking up for herself lately at her stupid gym full of really caddy and lame women, which has made her pretty damn unpopular. But she's gotten pretty good at coming up with snippy one-liners. Anyways, this particular instructor is a real bitch, but oh well. I'll spare you all the details. In any event, she had heard about a different gym, but have never checked it out, so I looked it up and pretty much FORCED her to go with me to a class there today (she only does classes -- she detests treadmills etc. Too boring for her.), and we both LOVED it. It was a mostly dance focused class that was actually kind of hard and was a combo of hip-hop, salsa, merenge, swing and jazz all mushed together back to back. So she's particularly happy and she's leaving that other gym for good. :)
HA! I hope that all made sense -- have been on this computer for too long getting some random stuff done, so I REFUSE to read over my post!
Love and miss you all,
Megan
SO: on Thursday I came back from England, sick as hell -- I ended up with a ridiculous chest and sinus infection -- so nasty -- to TONS of family here for the weekend. My uncle Woody practices "body talk" and managed to partially heal my sickness, and then I went to the doctor for serious antibiotics and chest clearing meds. I am mostly better. My cousins were here with their funny/cute babies and their husbands -- 2 1/2 year old Pele was chased a little by my dog Sophie and so he freaked out a little. I picked him up and said, "Sophie's kind of big isn't she," as I imagine it would kind of be like having a Polar bear chase you around this enormous dining room table, and Pele said "too big." I took a long late night hot tub with my cousin Juliette (Pele's mommy), during which we carefully monitored the temperature -- she's preggo again (which I of course love) and doesn't want to overcook that bun in the oven. We speculated about family relationships and whatever. It was good. :)
On Saturday, I left the family and sped up to my high school! Woot! My five year reunion was unbelievably fun -- definitely didn't expect it. It was SO nice to catch up with people -- many of whom I hadn't seen or communicated with since graduation and to be reminded of how much I really love so many of them. We got drunk in the cafeteria and then went out to Cambridge for a high school style house party -- so fitting. On Sunday I went into Boston with my HS roommate and saw one of my favorite high school friends from the class below us.
ANYWAYS, now I am home. Before going to my reunion, I accompanied my mommy to her gym so I could use the machines and she could go to a step class, and sadly, she had yet ANOTHER fight with her instructor. She's been sticking up for herself lately at her stupid gym full of really caddy and lame women, which has made her pretty damn unpopular. But she's gotten pretty good at coming up with snippy one-liners. Anyways, this particular instructor is a real bitch, but oh well. I'll spare you all the details. In any event, she had heard about a different gym, but have never checked it out, so I looked it up and pretty much FORCED her to go with me to a class there today (she only does classes -- she detests treadmills etc. Too boring for her.), and we both LOVED it. It was a mostly dance focused class that was actually kind of hard and was a combo of hip-hop, salsa, merenge, swing and jazz all mushed together back to back. So she's particularly happy and she's leaving that other gym for good. :)
HA! I hope that all made sense -- have been on this computer for too long getting some random stuff done, so I REFUSE to read over my post!
Love and miss you all,
Megan
buongiorno di Italia!
Hola amicos, from the land of pasta and pizza! After a long and harrowing journey across the country (from San Diego to Boston to NYC, with an overnight stop in Boston that involved delicious food, great company, and some very dangerous mojitos!) and then across the ocean blue, I finally find myself safe and sound in La Spezia, Italy, aboard the Marianna, the barca a vela (sailboat!) that my dad works on. (For those of you who don't know, my dad is a sailboat captain and every once in a while I join him to help out on the boat and deliver it to a new place - in this case, Greece.)
Sorry for all of those parenthetical interjections, but my mind is a bit of a mess at the moment. I'm a bit overwhelmed to by the language barrier here; I've never really spent any time in a country where I couldn't easily communicate with the people. I can read most of the signs and string together a few simple words to get my point across, but the minute anyone speaks to me, it just goes way over my head! I feel completely dumbfounded and helpless, and the intense jet lag is certainly not helping...
My dad seems to have become a local, which means his Italian is fantastic and his driving is terrifying. So far, Italy has been mostly a blur from the passenger seat. I wish I could get out into these hills and take in the sights, smells and sounds of this incredible place, but no can do. We're on a tight schedule! I arrived on Sunday in Pisa, my dad picked me up, we saw the tower (it's leaning alright!) and then we drove to Florence to meet up with my sister and her friend. They're traveling around a bit before they start their summer jobs in France working at an English camp. Florence looked awesome (Megan, was that where you were during your time in Italy?) but we only had time for a quick walk around the town, then dinner and gelato - YUM. (My dad's favorite word in Italian? Assaggiere, which means "to taste", and he uses it quite often at all of the gelato stands.)
Anyway, we're aiming to leave tonight or early tomorrow morning and it should be about a week-long journey to get to Athens. It's been 3 years since my last sailing trip, so we'll see how long it takes me to get my sea legs back! Hopefully we'll get to see dolphins (my favorite part about sailing) and we'll be passing by several Greek islands so maybe I can convince my dad to stop for some swimming!
Below are some pictures of my life as of late. The first two are from San Diego. Rosie and I loving life at YOGURTLAND (not to be confused with yogurtWORLD) and the next one is of Windansea at sunset, a beautiful beachy cove just a few blocks from Rosie's apt! The last two are from my first sunset in Italy, at the Piazzale Michelangelo in Florence.
multo amore!! Carmella
Sorry for all of those parenthetical interjections, but my mind is a bit of a mess at the moment. I'm a bit overwhelmed to by the language barrier here; I've never really spent any time in a country where I couldn't easily communicate with the people. I can read most of the signs and string together a few simple words to get my point across, but the minute anyone speaks to me, it just goes way over my head! I feel completely dumbfounded and helpless, and the intense jet lag is certainly not helping...
My dad seems to have become a local, which means his Italian is fantastic and his driving is terrifying. So far, Italy has been mostly a blur from the passenger seat. I wish I could get out into these hills and take in the sights, smells and sounds of this incredible place, but no can do. We're on a tight schedule! I arrived on Sunday in Pisa, my dad picked me up, we saw the tower (it's leaning alright!) and then we drove to Florence to meet up with my sister and her friend. They're traveling around a bit before they start their summer jobs in France working at an English camp. Florence looked awesome (Megan, was that where you were during your time in Italy?) but we only had time for a quick walk around the town, then dinner and gelato - YUM. (My dad's favorite word in Italian? Assaggiere, which means "to taste", and he uses it quite often at all of the gelato stands.)
Anyway, we're aiming to leave tonight or early tomorrow morning and it should be about a week-long journey to get to Athens. It's been 3 years since my last sailing trip, so we'll see how long it takes me to get my sea legs back! Hopefully we'll get to see dolphins (my favorite part about sailing) and we'll be passing by several Greek islands so maybe I can convince my dad to stop for some swimming!
Below are some pictures of my life as of late. The first two are from San Diego. Rosie and I loving life at YOGURTLAND (not to be confused with yogurtWORLD) and the next one is of Windansea at sunset, a beautiful beachy cove just a few blocks from Rosie's apt! The last two are from my first sunset in Italy, at the Piazzale Michelangelo in Florence.
multo amore!! Carmella
Monday, 15 June 2009
workin' in Dallas (NSFW - Not Safe For Work)
Hey kiddos,
I still haven't found a job in NYC, but I have found a part-time job in Dallas. It's called Greenz - Salad for z' adventurous. They do wacky salads. But they're not that wacky, really. Just wacky for Texas. Today was my first day!! I started at 8 today and ended at 3:30. I was up on my feet all day because they got REALLY busy. Ryan, the manager, said that today was the busiest they've ever been. We even stopped taking delivery orders, it was just too much. At the end of the day, Ryan went through my "new employee checklist". At the end of the day, he remarked, "I guess I didn't train you as much as make you do. So you're all good." THX. Anyway, people are horrible, in general. And I already have stories. A woman refused to touch her salad claiming that it was "absolutely inedible" without having tried it, just because she didn't realize there were walnuts on it. And another guy was all, "hi. you're new. what's your name?" "selena" "it's a pleasure being served by you" Jesus, it's not like I was serving up a BJ. Anyway, it was kind of nice being really busy again. Reminded me of school. I almost miss the stress. And I have homework tonight! I have to memorize the menu. So off to that.
