The Light, The Light!

Even in the wee small hours of the morning, the light in this house is amazing. It absolutely floods this place all day long. This, alone, makes leaving the old apartment worth it.

The House of Whelmed (and Womenly Wiles) is shaping up; we still haven't hung artwork in the main living areas, but with one Roomie preparing to begin data analysis and the other Roomie working diligently on her dissertation proposal, the energy is currently best spent elsewhere. In the meantime, I continue reading non-required text, baking, and knitting up holiday gifts. School begins in nineteen days. I'm attempting to avoid this fact.

Baby Sweaters, Craigslist, and Settling In

One of my roomies is leaving for the weekend, which made me think that I would prepare some sort of baked good for her this morning before she left. So I gathered up baking ingredients last night and threw together a dough for cinnamon buns, allowing it to rise overnight so I might put the buns themselves together this morning. The alarm goes off, I get up, consult the recipe book, and realize that I made the wrong dough. The dough I made is for regular-type bread, which would make for some funky cinnamon buns. As soon as I post this, I am off to Dunkin Donuts to buy something sweet to send her on the road with. Drat.

Really, though, living in the house has been good. The third roomie has arrived home from Taiwan and we've managed to work with and around each other really well. There's a decent amount of space in the house, so it's not as though we are ever tripping over one another, which may be helping the "wow, I now live with two people" thing I've got going." It's good, this move into the house.

Also good: I met the Craigslist chap for coffee yesterday. Not a crazy, actually pretty interesting. I just hope I didn't babble too much... I'm a babbler in new social situations. I'm hoping there will be more coffee with this guy in my future. We shall see.

And the cute goodness above? That's the baby sweater I knit while on vacay in Michigan for my friend Emi's impending little person. I like to call it Baby's First Smoking Jacket. I'm a little in love with it, actually. It was a one day knit, moving pretty quickly on big needles, and I am absolutely in love with the color of the yarn, which reminded me of pickles. Who doesn't love pickles? I think one of my favorite features of the sweater might be the buttons, which my aunt gave me: vintage little Big Mac buttons from an old shirt of my cousin's. The perfect caramel color to complete the look. Adorkable.

Alright - off to Dunkin. While there will not be cinnamon buns this morning there will be sweetness. And bread.

The Big Move

I always find packing to be strange: all the things of one's life neatly put away in boxes and checked against some master list, totally betraying the chaotic and insane everyday reality. However, for just a moment, my life looks really neat and tidy in the back of this truck.
Until it explodes all over my new space. In my defense, I managed to move the contents of an entire apartment - kitchenwares, furniture, and all - into this room. Well, almost all. I had to put the couch in the kitchen. It was an impossibility it would fit in this space without ripping a hole in both space and time.
There are some lovely things about moving into a new house: the smell of newly painted walls, sparkling new appliances, and the knowledge that you are the first in the memory of this home to wash dishes in the sink or do laundry in the bathroom. These are beautiful things. Some of the less attractive things about moving into a new house: the lack of carpeting on move-in day. Due to the rain we'd been having, the carpet layers hadn't been able to complete their task. Thankfully, the bedrooms were complete but the living room and stairs were still bare. Move in day was a dance, both the carpet layers and the moving crew shuffling around each other.
But look at the light. It streams into every window of this house. Just lovely. I want to scoop it up in a mug and drink it with my morning coffee. My favorite part: the orange door. I live in a house with an orange door. It's going to be a good year.

Pics from the Vacay

Daycation, All I Ever Wanted...

Amidst a hectic class schedule and proposal preparation, my friend Anne and I decided we needed a daycation this weekend. We jumped in the car and headed for Chicago, Illinois, partially to celebrate Anne's birthday with a walk through of the Harry Potter exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry.

No road trip is complete without a dose of caffeine. We got on the road early and resorted to McDonald's, being unable to locate a Dunkin' Donuts on our route. Caffeinated = smiling.

We made a stop in Gary, Indiana at Michael Jackson's home. It's a small house in a town that rivals Detroit in terms of rust belt devastation, but it was fascinating how it was constructed into a shrine for someone who was able to move up and out of his situation. Sadly, those gathered were there to mourn Jackson's passing, leaving stuffed animals, writing messages on boards, and leaving poetry.

I love the aesthetics of the font here. Yeah, I'm one of those people.

The front of the Museum of Science and Industry. Note the large Hedwig banner - it was all Harry Potter, all the time. Interestingly enough, the exhibit was housed in a tent external to the building. It was a lovely day, albeit windy (hence, the Windy City), so the tent swayed to and fro, adding to the experience of walking through Harry's wizard world. Also of note: no matter how big of an HP geek I am, there will always be someone who eclipses me. This makes me happy.

