Peace, at last!

I can't believe I'm already done with 1/8 of my time here at MIT. That's pretty scary to think about. It all passed by so quickly through fun, work, and sleep deprivation that I can't imagine being ready for the real world in three and a half years.

The Hobbit

Friday Adventures and Juice

Let's talk about some adventures, man. Scattered throughout are pictures of an adventure Jason and I had.

In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.

I've written 38 pages for my four classes' final papers, and I have about four pages to go, which I intend on finishing later today. My Cartography paper was one of my favorite that I've ever written, my Intro Geography written final was pretty average, my Russian written final (of which I've written 8 of 12 pages) is going pretty well, and my Qur'an paper may well be the absolute worst paper I have ever written. I hope I don't get a C in that class, but I can't say I wouldn't deserve it.

It's Finals Week and...

I'm tired but I refuse to consume caffeine on the off-chance I get to go to bed early.  Also I wrote a song inspired by this post that is meant to be sung to the tune of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town":

SHE'S MAKING A LIST
AND NOT CHECKING IT TWICE
BECAUSE EDITING TAKES TIME
TODAY I HAD SOUP CALLED "CURRY AND RICE"
meow meow meow meow someone has lost it.

Everybody Loves a Winner

Good morning all, and sorry for encroaching on Jason's day.  Finals week has a way of taking up all my time.  I have spent the last few days either in a test, studying for a test, or taking a break from studying.

It was a mark of the strength of their friendship that Ron did not laugh.

It's 7:05 am as I write this, and I am not terribly happy to say that I just finished my first ever homework-induced all-nighter. Which is kinda bad and all that, but interestingly it wasn't fueled by extreme procrastination. I spent the whole night writing most of a paper that's not due 'til Monday. But I have three other papers due next week, so I guess it sorta makes sense to knock this one out now.

Dawn take you all, and be stone to you!

"I love lists. They're so much fun. They just give you a bunch of facts in a neat order." -Duncan Williams.
In the spirit of Duncan, and no one else, I will be presenting my blog post as a list.

Finals are "Just Around the Corner" (Elementary School Video on Puberty Reference is Intended...I think only my sister gets this)

 As my unnecessarily long title suggests, finals are almost upon me, so I'm going to be a lazy loser and do a "my week by numbers" post again. And maybe next week too, because that day is actually finals. But maybe I'll make a video instead? WHO KNOWS!?! Tune in next week to find out! 

Another List, Less Wit

Hi.  Nicole made a list and I'm a trend follower, so here goes.

The Road to Tinue

The following is an account of the road trip I took with several of my closest friends here to watch Cross Country Nationals. The trip took place the weekend before Thanksgiving, from Thursday afternoon to Sunday morning.

WAIT UPDATE ON THE MOST HILARIOUS THING EVER DEREK PLEASE LOOK (and others too)

So I was looking up our website on Google and some other website had linked to Derek's Post "At Least I Still Have My Personality" and I was like "Hmmm, are people publicizing our blog? That's so cool" and then, you know, I felt resentment about the fact that it's not my post being highlighted.

BUT THEN I clicked on the link and GUESS WHAT TYPE OF WEBSITE WAS PUBLICIZING DEREK-THE-EXTREME-ATHEIST'S POST?

*Ahem*

It's called "Kid's Belief" and its About Us is (Italics and Bolding are mine):

"We hope to share news, views, information, and more about the latest in Kids Ministry.  We produce original content as well as AGGREGATE great content related to Kids Ministry.  We draw content from across the web, from twitter to youtube, from google to yahoo, and then sort that content, placing the best, most relevant content on the front of our site.

We provide links, with summaries, to articles from great sites across the web that are related to Bible stories for kids."

Well, anyways, I thought I should share. DEREK SPREAD THE GOSPEL OF JESUS. IT IS YOUR CALLING.

I always think "WED-NES-DAY" in my head when I write Wednesday (like just now)

Today I'm just going to write a list of thoughts because you can't stop me and I don't feel like doing anything else. Also, doesn't it sound like such fun!?

Howdy Howdy Howdy

I have a final in less than five hours.  A problem set due and quiz in twenty.  And a formal lab report and additional quiz in forty four.  Needless to say, it's going to be a long two nights. Not surprisingly, I don't feel comfortable using up too much time to post.  I too, like Rachael, still want to express that I haven't forgotten about the blog, and that I still care about it. We'll see if next semester I'll have more time.  Doubtful, but hopeful. See you hopefully over Winter break.

Jason

Harry Potter Obsession Continues

You may have noticed that today is Tuesday.  I have also noticed that.  Somehow last night at 2 in the morning, I forgot that I was supposed to post.  I remembered earlier in the day, but I was busy having five hours of class and going to meetings and completing fun research (oxymoron if I ever saw one, except in those cases where “research” is a euphemism for facebook stalking).

Food, Glorious Food

I really don't like typing on the phone, so this will be brief. I'm currently at a friend's house in Sudbury, Massachusetts, where I am spending my Turkey Day break. I'll tell you a couple things so this post isn't completely meaningless:
I watched the first HP movie with some friends a few nights ago. If you get the chance, watch the Gringotts scene again and see if you notice something that makes absolutely no sense.
I ran in a local 5k today. Well, jogged it. 18:49. It's the off-season, yep.
Thanksgiving was awesome. I do love me some good food.

Next week: A more complete synopsis of my break, plus a play-by-play of last weekend's ~35 hour road trip to Indiana and back.

Thanksgiving Eve

Hello friends and family, and happy Thanksgiving Eve, where the family gathers around the dinner table to eat Chinese food. I really don't have much to say about this week since all I've been doing is lazing around or shopping with my mom, but let's give this a shot. Onwards? Onwards! (It's been a while).

Week of Victories

Hi guys!

Well, some good things have been happening to me.  I’m looking forward to coming home in less than a month, but suddenly, or at least for now, everything’s going my way.

Runnin' down the road tryin' to loosen my load

A couple weeks ago (Or was it last week? Or three weeks ago?) I wrote a post on Thursday and attempted to time delay its publication on the blog until Friday. Unless I am mistaken, I was successful in this attempt. Yes, I know, I know, that makes me a very gifted human being. Thank you. I am here to announce today, Thursday the 15th of November in the 2012th year of our lord (of someone's lord, anyway), that I shall try for what was previously thought impossible: time delaying my post twice. Yes, brothers and sisters, you are reading the words of a Thursday again. I suggest you enjoy them.

Bates College: For the price I'm paying, it has to be good.

This week's post is sponsored by Parks and Recreation.
"Parks and Recreation. Helping Nicole become more of a recluse since 2012". But seriously, I'm already midway through season 4. So, you know, that's what I've been doing this past week. Needless to say...

Busy Busy Busy

I'll see you guys next week, I'm really busy and don't have time for a proper post.

So I don't leave you with absolutely nothing, I'll tell you I went shopping in SF on Saturday.  Twas a lot of fun.  I went with Barbara and she was extremely helpful because she, unlike me, knows where to shop and what to shop for.  Having someone like that who is fashion savvy is very helpful to those who are in need of help i.e. me.  I spent over $200 which was quite traumatic, but I got a lot of great clothes so yay there.  Three pairs of pants, two sweaters, and a t-shirt to be exact.  I'm trying to make the transition into a more mature look.

Well I'll talk to you guys later.  Can't wait to be back in Newport in a little more than a week.

Jason

Sick sick sick

Hey guys.  I'm sick.  Can't post right now but I had a good weekend as this may suggest to you:

I saw Shane for the first time since August and we met our Baltimore family and went kayaking, among other adventures.  Oh wow we are cool.

P.S. He got me a Gryffindor tie.  Need I say more.

The Road Goes Ever On and On

Mammoth got six inches today. Li' dat.

Sweaters, Popcorn and... Sexual Assault

I'm in the middle of Winter Cleaning. It's like Spring Cleaning, except only I do it, and it's an unhealthy obsession with getting rid of things rather than a nice cleansing experience. But anyways...

Election Day! Just voted!

It has been so long since I've written a formal blog that I no longer know what to write about.  The past weeks have blended together in one flurry of work and fun and it's hard to separate all the noteworthy instances from one another.  Well, without further ado, lets journey through the random bits of my life as I remember them:

Tired at 9 PM? I’m an Old Lady.

