When I realized my cold wasn't going to go away within a day, I went to the store on campus and bought two large (16oz) bottles of orange juice. Yesterday morning, before I headed off to my observation at a local school, I tried to open one of the bottles. I struggled and was unsuccessful. So I tried the other bottle. Couldn't get the second one open either.
Lucky for me, I still had some orange juiceboxes from when I student-taught last semester. (I always brought a bag lunch.) Two of those worked fine for breakfast, but I was frustrated that I had been unable to open the bottles!
This afternoon, a brilliant idea struck me. When my craving for orange juice kicked in, I took the bottle over to the other side of the floor where the football players live. Voila! After the one kid laughed at me, he easily opened the bottle for me. Problem solved!
. . .
A few minutes ago, the boys were getting ready to go out. Like usual, they're playing music loudly, yelling back and forth down their hallway, and slamming doors. I innocently went over in my satiny modest (long-sleeved, long pants) pajamas with another bottle of orange juice.
One of the boys saw me and said, "Oh hey Estrella. Are we being too loud?" (They're used to me going over there and asking them to be quiet and more considerate. In fact, last semester, they called me The Undertaker because of the stern looks I gave them. Since then, we've warmed up to one another and one of the kids even leaves sweet notes on the message board on my door.)
I said, "Actually, I was wondering ... can you open this for me?" The other boys were going in and out of their rooms, and some of them greeted me too. They laughed at me in my silly pajamas while the one guy opened the orange juice for me. The other guys hadn't heard me asking him to do that, so they teased me about that too.
"Well ... I heard you guys getting ready ... and I figured I should ask you now since you're not gonna be up and around the floor when I wake up tomorrow," I tried to explain, laughing along with them.
Ah ... the joys of being in college ... hard to believe it's gonna change in less than 3 months!
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Open Book
I love blank books. I've loved them ever since I was a little girl. There's something exciting about opening up a brand new book which is waiting to be filled! I wrote my diaries in these beloved blank books until I began my first "online journal" (I'd never heard of the word "blog" until several years after I had actually begun blogging, 2 host websites ago) ... A part of me has the secret desire to write down my blog entries into the remaining blank books I still have at home ... but now I've written several hundred entries over the years ... and that's just not looking like a real possibility anymore.
So ... back to extolling the excellent qualities of blank books ... I always get super-excited when I finally "finish" one ~ in diary form, a travel journal, or a prayer journal. The inspiration for this post? I finally filled out another prayer journal. I always get excited about finishing a prayer journal because I go through periods of being "really good" about maintaining it ... and long periods of "forgetting" to write in it. I began this particular journal almost a year and a half ago ... and it's both strange and amazing at the same time when I think about how much I've experienced since then.
So ... now I get to pick a blank book (I believe I have two with me here at school) for the next prayer journal ... and I need to go shopping within the next 3 weeks for another blank book to serve as my travel journal for Spring Break 2007: Italian Adventure!
So ... back to extolling the excellent qualities of blank books ... I always get super-excited when I finally "finish" one ~ in diary form, a travel journal, or a prayer journal. The inspiration for this post? I finally filled out another prayer journal. I always get excited about finishing a prayer journal because I go through periods of being "really good" about maintaining it ... and long periods of "forgetting" to write in it. I began this particular journal almost a year and a half ago ... and it's both strange and amazing at the same time when I think about how much I've experienced since then.
So ... now I get to pick a blank book (I believe I have two with me here at school) for the next prayer journal ... and I need to go shopping within the next 3 weeks for another blank book to serve as my travel journal for Spring Break 2007: Italian Adventure!
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Shivering
Yesterday was the first day I'd ever experienced temperatures below freezing. Friends of mine who are currently student-teaching had the day off from school, but I was not so lucky. After bundling up in a long-sleeved dressy casual shirt, the "Winter White" Old Navy fleece I received for Christmas (which earned me several compliments), my huge periwinkle fluffy coat, a scarf, and gloves, I was good to go! Today, it's colder. Student-teaching friends still have no school. Alas, I was again unlucky. (I did enjoy my classes both days ... strong/interesting content/material and passionate/enthusiastic professors ... so ... I can't really complain.)
