"Well that’s a side of you we don’t get to see that often." " No. No we’re not supposed to really, not publicly."

First week = CONQUERED.

So my first week of the last semester of college is FINISHED.

I am well pleased.

Everything went pretty well, y'know, by first week standards.

My Renaissance and Reformation History class is taught by a certifiable fossil. He came into class all proud of himself for having made a powerpoint. And by "powerpoint" he meant that he had printed his notes on paper and used an overhead projector.
Then the other day, whilst studying the Medieval feudal system, he digressed eloquently about sailboats and how triangular sails work more effectively than square ones.
I still have no idea what that had to with peasants and bishops, but whatever.

Then I had my lit and pop culture class, about which I was really excited because we could write about anything (and Harry Potter was a suggested topic. WIN.). The whole class was based on vampires--vampires in literature, how that leaked into pop culture, the current vampire phenomenon, pop culture in regards to sucking out things from society, etc. Which was all good and well until we had to watch some clips from True Blood.
I do not recommend this course of action to my fellow hemophobes. Especially if you're of the persuasion to faint in public.
Needless to say, I ended up dropping that class out of necessity and am now in Professional Editing, which is probably way more useful anyway.

That class is online, and so far it's okay. A bit dry, but then, it's focusing on the technical aspects of editing so how awesome can you expect that to be? Although, today, we read about an aspect of writing and editing called "the situation," and the text kept saying things like "consider the situation" and "when looking at the situation." And all I could think of was this guy:


After that, I have my Archaeology of Caribbean Piracy class. Which I regret to announce I still haven't attended. Our professor cancelled the first day of class, I missed the second, and he cancelled again the third. So while I'd love to regale you with stories about piracy, I cannot.

And lastly is my Gothic lit class which so far I ADORE. It's the same teacher who taught my Austen class, so she's a BAMF to begin with. Then she goes and makes me blush by complimenting my first discussion post. And this coming week, we're reading The Castle of Otranto, which may well be the most awesome thing I've read in a LONG time.
I'll try to sum it up for you:
There's a prince who has a sickly son, a daughter he doesn't like, and a clingy wife. The son's engaged to a beautiful woman who the prince doesn't think deserves to be married to his puny offspring, which is fortunate, because the day of the wedding a massive helmet falls from the sky and kills the son. So the prince is in despair because he's lost the only heir. So he decides, "my wife is old and annoying and can produce no more sons; ergo, the logical conclusion is to procreate with the fiancee." So he starts hunting her down. And she escapes through secret passageways in this awesomely haunted castle. The pictures talk (like in Harry Potter). There are secret churches. Oh, and a know-it-all peasant who I reckon will factor into the story in a very prominent way later. Anyway, that's as far as I've gotten and it is wildly entertaining. And so gothic. I love it. WHERE WERE YOU WHEN I WAS SIXTEEN, HORACE WALPOLE?

Apart from the class-switching-on-add-drop-deadline-day thing, my first week was pretty successful. And it was punctuated with some lovely social engagements, so overall it was a good week.

But now I am massively tired because apparently, Sleep and I broke up and no one told me.

Geek Life.

Backpack, Coach wristlet, notebooks, parking permit, hand sanitizer (that I got for Kate and William's wedding LOL), and a bulldog folder since they didn't have any with pugs on them. :( I do love bulldogs, though. And it has a CROWN.

My very incomplete set of books.

!!!

Last semester: HERE I COME.


I WILL VANQUISH YOU:




And you know what?






Now watch. In a week's time, I'll be on here all like, "Omg, I hate school, this place is full of yahoos morons, I can't wait to be finished and get the hell out of UCF, blah blah blah." MARK MY WORDS.

Puddlejumping and "Tubthumping."

It was a dark and stormy night.

No, like, LITERALLY.

So Bethany and I have been planning a trip to Downtown Disney (more specifically, the Rainforest Cafe) for well over a year now. She had a gift card and neither of us had been before, so we were like, "YES, we are doing this." So we got all prettied up--wore dresses, actually DID our hair and makeup--and decided to go.


We got there and it turns out there's this neat little ferry that takes you from place to place (it's FREE) so we decided to ride it out to Rainforest Cafe.


So as you can see, it was sunny and nice and everything was awesome. The destination:


We got there and ate this DELICIOUS appetizer sampler dish (we split everything...including drinks. Sorry, waiter!) and had the most amazing frozen raspberry lemonade on the planet. We actually ate outside because it was, no pun intended, a zoo in the inside. And we actually wanted to be able to hear each other talk and stuff, so we ate on the deck by the water. Then we went inside and looked around.


Bethany thought this penguin was an owl (it IS a penguin, right??)



And we found some weird pimp/hippie hats (Disney merchandisers, wtf.).



That's when things got sketchy (and not just because of the pimp hats). While we were eating outside, it got progressively darker (like that scene in the first "Pirates" movie when Elizabeth Swan falls into the ocean and the weather changes like *that*). We brought umbrellas with us so we were like, "Yeah, we're good. It'll probably pass in an hour or so."

