I thought I'd share it with you
I have to do a reading journal for each article I read for one of my classes. What a waste of time. I understand wanting to make sure that we think about these things, but come on. Do I really need to write 2 paragraphs about it? No. We are big kids now, and I think we can BS our way through class without having to do this, too. Since we read between 5 and 10 articles each week, this is at least 3 pages a week (single spaced, might I add). ICK!
So, I got my weekly email from Loyola telling me about this and that going on around campus. Normally, I skim through to make sure that I'm not missing some big cholera epidemic or important deadline for graduation. Then I stopped when I got to "Visit Loyola's Official MySpace Profile." Lo and behold, LUC is on MySpace in an official capacity. I wonder how many universities are "officially" on MySpace? I've read a lot about this, and technically, you are violating the user agreement by putting an organization/nonperson online, but no one seems to care. This is actually one of the reasons why the library doesn't have a page. In any case, I haven't decided whether or not LUC should be my friend. That seems like a big step. We've really only known each other for a little while, and I'm not sure I'm ready to decide that I like the school that much. Hmm...
How do you know that the Bears are going to the Super Bowl? Because NO ONE will stop talking about it. It's all over every radio station, everyone who comes into the library is suddenly wearing Bears apparel, and there are ads for souvenir Super Bowl game coins. (Bears on one side, Colts on the other) In any case, apparently the Bears are a HUGE FREAKING DEAL in Chicago, and the one thing that isn't divided North Side/South Side. What I want to know is why they keep playing "Rexy Back" on the radio. He's not that good, and neither is the song (in case you aren't blessed by hearing the song, it's a parody of Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back" made into an ode to Rex Grossman. Who is funny looking, by the way.) I'm very torn about who to root for. On the one hand, it's "Da Bears" and if they don't win, we can't sell our services to a new city. On the other hand, Andy convinced me to cheer on Manning and the Colts against my "home team." Of course, I never once cared about football until this year. I'll be accepting votes until 2/4 as to who I should root for.
How do you know that the Bears are playing on Sunday? The grocery store is so crowded, you can't find a parking space. I went in, saw the line, and turned around. My sale 1.98 strawberries went unpurchased. They had all 8 (or maybe 9) checkouts going with lines back into the aisles. I've never seen anything like it. I guess I should be preparing for my party. Oh, that's right, I have to come up with some sort of historic site to nominate for the national register. And study for my oral exams. Which, by the way, seem kind of scary. Oh well... I'll just watch the game on mute.
but the Ferrara Pan Candy Factory (famous for its Atomic Fireballs, Lemonheads, and so much more) sure smells good some mornings (and afternoons, and, come to think of it, evenings). Since they make fruity candy, it's always a happy, fruity smell. Sometimes it's lemon, sometimes it's cherry, and sometimes it's indecipherable. You always know when they're making the fireballs, though. Wow! They don't have the greatest website, but if you want to see how candy is made and can't wait for the latest episode of "Unwrapped," this is the place to go. They sell all of the fruity flavored Lemonheads in boxes for 25 cents. I almost didn't believe the price. If you like things that are sour, then sweet, these are the treats for you!
To my horror, I am growing older. Andy will be 26 in a few weeks, which means I'll be 26 in a little over 6 months. I know what you're thinking: 26 isn't really that old. But then I realized, again, to my horror, that I have never sent a text message. I tried once, and failed, and I never tried again. This is unlike me. I embrace technology. I am the one who learned to program our VCR long before Andy. I am the one who showed everyone at work how to use the digital camera. Etc. I think of this, and I am reminded of my colleague at work who is more than 40 years my senior who has only sent an email once. She receives email, but never sends. I was just thinking of this fact before I sat down to write, and thought, "How can she go through life without sending emails?" And then I thought, "Oh my gosh! I'm like her, except with texting. If I told one of the teen patrons at the library that I had never texted, they'd probably be horrified." This is an awful feeling. Now, part of my neglect with regard to texting is that it costs money. Ok, it's only like 4 cents, but still. That's 4 cents I don't have to spend if I just send an email. And I grew up in the age of IM. Before everyone had cell phones, there was IM. I remember going to Germany (where, incidentally everyone has a cell phone) and coming back to a world of cell phones. Somehow, between 2001 and 2002, everyone and their brother got a cell phone. So, as a result, I vow that before my 26th birthday, I will send a text message. I just have to get Andy to show me how. :)
That school is starting: It's going to be 22 on Tuesday. It's been 40 degrees or higher for the last month, and now that I have to go back to school and stand in the cold waiting for the El, it's going to be 22. At least I have my new coat :) Hopefully it's actually warm.
I always knew that driving in Chicago was taking a big gamble. I was reminded of that today when I went to change lanes at the same time as another person and we were both headed for the same lane. The craziest thing of all was that when I realized that the other person was going into the lane that I was most of the way in, I beeped my horn, and the car did nothing. No brakes, no swerve, no nothing. It just continued into the lane as if nothing had happened. Fortunately I could return safely to the lane I had been in and no one was hurt, but wow! When I realize someone is about to enter my lane, I usually try to get out of the way if I can. Apparently not this person. Erg.
and it makes me miss North Carolina. The last few weeks have been like a North Carolina winter, and I loved it. So, yes, James Sutton, the Mazda would be a good car to take to NC on a happy road trip, but we'd probably fly anyway. We miss you guys as well, but it's hard to take a vacation when you get 2.1 hours of vacation a month and you have to use that on your family. Now I understand why people live near their families. That way, your vacation isn't used up to visit them, it's used for an actual vacation. Not that I don't want to visit my family - I'd just like to take an alternative vacation sometime. Have I mentioned that I need a vacation?
to start school once again. Despite the fact that I get very excited about course descriptions and then totally disappointed when the classes aren't nearly as cool as they sound, this semester will probably live up to my expectations. That is, I didn't really want to take these classes to begin with, so I don't have high expectations. I'll be satisfied if they're not too hard, and I get a little bit of actual hands-on useful knowledge. One of them is an archives class, which I think would be horribly, horribly boring without hands-on experience. The other is historic preservation. Someone in my family (I can't remember who) thought that hands-on experience would be just great for that class. I disagree, as hands-on experience in that class would probably mean trekking to some museum in who-knows-where with too much traffic and no El service. Have I mentioned the LUC student motto? "If you can't get there on the El, it's not worth going." So true. Ok, not really, but it is a good excuse not to go to a few places :)
