Happy Halloween

I don't care what anyone says, I will never get over the excitement of carving a pumpkin. And I will always spend way more time than I should making a creative idea look really rough. This year the roomies and I invited a couple ward friends for pumpkin carving, caramel apples, pumpkin cookies, and games. Mucho fun.

And this is a project I had to do for my History of Photography class today. I thought it was sort of cool. So I'm posting it. Go self-timers.

This Week's Art Project

This is a linoleum etching - I had to carve out the design. It makes something akin to a giant rubber stamp, but it's linoleum. Theoretically.

These are the resulting prints: takes one through three, on three different colors of paper.

I was pleased.

My Last Title Was Misleading

I know, I know what you're thinking. Who actually looks at the back of the package of Ramen Noodles? Well, I did. Because I was waiting for the stupid water to boil. (And for the record, this is the FIRST time I've resorted to Ramen Noodles this year.) Please note that the serving size is 1/2 dry noodle block and 1 tsp seasoning mix. Okay. 1) Calling it a dry noodle block only makes it sound more unhealthy and more unappetizing. Dry noodle block. Yum! 2) Who actually eats half a package of Ramen Noodles?! Seriously...I know people who eat two. 3) 1 tsp seasoning mix. Is that half the little package they give you? Do they actually measure out what's in the package? Does anyone actually measure a single teaspoon of seasoning mix into their Ramen Noodles? HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW HOW MANY CALORIES ARE IN MY MEAL IF SERVINGS ARE THIS COMPLICATED? (For the further record, I just typed that holding the shift key down the whole time instead of caps lock.)

And...seasoning mix isn't the most appetizing name either.

And in case you were wondering, Ramen Noodles are NOT a significant source of vitamins A or C.

The Funniest Day of Observations In My Whole Life

This is my day. It begins with a pumpkin chocolate chip muffin, a banana, some orange juice and vanilla yogurt. I studied furiously while blowing some time editing photos and listening to songs that make me pine.

Then I went to class. I drove to campus listening to power songs on the radio and jamming to blow some nerves. I jaunted to class. Yes. Jaunted. I OWNED that test. I walked out feeling a 100%.

Having left the test with time to spare, I found myself with a full hour before my next class in which to enjoy the sunshine and do some religious reading. It was during this hour that I came up with my first observation. College kids eat things they would never ever eat in any other situation. Well, obviously we knew that already. I mean, I went through a spell last year where I couldn't bear to eat plain tomato soup so I cooked some rice to put in it. My ex-roommate ate rice with butter for every meal for a week. But that's not what we're talking about here. What I'm talking about is the way college students like to pretend they are being healthy. What? College? Healthy? Exactly.

See, here's the deal. I've noticed that people like to choose foods that travel well, are easy to pack, and pass for "healthy." Foods they would never eat if they were in their mother's pantry, and foods they will not bother to buy when they are out of school. How many people really ate yogurt for lunch or an afternoon snack in high school? A small number. Bad example. Let's try snow peas. Snow peas? Pretzels...always pretzels. Carrots. Full sized carrots. Bananas. Cucumbers. Whole wheat bread. Whole tomatoes. Soy beans.

I know these seem like normal foods...and they are. But think about it. We all play to it. As soon as you move out you consider the produce aisle with more thought. You stop buying white bread. You regularly put fruits and veggies you never packed in your lunch in older days in your lunch these days. (Confuzzlement?) Okay. Weak argument. Maybe. But think about it. Again. AGAIN. Then walk around campus and watch what people are eating. Then tell me I'm crazy.

SO THEN I go to my religion class. And all through class I hear a baby talking to himself in the back of the room. Baby? Baby. Oh. Baby. No big. Nobody says a thing about it.

In the very same class, a guy actually sits next to me. Unusual, because usually the seat next to me is empty. But the class was full today. He was nice. Used a cliche conversation starter about the weather. Asked where I was from. We talked about Nashville. Class starts. He starts making comments about the lesson. Now here's the funny thing about religion classes - everyone has their scriptures out. So you can learn anyone's name you want because it's all embossed on the front of their scriptures. HA. Fooled this kid. I never got my name put on.

He keeps talking to me. Finds out I sew. Touches my arm and says, "Did you sew this?" WHOA, STRANGER. Don't touch me. Creep. Then the roll comes around. I see him take his time marking it, glancing it up and down, smile as he hands it to me, and watch me take my pen to mark it. Oh. My. Gosh. He's waiting to see which box I check! Creep. So I try to mark it as quickly as possible and he LITERALLY jumps as he cranes his neck to try and identify me AS I'M PASSING THE ROLL TO THE AISLE IN FRONT OF ME. Desperate? Just ask. He did. "Sorry, I didn't catch your name..?" Don't be polite, creep.

