My mother is a huge Star Trek fan, and since she has put up with all the geeky movies I've dragged her to over the years, I thought it was only fair to accompany her to the Star Trek movie on Mother's Day. I was pretty worried going into it, since I'm not a big sci-fi person (my tastes definitely lean more towards fantasy) and the only things I know about Star Trek come from the fragmented info I have gleamed about it from Futurama. But you know what? I actually the movie was pretty cool, in the same slick, popcorn movie type way Ironman charmed a lot of people last year. I was able to follow along fairly well, despite the fact that time travel always makes my head hurt. I could also tell that the actors were doing a great job fitting into their iconic roles, while still being fresh and entertaining. And, to sound really lame, I thought the score was fabulous. It's pretty rare for a movie nowadays to have a big, resounding brass score, and this one fit the "looking back to the past but geared towards the present" vibe this movie had going for it perfectly.

Today I'm doing lots of little things. I'm starting to work on a TBA creative project that is probably going to make me tear my hair out in about two weeks, but I'm feeling a creative drive that I haven't felt in a long time, so right now I'm in writer heaven. I'm also preparing the menu I'm going to attempt on Wednesday. Since I'm such a shitty cook, I'm going to do an "easy Italian" meal with lasagna, salad with homemade garlic dressing, and brownie sundaes. Yum!

It's only 1:30 and I'm already tired out, so I think a nap might be necessary soon. I haven't had a lot of downtime since being home, so I'm glad to have today to re-charge my batteries. For the next few days, things are going to be mighty busy.

Mood lazy Music Star Trek soundtrack - Michael Giacchino Tags: food, life at home, movies, writing

Well, after another year of academic toil, here I am, sitting in my favorite armchair, reflecting on my first day at home. To cut to the chase, I'm really frickin' stuffed. Yesterday, to celebrate having moved me out of my room successfully, my parents and I stopped at Easton to eat at Mitchell's Ocean Club, which is one of my favorite restaurants. It's a steakhouse with all the traditional trimmings (wedge salads, separate sides, bearnaise sauce, etc.) and an old-school vibe that I think is really cool. The decor has your typical wood paneling and white table cloths, but there are some retro-futuristic (think Jetsons) touches all over the place that give it an extra zing. I love everything about the place, from the bar-mixed lemonade they serve with fresh OJ to the corn dotted with jalapeno. Of course I had to indulge - it was the end of the semester! Except...

...I forgot we were going to Fleming's, an upscale steakhouse chain tonight to celebrate Mother's Day with my mother and grandmother. Uh oh! My motto in life is that you only live once, so I repeated last night's orgy of meat and blue cheese, only this time chocolate lava cake joined the party. I don't think I've ever been this full before. My center of gravity shifted because I ate so much, so I kept teetering back and forth while walking to the car.

I know this extreme face-stuffing isn't exactly something to be proud of, so I'm happy to say I did start making overtures on the job front today. I stopped in at Sephora and got an application, while sending my dad to Books & Co. to scout out the job situation. I also went to Ulta this morning to talk to someone about the application I filled out a few days ago, but from the looks of the store, they're circling the drain, so I decided to move on. Last year, I was dragging my feet about finding work, but this year, I really am going to try my best to get a job. Quite simply, I want money. I'm crossing my fingers, hoping something will crop up.

Mood full Tags: food, life at home, restaurants, work?

I was browsing The Onion's A.V. Club website, hunting for something to read, and came across an interview with the hysterical Maria Bamford, in which she discusses dealing with OCD. I was recently diagnosed with OCD, and have had a mixed experience dealing with the implications of it. On the one hand, I'm glad to have something to point to which explains why my mind is so fuckin' weird. On the other, like a lot of mental illnessess, I don't think OCD is really understood by a lot of people. It is so much more than germophobia, which is what I thought until I was diagnosed. Not to mention, it was kind of hard to acknowledge that something was wrong with the way my brain works.