I hate self portraits like this because they are inherently narcissistic, but I haven't done anything cool enough since Saturday to have a real picture of myself with red hair

I have red hair!  Kind of.  It ended up being more of a tint than a full dye, because I didn't use bleach.  The front is the red-ist.  Also I’m already tired.  I think it’s from staying up late doing research… last Wednesday night.  Because I went to bed at 11:45 last night, the earliest this year.

A mug of ale in my hand, putting my feet up on a settle after a hard day's work.

Yesterday I wore gloves on a run for the first time this school year. Last night I wore socks to bed for the first time this school year. Brace yourselves. Winter is coming.

Happy Halloween! I'm Staying In...

Hello my boo-tiful ghosts,

I'm going to make this post a short one because I have a paper to write, and then another one to outline because I need to write it tomorrow. So I'm just going to do a quick re-cap from Thursday to today.

Sandy Days Ahead

So I kind of forgot it is/was Monday (depending on your time zone) because my classes were canceled thanks to Hurricane Sandy.  That's okay though!  I'll come up with something great.

Hurricane incoming!

Hey, I'm back! It's been a while since I posted, and I have a lot to tell you. I'm still feeling a bit drained after the last few weeks with all the homework, tests, and whatnot, but I'm going to start forgetting if I don't post now.

At least I still have my personality.

I'm writing this on Thursday night with the intent of time-delaying the post for Friday, because I'm hopping on a bus at 10:30 tomorrow morning and I don't want to have to worry about writing a post between the end of my morning class (8:50) and then. So if you're reading this and it's not Friday yet, well, chalk that up to my technological savvy.

Its not my day...

But I couldn't control myself.

What I Did With My October Break

Let's talk about my trip to D.C., shall we?

The sky, like a bashful youth kissed for the first time, blushed with a peach-pink light.

Right now it's 11:05 PM and I don't think I can write a satisfying post in the time before Tuesday ends and Wednesday takes over so I'm not going to.  Maybe I'll update it tomorrow when I have free time, who knows.  I've been really busy these past few weeks so maybe not.  I know I sound like a broken record, but if you were here in Berkeley you would know that I am quite stressed out with all the stuff I have to do. Until Thanksgiving I'll be in a perpetual state of work so I might not have any good posts if any at all. I realize how disappointing this might be to all of you, but I need to take care of my life before I worry about documenting it.  A baby cared for that no one knows about is better than a dead baby with a birth certificate.  That is precisely the analogy I thought about, and if that doesn't reveal my sanity level right now, I don't know what will.  For the few... wait will I even see any of you at Thanksgiving?  You guys are so lame, why must you be so awesome that I miss you so.  Hope you're enjoying life.

Jason

And his voice had iron in it.

Berkeley people who know of Kvothe. Jason, Kevin, Morgan. I am angry at all of you because you are not currently enrolled in the class that your college is offering right now that is focused on comparing The Name of the Wind and A Game of Thrones.

http://www.decal.org/fantasydecal

The Irony of a Homebody IR Major

Yoodle doodle doo.  This song is on Pandora (Mumford & Sons station) while I am writing this.  It sounds nice, so listen to it if you want.

DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES?

I have intentionally taken the lives of exactly 111 living creatures in the last twenty-one hours. Why, how, and from whom, you ask? Patience, lads and lasses. Patience.

MINECRAFT!

HEY GUYS I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING EVER BUT WATCH THIS VIDEO ANYWAY OKAY BYE BYE NIGHT NIGHT.

Busy Having Fun

Hey suckers ,

I'm currently in D.C. being an adventurer. And since I plan on continuing this adventure right now and throughout the break, I am sort of too busy to write about it currently. And last week was super lame because all I was doing was studying and doing work for my mid-terms.
So.
I'll either come back here in a few days to update you and then do another one next wednesday on different information.
Or just have this be a lame post and then do a real one next week.
I haven't decided yet.

Cheers,

Nicole

A little late but well meaning (:

This is me and the guy I wish I was with every day.

Hey guys.  Sorry this is late.  I got in late and very tired from Chicago yesterday, and was greeted by a pile of homework I wasn’t fully aware I had.  I won’t go into more detail, because I know you guys know that I’m committed to TMDW and that this is important to me.

That said, it is 11:45 EST, so this blog will primarily be a travel blog about my adventures with Devin in Chicago.  Expect pictures and sleepy commentary.

A time of reflection

Four score and seven years ago

I have a race this afternoon. It's in Burlington. My parents will be there. I'm hanging out with them for Fall Break (Jason so mad it funny). We have Monday and Tuesday off. I'm tired. I have a race later today, and I think I'm going to skip my class at 11:15 because I'd rather sleep. It'll be the first class I've skipped this semester. Actually, I'd rather sleep that write this blog post. I'll just make it quick.

HEY KIDS

It's almost fall break!  Enjoy this vidya.

The Worst Post Ever. (Seriously, your eyes will bleed.)

Hello movers and shakers. This is probably going to be a short, horrible post because this is the week before midterms (which are on Monday and Tuesday of next week) and all of my professors seem to be in competition with each other to win the contest of  "Who can give the most work to Nicole?". Prepare for poorly written thoughts and descriptions about the week.

Guest Appearance

This is my friend Joe.

Fall Break Adventures Forthcoming

Hey, fellow bloggers and internet stalkers (not an exhaustive list of people who will be reading this—hey to all of you, too).

Road Trip!

Hey guys,
I'm writing this on my phone right now, so it won't be too long. I'm on a road trip with my pledge class over our four day weekend. We'll be heading to other chapters of ADPhi and hopefully studying up about the fraternity along the way.

I had my first hell week, which was mostly self-induced. On Saturday, I did a puzzle hunt held by an IT company called Palantir, and a team of us at ADPhi competed for around 6 or 7 hours. Then I watched Shaun of the Dead for the first time. Great Saturday.
Sunday, I got up around 6 to go to Maker Faire in New York. The event is hosted by a magazine called Make, which is all about cool DIY projects people do, and the Faire was a chance to see a whole bunch of this stuff up close. A lot of the projects involved using Arduino processors in cool ways, like a Linux tablet, a keyboard/motion tracking mouse glove, and 3D printers. This, as you might imagine, took up a significant portion of my Sunday.
Now what was happening with my homework during all this time? I had an essay due and first bio test to study for on Monday, and psets due Tuesday and Thursday. Nothing started by the time I began working on Sunday, 10pm.
Lessons learned: start psets at least a day before they're due; don't try to learn the material the night before the pset is due because you've skipping lecture; playing pool is not an efficient way to learn material; interesting things happen when you go out for pizza at 3 am.
Next week, I'll hopefully have some cool stories about pledge road trip!

The Fire of Scorching Wind

Whazzup. This week had some good parts and some bad parts, but mostly it had average parts, like all weeks do. We cans start with a good part. It's first chronologically anyway.

WHO IS RICH?!

Hey guys I feel really really bad about not posting so then today I was like "I'll make a video then everyone will love me right?!" but then my brain was like "HEY RICH REMEMBER THAT COLLEGE YOU'RE IN AND PAYING A SHITTON OF MONEY FOR THAT'S SOMETHING YOU SHOULD PROBABLY DO FOR REALZOS".  So then I was like okay then brain we'll do our work but then we're gonna feel bad about not posting our blog post again and my brain said "HEY DUDE BRO LISTEN NO IT'LL BE FINE YOU'LL JUST STAY UP LATE AND POST AFTER YOU DRINK SOME COFFEEEEEEEEEE AND YOU'LL BE FINE!" So that's where I am right now.  Right there.  Okay let's go!

No one ever writes songs mentioning October. I'll change that.

It's sort of rainy here. There are so many puddles to...

Such Sweet Nothing

I like this song.  I can find meaning in it.  I can find meaning in a lot of songs though.  Hmm.

Unfortunately I won't be writing much in this post because I incurred quite a serious burn that has impeded my typing ability.  A picture of it is beyond the jump if you think you can stomach it.  It's pretty nasty.  Until next week when I hopefully regain function, au revior.

