fierce!

    Dear Harriet Walter,

    Here is a quote, which I found relevant to my life, from an excerpt of Airs, Waters, Places, a thing about the effects geography and climate have on societies which was probably written by a disciple of Hippocrates:

"A variable climate produces a nature which is coupled with a fierce, hot-headed and discordant temperament, for frequent fears cause a fierce attitude of mind whereas quietness and calm dull the wits."

    Emphasis mine.

    Three exams to do this week! Let me die. Well, no; let me be fierce.

    Pictures from life soon, I think. In the meantime, philosophy/theology class.

    Post-class PS: We watched the first half of The Truman Show instead of talking. Such an awesome class. I should be studying for my tests now, but I decided to screw around with my blog layout instead. (I was never going to be that kind of college student and yet here we are.) It's blue now. It has a picture of me taken at the Reagan Library and Museum last Saturday in the Air Force One exhibit thing. Doesn't it look perfectly hideous? So amateur, and I can't adjust the size or font of the blog description. Oh well. The brown was getting on my nerves. This, at least, is brighter. I'll make it yellow and white soon or something.

Professor Mine Enemy

    Dear Harriet Walter,

    This is me today after managing to miss both breakfast and lunch. Also, I had two classes.

    I cannot handle an hour and a half of the alarming professor I mentioned before (that is, the one I've decided to be inwardly belligerent towards, the intimidating enemy-professor; Professor Mine Enemy) on a cup of coffee and a handful of fries (the latter generously donated from Upperclassman Kim's lunch). It is not to be borne. Just...no.

    Thankfully he was relatively laid-back today and talked about interesting things, so it could have been much worse.

    Whyyyyy does he remind me of Enemy/Sandy/Dr MacRae from Jean Webster's book Dear Enemy? He's not even Scottish. He's a doctor, yes, but not a doctor of medicine, just a doctor of smart things. Gah. My brain makes the weirdest connections sometimes.

    And I realized today that I really want to just adore the man, because he's so intelligent and passionate and weird and cool, but he's still intimidating and I honestly don't know if I'm going to be able to do well in his class but I really want him to think well of me but I don't know if I can make that happen through effort so really it's too emotionally dangerous to adore the man so I feel like I just need to say "arr hwar gar this is my enemy, damn that Dr S, damn him to bits! I'll show him who's a dimwit who can't keep up with what he requires of us as students!" Except that I'm the one thinking I'm a dimwit and he is probably only conscious of me as a girl who sits in the front row and looks like she's trying really hard to process everything he's saying and blah

    I'm just going to stand over here and build complicated one-sided relationships now ok

    my brain is like a foggy, sticky labyrinth made of dry twigs and unwashed wool

    blaaaahhh fear me

college/ugh i just love his hat so much

    Dear Harriet Walter,

    This is how long I have been at college.

    I would write more - there's certainly plenty to talk about - but right now I need to study like an angry badger.

several reasons to be dehydrated

    Dear Harriet Walter,

    Okay. So. This month, recapitulated (for reference on current events in my life see this previous post):

• My parents moved with the rest of my family to Idaho in the first couple of days of this month, while I chose to move into Best Friend's home. My parents came back after a couple of days to continue working on our beat-up, rapidly emptying house.
• I stayed with Best Friend's family for a couple of weeks. My parents stayed with my grandma, who also lives in town. (Happy news: Shortly before I left, Best Friend's family volunteered to foster my dog for a year in hopes that my parents will be able to move into pet-friendly housing next year.)
• About a week ago we called ourselves done with the house and my hometown, leaving my grandma and Best Friend and Best Friend's younger sister to continue what work there was left to be done - mostly painting - to get it into a renting-ready state. Parents and I moved to the parents' student housing in Idaho, where my siblings were still stationed.
• I stayed in Idaho for about five days.
• Mother, Sister and I drove down to southern California starting the 18th, spent the night at a cheap motel in Reno and made it to my college on the 19th according to schedule.
• I am now on my third day of orientation. It has been difficult. Mother had to leave and fly back north yesterday.
• I have never moved before in my life and have now done so three times in one month. (There has been a lot of driving.)
• Sister is breaking down and talking about leaving me, dropping out and going back to Idaho.

    TURNS OUT STRESS PILLS CAN ONLY DO SO MUCH

status update

    Dear Harriet Walter,

    Here is a list of things that are going on:

• I am going to college in Pasadena, CA this fall. Mid-August.
• My sister is going to the same college with me.
• My parents are both going back to school this fall. They will move to Idaho. My father is going to study Computer Science. My mother is going to finish up her Bachelor's because she couldn't when she first went to college because she was too busy having babies.
• My oldest sister, having now gotten her Associate's degree (whatever that is), is going to go to the same college in Idaho. She is my father's study-buddy and she is also going to study Computer Science. She will be taking her toddler and her husband with her and they will all finally be living independently in an apartment and not with my parents.
• My slightly useless brother will live with my parents in their apartment and hopefully get a job.

    Here is a list of things I need to get:

• A passport
• A driver's license
• Medical insurance
• A new laptop
• A new home for my dog.

    Also need vehicle registration to keep a car on campus (sister and I are probably going to drive down when we go), need Californiappropriate clothes annnnnnd I should really stock up on handkerchiefs, stress pills and chocolate. Weeping is very much on the agenda.

    MEANWHILE, BACK TO OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED WRITER'S BLOCK