TA Sam posted my flash movie in his blog, if you're interested in it. He also posted LeeAnn's, for those of you who know her. He picked ours because they were the most abstract, so don't feel bad for Courtney's drumming or Marin's neocortical columns.
In other news, I turned in the "Marisa pretends to be a vegan" article today. I got a little snippy with LeeAnn in the article (at one point I caved on the diet, and she told half the department, which she insists is part of her charm) so I would like to point out how cranky I got when I couldn't eat cheese. I would also like to point out that LeeAnn and I are still on speaking terms even though she read the article this morning.
Tomorrow is hand turkey day. I'm going to have a super AWESOME turkey this year. It's going to be South Park themed, and I (dorkily) made a couple sketches when I was supposed to be doing other homework.
Finally, in wedding news, Matt booked the honeymoon today and I'll be home in a week, so I think we all knows that there will be no more progress made on the wedding plans before Thanksgiving.
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Hey, Cara!
Long time no post. I've been posting pretty well on my OpenDiary, umm...diary, and then I thought it would be more productive to post here.
So, this is my latest post from OD, and I'll try to keep up better.
I'm taking a magazine writing class this semester. It's kind of a funny class. The professor alternately spouts her political views and reads to us like kindergarten storytime. It is a highly enjoyable class, although the political talk occasionally makes me uncomfortable, even though I agree with her a lot of the time. She's also a vegetarian who went to UD, so we have a lot in common, but she spent 10 minutes in class yesterday trying to convince us to attend a talk on vaccines and autism, which is a crock. It's not like she comes down on you if you disagree with her, or anything. It's just a little uncomfortable to have a professor oversharing like that. I also have a professor this semester who overshares her personal information. She had to cancel class once because she was sick, and she sent out an email with all the gory details, which was TMI. She'll do the same thing if you send her any information on why you're not in class. She announces it to the whole class. (Marin's family is in town. Ed's on a job interview. Dave has a stomach virus.) I have a pact with Marin to keep her from oversharing behind our backs if one of us is out.
But I digress.
So, for my 4th article, I decided to do a Supersize Me/Nickeled and Dimed type piece about being a vegan. So, I've been vegan for the last two weeks. It ended today, and I cannot tell you how happy I was to eat cheese again. I don't remember missing meat this much when I first became vegetarian, but I never really enjoyed meat. I really enjoy cheese and (to a lesser extent) eggs, so they were harder for me to give up. I also went about the whole thing stupidly the first week, since I didn't start it with a trip to the grocery store, like I should have. Instead, I just cut out anything in my refridgerator or cupboard that contained animal products. That made the diet more about what I could NOT eat than what I could have, which is a bad mindset to get into. Consequently, I've been craving cheese. It also didn't help that it's right after Halloween and there is chocolate everywhere, most of which contains milk. The past few days I think I've overcompensated with plant fats and salt, so I actually think I've been eating worse, even though I"m eating a lot more fruits and vegetables than usual. I couldn't wait for today to come, but I would consider going vegan again. I think I'd have to work on cutting down my dairy consumption first. Substituting things I won't really miss, and then working on cutting down from there. In the meantime, I can start buying cruelty-free dairy and eggs, which should help me cut down, just because I'm incredibly cheap.
The other thing that makes this hard is that Matt is coming to visit Saturday (it's been about 6 weeks, and it was just our 4-year anniversary on Tuesday, so I can't wait. Unless he decides to take another internship in CA this summer, which looks doubtful, we'll never have to be apart this long again. I'm looking forward to that.) anyway, it's hard because Matt's not a vegetarian, so I feel like I need the flexibility of being lacto-ovo in order to live happily with him. I'm hoping he can cut down on the meat so he's just eating it 1-2x per week. I don't really intend to cook it more than that. I've never really been comfortable cooking meat. I feel like I can cook chicken, but I don't really like doing it. Of course, I make it almost every time Matt visits me to show him that it's a special occasion. I'm not sure if he's picked up on that. He's a grown man, and he can cook for himself, but I'm betting if he has a choice between eating the meal that's available and cooking something for himself, he'll eat what I put in front of him.