Other news in the life of Estrella:
*We had a special visitor on our residential floor last night ... a cockroach! We tried attacking the vermin with a vacuum but he got away. It caused quite a bit of commotion.
*There's going to be a lucrative job opening in my home area (about an hour away) for next school year. I intend to apply! :-)
*Still tweaking the resume ... and I have a meeting with the chair of my department tomorrow. Two reference letters are in, a third and fourth are on the way, and I still have two more people to ask for letters. Pretty soon I'll get to officially start my job search! Yay!
Other news in the life of Estrella:
*We had a special visitor on our residential floor last night ... a cockroach! We tried attacking the vermin with a vacuum but he got away. It caused quite a bit of commotion.
*There's going to be a lucrative job opening in my home area (about an hour away) for next school year. I intend to apply! :-)
*Still tweaking the resume ... and I have a meeting with the chair of my department tomorrow. Two reference letters are in, a third and fourth are on the way, and I still have two more people to ask for letters. Pretty soon I'll get to officially start my job search! Yay!
a love letter
Dear Residents (on another floor),
I'm not sure which one of you came up with the brilliant idea to smoke an illegal substance in your floor's bathroom on Saturday night. Yes, I know it was cold outside. Maybe you were afraid that the wind and snow would prevent you from lighting up. Maybe the brain cells killed by the illegal substance contained your thinking and reasoning abilities. Perhaps you just didn't want to freeze your charming little hides off. Either way, I did not appreciate that your stupidity caused the smoke alarm to go off in the building, requiring the evacuation of over one thousand people. (Yes, I know that many people chose not to evacuate because of the cold, but that's another matter entirely!)
And ... this happened not only once but TWICE. If you did it just to see your favorite RA's smiling face at 2am and 4am in the morning, please note that I wasn't smiling. Don't let it happen again.
Love,
Estrella
P.S. I blame you for my sniffles and sore throat. Single-digit temperatures and lack of sleep don't work well for me.
I'm not sure which one of you came up with the brilliant idea to smoke an illegal substance in your floor's bathroom on Saturday night. Yes, I know it was cold outside. Maybe you were afraid that the wind and snow would prevent you from lighting up. Maybe the brain cells killed by the illegal substance contained your thinking and reasoning abilities. Perhaps you just didn't want to freeze your charming little hides off. Either way, I did not appreciate that your stupidity caused the smoke alarm to go off in the building, requiring the evacuation of over one thousand people. (Yes, I know that many people chose not to evacuate because of the cold, but that's another matter entirely!)
And ... this happened not only once but TWICE. If you did it just to see your favorite RA's smiling face at 2am and 4am in the morning, please note that I wasn't smiling. Don't let it happen again.
Love,
Estrella
P.S. I blame you for my sniffles and sore throat. Single-digit temperatures and lack of sleep don't work well for me.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Happy Groundhog Day!
Early this morning, BestFriend and I left MySchool's campus and traveled to one of the country's locations of a weather-predicting Groundhog. (I learned this week that the famous one in PA is not the only groundhog who prognosticates; there are actually several around the country.) We enjoyed the festivities, saw/heard the prediction, bought some silly souvenirs, ate a lovely brunch and drove back to campus. :-)
I wasn't able to fall asleep last night until much later than I had hoped, and I ended up getting only 3 hours of sleep. So ... when we arrived back early this afternoon, I planned to take a nap. I knew my time would be limited because I offered to drive one of my residents to the airport around 4pm after she told me she was planning on taking the bus.
I had a terrifying experience trying to catch the bus to the airport my freshman year and ended up spending the night in the airport alone (with only my luggage, a book, and two bottles of Code Red Mountain Dew to keep me company). After waiting for 90 minutes for the bus which never came (7:15-8:45pm), I called a cab. The cab didn't show up until 50 minutes later(9:35pm), and I arrived at the airport 10 minutes after the airline counter closed for the evening(10:10pm) which was 20 minutes before my flight was scheduled to leave (10:30pm). I had to pay $400 for a one-way ticket to fly home the following morning at 6:45am. Did I mention that this, Thanksgiving break, was the first chance I'd had to go home my entire first semester of college, which was also the longest I'd ever been away from home? Thus, I couldn't let my resident rely on the bus! :-)
So anyway, today after I returned from the Groundhog Adventure, I had distractions until nearly 2pm, and I had just laid down to take my nap when my phone rang. A friend asked if I'd be willing to cover her boyfriend's piano students' lessons tomorrow afternoon. I happened to be free so I happily accepted the offer. (Yay! Little kids! And ... yay! Spending money!)
