A Classic Cheryl Friday (and a Pseudo Classic Saturday)

Last night was a classic Cheryl Friday for sure. I went home and decided that I needed to just chill out on the first night of spring break before I start working on stuff.

So what did I do?

I pulled up Netflix to watch something that I would truly enjoy. No compromising with the tastes of others. I opted to watch Merlin. I loved it! (Yes, all good things do come from the BBC.)

I also pulled out some pencils and paper and did some sketching. I am super out of practice, and I wasn't that good in the first place, but it was a great Friday, though cat kept trying to claw my blanket and sit on my notepad, but what are cat's for if not to be a nuisance?

Before becoming a graduate student, I used to wake up on Saturday morning, start baking something and set to cleaning. I don't do that anymore. Grad school has helped me to ignore dirt, but this morning I tackled the clogged kitchen drain and the pile of dishes that resulted. I am the master! I want to deep clean, but I don't feel motivated to just go nuts, so I'm breaking things up by day. Tomorrow, I'll dust and tackle the floors on the main floor. I'll break up the rest of the cleaning later.

It's not worth baking since no one is here, so that can't be a part of classic Saturday.

I best get off to take care of Naomi's cat CB--I'm far too late on that today. I'll spend most of the afternoon and evening with CB, grading I think. I am soooooooooooooooooooooo far behind on grading. I might do a little creative writing too though.

When I return this evening, I will crochet and watch more Merlin with my cat who is currently napping.

A Cause to Support--Getting Behind Japan

Okay, last blog of the day. I have so much to do, but I'd rather be blogging and reading the interesting things National Geographic and Cooking Light have to discuss.

Anywho, as some of you know, I applied a few weeks ago for a job with Big Cartel. My sister Kerrie sells her jewelry on a site built with them: Handmade Obsessions. I really want the job, but I am fairly sure I botched the application. I am good at the standard cover letter and resume bit, but they didn't want any of that, and I should have modeled my answers after their short, sweet, and funny style, but I got panicky, and I think I got weird in my application. Oh well. Perhaps I belong in a more formal environment.

Anywho (again), I've gotten off track. Since just before I applied for the job, I've been following their blog and general goings on because it seems like such a cool company, helping artists and such sell merchandise in an environment particularly suited to their needs. It's awesome. I get completely distracted by the merchants of vintage clothing. That's neither here nor there.

Most recently on their blog, they've gathered and shared a smattering of their clients merchandise from which funds are going to Japan. I haven't said anything about Japan, though I felt I should. I just didn't know how to adequately give this issue justice. This is a cause I can get behind. Take the time and check out their blog, get to know the artists, and support a good cause by making a purchase. Win for everyone.

I bought a great t-shirt that both expresses support in a way that suits my quirkiness and will send money off to people that need it.  Here's the t-shirt. You can buy it from Little Lunarc.

I wish I weren't in grad school so that I could afford to send a big chunk of money...or had time and money to go myself. So buy something, or at least text REDCROSS to 90999 to send $10. You can also visit the Red Cross website to help.

Enviro-Foodie Graphic Novels...and Other Stuff

I got home from class last night (after 10pm), and I didn't feel like sleeping. I'm all caught up on reading for classes right now, but I just have a lot of writing to do. Unfortunately (or maybe not), I left my computer in the office, so I couldn't work.

I decided to do some National Geographic reading. I am so far behind on such reading, so I was perusing. It was very animal focused, which completely reminded me that National Geographic was probably 90% responsible for my childhood desire to be a marine biologist. I would have liked some more anthropological stuff, but I'm not finished yet. Perhaps it will come. Highlight of reading was on organ printing. Did you know that they now makes spleens that are not ready to be implanted in people, but people can wear them outside their bodies and they are better than dialysis? Weird, huh.

I also got my first edition of Cooking Light (but I didn't notice it until this morning). Mom "got" it for me for Christmas...way to procrastinate, Mom. I'm so super-psyched about it. There were so many interesting recipes and cool articles about calorie counting and how to do it effectively. I could have kept reading that all morning. The highlight of my reading thus far was about a book described as an "enviro-foodie graphic novel." It's World Without Fish by Mark Kurlansky. This is now at the top of my reading list.

Oh, and it's a high of 79 today, so I totally wore shorts. Woot! Also, Go Bears!!! My tiny little alma mater, the University of Nothern Colorado is in the NCAA Championship. I just hope we don't get killed.

Okay...I really need to write my book review on The Smile of Vanuvati. To work!

Day of Green...with Food

Green is my favorite color, so I generally like St. Paddy's Day, though I think the getting drunk craziness is stupid and not really that much fun. I have taken the holiday as an opportunity to cook tasty things. Christy said she'd help me out with the cooking, which is awesome because she's a great cook and a funny person.

Our menu includes:
Colcannon
Irish Lamb Stew
Guinness Bread

All the recipes are care of Simply Recipes.com. They were well equipped with St. Paddy's Day recipes, and I was excited to find a corned beef and cabbage alternative in the lamb stew. I like lamb, and I do not like corned beef--it's so salty.

Brooke and Ryane are coming. Lindsey might pop downstairs for a bite--though I'm destroying mashed potatoes by putting greens in them. I don't know that she'll want to eat anything, except maybe Guinness bread. Mariya and Lacey will be there, and maybe Ashley, Alyssa, and Justin, but I have my doubts. Hooray!