Finally, the wedding update. I got some invitation samples, but I'm not really happy about them. The only one I kind of like came with no writing on it, so it just looks like a piece of paper, which is blah. I wasn't happy with the paper quality on the others. I realize that people are going with lighter papers now to cut down on postage (which is going to go up before the wedding. Great.) but it still just feels cheap to me. I don't know what I'm going to do, but Thanksgiving week will be mecha wedding planning week. My sister is supposedly meeting with the florist and hair and make-up people, so then I'll follow up when I'm home. She was also supposed to meet with the pianist, but that doesn't seem to have happened. That makes me a little nervous. Matt hasn't done any of his jobs, but one should be done tonight, and he says his goal is to have everything else done next week. We'll see. Tonight he's supposed to be finalizing the guest list with his mom. That means that next week he'll be booking the honeymoon and limo and picking out the groomsman wear. None of this should take him more than 5 minutes but he gets all worked up and then he wants me to do it. Well, that's not what he says. He says we should be doing these things together - which means that he wants me to do it. I just have to be firm and tell him he's doing a wonderful job and it makes me so happy that he's doing these jobs. Dresses are ordered and should be in by my birthday. Grandma and Matt's mom are still dress-less, but I doubt they've put any time into looking.
Also, I was a bouncer for Halloween. I bought a black t-shirt and some iron-on letters at Michael's and made a shirt that said "security." I also had a black ribbed hat. I wanted a cowboy hat, but I couldn't find one I liked. It was awesome. I tried to convince Matt to be a bouncer, too, but he wasn't buying it. He said "I have no muscles. You'll look sexy. I'll just look like a dork."
So, this is my latest post from OD, and I'll try to keep up better.
I'm taking a magazine writing class this semester. It's kind of a funny class. The professor alternately spouts her political views and reads to us like kindergarten storytime. It is a highly enjoyable class, although the political talk occasionally makes me uncomfortable, even though I agree with her a lot of the time. She's also a vegetarian who went to UD, so we have a lot in common, but she spent 10 minutes in class yesterday trying to convince us to attend a talk on vaccines and autism, which is a crock. It's not like she comes down on you if you disagree with her, or anything. It's just a little uncomfortable to have a professor oversharing like that. I also have a professor this semester who overshares her personal information. She had to cancel class once because she was sick, and she sent out an email with all the gory details, which was TMI. She'll do the same thing if you send her any information on why you're not in class. She announces it to the whole class. (Marin's family is in town. Ed's on a job interview. Dave has a stomach virus.) I have a pact with Marin to keep her from oversharing behind our backs if one of us is out.
But I digress.
So, for my 4th article, I decided to do a Supersize Me/Nickeled and Dimed type piece about being a vegan. So, I've been vegan for the last two weeks. It ended today, and I cannot tell you how happy I was to eat cheese again. I don't remember missing meat this much when I first became vegetarian, but I never really enjoyed meat. I really enjoy cheese and (to a lesser extent) eggs, so they were harder for me to give up. I also went about the whole thing stupidly the first week, since I didn't start it with a trip to the grocery store, like I should have. Instead, I just cut out anything in my refridgerator or cupboard that contained animal products. That made the diet more about what I could NOT eat than what I could have, which is a bad mindset to get into. Consequently, I've been craving cheese. It also didn't help that it's right after Halloween and there is chocolate everywhere, most of which contains milk. The past few days I think I've overcompensated with plant fats and salt, so I actually think I've been eating worse, even though I"m eating a lot more fruits and vegetables than usual. I couldn't wait for today to come, but I would consider going vegan again. I think I'd have to work on cutting down my dairy consumption first. Substituting things I won't really miss, and then working on cutting down from there. In the meantime, I can start buying cruelty-free dairy and eggs, which should help me cut down, just because I'm incredibly cheap.
