Finally Finished (almost)

Well, my friends, finals have finally come to an end. With the exception of a professor evaluation, some data I have to organize and stick in a folder, and packing up my room for the summer, I'm home free.

We all celebrate in our own ways. I passed many students in the campus center dressed for a night out, to which I say, good for them. Personally, I elected to spend 5 hours pretending to write professor evaluations while gossiping with a friend and reflecting on the year, and for her, her college experience (senior friend!). She's headed to another continent next year, and we watched a video of a dog dancing merengue, so it was time well spent.

Now, I plan to enjoy the activities relevant to following photos:

watching these (specifically New Girl, Mindy Project, Hart of Dixie, and Grey's <--probably first, sorry Mindy) (screenshot from hulu.com on 5-17-2013)

while eating this (yes, that is a sparkling grapefruit Izze)

Cheers to another semester down. Six down, two to go. 

Woof! Let the Procrastination Continue

A witty article about our favorite presidential pup, Bo Obama. It's been out for a few months but I rediscovered it last night. Power through, my friends.


 




































image from:http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/scribe-calls-tmi-on-potus-bo-talk_b27336



Enjoy!

End of Semester: Procrastinating So Hard

This is super cool. A carrot clarinet. I also really like the little jam he plays on it. I bet it's a lot harder to make than it looks.

Have to wake up in less than 7 hours too soon. Sending everyone happy thoughts going into these next few weeks.

Peace.

A Few Lessons Learned From Online Dating

So, you've finally found a few pictures of yourself where you look normal, just the right amount of attractive, but not showing much skin. Your profile is informative without being a novel and it represents your personality well with just a hint of your natural sass, but not too much so you don't scare people off. You've received some weird messages that make you feel slightly uncomfortable and now you're starting to send messages to the people you've decided are not so insane and happen to love the same Jane Austen novel and Justin Bieber song as you (and in my case, well, they're not unattractive...). Congratulations! Unfortunately, not everyone is as excited about your new-found time-suck as you are.

Here are some examples of what not to do:

Don't email your friends clips of profiles of people you found interesting. They're usually not interested.
Don't copy and paste the profiles of everyone you find mildly attractive or witty in to a document and send it to your friends on a regular basis. They have lives. They don't care. 
Don't make every conversation about who you've messaged or who's viewed your profile. The probably don't care. 
Don't deactivate your facebook only to substitute with creeping on the online dating website. This is counterproductive and defeats the purpose of deactivating said account. 

Do limit the number and length of your visits to said dating site.
Do limit the frequency and length of your discussions about online dating site.  

Basically, though none of the actions I listed is really terrible, everything in moderation. In my case, this should be amended to extreme moderation given my impending physics midterm on Friday and the lack of emails I've received from friends with respect to the number I've sent.

Happy Thursday!

I Have Great Weaknesses for Tater Tots and All Male A Capella Groups

Back at school with an insane sinus infection. The first week of classes has reminded me of many things. Two of those notable things are my weaknesses for tater tots (or rather all forms of potatoes) and all male a cappela groups.

I went wild for the Glee boys in their performance at the Sadie Hawkin's dance on the latest free episode of Glee and shared many laughs with friends over "Pitch Perfect" this weekend.

Cheers for being back at school and realizing I have many more friends than I remember as well as enjoying potatoes in many forms (tater tots, fries, baked potatoes, home fries, and other types of fries). But thumbs down to a rogue sinus infection that's causing me jaw pain (?) and obscene amounts of homework.

Notable items of ingestion this week:
fried egg BLT on challah with home fries (pictured below)
poached eggs on smoked salmon with hollandaise sauce on an english muffin with home fries (photo to come)
augmentin and vanilla greek yogurt (at home I eat Phage, bought Cabot's because it was cheaper, definitely prefer the Phage, much creamier, the Cabot's is too grainy for my taste, also, definitely not worth a photo)

http://isanghee.com/378

Single Digit Weather

As the temperature works its way down the thermometer and settles into the single digits (with (-) windshield!) I have chosen to make myself comfortable in front of the television with a bowl of mashed potatoes with garlic sauteed in butter. On the schedule for this evening is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (the only Harry Potter film left in the library) and maybe Bride Wars.

