Quote to end the Week

"May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view."

 -Edward Abbey           

Some Bad Things, but Some Good Things Too

The odds were stacked against me this week, and we (the english majors) only just realized that Mercury was in retrograde again-- I may be finding some truth in this astrology bologna.

This week included a trip to the dentist that left me swollen and sore for days (I still can't open my mouth fully-- I am able to chew again!), a day long seminar that was tedious and disappointing, a trip to Pittsburgh to attend a Marcellus Shale Trade Show, and then we wrapped the week up with an appointment to an OBGYN who seemed annoyed that I was wasting his time by not being a pregnant woman.

It wasn't all bad though!

When I was going to Pittsburgh, I got to stay with my Uncle Bill and Aunt Sandy and play with my cousin Liam, and have the honor of being the first niece or nephew to visit on my own. My cousin Patrick stays with us when his family comes to visit, and I feel like it helped create a special bond even if it took some getting used to the first time. So I'm excited to take that step with my family in Pittsburgh, and I can't wait to get to know them better. I think they were also the last set of aunts and uncles that I had ever NOT spent the night with-- the exception may be PAG, but let's face it, I spent something like 4 hours a day with him in highschool, so we passed that level of bonding a long time ago. Anyway, Liam asked me if I would please come back and visit again, and I'm excited to hopefully do it again.

Also, my kitchen got updated! Look at these beauties:

My mom bought me the Ninja as a surprise gift, and today while I was out grocery shopping I found this crock pot on sale for $11! It has 3 heat options, and the stoneware inside is removable and dishwasher safe! I am in apartment-living heaven right now. 

Finally, I still am thankful everyday to work with great people and have a great boss who is encouraging and driven without ever making me feel overwhelmed or unappreciated. The fact that I not only have a job, but have a job with a great manager and great coworkers, makes me a very lucky girl. 

Long story short, I believe in looking on the bright side.

My Etsy Find of the Week

So I know I'm not supposed to be buying anything for the next three months, but I slipped off the wagon one night and it ended up being totally worth it. Usually when I order something from etsy in the middle of the night, a few days later something weird and useless shows up at my door. This time, I got something that was better than I expected!

From The Page

This one is black tea and leather scented, and surprisingly mild and nice. Even buying it, I was thinking "this is the kind of thing that sounds cool but actually is really awful," and that was not the case! I also got one themed from Looking for Alaska (of course) but I don't like it quite as much-- too flowery.

I don't feel quite so guilty spending money on Etsy-- go, support creative people and their hobbies! It feels good, and then you also have stuff!

Uma Thurman - Fall Out Boy

Happy New Fall Out Boy Album Day! 

2 weeks ago, I wouldn't have gotten this reference. I especially love the nod to the credit song in Pulp Fiction without directly sampling it (at least, I don't remember The Munsters being in Pulp Fiction).

Oscars: What I Watched

1. The Imitation Game- I think right now this is my favorite, but possibly because it was the first I watched in a long weekend of movie-going. I went in not knowing the history, and so I was just overcome by the complete unfairness of everything. I love that it made me angry and inspired me and I hope it made other people feel that way too.

2. Birdman- The odds were not in Birdman's favor. I ended up watching it over a period of two days, and started it right after I finished The Imitation Game. I was still so hung up on what had happened in that movie that all of the problems in Birdman seemed trite and superficial. I promised to try it again with my mind in a different place, so I'll update when that happens.

3. American Sniper- Again, I loved it. I think this is the "Band of Brothers" version of the Iraq war-- it's not a war story in that it follows a real plot, and it has none of the romantic bullshit you get in other flagwavers. In creative writing they tell you to be as specific as possible, because it's the small details that people are more likely to connect with. In that way, I feel like American Sniper focused on one man's story that represented thousands of men and women's stories.
Also, there were a bunch of vets in our theater, and when Chris Kyle kills the terrorist they all cheered, which was both touching and unnerving.

4. Into the Woods- Whatever. It was exactly what I thought it would be-- not bad, but nothing to be excited about. Everyone was great, but what I love about Into the Woods is that it pokes fun at the stories, so as a Disney creation it kind of creates its own irony. To me, Into the Woods is great because it shows the ugly parts of fairy tales, and so this was Disney prettying up the ugly parts that it had already left out before.