The other thing that makes this hard is that Matt is coming to visit Saturday (it's been about 6 weeks, and it was just our 4-year anniversary on Tuesday, so I can't wait. Unless he decides to take another internship in CA this summer, which looks doubtful, we'll never have to be apart this long again. I'm looking forward to that.) anyway, it's hard because Matt's not a vegetarian, so I feel like I need the flexibility of being lacto-ovo in order to live happily with him. I'm hoping he can cut down on the meat so he's just eating it 1-2x per week. I don't really intend to cook it more than that. I've never really been comfortable cooking meat. I feel like I can cook chicken, but I don't really like doing it. Of course, I make it almost every time Matt visits me to show him that it's a special occasion. I'm not sure if he's picked up on that. He's a grown man, and he can cook for himself, but I'm betting if he has a choice between eating the meal that's available and cooking something for himself, he'll eat what I put in front of him.Finally, the wedding update. I got some invitation samples, but I'm not really happy about them. The only one I kind of like came with no writing on it, so it just looks like a piece of paper, which is blah. I wasn't happy with the paper quality on the others. I realize that people are going with lighter papers now to cut down on postage (which is going to go up before the wedding. Great.) but it still just feels cheap to me. I don't know what I'm going to do, but Thanksgiving week will be mecha wedding planning week. My sister is supposedly meeting with the florist and hair and make-up people, so then I'll follow up when I'm home. She was also supposed to meet with the pianist, but that doesn't seem to have happened. That makes me a little nervous. Matt hasn't done any of his jobs, but one should be done tonight, and he says his goal is to have everything else done next week. We'll see. Tonight he's supposed to be finalizing the guest list with his mom. That means that next week he'll be booking the honeymoon and limo and picking out the groomsman wear. None of this should take him more than 5 minutes but he gets all worked up and then he wants me to do it. Well, that's not what he says. He says we should be doing these things together - which means that he wants me to do it. I just have to be firm and tell him he's doing a wonderful job and it makes me so happy that he's doing these jobs. Dresses are ordered and should be in by my birthday. Grandma and Matt's mom are still dress-less, but I doubt they've put any time into looking.
Also, I was a bouncer for Halloween. I bought a black t-shirt and some iron-on letters at Michael's and made a shirt that said "security." I also had a black ribbed hat. I wanted a cowboy hat, but I couldn't find one I liked. It was awesome. I tried to convince Matt to be a bouncer, too, but he wasn't buying it. He said "I have no muscles. You'll look sexy. I'll just look like a dork."
Friday, June 10, 2005
ADD me
So, I have all these notes floating about on my desk, but of course I've never written them here. I have to get some discipline about writing - I mean, I'm sitting at the computer anyway. Maybe Sunday I'll type up my notes and back-date them.
Work is still feast or famine. Until Wednesday, I was feasting. Yesterday, I was fasting, which led to a lot of calling photographers, who may or may not have called me back, and I won't know until Monday because I managed to leave my phone at work. My mom will not be pleased. She's been passive-aggressively telling me to make appointments for this weekend. I do have a confirmed appt. for Monday, though. And I never made one to get my oil changed. Maybe I can do that from work today? In happier news, the reason I won't have it until Monday is because I'm working out of the Princeton office today. That might be a little lonley, but my commute is a walk across the street, so I think I can make friends.
Roommate Neil is still not home. I have the place to myself, which I'm starting to hate and enjoy concomitantly. (Do you like that word? I see it a lot at work.) Unfortunately, there's no one to blame for the mess. Fortunately, there's a lot less hair about.
And, finally, in wedding planning news, I hope to have a site (and therefore a date) by the end of next week, if not this weekend. I also tried to ask one of my former roommates to be in the bridal party, but I had to do it over AIM because I was without phone, and she never answered...and I asked her twice...and I had previously asked her and got no answer...so, the question is, do I call her next week or do I find another bridesmaid?
Work is still feast or famine. Until Wednesday, I was feasting. Yesterday, I was fasting, which led to a lot of calling photographers, who may or may not have called me back, and I won't know until Monday because I managed to leave my phone at work. My mom will not be pleased. She's been passive-aggressively telling me to make appointments for this weekend. I do have a confirmed appt. for Monday, though. And I never made one to get my oil changed. Maybe I can do that from work today? In happier news, the reason I won't have it until Monday is because I'm working out of the Princeton office today. That might be a little lonley, but my commute is a walk across the street, so I think I can make friends.
Roommate Neil is still not home. I have the place to myself, which I'm starting to hate and enjoy concomitantly. (Do you like that word? I see it a lot at work.) Unfortunately, there's no one to blame for the mess. Fortunately, there's a lot less hair about.
