mydarling

( We interrupt studying for midterms to bring you three and a half of my latest dreams. )

In other news: I loved last night's episode of How I Met Your Mother. Like, a lot.

Long time, no update. Here goes.

School is going along fine. A little stressful, seeing as it's midterm time already - even though I've only been in classes for not quite two months. Luckily, they're not all in the same week and aren't all technically "midterms". I had my first exam in Social Problems last Monday (received an 82% - not as well as I thought I did - but it's the only first exam and I really didn't know what to expect, and I can make it up by doing really well on the other two), a take-home essay for Mass Media&American Politics due Tuesday (which if you saw my tweets Monday night, you know how hard it was for me to get through it), and the rest are all this week: I have a paper/presentation due Monday evening for Communications Research, and exams Thursday and Friday for World Politics and Concepts of Communication, respectively. So yeah, I'm going to be super-busy this weekend. If only the apartment wasn't so cold and there wasn't an America's Next Top Model marathon on Bravo right now, I'd totally be motivated to actually work.

In other real-life news, I NEED A JOB. BADLY. Though this is nothing new, I am running out of money way too fast for someone in my situation. I can't even pay off my credit card bill anymore, that's how bad it is. But sadly, I've been so busy with other school things that I haven't had a chance to check out Grand Valley's student employment office. Maybe after midterms are done and things quiet down academic-wise. If all else fails, I can see if the campus newspaper is still looking for people, even if it's going to be extra work.

TV has been hit or miss so far for me. Mad Men has been incredibly enjoyable as of late - it's really hitting its stride, and I'm anxious to see what's coming next. The Big Bang Theory remains hilarious as always, and I'm really warming up to Barney/Robin on How I Met Your Mother. CSI:NY and Criminal Minds have been really uninteresting this season so far, but I refuse to give either of them up because a) I'd have nothing to do on Wednesday nights, and b) I want to see them get better. I am, however, really excited that 30 Rock returns next Thursday - Liz Lemon&Co. have been absent from my life for far too long. I've also watched this weeks' The Office and House, but I think both of those need a re-watch and their own posts for extended thoughts and analysis. Those will come soon enough.

The NFL has also been in my life lately, which, yay. Great way to spend a Sunday, you guys. And my New York Giants are undefeated so far, which is awesome. Although I'm disappointed I don't get to watch as many of their games on TV as I'd like.

This has really not been my week, school-wise.

- I have a class at 9 AM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays - so in order to be dressed, get my stuff together, eat breakfast AND putter around the internet for a few minutes before leaving the apartment around 8:30, I have to wake up at 7:30, 7:45 at the absolute latest. So I stayed up until around 1 AM Sunday night because of the Emmys, and was thus jarred awake Monday morning by my alarm clock. I turned the alarm off, thinking I could get an extra 15 minutes of sleep. That totally did not happen; I ended up waking up at 8:30 - the exact time I needed to leave the apartment. It was too late for me to get to my first class, so I stayed in bed and watched this week's Mad Men, planning to be ready in time for my next class at 12. Except I was totally not thinking straight that day, because I thought my class was at 1, and it was not until I was all dressed and ready to go at 12:30 that I realized that class really was a 12 and had missed it. Though I did make it to my Monday evening class, because that only meets once a week and if I dare ever miss it, I would be screwed.

- On Tuesday, I was planning on going to the weekly meeting of Grand Valley's TV station at 9:15 PM, but I was also incredibly tired. So I took a nap from 7:30 to 8:45, but was still really sleepy and decided not to go. But then I slept until 11 PM, stayed up for a couple of hours and then went back to sleep until 7:30 the next morning. WEIRDEST SLEEP SCHEDULE EVER.

- I missed my first class yesterday morning simply because I was tired and didn't feel like going. It's my Mass Media & American Politics class, which I really like and actively participate in, but I figured I could miss the class just the one time, and the outline for the class is available online. Still, I feel guilty about missing the class simply because I was tired - even if the professor doesn't care why you're absent.

- Totally forgot to do my first writing assignment for my Comm class, so I have to do it this weekend, turn it in late and only get half credit. Simply because I forgot it was due today. BLERGH.

(The moral of these stories? I NEED TO GET MORE SLEEP. AND POSSIBLY START WRITING THINGS DOWN.)

BUT. Positives! Numb3rs premieres tonight - in just a few hours, actually! I REALLY COULD NOT BE MORE EXCITED. I bought peach rings all the way back at the beginning of the school year in anticipation, and now I FINALLY get to eat them while I watch in celebration. And I'm going to try and hit up Meijer to get the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly that the flist has being chattering about - I tried to get it earlier this afternoon, but last week's issue was still on display. I figured if I go tomorrow afternoon/evening they should have it by then. I can also see if I got in the mail back home (I have a 3 month trial subscription that I don't think has quite run out yet) and if so, have it sent to me. Plus it's the weekend, so you know what that means: SLEEP!