What's everyone reading lately?
I just finished "Extremely Loud, Incredibly Fast" by Jonathan Safran Foer because I loved "Everything is Illuminated". I highly recommend either.
I'm now starting "Hunger Games" which is pretty much a remake of Battle Royale, which is a bloody movie about kids killing each other in a game. It was on my friend's little sister's 7th grade reading list. I'm concerned
And then I'm going to read Isabel Allende's "House of Spirits" in deference to Chapman and Rachel's quote.
Love,
Selena
I still haven't found a job in NYC, but I have found a part-time job in Dallas. It's called Greenz - Salad for z' adventurous. They do wacky salads. But they're not that wacky, really. Just wacky for Texas. Today was my first day!! I started at 8 today and ended at 3:30. I was up on my feet all day because they got REALLY busy. Ryan, the manager, said that today was the busiest they've ever been. We even stopped taking delivery orders, it was just too much. At the end of the day, Ryan went through my "new employee checklist". At the end of the day, he remarked, "I guess I didn't train you as much as make you do. So you're all good." THX. Anyway, people are horrible, in general. And I already have stories. A woman refused to touch her salad claiming that it was "absolutely inedible" without having tried it, just because she didn't realize there were walnuts on it. And another guy was all, "hi. you're new. what's your name?" "selena" "it's a pleasure being served by you" Jesus, it's not like I was serving up a BJ. Anyway, it was kind of nice being really busy again. Reminded me of school. I almost miss the stress. And I have homework tonight! I have to memorize the menu. So off to that.
What's everyone reading lately?
I just finished "Extremely Loud, Incredibly Fast" by Jonathan Safran Foer because I loved "Everything is Illuminated". I highly recommend either.
I'm now starting "Hunger Games" which is pretty much a remake of Battle Royale, which is a bloody movie about kids killing each other in a game. It was on my friend's little sister's 7th grade reading list. I'm concerned
And then I'm going to read Isabel Allende's "House of Spirits" in deference to Chapman and Rachel's quote.
Love,
Selena
Advice.
So, once again, Julian missed his Sunday posting duties. But my excuse is that I was once again away for the weekend. Yesterday I woke up in a tent on a farm in eastern Pennsylvania after an all-day Sacred Harp singing on Saturday, then drove back to Boston for another singing there yesterday afternoon, had dinner with my sister, and then drove back to Amherst at 1 am. So there. Oops.
I actually have something that I could use some advice about, for anybody who feels like reading about my job issues. I've been getting rejected from teaching jobs left and right, mostly because it's a shitty job market, as everybody knows, and I've now been offered a job to stay at Amherst and do research with a geo professor. I sent an email to my parents about it that I'll copy below so I don't have to retype it all, but if anybody wants to tell me what they think, feel free. If you're bored with this, feel free not to read it. Also, for all you non-graduates, it means that I might be around for another year...
First, a picture from Argentina:
Thank you in advance to anybody who actually makes it through this:
So, it looks like I have a job offer, but not of the teaching variety, and I would love to hear any thoughts from any of you about it. Also, I didn't get the teaching fellowship position at Nobles (near Boston), so I'm now only waiting to hear back from Fryeburg (Maine). Some of you might have heard some of this already, so I apologize for repetition.
Background: I'm currently working for Anna Martini, a geo professor here at Amherst, and a postdoc of hers. She has a grant that extends until next summer (probably until July 2010 or so) to do some microbial geochemistry research, and this is why she hired both Matt and I - we have biology backgrounds, and are interested in biogeochemistry projects. The majority of people in this field come from geology, so it's nice to have some biologists to run the biology side of things, and give a different perspective. At this point, I believe that this is the field that I am most interested in eventually pursuing - I love the interdisciplinary nature, it involves heavy amounts of both field and lab work, and it has real and important applications, mostly environmental (although in this case, also for energy supplies), depending on the project. In the project I'm currently working on, field work means collecting water samples from already drilled wells, and lab work consists of a microbiological analysis to figure out the species of bacteria (PCR, cloning, sequencing, phylogenies...ie, everything I learned how to do last year with my thesis. hence the hiring me!), and running water through a mass spec machine to get concentrations of various elements, which I am currently learning how to do.
The news: Matt just accepted a job at an environmental consulting firm in Albequerque starting in the fall. Since he won't be around, Anna now has this grant money, and the desire to keep a biologist around to keep this project going. We have briefly talked about it, and she would essentially love to employ me, full time, on this project until next summer. I would be a full time employee here, although actually employed through UMass, for some complicated reasons involving the details of the grant: she guesses that the salary would be about $24,000 for the year, and would include some sorts of health and dental benefits, the details of which I am unsure of at the moment but could find out. It would pretty much involve throwing myself into the field and lab work described above, for a year instead of just the summer. Also, instead of just going to the Illinois basin (which is where we're already going in July), I would go to Newfoundland and western Ireland at some point to do more collecting, and would spend the rest of the time in her lab here running through everything. Depending on how the project goes and the results, there's the possibility that she might try to get more money for it when this grant expires, although that's only a slight possibility right now.
The good: It's great work, I get to travel, I get a whole, whole lot of experience in the field and in the lab. Since this is very related to what I believe I will want to do in grad school, I think that working here for at least a year would give me a huge leg up into getting into a good grad school program, which I think I'm well prepared for already. I will probably be a co-author on a few papers, which is also a huge boost for grad school. The work is interesting and definitely something I would enjoy doing. I would be living in the area, which I already know is a great place to live and where I already know a bunch of people. I would also probably be able to audit a couple classes here, and would try to sit in on some geology classes that I never got to (Mineralogy, Seds), to bone up my geology chops for graduate school applications, since my biology and chemistry background is already strong enough. I would even talk to the geo department people about trying to TA a class or two - even if I haven't taken it before, that would force me to really pay attention, and hopefully would pay something extra. There's no such position right now, but if I'm going to be around anyway, it can't hurt to ask. I could also easily TA for Anna's Hydrogeology class, which I did take.
The questionable: This isn't exactly what I wanted to do for the next few years, since I was hoping to get a teaching job. However, getting a teaching job is proving pretty hard to do right now, probably due to the insane crappiness of the job market overall this year. So while it's not exactly what I was hoping for, it's a good option anyway, and something that (for the reasons above) might be a great move for the future. And, if this is just for one year, then I can always try to do something else for a little while afterward before going into grad school, whether it be teaching or thinking about the Peace Corps again, or something completely new and different. Also, while I do love this area, it might be a little weird being around here...but I think that's mostly because I'll no longer be in school, so that weirdness/culture shock will happen no matter where I end up living. Part of me was hoping to get out of this area a little bit, so it doesn't feel like I'm just spinning my wheels by staying in this now-very-comfortable-and-safe social environment. This area is moderately expensive (although if you get out of "downtown" Amherst or Northampton, less so), and none of my housing or food or anything would be paid for, but I think that the money would easily be enough to live cheaply on, which I'm already pretty good at.
Thoughts? Advice? Questions? If you made it through all of that, I'll be impressed. Any ideas you have would be nice to bounce around, since this is a pretty (relatively) big decision.
love!