As if that wasn't enough, we were in rows. Aka I had to walk out right behind him. I lagged behind so I wouldn't be caught walking out with him. Alas. I did not wait long enough. Next thing I know I'm walking out a door parallel to him. Then he gives me a hard time for not walking through the door he opened for me. Sorry pal, I saw a door in front of me and opened it myself. I was just walking. THEN we found ourselves awkwardly walking side by side with nothing to say...I don't even know this kid! But it's one of those rough spots where we're walking the same direction and there's no excuse to speed up or slow down pace without seeming rude...I finally threw all caution to the wind and speedwalked to my next class.

GERMAN READING PARTY! We were supposed to bring German food, but I was lazy so I made those really easy pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. I made about three dozen for the ten people in my class. There were precious few by the time the party was over. Shocking. Everyone loved them. As we were cleaning up I asked if anyone wanted any more cookies before I packed them away. This kid says, "Can I take some to my wife? These are her favorite." I thought, Aw, how sweet. Of course! So I handed him the container to take a few. He took the container from my hands and DUMPED THE REST OF THE COOKIES into the sack he was holding. Oh hey, when is your wife due? Don't know why else she'd want so many cookies. (Thanks for that pun Melinda.) I was dying of laughter.

PS. Did I mention my German teacher is almost 80 and grew up in Germany during WWII? Love him. And his accent.

Made a beautiful etching in my studio techniques class. LOVE it. Here are some pics.

Pre Acid

Post Acid

Printed!

Aaaaaand here's my watercolor from last week that I will eventually turn into a fresco. Ten points if you can tell me what it's supposed to be! Don't judge - those Prang watercolor sets don't come with very many colors to work with...

Anyway. That was a long stupid post, but I hope at least some of it was funny. Because I found it rather so. And I feel silly leaving that food thing in because in my head it really was so strange and I feel like nobody else is going to think it is strange. So I'm begging you to read and understand. And then tell me to go write an abstract on Foucault.

Why I Love Fall

Leave the Children Behind, Gosh Dang It!

I respect this:

Now read this.

Now go tell anyone who will listen how important the arts are, or suffer the wrath.

Nostalgia: Brave Little Toaster

I remember LOVING this movie when I was little. So naturally, when my good friend Michelle mentioned she had recently purchased it on dvd, we had to watch it.

Movies are so much funnier when you are old enough to catch the witty lines and comprehend just how much they don't make sense! For example, how come Lampy can flip his light on and off whenever he wants, but Kirby has to be plugged into the battery to pull the chair? Yet, he can walk on his own other times? And when did a blanket become an appliance?

I remembered the characters well enough, I just didn't quite remember the story line, or the musical numbers that don't make any sense...I also didn't remember it being this scary:

Gotta love the eighties...Next up: Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars!

And then there was one...

Cupcakes. One bite. This was round two. Camera didn't work the first time. It was midnight. Both plates used to be full. Our floor was a mess.

Toothpaste

Today I am anti-dating. (Eh...most days actually, but today especially.) Guys are so much easier to be friends with. Every time I start to think a guy is nice I have to start thinking about whether or not he's going to think I'm interested in him because apparently that's what it means when a girl talks to a guy. Thus I am every paranoid of talking to people and life just gets twice as complicated as it needs to be. Then we come back to the realization that I will never get asked out by someone I actually want to go out with. Therefore, I will never be able to date someone I am actually interested in. SO. I am anti-dating.

It's fine.

Now that I've got that off my chest...The good news is I have really sweet roommates and a really fun ward. Linda's birthday was Thursday and we wanted to do something to celebrate for her. But Megan and Melinda decided they couldn't celebrate for her if they didn't for me. So they baked a bunch of cookies and cupcakes and invited a ton of people from the ward over for a belated birthday party and games. We actually got quite a few people to come - it was kind of exciting! I met a lot of new people in the ward and we played a new form of Pictionary and The Great Dalmuti (in ENGLISH!). And now we have about six million chocolate and strawberry cupcakes sitting on our kitchen table...

One nice guy named Fred (for some reason I love that his name is really Fred...) found out the party was for our birthdays and showed up with these balloon bouquets for us. So cute!

In other news, I bought this shirt...that I'm not sure how to wear. But I really like it. It's just a little awkwardly short length-ed. Which is actually what I like about it. But if I tuck in my tank top underneath and the shirt pulls up, in my mind I think my underwear are showing. But untucked is just...no bueno.

So I thought I finally figured out how to wear it. But I got mixed signals all day. At first I wasn't feeling so hot...then I felt empowered as I suavely jumped out of my truck wearing my new shirt and motorcycle wannabe jacket in the Marriott parking lot while the cute guy unlocking his sports car next to me's jaw dropped as he caught sight of me. (At least...that's how it went down in my head.) So I walked with a swagger to campus.

