ZOMG!

i don't know what my problem is. lately the only thing i've been really excited about doing is baking. so i'm going to regale you with my exploits since nothing, seriously nothing, exciting is going on. well i am taking an art class, but i'm not really feeling scanning/uploading all my art. so you get cupcakes and cookies and maybe if i get really adventurous cake. so today i decided to try a new recipe from my favorite cookbook ever  vegan cupcakes take over the world by isa chandra moskowitz and terry hope romero. even if you aren't vegan you should check it out since there are probably some of the best cupcake recipies EVAR in it. today's creation is the s'mores cupcake. i decided that piping my vegan buttercream frosting would be too much work so i just spread it and then topped it with graham cracker crumbles and chocolate sprinkles. turned out to be a good thing because the frosting is super sweet. so. here they are:

mmmmm

i'm sorry for disappearing. lots of things have happened and i'm not quite ready to sit down and face them.
i graduated again in december and took the most fantastic trip to germany in january. now i'm back in the states. living at home. working at starbucks, reliving the fun i had in germany in my head, and wondering what to do with myself.
hopefully i'll start blogging more as i start to get my life back on track.
in the meantime, this video:

Video: Show us some great dancing.

these make me smile.
also apparently i like groupings of three.

ugh. i feel like death. all of my teachers have decided to have everything due this week before thanksgiving break.
i'll be going home to virginia beach on monday so all i have to do is get through two more short papers. one 15 page paper with accompanying 15 minute presentation. and the cold.

so. close.

Show us what makes you a die-hard fan.

formal hokie bird

Show us your favorite writer.

 
it's pretty much impossible to pick just one.
and then there are all the different genres to consider!
so from left to right we have e.e. cummings, my favorite poet, isaac asimov, my favorite science fiction writer and j.k. rowling my favorite fantasy writer.
i picked these three from the huge amount of writers i adore because i can read any of their works over and over and over again. i just wish i had the time to!

ironically enough reading is what has been keeping me from voxing. i'm taking 5 classes all of which are writing (and therefore reading) intensive. i've been averaging about 300-400 pages of assigned reading a week. add that to football season and i pretty much have no time for anything else. i'm sorry and i'll try to get better about updating. i miss you all! <3

sorry for the EXTREME lack of updates. same reasons as outlined in the post below, however there are some happy news tidbits too! i'm writing this update on my shiny new macbook! his name is matthias and he is aaaamazing :) also, i found jobs! the first is at the macarthur mall's body shop, no not a car shop a the body shop with lotions and no animal testing and community trade products and make up and it's not too bad. the downside is i have to deal with al the dumb people who wander in asking 'wassat smell?' and 'do y'all have lotion?!' but it's a job and it's keeping me busy. my other job is teaching swimming lessons for a program called RAPS (Really Awesome People Swimming) essentially what happens is kids from underpriviledged neighborhoods are bused in for free swimming lessons. it's draining like all swimming lessons are but with the added fun of names like nyquan, jermario, shaniqua, zarria etc. and this is my last week of lessons. i've gotten a sweet swimsuit tan and it's kept me busy so it's been good. i can't believe this summer is so close to done!!

i want to apologize for the severe lack of blogging that has been going on but i promise i have really good excuses.
the first being i'm home and that means that the computer is not always logged online for fear of viruses and hackers coming onto our desktop and eating it. also this means that the computer is slow as hell for no apparent reasons. i mean why would i want to open two web pages at once? that's just crazy talk. so pretty much internet use is kept to a minimum partly because of the lurking viruses and also because prolonged use on this machine makes me want to hurt people.

and while we are on the topic of computers the second excuse has to do with allastair my lovely dell laptop. something happened to him and now the keyboard is all messed up. the number row and the asdf row have combined so whenever i type "a" or "1" i get "a1" the same goes for "s" or "2" i get "s2"  and so on down the line. so pretty much i can't enter any passwords or type any extended posts or emails in anything under thirty minutes. i'm going to be using the graduation moneys i received to get a macbook! i am soooo excited. hopefully this purchase will be happening soon and perhaps that will lead to an increase in my internet presence.

the third and final reason for not blogging is that there has really been nothing to blog about. i'm home in va beach for the summer. there is nothing to do here. also i'm apparently unemployable as evidenced by the thirty or so job applications i've filled out in the past three weeks and my continuing lack of a job.

to keep myself busy and also because it's driving my mom nuts i've been slowly starting to go through...essentially all of my worldly possessions. i started out in my closet and have found notebooks and notes from high school, notebooks from freshman year of college, letters from family and friends for my high school graduation and my art portfolio from the introduction to art class i took freshman year of college. i threw away most of the notebooks and most of the portfolio but i kept a lot of the letters and pretty much all of the notes. oh high school.

i have done one exciting thing so far over break. the faint came to the NorVa and i went with a group of friends to go see them. we got pretty close to the stage and the band played and amazing set. curtis and i even got to go to the afterparty and meet the band! i will upload photos eventually. my mom's computer takes half an hour to upload two pictures and god forbid trying to post them on the internet. i'd be here for days.

