and I'm back...

I can apparently only update once a month!

It has been a pretty busy month.  I've been spending a great deal of my time shopping for my new apartment that I now move into in less than a month.  This is a really big move for me!  I've never had a lease before, and I've never had any furniture before, really, either.  I've already set up the switching over of the utilities, as well as bought most of the furniture and other things I'll need to have a functional apartment.  Sean is pretty great for dealing with me, but I suppose he shouldn't complain since he doesn't have to buy most of it :)  Anyway, all of the stuff is sitting in the basement bedroom just waiting to be loaded onto the moving truck on August 1st.  There are only a few things left to buy, which include: curtains and curtain rods, paying for the rest of the couch and loveseat, baking pans, and stuff to decorate the walls.  I'm just waiting for some more items to arrive in the mail this week, so on my "day off" tomorrow (by day off, I mean I'll be grading all day), I will anxiously await some of the items, like the TV stand!

I also got a coffee maker, which was a really desperate attempt for me to work on liking coffee a little bit better. I think that sounds really weird, but I desperately want to like coffee more because I think that it might make my quality of life better.  Why?  Because it has more caffeine in it than the pop I drink, and my growth can't be stunted more than it already has.  I have actually found some pretty good tasting coffees already, I just have to add creamer to it.  I got a less expensive version of the Keurig coffee maker to make single cups of coffee.  The Kahlua is good, and I can't wait to get some hot cocoa and apple cider to try in the fall!

I just completed my coursework for the summer, so now I have no excuse to get behind on my grading.  I'm also working a little bit less at DMACC to make room for that.  This month should be a little bit less busy, but who knows.  I seem to always find ways to make myself too busy for my own good.  I also am waiting to go sub-only at ACCESS so that I don't have to worry about that.  I'm trying to take better care of myself by having a more consistent eating schedule and working out more frequently, and being less busy will help with that.  I've been doing a good job of working out 5 times a week.  I was sick at the end of last week, so that derailed me a little bit.  But I got back on track already.

This past weekend for the Fourth of July was a pretty interesting weekend.  I spent a lot of it outside tubing and boating.  Tubing was a little bit of a disaster because a friend lost his keys, sunglasses, and ripped his swim trunks, another friend lost his glasses and *a* flip flop, and I popped my tube and cut my arm open.  It was not the smoothest of trips down the river.  Boating was a lot of fun except for an almost fight between two boats we were tied off to.  Luckily no one on the boat we were on was starting arguments!

Well, I think those are the most pertinent updates for now.  Back to grading!

the summer and the bosu

Summer has started off with a bang!

...Okay, so that's not entirely true. I've gone out on the neighbors' boat a couple of times but mostly I've been at work or in class. One of my classes is already almost over, but another one is just beginning. I still have to find some time in there to get ready to teach. It's stressful. Summer is not supposed to be stressful!

In the MOST EXCITING NEWS EVAR, I got a Bosu Ball. I went to visit my brother and his girlfriend this past weekend, as well as a certain couple of friends who were having a birthday and graduating, and was immediately made to feel lazy because the aforementioned brother and girlfriend work out about five days a week. During school, I work out twice a week if I am lucky. Thus, I decided to make a conscious effort to work out more. That included, for me, buying new shoes (Vibram FiveFingers) and a Bosu Ball! I tried out the Bosu Ball for the first time at the gym, and immediately I fell in love with it and had to go buy one the next day. The best part about this is that it came with a workout DVD that has four workouts on it. I have done two of the four. One of the workouts is a step/dance workout that I feel I'm not nearly coordinated enough to do--not because of the balance, but because of the dance moves. The moves aren't difficult, I'm just awkward. The other is a yoga/pilates mix called Long and Lean, which is definitely right up my alley considering I've done pilates since high school (but gotten lazy with it for the past couple of years). It feels good to work out again, but I'm so impatient and want to be toned up immediately. I think I'll be able to stick with it, though.