Anyway, if you haven't experienced how awesome her comedy is, check these little numbers out: 

Mood giggly Tags: celebrities, mental health stuff, that's some funny shit, videos

Tomorrow is my last day at school, so I've spend most of my day reflecting on this year and what I'm going to do over the summer. Most of my high school friends aren't going to be in town, so I will be almost on my own. I'm really bummed about this, but it's also inspiring me to actually be productive and get stuff done for once. Last summer, all I did was work at Staples and water my mom's flowers. Thus, I have come up with four main goals to accomplish from May to August:

1) Get a job / get an internship / go to summer school: I really really really would like to do something cosmetics related to make monies, but since the economy is in the toilet now, I'll take anything I can get. If I can't get a job, I might try for an internship at the Dayton Art Institute. And if that doesn't happen, I need to learn Italian if I want to study abroad in the spring, so I could always do it over the summer.

2) Learn to cook: I feel like such a poseur; I love to read about food, look at cookbooks, watch cooking shows, go out to eat, and stuff my face. But I can't actually cook anything outside of fruit salad and instant rice. This summer, so help me, I will learn to how make a basic chicken dish if it kills me.

3) Be active / lose weight: I'm aiming for about 10 pounds off what I am now. I'm not really overweight, but I'm rounder than I would like to be. I also am pretty frickin' lazy, so I need to actually get up off the couch and do stuff. Aiming for hitting the Y at least twice a week. I would also like to eat better - less fast food and candy, more veggies and grains.

4) Reading at least 20 books: I have a huge library of stuff that I haven't read because I'm always busy with books for my English classes. Reading for fun is a huge luxury and one that I intend to take full advantage of this summer.

I know it seems like a lot, but I think the key here is momentum. If I can start with some of these things and keep them up, I think I actually have a chance of achieving what I want to. I always seem to make grandiose plans for my summers, but I really think I have a shot at doing some of this stuff this time.

Mood excited Music Werewolves and Lollipops - Patton Oswalt Tags: life at home, work?

"I would never hurt her. I would got to end of the earth for her. But because I feel so strongly about opposed to this bill, blame it on my upbringing or the good book. … I can't change how I feel … But because of who I am and where I am and as a member of this legislative body, ethically it is my duty and responsibility to publicly say to my daughter that I do not support [gay marriage]." --- Rep. Sheryl Briggs of Maine

Found via ontd_political, here.

How can this woman sleep at night? 

Mood nauseated Tags: current events, homophobia, that's depressing

Sure enough, I went on a little photo-taking expedition this afternoon, and have returned triumphant. These are my favorites of the pictures I took.



This is the school's church, which, after the post office, is my favorite building on campus. It is where I take my organ lessons and occasionally I sneak in there to do homework when the library gets too loud. Sometimes when it's warm outside, they'll open the doors so you can hear the organ music drift throughout South Campus, which is lovely to hear.

( More under the cut )

Mood sleepy Tags: life at school, pictures

After waking up at 6 this morning to finish preparing for my 8:30 Imperial China final, then writing for two hours, then heading down to the computer lab and writing a book review for Latin for two hours, let me say this: Zzzzzzzzz. I am so exhausted, but in that happy way you feel when something that's been hanging over your head is finished. Now I jut have to start packing and prepare for my American Gothic final on Thursday. Since I have two and a half days to blow, I think I'm going to celebrate the end of the semester early and have funtimes today.

Right now, I'm planning on changing out of my gross "I put these on after getting 4 hours of sleep clothes" and donning something cute, then going outside to frolic and take some pictures of my campus while it's pretty out, then getting a late lunch / early dinner at the coffee house, then coming back and doing some swatches for my nail blog. I think it's a good plan. :D

Mood drained Tags: good day, life at school

Wow. I have had a Dreamwidth account for less than 24 hours and have already: 

- Uploaded 75 icons
- Subscribed to 6 users (Hi, everyone!) 
- Created a community (ahem, nail_polish , the coolest community ever) 
- Joined 2 other communities
- Posted 3 times in communities

I don't think I managed to do that in a whole month on Livejournal. I really think I'm going to like it here.

Mood amused Tags: dreamwidth, internets

It's probably not the best idea to set up a new journal right before finals, is it? Oh, well.

Mood geeky