I vow that I will not read applying to grad school, who-got-in, or check my status pages. 

So the move in has gone well though I am nowhere near unpacked and the place is not very set up. I’m waiting for Dan to get back from Europe before I do anything with the living room.

I got an early start on Sunday, planning to just wander Manhattan. I hit Fifth Avenue (tax free shopping!) because I desperately needed a belt. I also acquired a dark green shirt, because according to everyone in my office, it’s a good color for me. I haven’t heard that since 7^th grade, but apparently Neil knew what he was talking about.

I walked through Central Park to get to the Museum of Natural History – Thirty blocks is really the perfect walk – and met up with Rome. Admission to the museum + Darwin exhibit = way too expensive, but we justified it as we were doing a good deed and contributing to the advancement of science, or something. I need to dig up my Skidmore ID so I can get student discounts.

The Darwin exhibit was very detailed and quite good. The two large turtles were awake, and fighting each other! Seriously, one somehow picked the other up and slammed him into a rock. They were very cool. The live iguana was merrily asleep, but we did get to see pretty frogs. Also saw the dinosaur floor (dinosaurs are overrated!), the African mammals, and the People of Asia – I was thrilled to see many things Russian. We missed out on the Rocks & Gems (my favorite part of the museum), because it was late and neither of us had eaten.

After the museum, we went downtown to Art Bar for carbs and a few drinks. Back in Astoria, I found a café near my apartment with free wireless and the best espresso I have ever tasted. It was a productive day.

I was awoken at 1 AM, because it appears the radiator in the other bedroom hisses obnoxiously when the heat is on. The whole place reminds me of my grandmother’s house in Fair Lawn, right down to the 1970s tile pattern in the bathroom. The apartment and the neighborhood are very different from my area of Jersey City and that is a good thing.

And the commute this morning was far more pleasant that the PATH. Thirty minutes, door-to-door and I get a seat.  

I need an auto-complete; still haven’t found an apartment, written my Dallas essay, or cleaned my room.

I spent Sunday night laying about, reading the first four books of the Little House on the Prairie set and eating sushi. 

I spontaneously took the train to Ridgewood on Saturday and went to see Brenty. We went to Hillside for ‘quality time’. Our wacky drive was a creative way to Jersey City (Last exit off of Route 4, and then drove through Fort Lee, Edgewater, Weehawken, etc. I believe it’s the Weehawken area where things get creepy; it’s ALL condos and little Sim City enclosed communities along the Hudson. I am sure they are outrageously expensive. Also, that is where Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr dueled. (Note to the younger-wiser-sibling: It is unclear whether they were dualists.)

I am reading “Inventing Japan: 1853-1964” because it is only about 200 pages, and I hope it will make up for the fact that I never, ever paid attention or did the reading for the Japan part of “Comparative Politics of India and Japan” two years ago. I remember lots of stuff about India, (SHINING INDIA) but nothing about Japan other than never mix sake with any other alcohol and, regarding the Jews “you guys are alright, but…”

I really, really hope to find an apartment tonight, because I want to go out for Czech food with my co-workers tomorrow. Mmm, Czech food. And Czech beer. I adore Eastern Europe! Blah, blah, blah, debate about whether the Czech Republic is still “Eastern Europe.” You can’t take the Government major out of the girl. Which is why I’m going to grad school, for which I should be writing an essay. …and full circle!

It’s the day that all December applications are due, and all of mine are officially in. I do have to offer up a giant “Fuck You” to Columbia University for their asinine policy of not holding themselves responsible for a huge problem with their online application that froze the recommendation pages, so professors couldn’t upload their recommendations. (This was discovered on Monday. Their basic answer for me was “Well it should have been in already” I am ALL for sending things in early, but if the deadline is December 15, submitting something on the 12th is perfectly acceptable. They didn’t do anything to inform applicants that the system wasn’t working, nor are they accepting documents that get their late as a result. When I checked this mornign, the problem still hadn’t been fixed. (This has apparently been a problem since last Wednesday. I found out about it on Monday. This is plenty of time for them to have informed people to send things by regular mail) So, fuck you Columbia. You should be using Embark like ALL THE OTHER SCHOOLS USE FOR ONLINE APPLICATIONS BECAUSE IT ACTUALLY WORKS.

Grrrr. Anyway. The applications are in. They are out of my hands. Cross your fingers for me.

I’ve just finished Ignorance by Milan Kundera. It was a lovely little novella. What I adore about Kundera is the way in which he seamlessly blends philosophy into his narrative. He is nothing short of lyrical. He uses very little dialogue. He captures a train of thought

This guy I used to know was mildly befuddled by the way my mind worked. The way it was never quiet, keeping me away as it delved deeply into each topic is jumped to – because his mind worked so differently. So one night, when I couldn’t sleep, I just wrote down a train of thought. I used a lot of parenthesis for the asides, in many cases double sets of parenthesis. There’s no way I could explain to someone the way I think. I had to show it by writing down what I was thinking. That’s what Kundera does. There’s very little action, and even less conversation. But you understand so well what’s going on, and why the characters are doing things, because you’ve read their thoughts. This isn’t a unique device, but the way in which he wields it is so insanely…evocative. I don’t necessarily remember the characters names, or the details of the plot, but I remember the asides.