Julian
I actually have something that I could use some advice about, for anybody who feels like reading about my job issues. I've been getting rejected from teaching jobs left and right, mostly because it's a shitty job market, as everybody knows, and I've now been offered a job to stay at Amherst and do research with a geo professor. I sent an email to my parents about it that I'll copy below so I don't have to retype it all, but if anybody wants to tell me what they think, feel free. If you're bored with this, feel free not to read it. Also, for all you non-graduates, it means that I might be around for another year...
First, a picture from Argentina:
Thank you in advance to anybody who actually makes it through this:
So, it looks like I have a job offer, but not of the teaching variety, and I would love to hear any thoughts from any of you about it. Also, I didn't get the teaching fellowship position at Nobles (near Boston), so I'm now only waiting to hear back from Fryeburg (Maine). Some of you might have heard some of this already, so I apologize for repetition.
Background: I'm currently working for Anna Martini, a geo professor here at Amherst, and a postdoc of hers. She has a grant that extends until next summer (probably until July 2010 or so) to do some microbial geochemistry research, and this is why she hired both Matt and I - we have biology backgrounds, and are interested in biogeochemistry projects. The majority of people in this field come from geology, so it's nice to have some biologists to run the biology side of things, and give a different perspective. At this point, I believe that this is the field that I am most interested in eventually pursuing - I love the interdisciplinary nature, it involves heavy amounts of both field and lab work, and it has real and important applications, mostly environmental (although in this case, also for energy supplies), depending on the project. In the project I'm currently working on, field work means collecting water samples from already drilled wells, and lab work consists of a microbiological analysis to figure out the species of bacteria (PCR, cloning, sequencing, phylogenies...ie, everything I learned how to do last year with my thesis. hence the hiring me!), and running water through a mass spec machine to get concentrations of various elements, which I am currently learning how to do.
The news: Matt just accepted a job at an environmental consulting firm in Albequerque starting in the fall. Since he won't be around, Anna now has this grant money, and the desire to keep a biologist around to keep this project going. We have briefly talked about it, and she would essentially love to employ me, full time, on this project until next summer. I would be a full time employee here, although actually employed through UMass, for some complicated reasons involving the details of the grant: she guesses that the salary would be about $24,000 for the year, and would include some sorts of health and dental benefits, the details of which I am unsure of at the moment but could find out. It would pretty much involve throwing myself into the field and lab work described above, for a year instead of just the summer. Also, instead of just going to the Illinois basin (which is where we're already going in July), I would go to Newfoundland and western Ireland at some point to do more collecting, and would spend the rest of the time in her lab here running through everything. Depending on how the project goes and the results, there's the possibility that she might try to get more money for it when this grant expires, although that's only a slight possibility right now.
The good: It's great work, I get to travel, I get a whole, whole lot of experience in the field and in the lab. Since this is very related to what I believe I will want to do in grad school, I think that working here for at least a year would give me a huge leg up into getting into a good grad school program, which I think I'm well prepared for already. I will probably be a co-author on a few papers, which is also a huge boost for grad school. The work is interesting and definitely something I would enjoy doing. I would be living in the area, which I already know is a great place to live and where I already know a bunch of people. I would also probably be able to audit a couple classes here, and would try to sit in on some geology classes that I never got to (Mineralogy, Seds), to bone up my geology chops for graduate school applications, since my biology and chemistry background is already strong enough. I would even talk to the geo department people about trying to TA a class or two - even if I haven't taken it before, that would force me to really pay attention, and hopefully would pay something extra. There's no such position right now, but if I'm going to be around anyway, it can't hurt to ask. I could also easily TA for Anna's Hydrogeology class, which I did take.
The questionable: This isn't exactly what I wanted to do for the next few years, since I was hoping to get a teaching job. However, getting a teaching job is proving pretty hard to do right now, probably due to the insane crappiness of the job market overall this year. So while it's not exactly what I was hoping for, it's a good option anyway, and something that (for the reasons above) might be a great move for the future. And, if this is just for one year, then I can always try to do something else for a little while afterward before going into grad school, whether it be teaching or thinking about the Peace Corps again, or something completely new and different. Also, while I do love this area, it might be a little weird being around here...but I think that's mostly because I'll no longer be in school, so that weirdness/culture shock will happen no matter where I end up living. Part of me was hoping to get out of this area a little bit, so it doesn't feel like I'm just spinning my wheels by staying in this now-very-comfortable-and-safe social environment. This area is moderately expensive (although if you get out of "downtown" Amherst or Northampton, less so), and none of my housing or food or anything would be paid for, but I think that the money would easily be enough to live cheaply on, which I'm already pretty good at.
Thoughts? Advice? Questions? If you made it through all of that, I'll be impressed. Any ideas you have would be nice to bounce around, since this is a pretty (relatively) big decision.
love!
Julian
Cartoneras and other things...
Hello Chapman!!!
I'm back in California. I got in yesterday afternoon, after spending two wonderful weeks back in Santo Domingo. When we pulled into our street, Shawn (one of the big bro's) came running out to keep us from parking in the driveway. My younger bro, Noah, had covered the whole thing in chalk:
Other than that, I'm glad to be home. I miss you all and send you abrazos y besotes.
I'm back in California. I got in yesterday afternoon, after spending two wonderful weeks back in Santo Domingo. When we pulled into our street, Shawn (one of the big bro's) came running out to keep us from parking in the driveway. My younger bro, Noah, had covered the whole thing in chalk:
Welcome Home, Hannah!
Good Job graduating!
Use a condom!!!
Good luck with the baby!!!!!!!
PS: why didn't you bring Destry???
"You know, just to get the neighborhood gossip started," so Shawn. Well, just to stem the rumors: I'm happy to report that my IUD works just fine. Oh, family.
I had a wonderful time in the DR. The truth is, it didn't feel like any time had passed, even between me and Maicol. His English has gotten so good. We were really able to have conversations in both languages, which was fun. We spent a day at the beach, hung out in the capital before his English classes, or just spent time at his family place in the campo. I also spent a lot of time with his family, curling up in bed with his younger sister and chatting, or going out dancing with all 4 siblings--it was a blast. As usual, I've coming back slightly malnourished after surviving on rice and beans, and beans and rice, and rice mixed with beans, and did I say beans with rice? I love it.
Oh, more exciting news: I participated in two of the Cartonera workshops that Doris Sommer was giving in the capital. I hadn't quite realized how prestigious the event was going to be: not only did it include tons of local artists, writers, musicians, etc., but also various secretaries of education/culture, etc. The event got a lot of press. For those of you I haven't rambled on to about this, the Cartonera/Paper Picker Press (in English) program is an arts-based education initiative that started in Buenos Aires and Lima. It uses creative/artistic approaches to encourage kids to enjoy reading and to approach literature critically. Basically, it uses music, dance, painting, etc. as a way of approaching literature and creating enthusiastic readers. It's an incredible program that grew out of small, grass-roots publishing houses. It's now spread across Latin America and even into Africa (Ghana) and for the past 2 years I've being dying to get one started in the DR.
So, while Doris (who leads up the Paper Picker Press at Harvard) was in Sto Dgo this week, I managed to set up a breakfast date for her and the director of the foundation where I interned last summer. I was a little worried because they are both such strong women, totally used to dominating any situation and controlling the spotlight. But apparently, they both made it clear that neither would bow down to the other within the first two sentences: when Arelis sat down, Doris asked her straight up, "Why didn't you come to my workshops yesterday?" and Arelis pointed her finger at Doris and said, "Doris, darling, don't be a teacher!" From there, they got on brilliantly and it looks like they'll be collaborating to start a Cartonera in the DR!! Which means--who knows??--maybe I'll get to go back to work on that. Wouldn't that be a dream come true? (Apparently, Leonel (the Dominican president) also met with Doris and is enthusiastic about the program. But then, I'm always slightly suspicious of how sincere he is--after all, this is a guy who is talking about starting "e-government" in a country that doesn't even have regular electricity, never mind computer access.)
Other than that, I'm glad to be home. I miss you all and send you abrazos y besotes.