Jason

I watched Hercules this week but this post was too long to talk about that.

Hey guys!

My first time at the White House since coming to AU.  This is not me.

One expedient only is left to me – travel.

I could start this post the same way I did two weeks ago: That was a damn good burger I just had. Friday is burger day here. I usually grab, in addition to the buns and the patty, all of the following: tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, mustard, BBQ sauce, thousand island, relish, and, most importantly, baked beans. Mmmmm. And then I go back and make a second one.

Garf the Frog King

Every Tuesday we have pledge-ed which is where we check up on all of our pledges (25! Much more than the average number of about 10-11, go us!) to make sure they are learning everything they need to know about the fraternity and to educate them about what we view are worthwhile ideals. Last Tuesday we had a fun little exercise in which we all (all being the pledges + the pledge-ed committee which I am a part of) wrote down the top ten characteristics we value in a person. Then we narrowed it down to seven. Then five. And finally three. The three most important characteristics I value in a person.


My three were: Respect, Self-Worth, and Flexibility.  I was going to go into further detail about why I chose these, but judging by the fact that I'm already a day late in posting and I have a lot of work to do I'll cut it short this week.  Maybe you can ponder them or do the activity yourself.  I found it quite rewarding to have some inner reflection time.  Hopefully I'll be refreshed and ready to write a long blog post next week.  Until then, c'est la vie.

Jason

Riddle Me This!

What has three legs going up a hill, but four going down it?

Eugenides! (If it didn't have 4 syllables in your head, you're saying it wrong)

Hey kiddos!

So I don't have time to blog a full post tonight.  I will write a complete week's summary tomorrow.  But the best thing ever happened to me.

My nose is super stuffy

I feel so bad after missing my last few Saturday posts. There are just too many things going on over the weekend to find the time and peace of mind to sit down and write. Maybe I'll try writing on Thursday and posting on Saturday.

My readers will excuse me from the unnecessary duty of describing the denouement.

If she thought she didn't have a life before...

Since I have three jobs, am a double major, am an active member of debate and the Bates Authors Guild, and also have Chinese quizzes every day, you might anticipate that I'm a pretty busy girl. My response to such a claim?

No shit Sherlock.  Tertiary, my dear Watson.

Titles are overrated.

Writing before breaks is overrated as well.

Jesus Fountain For the Win.

Well, Monday rolled around again, like it always does.  You can almost hear the collective sign.  But that’s enough ragging on Mondays.  They’re coming back in style.

If I was going somewhere, I was running.

That was a damn good burger I just had. I want all of you to know that. But on to less important things.

We'll Start With An Awkward Conversation

I'm going to start out this post with a fun little exchange I had with my Chinese professor on the first day of class that I may or may not have forgotten to tell you about last week. Ready? I bet you are, you rascals: I walk up to my professor to ask her if she still has my workbook I never picked up last year in her office (Spoilers: she did. Best professor ever.) and she gives me a sort of conspiratorial smile and leans in and whispers something at me."What? I didn't hear you," I reply, a bit confused by her general change in demeanor. She repeats herself. This time I hear her. "Did you lose weight?" she whispers again, an excited gleam in her eyes. "What?! No. I don't think I did at all..." I stutter. If anything, I've gained weight from not moving around this summer. My professor continues on, nodding her head as if certain "Yes. You did."

What do you call a pun that isn't a pun?

I'll begin by saying this isn't another nebulous post about my opinions on things.  Rather, it's a more concrete post about my opinions.  Opinions that are much more easily expressed in words.  Opinions that you will probably understand.  Regardless of whether you understand them or not, you will undoubtedly read them, giving me great freedom on what I consider worthwhile for including in this post.

Managing to be in love with Monday

I’ve done some intense lyric analysis as preparation for today’s post, using The Cure’s “Friday I’m in Love” song.  And I’ve determined based on this piece of scholarly wisdom that I have traded to a very crappy day.  Whereas on Friday, the speaker “is in love,” Monday is described as being “black,” “blue,” and a day in which you must make the decision to either “fall apart” or “hold your head.”  Derek must have done some high-level research about early 90’s British hits before “consenting to” (or so I thought at the time, more like manipulating me into) a trade.

And Sunday comes afterwards~

Whoops, it's Sunday. I started writing last night but stuff happened and I didn't get back until 4 am. Sorry guys, I'll try writing earlier next time. 

This past week felt like just one big festival. It doesn't feel like I'm starting school, and I can't believe that I already have homework. When it's not raining or humid, the weather is just like it is in June, and seems to scream "SUMMER BREAK!"

So if it's just us . . . seems like an awful waste of space.

I have now been on campus for eight days and attended exactly zero classes. 'Tis the nature of pre-season cross country. My days have mostly consisted of the following:

WELL HOT DAMN

Hello everyone.

I know, I know, you're all thinking, "Why Rich, you made those great couple videos at the end of last year, I bet this first post will be full of a new intro and some great music and your face flapping on and on about all shorts of shit!".  But you're wrong.  It won't.  I right now have 1 hour until my history class, and have only read two of three BOOKS that were assigned since TUESDAY.  Then, after class, (which is 7:30, for those keeping score at home) I have to do a physics problem set (~20 minutes), a multi problem set (~2 hours) and then Insanity (~1 hour).  In short, no time today for a video, unless there is, in which case I will make a video.  I'll try for next week.

Love you all, glad we're all together again.  Everyone's my favorite.

-Rich

In Memoriam N.D.M.

As my physics GSI related nearly an hour ago, "Yes, we know that the universe favors entropy, but why does it favor it? Why does the puddle remain water and not simply change into ice?" The conclusion reached was that we didn't know the answer. Or rather we didn't know how to explain it, which is, in itself, more important than the prior.  Thinking about why the universe favors disorder led me to evaluate my own life and the disorder within it.  Why does my life lean towards disorder, or more importantly why do I try to find structure when nature tells me to do the opposite?

Hopefully not a Sophomoric Year

Today was officially the first day of classes for Bates College. My day has been quite the hectic one, and it isn't even done yet. I still have to shower (I know, struggle city over here at Hayes House. Having to shower? How will I ever get over the stress of such a task?) and study for my Chinese quiz tomorrow (20 new characters to learn in one busy day, hoorah!). But I suppose for you all I will sacrifice some time to tell the story about my life and pursuits of knowledge and happiness. Onwards? ONWARDS!

The First Monday of the Rest of Your Life

A picture I took of the SIS building, which I love.

So, you used to look forward to Mondays.  The pro and con list tipped in the former’s favor because Derek Satterfield (no tag intended) posted on Monday, that good ol’ chap.  And it cheered you up, and you thought “Maybe this week won’t be so bad.”

By that logic, welcome to hell, ladies and gentlemen.  Because Mondays are mine now.  Muah ha ha.

West Five Story?

Hi again! Unfortunately, there will be no pictures this week because I've been bad about taking them and it really isn't a good idea to take pictures at some East Campus events. Actually, it usually isn't a good idea to post anything about EC events online. Something about safety issues…

Only priests and fools expected the roads in that part of the world to be safe.

It's good to be back.

My journey began at just past 8:00 pm, Pacific time, on Sunday the 26th, when my I got in the car with my parents and dog and headed up the 405. According to my boarding pass, the flight was scheduled to depart from LAX at 10:36 PST and land in Newark at 6:45 EST the next morning. According to my memory, the flight departed a little after midnight and arrived around 8:30. If we are to assume that my memory and not my boarding pass is correct, we may also assume that I missed my connection to Burlington.

Waiting with Bate(s)d Breath

Hello there, readers. It's been a while, hasn't it? Do you like the pun attempt I made in the title?
No? Yeah, well, it was a bit shoddy. Either way, it accurately describes these past few days of Summer. If you have not yet gleaned from my title and subsequent commentary, I am still home. In California. Waiting to fly to Bates. In Maine. However, it's Wednesday, and Raku made a post, so I thought I would as well, even if I'm not technically in college right now.
Onwards? Onwards.

MIT!

Hello everyone! This will be my first ever post on TEMYDEWA. It seems like there are quite a few readers based on the page view counter, so for those who don't know me, I'm Raku, an incoming freshman at MIT. I'm not much of a writer, but I hope you'll enjoy my blog posts as I share my adventures here in Cambridge.