I love Harry Potter, but the Goblet of Fire is neither my favorite film or novel. My favorite novel is definitely Prisoner of Azkaban (no spell check, Azkaban, not Databank). I like the idea of Sirius in that Harry is not completely orphaned. J.K. Rowling also introduces us to Hogsmeade and its many wonders including but not limited to butter beer, Zonko's Joke Shop, and of course, Honeyduke's. I also love the passing on of the Marauder's Map from Fred and George Weasley to Harry. While I'm not a fan of dementors, I like that chocolate is the medicine that remedies the bad feelings that result from mild dementor exposure. And, I love Lupin. He's such a kind man.

http://msfizz.sodastreamusa.com/2010/11/18/butterbeer-is-here/ 

For me, the idea of the magical world is more exciting to me than the actual plot of each novel. I value the plots to the extent that they help us better understand the wonders and also limitations of the magical world but for me Harry Potter is all about Chocolate Frogs, pool sized bathtubs with exciting bubble releasing faucets, the Room of Requirement, Healers at Saint Mungoes, the incredible castle that is Hogwarts, and the list goes on (likely will elaborate in a later post, Harry Potter is a recurring theme in my thought process and life in general).

http://z6.invisionfree.com/Hogwarts_School_OWW/ar/t221.htm

Stay warm (or cool, depending on your geographic location).

Vegan Truffles

Watched Forks Over Knives with my parents the other night. I guess we might try to go vegan now. Since I'm on break, I'm too lazy to do my own research. I did skim a Dean Ornish book we had lying around though. Lots of overlap with information presented in Forks Over Knives. Both sources presented some pretty convincing arguments for "plant based diets." Too bad I love goat cheese, smoked salmon and bacon so much.

I tried making these vegan truffles the next day. They were really rich. 

Here's where I found the recipe: http://www.veganbaking.net/candies-and-truffles/790-raw-coconut-almond-truffles

Also, Hillary appears to have recovered. 
Thank goodness. 

http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/50391453/#50391453

Poor Life Decision of the Day

Water and cell phones do not mix. Why I thought it was safe to check my texts in the bathtub, I do not know. That's a complete lie, I know exactly why I brought my cell phone to the bathroom with me. It's winter, I was cold and wanted to take a hot bath, and I though it would be a great time to reply to my texts. That is, until I dropped my phone in the bathtub.

It's even worse because due to a combination of events including and limited to my sisters losing/breaking their phones and my newest phone getting stolen (the thief wracked up $320 in data fees!), I am down to my last phone. There are no more spares. My only phone is now sitting in a sealed plastic bag of brown rice. In 24 hours I will remove it and see if it turns on, and actually functions.

Life lesson, don't bring cell phones into the bathroom, like not even near one. My dad's iPhone fell out of his pj bottoms into the toilet a few weeks ago and that was the end of it (well, the ringer stopped working). In the words of my father "It will be the most expensive bath you've ever taken." Hopefully he's wrong.

Also, Wishing a Speedy Recovery to...

our favorite secretary of state, Hillary Rodham Clinton. I was sad to receive a "Breaking News" email from The New York Times last night, notifying me that "Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton Is Hospitalized With Blood Clot." 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Rodham_Clinton

Get well soon Hillary.

Public Restrooms, Smoked salmon, and "White" New Years Parties

I've just had a notable bathroom experience that I would like to share.

As I wandered over to the bathroom of the coffee shop I'm currently in, I noticed the owners were sitting near the bathroom which I thought might have been to make sure only paying customers used it. I strolled down the short hallway, away from them, through the door to the women's restroom and sat down in my stall of choice. As I was going to the bathroom I realized that I could very clearly hear the owners speaking. Perhaps even more clearly than I could when I walked passed them. It was almost as if they were speaking into a microphone that projected straight into the women's bathroom. They were speaking in a language that I couldn't understand and, as I sat there, I wondered if it would have been more or less uncomfortable if I knew what they were saying. I guess it would have depended on what they were talking about.