Saturday, 13 June 2009
who loves the sun?
forgot to post the beautiful picture of my red bean brownies (which I still have a few of in the fridge....have they gone bad by now? hmmm)
anyhow, here it is:
in other news, carmella just called me from JFK, on her way to sail the world with her dad from pisa to athens. i'm steaming with jealousy, especially since my weekend plans only include an asian side of the extended family schmooze fest in santa monica. i don't really know any of these people, nor do i really speak chinese, nor do i really have this strong sense of family that makes me want to get to know or be known by this family i apparently have, all of whom look same. also, santa monica is a long, gas-wasting drive. and i'm lazy.
however, despite my slothful handicaps, i've been getting into some lovely walks lately, around my sea foamy town, with happy waves crashing into rocks, baby seals burrowing into the sand, irrigated parks sucking water from the colorado basin. i used to really hate san diego, and i'm still wary of spending my time here, but i have found new ways to appreciate the place, by looking through tourist's eyes, and exploring the city's natural and artificial wonders more actively. i always have a more interesting experience when i dig for treasures in the desert than when i sit around and passively receive...which generally means watching tv and eating popcorn with cheese powder. i have carmy to thank for this new enthusiasm.
it is also interesting to note, that as soon as carmella left, our overcast 65 degrees and cloudy problem came back. hm. who brings the sunshine? because it isn't me.
anyhow, here it is:
in other news, carmella just called me from JFK, on her way to sail the world with her dad from pisa to athens. i'm steaming with jealousy, especially since my weekend plans only include an asian side of the extended family schmooze fest in santa monica. i don't really know any of these people, nor do i really speak chinese, nor do i really have this strong sense of family that makes me want to get to know or be known by this family i apparently have, all of whom look same. also, santa monica is a long, gas-wasting drive. and i'm lazy.
however, despite my slothful handicaps, i've been getting into some lovely walks lately, around my sea foamy town, with happy waves crashing into rocks, baby seals burrowing into the sand, irrigated parks sucking water from the colorado basin. i used to really hate san diego, and i'm still wary of spending my time here, but i have found new ways to appreciate the place, by looking through tourist's eyes, and exploring the city's natural and artificial wonders more actively. i always have a more interesting experience when i dig for treasures in the desert than when i sit around and passively receive...which generally means watching tv and eating popcorn with cheese powder. i have carmy to thank for this new enthusiasm.
it is also interesting to note, that as soon as carmella left, our overcast 65 degrees and cloudy problem came back. hm. who brings the sunshine? because it isn't me.
Friday, 12 June 2009
Good feminists, read it
xx factor xxtra
White Men Can't Judge?
Why Sonia Sotomayor might really believe that Latina women make better judges.
Updated Thursday, June 11, 2009, at 12:56 PM ET
For a few days there, it looked as if all the Sturm und Drang over Judge Sonia Sotomayor's "wise Latina woman" comment was going to fade away. Speaking at Berkeley's law school in 2001 at a conference about race and gender, she said, "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life." Thirty-two words that launched a thousand tantrums.
The talk-radio crowd had mostly backed away from charges that Sotomayor was a racist or "reverse-racist." The White House was claiming the speech was a one-off. Also that Sotomayor's "word choice in 2001 was poor" and that, as President Obama told NBC's Brian Williams, given the chance, "I'm sure she would have restated it."
But then we learned late last week that Judge Sotomayor chose to use those or similar words more than once; indeed, by one count, seven times. Suddenly Sotomayor's defenders went dark. For all of the efforts to justify and rationalize and contextualize her 32 words, their repetition over the years sure sounds like a blanket claim that Latinas make better judges than white guys. And that's kind of a big deal for liberals who purport to believe that race and gender don't generally make one "better" at things.
As my colleague John Dickerson noted, the word better, repeated on various occasions, forces Sotomayor's defenders to grapple with a question they plainly don't want to think about: "Does she think she's better positioned than a white male judge would be in hearing cases of sex and racial discrimination—or even other kinds of cases as well?"
This conversation might have generated less heat if Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had not blown on the embers by offering up her own ambiguous claims of female "betterness" in certain cases. In the wake of a maddeningly clueless oral argument about a 13-year-old girl who was strip-searched, Ginsburg expressed frustration in an interview with Joan Biskupic of USA Today: "They have never been a 13-year-old girl. It's a very sensitive age for a girl. I didn't think that my colleagues, some of them, quite understood."
Ginsburg—who has only in recent years come to talk openly about how gender has influenced her legal views—added: "[T]here are perceptions that we have because we are women. It's a subtle influence. We can be sensitive to things that are said in draft opinions that (male justices) are not aware can be offensive."
So what are Sotomayor and Ginsburg really talking about when they claim that white male judges don't always get it, and does saying that women are "better" on race or gender make them reverse racists and sexists? We know what the studies about judging say, but what does the relevant social science say?
Reader Patrick St. John recently brought to my attention research that describes a phenomenon called "imaginative identification." The gist of it is that in order to get ahead in the world, you learn to see life through the eyes of those who have already succeeded. According to at least some anthropologists, women have had to get awfully good at understanding what it would be like to be a man. Men, on the other hand, are rarely forced to think about life in a woman's Manolos.
Anthropologist David Graeber makes this precise point in an essay about women and imaginative identification. He argues, for instance, that women imagine life as a man every day of their lives. As he explains it:
A constant staple of 1950s situation comedies, in America, were jokes about the impossibility of understanding women. The jokes of course were always told by men. Women's logic was always being treated as alien and incomprehensible. One never had the impression, on the other hand, that women had much trouble understanding the men. That's because the women had no choice but to understand men.
Graeber continues:
Faced with the prospect of even trying to imagine a women's perspective, many recoil in horror. In the US, one popular trick among High School creative writing teachers is to assign students to write an essay imagining that they were to switch genders, and describe what it would be like to live for one day as a member of the opposite sex. The results are almost always exactly the same: all the girls in class write long and detailed essays demonstrating that they have spent a great deal of time thinking about such questions; roughly half the boys refuse to write the essay entirely. Almost invariably they express profound resentment about having to imagine what it might be like to be a woman.
Now I am no social scientist, and this argument may be riddled with empirical holes. But it strikes me as intuitively obvious that in order to succeed in a white man's world, women must learn to see both sides in ways that men do not. If that is true, it just might make them "better" judges, at least in some circumstances. I don't know whether Judge Sotomayor was trying, albeit rather artlessly, to make some version of that argument in her speeches about the relative wisdom of Latina woman. But if I could ask her just one question at her confirmation hearing about that Berkeley speech, that would be it.
Dahlia Lithwick is a Slate senior editor.Article URL: http://www.slate.com/id/2220225/
Thursday, 11 June 2009
Land of Chicken Tragedies.
hello guys,
the tropics are treating me well. don't even mind the hourly waves of new mosquito bites.
i want to say to everyone, your posts are great. each time i finish one i feel that i have worlds to write back. but blogs are blogs and i guess they are a bit impersonal by nature (and that has its own charm no doubt) so i will restrain from treating each post like it is my last chance ever to respond to a weighty message meant for my eyes only. just know that i could.
anyway, there is not much that is more exciting than walking these streets here. down the meat market streets during the day - it is hard to imagine how efficiently one can kill a chicken until you see it. you can just be strolling along, not at all expecting to witness how meat actually becomes meat, when the flapping of wings and bird sounds come with the single crunch of the neck. then the once-chicken is chopped, defeathered, bagged and handed over. one moment squawking and the next being digested by stomach acids. fresh produce.
night markets are less carnal. well, carnal in a different way maybe, but no loose chicken feathers. actually, maybe still loose chicken feathers? hard to know how these asians get down sometimes. in either case! night markets are fun because the night people come out, the young people that don't have to slave all day kneading dough or snapping chicken necks (i haven't even mentioned the pigs.) sometimes these people have spirit and they are fun to watch.