i hope everyone out there is having a wonderful summer. i'm open to book suggestions and job connections :)

so i graduated this past weekend and packed up and moved all my stuff out of my room in PY (my residence hall) thus simultaneously ending both my collegiate and residence life careers. it has been kind of strange but exciting at the same time.
fortunately i don't have to say good-bye forever to VT and Blacksburg; i will be heading back in the fall for one final semester to complete a second degree, a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies (i just got a BS in Biology). This will give me a little more time to apply to more graduate school programs, retake the GRE and enjoy one more football season in Lane stadium :)
i have been super lucky in that i even have found a room to sublet in a cute little brick house and have been asked to babysit a full set of bedroom furniture for just the fall semester! so i definitely have things to look forward to.

this summer is still a little up in the air. i think it's going to be mostly relaxing, working a little (i'm not sure where yet), visiting people who i haven't seen in a while and catching up with all my good friends here at the beach. my mom's probably going to try and get me to go to the actual beach, she thinks i'm too pale (i come from a long line of sun worshipers) i keep trying to tell her i don't want age spots and wrinkles but she insists i need a tan. this will prove to be an interesting battle.

sorry about the series. things got kind of hectic, i got super overwhelmed with graduating and packing (to the point of being pretty much motionless). also my immediate family plus one aunt came to see the ceremony and assist in the moving out process. they're all pretty intense and i didn't really have a chance to use my computer much except to check cuteoverload (i recognize i have an addiction).

i have loads of pictures from graduation but they are scattered about on different peoples cameras, computers, cds etc. i even joined in the fun and took a couple pictures while sitting and 'listening' and the university ceremony. this has been my favorite one so far:

Graduation

so i've fallen a little bit behind and am having to combine topics three and four.
my most sincere apologies!

LEARNED

. girls can be fun: i definitely did not learn this freshman year that year it was very strongly reinforced that girls are evil vicious monsters. this has been learned slowly and tentatively and has come to fruition this past summer and school years. it's actually a blast.

.the internet is vital: coming into college i was an infrequent internet user at best. now i get antsy if i'm without internet connection for more than 3 days. it's sad but good i think. the internet has helped me keep in touch with people and it's also helped me learn more about my addiction to cute.

. drink water!: i swear, because i have avoided soda all four years i haven't gained much weight. yeah i've gotten "softer" but i haven't blimped out because i drink a lot of water (and don't eat a lot of pizza)

. go to class: as lame and repetitive as it sounds, going to class automatically makes you more likely to get the grades you want. evening classes have been my savior.

. get involved: i never really got super involved in college but i have been a part of groups for short periods of time and they have been really fun. not only do you get to interact with people who are usually awesome you are also driven to be better at time management and therefore get more stuff done! hurrah for win-win situations!

. libraries: they are your best friend. they have textbooks for free and they are probably the quietest place on campus with an internet connection (well the third floor is anyway).

. flattery: you have to learn to play the game. it sucks but you gotta.

FORGOT

. sweatpants: in an environment where it's socially acceptable to wear sweatpants around all day it's going to be hard to break the habit. they're so comfy! but they do no favors for your figure or other's perception of you.

. reading for fun: hey sometimes you can just pick up a book and have time to read/enjoy it. four years of college have made this all but a distant memory. i am definitely looking forward to reading again.

. how to work ahead: why do work now when i could go out to a party/watch fresh prince reruns/take a nap and then stay up all night tomorrow to finish it?

. an eating schedule: granted my family isn't too big on these either but we at least have a sense of when each meal should be eaten. here at school i've found myself eating "breakfast" at 2 in the afternoon and having dinner closer to 11pm.

. paying for food etc: i never have to use cash if i don't want to here at Tech. every monetary exchange can be done with my hokie passport or can be charged to my account. it's going to be weird to have to use actual moneys to get what i want when i want it.

i can't think of anything else at the moment.
jeff threw a pretty sweet martini party on the 5th i shall leave you with a few of the pictures from my flickr:

- The Wind: there is nothing worse than having to fight your way across the frigid, blustery drillfield at 9am. NOTHING.

- ResLife: while there were some great parts about being an RA (mainly the people I met through it) ResLife was really frustrating. ridiculous amounts of paperwork, politics, manipulative people, outdated rules and rude/belligerent residents (usually only if they had been drinking).

- Annoying People: of course you find these everywhere but for some reason there seems to be a much higher concentration in college. usually it's the people who think they are better thanyou (either because of their GPA or their taste in music or their drive whatever). or the people who ask the most ridiculous, repetitive questions in class. "so I know you already mentioned this but blah blah blah" HEY if they already mentioned it....don't ask about it again. dumb.

- I-81: well pretty much the whole drive to Blacksburg, but the I-81 stretch was always particularly awful. it's long and full of 18wheelers that pass you at breakneck speeds. no good. no good at all.

- Organic Chemistry Lab: for this one credit lab I would routinely stay up until 4am trying to figure out the pre-lab and still not be able to do all of it. this class was hell. the woman who ran it is pure evil. every time I see her I have to restrain myself from throwing rocks at her.

- Not having a Kitchen: I know it's my fault for living in the residence halls all four years but not having a kitchen has been killer. i cannot wait to be able to cook for myself!!

- The Cow Smell: so we have cows on campus here at Tech, not wandering around mind you but still their pastures are part of campus. on some lucky mornings you would wake up and the smell of cow manure would be permeating the surrounding air...mmmm.

[I'll most likely add more to this list as well...enjoy!]