And, finally, in wedding planning news, I hope to have a site (and therefore a date) by the end of next week, if not this weekend. I also tried to ask one of my former roommates to be in the bridal party, but I had to do it over AIM because I was without phone, and she never answered...and I asked her twice...and I had previously asked her and got no answer...so, the question is, do I call her next week or do I find another bridesmaid?
Monday, May 30, 2005
weak ends
My parents and sister/brother-in-law got home this weekend. I've been in Fanwood since Friday with little to no internet access, which made keeping in touch difficult at best. Also, I had to entertain my grandmother all weekend, which didn't help. At least I convinced her that I needed to sleep at my parents' house. And I had to drive to the airport twice, but now it is over and everyone is home, so all is right in the world...right? Matt is set up in his new apartment. He starts work tomorrow, so I hope that goes well. I go back to work tomorrow, but I get to work out of the Princeton office Wednesday, and that's only a block away, so I'm really looking forward to it. I did nothing at work on Friday. I sat around and talked to various people and got exactly one thing done. Oh, no, wait, I emailed someone, so I guess I got two things done. Twice as productive! I'm glad to be back in this apartment. Already, it's like home. Or maybe my parents' house is just not-home. Is it weird that I feel fine being here by myself, but I freak out being in the home I grew up in by myself?
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Ain't no sunshine
I found C-vans, thanks to some creative Google-stalking. And then I got to orientation and they hand me this really helpful packet that tells you to use this address if you want to get directions online because the address on all their stationery will send you to the wrong address. Excellent advice to have before I found my way to orientation. They put me to work right away, though. So far, I've been assigned to 4 proposals (the average turn-around time is 10 days) and I've mostly been writing bios, but I also edited a few short sections, and soon I'll get to write a case study. I can't decide if they're still planning to hire me. I have this odd vibe that it might not happen, but they keep signing me up for training sessions that I just don't need...unless I'm a more permanent fixture. I'll try to keep track. Anyway, I meant to provide my continuing adventures - but Matt was here, so I was distracted. He left yesterday. Actually, he left yesterday at 5 am. He left at 5 am, and he doesn't trust my clock, so he set a second alarm on his cell phone. He set 2 alarms, and then he got up before either of them went off.
Ask me if he turned either of them off.
Anyway, le Matthew is now in OK, where it is raining profusely. It also rained here. Coincidence? Probably not, but probably not related to me, either. Roommate Neil gets home around 10, so I pretty much have the place to myself, which leads to blasting random music in an effort to make myself feel at home in what is obviously not my place. I reorganized the room yesterday, so it sort of looks like a girl lives here now, but I still had to sleep with the tv on - a true sign that I'm not home yet. Last night when Matt called, he asked if I had seen "hide or hair" of Neil. I told him Neil's hide was not home from work yet, but his hair is all over the apartment. This is disgusting, yet true. Actually, some of the hair is almost certainly Matt's. I can't decide if it's the season for them to be dropping their winter coats or if they enjoy marking their territory (and if it's the latter, I should be eternally grateful that they chose to mark it with hair). I cleaned the floor once, but I haven't been brave enough for a repeat performance, which is too bad for my [mental?] health.
Finally, in wedding-related news, there was nothing for me to eat at the seafood place except a side salad. The waiter actually commented on me not ordering anything, so I commented on there not being any vegetarian-friendly food on the menu, and he apologetically offered to bring me an extra side of vegetables. So, I ate a side salad and 4 asparagus spears for dinner. Matt's mom agreed to pay for the photographer, although she seemed to have some sticker shock and (not totally unexpectedly) tried to suggest we try to get Matt's uncle to take our pictures. Matt pointed out that he didn't take the pictures for his own step-daughter's wedding, and I think she's dropped that. I don't mean to sound like a brat about that, but I don't feel right asking a family member to travel half-way across the country to work at our wedding. This is just an expensive item that we don't really care about, so if she didn't pay for it, I'm not sure what we would have done. My parents get back next week, so the actual wedding drama won't be starting for a good 2 weeks. I'm enjoying the last of my care-free weekends.
Ask me if he turned either of them off.