5. Whiplash- I think this movie had more tension in it than American Sniper. I won't say my band experience was like it was in the movie-- but it was enough that I wasn't shocked by any of the behavior. Also, you can only show Miles Teller sweating on a drum set for so long before it starts to get old, jazz lover or not.


This week hopefully I'll get to Selma, and then maybe one of the animated ones for fun, but my eyes would appreciate some rest from screens. Does anyone have suggestions for this? I work for 8 hours staring at a computer, and I need tips on how to come home without a headache.

Quote of the Day: Loving Yourself

I love myself when I am laughing. . . and then again when I am looking mean and impressive.

-Zora Neale Hurston

Did you know she wrote "Their Eyes Were Watching God" in 7 weeks? As someone that puts off projects that will take a long time to finish, I find this inspiring. 

Oscar Nominations Watch List (by priority)

1. American Sniper   :133 minutes
2. The Imitation Game   :114 minutes
3. Birdman    :119 minutes
4. Boyhood    :165 minutes
5. The Theory of Everything    :123 minutes
6. Selma   :128 minutes
7. Whiplash   :107 minutes
8. Foxcatcher    :129 minutes
9. The Judge    :141 minutes
10. Nightcrawler    :117 minutes
11. Still Alice   :101 minutes
12. Wild    :115 minutes
13. Into the Woods   :125 minutes
14. Big Hero 6   :102 minutes
15. How to Train your Dragon 2    :102 minutes
16. Inherent Vice    :148 minutes

So, with 5 weeks, that makes 3 movies a week... Not impossible! I left a few out (the foreign films and the shorts, and some of the animated) to make it seem like a more reachable goal. Especially since a lot of these fall in the 2 hour range, which is way more manageable.

Once I get through these I'll get to the snubs (Cake, Big Eyes)

Busy!

So what with the cooking practice, the award shows and nomination announcements, and my determination to fit in as much missing culture as I can, I have not been very loyal to this blog!

The updates:

1. Cooking- I'm starting to get a handle on things! I learned to make a braised steak in my crockpot, and from there I made a yet-to-be-named dish that resembled pulled pork (but it was steak), eggs, and cheese in a taco shell. Last night I made salmon, and the night before bbq chicken. It's taken a lot of phone calls to mom, but I'm starting to feel more confident and I don't allow myself to consider the fast food options anymore. It feels good.

2. Working Out- I had the weirdest interaction with a Russian man named Misch-Misch in my gym. By "weirdest" I mean genuinely unsettling and I have been advised to just pay for a gym membership to go somewhere more open/safer. Besides that, I've felt really motivated about making it to the gym and I already can tell I have more energy. I also started making it a routine to get up early and do yoga in the morning-- I'd like to do a post on the magic of routines, but the short version is, it doesn't take long to get used to anything.

3. Giving up TV: Besides New Girl on Tuesday night, I have watched NO mindless TV. It actually proved to be a lot easier to give up than what I originally had expected, just because I don't have time for it now. Plus, I have a desk (!) so I've been doing a lot more writing. Mostly I just haven't needed to disconnect my brain like I was doing when I first moved in. I finally watched Pulp Fiction, which I loved, and although it's a weird transition I can also cross Zoolander off my list. January "to watch" was mostly just movies that my friends like that I've been putting off-- I honestly can't listen to Ben Stiller and not hear Kayse.

Now, it's just going to be an oscar nomination filled few weeks while I try to catch up on everything I haven't seen-- except Cake, which didn't get nominated for anything but I'm just going to treat it as though it had.

I'm making a separate post for all the movies that were nominated and what I need to watch/prioritize. Stay tuned (or read above, if it's already there).

Happy Birthday, Simone de Beauvoir!

"I am incapable of conceiving infinity, and yet I do not accept finity. I want this adventure that is the context of my life to go on without end."

"I wish that every human life might be pure transparent freedom."

Throwback Thursday: Paris, 2012

I envy that girl. 

Happy day!

1) Have I mentioned I love my job and the people I work with? My coworker steps out of the office 10 minutes before we all leave to turn our cars on so they'll be nice and warm by the time we're ready to go home. What a sweet guy. Who needs an automatic starter when you work with a gentleman.

2) I had a wonderful experience with my new dentist, and it feels like a big step in the right direction towards making this place a home. They had pretty cool updated tools (they don't even scrape your teeth, they have this weird vibrating water pic that sounds like a slow death but hurts much less than the metal pick), and a laser that tests for cavities without needing xrays (mine hadn't gotten in from my last dentist). Then, to cap it all off, they scheduled me an appointment at the end of January to get my cavities taken care of, even though we don't know exactly how many I have. All just so I had a reserved space and we could make sure it gets taken care of before I run out of dental insurance.