I can’t say I try to emulate him, because I was writing in a long-winded, descriptive style long before I read my first Kundera novel (The Incredible Lightness of Being, which is simply beautiful) but it’s always nice to find an author who has perfected the art of the overwrought. Kundera has also “literary zinged” me, hardcore.

Zing! (Of the Literary Variety)

Grad School Rambling

It was a fabulous, wonderful weekend marred only by the fact that I am returning to work instead of to school. I’ve been out of school for EIGHT MONTHS people, EIGHT MONTHS. Oh well, I’ll be going back at this time next year.

Laura was here visiting her brother, and though she was crunched for time, I got to see her on Thursday, which was lovely as always. We talked and talked, and went to Strand (I’m addicted), and I led her around like a blind lamb to slaughter. It’s only fair – I feel as if I’m carrying on a tradition, of sorts, as I was led around like a lamb to slaughter last summer. (Sebastian, you’re next!). I forget how much I miss her, even if she has become a liberal hippie. We hugged good-bye in the 14th Street Station and went back and forth like typical girls and made plans for my visit to Saratoga next month.

Friday at work, we were all pretty hostile because we weren’t getting a half day like everyone else on the planet, but it was quiet, and most of us were just wasting time online all day. After work I went out with some co-workers for awhile, came home, and read until Michael called.

I met up with Mike’s friend Iwho lives in SoHo. We drank beer whilst waiting for Michael to arrive and talked politics and books and made fun of Mike (who was an hour and a half late) Mike arrived and I bought a round of shots and we toasted to something, I don’t remember. Anyway, there was much merriment and I didn’t get home until 4 AM.

Saturday, Michael and I had quality time, lunch, sitting in Washington Square Park watching the NYU freshman (which I could write a book on in and of itself, it brought back so many weird memories), good-good conversation, stumbling into a table of political philosophy books, wandering aimlessly. We met up with Xina and her boy at the country music bar on the Upper East Side, and it was a fabulous time.

Sunday was recovering from Saturday’s antics

Monday, I went out to Rockaway Beach, which was lovely. It’s no Jersey Shore, but it’s okay. So I got a sunburn on the quintessential last day of summer, but it was just a really relaxing day, and I read a lot, and thought about the summer in my usual reflective way.

And now I’m back at work, and envious of those starting a new semester. Not because I miss college necessarily, but because I miss academia, and I belong in school. I was flitting around Washington Square Park, declaring “I’m enamored with this area, I want to go to school here!” but I worry about NYU’s Poli-Sci program. It’s…limited, to say the least, and while they do have a strong history department, I don’t really want a history PhD.

I am getting more and more serious about going to school in Texas. I mean, clearly I’m not quite cool enough for Manhattan, so why not go to Texas where every bar plays country music? And meet me a nice Southern Gentlemen. (To quote the favorite professor “Uck, forget about New York boys”) Although Brent was teasing that I am not graceful and refined enough to fit in down there. My take is I’ll be the vulgar Yankee girl. I’ll be a novelty. And I do know how to niche market.

.

Sentence that I never thought I would say (type): Friday night, I went to Manhattan, had a few drinks, went to a club, danced (like, a lot),
and had an absolutely amazing time.

Mike has been trying to corrupt me since we were about 14, and made it his mission to make sure I had fun doing something other than talking about philosophy or politics, or whatever it was I did for fun in college. We toasted to getting burned, and caught up, and the bartender called me “hardcore” for my ability to take “a triple shot of whatever your cheapest vodka is” without cringing. So my last semester of college WAS good for something.

Saturday was spent recovering. I was exhausted. Mentally 35 years olds such as myself get tired when they act their real age! It’s very uncharacteristic of me. I inadvertedly became the “serious” type in college, buried in books, drowned in coffee, that I don’t think anyone who knew me in passing the past four years would believe that I actually can relax and have fun around the right company.

I’ll never betray my dorky roots, as was proven by the walk back to the car in Hoboken on Friday, but now there is proof of what I always suspected: that I will dance if given enough alcohol.

I spent Sunday being incredibly social, especially if one is to count the post midnight, pre-sleeping hours, but being that it is not tomorrow until you wake up, I qualify that as part of Saturday. Today was breakfast with Keith, coffee with Di, studying with Matt, gettting steak and beer with Kristen to celebrate going to school together an insane amount of years, movie watching with the housemates, voluntarily speaking on the phone for more than 5 minutes, falling into bed exhausted and now NOT BEING ABLE TO FALL BACK SLEEP. I’ve gotten very little sleep in the past few days. It’s affecting my eidetic memory and power of coherence. When I get my act together and start a blog I’m totally using Eidetic in the title.

I need to revise my 3.5 years essay because it’s lacking something and I don’t know what.

I have my list of things I’m going to miss about this place (or rather, people I’m going to miss) but I’m very much looking forward to going home, and seeing my Jersey boys, diner-ing, making Brent buy me drinks with his poker winnings, seeing Ray, who is home from Italy, letting Jon educate me about The City, psuedo-intellectual-Neo-Victorian coffee, etc. While I’m not looking forward to making lattes with my college degree, I’m looking forward to seeing the cafe superheroes and having my day brightened by all the cool booksellers.

