thoughts on a wednesday morning

bear with me: it's been a very long day/ morning, and i've decided to blog about it in a very montaigne-esque fashion. as of late, i have been struck with the overwhelming desire for change-- in so many areas of my life. i am incredibly annoyed with myself for becoming so complacent and comfortable with just about everything (from school to relationships to living arrangements); can i just pack up and flee to the woods for a week? pull a dave chappelle and roam around africa for a little while and clear my mind? transform into bruce almighty for a second so that he can use his godly powers to read and respond to the ever-growing mound of student papers on my desk? sprout some biceps like popeye on spinach to help me lift boxes of books, my tv, etc. that i've neatly packed for moving? (i'll let that image of me trying to commune with rhinos marinate for a sec.)

seriously, where are some gummi worms when i need them?

ok, so i'm being sort of whiny. (i told you this was inspired by montaigne, right?) perhaps i should follow becca's example and blog about things that i love-- being that it's february and all. well, right now i love blogger.com because it is awake and available to hear me out. thanks, blogger, i appreciate you.

moving out.

dearest faithful blog readers,

as most of you know, i am moving out of my cozy purple room on wind weaver and headed towards boise-- with some clothing in tow (unfortunately, it appears that 75% of my precious garments will remain in eagle, eagerly awaiting the day i pluck them from my closet and whisk them away in my arms to a newfound closet space). i am very excited about this new opportunity to live with two of the most free-spirited, laid-back basketball fans i've ever met.

despite my enthusiasm, there are several things about home sweet home that i will dearly miss. for example, fresh-baked homemade bread on the weekends. and my doggies (i've already tried to convince my parents to let me bring along elliot... unfortunately, no such luck). and having my entire 60-something pairs of shoes at my disposal. oh, and free rent-- i couldn't possibly forget that.

pray hard, dear friends, that this was indeed a wise decision and that i will embark on a favorable and fun journey into the land of roommates (including one very large and very hairy akita named coda).

onwards,
andrea

the world will never ever be the same.... and you're to blame.

It's been almost two weeks (in about seven more hours) since I said goodbye to dear Zachary, and I can't help but miss him terribly. He called me today from Iraq for the first time since he's been gone. . . the sound of his voice was so welcoming after a really long day at school and a painfully slow and slippery drive home from my night class. I miss him and can't wait for June. Until then. . .

Music blog

Go to the music player of your choice and put it on shuffle. Say the following questions aloud and press play. Use the song titles as your answers. NO CHEATING!

How does the world see me?
Song: Cause = Time
Artist: Broken Social Scene
Comments: Mathematical equations confuse me. Alas, I shall reign solitary with my liberal arts education.

Will I have a happy life?
Song: We Still Kill the Old Way
Artist: Lostprophets
Comments: Perhaps?

What do my friends really think of me?
Song: She is Beautiful
Artist: Andrew W.K.
Comments: Suh-weet!

Do people secretly lust after me?
Song: Love Shack
Artist: B-52's
Comments: Hmm. . . maybe it's the Melville obsession that turns heads?

How can I make myself happy?
Song: The World I Know
Artist: Collective Soul
Comments: Remember, we are in the world but not of the world. Thank you, Anne Bradstreet.

What should I do with my life?
Song: Singing in my Sleep
Artist: Semisonic
Comments: See! I should spend the majority of my time unconscious!

What will fill my life?
Song: Champagne Supernova
Artist: Oasis
Comments: I'm OK with that.

How can I maximize my happiness?
Song: Shadow
Artist: Ashlee Simpson (no, I'm not ashamed that she's on my ipod!)
Comments: I think this goes along with the whole sleep thing. And besides, Emerson's light metaphors and Thoreau's symbolic awakeness get kinda old after a while.

What will my children be like?
Song: Pretty Handsome Awkward
Artist: Taking Back Sunday
Comments: Fair enough. (See, Becca, your children will be Gap-poster cute and mine will thrive on awkward moments. . . )

How will I die?
Song: Black Letter Day
Artist: The Cardigans
Comments: Surrounded by newsprint? I can deal with that.

What is some good advice for me?
Song: Cardiff-by-the-sea
Artist: The Ataris
Comments: Are you saying I need to get out more?

What is happiness?
Song: The Widow's Peak
Artist: Dashboard Confessional
Comments: Nothing makes me happier than dreaming about a new hairline.