The office was so friendly, the dentist was this young pleasant man who did not make me feel like my cavities were a reflection of my character, and my dental hygienest even gave me her phone number in case I want to go out to the bar sometime and need someone to go with. Just a really positive experience. Plus, it's only a 5 minute drive from the ofice and they're open until 7, so I don't even have to miss work to go!

3) My mother's pancakes as backup dinner- yes, I've been trying to eat healthy, but this definitely would have been a taco bell night (I didn't even get back until 7) so I would call pancakes an improvement. Plus it's also helping me to stick to my goal of not buying food or going out until I use up everything I have in my freezer now. In college, I was excited for fresh pepperoni rolls, but as an adult I find my mother's pancakes the ultimate comfort food.

4) Kind Bars- We have a wellness coordinator at work who is in charge of creating healthy alternatives, health goal incentives (like a program for people that want to quit smoking, or lose weight, whatever), and just generally maintaining a workplace where people can make conveniently healthy decisions. Today she brought in a bunch of healthy snacks to leave in our bistro to see what everyone likes, and I am currently obsessed with:

Realistically, they aren't SUPER healthy; 200 calories, a lot of fat(but the good kind), but very little sugar with a little bit of fiber and protein. I wouldn't say they would replace a meal, but they taste like a candy bar and I think they can definitely benefit someone with a sweet tooth like me. I would totally pack this as a desert. 

I believe in recognizing those good days. 

Quarterly Goals Update

I feel optimistic about being so far ahead in my quarter goals and only being 5 days into the year, but realistically I started sometime at the end of the December. No reason to wait though, right?

So far I've read The Alchemist, A Clockwork Orange, and I'm almost finished with Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Out of the three, A Clockwork Orange was definitely my favorite (but also the hardest to read).

As for my losing 30 pounds goal, so far I've lost 5 (but again, this is out of a 21/2ish week period). I have a six week workout challenge, and I even met a friendly neighbor at the gym! He was a beefy middle-aged man who made friendly small talk when I came in, and then asked if I was ok with him being there because he would leave and come back I felt uncomfortable. It is an awfully tiny room to be sweating in with a strange man you just met (someone lifting weights would have to strain their neck to not stare at a person's ass while on the elliptical) but his awareness and kindness was so refreshing. Hurray for men that make women feel safe!

Cooking efforts have been ambitious, but mostly futile. My hands are starting to look like a misbehaving house elf's.

Yesterday I tried barbeque chicken, today was sort of a beef taco (all of these things are only vague representations of what they are supposed to be). You know you're in trouble when you have the onion powder at the table with your salt and pepper. 

First Friday of 2015

1. Leaving Work Early- It has been a super weird work week (I was off Monday, back on Tuesday, half day Wednesday, off Thursday, then back today) and since hardly anyone is in the office it's hard to move forward on a lot of my projects. Today I actually had a fairly productive day and was feeling really proactive, and then at 11:30 we found out that we were excused to leave at 2. What a difference 3 hours makes! Going home and having a few hours of daylight is awesome.

2. This Article on Menstrual Cups- Sometimes, when you are feeling lousy, you get reminders like this on how privileged you are. Never have I ever been forced to live in a clay hut or skip school because of my menses (that's right, we're talking about this). If you feel inspired by the article, Femme International has some really awesome projects you can donate towards-- you don't even have to dump ice on your head.

3. Dumb puns from my brother:

First 15 Books of 2015

1. The Alchemist -Paolo Coelho
2. A Clockwork Orange -Anthony Burgess
3. Trainspotting -Irvine Welsh
4. Love in the Time of Cholera -Gabriel García Márquez
5. Cat's Cradle -Kurt Vonnegut
6. Lolita -Vladimir Nabokov
7. The End of the Affair -Graham Greene
8. Catcher in the Rye -J.D. Salinger
9. The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing -Melissa Bank
10. The Color Purple -Alice Walker
11. Magical Thinking -Augusten Burroughs
12. In Cold Blood -Truman Capote
13. A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never do Again -David Foster Wallace
14. Memoirs of a Geisha -Arthur Golden
15. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children -Ransom Riggs