Reasons why today is awesome:

1. My professors are great. (More on that tomorrow.)
2. I found out that Grand Valley's library has the entire series of The West Wing available.
3. I had the best chicken and onion pizza for lunch today.
4. Mommy sent me a package of some things I forgot to pack.
5. I got a frozen coffee earlier tonight. It was delicious.
6. Communication Research class let out early, so I was back in time to see Ana Marie Cox on The Rachel Maddow Show.
7. Rachel Maddow is on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight!
8. Ana Marie Cox will be guest-hosting for Rachel on Friday (that is, if no one famous dies this week.)

So despite the fact that I'm currently feeling like crap due to women's troubles, it was literally freezing when I woke up this morning, and our shower sucks in that it only does extremely hot or cold water, it's been a good day!

Tomorrow, I promise, I will talk about important things - mainly: COLLEGE. But until then, have this.

( 100 questions meme from Facebook. Yes, AGAIN. )

I've only been home from the hospital for a week, and already I'm falling back into the old habit of sporadic eljay posting. Lack of energy, I guess. The doctors still don't know what's wrong with me - I had a post-hospitalization follow-up appointment on Wednesday, and since things still weren't back to normal, they ordered a study where I wear an oxygen saturation monitor while I sleep, without being on oxygen. That didn't yield anything, so the next step is to re-do the lung function test (if you recall, I passed out during it the first time around), which is our best hope at getting this whole issue resolved. But other than that, I'm feeling about as well as I should be at this point, which is awesome.

I was totally exhausted from the lack of sleep I got Wednesday night (I couldn't sleep in fear that my O2 sats would drop to 89%, the machine would alarm and jolt me awake) that I woke up in a fit yesterday morning around 9, pissed that I had missed the Emmy nominations. I'VE WATCHED IT EVERY SINGLE YEAR. Usually if I think I might wake up late that morning I'll tape it, but that wasn't an option this year because we no longer have a DVR. So I had to go to the Emmy website to look them up, and let me tell you, it was a painstaking effort - the televised announcement just lists the major categories that people actually care about, but the website lists EVERY SINGLE CATEGORY - and instead of listing them by importance (Outstanding Comedy/Drama, Outstanding Actors/Actress, etc), they're listed in alphabetical order, meaning I had to scroll through the entire list to make sure I got all the important categories. ( So here are some not-so-brief thoughts on the nominees. )

I've been surprisingly productive over the past couple of days. Like, I actually got out of the house and went places! Yesterday, Mommy and I went to the mall, as I needed to exchange a pair of boxers I bought at American Eagle (I originally got a large, thinking that with being 100% cotton they'd shrink, but obviously I over estimated how much they needed to shrink - so I exchanged them for a small), as well as stop into the Gap that's there to check on the status of my job application (so many people have applied that hiring manager hasn't looked over them yet, but they took down my name and number.) Mommy and I also stopped into this store that had just opened up a few months ago - Crazy 8, it's called - to pick out a gift for one of her favorite doctors at the hospital, who's having a little girl in June. YOU GUYS, BABY CLOTHES ARE ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE, GIRL CLOTHES ESPECIALLY. Mommy ended up buying this, but this was also a possibility. Cute, right? Can't you just imagine Jim and Pam's (hopefully) little girl wearing such things? I can.

And today I went to the dentist with Graham; surprisingly, I don't dread going there - the dentist is really nice, and today, I caught up on a month's worth of Entertainment Weekly AND got a free sample size toothpaste! Then we stopped at Wal-Mart, since Graham needed to pick up some stuff, and let me tell you: BAD IDEA. I hate going to Wal-Mart as it is, but they're currently in the process of remodeling, so everything's a mess. We had to walk around the entire store nearly three times looking for the shampoo/body care/toothpaste section, until we finally found it on our way out - it was by the other entrance at the other side of the store. GAH.

Taking it easy for Memorial Day weekend, I think. I'm going to be alone for the majority of it, as Graham, Monica and Dad are all going to be refereeing a soccer tournament on Saturday and Sunday. There's a parade downtown that I may or may not go to - depends on what everyone else is doing (although Mommy has expressed a desire to go as well.) My plans are to watch the last batch of Prison Break episodes (I purposefully didn't watch them when they originally aired on TV so that I could just marathon them online), as well as work on my inrevelations story, which is SURPRISE! due next weekend. Have I started it? Not really - I only have the first line written down and a vague idea of where the story's actually going to go. I got really excited when I first got the assignment, thinking that since I'm finally out of school, I'll have all kinds of time! Where did it go?

I think I'm suffering through a migraine - I've never had one before, despite the fact that I'm relatively frequent sufferer of headaches, and damn, IT IS PAINFUL. Like, I couldn't even find a comfortable sleeping position because of it; the right side of my head hurts, and I usually sleep on my left side but couldn't due to the intense pain. I'm trying to take it as easy as I possibly can, and acetaminophen seems to be helping. Although the fact that it's coming in tandem with PMS isn't a lot of fun. So.

