Halfway There.

Can you believe that it's June tomorrow?! 

It's mind blowing. 

I really suck at keeping this blog updated. I have great ideas for it too but constantly seem to get distracted with other projects (i.e. The Adventures of Rick and Tarra, job applications, CPB continuity documents, working out). The list could keep going. I've definitely been keeping myself busy this summer, even without a job. I only wish that I was more organized with my day by setting aside time for each tasks.  Definitely need to take some more breaks off the computer.  Probably gaining weight and losing muscle by sitting here. Boo.

ANYWAY, my buddy Rick found this cool project from Sam who got it from Colin that I may be interested in starting.  It's called Project 365, and you take a picture every day for a year.  You can add a little text with it for some content and keep it like a journal.  I think it's really neat, and probably something I'd like to start as I go through the struggles of post grad life. I just need to finish off my other projects first or really just get more organized. 

We'll see what happens. As for now, it's time to apply for more jobs.

Have a happy Memorial day!

Do I look Spanish?

I'm still in Montreal. This week is our last full week here! Craziness! It went by so fast. Tonight, we went out to celebrate Caitlin's birthday. We had dinner, which was alright. I mean, it was just a sandwich place. I was rather disappointed with my order because (1) they left out the chicken which I ordered, (2) there were sweet onions in it, (3) when I asked for the chicken, it turned out to just be chicken salad that had celery in it, and (4) I had to pick out the onions in the celery because I still don't like their textures. On a brighter note, the desserts were delicious, probably should have just ordered that to start. I also had fun with the girls at my table - Amiliah, Tiger, and Megan. They're super awesome! :)

Then we went to a bar, the same one with the free popcorn. Started out alright, sharing a pitcher with a couple girls. Somehow I ended up alone at the table, watching all the bags. Because of my solitude, some guy thinks he can start talking to me. First he claimed that I looked like his friend who's Spanish. Ummm...right. I guess I do kinda look Spanish because the Spaniards conquered the Philippines in like 1521. Then he asked me if I'm from Eastern Europe. I don't know about that one. I don't think I look like I'm from there. He would never have guessed so I just told him. But really it was the most awkward conversation. I'm glad my friends got me out of it. Maybe they didn't even realize they did, but they did. I also found out that Simon is willing to get us out of any awkward situations. Thank goodness! :)

Other than that awkward moment, good times with the group. We'll definitely have to party it up after exams, but for now, it's time to get the study cap on and focus!

In Montreal

I've been in Montreal for a week now. It's been pretty amazing here. I'm still trying to get used to people speaking French though. I'm sure French isn't too hard to learn, but I just don't really understand the language because the letters make different sounds compared to English and Spanish.

Anyway, we're heading to Quebec City this weekend, so I'm looking forward to that. We visited the Parliamentary buildings in Ottawa, the capital of Canada. It was really neat going there.

I've been really busy doing homework and stuff, but I guess that's why they call it a STUDY abroad program. I was so on top of it, but then I got busy hanging out with my new friends, exploring the city, etc. I don't understand why we have so much homework for this weekend though, especially since they know we're not going to be in town. Weird. I'll get back on track soon though.

We've met some Canadians who are really nice. We've also met some folks from other parts of the United States, France and Australia. We got to hang out with them for awhile, which was really fun.

But yeah, I'm recording most of my trip on a private blog because it's easier to do that then keep a journal. I'll keep some general updates here though. Good night! :)

CURRENTLY LISTENING TO: "If I Can't Have You" by Kelly Clarkson

Hair Mishap.

So I figured out what happened to my hair. I got a style more like Katy Perry rather than the picture I brought in, which was of Zooey Deschanel. I guess that's not too bad, but still, it's not what I wanted...

Eternal BAD Hair Days...