Umm, FALSE.

Let me just show you the satellite image from last night:

Neither of us bothered to check the weather. MAJOR planning fail.

So we left the restaurant and started to walk, in the rain, around Downtown Disney. We made it about 20 yards before the rain became a torrential downpour, so we ducked inside this massive Disney store for a while. And we were there FOREVER. And here's the really stupid part. We were in heels, right? So they hurt. And we were wet. So we found a little corner to sit down in and just wait until the rain lightened up. But OH NO. Apparently, you're not allowed to sit. Anywhere. Ever. Seriously, for being the "happiest place on Earth," Disney (and their employees) and pretty effing annoying. Especially considering it was basically a monsoon. And the store was PACKED with people all trying to just wait it out.

So we stayed there for like an hour being bored out of our minds and shooed away like a couple of stray dogs before we decided we'd had it. So we took off our shoes, popped the umbrellas and decided to just go back to the car where we could at least SIT until the storm had passed.

Well.

Let me just show you a map of Downtown Disney, complete with our various locations and the path we took, in mid-calf deep water, to get there:


We. Were. SOAKED. And for those of you who were wondering, both of us determined that wet chiffon may well be the most uncomfortable thing in the world. But anyway, this was epic. It was like Lord of the Rings, the "barefoot in posh frocks" edition. Bethany fell down (she's fine, btw). Her umbrella also broke halfway through. We sang "The Little Mermaid" songs at the top of our lungs because what the hell else are you supposed to do while running across Disney in a semi-hurricane? We encountered some lost old people. We got lost ourselves. We probably picked up some kind of weird thing from walking barefoot across an entire park. And then we FINALLY found the car.


This is Bethany's umbrella in the OPEN position.



So we sat in the car for a good while playing Pop Quiz on Beth's iPhone before it finally let up enough that we could SEE the road in front of us to get home (it was during this time that I introduced Bethany to Chumbawamba. Was I the only one who listened to Chumbawamba in the 90's? I thought they were awesome because they were English! Granted I was like, 9...).

So yes. Overall, it was wet but it was AWESOME. I haven't laughed that much in a looong time. And I was just ecstatic to see my Friend in real life instead of on a computer screen. :)

Just thought I'd bullet out a few things.


-Mom and I are going to Vero Beach tomorrow for like 2-3 days. I'm pretty excited...haven't really gone anywhere else all summer. So this will be nice. Also, girl time. Which inevitably means SHOPPING. Also, there's a PIRATE TREASURE museum. Whee!
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-The other day my dad was talking about rappers, and he goes, "Well, there's only ONE real white rapper." My mind automatically goes:
He says, "M&M? What is that? I'm talking about Vanilla Ice!"

Omg, my parents.
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-I was at Target yesterday looking at school supplies (not like I need erasers or markers, but I have fun looking anyway. Also, to the brand that makes pocket folders with every breed of puppy on them except for pugs? WAIT UNTIL MY FATHER HEARS ABOUT THIS.). So while I didn't get any school supplies, I had a rather fortuitous moment out in the parking lot. I FOUND a pair of Betsey Johnson sunglasses! They were alone. And ownerless. So I kept them. Does that make me a horrible person? They were in the PARKING LOT. I'd like to think this is karma working in my favor for all the times I've lost stuff. I secretly hope they belonged to the bitch who stole my wallet like 7 years ago (I WILL NEVER FORGET).

They're super cute. WINNING.
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-This is such a quality movie. Even the opening credits are awesome. Even though I had a friend in elementary school who told me I'd to to hell for watching it because Angela Lansbury plays a witch. Whatevs.

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-I've started my reading for the Archaeology of Caribbean Pirates class. I am SO excited for this class! Unfortunately, the text I started with is Archaeology of the Caribbean. Luckily, I have an interest in archaeology and ancient civilization. That being said, it's pretty boring. I only care so much for hypotheses formed from trash heaps found in Jamaica about people who lived there 8000 years ago. Like, you really deduced that these people had complex burial rituals and ate extinct giant sloths FROM A SHELL you found in a dump??? REALLY?? I want the pirates to come in and pillage the author of this book, like that scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail (don't ask why it's in Spanish...).

I haven't started my Gothic Lit class yet, namely because my books haven't arrived yet. But I'm pretty stoked about that, too. :)))
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That's all that's new with me as of right now. I'm so excited for school to start that it's pretty sad. I should make a promise to myself to never let my life reach that point of boredom again.
The key word there being "should."

:DD

I am SO excited!!!

Okay, two things.


First, I got my syllabus for Gothic Literature which I'm taking online.
!!!!
I have to read 7 novels, 9 articles and short stories, write 3 papers and have weekly quizzes and discussions.


I am SO excited! And SHOCKED. That is a lot of reading. And that's only ONE of my classes. My life is about to go from 0 to 100 in nothing flat. But I'm so ecstatic because the reading list is so incredible, and some of these books have been on my "to read" list for quite a while. I'll finally get to read some Ann Radcliffe and The Castle of Otranto, both of which feature prominently in Northanger Abbey, one of Austen's finest.