What is one of my obsessions?
Song: Foolish Games
Artist: Jewel
Comments: Oh, please, that is so high school-- unless you count 'games' in some sort of Scattegories-esque manner.

How will I be remembered?
Song: Goodbye to You (Acoustic)
Artist: Michelle Branch
Comments: At least someone will be around to say goodbye!

Any advice for the time-being?
Song: Over You
Artist: Chris Daughtry
Comments: Oh, ipod Nano, how I love you so.

(P.S.: Pray that the folllowing semester engulfs me in fascinating literature and provides some more clarity about my future so that I will no longer post such ridiculous blog entries. Thanks for reading!)

winter wonderland

Even though I like Boise, the weather stinks. I am a California girl at heart-- a true valley girl who prefers sunshine, beaches, and orchards over ice, snow, and frigid winds (yes, I said "frigid"). However, with harsh winter comes great freedoms (do you like the 'Spiderman' speech imitation??? I truly am an English major), which delight me thoroughly-- so much so that I've created a Top 10 list for Winter Break:

1. Sleeping in. Ev-er-y day.

2. Learning to sew on the sewing machine. My first project was fleece cage accessories for my favorite ferret at EFS, Five:

I hand-delivered the hammock, floor pad, and sleep sack. Not to sound conceited or anything, but he (and his cagemate Cracker) loved them.

3. Getting my hair cut. I opted for a long-layered shaggy look a la Trish in "The 40-Year Old Virgin."

3 1/2. Taking random pictures of my new haircut and imagining that I could totally rock a body perm:

4. Ringing in the new year with Brett. We made margaritas, watched "The Pursuit of Happyness," played video games, and caught the last three seconds of the ball dropping in NYC:

5. Meeting friends for some quality pig-out time, like Anna and Christy, at Cafe Ole; Amy at Moxie Java; and the Melville Edition interns at Bittercreek Alehouse (Becca, you're next!).

6. Wimping out on driving anywhere in the snow. As the Zamzow's radio commercial warns, "Don't get overly confident if you have four-wheel drive." I'll just over-exaggerate that statement and claim little to no confidence with driving on any road conditions other than "dry."

7. Reading. I actually have time to read recreational literature! I finished "The Nanny Diaries," "The Virgin Blue" by Tracy Chevalier, half of Barbara Kingsolver's "Prodigal Summer" (I'm forcing myself to give it a chance-- slow going!), half of "Blue Like Jazz" by Donald Miller (I need time to let his words marinate between readings), random Walt Whitman poems, and I reread "Choke" by Chuck Palahniuk before giving it to Zach...

8. ... which brings me to my next favorite thing about Winter Break: hanging out with Zachary who is on R&R from his tour in Iraq (he goes back to work on the 18th).

We always have a blast when we're together:

And another for good measure:

9. Watching endless hours of dumb television, including (but not limited to) America's Next Top Model marathons, Project Runway reruns, What Not To Wear, Rachael Ray, and most anything on E! After break, I'll bulk up on some intellectual reading material-- don't worry.

10. Mostly, I love break because it reminds me of how much I enjoy my life. Can school last forever? Can I get paid to go to school for the rest of my life? I really don't mind, as long as I have a few respites every once in a while.

Hope you're having a fun new year as well.

Christmas 2007

(We used to be photogenic people. . . )

I hope your holidays were joyful, faithful blog-readers (whomever you are!). Brett's family went to California for Christmas, so he spent Christmas Eve (making homemade pizzas for dinner) and morning with us, which is pretty exciting seeing as how he's the ONLY guest at the Johnson household for Christmas morning (with the exception of my maternal grandparents who visited before Austin was even born). Here's a photo blog post to explain the rest:

All dressed up for the 'casual' Christmas party for Brett's work. Remind me to rave about the chocolate fountain at the party. . .

Leftover snow = White Christmas in Boise! Just ask this garden turtle statue (to know this is to know my mother) how he feels about all the snow!

As previously mentioned, we made home-made pizzas for Christmas Eve dinner. Here's the family creating their scrumptious concoctions-- apparently, Riley thinks pizza is yummy (pictured above begging for pizza tidbits under the table).