Also, I bought Chelsea Handler's new book Lies Chelsea Handler Told Me. I'm a big fan of her writing (however offensive she may be at times), and this one seems interesting so far. It's not her writing, but rather a compilation of stories that people in her life have written about her and how much of a demon she is. I've only read one of the essays, but I found myself laughing out loud over lunch and then looking around to make sure people didn't think I was a crazy person. I think they were too into their burritos to care.

That made me hungry. :/

two weeks.

It has been two weeks since my last post on here. Seriously?? It feels like it was only yesterday. I don't have long for an extensive post right now since I am at work and about to go home and get a few hours of sleep before I have to go to a meeting, then teach, then go to class, but I thought I would comment on the fact that time has FLOWN BY.

I feel somewhat accomplished because I actually did get some work done on projects this weekend (which I almost never do), but I still have another 15-20 page paper to write, as well as grade papers for Wednesday, grade more things, and then grade some more things before the semester finally ends. I also have to present three times. But...the semester is almost over! I feel as though I have almost conquered the world!

That is, I've conquered the world until the day after I'm done with school, and then I just have to work, work, work my summer away, as well. It could definitely be worse. I just hope that I still get to graduate on time, as one of my classes might not make enough people to be taught. I can't take the other class that is offered that would fulfill my requirement. That means that I would potentially have to be in school through next fall, which doesn't really help. I say fall because if the class I need doesn't make this summer, who's to say it will next summer? In which case, that is totally not what I originally expected or wanted.

I still plan on enjoying myself, I just hope it all works out for this summer rather than taking me longer. Either way, I plan on graduating eventually. I would just rather have it be sooner than later.

Sean and I started organizing things for moving into our new apartment August 1st. We have to save up to buy some new furniture and other things we'll need for the apartment, but I'm really excited. I've only had apartments through school, and as much as I love my roommates, I'm really excited for us to have our own space. I'm especially excited that I'll have a quiet place to do my homework (where I can shut the door and be left completely alone). I need that. I'm way too easily distracted.

Well, I think that's enough for now. Kudos to you if you can understand any of that...I haven't been to sleep yet! Good night. :)

boom.

So, last night I went out with some people from school, made some new friends, and had a pretty awesome night in general. Today, however, I woke up and was rather sore. When I thought back to the events of the evening, I remembered that I ended my night by slipping down some stairs. Now my ankle is swollen and bruised, as well as my arm and butt. It sort of hurts to move! I haven't fallen down any stairs for a while... probably since high school when I slipped down the stairs because of my socks. I don't know what's better - taking a dive or sliding down some stairs on my butt. I think probably the latter because then you don't get face damage and I was able to catch myself on the railing. There was a rather horrified guy who asked and made sure I was okay, but I said I was fine and ran away. I had to keep my pride in tact somehow!

Other than that, I think that since I got a new car, it is determined to get ruined one way or another. Yesterday, on the way shopping, the windshield got hit by a golf ball. The golf ball managed to make it far enough away from the golf course to bounce off of the sidewalk and hit my car. Luckily it didn't break or anything. So between that and the car wash attacking my car and scratching the driver's side mirror, the car gods are not smiling down at me. And it's always got to be the new car, right? I mean, nothing ever happened to the 15 year-old car when it wouldn't really matter. Ah, well. At least nothing that bad has happened. Wish my car luck.

If anyone is reading this, please give me some suggestions for a new book to read so I can have inspiration to work out. This sounds weird, but if I get a good book to put on my Nook, I will most certainly go work out and read it. That way I don't waste the time on Netflix or Hulu while working out (which is certainly fun, as well, but I do that enough anyway).

updates... a long time coming

So, I didn't update this blog since February 1st... Whoops. I always think I'm going to start a blog and keep it going, but I fear that I don't really have anything interesting say most of the time (hence the title of ramblings).

There are lots and lots of new things in my life since the beginning of February. For instance, I have some paperwork to turn in, and as long as it's done correctly, I'll be set to graduate on time next May! I have to take two classes this summer, but that is only for the first half. The second half I will hopefully be teaching an online version of Women's Studies 201 (intro). For the whole summer, however, I will be working at DMACC in Ankeny as a part-time advisor/helping with orientation. I'm really looking forward to all of the new experiences I am going to get this coming summer! It will be stressful, however, since there is so much.