I don’t think the fact that I’m done with college is going to sink in until the end of winter break, when everyone at home goes back to school and I stay in O-Town and go insane and speak German and study Wittgenstein and fall further in love with Nietzsche. I’m a really awful Jew. And my family is doing a very Jewish X-Mas this year, with Chinese food, movies, barbecuing, and no tree. This is on request of my father who is the one member of my immediate family that is not 100% Jewish and actually grew up celebrating X-Mas and being raised Protestant. Jewishness, however, has clearly corrupted him because Jews are a powerful, persuasive, and awesome race.

Thirty-ish hours until I’m done with finals. Then, calling up everyone I know to shriek “OMG I’m DONE!”, saying good-bye to people, one more Dunkin’ Donuts/confessional drive evening, packing, probably some crying because endings, good or bad, are naturally bittersweet. I’ll be in Jersey by dinnertime on Wednesday and hopefully in the vapid mobile sometime later that night.

Ten Things To Do in Ten Days

1) Drive my favorite aimless drive route

2) Spend the day hanging around the government department doing work

3) Uncommon Grounds for superior cappucino with Di

4) Confessional Drive

5) Parting Glass with the former reading group

6) Scotty’s with the misanthropes

7) Celebrate graduating with Xina with ridiculously expensive dinner

Trip to Dunkin Donuts after midnight

9) Jersey coffee with Kristen

10) Smoke cloves on my back porch, write insanely long essay on “Three-Point-Five-Years”

Take finals, graduate, pack, drive home

And live happily ever after.

Last night was spectacularly collegiate. I didn’t plan on it, but now I’ve had one last night of stupid, typical college-ness. These are rare for me and I just kind of stumbled in to this one. All the requirements were fulfilled: Vodka shots, black sweater, movie I’d seen 1000 times, Beirut, cheap beer, with people I’d never met before, pizza, walking in the rain, drunken whining, getting a hug from some random guy, having a difficult time operating my cell phone, giggling, smoking more and finally getting sick and passing out. Awesome!

At least I woke up without a hangover!

“And when you dream
You’re seventeen”

I am awake ridiculously early. Too much fun last night.   But I can do that. Because I’m still a college student. For 17 more days!

Edited to add: Getting up so early was for the better. I significantly improved the Tocqueville paper and then went out to breakfast with Xina. After breakfast, we were both wide awake, so we went to the mall. I bought a sweater, and a Christmas present, all before noon. Productivity rules!

My weekend:
Tocqueville, anthems, Dawson’s Creek, crossing things off the list, cows, Camaros, Australian-ness, libertarian prostitutes, meditation on, Bon Jovi, avoiding Skidmorians Exit 17, crack pipes,attempted pizza, 11:45 AM, Nietzsche, drugs, ooh, hot jeans…I’m livin’ it up my last month as a college student.

I think the last time I was this excited to go home was Winter Break (yay for 6 week breaks) at Hampshire, because of all the misery and loneliness

Things here are certainly not miserable. I’ve had my own brand of fun with being political, and learning how to speak relatively articulately, and fun at Christina’s b-day party and then being a belligerent bouncer.

I’m just tired – of the election, of work, of HWSNBN. I’m ready to go home, go for a wacky drive with Brent, and eat diner food (Perhaps some improv-accapella-musical-theater will also be necessary). Plus, maybe I can convince Ryan to do the all-night Black Friday thing this year, because it was so much fun, and gave me great stories to tell. (Pe-king woman, the lady in the green sweater, etc).

I’ve used etc a lot.

Considering I’m back in the world of academia I should have something intelligent, thoughtful, and perhaps deep to say, but I don’t. This is quickly turning from a political rants journal to a regular live journal, although I’m not spilling out any deep dark secrets (sorry profile pirates). Speaking of pirates, someone drew a really cool pirate ship on our transfer mural in Moore.

Transfers! I’ll talk about transfers.

So yeah.

Running transfer orientation went really well. We have a good group, who seem to ‘mesh’ well. They actually came to our community service event (ours was painting a mural, we were lucky…most freshman got stuck raking leaves, cleaning up trash and painting trees ((what the hell is painting trees anyway))). There’s no way to say “welcome” like “Hi, its your second day here! Guess what you’re doing!?! Picking up trash because the college is broke and can’t pay someone to do it! So we’re going to dress it up like a community service project, even though its doing nothing for the community!” But I digress.

Anyway, mural painting with the transfers was lots of fun, and then most of them came to our house on Monday night, and our living room was overflowing with people. We kept them seperated from the freshman for the most part, because they know how to go to college, and we didn’t like all the stupid frosh-events they had us do when we transferred. So yay for our successful transfer orientation.

Hm. I’m not even going to try to bullshit on why this is political.

It’s Friday late morning and I have class today…Class on Friday is an outrage, especially for a former Hampshire student. But its just IA 101, so its easy and not until after 12, so if I suddenly become a social butterfly this semester I can go out on Thursday nights. But that probably won’t happen.