Happy Birthday, Brad!!

No, this post isn't a day late...

Happy birthday to my biggest brother, Bradford Daniel! I'll follow his format for these birthday wishes.

Brad's the "cool one" in a family full of nerds. He showed me Jackie Chan in his early days, the X-Files, and music beyond Andrew Lloyd Webber. Brad was a mysterious brother who was sometimes there, and when he was, affection was something that could be detected in the small things that he did. As I got to know him, the brother that was so mysterious transformed into a brother who was generous and very caring.

So here's to my quiet brother out in LA. Happy birthday!!!!!

Mountains of Beef and a movie

It's hard to say what you've done in a day when you've done nothing. It's also hard to sleep in when all the rooms are as exposed as they are in this house. Almost as soon as one person wakes up, a chain reaction occurs, with the last person clinging stubbornly to their sleep. By the time I let go of my sleep today, it was only 8:30. Eight thirty!!!!

With all the people in the house, though, by the time I got my bath, it was one in the afternoon. :) Btw, something has happened with the well, so that water seems to be coming out....dirty. It keeps getting worse. Today, it was so dirty that I couldn't see my feet in the bottom of the tub. Yuck! Hopefully that will...fix itself...magically.

Dad was so determined to have a dinner of hamburgers and hot dogs. So tonight, in the cold dark, he went out to the grill with his little headlamp and coat on, and grilled them. We ended up with so many burgers, it was a mountain. As you see, above, the mountain of burgers.

We took the usual family Christmas photo, which was a funny event. Children running everywhere, camera timers going off at unexpected moments.

We watched Steve Martin's movie, Shopgirl. Plenty of people told me that it was "weird," and they didn't like it. However, I loved it!! Most of the movie was an awkward, embarassing story about one woman and two men. At the end, though, things took a sudden turn and became surprisingly happy and optimistic. It had a useful story about relationships and miscommunications, and what makes a relationship happy. So, I recommend it, but now I've created unreasonable expectations. Ohhhh well.

Christmas: Part II

So far, Christmas break has been spent starting (but not finishing) movies, working endlessly on jigsaw puzzles, eating food, and watching Heroes at night with Ben and Jaime. All in all, that is a fabulous time. Some people might be bored with this, day in and day out, but not I. Oh no. This is lazy heaven.


Last night was Anne's 22nd birthday. Happy birthday!! Here is Evie giving Anne a hug after she opened her birthday presents.

I'm going to be ridiculous, and share what I got for Christmas. I got a blue sweaters with strawberries on it, an orange and grey shirt, beautiful handmade yarn from Taos, the complete anthology of Jane Austen's works (new!!!!), StitchnBitch, thermal underwear (score!), scented socks O_o, cute little flats (shoes), a selection of This American Life recordings (NPR), and a Canon Powershot 600. Suhweet.

Now, time for a nap. Four hours of sleep + egg nog and kahlua makes me sleepy.

Merry Christmas!!!

Drama Queen

I had a drama queen moment today. Being extremely tired + a comment led to me standing with my hands in the sink, full-out crying; what a sorry sight. A hug and nice words from Anne made me feel all better, but it was ridiculous, me standing there crying irrationally. It was....bizarre.

Dave, the carpenter who built Dad's new house, stopped by and gave Dad a wreath and screwbits. I thought that was so sweet and thoughtful. Nice guy.

We've just watched The Muppet Christmas Carol, and I am now in the ultimate Christmas spirit. Everyone should watch this movie and sing along. What great music. And so I give you THE song about Christmas spirit.

It Feels Like Christmas

It's in the singing of a street corner choir
It's going home and getting warm by the fire
It's true
Wherever you find love
It feels like Christmas
A cup of kindness that we share with another
A sweet reunion with a friend or a brother
In all the places you find love
It feels like Christmas
It is the season of the heart
A special time of caring
The ways of love made clear
It is the season of the sprit
The message if we hear it
Is make it last all year
It's in the giving of a gift to another
A pair of mittens that were made by your mother
It's all the ways that we show love
That feel like Christmas
A part of childhood we'll always remember
It is the summer of the soul in December
Yes, when you do your best for love
It feels like Christmas
It is the season of the heart
A special time of caring
The ways of love made clear
It is the season of the sprit
The message if we hear it
Is make it last all year
It's in the singing of a street corner choir
It's going home and getting warm by the fire
It's true, wherever you find love
It feels like Christmas

Christmas: Part I

You know how discouraging it is when you write something, and you like it, and then you lose the whole thing, and rewriting it again the same way just seems impossible, and it's not as good, and you're just so sad? That just happened. So, here's my horrible, re-written not as good version. What a good excuse for mediocrity.