Jenga

Take what is secure and use it to grow.  Each block a new responsibility.  The tower stands tall, an impressive feat considering the time it was given to grow.  But was it built too quickly?  Were the blocks placed in the right places?  The fight against gravity begins.

WHY IS RICH POSTING A NON-VIDEO ON A NON-THURSDAY?!

Just a couple logistical things.  Literally a couple.

1) There's been a bunch of background changing going on recently--let's have a discussion in the comments of what we're looking for in a background and then have a volunteer do that thing?  Or suggest something else.  I just want a centralized discussion about the background, instead of a bunch of edits being made randomly.

2) Welcome Raku!  I think your day defaulted to Saturday, but some people (?) expressed interest in changing days, so maybe you could trade around with someone.

Looking forward to another year of awesome blogging.
 -Rich

Last Blog of the Year?!

[Author's Note: I wrote this on time, but didn't upload it on time.  Forgive me.]

I wouldn’t bet my life on it, but I’m pretty sure this is the last blog from the T,MDW crowd for a while (can’t forget the comma!).  So, I thought to myself, “Well, Rach, we can’t half-ass this one,” thereby simultaneously using the royal ‘We’ you all know I (well, We, as I just established) deserve and ‘ass’ as a verb.  You can tell, by that brief glimpse into the inner workings of my mind, that this post will be epic.

Oh... I guess I have to reflect? Nah.

All last week I was anticipating my reflection post about my first year of college. It was going to be deep, clever, insightful, all of the excellent things. But I don't want to force meaning into my post. I don't want to create some tortured metaphor to explain how this past academic year changed me or how it was the best year of my life. I'm just going to write and see what happens. Don't expect anything, okay?

An Old Man's Wheezing Waffle

"What a year it has been! Hopefully your heads are a little fuller than they were . . . you have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts. . . ."

Sunday, Monday, Happy Days...

Hello, all.

Well, despite my attempts at hanging out with some members of this blog, Monday and Tuesday have thus far eluded me.  I have seen Kevin (we played Settlers with Devin.  Kevin won.), but that's it thus far.

If you are/were wondering, the business is going well.  This week Devin and I put together a desk and I walked some more dogs.  Expect to see me on the next Fortune 500 cover. Jump!

The White Whale

This video is in HD!  So if you've got the internets for it...

Also, I finally figured out why when I take a test shot the lighting is fine, but then half of me is washed out in the video.  I'll fix it for next week's video but I'm wayyyyy too over it at this point.

Stuff I forgot: Oh wait the stuff I was gonna write here is stuff that's gonna happen on saturday.  I guess I could write about that next week.  Or vlog.  Whatever.

-Rich

P.S. SO BORED.

The Longest Weekend in History! Sort of.

This is not the post where I reminisce about the entire school year. This is not the post where I tell you what I've learned on my journeys through freshman year. This is the post telling you about the longest weekend I have ever experienced and why it felt like it went on for ages. 

Well then...

I probably won't get to posting today much to Derek's not-surprise, but I was and still intend to post with a small recap of my week.  So I'll update this later; it it's not on Tuesday then I apologize.  Talk to you soon.

Jason

What I Learned In Boating School Is

BLANKITY, BLANKITY, BLANK.

295 Federal Crimes on the Wall, 295 Federal Crimes..

Hello, fellow bloggers.

Well, it pains me to admit this.  I pride myself on being a law-abider, but, since my last writing, I have performed 295 federal crimes.  I know, I know.  You’re all shocked and surprised if you’ve even taken my word for it.  You probably think it’s some kind of joke.  But I’ll explain in short, because I have 22 minutes until midnight.  Let’s do this.

I had no idea what the hell I did.

(Little more after the jump)

The Post in Which I Re-Enact the First Few Pages of "The Satanic Verses" but With a Better Ending.

So I'm not feeling very inspired to write anything quality or clever today, so you're just going to have to deal with my idiotic ramblings. Well, actually, the nice this is: you don't even have to deal with my rambling. You could, in fact, just skip this post if you wanted to. But it sort of has interesting content, like how I went skydiving and went to my first actual concert and things. So yeah. Decisions, decisions.

Error 37

It's Tuesday folks in case you didn't know.  And what does that mean?  Well, to you it may mean another blog post.  But to me, it means that Diablo 3 is officially out.  Now, in case you were unaware that this wondrous was coming out, or even that it existed, I pity your existence.  Ok, maybe that's a little harsh.  So far, in my less than three hours of game time, it's a pretty good game but nothing to scream about...yet.  We'll see how it goes.  I have high hopes, especially since my entire middle-school/early high school career was dominated by this game.  Since many of you probably don't care to hear about my level 11 Wizard I will continue on with what I do think you will enjoy hearing about.

Scooby Dooby Doo, Where Are You?

I did many things last week, most of which were very routine and therefore undeserving of mention herein. However, it is my belief that at least a couple of them were slightly less routine and consequently worthy of note, for what is the purpose of this blog if not to expound upon the triumphs and travails of the collegiate week (phrase taken from our 11th grade history textbook, as in "The Triumphs and Travails of the Jeffersonian Republic), even if they are none too triumphant when compared to other triumphs, nor travailent when compared to other travails. Not to be confuse with trivalent. Because one is a word, and one isn't, and in any case I haven't taken a chemistry class since tenth grade, and do not intend to break that trend any time in the foreseeable or unforeseeable future.

The Bad Thing About Posting on Fridays

The bad thing about posting on Fridays is that if you have any evening plans it’s awkward to post.  Which is why it’s 1:13 AM here, and now that I’m on Pacific Time, that puts me as posting on Saturday.  How awkward. Well, hello anyways.  (P.S. if you're confused about why this says Friday when it is Saturday, that's because I adjusted time and space to accommodate myself).

Now that it’s late at night, you can hear one of my famous LateNite Rants™.  I don’t actually have any famous LN Rants, but you can hear one anyway.

Kazoos and the Blues

Hey nerds.
I've decided to start my post Tuesday night (although I'm posting Wednesday night) because I know tomorrow is going to be a hell-and-a-half kind of day. So instead of doing actual work right now to make tomorrow better, I'm doing the fun thing (writing my blog post) to make tomorrow even less enjoyable. Now tell me that isn't sound logic. Wait, stop! Jesus, don't answer aloud! People will look at you funny. And I thought I had no social awareness.

The Home Stretch

This post is going to be short not because I want it to be short but because, in the interest of my grades, should be short.  Sadly, my review of the blueprints of my fraternity house (which I've already drawn up), the review of my first year in college and how I feel about it overall, and my new obsession with Welsh Choir music will have to wait till next week.  I really would love to write about it, but I should be studying for finals.  See you next week!

Jason

Sorry to Nicole for being so lackluster.  Although I didn't really hype it up, I gave you at least something to expect from me when I said you'd hear from me whenever you check the blog.  Guess not. Guess you're going to have to wait another week.

We shall see the Shire again.

Some of us sooner than others. Apparently, by the time Rachael reads this she will already be in the Shire. Hopefully the movie got it right; I'd hate for the book's version of seeing the Shire again to come true. Well, I still have a couple of weeks before I find myself looking upon a familiar sight. I'll be failing to remember the taste of strawberries until May 22, which is, I believe, later than Rachael, Jason, and Rich get home, but before Nicole gets home. So this week I have classes and next week I have exams. Disirregardless of when you guys stop posting, I will post next Monday and very likely the Monday after that. If ruining the weekly symmetry of the blog is something you can't deal with, go ahead and leave, because I'm not going to.

Updated: "Final D.C. Post?!" to avoid murder and sheer dislike

Hi, all.

Hot Damn Have I Gained Weight

I didn't focus the camera quite right, unfortunately.  This is my first attempt at a vlog.  Not sure if I like seeing how I look yet.  We'll see.  Nighty night y'all.

EDIT: Oh man is that a hot preview or what.

Wednesday is a popular day to post, eh?