This is why I LOVE literature. It's all interconnected. It's like a massive spider web spun from words, and everything somehow can be traced back to other fibers of the web. It is so deliciously exciting and I adore it. I wish everyone got this worked up over words on paper, but alas. It's a hard job, but someone's got to do it. ;)


Secondly, Bethany will be home for A WHOLE WEEK longer than we originally thought! She was only going to be home for a few days, but now I have even longer to see her before she goes away again (until like, CHRISTMAS). This makes me quite happy.


FINALLY something of substance to post! And good news at that! Hooray!


Also, thanks, Half.com, for selling obscure Gothic titles on the cheap. :)

Courtesy of Beth, who sent this to me. :)

Stuff I like.

I am growing atrociously bored with my existence, so here's a list of things that I like/have found recently and want to share.

Cheap Lingerie

Let's get one thing straight: I do NOT like Kmart. It's smelly and old. BUT. That being said, I do have to congratulate them on stepping up their game--at least in the "intimates" section. All of the above bras are under $15 (most are under $10), which is a STEAL if you're used to paying $40+ at places like Victoria's Secret. Here's the deal. It's an effing BRA. No matter how much you pay for it, you're still gonna sweat when you wear it, especially if you live here. And your boyfriend probably doesn't give as much of a damn about it as you think he does--he's more interested in the "getting it off" part. So $10 for something that's kind of fun and cute? I approve.


Cheap Books

I recently meandered into Books-A-Million and was absolutely tickled to find they had a whole series of really decent looking classics for TWO DOLLARS a piece. TWO. DOLLARS. You can't beat it! So if you need one for class or are just looking to read that book you never read, check it out. You can afford to.


Cheap Movies

Seriously? This is the best thing EVER. Since it's so hot.


Cream Soda

Because when you don't drink, you have only so many options.


Finding Bigfoot

This is one of those shows that's so bad, it's good. It is utterly ridiculous, but in the best way. Of course, I love anything paranormal, so when I found out there was an organization which specializes in Bigfoot research and tracking that was pretty hardcore. And they have this show on Animal Planet. So these 4 people go around and use various (if repetitive and ineffective) methods to try and stalk sasquatches (or "squatches" as they call them). And it's AMAZINGLY entertaining. Although apparently, I'm the only one who thinks so. But yes. I'd like to form such an organization for Nessies. THEY'RE OUT THERE, TOO.



Skype

I love this thing because I can talk to and SEE my best friend even though she's currently 155 miles away from me. And this is keeping me sane through this incredibly odd summer.




So those are a few of my favorite things at the mo. I cannot wait for school to start because I'm tired of sitting here and just reading until my eyes threaten to fall out. Not that I don't enjoy reading. Just, y'know. I do much better having something to do.

"My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work...I abhor the dull routine of existence."

Ordinary people think merely of spending time. Great people think of using it.

Those of you who've been reading for a while or who know me relatively well know I have a thing with planners. I love them. I need them. I lost one once and sat around not knowing what to do with myself. I'm just one of those people who needs to write everything down and see what I need to do before me.
I dream one day of splurging on a Filofax and pimping it out to the max--with little sticky notes and folders and pouches. Omg, be still my beating heart!

Anyway, I wanted to post the new one I got! Unfortunately, I've gotten into the cycle of buying student planners, which means they start in August and run out in July, so I'm not sure when I'll ever manage to buy a calendar that starts in January like most people. I digress. I've been using Blue Sky planners for about 3-4 years now and I love them the most. Even when I try other ones (ahem-Dayrunner-ahem) I end up coming back to them, because I like the size (slim but with everything you need inside), the monthly/weekly layout and how there's enough room for me to write everything I need and then some.

I found this one at Staples, and it has a clear cover for inserting pics. PERFECT, because I'm one of those maniacal idiot girls who has to customize everything she owns. Well, not really. Just my planners. ANYWAY, pics (click to enlarge if you feel so inclined):

The cover. I keep a box of magazine clippings (this is a compulsive thing I do while I watch TV--clip stuff out of magazines. DO NOT JUDGE ME.) and like to collage them onto stuff. Namely my planners. Anyway, this one's a little frou-frou, but I love the Oscar Wilde quote.


The inside cover.



Detail! Awesome fortune cookie thing, quote by Thoreau, and Hogwarts sticker that came on a Valentine I got.


This was the first page. It just said a bunch of boring stuff like, "BlueSky Planner 2011-2012." Well, I know all that, so I put in a pic of the beach (Cocoa, to be exact) and utilized more fortune cookie sayings (another compulsion, I'm afraid).



I made a pocket on the back cover using the front of a greeting card that happened to match nicely. I keep my gym schedule, Operation Beautiful sticky notes, business cards and other random crap in there. Oh, and gratuitous inspirational quote from JK Rowling.



YAY! Please don't stop reading my blog because I am an apparent nutcase have certain organizational needs. Do you guys have planners or stuff? Am I the only one who does this?