Every holiday season, the Merry Christmas versus Happy Holiday debate comes up, and I've never given an opinion in that all-consuming, life and death argument. I used to think that it was because I was either too lazy or didn't think that either side really had it right. Then I realized the the reason I never give an opinion is because to strangers, I never say Merry Christmas. I never say Happy Holiday. I just say, "Have a nice day!" I suppose that if I saw a stranger on Christmas Day, I might say Merry Christmas. But when was the last time I saw a stranger on Christmas Day? I actually can't remember ever seeing a stranger on Christmas Day. Is that weird? I can't remember ever leaving the house on Christmas. Actually, does midnight church count? I've done that a couple of times. But really, I'm with family or members of church, on Christmas Day, so I say, "Merry Christmas." And that's the end of the story for Mandy.

On Tuesday, Anne and I converged on Dad's house. Despite the fact that it's vacation, I actually feel like we've spent the majority of our time productively. My back hurts. Ben, Jaime, Moira, and Evie arrived today at 4:45 am. Being the wonderful, caring sister and aunt that I am, I waited up until they were actually here. The next morning, I got up at 8:30. No big deal, right? Well I've been getting twelve hours of sleep a night, minimum, and to go from that to the 2.5/3 hrs I got last night was pretty harsh. So, I am....wilting. We started a puzzle today, and I periodically fall into a daze, staring into space. I am languishing.

Ooh, last night, Dad, Anne, and I went to see Charlotte's Web. May I just say, it was amusing sitting in the theater, the only discernible group that didn't have at least one child with it. Charlotte's Web: Thumbs up. Well done. And what a bizarrely packed cast. Listen to this: Julia Roberts, Steve Buscemi, John Cleese, Oprah Winfrey, Cedric the Entertainer, Kathy Bates, Reba McEntire, Robert Redford, Thomas Haden Church, Andre Benjamin, Sam Shepard, and Dakota Fanning. That is ridiculous. Anyways, it had funny parts, and I laughed really loudly by myself in the theater, and at one point, the little boy sitting in front of me turned around and gave me a dirty look! Excuse me? I may have a loud, spontaneous laugh, but two seconds ago you were sitting there going, "It's a rat! It's raining! It's funny, 'cause he's a rat!!" Riiiight, and who should be given the dirty look here? I think that laughing is appropriate moviegoing behavior. I would like to point out that this was not a prolonged laugh or anything. I laughed, and it was done. Maybe I frightened him. I could see that. I am a pretty scary person. Rawr.

Today we polyurethaned the bathroom doors, so now we'll be able to put doorknobs on and properly close them. Luxury!! We also put up the tree and decorated, and it looks really nice. A Christmas tree looks so cute all decorated with presents underneath it. And it was nice unpacking all the ornaments and feeling very at home and normal. Still waiting for a couple of presents to arrive, but other than that, all my packing is done.

I have a busted taste bud on the very tip of my tongue, and it hurts so much. :(

I'm totally finished!

I'm done! Now, its time to clean the house, and perhaps go see (dare I?) Eragon. It has horrifyingly bad reviews, but what else would you expect? Something...good? Pfft.

An independent Mandy adventure of note: Those apartments that I've been drooling over just across the street from campus and haven't been able to find any information on, well they finally posted a number, and I actually called them! Compared to other apartments in town, the rent's outrageous, but the location really can't get any better. Irritatingly, though, I'll only be able to sign the lease in April, which leaves me uncertain of getting a place, which leaves me...uncertain. And I hate uncertainty.

Just to give you an idea of how close this is. For those of you who visited Anne in her apartment off campus at St. John's in Annapolis, this place is even *closer* to my classes than that. Haha, yeah, that's right. Preeetty close.

Jaime cut her hair, so I feel like we're short hair buddies, though hers is shorter than mine. We should make friendship bracelets!!! Omigosh! :-P

Yes, Jibbles *is* adorable. That one cat's cuteness is only enhances because his head is sticking down out of the ceiling. He'd be a lot less cute if I told you that the caption on the picture that I cropped out was, "Ceiling cat is watching you masturbate." Not quite the cute little guy anymore, now is he? :) On the topic of cats and ceiling cats, I have to present this link. Some of them are pretty weak, but some of them are really cool. Notably, I love the RAM cat, kitten in his food, trashcat, emo kitten, karate kitten, spy dog, shower cat, psycho cat, and moon cat. Go all the way through. Take a peek. It'll only eat up a couple valuable minutes of your life that you'll never get back.

Pictures of Jibbles to come once I steal a digital camera from Dad this Christmas break.