Our tickets for the exhibit were timed, so we wandered through the exhibits for a bit. There were these huge Lego sculptures of famous buildings throughout the museum, totally feeding into my childhood love for the building blocks. I was tempted to purchase a Lego kit to build the Sears Tower in the gift shop, but resisted. The Lego Architecture series is pretty sweet, though.

Anne shows off her Nebraskan roots with her ease around the cows. We learned more than we could ever have hoped about the dairy industry in Illinois, including the way to milk a cow. Thankfully, there are no pictures of this.

Since this was our daycation, there were specific words we could not say: dissertation, research, pedagogy, framework, literature review, etc. Another one of those words? Foucault.

No photography is allowed in the HP exhibit itself, but the 1962 Ford Anglia used in Chamber of Secrets was on display in the main concourse. We took it as a definite photo opportunity.

After the museum, we drove into downtown to meet Colleen, AD, and their adorable twins. Did I mention the perfect weather?

Once parking was secured, we headed out to Taste of Chicago. I'd never been, but it was both tasty and fun. the ticket system was a little strange, but when in Chicago, do as the Chicagoans do. James, one of Colleen's little ones, eyes me as we walk back to our cars after a long day. A great daycation, exactly what was needed to push through the last two days of class (check) and this final paper (currently working on). So close to a small amount of summer freedom!

Knowledge Never Sleeps

... and, apparently, neither do I. After a quick four-hour nap, I'm back up and at-'em, attempting to make sense of Marx, neo-Marxist theory, and critical theory (little c, little l - it makes a difference, trust me). Ironically, I may have found my new favorite place to study: the Kroger. It has free wifi, a Dunkin' Donuts with free refills, plenty of electrical outlets, and plenty of opportunities for people watching.

Silver Linings

Great fountain, right? My classroom at IUPUI overlooks the square this fountain is in and, off in the distance, you can see Indy's downtown. I'm not overly thrilled with this second summer class: it's, essentially, six and a half hours of my day, every day, for the next week and a half. That doesn't include the reading time. It's a lot of review material, repackaged in pretty interesting ways. I'm on the fringes of burn out and pessimism is creeping in. In hopes of heading it off, there are lots of bright spots:

* Grad school is hard, but it is also a priviledge. I am so fortunate to be able to do what I do. I seriously read and write all day long and this is amazing.

* And it's made me smarter. The fact that I actually understand the content of this new class and can explain in the simplest terms possible the complexities that are theoretical frameworks is pretty awesome, despite lots of confusion around me. I like synthesis.

* I will have a two week break in July. It's coming. I need to hang in there. Harry Potter comes out that first weekof break and the Chihuly exhibit's at the Flint Institute of Arts. The second week will be spent with the aunt and the uncle, lounging about their lake house with non-required reading and plenty of knitting.

* The dissertation proposal is a bear; writing is difficult and the synthesis of ideas in a way that is clear and purposeful makes the process all the more murky. However, it's interesting to see my ideas come together in cohesive ways. As mentioned earlier, I've actually learned something these past two years.

So, yeah, all is not as blah as I sometimes allow it to be portrayed. Life is good.

Cereal-Covered Donuts

These are donuts with cereal on them. Apparently, they're a hit as these are the third incarnation I've seen at my local Kroger store. I can't help but find them hilarious, wondering what the marketing impetus was behind them: are they attempting to cater to those people who spend a good amount of time in the morning pondering, "Cereal or donut? Cereal or donut?" Are there many of those people? And why does the thought of a cereal-covered donut make me want to barf just a little?

Also: donut or doughnut? Oh, so many questions.

Amazon.com Bitterness

Bitterness
Originally uploaded by Klis

If Amazon.com and I were dating, this would be about the time we would be seeing lawyers behind the other's back and squirreling away assets.

Normally, I love Amazon with the pages upon pages of stuff - nowhere else on the Internet is it possible to engage in such random Internet shenanigans involving such a range of material. I tend to turn to Amazon for textbooks, primarily because the books are usually in stock and I'm able to situate them in relation to other books dealing with the same topic matter. Additionally, none of the independent bookstores in the area deal in textbooks and the IU campus bookstore is run by Barnes and Noble. So, yeah, I order my textbooks from Amazon.com.

I placed two orders this summer for books - dense, highly-priced textbooks about educational theory that would soon be filled with notes and tabs and thinkings as the summer's classes progress. In the first order, one of the books arrived with cracks in the spine, as though the book had been bent. I returned it easily enough and Amazon sent me a replacement within four days.

The second order, however, arrived two weeks after it was supposed to, despite being listed as "in stock." When it arrived yesterday, I hurriedly opened the package, the class having started earlier that week, only to discover that this book suffered a similar fate: not only was the spine cracked but there was a dent in it as well. I examined the box, which was devoid of dents, and came to the conclusion that this book was shipped out of their facility in this condition.