Throughout my many years of using the bathroom, as opposed to diapers, I have come to learn a few things about the setting I prefer for using the bathroom:

1. I must be the sole inhabitant of the bathroom. This one's pretty straightforward, I like to go to the bathroom in private.
2. Said restroom must have multiple stalls and locks that make it clear when they are occupied (red or green are exposed on the lock depending on its occupancy). There are few things more awkward than pushing open a stall only to find someone already on the pot, exposed... Multiple stalls prevents the pressure that one may feel in a single bathroom where that particular bathroom may be in high demand.
3. If I am not the sole occupant of the restroom there must be background noise loud enough to cover up or blend the sounds of going to the bathroom. Some examples of acceptable noises are a hairdryer and a shower. I fear judgement of my bodily sounds. 

I suppose my experience in this coffee shop didn't violate any of my basic requirements but it was still odd. 

That's all for now. Have a wonderful New Year!



P.S. I ate a lot of this my first week home. Can you guess what's on that delicious nutty, wheaty, bread?

from bread up: goat cheese, avocado, onion, and smoked salmon

P.P.S Got invited to a "white" New Year's party. In case you've never heard of "white" parties, they're not racist parties where only "white" people are invited but rather events where one must dress in all white. I'm pretty sure I've heard about Kanye West's white party in the Hamptons on many Bravo reality television shows(or some other celebrity). I have some collared, long-sleeved, button down shirts I could wear, or a cute cami but still brainstorming what to do about bottoms. And I might feel a bit frumpy in the long sleeves, but too exposed in the cami. It seems like there aren't a lot of white clothes during the winter season (though I thrift most of my clothes so I may not have the most accurate perception of this). It's also just not a color I feel like buying in the winter. I'm always cold so I like to wear colors that are warm so even if I'm freezing, perhaps I can give the illusion that I'm not. Unsure how strict this dress code is but I obviously don't want to stick out for completely ignoring it. It's just, I've been waiting all year (okay.. a few months...) to wear this 3/4 length, boat neck, charcoal, jcrew shirt completely covered in sequins...

Partridge Breast Aloe

The other day, after devouring a solid half of my bbq brisket and coleslaw sandwich on an onion roll with fries,

I picked up holiday gifts for 3 family members: shirts from Zaftig's with the following captions:

"Boston Red Lox" <-- in the style of the Red Sox shirts
"Knish Me" get it? like kiss me
 and
"Oy to the World" i.e. Joy to the World .

However I still have not purchased a gift for a sister. She's really into hair, makeup, and clothes and seems to like borrowing (without asking) my own products. Last year I bought her an eye-shadow pallet from Sephora and a nice mascara to go with it.

This year I thought I might get her one of those OPI minis sets from Sephora. However, I don't particularly want to pay for shipping on an item under $30 so I turned to Amazon to look for a set with free shipping. I wasn't feeling the colors in the sets I found so I expanded my search and this bottle came up:

ah yes, I knew that color screamed Partridge Breast Aloe... I can honestly write that I've never seen this color before (or rather, this color under that unique name).






Cheers! And happy gift shopping!

Post-Finals Childhood Reversion and Miss Universe Pageant

As the stress of the past two weeks as well as the entire semester lifted, I turned to Hulu and Netflix for appropriate non-academic entertainment. I had already caught up on the Mindy Project on Thursday in between studying and freaking out about physics. I also watched the most recent episodes of Gossip Girl and New Girl earlier in this finals week.

Fortunately I stumbled across a personal childhood favorite, The Aristocats, on Netflix! I've been wanting to watch it for some time now but my only copy is at home and is on VHS.

It was quite as lovely as I remembered though much more vintage quality. I had no idea the film was made in 1970. The animation was nowhere near the quality that it is now. However, I actually found the film style quite charming. I really liked the more raw, sketch-like quality it had. And the little kitties were so adorable.

I can't remember the last time I watched it but I don't think I fully understood the plot. It's a tribute to the quality of the film that even as a young adult I was still able to enjoy it.

 http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/classic-disney/images/609168/title/aristocats-wallpaper
I totally recommend checking it out.

Full disclosure: Before I watched the Aristocats, a friend and I watched the Miss Universe pageant on Hulu. It was actually really entertaining and my friend and I found ourselves picking favorites from the start. We loved Miss India, especially because she was a software engineer! Though we were disappointed that she didn't make the top 10, we were quickly distracted by the gorgeous dresses of Miss Australia and Miss Russia who did make the top 10.