Jibbles' adventure

So my roommate Katie has this cat named Jibbles. She got him when he was six or eight weeks old, and we've had fun with him as he's grown up. Like any cat, he loves getting into funny spaces. Today, Katie, Kale, Jessie, Tim, and I went out to Boston Pizza for dinner. When we came back--no Jibbles. Couldn't find him. He wasn't in any of the rooms. I was so afraid that I'd accidentally let him outside before we went out, since I was the last person through the door. We found him, though. Where was he? He was in the ceiling. Where one of the water pipes goes up, it doesn't fit precisely, and there are those ceiling tiles in the basement like in schools. He climbed up the PVC piping, squeezed up into the ceiling, and made one of the ceiling tiles fall out. We found him peering down at us over the edge. After a five minute struggle of him clinging to the ceiling tile and wires, we got him down, all dusty and smelly.

This picture is like Jibbles' predicament, only without a ceiling tile, and less cute. Jibbles is very cute.

So that was the cat adventure of today.

Obama 2008?

Just out of curiosity, why is everyone and their mother talking about Barack Obama running for presidency in 2008? I obviously don't know anything about politics, but still. Why this guy? He's said over and over again that he's not going to run, but everyone's saying he will, and as Jaime demonstrated, already having some good fun with it.

Does he have the morals of a saint or something? 'Cause that would actually be cool, having someone you could feel proud of as a president. Like that's ever going to happen. So please, educate me. Why does the whole country want to have Obama's babies?

Nieces and Nephews

Well, Jennie did a post about her kids affecting her life, and Ben K did a post about Ella. So, I'll just mention the fact that I have seven nieces and nephews, and considering that I'm only twenty, that's insane. Five girls, two boys, and soon to be another boy, right? Pavel. Pavel is a kickass name. I've heard some people be surprised at three nieces and nephews, and when I hear that, I just think, "Pft! I have seven."

I've been watching CSI: Miami, and I think that in real life, David Caruso would be horrible at comforting anyone, considering what a bad job he does on the show. "You hang in there. Hang in there." He's the stiffest supposedly caring person I've ever seen. He does, however, get bonus points for always being polite. I love anyone who says 'please' and 'thank you.' You may wonder why I'm watching the show at all. But I have no idea.

One more exam to go! It's French, and I'm not overly concerned. Maybe I should be.

Man of the Year

So, the movie Man of the Year came to the Antigonish theatre...eventually. Most of the stuff that comes I don't want to see at all. So of course I went to see it. Honestly, it wasn't what I expected. It looked like pure lighthearted Robin Williams political-poking fun. Then there was the whole conspiracy thing that was almost the entire movie. The movie was...okay. It had its funny moments, but I have nothing witty or insightful to say about it. Oh, I can say that I normally strongly dislike Laura Linney, but this was the first time that she was actually tolerable.

The best feature about the supposedly uncorrupted comedian as President was the honesty he had. Could you imagine if all politicians were that honest? I think that a country like the US wouldn't be able to survive with honestly like that. Maybe Canada could, but the US has too many dirty little secrets dirty ways of functioning. I think that if everyone knew everything, that the old Right of the People to alter or abolish it[the government], and to institute a new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness would come into play. I've always thought that seemed like a really cool concept in the Declaration of Independence. Doesn't seem like the modern government would see things that way, though. Anyways, I know absolutely nothing about modern politics or government, so I'll stop pretending as if I do. :-P

I'm currently experiencing knitting frustration with circular needles and the idea of double pointed needles. Turns out that my circular needles aren't small enough. I guess that means another trip to the sad craft section of....WalMart.

Revelations

No, nothing Biblical. Prepare yourself for some extreme superciality, though.

First, I have discovered the amazing awesomness of bobby pins. These things are just awesome. They work so well.

Second, I found a beautiful set of eyeshadows. This is the first time ever that I've bought some shades, tried them on, and been really impressed. Two thumbs up for the set of "Mocha" colors by Maybelline. Shortly after opening the set of eyeshadows, in a moment of klutziness very unsurprising to anyone, I dropped the little eyeshadow brush straight down the drain of the sink I was standing over. It is now sitting at the bottom of the "U" bend in my drain, barely visible by the little indentation it makes in the water. Despite hte impossibility of recovery, I still tried to stick a fork down there and get it out. When I almost dropped the fork in the drain, I gave up.

Everyone knows I have fairly awkward and embarassing scars on my chest. Well, today I finally dropped thirty dollars on little silicone scar sheets in an attempt to reduce their noticeableness. If anyone is curious, I'm actually much better about picking anything. Much. So this scar removal thing's supposed to go on for twelve weeks at least. And yes, I'm accepting bets on how long I do this before I get bored and stop.