See my picture?! That's how my hair looked in January. I wanted to get a similar haircut today, but with a little trim in the bangs. BUT NO! What the freakin' heck?! The lady butchered my bangs, so that they are super SHORT. She layered my hair so that it's oh-so-thinned out! Do you know how much I HATE having thin hair?! I LOVE my thick hair, which is why I try to avoid OVERLAYERING. I hate running my fingers through my hair now b/c it's like a dead wasteland of nothingness. There's no fullness. It's limp and UGLY. It took me 6 months to grow it out a bit and have the thickness back. BUT now it's back to where I started - STUPID and UGLY.

Now you might be saying why didn't I say anything when she was cutting my hair. WELL, there wasn't much I could do when she already chopped off my bangs. I was like, "It shouldn't be too bad b/c it'll grow out and I can just hide the mishap with a headband." But then she continued to DRY cut my hair, shredding off my thick brown locks. I thought the long layers were going to be like the ones that I already had, but no, they're STUPID long layers that punky rockstars have. I can't chop it off to even out on the shortest layer b/c it's just that - SHORT. I wanted to grow my hair out for graduation and now it's going to take longer than I hoped.

Maybe I just shouldn't cut my hair for a year. I'll just learn how to cut my own bangs b/c who wants to pay money for that. PLUS, none of the places I go to know how to cut my bangs like I want it to be, which is where it forms a triangle on the top of your head.

So I leave for Canada on Sunday for my study abroad trip. I'm not looking forward to my hideous pictures with this dumb haircut. I need to figure out a way to make it look good. I probably need to bring my curler and straightener to fix this mess. Next time I get a haircut, it'll be in December or January when I come home for winter break; hopefully that'll give it enough time to grow out a bit.

P.S. My family is so not supportive on this whole issue. They keep saying, "Why didn't you complain?" Uh...because I didn't know how bad it was until after I got out of the chair and ran my fingers through and notice how much was actually gone.

I still got it.

I went for a run this morning. Need to start out a little slower and have an even pace. It doesn't really help when I'm running with Kyle though because he starts out too fast. I also shouldn't use my iPod while running because my ears were aching afterward or maybe I just have the wrong headphones. I'll work on that.

Anyway, Kyle and I ran to the middle school and decided to do a 400 m. He ran it in 1:30. Not too shabby, but I thought he'd go a little faster since he was telling me about running his first lap in 1:20. Then it was my turn. I thought I wouldn't even break 2 minutes because I haven't ran in a while. Lo and behold, I get 1:32.

I know I can do this and get back into the shape I was in during high school as a cross country runner. It's going to take a lot of work and all, but I know I can do it. Slow and steady, but sometimes I keep expecting instant results. If only it worked that way.

Well, I need to get up early because I'll be running again. Hopefully I'll run a little further. I hope Savannah will run with me when she comes home. We can just run nice and slow. Sometimes I think I should just go by myself. We'll see.

P.S. I got a job today. I'll be doing basic secretary type things for a family friend. :)

CURRENTLY WATCHING: "Heroes"

O Canada!

So in 23 DAYS, I'll be heading to Montreal! I know, it's not your typical European study abroad trip. It's just going up North to our neighboring country of Canada with the same time difference as the East Coast. Although I'm not going as far as I did last year, I think this experience will definitely be an interesting and exciting one. :)

Jean, my mom's friend, lives in Montreal. I'll be staying with her for a couple of days. I talked to her on the phone a couple days ago, she seems really nice and very helpful. She sent me 2 huge envelopes full of brochures of Montreal and surrounding cities. This additional information has definitely made me more excited about this trip, which is good because I was a bit jealous of those folks who are on European adventures in Salzburg. My Canadian adventure will be fun. I just know it. Besides from those pictures in the brochures, Montreal looks pretty European. :)

Kelly and I made some progress in figuring out what we want to go for additional travel. I found this brochure about an all-inclusive guided tour to Niagara Falls and Toronto. Looks totally legit and worth it! :) We'll also be traveling to Quebec City (which is home to a chocolate museum *gasp* and other interesting things) and Ottawa (the capital of Canada) as a group.

