Or at least the summer. Which is a much welcomed break. I can hardly contain myself. In preperation of the fun summerness that is going to be going on around my person, I’ve decided to dedicate today’s post to a list. Lists are nice. And they can be short and fragmented which is all that my brain is really capable of at the moment.

1. Sore! - I’m sore. I’ve had a headache pretty much all week. Obviously because of all the homework and papers I’ve been scrambling to do, I pulled a muscle in my head. It goes down my neck to my shoulder. What’s worse is I’m out of IBUProfin at home and I’m too lazy to go to the store just for asprin. So I have to ration them out.

2. Swine Flu - Maybe this soreless is swine flu. I sneeze a lot. And I’m fatigued. For example, I woke up on Wednesday and thought it was Thursday. When I woke up this morning (extra early I might add) all I knew was that I was hella tired and had no idea what day it was. I knew it wasn’t the weekend though. I’m not that lucky.

3. BOOM! I’m Done - I’m done! With school! Forever!!! Or just for the semester. I still have to go back next semester but I need to pick courses. The pickings are slim. This is sad.

4. Feelin the Love - My sister-in-law’s sister commented on a quiz that I took on Facebook. It was about candy and there was some candy called Chick-O-Stick (chicken flavored candy?!) that I’d never heard of and we discussed how gross it sounded and how odd it was. And then they (My SiL and her sister) and they bought one. And not only did they eat it, they made inspirational posters about it. And this is why I love them dearly.

5. Brainal Leakage - My brain is offically dripping out my ears. I took my final quiz today and I know what term I chose to write about (Ideology) but I honestly can’t tell you what that is or what I wrote. Which is good in a way because it clears up space for other things but scary.. because I took that quiz less than 3 hours ago.

That’s it for today!

It feels like it’s been years since it’s been Monday. It’s only Tuesday. I know this because I keep checking the date on my phone and my calendar.

Last night, instead of sipping the sweet, sweet nectar known as the mint julep from a frosting glass of awesomeness, I came home from melting all day (literally. I was a disgusting sweaty mess by the time I got home from work.) and took a shower, went grocery shopping, and then I began to write the paper that I’ve been fearing.

It was the last paper for my critical reading class. I understand probably just enough literary theory and possess the critical reading skills to, at this late date in the semester, divine some sort of meaning from a used tissue. One with no words on it. Words, at this point, are bad.

So it’s no surprise that when I paniced last night at around 7pm and realized that I had basically 3 hours to come up with something (!!!) and I had deleted the first two paragraphs that I’d written several times that I was on the verge of chugging straight from the bottle. It has a fun pour top on it, it would have made for easy chugging.

Instead I decided to take what I know about the essay that we read in class by Judith Butler (very little) and pit it against what I knew about Buffy the Vampire Slaye (a lot). In the end the paper (I hope) is half decent and coherent (because at this point in time, who can really tell?). I maybe called Joss Whedon a better feminist than Buffy herself in the early seasons because she was trying to break out of the structure she was placed in there by acknowledging that there was a structure. Then I discussed how, at the end of the series, Joss was able to guide Buffy to her ultimate defining act which was to eff the system up from within thus changing her world completely and winning. Buffy beat the man. Judith would be proud. Maybe.

After that task was accomplished I posted my success on FaceBook and this (THIS!) is where the famous comes into play. Many moons ago the Tech Writer (Helen A. S. Popkin) for MSNBC wrote an article about Facebook and invited the entire world (I kid you not) to friend her. So I did. I’m nothing if not cheeky. Now she posts all kinds of fun links to articles of interest and people comment on her status and it’s fun for the whole family.

My status went up and shortly there after, Helen herself liked my status and also commented on it and began a discussion. On my status. A real live, honest to goodness MSNBC Tech Writer. I had to try and not freak out. I can’t begin to describe the amount of geekery joy that I get when a famous person comments on my blog or my facebook status. Actual, real live writers. People who are doing that whole “writing thing” be in journalism or books. They’re creating things and people are reading and responding to them. It’s such a high.

With this great new power comes responsibility. Like not responding immediately. I don’t want to look like a stalker after all. And I have to think of something intellegent to say other than “Omg. You just commented on my status!” Because yes, while this is true, it looks very much like any intellegence that may have been attributed to me will likely vanish shortly there after. So I played it cool. Another friend chimed in and they bantered back and forth and then I chimed in and kept it low key. I think.

It’s hard work, this intellegent interaction. I’m praying that the rest of the week speeds up a bit so that I can offically begin my summer vacation of just working. Isn’t it sad when I’m looking forward to JUST working?