i do need to let my sister use the internet before she doesn't have a chance. lottery tickets start selling rapidly after a certain time of day and the computer will be needed (uncle/grandma's business.)
love,
jess
the tropics are treating me well. don't even mind the hourly waves of new mosquito bites.
i want to say to everyone, your posts are great. each time i finish one i feel that i have worlds to write back. but blogs are blogs and i guess they are a bit impersonal by nature (and that has its own charm no doubt) so i will restrain from treating each post like it is my last chance ever to respond to a weighty message meant for my eyes only. just know that i could.
anyway, there is not much that is more exciting than walking these streets here. down the meat market streets during the day - it is hard to imagine how efficiently one can kill a chicken until you see it. you can just be strolling along, not at all expecting to witness how meat actually becomes meat, when the flapping of wings and bird sounds come with the single crunch of the neck. then the once-chicken is chopped, defeathered, bagged and handed over. one moment squawking and the next being digested by stomach acids. fresh produce.
night markets are less carnal. well, carnal in a different way maybe, but no loose chicken feathers. actually, maybe still loose chicken feathers? hard to know how these asians get down sometimes. in either case! night markets are fun because the night people come out, the young people that don't have to slave all day kneading dough or snapping chicken necks (i haven't even mentioned the pigs.) sometimes these people have spirit and they are fun to watch.
i do need to let my sister use the internet before she doesn't have a chance. lottery tickets start selling rapidly after a certain time of day and the computer will be needed (uncle/grandma's business.)
love,
jess
Wednesday, 10 June 2009
Pause.
Home, playing around with my laptop, absorbing items of interest that I missed in the rush of the semester, and cooking. And, of course, spending "quality" time with my family, including my deranged grandmother - Tough. Thinking the usual thoughts, about aging and generations, family-bred insecurities, the infinite mystery of my mother, sitting across from me at the table - what could she be thinking and WHY ? (How does she survive?) Judaism - reading Hannah Arendt's "The Origins of Totalitarianism" and wondering if I'll ever escape childhood Holocaust fantasies of being hunted... Sorry to be such a downer. I've actually been quite happy considering I'm at home !
I guess, I've designed this week to be a pause, to collect myself (organize my thoughts even) between end-of-semester galas and what will hopefully be a slow, sweet summer. I head back up to Amherst early Sunday morning (Cait, Julian - dinner plans for that evening?). Sorry that I'm missing Selena (but so GLAD to have you established in NYC soon!!!). And, Becky, you better come visit us at least half as much as you visit your boy !!!! (Bring him with you ?)
LOVE.
PS I found a map that will mark where we've posted from but I can't follow the instructions because I didn't create our blog site ? Selena ? Not necessary, maybe like tubs for organizing the Chapman fridge - hehe - but if Selene's feels so inclined, here are the instructions:
Brian, the Google engineer who created this feature in his 20% time, has written a gadget that will display your posts on a map. To add it to your blog, click “Add Your Own” on the “Add a Gadget” page and paste in this URL: http://blogmap-gadget.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/blogmap.xml
I guess, I've designed this week to be a pause, to collect myself (organize my thoughts even) between end-of-semester galas and what will hopefully be a slow, sweet summer. I head back up to Amherst early Sunday morning (Cait, Julian - dinner plans for that evening?). Sorry that I'm missing Selena (but so GLAD to have you established in NYC soon!!!). And, Becky, you better come visit us at least half as much as you visit your boy !!!! (Bring him with you ?)
LOVE.
PS I found a map that will mark where we've posted from but I can't follow the instructions because I didn't create our blog site ? Selena ? Not necessary, maybe like tubs for organizing the Chapman fridge - hehe - but if Selene's feels so inclined, here are the instructions:
Brian, the Google engineer who created this feature in his 20% time, has written a gadget that will display your posts on a map. To add it to your blog, click “Add Your Own” on the “Add a Gadget” page and paste in this URL: http://blogmap-gadget.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/blogmap.xml
hellos from sunny D !
Hello all you pretty people, from sunny san diego! (although it is a bit overcast at the moment - and we are confused.) Rosie and I have been having a lovely time over the past few days, just living the life, you know how we do. It's been a fantastic mix of touristy things (sunday in balboa park - all the countries at the international village were giving out free food from their country!), laziness (sleeping at LEAST 11 hours every day and watching our way through the entire season 2 of Weeds - so good!), and athletic ventures (long walks on the beach, hiking up mountains, etc). Our looong sleeps have also given us ridiculous crazy dreams, so we spend a fair amount of time analyzing those as well. (Last night, Rosie went on a ride in a white van and talked philosophy with strangers and I spent all night at a raucous jewish (?) party).
We've also spent a substantial amount of time eating (how surprising), thinking about eating (duh), and concocting delicious food creations (a la jess joy/rose) from essential ingredients such as FROZEN YOGURT (a southern california staple) and avocados (obvi). We just made awesome quesadillas, complete with guacamole and refried beans - for breakfast. Last night, Rosie, her parents and I all went to eat 99cent fish tacos at the local mexican eatery and then saw Up in 3D! I wish I could have taken a photo of all of us in our glasses - we looked baller! Tonight we're thinking about participating in UCSD's undy run (it's their finals week) and then hitting up a few gays bars with rosie's hilarious friends. Should be a good time (if we don't get arrested). Wishing you guys were here to bask in the glorious california sunshine!
hella hugs, Carmella
ps - just thought you should be up to date on the latest cute baby video!
Negligent blogger
Hi friends,
I am so terribly sorry for having missed my day last week. This post will have to serve for both this and last Friday. I have actually tried to post a few times from Monty's iPhone and it hasn't worked! Very frustrating. But I have kept up with reading and love hearing everybody's news.
All is wonderful here. I am in Nice with Monty after jumping through Valencia, Sevilla, Paris, St Emilion and Sarlat. The last two are tiny medieval towns in rural wine country of southern France. So so lovely. We have been museum going, wine tasting, bike riding, picknicking, getting caught in rain storms, and riding lots of trains. So far it has been just the break I needed to clear my head after senior year and graduation. I do catch myself thinking about you guys a lot though -- did I say that last time? -- and missing Amherst.
In other news, I am fairly certain that I did not get into the Spain year-long teaching program. I think admissions was rolling and I sent my application in significantly later than other applicants. Same goes for Monty. Oh well. For now I get to think about where I want to be in the US and what I want to do! Haven't yet heard about the job in Holyoke -- should know soon -- but am starting to feel more and more drawn to New York. (Could this have something to do with Selena's post? Seems very likely, doesn't it?) I'll keep you posted (hah, literally) as I know and when I can. From here it's on to Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands.... and eventually Paris.
Loooooooooooooooooooooove.
I am so terribly sorry for having missed my day last week. This post will have to serve for both this and last Friday. I have actually tried to post a few times from Monty's iPhone and it hasn't worked! Very frustrating. But I have kept up with reading and love hearing everybody's news.
All is wonderful here. I am in Nice with Monty after jumping through Valencia, Sevilla, Paris, St Emilion and Sarlat. The last two are tiny medieval towns in rural wine country of southern France. So so lovely. We have been museum going, wine tasting, bike riding, picknicking, getting caught in rain storms, and riding lots of trains. So far it has been just the break I needed to clear my head after senior year and graduation. I do catch myself thinking about you guys a lot though -- did I say that last time? -- and missing Amherst.
In other news, I am fairly certain that I did not get into the Spain year-long teaching program. I think admissions was rolling and I sent my application in significantly later than other applicants. Same goes for Monty. Oh well. For now I get to think about where I want to be in the US and what I want to do! Haven't yet heard about the job in Holyoke -- should know soon -- but am starting to feel more and more drawn to New York. (Could this have something to do with Selena's post? Seems very likely, doesn't it?) I'll keep you posted (hah, literally) as I know and when I can. From here it's on to Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands.... and eventually Paris.