Upon writing my little draft this week that I do before every post to determine what I will talk about (I guess it's more of an outline then) I was confused as to what actual happened this week.  Normally this confusion stems from what I do on the weekdays, but this week was different.  This week I knew exactly what I did on each weekday and what was confusing was that I had no recollection of the weekend.  Now, after five minutes of pondering I still cannot figure out what I did this weekend.  Strange.  Well, my weekdays have been packed with activities because as some, but probably not most, of you know this was my last week of classes and thus I am done with my first year of college classes.  I still have finals in a week, but wow time really does fly.

To (Zom)bie or not to bie? That is the---BRAAAAIIIIINS!

So here I am. Posting on Wednesday, as expected. Life is so predictable for Nicole Danser, isn't it? Or... is it? OR IS IT!?

Tuesday is here and I am not ready for it

I am writing this at 6:29 and am going to leave for my date party in 30 minutes in which I will not have access to a computer for the remainder of the day.  Thus, I will be posting sometime Wednesday morning and I apologize for being late.  Sorry!  See you soon!

He sounds more sincere than that when he lies.

Thanks to the wonders of technology, the majority of my post just got deleted. So you get the short version.

I am in Gryffindor and (much to his chagrin) Devin is in Huffledor. And we will have Gryffinhuffledor babies.

Welcome to the best blog of the year.  Why?  Because J.K. Rowling has affirmed the premise that I belong in Gryffindor.  Perhaps not personally, but through the site Pottermore.com, which despite Nicole’s bragging about, I started, since I told her about it.  Just kidding.  Sort of.  (Also I'm aware that the title isn't an accurate portrayal of how sorting works [it's not genetic (though I think the Weasleys make a strong case against this- I would've put Percy in Doucherdor) and you can't arbitrarily combine houses, such as "Huffledor", which I put Devin in because he has all the good traits of a Gryffindor but is really friendly/loyal, too, and despite what y'all say, I find Hufflepuff kind of demeaning.].). (<---- Surprise ellipses!)

April 25th, The Perfect Date

You know what's wonderful? Not living in Russia. You know what is even more wonderful? Not living in Russia in the 16th century. And those facts, my friends, are what I've learned so far from my "Russian and Soviet Films" class. Also, I now know an inordinate amount about Ivan the Terrible and his life. So that's...useless, I guess. Onwards? Onwards! (Screw you, Derek.)

It's true that such spaces remind us in a scary, but seductive way of our own temporariness and the relatively short life of all that we build and do.

As always, I am at a lack of ideas for how to start this post. It's probably better to just jump right into it rather than giving you this preface on my lack of creativity.  I guess I just want to remind you all of how not awesome I am.  Except, not really. I'm pretty awesome, let's be honest.  Rachael and I talked about this earlier in the semester, how our friend group can be completely honest with one another when we talk about our strengths and weaknesses.  There is no awkwardness in admitting to each other that we are better at certain things and that we are worse at others.  I like this.  I think a reflection on how comfortable one person is talking about stuff (serious or unimportant) to another is a great sign of how deep a friendship is.  That little spiel sounded like it was intended to justify my being awesome, but I can assure you it wasn't.  It was just my train of thought after I made that joke.  And, if you unfortunately do not see this characteristic in the friend group I am implicating then I am sorry.  And that's a little awkward...

Valaritas

Exactly one month from today, I will wake up in Newport Beach for the first time since February. That should be enjoyable. Also, I'm listening to KUSC right now. The answer to today's Great Composer Quiz was Beethoven. Real original, Dennis.

Last Friday Night

Okay, so I am starting this blog at 11:53 PM EST, aka this will be a short post.  Just got back from my fraternity’s spring semi-formal.  It was fun, and I’m glad I went, though the college drinking bull reared his head.  Like he generally does.  I’m just not usually there to witness it.  However, all in all it was a fun Friday night with dancing and hanging out.  When I returned to my dorm, I bought a dozen Krispy Kremes for $8 (which the girls’ rugby team was selling), which I think was definitely a fair trade.

WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME!? (Warning: rhetorical question. Answers will not be appreciated)

Educators, friends, family members, odd stalkers who read my blog posts and no one else's,

Today is a day that will go down in college history! For today is the day that I slept for sixteen hours straight. Yes, you read correctly. Last night (technically this morning?) I fell asleep at one am, and today I woke up at five in the afternoon. Why has such a sleep schedule occurred? Why has no one stopped me? Find out, after the break. . . 

Ah yes, a regular schedule. That's what this is.

Hello!  Remember when I said I'd post reliably?  Apparently I lied.  Let'sa go!

I Need New Glasses

Instead of coal, Santa now gives the bad children . . .

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

El Nombre del Viento, and Vlogging ftw

Hello all.

Well, I’ve prepared my first vlog for your viewing pleasure.  Understand that there is a thick layer of sarcasm coating it.  As in I don’t actually feel left out or anything.  The rest of it is pretty accurate.  Get ready for magic.

What Hath God Wrought?

Hello buddies,

So in the past few days my life has gone from normal and lovely to a bit topsy-turvey. It's not just because of the fact that this week is finals, or that next week is Spring Break and my/people's plans are a bit muddled, or that people are inherently flawed and enjoy causing me problems. No, it's all of those combined. It's like soft serve vanilla-chocolate ice cream twist because it combines things together, but it's not sweet and fulfilling. I realize this is a horrible simile, but I just ate some soft serve twist, so it's sort of on my mind.   Onwards? Well, if we must.

Get Ready for a Long One Folks

Salvete Omnes, and so begins another chronicle of my week as a freshman in college.  Can I just begin by saying I miss you all.  I can't wait for summer to come so I may see you all.  I was laying in bed the other night and planning out our reunion, specifically our reading party.  We all meet at someone's house extremely early in the morning.  We will make a glorious brunch filled with waffles (and peanut butter! more on this later) and other wonderful food while still in our pj's.  Then we all inhabit a singular bed and get our read on.  Spontaneously we would break out into random acts of fun-ness to make our reading marathon less tedious.  It will be awesome.  I also considered getting snacks and have decided that in the interest of health we will only have fruits and nuts as snacks.  I don't want to be stuffing my face with chocolate deliciousness that I will later regret.  So yeah, miss you all.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Harper's Fairy

Tomorrow my friends Eleanor and Caitlin and I are going to Harper’s Ferry.  If you don’t know why that is really, really exciting to me, then you aren’t Derek.  On a family vacation/college tour, said person made his family drive hours out of the way to visit it for me.  “For me” meaning “to prove me wrong” in this context, about there being water and boats.

Dangerous Tea Parties and Crosswords

Picture this: a young girl of 18 lounging in bed with a blue robe on. It is the afternoon and she has only gone outside to go to a class that did not, in fact, occur. She therefore got a bagel, a coffee, and headed back to the bed in which she spends a great deal of time in (Is it her own? Possibly). She then spends way too much time working on a crossword that, after about 45 minutes, she finally gives up on. To her merit, she finished most of it. And the clues were stupid ("It's the clue that is stupid, Nicole? Really?"). She thus  pulled herself away from the crossword which was enabling her ability to procrastinate and decided to do some actual work. And by do some actual work, she means write a blog post. It will be hastily written because the amount of work she still needs to do is slowly dawning on her. 

Glycine is the only achiral amino acid!

So it's Monday night, 10:51pm to be specific, and I'm at the library where I should be studying for my chemistry midterm that is to take place on Wednesday.  In the time between now and Wednesday I have to memorize the names, 1-letter abbreviations, 3-letter abbreviations, functional groups, uses, and characteristics of all the amino acids.  And that is probably going to be only about 20% of the midterm, at most.  Needless to say, I'm not excited.  So when I say, "I should be studying."  I really should be studying.  But Derek just had to publish his record long post, thanks buddy. So I thought that while I was in the blogging mood I might as well start on what will not be as long as Derek's post but will attempt to give the same entertainment value.

Welcome to the Hotel California

A black arrow, doused in snake venom, whizzed through the air for fifty meters, then embedded itself in the heart of a mail-clad soldier. His mail armor was weak, and he faltered, then fell off his mount, eyes full of death. The small scout force of humans braced for an attack, but too late. Forty lkaks, creatures distinguished by the smell of rotten eggs about them and three large horns sticking out of their forehead, leapt out of the trees, quickly cutting down the nine remaining humans. In a few short seconds, it was over.