Ah! So exciting!! I'm stoked. I need to finalize those travel and activity plans as well as finish reading one of my textbooks (maybe skim the rest of them).

Updates as a prep for my trip later. Now I need to crash...GOOD NIGHT! :)

CURRENTLY LISTENING TO: "Anthem Part Two" by Blink-182

Running.

First day back in exercise mode. Oh my goodness. I felt like I was a freshman again, running with the cross country team. It was so tough trying to continue to run. Hour workout? I think not. I ran for a measly 12+ minutes and then decided to walk one of the laps. Okay, maybe I ran I little more than 12 minutes but still, it's nothing compared to what I used to do. I just need to start building up my muscle to gain strength. I felt so weak today, especially when I was doing leg lifts. My legs could not take it any more so I ended up not finishing that activity. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better. Well, I'm getting tired, probably from my physical activity (YES!). Maybe this routine will help me gain a regular sleeping schedule. That is such good news since my sleeping schedule is so off. Alrighty...GOOD NIGHT! :)

CURRENTLY LISTENING TO: "Two Divided by Love" by The Grass Roots

HOME SWEET HOME

So finals have been long over. Same with the week long extension in Portland. I'm home. FINALLY. The week in Portland seemed to drag on forever, even Kristina thought I was in Mehling for way too long! It's true though. I was there longer than some of the RAs. There was an eerie quiet settling in on the building, which made me escape to Sam's house half of the time, even when I had a ton of packing to complete.

I eventually finished that packing, which by the way, I HATE. I hate having to pack my things, putting them away in boxes and transporting them to the trunk room. I hate trying to organize my things in an orderly fashion, especially when it's compacting them and confining them into small places. I would much rather unpack and have my things fill a room. However, every time I pack, I am constantly amazed with how I can pack everything into several boxes and leave the room completely empty. I'm a little worried about moving into Fields Hall because my room will be half the size it was in Mehling. *sigh* Hopefully I'll be able to loft my bed because then the floor space will be available. We'll see.

ANYWAY, I enjoyed my stay in Portland. There were quite a few people still around after finals ended, especially for graduation. I got to spend so much time with Sam, which was awesome. I really cherish our friendship, and I can't wait to have our friendship grow even further next year as we share moments together on the ASUP Executive Board, at Little Red Bike Cafe & McFaddens and just about everywhere else because we're pretty much together all the time. :) Maybe we'll even have a class together. You never know.

So...HOME SWEET HOME. It's HOT here, but it's been nice to be home. However, I'm realizing that I have a ton of stuff to do for CPB, even though I'm not in Portland. I'll be talking to Jillian on Monday to go over our summer to-do list. I just hope I can stay focused to complete everything, especially my continuity documents and revising the CPB constitution. So much CPB work to do over the summer. *sigh*

I need to start exercising! I better head off to bed, so that I can go run in the morning. Good night! :)

CURRENTLY WATCHING: Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason

2 down, 1 to go.

The one that I want nothing to do with. Blah. I'm so out of writing a paper right now, maybe because I don't know what to write about AND because I totally screwed up the last time I wrote a paper for this class. I know I should try to redeem myself, but I can't find the motivation. Probably because I'm tired; I just want to sleep. I just want summer here to take me away. I want to go home. I want to do "cheekies" with KAM and play with him on Guitar Hero. I want to exercise to lose some of the chub chub that I gained from sitting at a desk all year. I want to go shoe shopping since my shoes are nearing a year old and it shows. I want to RELAX.

After this final, I need to pack. I need to figure out how to smartly pack everything, but I seem to always accumulate more things throughout the year. I have no idea how I'm going to bring it home. Gosh, I wish I had a car to truck it home. There's definitely some things here that could stay home. I'll need to do that next year, slowly take things back home.

Anyway, I'm going to shower and then tackle this paper. Maybe I can nap before my class. Woo! :)

CURRENTLY LISTENING TO: "Makes Me Wonder" by Maroon 5