Thursday, May 26, 2005

Design class again

Okay, so it's very pathetic that the only time I can find to blog is during breaks in my design class, which is sadly only once a week (I enjoy it so), but I'm tired of saying I'll blog more, blah blah blah.
So I won't.
Friday was awesome. Lauren was back in town, along with Kevin and Mark, and we all got together and went out for Indian food and watched movies and basically got as relaxed as possible. Much needed vegging occurred.
Saturday I worked, then sprang my frinds on my Mom (oops), and everyone crashed despite the best of intentions to watch all three Starwars movies.
Sunday, work again, then Michael, Mom, the brother and I went to Buffalo for shopping. That was fun, though I am ashamed to admit that I was actually out-shopped by my brother. He did VERY well indeed.
I did okay. There's always room for more shopping.
Speaking of which, my fingers are itching for the new Coldplay CD. Anyone heard it? It's the first thing other than a book that I've really wanted sinse I started this class.
Oh, and about books. Read 'The Time Traveler's Wife' By A-something Niffenegger (I think that's the name). VERY GOOD READ. (Mostly for the ladies, though).
Anyways, I've slipped, once again, into rambling mode, so despite the lack of usual or consistent updates, I'm logging off, folks. Hopefully I'll have earth-shatteringly interresting news later, though honestly there ain't much on the horizon.
Except the family reunion, over a month away, which I am eagerly awaiting. And the fact that Mom has threatened to evict me if my room isn't clean and unpacked in two weeks.
Hello homelessness! My new address: cardboard box, crap-filled alleyway, Toronto Ontario.

Thursday, May 19, 2005

Thank Goodness for Hassles and Screwups

Okay, so the other day I'm at school, and I have no money on me, and the ATM is broken. No big deal. I try to call Mom at lunch, on the pay phone, to make plans for after school. I use my credit card, I dial her office, no answer, I hang up before the answering machine answers. I call her cell, same thing. I cease and desist trying to get in touch with my elusive mother, go to the college bookstore and buy a couple of books for class. Then I go to class. During break, I attempt one last time to contact Mom. My card gets turned down by the phone. WTF? I'm miles from my limit, it worked an hour ago, and it's the same phone. What's the deal? I get pissed, go home at the end of the day and call the bank.
They froze my card. They thought it was stolen. (The books I bought weren't THAT expensive!)
They have me confirm my recent charges.
Books? Yes.
Phone calls? Yes.
Monthly deposite to an internet service provider [I'm worried it might not be right to put the name down]...wait. No. Nooooooooooo.
They say I've been paying said internet company for many months!
Thank you for informing me.
(Eventually) I get in contact with Internet Service Provider Extrordinaire. Hello, why are you taking my money?
Blah, blah, mistake, blah, blah, confirmed inactivity, blah...refund.
REFUND, BABY!
I'm aware that technically it was already my money, and that it's not free, and it's not really a pleasant surprise, whatever. It still feels like an unexpected windfall. Yay me.
So, I guess the moral of this story is...thank goodness for hassles and screwups.

Thursday, May 12, 2005

Found a moment to write

I can't believe I've been reduced to this, but I'm blogging on a campus computer during a break in my design class. I guess a busy girl's gotta do what a busy girl's gotta do, but the fact is that I really am getting fed up with the disconnectedness this schedule is beginning to instill in my day-to-days.
I got an angry email from Shesh this morning for being unreachable girl lately, and I had to cut a phonecall with Hugh short the other night, and have yet to get back to either of them.
Okay, so I'm busy, you get the gist.
On the other hand, I'm learning a lot, (like, supersized learning), and I'm getting everything done (so far, and at the expense of some, very small but vital, amount of sleep).
My classmates and I are getting long well, still trying to remember each others names (I think I'm losing the race on that one, but so far no one seems to be holding that against me), and the teachers and guest speakers who've been coming to see us continue to be really interresting and positive about our future. It's not like University, where, if they spoke about future profession at all, it was always in amorphous might-happen-but-probably-not-for-most-of-you terms. Here, it's always "when you're out in the world doing this...", or "When you get a book that you want to look like this...", or "when you're publishers...", or (from a particularily optimistic speaker), "when you're the head of the company..."
I love it. It's like it's real. A career.
I didn't mean to make that sound so cheesy.