No Post on Sundays

Blog Format Changes (Vote)

Hey guys, at least for me when I scroll down on someone's post/the front page/goddamn anywhere the site scrolls really laggy.  I think this is a result of the fact that we have like a hundred different tags, each of which acts as a link.  I'm considering removing this sidebar to see if it begets a preformance boost.  Vote yay/nay/don't cay in the comments!  Any blank responses by...iunno wednesday will count as a don't care.  SO VOTE ALL QUICK LIKE CAUSE IT'S SUPER IMPORTANT.

-Rich

P.S. If it doesn't end up changing anything, I assume I'll put it back to how it is now.

Almost 13,000 page views? Cool.

Bloggers, this post comes from an under-the-weather Rachael, so despite my hopes of matching Nicole’s amazing wit and captivating journey of a week that was definitely more interesting than mine, I will warn you that this post can do nothing except fall short.  I will be accepting flowers, money, and chocolates as well-wishing presents.

WHAT'S A FAP?!

I'LL SHOW YOU A FAP!

I just word vomited so hard on this post.

Alright, kiddies it's time for another game of "Wait...wait...don't tell me (what I did this week)" followed by the game "Actually, tell me because unfortunately my memorization of Chinese characters has pushed out my memories of the past week". Unsurprisingly, the second game is for a rather niche audience. Which is why you're here. Or maybe you're here by accident. Oh no! Did you accidentally think Derek's post was on Wednesday? Well, you can leave now, I will only disappoint you. Onwards? Onwards!

Oy Vey!

Yikes! It's 11pm and I just remembered about my blog post. I didn't realize how hard it would be to write a post while on Spring Break.  Now I understand the lack of posting these past couple weeks due to breaks.  Sadly, this will be my second week with a lackluster post, but I promise that next week will be outstanding.  And yes, this time I'll actually keep my promise.  Enjoying Spring Break so far even though I know it's moving along way too quickly already.  I have so much to do and so little time.  I've been sleeping a great deal though which is nice.  My body seems to be able to sleep more than I thought was possible.  I guess it's just compensating for all those long sleepless nights.  Hope all of you are doing well!  Talk to you next week!

- Jason

Carmen Sandiego

I'm typing this on my phone, which means it has been twenty minutes since I started typing. Expect brevity.
I haven't read Rae's last post, and I'm not going to read any posts this week, because I hate interneting on this device.
I'm currently in a San Diego motel, and many blog-worthy things have happened over the past few days, most of which I'll remember when I give you a full account next week.
I'll be talking about the following:
Three papers, thirty hours.
Yosemite from the sky.
The Famished Competitions.
High tide: Faster than you think.
La tracka.
Return to Del Taco.
Massholes.
Zooland. Er.

Audios, amigops. (Anyone get the reference?)

Are You Hungry?

Again, I didn't write this but it sort of reminds me of something Nicole would say

Hello, and welcome to my first post as a nineteen-year old.  May it be revolutionary.

 

HELLO FRIENDS AND OTHER FRIENDS.

I HAVE RETURNED!!  We're the best group of awesome people in history.  Also, most of us are sexy.  Jason and I are super sexy.  Derek is so sexy that I cannot describe it.  Too bad we have such weird looking women in this blog.  LET'S CONTINUE!

Lick It

Alright, alright. After this post I'm finally going to have to start logging throughout the week what I've been doing because as freaking always all I can remember about the week is debate. Which is really boring. Actually, maybe I just don't do anything other than debate and study (and hardly even that. Ha-ha . . . just kidding, parents, I study 8 hours every day of course). Onwards? Onwards!

Sadness.

So I guess I'm going to have to concede "most consistent blogger" to Derek.  This due to the fact that this post will be embarrassingly short.  Why will it me embarrassingly short?  Well because I've been super sick for the past two days and want to do nothing but sleep.  I wanted this post to be awesome and I even started early with a draft to help me remember what happened throughout the week.  However, I, unlike Derek, am not awesome and am not willing to blog through my sickness.  I'll see you next week with a hopefully epic post.

Love you all,

Jason

Here Comes the Sun

Last week I was wondering if Rachael was alive. Turns out, she was, and presumably still is. (Speaking of Rachael, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Yes, I have all of your birthdays, plus those of several other people, written down in my calendar. I need not use an electronic crutch for such things.) Well, this week another member of our cast has gone AWOL, although I am less inclined to think that he has died than I am to think that he simply forgot to post. Rich, please come back. We miss you.

Back from the dead.

Hey kiddos.

Before I start blogging, just so you know, all of the pictures in this blog are called Cinemagraphs and I think they're cool.  Maybe you've seen them before, but either way, enjoy.

Tea Gelato!!!!!!!

I guess I'll start this week's post by informing you that if you think it's going to give Derek's post a run for its money you will be sadly mistaken.  I simply do not have the eloquence to pull off such a well written post.  Even writing these past couple sentences takes more work than I would like.  Why do I have to try and make my statements sound interesting when I could conform to the simple model of subject-verb-object that, although making for a boring post, is oh so easy to write.  And this isn't a "I don't have time to write a 'good' post" ultimatum because as of now I am one of the two last standing to not skip a blog post, and I intend to keep it that way.  Sorry, that sounded way more sassy than I intended it to be. Actually, I intended it to be that sassy.  Deal with it.  Also, glad to see that you're alive Rachael. Having already decided on a specific topic that I was going to write about this week, it would have been a shame if you didn't get to read it as I think you'll enjoy it the most.

I wish I had time for just one more bowl of chili.

First things first: Rachael, are you alive? Or has some inexplicable force prevented your Friday post from appearing on my computer? If you have died, please let us know so that we can get on with our lives without wondering what's become of you. Thank you.

AGH

Okay, I feel awful about my posting schedule recently.  I'll fix it this weekend, I promise.  But my roommate's asleep right now.  <3

I'm either doing college really wrong, or really right.

Oh, Maine Weather...
Thy cruel mistress who teases broken spirited students with days of warmth and sun such as these. You imply future happiness, but you are wont to proffer fallacious promises. I look upon my news-feed and find status updates celebrating the clear sky and lack of wind. But how quickly your good mood shall recede. It is not in your nature to bestow gifts without cruelly snatching them back before they can be fully utilized. Alas, we must take what is given and smile up at the sun. Bask in the rays while the day is still bright, for anon we shall cry once more in the freezing rain.
Or
IT'S WARM OUT, BITCHES! GET SOME SUN WHILE YOU CAN!

It Burns a Building Down

We are almost 25% done with our lives according to current estimates, and what have we accomplished in that time?  Have we made a significant contribution to the human race? To our planet?  Probably not.  We might have made small contributions to our community, our peers, or perhaps our families.  However, the range of our impact is small at the moment.  We haven't been able to touch as many people as others that we consider role models in society.  Civil rights activists. More prevalent politicians. Owners of large corporations.  All of these people have a base of fans that look up to them as model citizens.

Are we expected to be the next generation of these important men and women, the future leaders of our generation?  Throughout our journey from elementary to tertiary school we find ourselves continually told that, yes, we are expected to be the next generation of leaders.  Pressure to be the best comes from many different places.  Our peers. Our family.  Our society as a whole.  But is the largest component of this pressure coming from ourselves?  Pressure imposed upon us by our own conscience telling us that no matter what we must find success in life.  Success not defined by us, but success defined by the society we live in.

It looks like the excitement of my artistic triumph is too much for Squidward.

Did you feel the eathquake? Only a 4. Weaksauce. It should be obvious which one of you I'm addressing here.

I'm not supposed to post today but it's David Tennant.

David Tennant on The Weakest Link!!!!  (I know that's not him below but just trust me.)

If you don't watch the whole thing (aka if you're dumb) you MUST watch starting at 6:13, there's a funny dialog between the host and Tennant. 

I may have just chipped a tooth on a pistachio shell, but otherwise life is good

Hi, all.

Sometimes life is stressful, and don’t tell me otherwise or I’ll start rattling off my never-ending to do list.  But I’m in a good mood today.  Little things put me in a good mood.  Little things probably also put me in a bad mood, but I’ll tell you that for sure when I’m in a bad mood.