Loooooooooooooooooooooove.
Tuesday, 9 June 2009
WOWOIEOJSOIDJG
Tuesday!
It's my day -- and I will maybe forever have horror associated with days of the week typed out on a screen -- I watched The Shining last night for the first time, and it was SCARY as hell for me, and the scary music and creepiness would build and build and then it would cut to a black screen with Tuesday written in white letters on the screen... ha.
ANYWAY, -- Julian: you and every other Chapmanite is invited to visit the farm whenever I'm there -- my parents would be totally happy with whoever coming to pull weeds, pick some veggies, roll around in the dirt, or play with the new lambs (sadly, they are named "Crown Roast," "Shank," and some other cut of meat... and they will go in pieces into the freezer in the fall) at any time. And also Julian, you should look into my high school (Concord Academy) about a job. I'm serious, and I'll look into it a little also if you wouldn't mind. I really really really think the place would suit you big time.
Still in Oxford, but I am leaving on Thursday. :( Still having a really great time, it's a little tough leaving, but it's gotta happen at some point, so whatever. Just because this is a really silly video and will make you laugh a little, watch it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1lqWZ6RYSQ
Love and miss you all,
Megan
It's my day -- and I will maybe forever have horror associated with days of the week typed out on a screen -- I watched The Shining last night for the first time, and it was SCARY as hell for me, and the scary music and creepiness would build and build and then it would cut to a black screen with Tuesday written in white letters on the screen... ha.
ANYWAY, -- Julian: you and every other Chapmanite is invited to visit the farm whenever I'm there -- my parents would be totally happy with whoever coming to pull weeds, pick some veggies, roll around in the dirt, or play with the new lambs (sadly, they are named "Crown Roast," "Shank," and some other cut of meat... and they will go in pieces into the freezer in the fall) at any time. And also Julian, you should look into my high school (Concord Academy) about a job. I'm serious, and I'll look into it a little also if you wouldn't mind. I really really really think the place would suit you big time.
Still in Oxford, but I am leaving on Thursday. :( Still having a really great time, it's a little tough leaving, but it's gotta happen at some point, so whatever. Just because this is a really silly video and will make you laugh a little, watch it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1lqWZ6RYSQ
Love and miss you all,
Megan
Back at the Herst
Cait, call me! We should hang. Sorry I missed my day. I've reprimanded myself as blog police. The ABC meetings started on Sunday. Yesterday I was sitting in Webster 220 from 9AM to 9PM, legit. With a 1.5 hour break, and working lunches and dinners. Today it's the same thing and tomorrow it'll be another long day. I've been trying to get these trustees to help me out with job stuff. Haha, anything I can get, but I've definitely decided on moving to New York, and Jenny's looking for apt's in Brooklyn for us.
Now, I'm sitting in our ABC meeting and listening to everyone deferred maintenance, fringe benefits, etc. In yesterday's meeting, I realized how good it is to be back. This entire process has just made me think and think and think about Amherst. And being back so suddenly after graduation just prolongs my belief that I'm going to be here forever. Yesterday after work, Zims, Raj, and a few other people and I went to the Dirty Truth and it was a nice even if I couldn't drink, because I have strep apparently! So I'm on antibiotics and not sleeping enough and missing you all. Hope to hear from y'all soon.
Now, I'm sitting in our ABC meeting and listening to everyone deferred maintenance, fringe benefits, etc. In yesterday's meeting, I realized how good it is to be back. This entire process has just made me think and think and think about Amherst. And being back so suddenly after graduation just prolongs my belief that I'm going to be here forever. Yesterday after work, Zims, Raj, and a few other people and I went to the Dirty Truth and it was a nice even if I couldn't drink, because I have strep apparently! So I'm on antibiotics and not sleeping enough and missing you all. Hope to hear from y'all soon.
Monday, 8 June 2009
This is for Carmella who didn't think I could figure out the whole blog thing on my own. In your face! Sorry I didn't post on Saturday. I totally forgot about this thing. Since running off of the plane I have spent a week with my sisters in Florida, mostly watching the View, Tyra, Oprah and various other useless girly shows, and playing with my nephew. Eventually, I took the train a good 30 hours to Amherst, where I saw Carmella and Steve for all five minutes, packed up my room and drove home with the odd couple. I am currently bored at home, reading, going out for wogs, doing yoga, playing housewife while my parents are at work, so I don't have to feel so bad when I need to ask for money, watching TV and waiting for my job to start on the 18th. I am broke and I live in NYC so going out and having fun is hard. Plus my friends here are all real grown ups with real jobs who are busy and tired and shit. Losers! I miss my unemployed hippies! Yup the present is pretty glum, but I am hopeful for the future. Occasionally, I get to chill with my niece and pretend to be 9, which is fun. Plus Chase gave me this Starbucks gift card that his grandma gave him, so, I can at least meet people for coffee. That plus my mother's constant comedic antics and my father's...I don't even know what to call that shit should keep me entertained until Friday when I go to Boston to chill with my boy until next Wednesday. Then work work work!!!
Sunday, 7 June 2009
saludos!!
Hey yo! So after a five hour drive today back from Maine, I decided to get one last night here at home in CT with my fam (or was it for the amazing salmon dinner my mom offered to make me...yumm..). I spent Thursday- this morning with my friend Kristin up at Colby-- it was so beautiful! Saturday we hung around by the lake all day, went to ice cream every night...it was wonderful. I love summer!! :)
So tomorrow I finally go settle in at Amherst...I'm so excited for the house (although wish Carmsy was there to snuggle). No radical newnesses as of now...I'll post em as they happen.
Loves to all.
So tomorrow I finally go settle in at Amherst...I'm so excited for the house (although wish Carmsy was there to snuggle). No radical newnesses as of now...I'll post em as they happen.
Loves to all.
Hey, I'm still alive
So I know I've been checked out of any kind of normal life for the last few weeks, but Hi!
After graduation I skipped off to Argentina with the concert choir, which was delightful. I'm not going to go into too many details right now, but we did a lot of walking around, a lot of eating and drinking wine, and a bit of singing. I have lots of pretty pictures, and will put some up here later, but I have yet to upload them off my camera.
After traveling for about 24 hours to get back, I moved all my crap from Chapman (boohoo!) to an apartment in town where I'll be living for the summer (come hang out), then promptly drove to Maryland. Yesterday was a day-long Sacred Harp singing in northern Virginia. After hanging out with some people afterward, I decided that I really want to live on a farm, and should therefore try to somehow worm my way into Megan's family.
Just when life looked like it might settle down this week, I got rejected from a couple more jobs, and then got two more interviews, one near Boston on Tuesday, and one in Maine on Wednesday. So, still searching....eh.
It was fun to read all the back posts on here that I missed, and I'll be more alert about posting in the future. Yay for summer!
love,
Julian
Friday, 5 June 2009
exciting breakfast yogurt
Hi all, I'm doing my post early because I'm shipping out to LA today to go clubbing with my buds and then pick up Carms, to return Sunday!
I have been having some exciting culinary adventures. I successfully made RED bean brownies (or reddies, comrade) and they are NOT SHITTY!! However, in keeping with traditional rosie style, I have amended my Exciting Breakfast Yogurt Recipe. It is now slightly less unpleasant, but still not a terribly good idea:
1 cup yogurt
1 tbsp honey
1 packet instant coffee (here's where I start to go wrong...while better than actual grounds, this still doesn't really dissolve all the way...)
1 red bean brownie (totally a good idea)
1 tbsp granola (superfluous)
blueberries, raspberries, strawberries
garnish with cilantro (j/k, that's a TERRIBLE idea)
I'm getting pretty good at the rubix cube, although I still need the cheat sheet. Getting some good reading done, though not as quickly as I would like. All in all lots of lounging and trying to ignore the raucous elementary school that borders my apartment building. Excited to get some Carmella, especially because I'll be inspired to do fun things, and not be so lazy indoorsy. We will take lots of pictures, and put them up.