I have also been working part time at ACCESS as a night time shelter advocate (NSA) to earn a little extra money and help pay for my new car! I'm not entirely sure if I'm going to be able to keep on working there a whole lot over the summer, but I'll try to take as many extra shifts as I can to continue to make extra money. I really like the work there when the phone actually rings or when clients need help or want to talk. The thing with working overnight is that people are sleeping, which makes it difficult to interact with them (just a bit).

Not only will I be getting lots of new experiences this summer...I am doing lots of new things just this semester! I am teaching a section of a class called Gender Justice that serves as a 1-credit, half-semester course that introduces students to things like patriarchy and gender roles and gets them thinking about how to talk about differences in a way that means really listening and trying to understand other points of view. I'm not sure if any of them are truly getting anything out of it at this point, but it seems like they are from their papers. They seem to be seeing a lot of things that they didn't really see before in their daily lives, and that's what I went into the class hoping for--that they would have a little bit more awareness so they can talk about it with other people and help to make them more aware.

Another thing I am doing through my assistantship is team-teaching a section of a class called Psych 131 which is about academic skills like time-management, test-taking skills, study skills, and many other things to help give students tools to be successful in college. The only unfortunate thing about these classes is that, in general, students are taking them to continue to be full-time students rather than because they really want to take the class. It's disheartening to think about that at times. I only hope that they start to really enjoy the class and don't treat it as though it's not a real class just because it's only one credit. Many students take the credit and never show up because they are willing to get a failing grade to keep full-time status, scholarships, insurance, etc. (which is all important, of course). It is something I don't think I will ever fully understand, though. I know the reasoning behind it, but neither of the classes really requires a whole lot of work in general!

Life right now is pretty enjoyable. I just have to get my butt in gear to finish up the semester strong. I just have two papers (plus one smaller paper) and a couple of projects (one bigger, one small) and I'll be done for the semester. Luckily, this semester is much more spread out than then end of last semester, so I don't feel (right now) like I'll want to die. But we will see.

Until next time!

my love affair with school--and other things

So, I love school so much that I have decided on a career that would leave me at college for (maybe) the rest of my life. I love that I get to learn all sorts of things and am constantly meeting new people in my classes that I also fall in love with. A lot of these people also leave when they are done.

So I was thinking today about the fact that in the past year or so of my college career, I've lost a lot of friends, and I was thinking about how everyone moves on, even me, so how do I find a balance between holding on and letting go? I recognize that people move on and their lives and situations change, leading them to maybe be people that are very different from the ones I was friends with. This recognition, perspective, and clarity is very difficult to have at the time, though. At the time this is happening, often I have felt like it is rejection. I have never been a person who has had a real aversion to change, but I also feel like I haven't had a whole lot of stability--no real roots anywhere, so I feel like I am trying to hold onto a lot of things and people.

Other than that thought, I've been pretty busy lately. I was in a play called 1972 about the women's liberation movement in 1972 and how a family dealt with it. I played the liberal daughter who falls in love with her hippy, free-loving friend Janice. We did the play to raise funds for ACCESS, the domestic violence and sexual assault shelter in Ames. We raised over $1400 for them! In the next couple of weeks I will be helping with the Social Justice Summit for ISU, as well as being in The Vagina Monologues for the 4th year in a row now! Those proceeds go to ACCESS, as well as to support women in Haiti this year. After those things are done, I can really start to focus even more on school and not feel like I'm going to go too crazy. It's not too bad now that the play is over!

I have started to work out more and am feeling really great about that. Unfortunately, the blizzard conditions here in Ames might hinder me from making it to the gym for the next couple of days. I don't think it will make me fall off the wagon, however, because I'm actually paying for this membership every month, and I don't want to waste my money. It's part of my self-betterment plan, and I'm feeling great! The other parts are mostly just eating a little bit healthier--healthier snacks, less snacks. It's going really well so far. Hopefully I can continue!