But before I start in on that, I want to specially single out one Derek Satterfield because this Leap Day Voucher made me think of him/you (depending on if you are Derek or not).  It probably made me think of him because of the excessive use of footnotes, mention of 13th century Scottish laws, and the phrase “pleasantly whelmed” (as opposed to overwhelmed or underwhelmed).

THIS TITLE IS CLEVER

OH WOWIES OKAY okay...yelling...yes...that's good.  Let's do this thing

Archer shot me with a cupid's arrow.

Congratulations, you survived another 6 days without a post from me. How you readers deal with such Nicole withdrawals every week is astonishing to me. I, for one, cannot live a day without myself. Speaking of days: LAST THURSDAY (beat that transition, Jason).

I will name my child Lucas

I never know what to write before the jump.  Writing some introduction-like thing always feels too cliché and I don’t want to reveal too much about my week that it gives it away immediately, but I don’t want what I say to be too lame either. It is quite a predicament I face that I am curious if you face as well.  Do you also feel pressured to write something introduction-like before the jump?  Tell me your thoughts. Or not. I can only expect so much.

Advanced Darkness

10. ASPARAGUS

9. Without any milk.

During the August of 2009 I came up with a list of my top ten favorite Spongebob episodes. I know this because I saved the list on my computer and dated it. This small fact entered the royal realm of relevance relatively recently because a friend of mine, as it turns out, did not grow up with Spongebob.

UUUGHHHHHHFKLASD

Hey guys, sorry about the missed post.  I've been super under the weather since Wednesday, so I've been essentially sleeping forever.  Highlight of this week was that I beat Deus Ex: Human Revolution.  Really good game.  Stealth based.  So that was really fun.

Again, sorry about the lameness.  I'll talk about last week next week.  <3
-Rich

Bed and Breakfastin'

Devin has been here all week and we've had an amazing time so far.  This is going to be a short post because we are at a Bed and Breakfast in Hyattsville, MD.  If you guys ever come to D.C. again you have to stay here.  50 bucks a night for 3 floors of a fully stocked house with three bedrooms and sleeping arrangements for up to 16 people.  Also three cats.  And it's such a cute place and she picked us up at the metro.  She's had people here from around the world, and has a giant map of where everyone has been from.  Last week she had a guy from Uzbekistan, and Derek probably knows where that is.

Whatever is a girl to do?

Oh my, oh dearest me! Wednesday is upon us and I have nothing to talk about at all. Alas, it is not one of those posts where I comment on my lack of things to write about, but then end up ranting about my week for several long, seemingly endless paragraphs. I do not, in fact, have anything of interest to write upon. See if I'm lying after the jump!

Live Ever, Die Never

Hey gang, hope all of your weeks look a little bit better (or a lot, that works too) than mine.  My week looks rather stressful with the three midterms I have along with a formal lab report and five-page lab proposal I have due.  So yeah, this week's going to be fun.

The Ignorant Edema

You know what's funny about starting off a sentence with "You know what's funny about x"? It's just that, if you don't know what's funny about x you really don't have anywhere to go with that sentence. I say this only because I started typing "You know what's funny about" and I didn't really have anything in mind, so I just wrote this circuitous little justification for me starting out like that. Now I suppose I can get on with things that are actually things.

Another typical week, only with more junk food.

Evidence that Fox News has negative IQ

“On an otherwise regular Sunday evening broadcast in 2011, Fox News reported that Sarah Palin had not decided if she would run for president in 2012.  As is common, a picture of the politician accompanied the report… only it wasn’t Sarah Palin.  The network mistakenly used a picture of Tina Fey mocking Palin in a 2008 Saturday Night Live skit.”

Thus began the four page explanatory feature article I wrote that was due yesterday.  I thought that was a humorous anecdote about how Fox News is dumb, and the point of my article was that the line between entertainment and news has been blurred (passive voice because of the obscure object that is obscuring the line) over the years with SNL’s “Weekend Update” and Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show.  You know you want to read it.  Just kidding.  But just hear the title: “Is the quality of news ‘Palin’?” Hahaha… yay me!

HO HO HO MERRY RICH'S POST DAY

This makes me Santa, officially.  Sorry, Satan.  I meant Satan.  Speaking of which,

That's that movie that I think I remember telling all y'all about.  So beautiful.  OKAY LETSA GO!

Arguably the Best at Debate

When I look back upon my previous week at Bates, my education does not particulary stand out as something worth typing about. My social interactions are not anything  to write home about (or rather, write "internet" about) either. But something that takes up a large portion of my time, and thus a large portion of my memory, is debate. I eat, drink, breathe, sleep, think and scream debate. Alright, alright, that might not be true. I am a basic human being who needs nutrients, rather than independent points of argumentation, to survive. But something quite interesting happened this weekend at the Brandeis debate tournament that I think is worth sharing about. Something exciting and rare and magnificent. Something surprising:
I did well.

The Big One Nine

As usual on a Tuesday I'm bogged down with homework that will be due at the end of the week, however this week I'm writing this post before I go to my Wonderworks meeting instead of after.  I'll probably stop and get coffee before my meeting though, so I have approximately 30 minutes to write this post, starting... NOW!

Victory belongs to the most persevering.

I hope you all enjoyed your Darwin Day more than I did. But before we get to that, let's take a look at the events of the preceding week. When I last posted, I made it clear that my Monday was far from over, so the first thing I'm going to talk about is what happened after I posted on that day.

I'm going to post today!

The post has finally arrived!  There's still the cute doggie pic though.

Because this is the one hundred and first post.

THAT'S LIFE

I fucking love Frank Sinatra.  LET'S GO!

My post isn't late, your expectations are just early (It's okay that it doesn't make sense. Trust me, I'm a debater.)

Oh hey . . .

This is awkward. I totally forgot to post yesterday, and obviously you were constantly refreshing the page, waiting in anticipation for my post to be published. Well, I sort of forgot that I was even involved in a blog that I could post to. Not because I was busy or anything (which I currently now am), but just because my minds been a bit frazzled as of late. Also, I'm busy. Onwards? Onwards!

The Religion of One Age is the Literary Entertainment of the Next

So I'll start by giving a huge thanks to Rachael for making this post possible.  For some reason I cannot see any of our posts while using the "whiter" interface, for lack of a better way to describe it, and thus my draft was going to be swallowed into the internet until Ms. Somerville came and saved it.  So basically without her I would not be posting tonight, and thus if you see her you should give her a pat on the back.  Oh wait, what's that? We never see each other because we go to five different schools scattered across the U.S.  Oh yes, I recall that little factoid now that you mention it.  Guess that's why we have this little forum in the first place. Well, that's about enough of an intro. Weiter? Weiter! (How's that for originality...)

They say California’s the big burrito.

Ah, Monday. Time to write a blog post. But what shall we write about? Let us see, let us see. Well, how about we start with where we last left off? Sounds good to me.
Last Monday I wrote a blog post.
Last Tuesday I went to class, ate, read (for class), did a track workout, and pretty much just existed in a general sort of way.
Last Wednesday I did not have class, so I just read and ran.
You've been reading correctly, by the way. I didn't eat, sleep, or relieve myself for three days.
This is false. I did plenty of all three.
Oh, and on either Tuesday or Wednesday I had a fantastic 80 minute conversation with a friend about classic Cartoon Network cartoons. We covered Dexter's Lab, Samurai Jack, Powerpuff Girls, even Cow and Chicken (not a classic, just ridiculously awful).
So now we get to Thursday, where something marginally more interesting happens.

Blue Font? Inspirational Speech Time.

My friend's roommate has a bubble wrap calendar.

Alright, well it’s 12:28 AM at the end of a long week, and I just watched a movie that has made me feel rant-y and inspirational speaker-y, so bear with me.  Give me a shot, because more art is on the way, so this post won’t be all bad.  By the way, the movie was Happy Thank You More Please, only formatted into one word because it was an indie movie.

I just want to start out with this: you are an exceptional person.  That’s what my dad always says when he gives me one of his speeches.  It just feels really good to hear that, doesn’t it?  You, YOU are an exceptional person.  I’m pretty sure I know pretty much all the people who read this blog, and if I don’t, one of the five of us knows you and I bet they think you’re an exceptional person.   So let’s just go forward with this premise.  Also, if you only know one of the five of us and don’t know me but are still reading this, I’m really impressed.  That definitely qualifies you as an exceptional person.