Brr

Every time I've been outside so far, I've been bundled to up like that Christmas Story boy. I generally sweat. I just took a short walk from the biological sciences building to the SUB without putting my hat or mittens on (it's a two minute walk!) and now I just can't...stop...*shivering.*

So, Developmental exam= finished. Finished poorly. Many of the multiple choice I was like...it could be a OR b...I have four d's in a row??? What?! I have four d's in a row TWICE?! What is wrong with the world? I also had very few a's. That concerned me. "A" isn't supposed to be that uncommon of an answer. It should be like one "a" to every three "d"s. Does this bother anyone else on their scantrons as much as it's always bothered me? Beginning from about fourth grade on, I've examined every scantron as I go through it with much paranoia. Is that an "a b d c d c b a????" Patterns are everywhere, and they make me very suspicious. If I were ever a professor, I would mess with the students' minds. One exam, I'd have all E....except for one D scattered somewhere. Or I'd keep my ratio of answers messed up. Or, I'd have it so that if they answered correctly, it spelled something or drew something out. And this is why I should never be allowed to be a teacher of any kind. Ever.

In a couple of hours I have my Research Methods and Statistics for Psychology, but it's not enough time to be worth walking all the home, all the way back to campus, and then home again. I'm far too lazy for that.

Did you guys know that the singing candlestick in Beauty and the Beast, Lumiere, is none other than Law and Order's Jerry Orbach? I've never seen Law and Order before, but I've seen lots of advertisements for the show, enough to make me very surprised when I found out that it was that guy from the Law and Order ads. He's just *so* energetic, with such a strong, young-sounding voice.

Did you know, though, that he started out on the stage in musicals, and was the first ever Billy Flynn in Chicago? Now *that* is cool. Ooh, he was also in Annie Get Your Gun and Guys and Dolls (Sky Masterson, very nice).

I should really get studying...

SNOW!!!!

But first, a bad idea: A bad idea is deciding to go out running at midnight when it's freezing. It tends to result in going around a block and only running at all to get back to the house as soon as possible. My skin was all red and hard, gross.

So, what started happening yesterday? It started snowing! Big, wonderful clumps. We had a light dusting the day before yesterday, but that didn't really count. It started snowing yesterday afternoon, and went all night, and it's still going. I'd say we've had at least six inches so far. To celebrate the snow, Tim, Katie, and I took a walk (about 15 min) to Subway to enjoy walking in the snow. One of my favorite things in the world is when everything is covered in snow, and walking down a quiet street, when the snow is falling, and the only thing you can hear is the snow crunching under your boots. That's what it was like last night, and with all the snowball throwing, it was great. I bundled up so much out of my excitement to be going out in the snow that I was sweating bullets outside. I had on my longjohns, a turtleneck, my winter jacket, crazy effective mittens, boots, and my little hat from Austria. It was such overkill.

It's rare that I feel comfortable talking to someone outside of my family, but I really enjoyed sitting in Subway with Tim and Katie, feeling very relaxed, and having an easy converstion.

During the "Baum baum bah!" of Sweet Caroline, I tend to throw my hands up in the air with each beat.

It is *so* easy to procrastinate, really, it's absurd. I have two exams tomorrow. I slacked off on reading the textbooks, 'cause I've had paper after paper after paper, so now I have to read one entire small textbook for tomorrow, and half of one full size textbook. I'll have more time for my later exams, but boy do I ever need to get a move on.

Shockingly, I have all my Christmas shopping done. I just need to get Dad's permission to use his credit card to actually buy them, since I'm out here in no man's land. I have to say, though, no man's land is pretty fun.

Okay, studying. :(

One second thought...this too.

Last minute Christmas gift addition:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer DVDs. I need to recognize those years that I spent faithfully watching this show. Make fun of me if you like, but I love it!

Seasons 1-7: Only $170!!

Freakout!!!

Okay, I'm going insane. During my nutty reading phase, where I think almost everyone will agree that I was reading a *bit* too much, I came across what are now my favorite books. Philip Pullman created an awesome world of parallel universes, creative creatures (a rare thing in fantasy these days), and a truly gripping story. There's a lot about the church in it. It's sort of like, if the DaVinci Code weren't full of itself trying to seem legitimate and call Clue-y, and was good, and about kids, it would be like the Golden Compass. Oh yeah, the DaVinci Code would also have to have lovable characters. Anyways.

Here's the freakout.

They're making a movie out of it!!!!!! AHH!!!!!! I've read these books soooo many times. Odd thing: Daniel Craig (Bond) is Lord Asriel and Eva Green (Daniel Craig's Bond girl) is the witch Serafina Pekkala. Odd that Bond costars are both in this. I think Eva Green will be an awesome Serafina. Anyways, I just can't believe this. I hope that they do an awesome job with it, and I cannot WAIT to see it. It comes out sometime in 2007, and is in filming right now. I have to say, Daniel Craig couldn't have picked a more perfect roll to follow-up his premier as Bond than the dangerous and powerful Lord Asriel. YES!!!!

Seriously, I nearly had a heartattack of excitement when I saw this. Happiness....euphoria...ugh, I'm tired, let's go to bed.