:)
I have been having some exciting culinary adventures. I successfully made RED bean brownies (or reddies, comrade) and they are NOT SHITTY!! However, in keeping with traditional rosie style, I have amended my Exciting Breakfast Yogurt Recipe. It is now slightly less unpleasant, but still not a terribly good idea:
1 cup yogurt
1 tbsp honey
1 packet instant coffee (here's where I start to go wrong...while better than actual grounds, this still doesn't really dissolve all the way...)
1 red bean brownie (totally a good idea)
1 tbsp granola (superfluous)
blueberries, raspberries, strawberries
garnish with cilantro (j/k, that's a TERRIBLE idea)
I'm getting pretty good at the rubix cube, although I still need the cheat sheet. Getting some good reading done, though not as quickly as I would like. All in all lots of lounging and trying to ignore the raucous elementary school that borders my apartment building. Excited to get some Carmella, especially because I'll be inspired to do fun things, and not be so lazy indoorsy. We will take lots of pictures, and put them up.
:)
Wednesday, 3 June 2009
Hi Dears,
Sorry for missing my day... it was yesterday!
I am in Oxford, and having a really really really nice time. Lots of walking around, and going to the pub with Milo and his parents (not with Malu -- she pretty much refuses to leave the house, but will have to when her boy Dan arrives on Friday), playing frisbee, having picnics, running, going out for coffee and mixed drinks... I had TWO drinks the other night that had egg whites in them -- isn't that weird? They were delicious.
The other thing I've been doing is making more T-shirt dresses from shirts Milo didn't want anymore. I will post pictures of them either sometime this week or next Tuesday (my day).
Just before I got on the plane to come to England, I talked to my high school roommate (Amelia -- none of you have met her) and just was struck and shocked by how much I still love her and how close I feel to her even though we have actually been AWFUL at staying in touch since our graduation. Talking to her really gave me lots of hope and excitement for my continuing relationship with all of you -- this past year in Chapman really is exploding out and will expand expand and expand indefinitely -- or at least, that's how I'm planning it.
Love you all -- I'll send silly pictures of me in my dresses soon. Muah.
Megan
Sorry for missing my day... it was yesterday!
I am in Oxford, and having a really really really nice time. Lots of walking around, and going to the pub with Milo and his parents (not with Malu -- she pretty much refuses to leave the house, but will have to when her boy Dan arrives on Friday), playing frisbee, having picnics, running, going out for coffee and mixed drinks... I had TWO drinks the other night that had egg whites in them -- isn't that weird? They were delicious.
The other thing I've been doing is making more T-shirt dresses from shirts Milo didn't want anymore. I will post pictures of them either sometime this week or next Tuesday (my day).
Just before I got on the plane to come to England, I talked to my high school roommate (Amelia -- none of you have met her) and just was struck and shocked by how much I still love her and how close I feel to her even though we have actually been AWFUL at staying in touch since our graduation. Talking to her really gave me lots of hope and excitement for my continuing relationship with all of you -- this past year in Chapman really is exploding out and will expand expand and expand indefinitely -- or at least, that's how I'm planning it.
Love you all -- I'll send silly pictures of me in my dresses soon. Muah.
Megan
Last Words Before Life Aboard Aircraft.
hello guys!
i am about to climb onto a gigantic airplane and stay there for 14 hours as it makes its way over to the shriveled peanut shaped island of taiwan. grandma is about to be surprised for sure.
my proudest feat as of late: successfully made black bean brownies! with all of your modifications, megan. gave all my oklahoma homies these black beany things in a ziplock bag - they never cease to be amazed at what we do up at amherst.
hope everyone is well.
love,
jess
i am about to climb onto a gigantic airplane and stay there for 14 hours as it makes its way over to the shriveled peanut shaped island of taiwan. grandma is about to be surprised for sure.
my proudest feat as of late: successfully made black bean brownies! with all of your modifications, megan. gave all my oklahoma homies these black beany things in a ziplock bag - they never cease to be amazed at what we do up at amherst.
hope everyone is well.
love,
jess
Tuesday, 2 June 2009
hello !
i´m a little weirded out by this whole blogging business. thinking too much about internet communities (thanks to my thesis) - oh the inadequacies of virtual communication !
anyway, i´m in costa rica ! leaving tomorrow, traveling all day, which is why i´m posting early. i´ve been based in puerto viejo - a beach community on the south caribbean coast - with a few days trip to bocas del toro - an archipelago four hours south of here, off the coast of panama.
for cait and other future travelers to costa: i was at first disgruntled by both puerto v. and bocas because it feels like there are as many tourists as locals - if not more.. but then i got to understand why all the tourists flock here: TROPICAL PARADISE. the fifty-some islands of bocas are all lush and sandy, water´s crystal clear, and everyone´s friendly, or at least, open. puerto isn´t an island, but there´s miles of nice beach and lots of costa rican style jungle tours.
ok, now´s the part when i complain about traveling with parents and family-related anxieties.. except i don´t actually have that much to complain about ? the parents have been relatively relaxed and sometimes even really adorable... wish you all could have seen their glee when we did the canopy tour yesterday (flying down cable lines through the forest).. nevertheless i´m lonely without my contemporaries, maybe going a little crazy due to the eccentricities of mom and dad.
i caught myself a couple days ago doing the run down of where all my chapmanites are.. (instead of destry at the zu, now destry´s in spain; hannah´s not at smith, but in the dr; selena´s no longer at aas meetings, but headed for texas...) wonder when i´ll lose that habit ? i´m going to look around for a feature for our blog site, a world map that will show where each of us are
love love love
rachie
anyway, i´m in costa rica ! leaving tomorrow, traveling all day, which is why i´m posting early. i´ve been based in puerto viejo - a beach community on the south caribbean coast - with a few days trip to bocas del toro - an archipelago four hours south of here, off the coast of panama.
for cait and other future travelers to costa: i was at first disgruntled by both puerto v. and bocas because it feels like there are as many tourists as locals - if not more.. but then i got to understand why all the tourists flock here: TROPICAL PARADISE. the fifty-some islands of bocas are all lush and sandy, water´s crystal clear, and everyone´s friendly, or at least, open. puerto isn´t an island, but there´s miles of nice beach and lots of costa rican style jungle tours.
ok, now´s the part when i complain about traveling with parents and family-related anxieties.. except i don´t actually have that much to complain about ? the parents have been relatively relaxed and sometimes even really adorable... wish you all could have seen their glee when we did the canopy tour yesterday (flying down cable lines through the forest).. nevertheless i´m lonely without my contemporaries, maybe going a little crazy due to the eccentricities of mom and dad.
i caught myself a couple days ago doing the run down of where all my chapmanites are.. (instead of destry at the zu, now destry´s in spain; hannah´s not at smith, but in the dr; selena´s no longer at aas meetings, but headed for texas...) wonder when i´ll lose that habit ? i´m going to look around for a feature for our blog site, a world map that will show where each of us are
love love love
rachie
Monday, 1 June 2009
on the road again
Hello pretties, it's so lovely to have this blog to look forward to and know that each time I check, there's more than likely going to be news from one of my favorite girls in the world. What a lucky treat! We'll never be apart! everrrrrrr.
okay. Anyway, I'm sitting in my new humble abode, in a sweet little room on the second floor of a pretty white house on Montague Road, 92 montague rd. to be exact. I've only been here since yesterday (hey, I had to milk Chapman for allll it was worth - I just couldn't leave, and who can blame me!) but it's been a nice stay so far. Something about the way the wind whips around the yard, or the way the birds chirp outside my window. I can't explain it but it feels right, you know? (although, it would feel better if I could see your pretty faces in this scene!) There's a park across the street with baseball and basketball games everyday, and Puffer's is a short bike ride away. There's a porch to watch the summer storms roll by and a big tree swing in the yard. I can't complain. except... well I'll get to the complaining in a minute.