Then in the library the girl who's table I sat at leaned over and told me she loved my shirt. And she had a really cute boyfriend. So I was feeling really good about this shirt thing. Then I nonchalantly swung my bag over my shoulder ready to take my long leggy strides out the door and to class when my eyes met up with this really awkward big kid sitting perpendicular to me and gawking at me. And when I looked at him he nodded at me like he was saying, "Hey baby." And I puked a little. So I walked to class with my head ducked a little and drowned my frustrations in my peanut butter and nutella sandwich.

It was like one of those days where you finally feel good about how you look and then when you get home you look in the mirror and find the toothpaste that got stuck in the corner of your mouth. But I've settled on liking the shirt so the toothpaste can suck it.

It Maketh Me Happy

I was going to post the official video...but it's semi creepy. So just enjoy the beauty of this cute little song. I love the guitar in it. A lot. It makes me relax and smile and feel a little dreamy and happy. Ok. That's sounds as creepy as the official video...

Take A Chance Week Day 5

Well...Work was fun today. We made amazingly easy and delicious pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. One pumpkin spice cake mix, one small can of pumpkin, 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips. Combine. Bake for 15 minutes at 350. BAM. This is what I do at work.

I also gouged my hands open ripping apart a chair. So fun. I actually love work injuries. They make me feel tough. Like I have a super important job. Or something. So I got all these new cuts and tore open one from art class and it bled all over and on the chair (good thing we were recovering it) and I felt so cool. It was a good one. And...I probably intentionally didn't take the time to wash my hands before I rushed to my test review because I hoped the dried blood on the cuts would impress someone.

PS - lest you get excited, you should know the tape is only for protecting my hands against blisters from the berry picker I was using because the warehouse refuses to order gloves small enough to stay on my hands. So...it's not like was so grotesque I had to wrap my hands or anything...because that's kind of what it looks like. But you can believe that if you want. If it makes me sound cooler. Because after my description this photo does seem a little anticlimactic.

As for chances? I said hey to the only unmarried guy in my theory class. Mostly because I was sitting next to him at the review. Because it was the only seat left. And as soon as the review was over he was chatting it up with some other girl. Whatever. So it doesn't really count as a chance. Therefore I guess you can argue I failed today. But I fully intend to make this an idea I keep in my head from now on - looking for chances to take, you know? We'll try again some time.

As for my evening? That was sort of a chance too...I was supposed to get together with a huge group of people to hike the Y, but everyone chickened out because it was so cold. So I randomly spent the night catching up with an old friend that I really randomly got in touch with recently...I could say randomly a couple more times too if you wanted because that was the epitome of the evening. Gourmet hot chocolate, making fun of freshmen at the bell tower, and talking. We talked for SO long. And it was SO fun. Random. But a night full of much needed carelessness and laughter.

Well, I'm going to my first ever BYU football game tonight. Be proud. I even bought a shirt in honor. (It was on sale.) Please bless I don't freeze my face off.

Enough delay. German, here I come.

Take A Chance Week Day 4

No chances today. But I was friendlier with my classmates. So...still a good day.

I'm torn between feeling beaten and empowered after today. I know that sounds dumb and to be honest I don't feel like explaining. It's been one of those days where at the end you are so tired and exhausted but you stay awake until 1 am for the shear purpose of staying awake because you're not ready to relinquish control and fade into sleep. The kind of day where a song you've heard twice can make you cry, but hot biscuits and gravy can make the pouring rain stop. A good afternoon goes bad and a rough night goes swell.

I'm a poet. A poet that is much to sleepy to be awake and typing about her day.

Let me strongly advocate the Cocoa Bean Cafe - new favorite place. Delicious cupcakes and hot chocolate. I recommend the hazelnut cocoa. Heaven in an insulated cup. Anyone know how to reheat cocoa? I meant to take a picture of my delicious meal and lovely companion, but failed to bring the camera...or take in the beauty of my cupcake before downing. Sigh.

Ah! Acoustic!

BUT here are the pictures I do have. It was SO cold today. SO COLD. I wanted to die a little. But as much as I hate winter and being cold and wet, I am a sucker for the first snowfall on the mountains. Walked out of class to this view. I love when the mountains are still colorful with leaves and the snow falls - suddenly half the mountain is black and white and the rest of the world is still in color.


The cool weather also gave me opportunity to wear this great little faux-coolness-bomber-type-looking-motorcycle-chick-wannabe-jacket. Just wish I had a motorcycle to wear it on. Or an airplane and some goggles. Don't mock the pic until you've stood in a parking lot in broad daylight with your camera on self-timer trying to get a picture of yourself that looks half decent while pretending the guys walking by aren't staring at you like your art teacher does when he has a "suggestion" to make about your art. I think the fuzzy effect is nice...

For the record, I'm so tired of creepy guys. Still waiting to be asked out by a normal one. Fingers crossed. Don't ask for an explanation. I don't want to give one.