“Down with love, let's liquidate all its friends, Moon and June and roses and rainbow's ends. Down with songs that moan about night and day, Down with love, yes take it away, away.” ~harold arlen

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. Yuck.

This has been a busy weekend. On Saturday we had our synchro meet versus Ohio State, which went well. I didn’t screw up the team routine, which I was happy about. The OSU meet is always fun to watch and be a part of. We finished with a candlelight routine to honor Jess, an OSU swimmer who died recently. It was really sad but I think their team appreciated it.

On Saturday night I had the IV Valentine’s Formal that the guys threw for the girls. It was soooo much fun. The guys did an amazing job. The food was incredibly good. The theme was lime, so we started with lime-flavored tortilla chips and spinach dip, which I (surprisingly) loved. The main course was chicken with this great sauce and rice and a sort of chutney. Dessert was the greenest key lime pie I’ve ever seen, which was also amazing. We had margaritas to drink. All the decorations were fantastic, and there was lots of dancing after dinner. I had a great time.

Today I had my first major assignment due. It was an essay for Literature of the English Renaissance. Of course I didn’t start it until yesterday (Sunday), the day before it was due. I had synchro practice from 9-11 and then I went back to my room and worked on my essay. I can’t remember when I finished it, but after I finished I watched Desperate Housewives and Grey’s Anatomy (which I had taped earlier that night). There’s an example of how crazy I am. It was insanely late, I had just finished writing a long paper that had completely exhausted me, I had class early in the morning, and instead of going to bed I decided to watch 2 hours of TV. I’m insane. I got a couple hours of sleep, and it was completely my own fault. But they were both really good episodes. :-)

"Step out the front door like a ghost into the fog where no one notices the contrast of white on white" ~counting crows

That is quite possibly the best opening line of any album.

Nicole and I got tickets to go see The Strokes over my Spring break, and I'm really excited. I have and love all of their albums and I have a feeling they'll be really good live.

I've been having a motivational problem lately. Being that I don't have any. When it comes to school. I've been exploring possibilites for what to do this summer, and that's exciting to me. I'm ready for this semester to end and to do something new. I'm applying for a bunch of internships and I'm looking at jobs and it makes me bummed about being in school.

Today I talked to Dr. MacAllister, my advisor, for about 40 minutes. And I did most of the talking. I'm not used to talking for that long, but it felt really good. I told her all about being abroad and I talked about my future and basically I just talked for a really long time and she listened. I think I need to talk more, because I'm very inartiuculate and the only way to correct that is to practice. It takes me awhile to say exactly what I mean. Anyway, when I left, she said, "Claire, you are a breath of fresh air. I wish I had 100 students like you." It made me really happy. It's funny how one little comment can make your day.

"Can't sing but I've got soul" ~u2

I know I've used that quote recently, but I feel that it's appropriate for this entry. The other day someone asked me what concerts I've been to, which got me thinking. So I created a list of the bands that I've seen live. No one is allowed to mock me because of any of these. It's not like I paid to see all these bands/groups/artists. Some of them were opening acts for others on the list, some were at events that I attended (not for the music), and some were when I was young and stupid. A few of them are among the most amazing, unbelieveable experiences I've had. I know I'm probably missing a few, but this is what I remember.

My next task is to list all the Broadway shows I've seen. Now THAT would be an incredibly long list.

Adam Pascal
Alanis Morissette
Ben Folds
BBMak
Coldplay
Counting Crows
Daphne Rubin-Vega
Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews and Friends (Tim Reynolds, Trey Anastasio, and others)
Delegate
Donna Lewis
Eagles of Death Metal
Guster
Jason Mraz
John Mayer
Kings of Leon
Lil’ Bow Wow
Louis XIV
Maroon 5
Mario
Matt Pond PA
O-Town
Patty Smyth
The Black Eyed Peas
The Killers
The Strokes
U2 (three times)
Virginia Coalition
Vanessa Carlton

"Not everyone is born a witch or a saint. Not everyone is born talented, or crooked, or blessed; some are born definite in no particular at all. We are a fountain of shimmering contradictions, most of us. Beautiful in the concept, if we're lucky, but frequently tedious or regrettable as we flesh ourselves out." ~gregory maguire, "son of a witch"

That's from the sequel to Wicked. If you're looking for some good books to read, read Wicked and Son of a Witch. They're good. And I have so many good quotes from Son of a Witch right now that I'll probably use lots of them here.

Classes are going okay so far. Lit. of the English Renaissance will be difficult, but I like the professor (I've had him before). My professor for Introductory Linguistics is hilarious, so that class will be fun. Technology Enhanced Learning is probably gonna be a lot of work, like all Education classes. I still haven't been to my final class, the Negro as an Invisible Man, but I'm really looking forward to it. It's only one day a week, which means it's a really long class, but hopefully it won't drag on too much. Overall it shouldn't be a bad semester, though.

I'm not used to doing work, so it's hard to get into the swing of things. My last semester ended in October, and it was a ridiculously easy semester anyway. I have to force myself to do my work.

Synchro started last night, and I realized how out of shape I am (well, I knew I was out of shape, but last night was the first time I actually had to confront the fact).

Okay, I have to go get ready for class now. I have a class in half an hour, and it'll take me at least 15 minutes to get there (Pacific to Modlin).

"I want kisses and dresses, A late night message that cradles, halos me to sleep." ~leona naess

If you've never heard Leona Naess before, go listen to her. If you're a Counting Crows fan you probably know who she is (she sings with them a lot). I love that song.

So I'm back at Richmond. It's weird, but good. For the past month or so I've been substitute teaching. For awhile (about 3 weeks) I was in for a woman on maternity leave, so I had the same classes every day. I had to plan the lessons and everything. I got used to it; I felt like the kids were "my" students. I felt like a real teacher. And now I'm back to being a student. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I have the urge to stand at the front of the room and ask questions and encourage kids, but instead I'm stuck in a desk among a sea of other students (and usually it's a right-handed desk, which I hate because I'm a leftie).

My housing situation miraculously improved, so now I'm living in a single in Pacific House. It's a corner room with two huge windows, and it is approximately the same size as the double I had last year. I love it. There are only 5 girls on my floor, and the rest of the building is guys. I've met all the girls and a few of the guys and everyone's really nice. The only downside is that it's really far away from everything; it's a 15 minute walk to D-hall. But I'm not complaining; it's much better than sharing a converted lounge with 5 other girls, which is what I was supposed to be doing.

I had 3 classes today, and I like them all, though I think I'll have a lot of work to do this semester. Only 2 semesters of classes left, though. I can manage.