Lindsay

Better

2008-04-17T22:48:47Z

Life lesson: Getting a container of instant coffee dropped on your toe hurts a great deal. It is not at all recommended. This happened to me on Saturday, right before I had to ride up to my weekend/summer job, and I'm still hobbling around 5 days later.

I feel like I'm back on track with most of my classes. This is a Good Thing. I don't want to be stuck in undergrad any longer than necessary. I still have little to no motivation, however.

I'm currently lusting over the HP tx2000z. I am not a great typist, and a lot of my classes involve either IPA symbols or mathematical equations so taking notes on a regular computer is essentially out of the question. I'm currently using a Toshiba tablet PC, but its on its last legs (I have never heard a computer buzz while attempting to process something) and portions of the digitizer screen are dead, so buying this computer is tempting. However, its about $1000 more than I actually have at the moment. :( My damn Paypal buyer's line of credit is testing me, but I don't want to get into debt again after I just got out from under a lot of it.

However, I am making quite a bit on eBay at the moment. I just sold my old drum set for about $150, and my broken Powerbook is going to go for at least $50. If I can redeem the SquareTrade warranty on my current laptop, the new shiny computer may be within reach.

School is over in a couple weeks, but it doesn't feel that way to me. The boyfriend graduates on May 10th. It will be strange dating someone who is not in school - someone who actually has a career and is on his own. I'm very excited for him, and I'm hoping that I'm doing a good job in helping him feel more confident about his future.

As I mentioned earlier, my weekend/summer job has started back up. It really feels like home to me in a way; I guess its not so strange considering I've been working in the park for six years now, and in the department for four. When the full-time supervisor introduced me to the new-hires, she mentioned that I grew up there. I really have - my one supervisor has been a definite positive influence on my life (and I doubt she even realizes it). She's just such a strong, wonderful woman, and isn't afraid of what others think of her, even though she may not be traditionally feminine. Seeing her has helped me to develop that same confidence in myself. When I was 18 I was such a shrinking violet; I barely spoke, considered myself lucky that my then boyfriend had ever looked my way (even though he was a horrible person in general), and just really didn't believe that I was worth knowing in general. After working there a few years I have grown into my skin, so to speak. I even met Brandon while I was working there, but that is a story for another day.

Procrastination Cycle

2008-04-03T23:38:41Z

I haven't been in the best mood for the last few days. I think its because I'm at the point in the semester where I feel like I've messed up and can't do anything to fix it, which is foolish.

I've been working on a paper for one of my classes which was due a week ago, but at the time I just couldn't get it done with all the other stuff I had to do. Now the fact that it is late depresses me, and makes me want to work on it even less, which makes it later. Then when I do sit down and get going on it, something happens to break my concentration (like having to go to class, work, sleep, or my boyfriend bothering me) and I start procrastinating again. Plus, I have skipped my classes for the past week because I have issues about showing up without having my work up-to-date - I feel like my professor is going to chastise me or confront me or something, and I don't want to deal with it. I should be okay in the class once I get the paper handed in, but right now I feel like I've gotten myself into a hole I can't get out of.

I'm not too pleased with the class as it is; it was supposed to be an internship in the Holocaust Resource Center at my school, where you help students and community members find material for research, etc. However, nobody ever comes in to use the resources, and, if they did, we wouldn't be able to help them anyway because we were never shown what we have on hand. Most of what we do is answer the phone and take messages, and photocopy pages of books so the people who run the place can refer to the information without actually having to carry the book around with them. I have to do this for nine hours a week for a four credit class (all my school's classes are four credits for the most part). I was under the impression that the number of credit hours was supposed to correspond with the contact time required, but I guess not.

The only other requirements for the course were two book reports, a journal entry for each time you go and sit there (really more of a handwritten blog; we have to respond to an article left on the table for us) and this research paper. One of the book reports was fairly awkward to do because we were writing about a book co-authored by the Dean of the General Studies Department and his father, and it was being graded by the dean himself. I was worried I was going to interpret something completely wrong or similar.

This is a silly general studies course and I'm getting myself worked up over it. I don't usually do this.

And now I've spent time writing this rather than completing my paper. I don't know what's wrong with me sometimes. Oh well, gotta head to work now.

littlemisssix @ 2008-03-27T16:11:00

2008-03-27T20:23:57Z

I have some pictures from Wilmington, but haven't uploaded them yet. I really enjoyed my visit to Wilmington, however. Brandon and I spent the better part of two days just walking around and familiarizing ourselves with the city, and it really solidified in our minds that that is where we want to move after graduation. Some parts of the area are really beautiful.

Not too much else is going on at the moment. My summer job is starting up, and yesterday Brandon and I went up to help run our department orientation for new employees. It was fun, overall. I enjoy the company of all the supervisors. Most have the same attitude and sense of humor as I do, and everyone really cares about one another. There wasn't really much to do - the head supervisor gave a speech, then the employees had to list their availability and sign some forms.

There was one rehire there, a guy we call Big Mike because he's... big, and proud of it it seems. I was sad to hear that he and his cousin Larry - who had also worked there last summer and seemed like a decent guy overall - had a falling out over the winter, and now Larry is living in a shelter somewhere in Trenton and won't return phone calls. I hope he's alright. I worry about a few of the people I have met at that job, another is Janel, who was forced to quit because her husband found out she was working closely with other men. She admitted to us a few times that she wanted to leave him a lot, but didn't have anywhere for her kids to go. That was two summers ago. I wonder how she is now.

We found out that one of our friends from last year was promoted, however, it was to a different division of the department, so we probably won't be working closely with him any more. I'm happy he got the promotion, as he deserved it, however, he was one of our best workers, and his personality always lightened things up and helped keep us sane during the long nights we're working.

Trip Tomorrow

2008-03-22T03:47:57Z

Brandon and I are heading down to Wilmington, DE, tomorrow morning to check out the area. We're planning on getting a condo somewhere in Delaware in the next year, and want to explore Wilmington's Trolley Square neighborhood. It sounds like our kind of area - young professional couples, cheap condos, and some Irish pubs. I've never been much of a city person, but the idea of living somewhere where I can walk or take public transportation anywhere I want to go intrigues me; I've grown up in suburban sprawl where groceries, lunch, and everything else are a 20 minute drive away. I'm hoping we like what we see.

We're planning on heading out around 11AM after he gets home from work, finding somewhere to park the car and walking around to get a feel for the city. Once 3PM hits we can check into our hotel and relax for awhile, then our evening consists of finding dinner and the area's nightlife. I probably will not post tomorrow because I believe the high-speed internet there is pay-access only, and - although I'm an internet addict - I can't justify the added cost.

Maybe I'll have some pictures to post when I get back. The digital SLR is at my parents' house, but we have Brandon's little point-and-shoot, and I adore old fashioned architecture.

First entry

2008-03-21T10:29:17Z

I am just setting up shop here at the moment. I've been blogging or keeping online journals for quite a long time now, and decided it was time for something new. I feel as though I grew up, in a way, with some of my online friends from old journals or web-forums - we were there for the first romances, heading off to college, hitting bad times, having good times. However, now we are all nearing the ends of our college careers and have found ourselves and our personalities - and in doing that have outgrown most of what we had in common. I guess here I am hoping to find some people around my age that have similar interests (or at least a similar outlook on life).

We'll see how it goes.