( I realized I haven't talked about American Idol in awhile. )

Also, Glee! Where has this show been all my life, especially during my three years of choir&drama in high school? Seriously, it is that wonderful - so wonderful, in fact, that it led me to sing a medley of songs from my high school choir days as I was taking my shower last night. I have the slightest of crushes on Will, and I'm a little weirded out that the cheer coach is played by the same actress that plays Reid's schizophrenic mother on Criminal Minds, haha. And I'm obsessed with the music! So glad it's been put up on iTunes - and if they were to continue doing so (like that a capella version of "Gold Digger" from the promo? I WANTS IT), THAT WOULD BE AWESOME. The only thing that worries me about this show (and it seems to be a pretty common worry, from what I'm hearing) that it's on FOX, so a) Glee could be canceled without much notice, despite critical acclaim; and/or b) it could do a lot of unpredictable time-slot switching (as of now, it's set to air on Wednesdays from 9-10PM - up against Criminal Minds.) So I guess we'll just see how things go, but I definitely plan to watch!

I've only been out of school for a week and a half, but it definitely seems like longer. I haven't really done anything major while on break: I make French toast, bum around on the internet, post reactions to the ridiculous things that occur on MSNBC via Twitter, watch Gibbs' daily White House press briefings, get entertained by other TV happenings in primetime, stay up until 2 AM and sleep until 10 the next morning. Rinse and repeat. It's this kind of behavior that makes me desperate to have a job so I'm actually doing something all day instead of being productive; I've applied to a bunch of places, and am now getting through the tail end of the customary week-long waiting period, since no one has attempted to contact me. I just need to go out and do something, before I bore myself to death.

( Thoughts on last weeks' AMAZING TV. )

Oh, and I watched the White House Correspondents Dinner! Which just proves how much of a political dork I am, haha. But it was really enjoyable this time around (I haven't watched since Colbert was the entertainment in 2006), as I recognized a lot more celebrities as well as famous newspeople - I was all "!!!!!" every time they showed someone I knew, which was A LOT. And Obama's speech was absolutely fantastic - he was able to make light of himself and his staff without being too harsh, something I really admire in any person, not just a person of power. I really didn't like Wanda Sykes as the entertainment (I was personally gunning for Jon Stewart, or even Hugh Jackman, doing a medley of political songs with a well-choreographed dance routine), and after her bit was over I couldn't help but wonder if it's somebody's job at the WHCA to look over the entertainer's routine to make sure there isn't anything that could be construed as offensive, especially in Wanda Sykes' case. And then I got mad at MSNBC for bringing in two unknown correspondents who took the idea that the dinner is jokingly called "DC Prom" literally by wearing actual wrist corsages and taking each other as dates instead of getting one of their ACTUAL NBC CORRESPONDENTS on the phone and asking them what it's like at the dinner. Oh wells. There's always next year, I guess.

I feel like everyone but me has seen Star Trek already. Which is sad, because I'd really like to go see it, but no one will take/go with me. Same thing with Away We Go premiering in a few weeks. BLERG.

I'M DONE!


REALLY. At least, I'm pretty sure I'm done with that college for good, barring any failing grades (which might actually happen, given all the English 102 drama I had this semester.) I can't find out my grades until tomorrow, which has made me all nervous and tense over the past few days. But I'm just going to put myself in the mindset that I did pass all my classes, because I'M DONE, AND I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER. I'm so ready to start things at Grand Valley in August.

Honestly, I can't tell you how I survived this week. I made a to-do list everyday, and (mostly) stuck to it. I looked for something to get excited over each day, whether it was The Rachel Maddow Show every night, an ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC lunch at the on-campus restaurant with Dad on Tuesday, American Idol's Big Band week on Tuesday&Wednesday, President Obama's "100 Days" press conference (and by extension, THESE PHOTOS ZOMG) or 30 Rock on Thursday. I de-stressed the weekend before by watching the NFL Draft with the family. And even with that, I still was moved to tears after I sold my books back on Thursday afternoon because it was storming outside and the phrase "I made it through the rain" couldn't have been more fitting at that moment.

So what am I going to do in the interim five months between now and then? Take it easy, I guess. Finding a job is priority one, but I'm a little wary because a) Michigan's economy is in the toilet and b) I am not the ideal "job" candidate, as I still do not drive despite being 18 - though I did apply to a bunch of places, so I'm just going to wait that out. I plan on reading lots (and not just political stuff!), as well as writing - I have a new inrevelations assignment that I'm anxious to start, even though I don't know what I'm going to write yet. I want to go to the gym more, and go swimming - I have all kinds of time now! I'll keep obsessing over TV - from season finales that are coming up in the next few weeks (CSI:NY! Numb3rs! The Office! And House, for some reason!) to stuff I get excited about watching over the summer: In Plain Sight, which has become exponentially wonderful now that Joshua Malina has joined the cast; Eureka, for which I've been anxiously waiting months for - JULY 14TH CANNOT COME SOON ENOUGH; and Mad Men, which won't return until August, but I'm just thankful we're getting a third season after how the last season ended. There are no plans for big vacations this summer (we're not going to Camp this year due to financial circumstances, and I highly doubt we're going to Omaha for the College World Series), but my cousin Claire (who goes to Notre Dame) is staying in South Bend for the summer and will be coming to visit! And I've made it my goal to go to a Tigers game this year (my wish is to go to one of the Red Sox/Tigers games in June), but I highly doubt that's going to happen. But I can always hope, right?