Another phone call just woke me up ... and I was informed that one of my residents will be leaving my floor this weekend and moving up to another floor. Back to 22 residents (out of 38 available spaces).
I've heard that if you're really tired, it's better to get a full two hours nap ... or just not nap at all ... so ... I think I've found my excuse to watch the online streaming episode of last night's Grey's Anatomy. :-)
I wasn't able to fall asleep last night until much later than I had hoped, and I ended up getting only 3 hours of sleep. So ... when we arrived back early this afternoon, I planned to take a nap. I knew my time would be limited because I offered to drive one of my residents to the airport around 4pm after she told me she was planning on taking the bus.
I had a terrifying experience trying to catch the bus to the airport my freshman year and ended up spending the night in the airport alone (with only my luggage, a book, and two bottles of Code Red Mountain Dew to keep me company). After waiting for 90 minutes for the bus which never came (7:15-8:45pm), I called a cab. The cab didn't show up until 50 minutes later(9:35pm), and I arrived at the airport 10 minutes after the airline counter closed for the evening(10:10pm) which was 20 minutes before my flight was scheduled to leave (10:30pm). I had to pay $400 for a one-way ticket to fly home the following morning at 6:45am. Did I mention that this, Thanksgiving break, was the first chance I'd had to go home my entire first semester of college, which was also the longest I'd ever been away from home? Thus, I couldn't let my resident rely on the bus! :-)
So anyway, today after I returned from the Groundhog Adventure, I had distractions until nearly 2pm, and I had just laid down to take my nap when my phone rang. A friend asked if I'd be willing to cover her boyfriend's piano students' lessons tomorrow afternoon. I happened to be free so I happily accepted the offer. (Yay! Little kids! And ... yay! Spending money!)
Another phone call just woke me up ... and I was informed that one of my residents will be leaving my floor this weekend and moving up to another floor. Back to 22 residents (out of 38 available spaces).
I've heard that if you're really tired, it's better to get a full two hours nap ... or just not nap at all ... so ... I think I've found my excuse to watch the online streaming episode of last night's Grey's Anatomy. :-)
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Romantic at Heart
I love, love, love the books of Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, and Elizabeth Gaskell. I love, love, love the music of the Romantic Era and the following Impressionistic Era. Hugo Wolf (my favorite!), Debussy (2nd!), Brahms, Schumann ... all of them make me sigh with delight. I'm not as familiar with visual artists, but from what I have seen, Monet is my favorite. :-)
For Christmas, I got the soundtrack to the newest remake of Pride and Prejudice (the version with Keira Knightley). This music is so soothing and relaxing ... It makes me want to clean my bathtub so that I can take a long, luxurious bath while listening to this music and reading (or re-reading) a lovely novel. I've just listened to the full album twice in a row, and I could keep listening if I weren't leaving for Bible Study in a moment...
(As an aside: the movie itself was beautiful, although I still prefer the 5+ hours BBC version with Colin Firth) :-)
For Christmas, I got the soundtrack to the newest remake of Pride and Prejudice (the version with Keira Knightley). This music is so soothing and relaxing ... It makes me want to clean my bathtub so that I can take a long, luxurious bath while listening to this music and reading (or re-reading) a lovely novel. I've just listened to the full album twice in a row, and I could keep listening if I weren't leaving for Bible Study in a moment...
(As an aside: the movie itself was beautiful, although I still prefer the 5+ hours BBC version with Colin Firth) :-)
A late night in the music school
Tonight, I was in the music school's computer lab working on a class project. When I removed my headphones, I heard bizarre ritualistic chanting, "Ta ... Ki ... Da ... Ta-Di Ta-Di!" The voices, both male and female, were in unison. After I'd saved my work, I went out to the lounge to investigate the source of the chanting.
Aha! The poor sophomores were practicing their rhythms for their musicianship skills hearing. I had conveniently (and blissfully) forgotten all about the musicianship department's "TaKaDiMi" counting system since the Gordon "Du-ta-de-ta" syllables had taken over our music ed methods courses.