I'm trying my best to keep school from becoming my whole life.
The job is going well (have I mentioned the job?). A jewelry counter in the mall, small but apparently profitable, fun so far, easy going, and they give the a great friggin discount- Mom's doing flips. (So am I).

Oh, I just remembered something I've been waiting to blog about for the longest time, but have been waiting to do- my masterpiece.
I made this little beaded thingie (doll, objet d'art, whatever), and I gave it to Hugh (the first one, anyway). It stared out simple, and kind of just grew. It turned out kind of...impressive. I feel weird writing that, like, prideful or whatever, but people seem to like the thing, that's all I know. We (the fam) went to my aunt's house for passover and I showed it to my uncle, who was pretty jazzed about it. We talked art for a god long time, which was pretty damn cool. My uncle (cousin, technically, or second cousin, whatever) is a woodcarver. He gave me a block of soapstone- I'm going to try and make my own faces for my next spirit dolls. Though I already have two other faces waiting to be worked with. That'll take some time. Right now I'm working on a strand of lime coloured pearls.

Anyways, my time is up here. Blog more if the chance ever presents itself! Love to all!

Friday, May 06, 2005

I guess it's a whole new life...

Toronto is intense.
I moved here exactly a week ago (go me!), and this week has been SOOO long! I would have blogged about it much sooner, but…
Okay, to start at the beginning- the move went well, smooth and not too terribly long, and the only casualty was my keyboard, which was promptly replaced, hence the wordage you’re all now receiving. (P.S; R.I.P. my keyboard, which died untimely of a Vanilla Coke drowning).
Great big thanks to Mom and Michael and most especially to Hugh, couldn’t have done it without you. Now if only I didn’t have to do it ever again…
Spent Saturday recovering energy (not very successfully, blamed mostly on my mother, who seems to think that 9:30am is sleeping in), and trying to sort/unpack boxes. Also not very successfully, as I am right now sitting surrounded by, you guessed it, boxes.
Sunday we went shopping. Desperately needed, and I actually got some nice stuff, stuff I needed (as she keeps reminding me), though I mourn the spending of that much money, which could have bought…so…MANY…books…
And Monday was the beginning of school! (Yeah, great summer vacation for me, right, two days? *Laughter sodden with sarcasm*) (I want to know who decided that sarcasm was a liquid. Now there’s a leap I wouldn’t have made on my own.)
My new program (four months of the Creative Book Publishing Program at Humber College in Toronto, for those of you who can’t keep up here), is well, let’s just say it accounts for a lot of that ‘intense’ comment this entry started with. Eight hours a day (give or take), with an hour lunch, lots of classes, tons of teachers/lecturers and guests, and an amazing amount of information. I have no doubt that this will be hard, but so far I am Really enjoying it; it’s interesting and the people I’m meeting are amazing. My classmates are the most diverse, eclectic group I could never have imagined, and we’re getting to know each other and everyone is friendly and we’re having a lot of fun (or at least, I am). It’s fantastic to get to spend time with a very large group of people…just like me.
A true biblioholist may encounter another, maybe, once every long while, and usually only in the context of a bookstore. The meeting is most often a fleeting one- generally we’re lone nomads of the darkest aisles. But here, oh, here I have found an entire fleet of us, a pack, a… a band of biblioholists. (Forgive me, I’m very tired).
Talking books all day is fucking fantastic.
Sorry.

And that’s where I’m going to end this, even though there is much more to this week that I intend to enter here at some point, I’m afraid it’ll have to be a second part to this entry; I’m beat, and there’s still much to do…

Oh, I strongly suggest you all go listen to the Garden State soundtrack (trust me, and simultaneously forgive me for not telling you this earlier!), and read…something. Always.