I bought a Wii last July with my summer job money. My brother has every other game console besides the Wii, so my purchase rounds out the technological goldmine in our house; it also came in handy to entertain our Christmas Eve all-nighter. (However, Brett and I proved what an old couple we are by falling asleep around two a.m.) The above picture shows Brett playing Call of Duty-- or trying to, anyway-- with my brother in the role of backseat-gamer.

And then Christmas morning came!

My mom made a great Christmas brunch-- breakfast casserole (egg, sausage, cheese, mushrooms, and other breakfasty/omelette items), fruit salad, coffee cake (from Brett's mom), bacon, and OJ. Gift-opening was quite an ordeal as well, at least in my family, because one person at a time opens their stocking, then gifts, and the non-openers look on in great anticipation for the perfect reaction on the recipient's face. . . quite a suspenseful and slow-going process!!! Judging from the gifts from my family, one would conclude that I am a narcissistic video-gamer (somewhat accurate), based on the Wii supplies, brown boots, desk items, candy, pasta recipe book, misc clothes, and other items they gave me. Brett gave me a new black iPod nano that holds 8 GB's worth of videos, pictures, and--of course-- music. I'm still in the process of loading my CD's onto it. Very cool! Now I can join the rest of society and tune out everything except pure musical satisfaction pulsing through the microscopic magnetic holes in my earphones.

All in all, 'twas a great Christmas.

Farewell, ANTM... for now.

My week consists mainly of school, teaching, and watching ANTM on Wednesday nights. Well, last Wednesday was the season finale of ANTM Cycle 9. Congrats to Saleisha, the winner:

although I have to express my extreme disappointment (to the point of tears) that my girl Jenah didn't win.

I feel like my week will be devoid of skinny-girl drama and the oh-so-fierce Tyra Banks. But, here's the great news: the new cycle starts on February 20!!! YES!

my index finger is killing me...

from incessantly moving around on my mouse/square-thingy while trying to condense my syllabus into four pages (i'm trying in vain to work on my verbose policies. . . that i'm pretty sure no one reads anyway).

currently, i am seeking an elixir to quaff that will result in a short-term death lasting until the third stroke of midnight on thursday, december 20 in a very "romeo and juliet"-ish fashion. payment to be made in the form of my scrumptious tomato soup courtesy of campbell's. or oriental top ramen. you choose. merci beaucoup.

ah, the end of the semester (i call it "cheating death").

You would think by now that I would have planned for the end of the semester cram, late-night paper writing (oh, don't EVEN bring up my pseudo-prospectus disaster!), and preparing for graduate-level presentations the week before dead week. But no. Here I sit in the nice new building at BSU, the Interactive Learning Center, in a room that I reserved for student conferences (you know, to seem more teacherly and to seem like I have connections in high places that hook me up with a sweet breakout room. . .), and weirdly stroking the shiny, silky, fragrant-- in a bookish sort of way-- cover of the new LCRE Moby-Dick.

I thought I'd share the most brilliant opening of a book. Ever. Even though I complain about my coursework, I am still tragically in love with Herman Melville's writing. I also thought I'd share the REAL first line of Moby-Dick (none of that "Call me Ishmael" pishposh):

"Etymology"
(Supplied by a late consumptive Usher to a grammar school.)

The pale Usher-- threadbare in coat, heart, body, and brain; I see him now. He was ever dusting his old lexicons and grammars, with a queer hankerchief, mockingly embellished with all the gay flags of all the known nations of the world. He loved to dust his old grammars; it somehow mildly reminded him of his mortality.

Ah. Dearest Usher: I, too, know mortality. . . especially when my laptop loses a wireless internet connection repeatedly and my cell phone battery dies after less than the stated battery life on the box. Ah, being threadbare.

EMA Fall Banquet

Last night was the EMA Fall Banquet presented by (the spirit of) Lewis Carroll. It was an excuse to dress up (I wore a pretty hot black strapless dress with a black satin sweater wrap and my painful but fierce black stilletos with the sparkly jewel on the ankle strap), hang out with fellow English-interested people and profs, and laugh so hard my face hurt.

Sometimes I'm not sure I fit in with English majors-- am I well-read enough? am I convincing and assertive enough to survive in this field? is writing a narcissistic and self-fulfilling task?-- but I still love them. . . in all their nerdy-laugh, alcohol-induced, and bibliophile greatness.