Miss Australia wore this beautiful white strapless fitted (like, a lingerie top, with cups...) gown with gorgeous detailing along the top part of the skirt. She pulled off a formal white gown without managing to look bridal. 

http://www.abc15.com/gallery/news/news_photo_gallery/Copy_of_photos-miss-universe-2012-pageant-wptv1356048773463

Miss Russia's beaded gown was channeling the ice princesses of her land. The royal blue skirt complemented the metallic grey top very well. Those colors really worked on her. She looked absolutely stunning. I hope one day I will be able to wear a beautiful beaded piece like their gowns.

 http://features.rr.com/photo/0cWM4h6aiPfs7?q=Las+Vegas%2C+NV
We were also incredibly impressed with Miss Philippine's response to an awkwardly placed question (see footage) and Miss USA grew on us once we heard her speak.

Not planning on watching any more pageants anytime soon, but I will have to say that those are some pretty awesome women who kick major butt. They're not only gorgeous, but many of them are great citizens of world who volunteer.

15 minutes of Sartorial Fame

As I raced to my room after dinner, 20 minutes before The Sartorialist was scheduled to speak, my mind jumped to what I could throw on that wouldn't be completely socially unacceptable to wear to a talk by a well known fashion blogger and photographer. I settled for swapping my layers of polar fleece for my latest vintage thrifted piece; a black silk, sequined and beaded top which I paired with the bottoms I was already wearing, my dark green military pants tucked into black bogs (rain...). In case I felt totally ridiculous, I slipped on my shamrock green pea coat that I could hide under.

Chatting with a friend and fellow Sartorialist fan on the way over to his talk, I remembered his more recent posts about peacoats and day sequins (though, as my friend reminded me, it was no longer daytime) and felt more confident in my fashion choices. And honestly, when am I not thinking about day sequins and peacoats.

I have to say, I really enjoyed his talk. It was so interesting to hear about his process (or sometimes lack of process) of shooting people and what he aims to achieve in his photos. He said he doesn't travel or shoot people to report on upcoming trends, but essentially he tries to capture images of an individual's style. I could appreciate his great attention to detail as he described a recent shot of a student who drew him in at the Art Institute of Chicago, from her energy down to the slight shimmer of her makeup.

The people-watching at the event was almost as great as Scott's talk. It was so wonderful to see the range of people and styles that his blog appeals to, from a nearly shirtless flamboyant man in a white furry vest, to chic women in little black dresses, to that one girl I had talked to a million times and never heard express an interest in clothing who stood in line to get her book signed in cutoff shorts and lime green shutter-shades. 

With a great lecture, and nearly equally as fabulous people-watching, how could my experience possibly have gotten better, you ask? Scott Schuman instagrammed me (or rather my beautifully knit mittens by my lovely mother). Holla! 1643 likes and counting.

check it out for yourself: http://instagram.com/p/TG59G-lANi/


-An adorable student at Wellesley

Preparing Myself for the Savanna...

that is online dating: http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/web/04/14/online.dating.netiquette/index.html?iref=allsearch

See above article for sassy online dating tips and thoughts on rejection.

Dating (Procrastination) Efforts

As the semester nears its end and the holiday season grows closer many of us find ourselves yearning for companionship, or perhaps looking for new and creative ways to put off our obscene amounts of work for the last two weeks of the semester.

The other night I went speed dating for the first time. I went with zero expectations which was smart because it was a hot mess. While the room where it was being held was full, the general population was severely lacking in Y chromosomes. I ended up going on a few "dates" with close friends and classmates who did not identify with the gender that I was hoping to meet. I also met some really weird guys. There was one guy who I thought was kind of attractive and we had a fairly normal conversation (as normal as two people can have in a loud, cramped space, with a two minute time limit). I would definitely go on a date with him but won't find out if he was also interested until I receive an email with the contact information of people who I approved and approved me (which I know I will get because my friends and I all checked each other).

I also met a pretty cool kid, not interested in dating him, but interested in being his friend. A fellow foodie from the area, into being active, and knowledge of good food in the area.

And tonight I created an online dating profile with a dating website for college students. I actually filled out my profile this time and put a picture where I'm not wearing my sunglasses.