When I walked into the lounge, I burst out laughing at the sight of them- 6 of them reading aloud the rhythms and conducting the meter, while a metronome indignantly kept time. Surprisingly, my laughter did not disrupt their concentration in the slightest. When they had finished the exercise, I laughingly greeted them.
One of the guys said, "Hey Estrella, I want to talk with you for a moment," as he took my arm and led me down the hallway. Two weeks ago, he and I had spent a few hours hanging out in the music school because he was hoping to encounter and talk with a certain girl he likes. He hadn't gotten to talk with her that day and he lamented over that the entire time we were together. Today, he was more successful. They had a coffee date and they now have plans to go out this weekend. I congratulated him.
(I also told him how I'd finally spoken with the Cute Guy From Church on Sunday- the one studying to be a pastor! It was a simple conversation, but I was on Cloud 9 for the rest of the day! My only mistake was that I had to leave with the other choristers for lunch and I didn't think to invite him. *hits head* Maybe next time? :-) Oh ... and he read the Scripture for the service ... with that smooth, expressive voice of his ... and because of his expression while reading, I was led to interpret the passage in a new way, different from when I'd read the same passage a few weeks ago on my own. I hope I get to talk with him again... )
After our secret-sharing session, this friend took me down to the computer lab because he wanted to play something for me. He turned on iTunes and began playing along with a Billy Joel album (on the piano keyboard at the same computer dock)-- he'd figured out and memorized the piano part by listening to the album over and over. He played me several songs ... and I found myself thinking, This is going to be something I will miss next year.
Then as I was getting ready to leave, I saw BestFriend at her locker. She gushed about her wedding veil and tiara (and rushed me again into the computer lab to show me what she had ordered), and we chatted about our plans for this weekend: We're going on an adventure on Friday morning (or should I say, LATE Thursday night) because this may be the last time we're up in this area for the right time of year. Let's just say it involves a four hour roundtrip drive to an undisclosed location for an absurd ritual. :-)
Aha! The poor sophomores were practicing their rhythms for their musicianship skills hearing. I had conveniently (and blissfully) forgotten all about the musicianship department's "TaKaDiMi" counting system since the Gordon "Du-ta-de-ta" syllables had taken over our music ed methods courses.
When I walked into the lounge, I burst out laughing at the sight of them- 6 of them reading aloud the rhythms and conducting the meter, while a metronome indignantly kept time. Surprisingly, my laughter did not disrupt their concentration in the slightest. When they had finished the exercise, I laughingly greeted them.
One of the guys said, "Hey Estrella, I want to talk with you for a moment," as he took my arm and led me down the hallway. Two weeks ago, he and I had spent a few hours hanging out in the music school because he was hoping to encounter and talk with a certain girl he likes. He hadn't gotten to talk with her that day and he lamented over that the entire time we were together. Today, he was more successful. They had a coffee date and they now have plans to go out this weekend. I congratulated him.
(I also told him how I'd finally spoken with the Cute Guy From Church on Sunday- the one studying to be a pastor! It was a simple conversation, but I was on Cloud 9 for the rest of the day! My only mistake was that I had to leave with the other choristers for lunch and I didn't think to invite him. *hits head* Maybe next time? :-) Oh ... and he read the Scripture for the service ... with that smooth, expressive voice of his ... and because of his expression while reading, I was led to interpret the passage in a new way, different from when I'd read the same passage a few weeks ago on my own. I hope I get to talk with him again... )
After our secret-sharing session, this friend took me down to the computer lab because he wanted to play something for me. He turned on iTunes and began playing along with a Billy Joel album (on the piano keyboard at the same computer dock)-- he'd figured out and memorized the piano part by listening to the album over and over. He played me several songs ... and I found myself thinking, This is going to be something I will miss next year.
Then as I was getting ready to leave, I saw BestFriend at her locker. She gushed about her wedding veil and tiara (and rushed me again into the computer lab to show me what she had ordered), and we chatted about our plans for this weekend: We're going on an adventure on Friday morning (or should I say, LATE Thursday night) because this may be the last time we're up in this area for the right time of year. Let's just say it involves a four hour roundtrip drive to an undisclosed location for an absurd ritual. :-)
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