Anyway, le Matthew is now in OK, where it is raining profusely. It also rained here. Coincidence? Probably not, but probably not related to me, either. Roommate Neil gets home around 10, so I pretty much have the place to myself, which leads to blasting random music in an effort to make myself feel at home in what is obviously not my place. I reorganized the room yesterday, so it sort of looks like a girl lives here now, but I still had to sleep with the tv on - a true sign that I'm not home yet. Last night when Matt called, he asked if I had seen "hide or hair" of Neil. I told him Neil's hide was not home from work yet, but his hair is all over the apartment. This is disgusting, yet true. Actually, some of the hair is almost certainly Matt's. I can't decide if it's the season for them to be dropping their winter coats or if they enjoy marking their territory (and if it's the latter, I should be eternally grateful that they chose to mark it with hair). I cleaned the floor once, but I haven't been brave enough for a repeat performance, which is too bad for my [mental?] health.
Finally, in wedding-related news, there was nothing for me to eat at the seafood place except a side salad. The waiter actually commented on me not ordering anything, so I commented on there not being any vegetarian-friendly food on the menu, and he apologetically offered to bring me an extra side of vegetables. So, I ate a side salad and 4 asparagus spears for dinner. Matt's mom agreed to pay for the photographer, although she seemed to have some sticker shock and (not totally unexpectedly) tried to suggest we try to get Matt's uncle to take our pictures. Matt pointed out that he didn't take the pictures for his own step-daughter's wedding, and I think she's dropped that. I don't mean to sound like a brat about that, but I don't feel right asking a family member to travel half-way across the country to work at our wedding. This is just an expensive item that we don't really care about, so if she didn't pay for it, I'm not sure what we would have done. My parents get back next week, so the actual wedding drama won't be starting for a good 2 weeks. I'm enjoying the last of my care-free weekends.
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Well, here I am. Back in P-town for the summer. Of course, half my stuff's still in the 'burgh until my parents get back from Alaska. I knew my furniture would have to stay there, but then I couldn't fit everything else into Buiey, so Matt started throwing things in the attic. There really was no more room. My trunk was pretty much scraping bottom with all the junk in it. I still can't find my moisturizer or teapot. Of course, Matt has no clue where they are. If you know anyone in the 'burgh who needs a twin-sized bed, let me know. Otherwise, it's getting kicked to the curb as soon as I can convince my former roommate to throw it out for me.
I'm sort of moved in here. Matt gave me two drawers, which is really all he can spare, but I'm already eyeing the other 3. I also have most of a closet, and my computer is hooked up to Matt's spare monitor. The monitor, btw, is bigger than my tv. I made Matt watch Veronica Mars on it. He was unimpressed. Roommate Neil is gone for the weekend, which leaves me with Matt. I tried to tell him to sleep in Neil's room, but he wasn't buying it, and he's bigger than me, so he got his way. So, about 3/4 of my stuff is unpacked, due to spatial limitations.
(Matt just woke up and asked me to be nice to him in my blog and say how wonderful he is.)
I went on a massive cleaning spree Friday. Those boys shed like a couple of house cats. Matt made a big show of walking into each room and exclaiming on its cleanliness. We watched the OC (which I had never seen because, um...I have standards sort of) on one of the big projector screens in the CS building. Apparently, this is a lab ritual. A couple of people opened the door, and then closed it quickly. Maybe they thought they were missing a class? Or maybe they just wanted to watch CSI on the big screen. The guy who instigated the whole OC ritual apparently also watches the Gilmore Girls. I'm not going to comment on that. You can all infer the obvious.
I start work on Monday, if I can find the place. Matt and I tried to take a test run yesterday, but no dice. We were fine until we got to Radnor, but the short game was notsomuch with the good. We're going to try again today. Don't ask what I'm going to do if we don't find the place today because there is no plan C. In other job-threatening news, I got a call from HR Thursday telling me that I need to come up with more references so they can complete my background check. I thought I resolved this last week. SO, I called back and left a message, and they haven't gotten back to me, so I hope that doesn't turn into something really bad for me. Things are not boding well for this internship, people.