We'll see if either of these actions go anywhere, but for the meantime they have/had a great humor factor. And if anything were to happen it would have to wait until I return to school for the spring semester because I have so much work to do in the next two weeks!!!!!!!!!

Any good speed dating or online dating stories or profiles to share? I'll leave you all with a nerdy pickup line I read on someone's profile: What's your sine? It must be pi/2 because you're the one. <-- math humor

We Give Thanks for H-Rod

This week as my sister and I dressed for Thanksgiving dinner with somewhat distant relatives (2nd cousins, with a possible removal), NPR in the background, we gave thanks for H-Rod, or rather Hillary Rodham Clinton. She was mentioned in all of the articles, and announcements we heard about the ceasefire on the Gaza strip and surrounding area and showed up in many photos on the agreement.

At 3PM we gathered around a long thanksgiving table, positioned on the diagonal to accommodate for the numerous distant family members gathered at my father's cousin's house. We enjoyed the return of the green beans and pomegranate seeds, as well as the traditional turkey and a few other goodies.

That evening we gave thanks for Ben Affleck as we joined other happy families and friends at the local movie theatre for a viewing of Argo. In addition to prolonged periods of intensity (i.e. most of the movie) and a creative escape from a volatile political situation, there was some great 1979 facial hair in that film.

Happy Sunday!

Election Map: Can't Handle the Excitement

Here's the map I'm currently watching. It automatically refreshes every 30 seconds. I actually can't handle the excitement: http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/2012/results

Maybe I would be able to handle it better if I wasn't trying to study for a physics exam and write a genetics lab paper... My professors obviously don't think I should be aware of the goings on in our country. Or maybe they thought I would already be done with my work...

Exercise your right to vote!

I wasn't planning on posting about the election but when this showed up as an ad on Pandora, I couldn't resist.

But actually, please vote! Only a few more hours left!

Sartorialist Favorites

Just a few seconds ago, as I was snuggled under the flannel sheets of my TwinXL holed up in my cozy little dorm room  in anticipation of the arrival of hurricane Sandy, I stumbled upon one of my favorite Sartorialist photographs and figured it was about time I posted about The Sartorialist.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Scott Schuman's blog, The Sartorialist, you can read his biography here. All you really need to know is that he obviously has a nice camera, and takes pictures of cool people in exciting places.

When I originally downloaded this image on my computer, I labeled it as"sparkles, different textures, braids and ballerina skirt."

In more detail, here's what I love about the her outfit:
I love her textured crew-neck sweater because it's, like, really interesting texture, you know? Zig-zags, stripes, other patterns that I'm sure a knitter would better be able to define. I'm also a huge fan of dance clothes in and outside the studio so I love the pairing with this tulle skirt; the length of it helps make it more day-to-day wearable (as opposed to a teensy short tutu).  The white (and pink? is her skirt pinkish?)color scheme really allows her to standout among the grey and black background of the car and motorcycle. Those sunglasses just make her look really cool and that messy french-braid adds an air of "This cool look is so natural for me" as well as adding an interesting complexity to her hair, like the patterns in her sweater. Her blue bracelet provides a nice pop of color, as do her lips (is that weird that I think that?). Do you think she's wearing a tinted lip-balm, gloss, or lipstick of some sort?

I think the rhinestones on her shoes are cool but the rest of her look is more exciting to me. 

Thoughts? Anyone love her look as much as I do?

Here's a link to the original post where you can read other people's comments on the outfit, and procrastinate the work that you should really be doing by looking through the archives or "Random Posts."

Stay safe, Frankenstorm is on the prowl!

P.S. I'm still sitting in my bed.

Hypocrisy and War

Forgive me if I'm mistaken, but I've recently started to see war and violence as a bit archaic.

A few weeks ago I read about soldier Henry Fleming's battle with fear in Stephen Crane's The Red Badge of Courage and couldn't help but think how unfortunate and hypocritical war is. But actually, how often do parents and teachers tell children to "Use your words?" Growing up children are taught that violence is not the answer yet it's something adults turn to as a solution, I guess, when people won't listen.

It seems like the message they're sending is that when people won't listen, we should hit them.

Any thoughts on the effectiveness of war in conflict-resolution? Or a utilitarian reasoning of the costs and benefits of war or a specific war?


Until my next postworthy thought.