Maybe I should dye the broth green on the soup? Nah!

It Hasn't Been that Great of a Day

Well, it just hasn't. I've had a knot of tension in my stomach all day, even though it really should be a good day. My students had a great time with Legos, and Indian Children's Lit had better discussion than we've had most of the semester. I finished reading Tech Comm reading for the week, too.

I still need to crank out a response paper for tech comm material I am just not invested in. I also really need to finish my writing project. The newest draft is onto a 17th page though, catching up to where I was on the previous version.

What I really want to do right now is revise my short story. Why is there no time? Lame. Back to my response paper.

Also...here is a song for the day. It's an odd song for an odd day. My roommate says it's creepy and melancholy, and she's right, but for some reason I find it very catchy and enjoy it even when I'm chipper. I know; I'm a freak.

Today is Gonna Be a Good Day!

So today really is going to be a good day, even though Wednesdays are my long day.

1. I got out of the shower and popped on my headphones to listen to a little ipod. The first song to come on was Priscilla Ahn's "A Good Day."

2. My class and I are going to play with legos today. They'll be spending 15 minutes to build what they want, and then they have to write instructions for what they built.

3. I finished another book for Indian Children's Literature last night. It was good. Here's my Goodreads assessment of it:
The River by Rumer Godden
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I love the protagonist Harriet. She's motivated me to write again.
View all my reviews


4. I wrote a short story last night. It needs a lot of work still, but it seems like when I'm going crazy I just need to write, and The River's Harriet really got me going, so I wrote instead of doing homework. It was nice, and I feel on top of the world.

It's the Week of Mumford & Sons

Today's song for me is "Winter Winds"



Hope you enjoy it.

Also...Update about Progress on Life

I applied for two jobs yesterday. I didn't like them as much as the one I applied for a week ago, but I think I did much better with the standard application process. I didn't second guess myself so much--I know what to do with a cover letter and a resume. So I applied for a position as a technical writer and another for web hosting customer support. *Fingers crossed*

My project is so close to done, but I am still just not getting it done. I think I am really beginning to scare Naomi. I'm certainly scaring myself. I'm running on the potentially not graduating edge I think. People have been more behind before, but those people's major professors weren't quite so busy. I have to give Naomi adequate time to get me feedback, and I'm putting her up against a wall--not fair. Hopefully my first draft rocks, and we can move quickly after that point.

Gaelic Storm tonight!!! It's gonna be fun, though I really don't have time. I'm also a little bummed that we're going for Chinese food beforehand instead of something more appropriatedly themed. We should be going to The Pub or something. Oh well. I've planned an Irish themed dinner potluck for Thursday. I did really want sweet potato fries from The Pub though. Sad. The Chinese food in Manhattan, KS leaves something to be desired.

Today's song of the day: The Cave by Mumford & Sons. I've been in a Mumford & Sons mood lately.

Happy Pi Day

A friend from the science fiction class I took last summer posted this on facebook. I liked it, though I'm not sure it's legitimate. I'd like to see it tested on some more complex equations.



Happy Pi Day!!!

Does My Sister Want Me Home?

My twin sister, Molly, keeps sending me job postings near her. Some of them are good, and some of them are just okay. She said she found them while looking for jobs for her fiance, but part of me takes it as a "please come home" request.

I've been fairly set on not going home. I like being an independent person in a way I never felt like I could be at home, but I'm about to the leave behind the tight-knit graduate community I've become a part of, and I know how hard it is to make friends in the working world, especially if I don't work with people my own age. I'm shy; making friends is hard. Maybe I should go home. I do love my sister, but I don't always feel like I fit in with her friends, so I'll be an isolated extra wheel.

Dear gods of magically perfect jobs, please find me something where I won't be bored and where I can easily make friends. That's all I want. I want to use my brain and feel challenged and to have fun people to work with and possibly hang out with.

Job searching makes me miss Chris. I don't have anybody that's gonna be there no matter where I go, except the cat. That's the problem though; I couldn't count on him to be there either. Splitting was good. Gotta focus. No time for sadness. This is grad school not high school. Buck up, Schurl.

Step 1, Get Job. Step 2, Write Novel.

I'm on a writing kick again...not really. I don't actually have time to write a novel, but I really want to be working on my novel right now. I guess that's it. I need to find a 9 to 5 job where I can go home and write after work.

If all else fails, I'm applying with the Colorado Division of Wildlife again. They increased the pay. The rent in GJ went down, and now I know Amber who can hook me up with a geek circle there. It's only 6 months again, but maybe I can find something that's a good fit while I'm there. (Look at me assuming I'd get in, but Loyse would probably appreciate not to have to train someone.) It's so hard to apply for jobs while in grad school. I'm not able to put my full effort in.

Anywho, when I worked for them before, I had time to write (and to read!) because when I left work, I was done for the day. Maybe I can get one novel done in that 6 months, find a new job before my time there is up, and start seeking publication.

Quite honestly, though I was a bit bored at work and didn't like GJ much for social reasons, I was generally happiest with my life then. I worked out every day. I cooked amazing food. I worked on my novel. I read books that I wanted to read. I crocheted. The only deterrent is that I made almost no friends there, and my old roommate is moving away. Hopefully Amber can hook me up with a proper crowd of nerds.