I can feel the life slowly seeping back into my person after what I can only describe as the longest spring semester that ever existed. The sad thing? Its not over yet. Not by a long shot. There are still two papers of dubious topic yet to be written and a quiz to be taken. The good news is all of this is taking place by Thursday. The bad news is all of this is taking place by Thursday and someone is perhaps not fully prepared for this to happen. This person, perhaps, works best under pressure. With an alcoholic drink of some sort firmly in hand.

The shock really started last Wednesday when I went to type my final ethnographic essay. I was cocky about the amount of time it’d take me to finish 5-6 pages. I boasted about it and then I looked at my assignment sheet to get the specifics and found out that those 5-6 pages were really 10 - 15 pages. That put a definate damper on my mood and when I finished I read a bit and then went to bed.

Speaking of reading, I had been debating buying a kindle for about a week. On one hand it was a shiny expensive toy which would let me buy books basically in seconds (who doesn’t love instant gratification? anyone?), I wouldn’t have to spend days waiting for books to arrive which would cut down on their environmental impact (no shipping necessary), the books themselves would be cheaper (new best sellers for around 10 dollars, older books between 3 - 7 dollars) and most importantly, I wouldn’t have to figure out where I was going to stash them. So long clutter!

The downside for me though was that I love books. I’m an avid reader. I like to hold a book in my hand. I like the weight of it, the smell, the texture of the paper between my fingers. Everything about a book is enjoyable to me.  If I went with the kindle I wouldn’t be able to loan out the great book I just read. I’d no longer be able to inspire reading in others by saying “TAKE THIS! YOU HAVE TO READ IT!!”.  Plus, the price tag on the device itself is steep. Very steep in fact. Steeper than some people’s heads that I deal with on a day to day basis.

I went back and forth and finally decided that I’d take the plunge. I figured I’d try it, buy a cheap book and if I didn’t like it I could return it or pawn it off on Jason. After owning the device for one week I had gone through 6 books. In one week. While nearing finals for the semester.

I don’t think I’ve ever read like that before. Sure I can polish books away like they’re a late night snack, but 6 in one week while finishing my homework? Jason would say that I ignored him for that week and he’d probably be right be so wrong it’s not even funny! I would NEVER get so sucked into a book that I ignored anyone!….

I have to say that my experience with the kindle has all been positive. I like the weight of it, which is basically nothing. It’s not cumbersome to hold. I like to curl up in funky positions when I read and the kindle allows me to do that even better than a book does plus, I can lean it against me and read hands free. I’d read that some people had trouble with it fading in the sun, even though it’s not supposed to, and I sat out in full sun yesterday and had no trouble at all. It looked just as great as it did in indirect light. The books arrive in around a minute to my kindle after I buy them. The battery lasts a super long time before you have to charge it again (If you are smart and keep wireless off. Which I may or may not be. Smart that is). I’m very smitten over all.

Is it different from a book? Absolutely. I’ve found that I don’t really notice though. It’s so much like reading a book and you go through the motions of “turning the page”, or in this case, pushing the button, that you get absorbed in the process of reading.

The other weekend I also had an epiphany. One that keeps punching me in the face and I recognize and acknowledge and then apparently forget about again due to laziness or some other distracting shiny thing. If I want stuff to happen, I have to do it. Profound, I know.  I really think it started when I bought the kindle. I’ve missed reading (for pleasure). I’ve missed experimenting with stuff. I was only half heartidly following goals that I desperately wanted to follow because I knew they’d be good for me. I was preoccupied with school and work and just being exhausted. And that’s ok, it’s ok to be tired. But who wants to be tired all the time? Who wants to face a sink of dishes all the time and just feel disgustingly exhausted when you look at them? That’s a rhethorical question, I already know the answer.

So I just started doing it. I’ve been lifting weights on a regular basis (usually every other day or every 3 days with 2 days of rest.. depending on how sore I am). I’ve been reading boat loads of books (Right now I’m going through The Southern Vampire Mysteries that the HBO show TrueBlood is based on and I’m LOVING THEM. SO MUCH!), I’ve been experimenting with some of the kick ass recipes that Smitten Kitchen posts on her blog (Pickled Grapes anyone?) and I’ve just been trying to be present. In the moment. Right here, right now. Making the choices that are best for me, in this moment.

They might change week to week and that’s ok. It’s all about right now. 

I’m very much like a cat in that, when inside I want nothing more to be outside and vice versa. Naturally then when this weekend was gloriously beautiful in both tempature and sunshininess, I stayed indoors and played with my kindle. I think I’m in love and will discuss that at a point in time when I’m 100% positive. The early reviews however, are positive.

I was curled up in a chair when I heard what could only be described as choking. Or snoring, but I prefer to think that perhaps someone had bitten off more than they could chew.