And, finally, in wedding-related news, we're going to visit Matt's parents today. We went yesterday so Matt could plan his trip with his mom, but I had to go stand outside because I'm allergic to their 40 cats. So, even though his mom asked if we've made a budget (which we have) and if there's anything we want her to pay for (which there is) Matt told her we hadn't made any progress, and we'd tell her later. It will come up today. I am determined, even though I can't be the one to bring it up, because it's awkward. It will be easier today because we're going to a restaurant (more on this later) so I won't be allergic to the surroundings. It will be worse because one of his mom's friends will be there, and we can't really discuss money in front of her. We'll see how this plays out. Matt thinks we're going out to dinner to celebrate the engagement. The friend taking us out requested either Houlihan's or this seafood place. Matt's mom hates Houlihan's, so she picked the seafood place. I heard this over Matt's cellphone because the speaker is up so loud that I could hear the whole conversation from the other side of the car. So, Matt tells his mom that he's never heard of the place, and she says she's never been there, either, but she's sure they'll have something I (Marisa) can eat. Matt tells her that he hopes there's something he can eat because...wait for it...NEITHER of us eats seafood. Nevertheless, Matt is now planning on ordering lobster. I haven't gotten to the root of the logic, there. I have to learn to be nice, now. After all, Matt is commuting with me all weekend, and these seafood-eaters are going to be family soon.
I'm sort of moved in here. Matt gave me two drawers, which is really all he can spare, but I'm already eyeing the other 3. I also have most of a closet, and my computer is hooked up to Matt's spare monitor. The monitor, btw, is bigger than my tv. I made Matt watch Veronica Mars on it. He was unimpressed. Roommate Neil is gone for the weekend, which leaves me with Matt. I tried to tell him to sleep in Neil's room, but he wasn't buying it, and he's bigger than me, so he got his way. So, about 3/4 of my stuff is unpacked, due to spatial limitations.
(Matt just woke up and asked me to be nice to him in my blog and say how wonderful he is.)
I went on a massive cleaning spree Friday. Those boys shed like a couple of house cats. Matt made a big show of walking into each room and exclaiming on its cleanliness. We watched the OC (which I had never seen because, um...I have standards sort of) on one of the big projector screens in the CS building. Apparently, this is a lab ritual. A couple of people opened the door, and then closed it quickly. Maybe they thought they were missing a class? Or maybe they just wanted to watch CSI on the big screen. The guy who instigated the whole OC ritual apparently also watches the Gilmore Girls. I'm not going to comment on that. You can all infer the obvious.
I start work on Monday, if I can find the place. Matt and I tried to take a test run yesterday, but no dice. We were fine until we got to Radnor, but the short game was notsomuch with the good. We're going to try again today. Don't ask what I'm going to do if we don't find the place today because there is no plan C. In other job-threatening news, I got a call from HR Thursday telling me that I need to come up with more references so they can complete my background check. I thought I resolved this last week. SO, I called back and left a message, and they haven't gotten back to me, so I hope that doesn't turn into something really bad for me. Things are not boding well for this internship, people.
And, finally, in wedding-related news, we're going to visit Matt's parents today. We went yesterday so Matt could plan his trip with his mom, but I had to go stand outside because I'm allergic to their 40 cats. So, even though his mom asked if we've made a budget (which we have) and if there's anything we want her to pay for (which there is) Matt told her we hadn't made any progress, and we'd tell her later. It will come up today. I am determined, even though I can't be the one to bring it up, because it's awkward. It will be easier today because we're going to a restaurant (more on this later) so I won't be allergic to the surroundings. It will be worse because one of his mom's friends will be there, and we can't really discuss money in front of her. We'll see how this plays out. Matt thinks we're going out to dinner to celebrate the engagement. The friend taking us out requested either Houlihan's or this seafood place. Matt's mom hates Houlihan's, so she picked the seafood place. I heard this over Matt's cellphone because the speaker is up so loud that I could hear the whole conversation from the other side of the car. So, Matt tells his mom that he's never heard of the place, and she says she's never been there, either, but she's sure they'll have something I (Marisa) can eat. Matt tells her that he hopes there's something he can eat because...wait for it...NEITHER of us eats seafood. Nevertheless, Matt is now planning on ordering lobster. I haven't gotten to the root of the logic, there. I have to learn to be nice, now. After all, Matt is commuting with me all weekend, and these seafood-eaters are going to be family soon.
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