Debatable, My Dear Watson

Good day, unreasonably attractive audience,

I come to you from my cozy dorm where I am blasting Neutral Milk Hotel and eating dried apple rings. My day today has improved greatly, which isn’t saying much because a day can only get better after you have an 8 am Chemistry test that you are quite sure you have completely failed. Every day I am more and more convinced I should be an English Major. Not because I realize I’m an excellent writer (The readers of this blog can attest that my writing style is, at best, average.), but because I’m realizing I am a terrible scientist.  Onwards? Onwards!

Feel It In My Bones

Basically I can start by telling you that this blog post is going to be short.  Why is it going to be short you might ask.  Well, because I've been the busiest I've ever been.  The combination of fraternity stuff + academics is quite the workload, and I simply don't have the time to sit here and write a novella for you folks as much as I may want to.

I guess we'll start with a little blurb on events last week.  I decided to drop my P.E. course, which seems extremely weird considering I was just raving about it last week.  I realized that with my current class schedule, in regards to the intensity combined with the inconvenient times, there is simply no way I could handle it.  I know it may seem like I'm wimping out, but I don't believe so.  Generally, Kevin keeps me in check on whether I'm being a wimp or not.  Kevin has no reservations about calling out my laziness, but he agreed that it was too tough for me.  So yeah, Kevin telling me I'm making good decisions always cheers me up; I think anyone would.

Other than that I haven't really done much this week.  We have our new pledge class, 12 of them to be exact. I like them all, I think it will be a fun semester in that department.  I've been doing shitloads of work.  Taking a bunch of technical courses is really draining on the mind, especially when they early in the morning.  Cole and I just got our mail beginning with what was sent to us at the start of first semester. Apparently they gave us the wrong box number so we weren't getting any of our mail the entire first semester.  I'm sure Cole appreciated the stale gingerbread cookies, the advent calendar, and the note addressed to...Derek.  Yes, note addressed to Derek.  Don't know how that happened.

One of the cool/intimidating things that my chem class does is a student formulated lab.  In the last 5 weeks of instruction, lab groups (2 people, I love my lab partner she's awesome.  Also, coincidentally best friends with Delara's suite-mate)  set up their own lab of choice and try to experimentally determine the answer to a question posed earlier in the semester.  The lab's are quite advanced if I look at past semesters, and thus the "cool-ness" of this project is overshadowed by its intimidating amount of work.  My lab partner and I are thinking of trying to determine the amount of protein in varying fruits.  Good idea? Bad idea?  Any other ideas you want to vicariously try?

Lastly, all of our pledges have to interview all of the brothers to get to know them better. This semester we are requiring that the interview be more of an activity interview.  I don't know what I'm going to do.  I was thinking of going on a run, but that isn't really representative of me, I just thought it might be fun.  Also, I thought maybe I could require them to learn a simple harmony on the piano of one of our fraternity's song.  That might be too hard though.  So basically I don't what I'm going to do and I'm coming to you for help.  What should i do!?!?!?!


Ok, that's all for today.  Sorry its short but I got to work on my formal lab report and go to a club meeting so I can hopefully teach some elementary school kids chemistry.  Also, this is funny.

Peace and Blessin's,

Jason

Oh, also, for Nicole, they mentioned Bates in one of my chem textbooks!

It's not your aptitude but your attitude which will determine your altitude.

The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it.
Well, okay. To be honest, upwards of two thousand college students remember it. Vividly.
As you may recall, I wasn't exactly having the time of my life last week, and this was due to the inconvenient sickness that I had acquired, that which we call gastroenteritis. Spanning the time between Saturday the 21st and, oh, about Wednesday the 25th, Middlebury College found itself engulfed in something of an epidemic. Of the thirty or so distance runners (including both genders), the number of unaffected was either two or three; I cannot remember precisely and for that I apologize. But you get the idea. Basically, this thing took over the school and showed no mercy. Even after my recovery I had to hunt for toilets that had not been victimized to the point of being rendered almost useless for those who wanted to use them in the usual way.

Snow at the Beach

As usual, I’m starting this way too late to be actually inventive and witty.  But it was an interesting week, so I’ll do my best at this late hour (23:46 EST).

OH WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MORNING

I sing that song every morning in the shower, but somewhat quietly.  IT'S TRUE, REED FRIENDS.  LISTEN TO ME WHILE I SHOWER!
Okay let's go!

Things actually happened this week.

Today I was in my dorm room thinking about how I had to-- I mean got to write a blog post. I was wracking my brain trying to remember what I had done in the past week. In utter frustration, I spoke aloud to my roommate. "I cannot for the life of me remember what I did this past week" I cried out to Lydia. And to my utter amazement, she responded with a description of what I had done recently. Best Roommate Ever.

If I was a sculptor, but then again, no

This whole day I've been wondering what to write for this blog post.  And now it is 10:43pm and I am just beginning my adventure into Blogland to attempt at creating an entertaining post for you devoted readers.  You may be thinking, "Only 10:43? That's early. I go to bed at *insert late time here*."  I can't blame you for thinking this because I probably would have thought it myself last semester.  However, 10:43 is quite late for me.  I was not aware that my out-of-state friends had no idea what classes I am taking or what my schedule looked like.  It simply didn't cross my mind that my friends, separated by hundreds of miles, did not have the capabilities to read my mind.  So my first plan of action is to amend this by explaining just how much my schedule sucks this semester.

The second theory was that the illness was a curse from the cry of a wronged he-goat.

According to Wikipedia, "Gastroenteritis is associated with many colloquial names including: "Montezuma's revenge", "Delhi belly", "la turista", and "back door sprint" among others."

The college health center recently sent out a school-wide e-mail informing us that many cases of gastroenteritis have cropped up. Including mine. The last few days have been the most miserable that I can think of. I will not disgust you with the details, even though I kinda want to. If Wikipedia is to be believed, and if my memory is correct, this is the same thing that Rachael had in India, and it's also what Zachary Taylor died of. But that was a long time ago. The point is, I don't have the energy to type out the story of my week today. Next week I'll fill you in on what it's like to ski on the east coast (i.e. what it's like to go to the hockey rink with skis rather than skates) and what it's like to run a three kilometer race on a 160 meter track (i.e. what it's like to run a race that's 18.75 laps long). Actually, I won't fill you in on those next week, because I just did this week. Neither experience was much fun. Nor is my current state of health. I will now go wallow in self-pity some more.

Atlases, Austen, and Ancestors- What More Could a Girl Want!?

Hello, and welcome to 2012 and the best blog of this apocalyptic year.

I am referring to our collective blog, not this particular post.  I know my post will fall behind some of the Austens, Mitchells, Woolfs, and Brontës of our group (yeah, I picked all female writers for a reason.  Ovaries rock.), but I’m comfortable with sitting in the back of the pack blissfully unaware of all the grammatical and social faux pas I commit.  I am the college student who crochets and gets good grades.  I have not been to a club, I have not started smoking or drinking (well, the occasional soda hath passed my lips, a dietary choice I regret deeply), and I go to bed only slightly later than I did in high school.

HELLO EVERYONE DID YOU MISS THE YELLITUDE?!

You know what?  I missed all y'all.  I'm glad we got to see each other over break (except Rachael, who must have inexplicably lost my number and not known who was texting her).  I kid, I kid.  Now that all of my abuse has gotten out of the way (All of it?  Who are we kidding.), let's kick some ARSE!!!!!11!!11!!!1!!!!shiftone!!!!11!!

A Very New Year, A Fairly Similar Nicole

Ah, how good of you to come here and see me.  But alas! I didn’t expect you! I look like such a mess, pixels all disheveled and tossed everywhere! My layout is usually tidier than this. But we must carry on. Onwards? Onwards!

 It’s 2012, the start of a new year, and you will all be smugly satisfied (you heartless bastards) in knowing that I have already broken all three (count them, three!) new year’s resolutions. How, might you ask, did this happen? Ah, my curious noodles, you will find out in just a moment’s time.