I have no issue with books that suffer from bangs and dents; what I have issue with is paying brand-spanking-new prices for a bang and dent book, especially when it's a textbook costing upwards of sixty dollars. Who was possessed with the thought that this book would be alright to send out as a brand new book? And, having received two shipments of books with cracks from Amazon, I have to wonder whether the quality control at Amazon is beginning to slip. Perhaps these two experiences were just outliers?

Come on, Bezos, get it together!

5T: June 19, 2009

5T: June 19, 2009
Originally uploaded by LimeGreenOctopi

I came across this idea in the Rearranged Design blog. Five Things is simple: once a week, you rid your life of five things you no longer need or use. Taking a photograph provides some validation: these are five things that are no longer taking up space in your life. The trick is not to throw said items away but rather find them places they would be happier; simply because they are not enhancing your life doesn't mean they won't enhance someone else's.

With a move looming on the horizon, I figured it would be a good time to start editing the collection of "stuff" I move with me, so here's where I'm starting: two Fiesta bowls in a color I don't actively collect (I remember them being on a really good sale - but what good are they if they don't fit in with anything else?) and a GRE prep book that I'm shipping to my friend Lee. Not only is she a collector of the shamrock Fiestaware but preparing for her own GRE. Nice. Vegetarian cookbook and Squirrel Nut Zippers CD are off to the Friends of the Library book store. I have the funniest feeling I will be making many more donations to that place before the summer is through.

The interesting thing is now that these items are out of my space, I'm actively looking for other things to get rid of. This could be addicting.

The Perils of Television

I blame my fear of sewing on Lifetime, Television for Women.

Back in the day, also known as the late-80's, early-90's, Lifetime was a fledgling channel airing reruns of made-for-television movies. Lots of them, spanning decades of stories of babies swapped at the hospital, terminal illness, and workplace drama. On a day home ill from school, I happened to catch just a snippet of one such movie. The plot went something like this: there's a sewing factory employing deaf women who spend a lot of time hunched over their machines, sewing while simultaneously working for workplace safety. The five minutes I happened to catch found one such woman sewing through her fingers; she stands up and begins screaming but - lo and behold - works in a factory that employs women who are deaf. No one notices her for a good three or four minutes, by which time both she and I are freaking out.

The image of that large, industrial-sized needle going through her fingers has stuck with me much longer than I imagine it sticking with any other rational person. It's the self-imposed bully that keeps me from sewing, at least until recently. I borrowed a friend's machine to attempt a quilt top for another friend's baby shower. It's something I've wanted to try for a while so I screwed my courage to the sticking place and attempted, the fruits of which is above. It's something of a hot mess, really. Adam, I am not. I think the pattern was a little much for a first time out; there are a few blocks that are not a standard size, hence some of the zigs do not match the zags. I'm debating whether I want to get batting for this top or buy new fabric and start over.

Regardless, I made it through an entire project. With all my fingers un-sewed. I almost wish I would have watched the end of the movie - perhaps the woman had a happy, sewing ending? It could have alleviated years of mental sewing anguish.

Revisiting the Habits of Summer

Don’t worry – I’m wearing a towel.

Summer has arrived. I’m knee-deep in summer classes – oh, Habermas, you wascally wabbit – and attempting to work through my dissertation proposal in the off-times. Spring semester ended and the summer semester picked up the very next week, leaving me little time for thought or reflection on coursework, personal positioning, or general events. All in all, spring semester was fine; in undergrad, spring semester was always my stronger semester. Not so much in graduate school. I struggled with balance, slogged my way through a dissertation pilot, and attempted not to lose my mind. I learned a lot and am constantly surprised by how much I know now versus what I knew when I first arrived two years ago. Regardless of the learning, this was a difficult semester – one of the tougher ones. I powered through, managed to finish everything by the end of the semester, and am attempting to take some time in the midst of diving into deep theory that I’m still not sure I understand three readings in.

Part of what made the last semester so difficult was what you see above: weighty-weight-weight-weight. In the fall, I managed to lose a ridiculous amount of weight, more weight than I think I’ve ever lost in my entire existence to date. I felt ridiculously good and actually looked decent in clothing. This semester, I wasn’t very good of taking care of myself. I stopped running, my morning trips to the gym dwindled to once every week or two, and food became, once again, a coping mechanism rather than about sustenance.

The moment summer comes along, it’s surprising how quickly my biology changes. It demands I run, ceases craving sugar. The number above represents a weight that, in the continuum of my life, is still near the low end. I weigh less now than I did at this time last summer but fifteen pounds more than I did in November. Those fifteen pounds make more of a difference than I would like them to but am hopeful the revisited habits of summer will take them off.

Also – note the pedicure. I need to make those a regular part of my existence.

What the Heck?!?

I haven't posted in about five weeks! Insanity! An update, in pictures:










In short: back from NYC (love the city), warmer weather has arrived in Indiana, I've managed to ingest much more ice cream than I should be allowed and my house will be ready for occupation by August! Excitement, I tell you! More substantial update soonish...