As a sidestory, I went to Reunion this weekend! I've never attended and I'm glad I was well enough to get out of bed (finally!) and make it to some of the lectures and events (and parties!). My favorite activity was people-watching all weekend, seeing old friends catch up on life as their kids ran around the freshman quad making trouble. There were some skeezballs and lotsa oldies and tons of cuties and everything in between. I went to this talk given by a couple from Class of '89 who now own and run their own dairy farm just 35 minutes away in the Berkshires (Sidehill Farm). It was crazy because I see them sell their yogurt every weekend at the farmer's market and I never realized they were Amherst alums. It was pretty awesome to hear their story, and they were such a sweet adorable couple - ah! All they did was talk about their cows and how they each have their own personality quirks and whatnot. Adorbs. Sat night, bluesox alums performed and of course the Zumbyes too, and then everyone hit the tents. Pete and Jay (a band formed of amherst alums who I'm sure a lot of you have seen play before) played for the class of 2004 tent and that was the most happening party of the night, for sure. Alums from all the other tents flocked over to groove and jam with us young folk, and it was pretty hilarious. Anyway, all in all a good weekend - what a trip to get a glimpse of us in 5, 10, 50, or 65 (!) years.
Otherwise, my complaints. Well, it's just one, and it's pretty dumb. Like I said before, I'm all settled into my life here at 92 Montague road. I have a porch godammit. But does that really ensure anything? stability? no! I leave for Boston tomorow, and then, I'll be on the open road of adventure once again. I'm almost not ready to leave so soon, but I guess I'll just have to suck it up and get out there! The bags are packed, I'm ready to go. Next time I post I'll be in California with Rosiepants and then off to another shore, another ocean, another adventure. Until then, happy travels to all you munchkins out there who are heading out on your own adventures, wherever they may take you this week.
ready for flight,
kisses from Carmella
PS I've left you all a present on facebook, in the form of a photo update! <3
okay. Anyway, I'm sitting in my new humble abode, in a sweet little room on the second floor of a pretty white house on Montague Road, 92 montague rd. to be exact. I've only been here since yesterday (hey, I had to milk Chapman for allll it was worth - I just couldn't leave, and who can blame me!) but it's been a nice stay so far. Something about the way the wind whips around the yard, or the way the birds chirp outside my window. I can't explain it but it feels right, you know? (although, it would feel better if I could see your pretty faces in this scene!) There's a park across the street with baseball and basketball games everyday, and Puffer's is a short bike ride away. There's a porch to watch the summer storms roll by and a big tree swing in the yard. I can't complain. except... well I'll get to the complaining in a minute.
As a sidestory, I went to Reunion this weekend! I've never attended and I'm glad I was well enough to get out of bed (finally!) and make it to some of the lectures and events (and parties!). My favorite activity was people-watching all weekend, seeing old friends catch up on life as their kids ran around the freshman quad making trouble. There were some skeezballs and lotsa oldies and tons of cuties and everything in between. I went to this talk given by a couple from Class of '89 who now own and run their own dairy farm just 35 minutes away in the Berkshires (Sidehill Farm). It was crazy because I see them sell their yogurt every weekend at the farmer's market and I never realized they were Amherst alums. It was pretty awesome to hear their story, and they were such a sweet adorable couple - ah! All they did was talk about their cows and how they each have their own personality quirks and whatnot. Adorbs. Sat night, bluesox alums performed and of course the Zumbyes too, and then everyone hit the tents. Pete and Jay (a band formed of amherst alums who I'm sure a lot of you have seen play before) played for the class of 2004 tent and that was the most happening party of the night, for sure. Alums from all the other tents flocked over to groove and jam with us young folk, and it was pretty hilarious. Anyway, all in all a good weekend - what a trip to get a glimpse of us in 5, 10, 50, or 65 (!) years.
Otherwise, my complaints. Well, it's just one, and it's pretty dumb. Like I said before, I'm all settled into my life here at 92 Montague road. I have a porch godammit. But does that really ensure anything? stability? no! I leave for Boston tomorow, and then, I'll be on the open road of adventure once again. I'm almost not ready to leave so soon, but I guess I'll just have to suck it up and get out there! The bags are packed, I'm ready to go. Next time I post I'll be in California with Rosiepants and then off to another shore, another ocean, another adventure. Until then, happy travels to all you munchkins out there who are heading out on your own adventures, wherever they may take you this week.
ready for flight,
kisses from Carmella
PS I've left you all a present on facebook, in the form of a photo update! <3
Wo Gae
Ni hao peng you! That means "Hi friends!" in Chinese. I've been speaking Chinese nonstop in North Carolina on this family reunion, mainly while playing poker. There's this one term in our card game, when you "pass" on your turn, you say wo gae or wo bu gae. Wo means I and bu means not. So I keep hearing I gay or I not gay. While all I wanna do is play cards, the fam keep making me do other stuff. My cousin's backyard is actually a huge lake so I've been fishing a bit on his boat dock, fishing with tiny worms I've dug for in the ground (it's super ghetto). And two days ago, we went white water rafting at the National White Water Rafting Center. Apparently they have national centers for everything? For part of the day, I explored the Catawba River on a kayak. There are these beautiful and random tree islets that thread through the middle of this vast river, and you can kayak through these flooded islets. When you look down you can see grass and other vegetation that used to be showing when the water level was lower. As I slowly meandered my way through low slung vines and lazy turtles, I realized that it was the first time I've been alone in a long time. While I was at Chapman, I was trying to be with whoever 
was around (Destry and Megan know what I'm talkin' about. I slunk around their rooms while they were trying to move out and I was mainly getting in the way, which is okay by me). Since I've been in NC, I've been with family nonstop. It was strange being so suddenly alone and it being that quiet and still. It gave me time to digest these last few months and be properly mo about graduating.
Yesterday, we went strawberry picking. It seemed kind of anachronistic, all these Asian people bending over these little strawberry plants in the hot sun. We should have been wearing Rice Hats and on paddy farms in rural China watching WWII Ally jets fly over. Then we went on a "safari", the North Carolinian version. There were rhinos from South Africa, antelopes from India, ducks from Egypt, wildebeest from Africa. This is my version of Cait's analogy. I kept thinking about Chapman and how we're similar to these thrown together animals, coming from all over, but now, going all over. And how Hannah reminded me of these spritely petite antelopes, and how Rose reminded me of the water bison that I never saw do anything but eat.
This reminds me of Hannah.
This reminds me of Jess.
And this is obviously me feeding Rose.
Missin' you like a petting zoo,
was around (Destry and Megan know what I'm talkin' about. I slunk around their rooms while they were trying to move out and I was mainly getting in the way, which is okay by me). Since I've been in NC, I've been with family nonstop. It was strange being so suddenly alone and it being that quiet and still. It gave me time to digest these last few months and be properly mo about graduating. Yesterday, we went strawberry picking. It seemed kind of anachronistic, all these Asian people bending over these little strawberry plants in the hot sun. We should have been wearing Rice Hats and on paddy farms in rural China watching WWII Ally jets fly over. Then we went on a "safari", the North Carolinian version. There were rhinos from South Africa, antelopes from India, ducks from Egypt, wildebeest from Africa. This is my version of Cait's analogy. I kept thinking about Chapman and how we're similar to these thrown together animals, coming from all over, but now, going all over. And how Hannah reminded me of these spritely petite antelopes, and how Rose reminded me of the water bison that I never saw do anything but eat.
This reminds me of Hannah.
This reminds me of Jess.
And this is obviously me feeding Rose.
Missin' you like a petting zoo,
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